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Harold could not admit it. This power was a forbidden power. It was a last resort that would surely result in the loss of reason and life if used.

He had lost everything. That was why he had thrown away his life and used such ugly power to kill Giselle.

But that power didn't work.

I used strength that I thought I would never use again until I died, and yet I was pushed back!

"Eww!"

Harold screamed and threw his fists indiscriminately, but his attacks were no different from those of a commoner swinging his fists carelessly.

Squeak!

Giselle cut off Harold's wrist.

"Kwaaak!"

This time, the cut was shockingly easy and blood gushed out. Harold hesitated and stepped back with a pained expression.

Jiselle narrowed her eyes at the sight.

'It's a little different, after all.'

The level of Mana training method definitely seemed lower than what I had seen in my previous life.

If you go full rage, you won't even feel pain until your head is blown off. You won't even come to your senses like that.

Didn't Vanessa come to her senses only when her core was broken and she was on the verge of death?

But Harold was so clumsy that he almost became a monster.

Indeed, Harold cried out with a bloody face in disbelief.

"How! How can you possibly withstand this power! This transcendent power that the Duke gave you!"

"The Duke… … ?"

Only then did Jiselle understand the situation. After all, that mana training method was not a training method that an individual possessed. It was something that the Duke had created and distributed to his subordinates.

But to teach something like that to Harold, a high-ranking nobleman, and to do it with something that was significantly weaker than what he had seen in his previous life.

'Does that ridiculous mana training method also have levels? Or is it something that the workshop is continuously improving?'

Certainly, in my previous life, I met these guys after a much longer period of time. Each of us may have learned something different, and it may have developed over time.

In my previous life, I didn't think much of it and just let it go, but now I find it annoying that I'm pursuing effects similar to what I've learned.

I wanted to ask him all sorts of questions, but there was no way Harold would tell me properly.

'By the way, transcendent power? Are you saying that you believed in it so much with just that much?'

The power I saw in my previous life wasn't that weak. It made even an ordinary knight display master-level power.

Jiselle nodded as if she understood.

"It is clear that the Mana training method is still being improved by the Duke."

If there was a high-level training method I had seen in my past life, there's no way I would have given something so low-level to someone as important as Harold.

"… … How did you do that?"

Harold asked back with a shocked expression. This was a secret known only to a very few people in the dukedom.

But didn't Jiselle say that she knew that the Duke's house was continuing to research and improve the Mana training method?

"What the heck… What the heck are you talking about!"

Seeing Harold having a seizure, Giselle lowered the core's opening level by one more level. There was no need to maintain level 3 anymore.

Harold's body began to shrink and age rapidly.

When the mana cycle is broken, you can no longer use your strength as you wish, and your vitality goes wild and is consumed more quickly.

Seeing Harold like that, Giselle snickered and said.

"Let's say I came back from the dead."

"what?"

"To get rid of you and the Duke."

"Yes, you… … you! You! Me!"

Harold could no longer lift a sword. He could only scream and cry bloody tears.

Thud, thud.

Jiselle slowly walked towards Harold.

If we just wait like this, Harold will wither and die. But… … .

"Such a death is not a luxury for you."

The Duke was the one who instigated the destruction of Ferdium, but the one who carried it out was Harold.

He killed Elena, instigated the land war, and eventually trampled on Ferdium. And in this life, he has been using numerous tricks to destroy Ferdium.

It was impossible to kill him so easily, as he had been active in the North for a long time.

Jiselle lifted Harold's sword and injected mana into it.

Quasi-snap.

The blade broke into several pieces, which fell to the ground.

Jiselle smiled as she floated them with her Mana thread.

"It is time for you to pay for what you have done, Earl Harold Desmond."

Papapapapak!

"Kkaaaaaaah!"

Harold let out a scream of pain as sword fragments were embedded all over his body.

The fragments constantly stimulated his nerves. The pain was so intense that instead of fainting, his mind became more and more lucid.

"Eww!"

Harold lay there covered in blood, screaming all the time.

Harold, who had been having seizures like that for a long time, finally stopped when he was a complete old man and had lost all his hair and teeth.

He opened his mouth as if he was mustering up the last of his strength.

"You bastard… … The Duke must… … ."

In that way, Harold died with his mouth open and not even able to close his eyes properly.

Jiselle looked at the sight for a moment and then muttered in a dry voice.

"What a miserable death, befitting you."

——————

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News of Harold's death quickly spread throughout Desmond's camp.

As soon as they heard the news that the center had already collapsed and they were surrounded by the Ferdium and Royal Army, they were busy throwing down their weapons and surrendering or running away.

Gordon, the senior knight of Fenris, was the first to run to Giselle. He shouted in a joyful voice even though blood was pouring out of his mouth.

"We won! My Lord! We won! This is a great victory! We have defeated Desmond's Army, the strongest in the North!"

"Wow!"

Soon, shouts rang out from all directions. A historic victory was achieved against an army of 30,000 men.

While everyone was rejoicing, Giselle spoke to Gordon with a stern expression.

"Right now, everyone who can move, get on horseback and follow me."

"Huh? Why all of a sudden? Shouldn't we clear the battlefield, get some loot, and rest?"

"I'll leave the battlefield cleanup to my father and the Royal Army. Tell them I'll thank you later. Get moving quickly. We need to capture Desmond's castle and the major fortresses right now."

"Desmond?"

Gordon looked puzzled. Desmond's main force had already been annihilated. The place was empty and there was no one to guard it.

All they have to do is just confidently go in and take it in. Who would dare interfere with them?

Even if someone tries to occupy the empty house, the war has just ended. It will take time to know the outcome and make a move.

Even if he wanted to lead the army right away, it would take time to prepare.

And there is a just cause here. Fighting against this army, which includes the royal army? There was no one in the North who would do that.

"Why are you going already? It's already ours. No one can touch it, no one is worth touching."

Gordon brought up something he knew to be perfectly common sense, but Giselle shook her head.

I don't know about others, but there's one guy in the North who could do it.

A man who has already prepared his army, can move faster than anyone else, and is not afraid of the royal army.

They will definitely send people to keep an eye on the situation here, and they will move as soon as they get the results.

Now it was a fight to see who could get Desmond faster.

"I'll explain later. Just move quickly."

Jiselle immediately got on the Black King. Everyone was exhausted from the battle, so it was difficult to move quickly. They had to move as quickly as possible.

Before they could enjoy the joy of victory, Giselle and Fenris's army moved quickly towards Desmond.

* * *

"S-save me!"

"We made a mistake!"

"I will give you my ample reward!"

The bloodied lords were bound and kneeling, their mouths pouring out ceaseless pleas for their lives.

The person the lords were begging for was none other than Amelia, whom they had attacked.

The northern lords formed an alliance and attacked Amelia with great vigour, but were quickly destroyed and taken prisoner.

Amelia, who had been listening to the lords' pleas, spoke in a languid voice.

"You all gathered your strength and attacked me from behind, and now you ask me to spare your life?"

The captured lords cried out in thought.

"I did not surrender! According to custom, spare my life!"

"I will never be your enemy again!"

"I will give you half of the estate's wealth! As my ransom!"

It was a desperate plea. But Amelia spoke without even lifting an eyebrow.

"I won't let those who attack me get away with it. Deal with them."

Meow.

With Bastet's cries in the background, the knights standing nearby dragged the lords away.

"Hey, listen! Please save me!"

"Didn't we surrender?"

"You wicked, wicked woman! Even after I die, I will not leave you alone!"

The lords were dragged away, spewing out pleas, curses, and insults. Amelia, who had been watching them without much emotion until the end, frowned slightly when she saw the castle in the distance.

"Baron Valois… … Still cowering in the castle."

Even though we tried to lure him while welcoming the Allied forces, Baron Valois did not come out.

Even though a sufficiently advantageous situation was created, they did not come over.

Amelia didn't know it, but in fact, Baron Valois had also planned to leave when the Allied forces arrived. He thought that if he joined forces with the Allied forces, he would have a good chance of winning.

But the advice or warning he had received from Giselle continued to linger in his mind.

[No matter what happens, never go outside the castle to fight. Even if it seems like an opportunity, it is not an opportunity.]

The opportunity had clearly come, but the content of the letter, as if it had been expected, kept bothering me.

What further fueled his worries was none other than Dave.

"Let's get out there! Let's go out there and completely destroy that woman! The Northern Lords are here, so we can win!"

Daven, the fourth son of Leipold, is a pitiful character who is good at nothing except drinking and being a womanizer.

I couldn't believe it even more when that guy told me to leave.

I was so worried that I ended up missing the timing to leave.

The Baron Valois, who was feeling sorry, saw a surprising sight.

The 5,000 Northern Allied forces were annihilated by Leipold's forces without even putting up a fight.

Baron Valois felt a chill down his spine when he saw the sight. Even if he had gone out, the result would not have been much different.

'As expected… … You were deliberately making the siege passive. Are you saying you were aiming for that kind of situation?'

Baron Valois's worries deepened. He could hold out longer if he wanted to, but the outcome was already decided.

'Amelia… … What a scary woman. It wasn't luck that she succeeded in her rebellion. What a pity. If she had been born a man, she would have been a better successor than anyone else.'

As he thought about it, Daven, whom he was protecting, seemed more and more pitiful.

After the destruction of the Northern Alliance, Daven became brooding and stayed in his room every day. He was so scared that he would be killed by Amelia that he couldn't even come out.

But what can he do? He was indebted to the former Count Leipold and had sworn loyalty to him. Whether it was love or hate, he had to protect Daven and fight against the usurper Amelia.

After several days of lying still like a cornered rat, something unbelievable happened.

Leipold's army quickly disbanded and began preparing to withdraw.

'What… why are you stepping down?'

Baron Valois did not know it, but it was news of the war between Giselle and Harold that saved their lives.

The messenger who had been observing the situation in the Fenris territory rushed over without looking any further as soon as Fenris' victory was certain. That was because that was what Amelia had ordered.

"I haven't confirmed whether Earl Desmond is alive or dead, but Fenris's army has completely seized the upper hand. Desmond's main force has been annihilated, and the remaining forces are surrounded by Ferdium's army and the 3rd Army. There is no way for Desmond to win."

Amelia smiled crookedly, her eyes shining.

"Gisel… … I didn't know he would be this bad. Even with the support of the royal army, he was able to defeat Harold's 30,000-strong army."

I had thought that I would never win, but Jiselle was no pushover. No, now I had no choice but to admit that she was truly amazing.

Now that Harold has been destroyed, the title of Strongest in the North will go to Giselle.

If he takes full control of Desmond's estate.

But Amelia had no intention of letting Giselle take over so easily.

She ordered Bernap with a cold look in her eyes.

"Prepare to withdraw immediately. We will capture Desmond first."

As Giselle watched Harold die, Leipold's army led by Amelia began to advance towards Desmond.