Chapter 99

Silence descended upon the wilderness. The terrifying roar of the wind and the eerie cries of the monstrous hands faded away from everyone's ears. The hand of someone holding a sword trembled slightly. Those with reddened eyes watched the foreign princess approaching at a rapid pace. Lionel was no different. The shock of seeing Adelle running towards him, which made his heart sink, was brief. A mix of conflicting emotions—worry that she might encounter trouble and joy at her return—hit him all at once. The people standing on the castle walls also immediately recognized the group that had suddenly appeared across the wilderness and the woman leading them. Karl glared at Adelle with blazing eyes and clenched his fists tightly.

"Adelaide!"

She who had declared that she would never stand by the emperor's side had returned. What could be the reason? The emperor glared down at Lionel with bloodshot eyes. As expected, he too was looking at the approaching Adelle. Despite the enormous disaster looming over his head, it seemed that the only thing important to him was her. A dark, sticky jealousy consumed Karl's heart. He pounded the castle wall with his fist and vowed. Lionel Herbert would die in this wilderness today, even if he survived the tower, that disaster. And Adelaide, that arrogant woman, would finally shed tears of blood and realize the cost of making the emperor of Echmont so miserable.

***

Meanwhile, Adelle's gaze, as she raced across the wilderness, was fixed on the massive tower.

'Grade 2 upper, or perhaps Grade 1.'

The tower's overwhelming size made even Adelle, who had destroyed countless towers, shudder. As expected, there were no mages at the base of the tower, only knights in formation. Their desperate gazes, facing death, reached Adelle through the fierce wind. Among the anxious faces, she met the calm, dark blue eyes of someone, and her agitated heart calmed down. It was fortunate that she wasn't too late. Adelle gripped her sword more firmly and urged her horse on. At that moment, the tower, which she had barely held back, began to move again, breaking through her magic. An immense pressure pressed down on her back. Adelle shook off the dizziness and clenched her teeth, pushing her way through the knights. She ran towards the center of the tower where Lionel stood, passing the knights who gradually made way for her to reach the tower. The fierce wind whipped her body as if it would throw her into the endless sky, and the shadow of the massive tower loomed closer, as if it would crush her. Adelle quickly dismounted and looked up at the sky, focusing her mind. As the wind, which had been swirling in a fixed direction, began to spread out in all directions, faint, transparent golden threads began to wrap around the tower. Though they seemed as thin as they could be broken by a touch, surprisingly, the tower's movement paused for a moment. Lionel watched Adelle with anxiety. Sweat dripped down her forehead. This tower was beyond her ability to destroy alone; she needed help. After forcefully embedding the amplifier into the ground, Adelle turned her head roughly and glared at the mages standing on the castle walls. Seeing them standing there like mere spectators, her heart boiled. She ran towards the mages. As the expressions of those who were far away began to become visible, Adelle's red eyes met someone's.

I know how secretly they have been preparing, but now is not the time to question that.

"Get out here immediately!!!"

Adelle's roar pierced Brunhild's chest like a knife. When she clenched her trembling hands, Adelle shouted at them again.

"Hurry!!!"

Duchess Despoina sneered and shouted at the mages.

"Everyone, stay in your positions!!!"

"Despoina Duke!!!"

Furious, Elizabeth shouted, but Despoina Duke ignored her and ordered the mages again.

"No one is to move!!!"

At that moment, someone threw off their cloak and ran towards Adelle with all their might.

"Brunhild Alexa!!! Can't you stop?!?"

Seeing this, Despoina Duke and Renoux Poitiers called out her name in anger, but Brunhild clenched her teeth and ran with all her might. Her chest felt like it would burst, but at the same time, she felt as light as if she had just hatched from an egg. Brunhild's defection was the tipping point. It was the final temperature needed for water to turn into steam, the last drop that made the water in the glass overflow. It was the small needle that burst the swollen anger. As Brunhild ran out, the hearts of the mages standing with her also stirred.

"Right. What else is there but to die?!"

Another person threw off their cloak and ran out, and another followed.

"What are you doing, come back!!!"

The mages, including Renoux, were in an uproar as their comrades suddenly defected.

"Moving without the emperor's permission is treason!!!"

A cry like a scream fell on their heads, but everyone tilted their heads. Why is this treason now? Tesseus, who was guarding Elizabeth, watched the chaotic situation and whispered to her, hiding her behind him.

"Cover your face with the hood and step back."

He signaled to a nearby Valdr knight to shield Elizabeth from the emperor and Despoina Duke's view. After Adelaide's deposition, the emperor's abnormal behavior and Despoina Duke's heightened vigilance had reached their peak. Even if they hadn't discovered their plans for the next day, there was a possibility that they would take advantage of this chaos to harm Elizabeth. As the only one in the current Echmont Empire who could stand against the emperor with tradition and authority, Elizabeth had to be safe until the very end.

Meanwhile, despite Renoux's calls to return, Brunhild and the mages arrived at Adelle's side one after another.

"Keepers!"

At Adelle's concise command, the Keeper mages raised their hands in unison. Adelle pointed to some of them and ordered them to stop the tower, and shouted to the others.

"Catch the falling Strikers!"

It was a strange command, but now was not the time to ask for details.

"Watch how I do it."

As soon as she finished speaking to the Strikers, Adelle ran to the amplifier she had embedded in the ground. She quickly pulled it out, stepped back, and then charged towards the tower. At the point where the updraft reached its peak, she rolled her feet and launched herself into the air, soaring high into the sky in an instant.

"How... how are we supposed to do that..."

Some were too shocked to react, while others watched Adelle with wide eyes. Brunhild also closely observed Adelle pouring magic into the core of the tower. The problem was what came next. The core of a high-grade tower is so solid that it doesn't break immediately. Adelle, who had been sucked into the tower, was quickly bounced out and escaped the airflow. Brunhild sharply called out to the Keepers, who were dumbfounded by the scene.

"Keepers, catch her!"

At the same time, the knights waiting below quickly dismounted and gathered around to catch Adelle as she fell. Fortunately, the Keepers quickly caught Adelle and safely placed her on the ground, and Lionel, who had assessed the situation, reformed the formation to catch the falling mages safely. Preparing to charge towards the tower again, Adelle and a few mages, including Brunhild, took deep breaths and looked at the tower. They then charged towards the tower in unison. Some were knocked down before they could even reach the core, while others managed to pour a small amount of magic into the core while riding the airflow.

"Catch them!!"

The knights ran to the mages that the Keepers couldn't catch. The knights caught the mages, who had slowed their descent with magic, and rolled on the ground together.

"Are you okay?!"

The knights who regained their senses quickly embraced the mages and helped them up. The mages, covered in dirt, looked at the disheveled knights and expressed their gratitude.

"Thank you."

"Don't worry, we won't let you fall!"

With a confident statement, the mage nodded and ran back towards the tower. While the Keepers held the tower, the Strikers continuously rode the updraft to destroy the core. The solid core of the massive tower began to crack helplessly under the relentless attacks. Adelle wiped the sweat from her face and ran towards the tower again. She launched herself into the air against the rising wind and stabbed the amplifier into the core, where the magic was concentrated. The inside of the tower was a passage transcending space and time. In this dimension, where there was no wind or sound, only magic filled the space. At the moment she poured all her magic into the solid core, a feeling of something breaking was transmitted through the amplifier to her fingertips. The tremor that started at her fingertips hit her scalp, and a thrilling sensation of joy was felt. The core of the tower had broken.

"No!!!"

The desperate scream of Despoina Duke, who had lost his mind, echoed loudly across the wilderness.

***

The fierce wind that had been raging calmed down. The dry grass that had been swaying as if it would be uprooted drooped weakly, and the deafening noise disappeared. Lionel, who had been supporting the mages with the knights, slowly raised his head. His dark blue eyes glowed with white flames. The flames began to wrap around the tower silently, growing stronger. Silence returned to the wilderness. The mages and knights, drenched in sweat, all raised their heads and looked at the burning massive disaster. A moment later,

"The tower is destroyed!!!"

As someone's shout echoed across the wilderness, cheers erupted from all around. Amidst the waves of cheers, Lionel alone remained silent, staring intently at the tower. As the tower began to crumble from the top, he quickly ran to the base of the tower and stretched his hand towards the sky. Against the sky, which was beginning to turn pink, she was falling rapidly. It was a familiar scene. Only, unlike that day, she too was reaching out her hand towards him.

One day, she appeared in his world like a miracle. Someone foolishly let that miracle slip through their hands, but he had no intention of letting her go. Lionel firmly clasped Adelle's hand as she descended like a divine being. As the two smiled at each other, a thunderous roar erupted from the castle walls.

"Adelaide!!!"

At the sharp cry, Adelle let go of Lionel's hand and looked at the castle walls. The emperor, gripping the wall as if he would fall, glared at her. At the same time, Despoina Duke, who was beside the emperor, shouted thunderously.

"Immediately, arrest the mages who moved without the emperor's permission!!!"