MTLNOVEL Chapter 61
Chapter 61
Sieg's mind went blank at the unexpected words of the commander.
'What nonsense is this guy spouting now?'
The Delfoa Knights were essentially zero in combat power.
Without the long-range attacks of the mages, the Delfoa Knights were nothing more than sturdy shields.
Knowing such a situation, the fact that the commander deliberately came late and put on such an act was nonsensical.
With Sieg standing dumbfounded, the commander's face turned red as he yelled at the top of his lungs.
"Who told you to provoke the enemies when you were supposed to be on a scouting mission! Did they teach you that way in Valhalla!"
Sieg silently listened to the commander's words.
Andre, who had accompanied him as the leader, also observed Sieg's reaction without saying a word and decided to watch the situation quietly.
After a lengthy outburst, the commander heaved a sigh of frustration and turned his head towards Andre.
"Take the students and leave the scene immediately! I will address this directly with Valhalla!"
Andre was taken aback by the irrational response but decided to wait and see how Sieg would react.
He had come along primarily to assess Sieg's capabilities in situations like this and was curious about his response.
At that moment, Sieg slowly opened his mouth.
"Does this mean that our cooperative relationship with Delfoa has ended?"
The commander was momentarily flustered by Sieg's words.
"Wha- what did you say?"
"So if it's not a troop dispatch, there's no need to follow the commander's orders any longer."
The commander's eyes wavered severely.
Seeing the commander like that, Sieg took a step closer and said,
"From now on, we'll carry out our own missions here. So it'd be best if you stopped bossing us around."
"Wha- what! This is Delfoa's territory! Who do you think you are to dare..."
Andre, who had been standing behind, intervened at that moment.
"The Black Yaksha is registered as a continental villain. Both Sieg and I have received official Knight Order from the Draker family, which allows us to conduct independent missions with a report afterward."
The commander's forehead dripped with cold sweat as the situation veered in a direction entirely different from what he had anticipated.
It was too late for him to retract his previous statements.
Clenching his teeth tightly, he shouted out,
"Damn it! Go ahead and carry out your mission or whatever you wish!"
With that, he retreated to the rear with his mages.
Initially, he intended to withdraw his troops, but it seemed like he chose to set up camp without descending the mountain to keep an eye on Sieg's actions.
This turn of events left Jorge, leading the 8th Knight Order, in a bind.
Without the mages, attacking the fortress was impossible, and they couldn't do much on their own either.
Sieg approached Jorge at that moment.
"Captain Jorge. There's something I'd like to ask."
At Sieg's words, Jorge tensed up.
"Wha- what is it?"
"I'm curious if the commander truly wants to capture the Black Yaksha."
Jorge tightly shut his lips and, after a while, responded.
"We may not be on par with the knights of the Draker family, but we are knights nonetheless. What knight would willingly neglect a vile villain tormenting our citizens?"
Jorge and the other knights clenched their fists tightly.
Sieg sensed their sincerity from their reactions.
He said to Jorge,
"If the commander feels that way, I'd like to ask for your help."
"Help? What kind of help?"
"Yes, I'd like to infiltrate the fortress and capture the Black Yaksha."
Jorge was taken aback by Sieg's words.
"My, my gosh. You intend to do this without the help of mages?"
"Well, it seems the mages have little intention of capturing the Black Yaksha."
Jorge was speechless at Sieg's words.
Indeed, for the past few years, the mage-led extermination squad had merely skirmished in small engagements in front of the fortress.
Furthermore, the mages would launch a few spells safely from the rear, and even those attacks were half-hearted, resulting in injuries and deaths mostly among Jorge's subordinate knights.
Sieg said to Jorge,
"If you assist me, we can remove the Black Yaksha from Delfoa today."
Jorge and the other knights exchanged glances.
They nodded in unison, having reached a consensus.
Jorge said to Sieg,
"What are we to do?"
* * *
As the night deepened, silence engulfed the fortress.
At one point, the 8th Knight Order stood with their thick shields in front of the fortress.
Then they drew their swords and began striking their shields.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The loud clanking of swords against shields echoed throughout the mountains.
The sudden noise seemed to stir up chaos on the fortress side.
Following Sieg's instructions, Jorge and the knights continued to shift positions, creating further racket.
Soon, mercenaries holding torches appeared on the fortress walls.
"Are those guys crazy!"
They began shooting arrows at the knights.
Ping!
The knights blocked the incoming arrows with their sturdy shields.
Having fought the mercenaries atop the fortress for years, the 8th Knight Order were adept at shield techniques.
While the knights drew attention at the front of the fortress, Sieg and his group moved towards the rear.
Having interrogated a patrol earlier, they had already identified a passage leading into the fortress.
Sieg led the group quietly towards the passage.
He swiftly climbed the fortress wall, silently eliminating a mercenary perched atop the wall with a dagger, then opened the gate.
Seeing the neatly handled dead mercenaries, Diego and Aster stuck out their tongues in amazement.
'Sieg bro. Scary yo!'
'Ugh, maybe I should have avoided early graduation.'
Each occupied with their own thoughts, the group followed Sieg into the fortress.
It was then.
Thud thud thud thud!
A figure on horseback swiftly emerged from inside the fortress.
Enhancing his sight with Dragon Eyes, Sieg identified the rider's face.
'Black Yaksha!'
The appearance matched the description Sieg had seen before the mission.
He said to Andre,
"I will chase after him. Go inside, create chaos, open the main gate, and release a flare. That will prevent the mages from holding out any longer."
Andre nodded at Sieg's words.
Sieg promptly pursued the fleeing Black Yaksha on horseback.
Whoosh!
Emerging from the fortress, Sieg summoned Bucephalus.
"Bucephalus, let's catch that rogue."
As a mythical beast horse rather than an ordinary horse, bucephalus was, in fact, the king among drake horses boasting unimaginable speeds.
Bucephalus leaped across the mountainous terrain as if it were flat land, quickly closing in on the Black Yaksha.
With Sieg closing in, the Black Yaksha turned his body to shoot a crossbow bolt at him.
Ping!
Sieg deflected the arrow with Dragonscale Armor, unfazed.
Drawing Bahamut, he approached the Black Yaksha and swung his sword at his side.
BOOM!
Unable to withstand the force of Bahamut's enhanced strength, the Black Yaksha tumbled off his horse.
Whoosh!
Sieg too dismounted Bucephalus and approached the fallen Black Yaksha.
"In such a dark night, where in the world are you rushing off to?"
The Black Yaksha immediately stood up, drawing his sword.
It was a deformed weapon with a serrated blade.
Most outlaws had such deformed weapons, often employing unconventional techniques.
Well aware of this, Sieg wasn't surprised as he adjusted his grip on Bahamut, provoking the Black Yaksha.
"Come at me."
Whoosh!
The Black Yaksha lunged in with a low stance, swinging his deform sword.
Clang!
Sieg's sword, imbued with his strength, effortlessly parried the Black Yaksha's blow.
Slightly shocked, the Black Yaksha winced in pain from his wrist.
"You're not a Delfoan scoundrel... Who are you?"
With an impassive face, Sieg replied to the Black Yaksha.
"How does knowing change anything?"
Just then, the Black Yaksha spat something at Sieg.
Splash!
Poison sand spewed towards Sieg's face.
『Desert scorpion venom detected.』
『The effect of the Immunity to Hundred Poisons constitution negates the venom's influence.』
Desert scorpion venom was a paralyzing poison used by assassins in desert regions.
As expected of an outlaw, he had quite a few dirty tricks up his sleeve.
Brushing away the poison sand, Sieg slowly advanced towards the Black Yaksha.
Surprised by Sieg's immunity to his poison, the Black Yaksha questioned,
"Where are you from? Salmak? Or is it from the southern border region?"
"You have quite the curiosity."
Swinging his sword towards the Black Yaksha, Sieg revealed his unwillingness to divulge anything.
BOOM!
The Black Yaksha, losing balance from Sieg's sheer force, sprawled on the ground.
'For someone registered as a continental villain, he should have at least the skills of a blue-tier knight... Is he hiding his abilities?'
Sieg approached the downed Black Yaksha.
Then,
Whoosh!
Hidden projectiles launched at Sieg.
Unseen tiny needles bombarded Sieg, but ensconced in his scales mail, he deflected them all, feigning to be hit.
"Urk!"
As Sieg retreated, the Black Yaksha leapt up, adopting an entirely different stance.
Buzz!
An aura blade surged from the Black Yaksha's sword.
Indeed, he had been concealing his abilities.
Observing the Black Yaksha's movement, Sieg swiftly identified the swordsmanship.
'Imperial swordsmanship. Particularly from the intelligence bureau.'
Whoosh!
Charging in swiftly to slash at Sieg's neck, the Black Yaksha moved in for the kill.
At the very moment when his sword was about to reach Sieg's throat,
Crackle!
Electrifying energy coursed through the Black Yaksha's body, leaving him momentarily incapacitated.
"Graaagh!"
Having prepared Bahamut with an electric skill, Sieg had thrust the electrified sword into the Black Yaksha's body.
Crackle!
As the Black Yaksha writhed on the ground, jolted by the electric discharge, the mask obscuring his face burned away, revealing his true visage.
'He's younger than I expected.'
Rising slowly to his feet, Sieg noticed something peculiar about the Black Yaksha's state.
He was foaming at the mouth, rolling his eyes back, and convulsing violently.
"Damn it!"
Sieg momentarily forgot just how wicked the imperial intelligence bureau operatives were.
Quickly fetching an antidote potion, Sieg poured it down the Black Yaksha's throat.
"Gack!"
Fortunately, as the poison hadn't fully spread through his system, the antidote was able to neutralize the toxin.
To be safe, Sieg even administered a healing potion down the Black Yaksha's throat.
As the forcibly healed Black Yaksha desperately tried to end his own life, Sieg dislocated his jaw, preventing him from biting his tongue.
"Urrrrgh."
Looking at the Black Yaksha, Sieg remarked,
"I'm quite curious why someone from the intelligence bureau would play the role of a continental villain, causing this chaos in Delfoa."
Aghast at the mention of the intelligence bureau, the Black Yaksha's face turned pale.
Being a secret operative from the bureau meant his identity was one of the highest secrets.
Desperate to end his own life, Sieg, staring knowingly at him, shook his head in refusal.
"You don't get to die just because you want to. Share something worthwhile, and perhaps then, you can."
Despair lingered in the Black Yaksha's eyes upon realizing that Sieg, with eyes akin to a professional in the field, would not be an easy opponent.
Dragging the paralyzed Black Yaksha into a nearby cave, Sieg unsheathed a dagger.
"You're probably familiar with ordinary interrogations."
Sieg charged the dagger with electrical energy.
"But this, I imagine, will be a first for you."
Crackle!
Electricity surged and lacerated the Black Yaksha's skin through the dagger.
Afterward, Sieg administered a potion to restore his health, only to cut into his skin again.
Death was unattainable, and consciousness was restored each time he appeared to near unconsciousness with the potions.
It was literal hell.
Unable to withstand Sieg's persistent questioning, the Black Yaksha eventually yielded.
"Are you prepared to talk now?"
The Black Yaksha nodded weakly.
Upon realigning his jaw, the Black Yaksha tested his movement and spoke weakly,
"... What do you want to know?"
Sieg leaned in.
"Let's start with your identity and what you've been doing here."
After a moment's hesitation, the Black Yaksha began to speak, glancing nervously at the crackling energy coursing through Sieg's dagger.
"... I'm an operative with the 13th Division of the Imperial Intelligence Bureau."
"The 13th Division, huh. I thought the Imperial Intelligence Bureau only went up to the 12th. Seems like there's a special division managing undercover operatives like you."
The Black Yaksha was visibly shocked by Sieg's knowledge.
Only a handful inside the Empire even knew the Bureau had up to the 12th Division.
Not letting up, Sieg continued pressing the Black Yaksha.
"So, what exactly were you doing here?"
The Black Yaksha answered hesitantly,
"... I was conducting experiments."
"Experiments, you say. What kind of experiments?"
Taking a deep breath, the Black Yaksha revealed,
"... On stimulants."