Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 284



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Episode 284. The Opponent (5)

Demon King, Terror of the East, Stealer of Castles and Cities, Collector of Crowns, Ruler of Ten Thousand Horses.

As is often the case with those with great fame and power, Sahul Khan had many titles to refer to.

Like all the Khans of the past, Sahullan was a leader with great strength, intelligence, and ambition. Even if he had not been like that, the wise angel ‘Yellow Heaven’ who assisted and guided all the Khans of the past would have made him like that.

But if there was one flaw in Sahullan that even the underworld could not fix, it was his somewhat distorted love for horses. His love for horses went beyond the simple affection of a trainer or breeder and reached a realm of obscureness.

Of course, Sahullan was not the first orc like that, nor would he be the last. The many Keshiks that are born only from the Olkan discipline prove that this taste is by no means a minor taste.

Since dumb horses cannot testify about their fathers, each successive khan adopted and raised all Keshiks as his own children. Even Ol Khan was suspected of being overly protective and loving of horses, so no one ever questioned Sahullan on his sexual preferences.

So Atlan frowned but was not surprised when Sahullan came up to the top of the mountain leading his steed.

‘No matter how high you are, are you in your right mind to bring your lover to the battlefield?’

It would have been a sentence that would have seemed daunting to other people just thinking about it, but to the orcs, it wasn’t particularly strange.

As the Khan approached, the Keshiks knelt down as was their custom and waited for him to pass. Atlan did the same. He saw the steed of Sahullan pass by, leaving hooves behind.

Sahullan was a common orc, but he had a large build similar to that of the Keshiks. It would not be strange to call him a giant.

He was now nearly sixty years old, quite old for an orc who lived his life without any care. However, his muscles were still as strong and sturdy as a sturdy warhorse.

“Is that the Isacre territory?”

Sahullan asked, looking down at the foot of Mount Gelifard. The low-hanging fog was quivering abnormally beneath the rugged mountainside. Along the winding path of the mountain, between steep valleys, small farmlands, villages, and castles were connected.

Sahullan glanced at Atlan and muttered.

“I didn’t know that in a rural village like this, there would be someone you couldn’t defeat.”

“… … That guy is a monster. This is not a metaphor, it’s real.”

“I heard. You used tentacles?”

Atlan nodded.

He reported his experience to Sahullan without omission. Several other souls who had been hunted by Isaac and narrowly escaped gave similar reports.

The implication was clear. Isaac was not a Knight of the Code of Light. He was something strange, from some incomprehensible realm.

But there was no way to use this. If I spread it to my allies, it would only incite fear, and if I spread it to my enemies, they wouldn’t believe it. I tried telling it to a captured priest as a test, but he didn’t seem to believe me at all.

Sahullan tilted his head for a moment, seeming to ponder Isaac’s identity.

“If that guy is the monster I think he is… … he’s probably just wearing human skin, but inside he’s no different from a monster. The Code of Light wouldn’t tolerate him in the first place, so I don’t understand why he’s going out of his way to side with them.”

“It might be a ploy to destroy it from within.”

“That may be so. But it is a trivial trick. The Code of Light is not a faith that can be destroyed by conspiracy. They are the most solid among the settlers, like the foundation.”

Purrrrrr. Sahullan stroked the back of the neck of the steed standing next to him as it snorted. The steed, named Ortea, was quite old considering the lifespan of horses, but Sahullan’s pure love for her still seemed to be intact. She was also Atlan’s biological mother, but Atlan did not try to be conscious of that fact.

“Yes. As Ortea said, only overwhelming force can bring them down. Not some unknown monster.”

“……okay.”

Sahullan looked at the Isacre territory, snorted, and stepped back.

“I thought my opponent would be a warrior like Emperor Baltzemer or Dera Heman. I thought I would encounter them deep within the Empire, not in a remote area like this.”

As he spoke, he took out the large bow on Ortea’s back. It was a large bow the size of an average orc. This bow was made by Olkan himself after capturing an eastern dragon, and it was impossible for an ordinary orc to even measure the bowstring.

No, originally only Khan was allowed to hold it.

And this bow had a name that would make anyone bow their head in respect to the rules of the Olkan, even the Khan had to be treated with respect.

Sahul Khan fired an arrow made of steel into the ‘Yellow Heaven’. The iron arrow drew back, releasing an eerie scream.

The ancestors who dwell in the underworld are not ordinary people. Khans are not allowed to reincarnate. Instead, they are obliged to dwell in the underworld after death and advise and strengthen their successors.

If the Ten Thousand Living Beings were beings who had experienced thousands of lives, then the Underworld was a being where a hundred or so Khans were gathered together as one.

As the underworld let out a distant scream, the Keshiks hastily retreated. Sahul Khan did not wait for them to prepare themselves, but let go of his bowstring.

A storm blew in.

***

Isaac was able to learn what strategies and policies the Olkan Discipline had in return for poking around in the head of General Daron Manho. Having acquired valuable military secrets, Isaac was able to devise a plan to stop the Olkan Discipline more easily.

But from late noon onwards I felt the movement of the Olkan discipline begin to change.

‘what?’

Last night’s raid had tired out the orcs, but the enemy had not moved from the ridge since morning. Considering that the decay was continuing in real time, it was strange that they should have hurried even a little.

And Isaac didn’t like this incomprehensible movement.

‘Hesabel, do you see anything from the enemies?’

Hesabel was on top of Nel in Isaac’s stead, watching the orcs’ movements from above. Hesabel’s daytime vision was not very good, but thanks to the ‘rats in the walls’ planted, Isaac was able to share in the vision.

‘No, it hasn’t moved since last night. Um, but there’s been some movement on the mountain peak to the northeast… … .’

‘movement?’

‘You know those orc-horse guys? Keshik? There seem to be quite a few of them over there. And there’s also this big orc… … Wow, it’s almost as big as a person riding a horse.’

Isaac’s mind snapped. There aren’t many orcs that big. And Keshik is guarding only one orc.

Sahul Khan, he appeared on the battlefield.

‘Hesabel, take Nel and leave immediately.’

‘yes.’

Hesabel prepared to fall back without questioning Isaac’s words. However, even as she fell back, her reconnaissance continued.

‘Oh, he’s measuring some kind of arrow right now… … Is he really going to shoot from here all the way to the city? Does that make sense?’

Isaac started to run quickly. At the same time, he ordered all his followers to get out of their places and move immediately. However, Isaac could not run faster than the speed of an arrow.

Isaac’s vision showed trees being torn apart. A cloud of dust followed, and a shock wave split the mountain range several times. An explosion occurred somewhere in the valley.

And then a loud explosion shook the Gelliford Mountains.

The arrow, which had broken through the speed of sound, exploded the moment it hit the ground, uprooting dozens of trees and throwing them into the air. It wasn’t just any arrow. The ground shook around the arrow that had been stuck in the ground, causing a localized earthquake.

Landslides occurred throughout the Gelrifford Range.

Isaac quickly climbed up the ridge and looked for the spot where the arrow had struck. He saw a desolate crater, as if some kind of mortar had hit it. It was exactly where the fort had been built in the Perth Valley.

The narrow path that could have been blocked by just two or three knights was now an open road.

Isaac had a gut feeling that the shock would cause all the barriers and barriers he had built over the past few weeks to come crashing down.

‘Isaac? What the hell is that? Wait, wait, that’s… … .’

Hesabel’s urgent will was heard and then suddenly stopped. Isaac looked up at the sky. Nell was at such a high altitude that she looked like a small bird, but it was meaningless in the face of this terrible disaster.

The moment Nell suddenly turned the orbit, the red dot fell rapidly. The clouds were torn apart along an invisible trajectory. Once again, the sound of the explosion echoed deafeningly through the mountains.

‘Hesabel, come to your senses!’

Nel flapped her wings a few times before falling to the ground at a speed close to crashing, and Hesabel flapped her wings with difficulty as she came to her senses after falling. However, she ended up crash-landing somewhere in the forest.

There was only one weapon that could create such a disaster.

The underworld. An angel who appears in the form of a tool.

Of course, it also has its true form in Urbansus, but the Nether in the form of a bow was one of the few highest-level relics that could borrow the power of angels.

If you just shoot the hellfire at random, it won’t be a problem to completely destroy the entire Isacre territory.

Isaac felt his head burn, but thankfully no more hellfire came flying at him.

‘There is a limit to the number of times you can use it in the underworld. The burden on the user is also great. It is more appropriate to treat it as a tactical weapon rather than an ordinary bow.’

But that meant that Sahullan had judged that he could deal with Isaac even if he used only this much. Isaac had a hard time erasing the unpleasant feeling that he had survived thanks to his enemy’s carelessness and negligence.

But at the same time, I felt a thrill that more than outweighed my discomfort at the fact that Sahullan had come in person.

‘So that means you’ve decided that I’m a worthy opponent.’

Isaac gritted his teeth with an eerie smile.

‘Okay, then I’ll be your tasty bait.’

If Khan thought he could fight with just a few soldiers, curses, and retinue, he was very mistaken.

The Isacre territory was already a gigantic trap designed to devour the Olkan discipline. Now the question was whether or not the trap could catch the unprecedentedly large tiger known as Sahul Khan.

***

Phew─ Phew─

Just as Sahul Khan’s iron fist struck the mountain range, horns could be heard here and there. Only then did the orcs who had been waiting begin to advance again. Now, the orcs’ footsteps as they descended the slope were much quicker and lighter than before.

Kraxal Manhojang snickered as he watched the crude traps built along the slope collapse due to the earthquake created by the Yellow Heavens.

Are these little tricks really all there is to strategy? To undermine morale and block supply?

Although he was clever, he was meaningless in the face of overwhelming power. Even the shamans were preparing a ritual for full-scale revenge.

High up in the mountains, three shaman generals were gathered together to perform a ritual.

The earthquake created by Sahul Khan was a kind of ritual to drive away the evil energy from the land. He just added a little practicality to the location of the arrows.

Teherma, the general-shaman who directly assisted Sahul Khan, danced, waved a staff with feathers and paper, and recited ritual rites. A red-lacquered table before them was piled high with local fruits.

Soon after, teeth marks suddenly appeared on the fruits.

Crunch, crunch, crunch. The fruits piled up in an instant, leaving only their skeletons behind.

Teherma, sweating profusely, recited the prayer more quickly and then suddenly swung his staff towards the west.

Thud thud thud. Suddenly, orcish footprints appeared on the ground soaked with sweat. And the reaction immediately appeared in the Isacre territory.

“What, what is it!”

A villager who was trying to get out the newly smoked meat from the warehouse was shocked to see the food being chewed up by something invisible right before his eyes. He tried to grab the meat in a hurry, but his finger was chewed off, and he screamed and retreated. Only then did he realize that this was some other evil miracle, and he ran to the monastery to find a priest.

But he could not get help in time, because similar things were already happening even in the monastery, and the priests were busy defending it.

Throughout the Isacre territory, bread, meat, cheese, and even unharvested wheat were being chewed up and disappearing whole.

A swarm of demons of Olkan discipline.

It was a miracle created using the souls of starving orcs. They were evil spirits that did not touch anything alive, but would chew and swallow anything they perceived as ‘food’ and send it to Urbansus.

In response to the Miracle of Corruption, the Isacre territory was being pillaged by evil spirits for food.