Chapter 61 - Ionian Plains 4 (2/2)

‘He is not someone who will remain a mere leader of mercenaries.’

He wasn’t sure what Woohyuk had done in the past, but one thing was certain. Woohyuk had come sensing the bloodshed of the upcoming war.

Gilbert swung his longsword, as he realised how incredible this young man was.

* * *

The battle against the monsters only ended just before sunset. After finally bringing order to his own lands, Count Huntington finally took the chance to write to Maximus.

He knew that he had to gather allies before the damage to the kingdom got any worse.

“If things continue down this path, we will all die.”

Huntington said while sending a carrier pigeon. He was already feeling overwhelmed before the actual war had even begun.

If the rebel army were to come, they would have no choice but to hole up on Hayswick, waiting for reinforcements to arrive.

“They came from the south.”

“Those monsters were most likely chased out from Erutonia, looks like Maximus’ punitive expedition is still ongoing.”

The 3rd Legion had some presence in the Ionia province, but their numbers weren’t high because the area was normally quite peaceful.

‘Were they trying to distract him?’

The Erutonia province was ruled by Count Ludwig. From prisoners they had caught and tortured, they learned that he was supporting the Hwarang Clan from behind the scenes.

As other Clans continued to arrive, the army was helpless to stop them. It was all a setup to keep Maximus tied up.

‘The attack might come tonight.’

There was no better timing for them if they wanted to take control of the Ionian Plains.

“I’m going to go do some scouting.”

Leaving the Count behind, Woohyuk went to the front gates of Hayswick. As he walked through the deserted estate, Loengreen appeared by his side.

“I found some suspicious looking people.”

“Where?”

“To the north of the Count’s lands.”

They were about 3,000 strong, many of them wearing the iconic adventurer watches. Woohyuk nodded back and summoned his Three Clawed Eagle.

“Then let’s go.”

“Are you planning on dealing with them by yourself?”

“They still don’t know about us.”

Count Ludwig had yet to realise that his plan was going to fail, because they had already captured all the spies within Huntington’s lands.

The same went for the Hwarang Clan. They had captured some of their members and hypnotized them in order to pass along false reports. This allowed them to trick their leader Han Jangmi into moving according to their plans.

‘No doubt they had planned to have Andrew open the gates from the inside in the dead of night.’

As long as they captured Hayswick’s main castle, the Ionian plains would fall under their control. When Maximus decided to deploy the 3rd Legion, Count Ludwig would send his own army to block their path. They would then do a pincer attack, attacking from both sides to defeat the 3rd Legion and then move on to the capital, joined by the other nobles.

‘Of course things won’t go as they planned.’

Now that Woohyuk knew their plan, he no longer needed to hesitate.

As they moved to the north, Woohyuk finally removed his Jester’s Mask. He didn’t want any locals to recognize him now that his persona had become well known.

“You’re pretty good looking.”

“... I don’t swing that way.”

“That aloof personality is also quite attractive.”

“....”

Leongreen however was speaking the truth. He really felt that Woohyuk appeared more noble and majestic than anyone he’d ever met.

A mysterious Demonic aura that seems to attract other Demons.

Even Agares who until recently he had served for a long time, seemed insignificant in comparison.

“We’re almost there.”

Loegreen pointed a bit west with his index finger. A forest that was just on the borders of Count Huntington’s lands. It was the best place for the Hwarang clan to hide.

Woohyuk had his eagle set him down on solid ground, as he proceeded to summon his undead army.

‘It’s better to take care of them without the Count’s help.’

He couldn’t fight at ease when his forces were around, because he couldn’t make full use of his abilities.

Until the end of the war, he still very much needed the support of the loyalist faction, including Count Huntington.

Even if it was a bit annoying, his best course of action was to keep a low profile, since it would speed up his timeline.

“What?”

“Are their monsters here?”

Soldiers that had been hidden in the bushes cried out in surprise. It was their first time seeing an undead monster.

“Don’t hesitate, quickly eliminate them.”

Han Jangmi shouted from behind an oak tree. This caused Woohyuk to focus on her.

‘Is that woman the leader?’

The kind of face that made her look like she was in her mid 20’s. Judging by the leather armor and bow slung around her shoulder, she most likely had the Ranger class.

If he was able to capture her, all of the Hwarang clan members would have to surrender.

‘She is more valuable alive.’

Killing the Clan’s leader wasn’t the best idea, because it will only force all the members that were now clan less to rush to join another group.

However if he were able to hold the leader hostage, he could prevent such a scenario. That was because unlike back in the Canyon Battle, it wasn’t quite so easy to leave your clan for another here on the Eeth continent.

The only way to do so was to remove your Unity ring, which would cause its destruction. However a Unity ring could no longer be replaced, so such an option would on be used as a last resort.

‘Most won't want to travel the Eeth continent by themselves.’

The clan system was of a great help to players that had just arrived and were getting used to this new land.

In their opinion, losing their Unity ring was tantamount to committing suicide. Even if Han Jangmi was captured by the enemy, they wouldn’t easily forsake her.

Woohyuk silently made his way to Han Jangmi’s location.

“Are you the one controlling those monsters?”

Gwak Seyoung who was standing above on a tree branch asked and he pulled out his dagger.

“...”

“Judging by your lack of response, it looks like I was right.”

Those that emitted Demonic energy form their bodies were usually some kind of Mage.

Gwak Seyoung stuck out his tongue as he stared at Woohyuk.

He then swung his dagger down as a signal

Swoosh!