The Berserker’s Second Playthrough in the Game - Chapter 248



Only Krnovel

Episode 248. A brief counterattack (2)

The effect of the 8th decagram, the ‘Star that Spreads the Gospel’, is to make those who have earnestly memorized the gospel into evangelists who spread the gospel.

Its ripple effect was enough to exceed that of any high-ranking devil. Approximately 5,000 people converted from Delutana to the Gospel in just one day. Fortunately, most of the gospel bodies were able to return to their original state without any major problems thanks to Kadim’s summoning of the ‘Unbranched Devourer’ and the destruction of the ‘Gospel Spreading Star’.

But there were also those who had committed irreparable acts.

They usually harmed family and friends who were nearby. After regaining my sanity, I realized that I had killed my own flesh and blood, and I lost my mind. Moreover, with the uneasy looks from people around him added, the people who had become evangelists said that he was miserable.

Children were no exception. In fact, the situation was worse for children. Since they were untainted, the percentage of children who ‘earnestly’ memorized the gospel as they were told was higher. Those children who suddenly killed their parents and became orphans were called Elgar’s little devils and were treated by people as if they were monsters.

So when Duncan announced that he would establish an orphanage in the name of the Wheeled family and take in the children, even Julia couldn’t help but express concern. What if the children suddenly turn and harm the innocent children?

But Duncan’s will was stubborn.

‘Hoo, don’t worry. The Lord said that unlike those possessed by the devil, they won’t suffer any aftereffects. And… … ‘

‘… … .’

‘… … ‘Everyone thinks that way and leaves their children on the streets, so shouldn’t we take them away?’

In the end, Julia also agreed to that idea. Afterwards, he assumed the position of director and took charge of the establishment and operation of the orphanage. Fortunately, the children did not run amok, as Kadim had assured them.

Another fortunate thing was that children’s heads were quite soft.

When we tried to make them forget the circumstances of the gospel and persistently convinced them that their families had gone to support the war, surprisingly, the children soon came to believe it. It was a defense mechanism that was triggered to forget the terrible memories.

Nevertheless, quite a few people were anxious for a while, but that is now a thing of the past. Thanks to Duncan’s continued support, both material and spiritual, and the great care given by Julia and her family, most of the children were successfully adapting to life at the orphanage.

“Wait a minute, wait a minute! Let’s take a short break and then… … Hey, it’s Mr. Duncan!”

“Oh, it’s real!! It’s Uncle Duncan! “Uncle Duncan is here!!”

“Wow!! It’s the bearded man!!”

“Dad!”

“… … .”

Dunsen and the children, who discovered Duncan, came running towards him, smiling brightly. He wiped all the worry from his face and immediately played the role of a childish villain in a theatrical manner.

“Hahaha! That’s right, kids! I, Duncan Wheeled, the ‘Reaper of Silver Mirror Lake’, have returned! What kind of fearless warriors will stand against this fearsome Reaper today!”

“Aaaah! It’s a monster! Help me!!”

“Hey, me! “I will fight back!!”

“It’s a beard monster!! “Give it to me, you evil monster!!”

Even if it is a precarious peace built on white lies in the midst of war… … Hoping for this peace to last as long as possible, Duncan hung out with the children at the orphanage with great enthusiasm.

“Warriors! Defeat the evil monsters!!”

“For the glory of the brilliant alliance, and for Remillion!”

“Ugh, now, wait a minute! Well, don’t pull on your beard… … .”

… … It wasn’t very peaceful that way, but it lasted until sunset anyway.

A few months ago, Duncan crossed half of the continent in five days. Even for him, it wasn’t easy to deal with small humans with infinite stamina all day long. As soon as Julia’s call to eat dinner spread, he retreated like a villain promising to have a future day.

But before leaving the orphanage, I discovered a sight I couldn’t just pass up.

Scrap, clap, clap –

“… … .”

An image of a girl scraping down a tree with a rock. There were already hundreds of scratches on the tree bark.

“… … Hey, honey? what are you doing?”

Squeak, rustle, rustle –

“Have you been like that all day? Why, why don’t you play with other kids… … .”

Crunch, crunch, crunch… … .

“Hey, stop bothering that poor tree and go eat some dinner now… … .”

Scrap, clap, clap –

“… … .”

Duncan frowned. It was somehow creepy to see him just keep scratching the tree without answering.

Now that I think about it, this girl was also one of the children who were evangelical.

A vague memory came to mind. The image of him wandering the streets with his hardened skin turned over, being pointed at as the devil of Elgar. No way, no way… … I hate to think about it… … but I wonder if there was some kind of bad aftereffect… … I kept watching with a trembling heart… … .

The premonition was wrong.

“Three hundred nights… … .”

“……huh?”

“Director… … . My dad, my brother, and I went to the battlefield… … . He said he came back after 300 nights… … . He said he ate well, slept well, listened well, and arrived safely in 300 nights… … .”

“… … .”

“But, the night just won’t go by… … . Originally, I would carve one here a day… … . I carved five the day before yesterday, ten yesterday, and I carved a lot today… … . I wish I could fill in all 300 and come back quickly with Dad and Oppa… … .”

After thinking about it carefully, I realized what had happened.

Originally, this child used to carve scratches into trees to count the days. However, it seems that the cause-and-effect relationship was reversed in his head. Instead of carving scratches when the day passes, he started saying that the day passes when the scratches are carved.

I was speechless. Even if there were three hundred scratches on the tree, three thousand, thirty thousand, no, even if three hundred nights really passed, the girl’s family would never return. Because, they were already smitten by the light-colored fabric that the girl had wielded…

“… … .”

For a long time I couldn’t say anything and just gave blank stares.

There was only this much that Duncan could do for this girl who had lost her memory.

“Well, honey. Wouldn’t you like to touch your beard at least once? … ?”

“yes… … ? why… … ?”

“Oh, that’s… … People say that if they touch the old man’s beard, their family members who have left for war will return safely. Of course, we don’t know if that’s true, but just in case… … .”

“… … I don’t like it, I think it smells.”

“… … .”

… … Thinking back, it was a very strange suggestion. I felt defeated for some reason and tried to protest that I was keeping it clean, but the more I did that, the more I felt like I was becoming a strange person.

Instead of suggesting that she touch his beard, Duncan promised the girl:

“Then let’s do this. So that people like your father and brother won’t get hurt in the future… … I’ll end the war quickly!”

“Huh? Are you a sir? How are you?”

“Yeah, you know ‘other incredibly strong guys’? If those men step forward, ending the war is nothing! If I get a chance later, I’ll meet you and ask you for a favor… … .”

“Really… … ? Really… … ?”

Duncan confidently promised, putting Remillion’s name on the line and even his little finger on the line. Only then did the girl brighten up and put down the stone she had been scraping against the tree.

He guided the girl to the restaurant, watched her eat dinner, and only after asking Julia and Dunsen to take good care of the girl did he turn away. Nevertheless, the rock in her heart was not completely removed. Duncan looked down at the floor gloomily.

All he could do was provide this little help. The ultimate salvation for that girl and other children to regain what they had lost could never be achieved. Moreover, the number of children he helped was only a handful, and there were hundreds of times more orphans outside the orphanage, and the number was only going to increase in the future.

… … As promised to the girl, unless I end this war.

At that moment, a voice was suddenly heard from next to me.

“Children’s laughter is a jewel that cannot be exchanged for a thousand gold. “You are doing a good job, Lord Duncan.”

“Ugh, wow! “It’s a surprise!!”

“… … Is it really that surprising? I thought you noticed my presence a long time ago.”

Duncan’s eyes widened. Gray hair, a scarred face. It was definitely one of the ‘other extremely strong men’ he had spoken to the girl about earlier.

Hendark, the ‘star that turned its back on the light’.

“Sir, Paladin… … Your Majesty?”

“I’ve turned my back on the church, so I’m no longer a paladin. Well, well… … I’m serving a new god, so strictly speaking, I’m still a paladin.”

Yellow patterns shone on his muscular forearms. It was a tattoo given by the shamans of the wilderness to replace the missing blessing of Elga.

“I, Your Majesty, wasn’t I near the border? Why did you go all the way to Delutana… ?”

“There’s a call. Probably, besides me, other important figures from the alliance will all be gathered at the conference room. Chairman Enrico, Chairman Galentana, the elders of the Tower, Lord Kadim, and… … even you.”

My wide eyes opened twice as wide. No, all those big names gathered in one place? What on earth is going on this time?

The explanation for ‘The Star That Turned Its Back’ was simple.

“Giving a future to those children and to those who are caught up in false lights.”

His hands were firmly gripping the spear, and his eyes, looking far west, sparkled with fighting spirit.

“… … It is time to put an end to this fanatic war.”

*

There was one more key person at the meeting that Hendark did not mention. The protagonist who brought the divided alliance back together, the rightful ruler of the Free Cities Alliance.

Remillion, the ‘Golden Lord’.

“Okay, so everyone is gathered… … .”

““… … .””

The leader who had been keeping himself aloof due to his busy schedule has finally made his appearance. Chairman Galentana, Chairman Vestana, the senior council members, the elders of the Magic Tower… … The distinguished figures could not help but feel tense.

However, Duncan, who knew the truth, tilted his head. I clearly heard that he had returned to the Great Forest, but when did he return again…?

There was no explanation regarding the circumstances so far. His eyes seemed to shine sharply for a moment, and then Remillion motioned towards Enrico.

“Before discussing the details in earnest, I will briefly review the situation of the war. Chairman Enrico, please explain.”

“Yes, everyone, please stand up and come over here.”

Everyone rushed to the front of the large continental map. The space next to the map was crowded, but strangely enough, there was an empty space next to Kadim and Hendark.

Encouraging the simple explanation of the situation, Enrico put each piece on the map and explained the situation in great detail. Military deployment of friendly and enemy forces, material supply status, success or failure of implemented operations, number of deaths in each battlefield, tendencies of enemy and friendly commanders, performance and weaknesses of each unit, future outlook forecast… … . The audience was a bit shocked by the obsessive analysis.

But, the moment the analysis is finished.

Kwarrrrrr… … .

A careless hand swept away all the objects on the map.

“But all of these are not really the core.”

““… … !””

The objects that had seemed to be all part of the war were scattered on the ground. Towards the startled faces, Enrico calmly continued his explanation.

“Yes, everyone. Now is the time to admit it. Troops, materials, supply routes, support… … It is true that all are undoubtedly important for ‘continuing’ the war. However, from the perspective of ‘ending’ the war in some way, they are nothing more than minor elements.”

““… … .””

“The moment when we suffered the greatest blow was not when the enemy attacked with a large army. It was when one of Elgar’s stars, ‘Decagram’, spread the false gospel in downtown Delutana. Likewise, the times when the Empire suffered its greatest blows were not when we launched grand military campaigns. Lord Kadim over there alone… … “It was when we broke the stars and destroyed the crusaders.”

““… … .””

All eyes were on the giant standing tall in the center. Kadim crossed his arms indifferently. The council members and elders looked at him with fear and awe before nodding in agreement.

I knew what he was trying to say. That this war was no longer a war of numbers, that the success or failure of this war depended on such superhuman individuals. In fact, this was something that had been predicted long ago, when the city was destroyed by the ‘Decagram’ and defeated by the Empire three days later.

Nevertheless, the reason why both sides have not mobilized all their forces so far was due to the simple logic of mutually assured destruction.

The logic is that a raid cannot be made as long as each other’s decisive weapons are holding on. The logic is that if that side sends Decagram and the Great Army to lay waste to the Alliance Territory, this side will also send Kadim and the Great Army to lay waste to the Empire Territory. The logic is that both the winning side and the losing side will only end up with scars.

However, the solidification of the front line was not welcome.

After the crushing defeat on the central front, the Empire openly led the war into a war of attrition. They knew full well that even if they lost the same number of troops and consumed the same amount of supplies, the smaller Allied side would suffer greater losses. They had to quickly settle the matter before they faced the worst situation.

And finally, the conclusion that all these facts lead to is this:

“… … “Do you mean to risk Elgar’s star invading the alliance territory and counterattack the empire?”

‘Endless Storm’ Wendigot, the deputy elder of the Presbyterian Church, asked. A nod, a heavy nod, came back from Enrico.

There was a big commotion in the room. Of course, he was an inevitable choice to win the war. However, he didn’t know how much damage he would have to endure as a result, so he was about to throw out one by one a mixture of concerns… … .

“Are you finished with the explanation?”

““… … .””

“Then, from now on, let’s start talking about the ‘operation’ in earnest.”

… … The crowd all swallowed back his words.

I forgot about it for a while. Who was the organizer who called them together? Since no one wanted to be swayed by the powerful words of the leader once again, the lawmakers and elders remained silent like mutes.

In a quiet atmosphere, Remillion began to explain. His low but powerful voice echoed throughout the room. Before long, the outline of the operation was revealed. In fact, if you boil it down to the main points, it was an incredibly simple operation.

The problem is that the point was to ‘invade the city and behead the archbishop who started the war.’

“… … .”

“… … .”

“… … .”

Chairman Galentana, Chairman Vestana, Wendigot, Duncan… … A series of dumbfounded expressions appeared on the faces of those who had not heard anything before. My ears were burning with a torrent of questions, and I felt like my brain was spinning.

Many questions rushed in like grains of sand, but in the end, the most important question was this. Who goes to the capital and cuts a cut on the archbishop’s neck?

Duncan raised his trembling hands and asked.

“Uh, great lord? He, he, he, who are these people who will be entrusted with this important, enormous, yet dangerous mission?

“… … .”

The answer came back from Kadim, not Remillion.

“you.”

“… … .”

“And then I go.”

The barbarian finished pointing his finger indifferently, as if he were picking apples at a market, and folded his arms again.

The peddler truly regretted not running away from the hands of that barbarian for the first time in a while.