Chapter 42
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nTranslator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
nThe bright moonlight shining from above seemed to have been imbued with a chill that seeped deep into their bones.
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nThey were in the Oasis Lookout within the Nahrin Desert.
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nThe fighting at dusk had been intense, and it ended with the total collapse of the Jackalan forces.
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nThe stench of blood remained thick in the air.
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nIt made the scene feel like a slaughterhouse.
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nAfter all, it was a battlefield where fevered combatants had gone for each other’s throats. Dead bodies were sprawled everywhere. Blood was in such abundance that it stained the sand beneath them red. The bodies belonged to beings who did not want to die. The yearning for life was still seen deep within their lifeless eyes.
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nNone could have afforded to pull punches on that battlefield. None could have afforded mercy for the enemy.
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nOnly victors were qualified to savor the brutality of a battle and be sorrowful over it. Losers deserved only to be buried and reduced to specks of dust in history.
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nKant knew that very well.
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nIf he had been on the losing side in that battlefield, not even the bodies left sprawling on the ground would have ended up being buried.
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nJackalans were not averse to the notion of eating human flesh. To the members of that primitive race, fine, juicy human dead bodies were, to an extent, considered a delicacy to them.
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nJackalans and humans were totally different races at the most fundamental levels.
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n“Winner takes all. Losers can shove it.”
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nKant quietly muttered to himself. He had little to mourn over regarding that intense battle.
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nHe did not mind seeing more Jackalans dead. On the contrary, he felt pity for all the Swadian troops who perished in that battle. It meant that his military force suffered a huge loss.
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nThe leader of the trade caravan did the accounting and made a report of the casualties:
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n100 Swadian Peasants. 58 dead, 42 remained
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n30 Swadian Recruits. 24 dead, six remained
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n35 Swadian Militias. 16 dead, 19 remained
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nThe loss was crushing.
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nKant’s forces had suffered a devastating blow in the battle.
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nIt was bound to take quite a while for his forces to recover.
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nKant frowned hard when he saw the report.
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nHe took a deep breath to calm the intense frustration he felt deep down. He bitterly said, “The cost of 92 dead is steep.”
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nIt was actually more than steep.
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nMore than half of his zero-level troop class was lost.
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nHis first- and second-level troop classes were almost gone.
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nIt was a crushing blow that would significantly slow the development of Drondheim.
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nAfter losing so many troops, Kant was not going to be able to organize an effective defense.
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nAfter losing so many peasants, he was also unable to further develop his village.
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n“Count your blessings, I guess.”
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nKant sighed. He still felt grateful for the bright sight of things.
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nAlthough he had suffered huge losses, he had the system. It allowed him to recover some parts of the loss.
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nDing… The enemy has been totally crushed after a bloody battle.
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nSide Quest: Persistence in Adversity is complete.
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nReward Acquired: Denar x 1,000, Reputation x 500, Honor x 1
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nIntroduction: Your bravery served to keep your forces going on the brutal battlefield. As a result, they were able to hold on to their beliefs and crush the brutal, merciless enemy forces in staggering numbers.
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nKant’s reward was issued by the system through the dialog box.
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nHowever, a new dialog box appeared before the one he was reading disappeared.
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nDing… You have acquired a proud victory due to having a battle in which you had been severely outnumbered.
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nEvaluation Acquired: Epic Victory
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nAcquired Reputation x 100
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nAcquired Honor x 1
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nThat was the evaluation of the battle given by the system.
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nThe result was astonishing.
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nEpic Victory?
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nKant clenched his fists as his heart raced.
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nIt was quite a lovely surprise for him.
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nIt was especially so because he had acquired two Honor. While he suffered considerable losses on the battlefield, have those two points for the prize draw in the mall allowed him to recover all of his losses. If he were really lucky, he could become even richer than that.
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nAfter all, Kant had acquired the sacred Intimidation banner through prize drawings.
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nSuddenly, a dialog box from the system appeared yet again.
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nIt was a dialog box regarding troop classes.
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nDing… Your forces have upgradable units.
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nThe battle was over.
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nAfter the intense battle, his troops were finally able to continue getting upgraded. They could become troop classes with greater combat capacity.
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n“Open up the troop class page.”
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nHe felt rather heavy deep down and took a deep breath.
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nHis upcoming actions greatly affected the strength of his forces.
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nThe dialog box from the system immediately opened, and the list was packed full of options.
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n…
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nUpgradable Troop Class: Swadian Peasants x 42
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nSpend 10 Denars each to upgrade to Swadian Recruit
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nDing… You have surplus experience. Your forces can be upgraded consecutively.
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n…
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nUpgradable Troop Class: Swadian Recruits x 6
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nSpend 20 Denars each to upgrade to Swadian Militia
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nDing… You have surplus experience. Your forces can be upgraded consecutively.
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n…
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nUpgradable Troop Class: Swadian Militias x 19
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nSpend 30 Denars each to upgrade to Swadian Footman
/Swadian Skirmisher
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nDing… You have surplus experience. Your forces can be upgraded consecutively.
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n…
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nUpgradable Troop Class: Desert Bandits x 17
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nSpend 25 Denars each to upgrade to Elite Desert Bandit
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nDing… You have surplus experience. Your forces can be upgraded consecutively.
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n…
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nThings happened as Kant had expected.
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nAfter securing an Epic Victory in that battle, every single unit that lived managed to get upgraded.
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nThere was even surplus experience to be had.
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nAccording to the system, they were able to be upgraded to further levels.
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nAll of that served as a testament to how much Kant gained from that one battle. Bagging a decisive victory fighting 2,000 invading Jackalans had been incredibly difficult.
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nOne mistake could have led to them all ending up dead on the battlefield.
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nKant gulped.
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nHe browsed the troop class page. “Well, the number of Denars required for upgrades seems rather steep.”
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nAccording to the available upgrades for his current forces, it required spending 1,367 Denars to get the upgrades.
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nWorse still, that expenditure excluded further upgrades after that.
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nKant had no idea just how much surplus experience would have been left after upgrading them.
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nThen again, he would not have had to worry about it in the first place.
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nAt the moment, the 1,367 Denars was a huge sum to Kant.
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nHe had acquired 500 Denars after selling the dates.
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nHe had spent 30 Denars recruiting one Desert Bandit.
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nHe next acquired 1,000 Denars by completing the Persistence in Adversity quest.
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nWith that added together, Kant currently had 1,470 Denars to spare.
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nIf he upgraded all of his remaining units in one go, Kant would be broke. It would have created a situation like how it had been before where he could not afford to pay the upkeep for his forces in the following week. It was bound to put him in a very awkward position.
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nThere was no way he was able to proceed in that way.
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n“This is really a headache.”
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nHe pinched at his brow hard. He had just secured a victory, yet he felt jaded all over.
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nIt felt as if all of his strength had been sucked out of his body.
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nAs he was thinking about what to do next, he heard hurried footsteps from behind.
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nCaptain Rowan, who had been fighting alongside the retainer knights before, approached Kant. He was also soaked in blood. He lowered his head and said with a rather complicated expression, “My Lord, Sir Hobson and Scholar Hank wish to speak with you.”
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n“Yeah, noted.” Kant nodded.
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nRegardless of feelings, Kant was a baron, so Rowan’s tone was polite and lacked the slightest bit of impatience in it.
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nThe presence of both Hobson and Hank was a testament to Kant’s nobility. As a mere captain of the knights, Rowan’s status made it such that he was unthinkable to offend Kant.
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nKant quickly went to the Council Hall, where the retainer knights were regrouping and tidying themselves up.
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nWhen they were charging at the Jackalans and dealing them a crushing blow, there had been many among those brave retainer knights who ended up injured. There had even been several among them who died during the battle.
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nKant went up and asked in a rather serious tone, “How are the casualties, Sir Hobson?”
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n“Six were gravely injured, and seven are dead,” Sir Hobson replied.
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nKant’s frown became even more pronounced as he apologized. “I’m sorry for getting you all in this mess, Sir Hobson.”
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nIt was indeed him who got them in that mess.
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nIf it had not been for Kant, those retainer knights would not have had needed to come to the Oasis Lookout and fight that many Jackalans in the first place.
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n“It is the destiny of knights to die with glory on the battlefield.”
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nSir Hobson shook his head and took a deep breath. He said, “It’s a more memorable way to go dying in battle than to die of old age yet having accomplished nothing after all.”
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nHe paused for a bit before turning around to look at Kant. His tone became rather secretive when he said, “It is indeed our mission to help solve your problems when we’re out here. That was the other mission of ours, one that no one briefed us about or said out loud.”
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n“I don’t quite understand.” Kant frowned.
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n“You are part of the duke’s bloodline.”
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nScholar Hank walked out of the Council Hall with his cane and said, “I never believed for a second that someone of my status would have warranted an escort consisting of 50 retainer knights of the castle for protection, or that the expedition was little more than a common survey.”
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n“I’m truly sorry.” Sir Hobson had nothing to offer the scholar but an apology.
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n“Don’t be. I was able to guess what was going on.” Scholar Hank smiled after shaking his head. In a lethargic tone, he said, “That’s how it is with you nobles, and that’s why I don’t like mingling with you people.”
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nBoth men knew that there was no need for more words after that.
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nKant frowned, recalling his high-born, convenient father—Duke Cameron.
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n“So, it’s because of you,” the scholar muttered to himself.
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nNow that thing had been put in such a manner, everything made sense.
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n“Baron Kant.” Scholar Hank interrupted Kant’s thoughts.
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n“What is it, Master Hank?” Kant came to his senses again.
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nThe scholar said, “The Jackalans have suffered a crushing blow. If everything goes well, they won’t be attacking this place again for a very long time. As such, I’m preparing to leave this place.”
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n“Leave?” Kant was slightly baffled.
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n“Yes, I’m thinking of leaving.”
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nScholar Hank felt rather overwhelmed when he gazed at the faraway dunes. He shook his head and said, “The lost city is but a myth. I thought that Duke Cameron had been moved by my findings and finally decided to back my expedition. Come to think of it now, it was reckless to judge that the legends were true from nothing more than a single line in some book.”
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n“Well…” Kant opened his mouth but quickly found himself tongue-tied.
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nScholar Hank shook his head and wore a bitter smile. “I’m thinking of heading back. I can consider the expedition to have fulfilled my dreams.” He sighed and quipped, “The lost city is but a myth after all.”
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nIt was a renowned legend in the Dukedom of Leo. Countless people throughout history had searched for it before.
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nIf there had indeed been clues out there, said clues would have probably long been found.
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