The Overlord of Blood and Iron - Chapter 290

Chapter 290

Chapter 290: The Black Silhouette

“Let’s move . ” 

The black silhouette led Lee Ji-Tae away .  

“Pausing time is not an easy feat for me too . ” 

“T-That means… I can survive . . . ” 

“Don’t make me repeat myself . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“Didn’t I tell you already that you are too important to die here? Well then, let’s go . ” 

The black silhouette then grabbed Lee Ji-Tae’s arm .  

Flash!

With that, the two of them vanished . Time began to pass again, and the headquarters collapsed .  

                                                ***

“Woah! This is just . . . ” 

On Zeppelin, Kwak Jung was standing on the bow, watching the Itaracia castle fall .  

“Kueh… absurd… absolutely absurd… does this insane firepower even make sense?”

It wasn’t an exaggeration . Valhalla Kingdom’s firepower was terrifying . The fortress in Itaracia might have been small, but to demolish it in 10 minutes was quite jaw-dropping .  

“Well then, since the mission is complete… shall we begin the base construction?” 

Base construction . Any soldier would dread those words . However, Valhalla had people who were specialized in such laborious tasks . . .  

Werber Engineer Brigade, and Mithril Engineer Brigade! 

Kwak Jung shouted through the loudspeaker .  

Yes, commander-in-chief!

Yes sir!

Several soldiers who were riding on Zeppelin and Temeraire replied . They were not humans . The Werber Engineer Brigade comprised ants, while the Mithril Engineer Brigade comprised Dwarfs .  

In other words, they were made of ‘genuine laborers!’ And thus, they possessed 20 times the efficiency compared to an Engineer Brigade comprising humans .  

Begin the base construction immediately after the battlefield has been cleaned up!

Kwak Jung commanded .

You have three days . Construct a more durable fortress than the previous Itaracia fortress! Can you do it? 

He was asking for the moon . How could a fortress be built in just three days? 

Yes, commander-in-chief!

Three days are enough!

However, these professional laborers didn’t even flinch .  

We will try to finish it in two days!

That’s right! Two days are enough!

In fact, they even deemed the three days to be too long .  

T-those crazy bastards!

Kwak Jung was absolutely astonished . He was certain that if they went to Earth, many human laborers would be jobless and might starve to death .  

Oh well, that’s settled then .  

Heh .  

Kwak Jung smiled . The Itaracia Fortress located in the Chamonix mountains was a gateway that bridged the northern and central region of Baldur . It was a crucial location to restrict Atal Ramanujan’s growth .  

How could his people survive? Despite an exponentially increasing population, his territory lacked cool weather and fertile land to harvest food .  

100,000, no, 1,000,000 people may starve to death… but . . .

From a humanitarian point of view, what Kwak Jung was doing (Kang Chul-In’s idea, of course) was absolutely sadistic .  

One should always eliminate any source of danger . Yup!

Kwak Jung was cold-hearted . He was the tactician of the Supreme King of the West . To make Kang Chul-In’s ambition – to conquer the whole of Pangaea – a reality, Kwak Jung had to devise brutal strategies as such .

Was it too harsh? No, it wasn’t . Atal Ramanujan was a serious threat . For that reason, it was crucial that Shatyameba fall .  If Kwak Jung tried to be compassionate, then the Valhalla Kingdom might collapse instead . This was the law of the jungle . The weak were the prey of the strong in Pangaea .  

                                                ***

“W-What!?” 

Dorian, who was fighting the Shatyamba soldiers with great force, stopped moving when he heard a huge explosion .  

“Kang Chul-In!” 

He knew who the culprit was immediately .  

Who else could create such an explosion? 

“W-What is it?!” 

“Bombardment, huh . ” 

“Eek . . . ” 

The startled Shatyameba soldiers also stopped moving .  

“What the hell did you do… Kang Chul-In…?” 

He was lost for words . Dorian was much stronger after consuming 40% of the Dragon Heart, but he still could not comprehend what just happened . Well… even Kang Chul-In himself was shocked by the incredible destructive power of the Overpower Bracelet . It was natural for the others to be astonished .  

“Hmm . . . ” 

The cause of the explosion, Kang Chul-In, observed his surroundings, now covered in a thick veil of dust .  

“Hmm… for my investment to be brought to naught… welp . . . ”

Kang Chul-In smacked his lips . Despite being the one who displayed this destructive strength, he was regretting breaking the cormorant’s neck .  

It was a pity . Kang Chul-In had no way to find out how Brynhildr got hold of the Sonic Ring . More importantly, how was he supposed to find that item now? Well, he could if he really wanted to, but Kang Chul-In was a busy man who often slept little and ate sandwiches for meals in the office . He didn’t have time to look for the Sonic Ring .  

In fact, he didn’t even have time to attend to his family vacation due to his hectic work schedule .  

“That’s why I warned him . . . ” 

Kang Chul-In mumbled as he glanced at the fan-shaped destruction he had caused ahead of him .  

Chuk!

In front of the collapsed inner castle, a knight in white armor was struggling to get himself up .  

“Kang… Chul-In . . . ” 

“ . . . !” 

“It’s not… over… yet… I… won’t… die… from this . . . ” 

Brynhildr survived .  

He barely got his foot on the ground and ignited his fighting spirit .  

“ . . . ” 

Kang Chul-In was lost for words . He was in awe . There was no conceivable reason for his opponent to be so persistent . Where did this man’s endless fighting spirit come from? 

“Well, but thanks . ” 

Kang Chul-In smirked and thanked Brynhildr .  

“What?” 

“For being alive . ” 

“A-are you worrying for me?” 

Brynhildr was surprised .

That demon was worried for him . Pigs might fly .  

“Of course . ” 

Kang Chul-In nodded .  

“I almost killed the goose that lays golden eggs, how could I not be worried?” 

The problem was that his worry originated from greed .  

“I was scared that you might have died . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“Thank god you have a durable body . ” 

How could one be so shameless? Kang Chul-In nearly killed Brynhildr, and now he was thanking him for being alive .  

“Kang Chul-In!” 

Brynhildr growled .  

“That sort of . . . ” 

“Go!” 

Kang Chul-In cut Brynhildr off .  

“Come back stronger!” 

In the end, Kang Chul-In decided to let Brynhildr off again . A merciful heart indeed . He was almost the Buddha himself . Their first encounter, the second time in Baldur’s forest, and the third time here in Zolushka . This was the third time he was letting Brynhildr off!

“A-are you not going to kill me, again?” 

“This is the last time . ” 

Kang Chul-In emphasized .  

“No more mercy . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“Challenge me one more time, and I will kill you without hesitation . ” 

A final warning . Of course, he planned to visit Brynhildr the moment he got the Sonic Ring . It was a special service .  

“Ah, also . ” 

Kang Chul-In added .  

“Let me request one thing . ” 

“Request?” 

“Can you relay this message to Vilhelm?” 

“ . . . ?” 

“Tell him that marriage is a crazy thing . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“It’s up to you to tell him . ” 

Kang Chul-In sniggered . A demon’s grin .  

                                                *** 

“W-Where is this…?” 

Lee Ji-Tae looked around .  

“Where else?” 

The black silhouette replied .  

“We are in Atal Ramanujan’s territory . ” 

“ . . . ?” 

“To be precise, we are in a remote area in Shatyameba . ” 

“Ah…!” 

Lee Ji-Tae exclaimed . He had escaped from that collapsing Itaracia fortress!

“Who are you, by the way?” 

Lee Ji-Tae turned to face the black silhouette .  

“Do you want to know?” 

The black silhouette asked .  

“Alright then . It’s no secret, anyway . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“I’m Milenius, the last Agnaga . ” 

“ . . . !”

“I’m the controller of time . ” 

Thump! Lee Ji-Tae could feel a shudder .

Ba-dump! Ba-dump, ba-dump!

It was a sense of kinship and instinct . They were of the same kind . As only a few Agnagas existed in the whole universe, Lee Ji-Tae felt a special feeling when he encountered his own kind .  

“Milenius… the controller of time . . . ” 

“Do you know who you are?” 

“Me…?” 

“As I said earlier, you are the only one who can command our army . ”

“W-What are you talking about…?” 

“You are Cereb, the great mind of Agnaga . ”  

Incomprehensive words .  

“I don’t get you . ” 

“Of course not . ” 

The black silhouette agreed with Lee Ji-Tae .  

“But you will soon figure it out, anyway . I don’t see how my explanation will change anything . ”  

“Figure it out anyway?” 

“Just a matter of time . Be patient . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“You won’t appreciate whatever I say now . Just focus on developing your abilities for now . ” 

“My… abilities?” 

“I’m referring to this . ” 

The black silhouette tapped his own head, which was covered in a hood .  

“Your incredible intelligence is the sole reason for your existence . Once you develop it, you will realize everything yourself . ” 

“How…?” 

“Your appetite . ” 

“ . . . !” 

“You didn’t think that your overwhelming appetite exists just to tear the skin and meat off of humans, did you?” 

“ . . . !” 

“Hey, Cereb . ” 

The black silhouette explained .  

“We Agnagas are advanced .  How could a lame desire like appetite exist in us?” 

“T-that means!” 

“Your appetite exists not for survival . It exists to develop your abilities . ” 

“I don’t understand . . . ” 

“Cannibalism . ” 

“ . . . !” 

“I’m sure you didn’t just eat your human preys’ meat and blood . ” 

Tap tap .  

The black silhouette tapped his own head again .  

“The brain . ” 

“ . . . !” 

“You probably found the human brain to be particularly delicious . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“You would’ve eaten the brain and all of its cerebral fluids, even if you left unfinished bits elsewhere . ” 

That was true . Lee Ji-Tae definitely did that .  

“By consuming human brains, you can become the true Cereb . ” 

“That means . . . ” 

“Now that you know the method, I hope you won’t just stay still . ” 

“ . . . ” 

“Eat as much as you want . And awaken your true abilities . This land has plenty of humans . There’s no better place for your growth . ” 

The black silhouette began to walk away .  

“When you’ve finally developed your abilities, we shall meet again . ” 

“W-wait!”

Lee Ji-Tae shouted .  

“Who are you, really!?” 

“Who am I, you say…?” 

The black silhouette pondered for a moment .  

“Curious?”

Then… the black silhouette turned around .  

Flick!

The hood came off .  

“Argh!” 

Lee Ji-Tae screamed the moment he realized the silhouette’s true identity .