Chapter 104

The conference hall where we were was rocked by a massive explosion.

“Ugh!”

The force of the blast sent the Alors knight before me flying and crashing into a wall. As we emerged from the rubble, Alors soldiers began to stir.

“Diello, Argenta?”

“It’s Krua Alors!”

They looked like they had seen a ghost.

Instead of answering, I stepped forward in front of Diello. They must be wondering how we survived against Duke Alors, the current head, but there was no need to explain it in words. He had cleared the way, and now it was my turn.

Swoosh!

I drew all the water that had been threatening Argenta around me up to my head.

“….!”

Both the Alors, who were controlling the water, and the Argenta, who were being threatened by the water, turned their gazes towards us.

Judging by the fact that the Alors soldiers, who had been maintaining their strength even though Duke Alors was dead, were still strong, they must have been those who were originally born with the power. However, their strength must have weakened considerably now that Duke Alors was dead.

“Your Excellency!”

“Lord!”

Unlike the despairing voices of the Alors, the voices of the Argenta were filled with joy. I smiled back at them as if to answer them.

And then.

Swoosh!

I burst the water that I had gathered above my head like an explosion. The violently erupting stream of water swept away the remnants of the Alors.

“….!”

Some of the Argenta were hit by the water, but instead of harming them, the water washed away their wounds. Because I, the master of the water, didn’t want to harm them.

“Kugh!”

As dozens of Alors soldiers fell, the tide turned in an instant. The scene was clearly visible because it was bright due to the fires burning everywhere.

Perhaps because it had been raining and the Argenta were being pushed back, there was a look of exhaustion on the faces of the Argenta soldiers. However, from the moment I drew the water away, hope blossomed on their faces.

Soon.

“Waaaaah!”

They raised their swords once more and charged into the Alors forces.

Crackle!

Sparks flew on the battlefield. Even in the dark under the storm clouds, the flames shone brightly, but I thought I could make them even brighter.

I looked up at the sky.

Swoosh!

As the abundant magical power that came with being a head enveloped my body, it seemed like I could move anything that contained water as I pleased, and what caught my eye was the storm clouds.

Swoosh!

The moment my magical power spread out, the rain that had been falling from the sky stopped.

“….”

Not only the Argenta but even the Alors people looked up at the sky. While I couldn’t push away the entire storm cloud that was hanging over Argenta, at least…

Swoosh!

I could push away the storm cloud that was hanging over this battlefield.

Moonlight poured down through the slowly revealed clouds. In the center of it was the battlefield. Now, this place was a battlefield ruled by moonlight, not the shadows of storm clouds and heat, not humidity.

“Aaah!”

The morale of the Argenta soared as if it would pierce the sky. It didn’t take more than ten minutes to clean up the battlefield.

* * *

“There are some casualties, but they are less serious than we expected.”

Redias, who was reporting after the battle, looked cheerful.

“There are many testimonies that Alors resisted strongly while we were fighting under the storm clouds, but they seemed to lose their strength at some point.”

As he spoke, he was looking at me.

That moment was probably the moment when I suppressed Duke Alors and gained the power of water. The water that the Duke controlled must have been hostile to the Argenta, but the water that I controlled wouldn’t be.

“Good.”

I was receiving the report in my office.

After the battle, Diello and I had to enter the office without any time to rest in order to deal with the aftermath.

“Aren’t you tired, Krua?”

Diello seemed worried about me, but I shook my head.

“I’m fine. I used a lot of power, but… I’m not tired to an unusual degree.”

I looked down at the mark of the head engraved on the back of my hand. The mark of the head was slowly fading as if it was seeping into my body.

Diello opened his mouth again as he looked at the back of my hand.

“Right after awakening, you might feel that way because of the overflowing magical power.”

He narrowed his eyes.

“But you’ll get tired as time goes by. You should rest.”

I looked back at him.

“Is that from experience?”

At my words, Diello hesitated for a moment before nodding.

“Yes.”

Then, he smiled softly.

“It was… amazing to see the fire move.”

Suddenly, the image of a young boy with black hair who looked at the flames moving along his hand with wonder came to my mind, and I smiled.

“Then I should rest, but I can’t rest without dealing with the aftermath.”

Above all, it was a time when the remnants of Alors were still in Alors. Duke Alors was dead, and Pentas Alors was also imprisoned in the underground dungeon. Moreover, the soldiers who remained in Alors would be in chaos without the power that had been provided by Duke Alors.

If we were to attack, right now was the time. Therefore, it was difficult to rest.

“We need to deal with it quickly before I collapse from exhaustion.”

I pulled the bell rope.

At my words, Diello looked at me with narrowed eyebrows. He had a worried look on his face.

“Diello, you’ve been through a lot as well.”

…Fighting against the fear of the past. It was amazing that he had held out with just the flames in the sea of water. However, Diello looked perfectly fine, as if he had perfectly awakened as the head. A small smile appeared on his lips at my words.

“I am, but I’ve recovered enough.”

“Did you have time to recover?”

I asked Diello, who had been riding back. He had made me ride on his horse, saying I would be tired, and he had returned without even resting.

“Yes, more than enough time to rest.”

His smile deepened.

Just as I was about to ask what he meant….

“You called?”

Rick ran out of the open office door and greeted us with a big bow. He, too, looked full of energy, even though it was right after the battle. And so were all the Argenta.

Strangely so.

“Sir Rick, how are you feeling?”

“I’m in top condition!”

Rick answered my question immediately. He was definitely fine, judging by his genuinely bright smile. In fact, I would have believed him even if he said I was the only one who had fought.

“…Then, can you gather those who are in good condition and go to clean up the Alors?”

I held out my hand.

“With Nira.”

If it was impossible for me to go myself, at least the Alors who had received my power had to go with me. Then, I would be able to easily subdue the enemy by using the terrain of the Alors, which was rich in water. And the only Alors who had received my power at the moment, the Alors who owed me loyalty, was Nira.

Unlike the others who had died and weakened after the death of Duke Alors, Nira would be able to use overwhelming water control by receiving power from me, the new head.

“Cleaning up, you say…”

As Rick’s eyes lit up, I spoke to him in a clear voice.

“The head of Alors is now me.”

I glanced out the window.

“So, I need to clean up all those who oppose me.”

For example, those who were vassals of the former Duke Alors.

My words seemed to make Rick’s eyes sparkle.

“And we need to prevent monsters from coming out of the ‘Endless Forest.”

The fault lay with Duke Alors, so we had to make sure that the people of the Alors territory were not harmed.

“We will depart immediately.”

Rick shouted, having heard my orders.

“For Argenta!”

It was a powerful voice, to say the least.

* * *

“Everyone, sit up straight in your saddles! Are you all ready for battle?”

Rick rode out on his horse at the front of the people.

In front of him, Nira was also waiting to set out. Knowing the geography of the Alors well, he was scheduled to take the lead.

“I heard you were injured during the battle?”

Rick spoke to Nira.

Nira had indeed been injured in battle, as he said. On top of that, he had used too much water power. However, even though he was bandaged, his eyes shone with power.

“I’m fine. Let’s get going.”

It must be because he was receiving the power from the Madam, who had awakened as the head.

Rick readily nodded.

“Alright. Now, for Argenta!”

He shouted loudly, and his horse leaped forward. Rick, who began to run at full speed with his body bent low, tilted his head slightly.

“Are you really okay?”

The Madam who asked that question had a truly worried face.

“I’ve awakened, and you said that Nira, who is receiving my power, will also be in good condition for a while, even though I haven’t awakened with the Ferro properly yet. But you also haven’t had the Ferro, right?”

“The power he receives should remain the same.”

However, contrary to her worries, the power of the head who received Diello’s power was overflowing—so much so that there were those who volunteered for the Alors expedition, unable to bear the boiling flames.

“I’m overflowing with power!”

“As if our head has become even more powerful…!”

“But he didn’t have a Ferro yet, right?”

Unlike the other Argenta who were buzzing, Rick knew the secret. This strong power was the power that had been passed down as their head, Diello Argenta, became stronger. As the other head said, their lord had not yet awakened with the Ferro.

And the real Ferro was dead.

And yet, for this power to come…

“Is it because they were in the conference room together?”

Rick came up with the closest answer.

As he wished, he has finally fulfilled the conditions of a Ferro!

While researching Ferro, he learned that it was rare for a Ferro to grant such powerful strength simply by being connected except when the head and the Ferro were truly in love, so much so that their overflowing hearts gave them a strong amplifying power.

“Hiyah!”

Rick couldn’t wipe the smile off his face as he whipped his horse. His heart was pounding with overflowing power.

‘Let’s take care of it cleanly so that Krua doesn’t worry.’

The head, who was beside the Madam, looked more than satisfied. Now, it was time to take care of the remaining scum who were blocking their path as he ordered.

Clatter! Clatter!

The horse’s hooves pounded the ground even harder.

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