The Struggle That Ended Before It Began

"Clip-clop, clip-clop~"

"Hm? Is that... Third Brother? What's that? A flying pumpkin?"

Caesar, Remington, and Cheryl had already arrived atop the fortress walls ahead of them. The three stared in astonishment at Isaac as he drove the Pumpkin Carriage through the air toward them.

Cheryl, the most knowledgeable of the three, narrowed her eyes. "It should be the Pumpkin Carriage from his story—the legend he possesses, or an accessory of that legend."

"That Pumpkin Carriage can fly?" Caesar turned to Cheryl in surprise. He had read that story. It was very well written, but the Pumpkin Carriage in it did not seem that miraculous, did it?

"There is always a gap between legends and reality." Cheryl shook her head. "The Pumpkin Carriage in the story is merely an outward appearance. Its essence is that Cinderella must attend the prince's banquet on time. To achieve that goal, let alone a carriage, spatial movement or even crossing through time would not be a problem."

"That incredible?!" Remington's eyes widened slightly.

"Otherwise? Why do you think Legendary Wizards can leave behind so many unbelievable legends?" Cheryl asked in return.

As the core power of a Legendary Wizard, [Legend] was naturally not so simple.

While they spoke, Isaac had already driven the Pumpkin Carriage onto the city wall. As the purple mist dispersed, he strode out of it carrying a small pumpkin.

"Eldest Brother, what's going on? How did the Black Orcs suddenly attack?"

"We still don't know, but don't worry. It's only a small squad of Black Orcs—just over a hundred riders. They should merely be an advance party."

Hearing Caesar's words, Isaac breathed a sigh of relief. A little over a hundred—then it was fine...

Isaac first cast an Arcane Shield over himself, then stepped forward a few paces to get a look at what sort of Black Orcs were attacking.

Unlike the beastgirls from the anime Isaac had watched in his previous life, who only possessed certain animal traits, Orcs were broadly like beasts walking upright, except that most of them had five fingers.

Black Orcs, meanwhile, were even more savage than Orcs. They lived in the wilderness and did not engage in production. Most of the time, they drank blood and ate raw flesh like Demonic Beasts. When they failed to Hunt Demonic Beasts, they would sometimes fill their bellies with stolen bread instead.

The Black Orcs of the wilderness were organized into tribes, and the varieties of Black Orcs differed from tribe to tribe.

Most of the time, the various Black Orc tribes fought their own battles. Only on very rare occasions would they temporarily gather together for a joint operation.

Such as the winter raids!

The Black Orcs that had arrived beneath Solomon Fortress belonged to the Black Lizard Tribe. They resembled upright lizards, with pointed heads and spears in hand. Some of the higher-ranking ones wore tattered Leather Armor and carried iron swords at their waists.

Their combat strength was quite decent. Even the weakest were at the level of Quasi-Knights, while there were more than a dozen Knights among them.

They rode Gale Wolves, the most common Demonic Beasts in the wilderness. Their upper limit was merely a first-rank Demonic Beast, and their potential was utterly ordinary. Among these hundred-plus Gale Wolves, not a single one had reached the first rank.

With that sort of lineup, calling them shrimp soldiers and crab generals would be flattering them.

At least, that was the case against the entirely elite Solomon Fortress.

"How did they get here with strength like that?" Isaac pulled back the head he had leaned out and asked in confusion.

"I'm curious too, but it doesn't matter. They won't be going back anyway." Caesar shrugged carelessly.

"Mm." Isaac nodded without comment, then said eagerly, "How about letting me try? I've studied magic for so long, but I've never had a proper fight."

"Next time." Caesar rubbed Isaac's head. The corner of his eye seemed to casually glance at Remington as he said with a smile, "Leave these to me. They've seen the walls now—we can't let them take that information back."

With that, Caesar turned around. Nearly tangible golden aura erupted from his body, and with a low shout, he transformed into a streak of golden light and leaped down from the twenty- to thirty-meter-high wall, charging alone with sword in hand toward the Black Lizard Tribe's formation of over a hundred warriors!

"Gasp!!!" Seeing the golden aura around Caesar, Isaac sucked in a sharp breath. "Divine power?! Eldest Brother has become a High-level Knight?!"

"Not quite." Cheryl shook her head. "He still has some hesitation over his choice of Aspect, but it will be soon."

"Gasp!!" Isaac inhaled sharply again. Then a question rose in his heart. If that was the case, why was Eldest Brother so eager to reveal his strength?

With a great battle imminent, would it not be better to keep such powerful strength hidden?

But soon, Isaac's peripheral vision casually caught sight of his Second Brother's grim expression, and in an instant, he understood everything...

Why Eldest Brother had revealed his strength now, and why these Black Orcs had so easily reached the foot of the walls...

Everything became clear...

But...

Isaac glanced at his grim-faced Second Brother. He knew this matter would not end here. Colluding with Black Orcs was no small crime. Even if he was a noble, even if he was a Great Knight, he absolutely would not be able to bear the consequences!

Once it was confirmed, his life would be over!

That was why Caesar had acted so urgently. He wanted to personally erase every scrap of possible evidence. As long as he erased Second Brother's mistake beforehand, it would be as though no mistake had ever been made.

Of course, he did not actually need to reveal his knightly divine power for that. Caesar's other purpose was to make Remington give up.

Once knightly divine power was displayed, it meant there was no one in the territory who could compete with him for that position.

High-level Knights had two paths. One was the path of absorbing Power of Faith, like gods and Legendary Wizards. Only the very few nobles who possessed territories could walk it. After all, only a viscountcy had enough Power of Faith to support a High-level Knight, so those who walked this path could only be the lords of their lands.

Although Solomon Territory was still only a viscountcy, its actual area was already close to that of a countship. In theory, it could support three High-level Knights on the faith path, but if they wished to go further, it could in practice support only two High-level Knights.

Their father, the current Viscount Solomon, had already taken one of those places. The remaining one naturally belonged to the future lord.

And judging by Caesar, who was slaughtering in every direction beneath the wall wrapped in golden aura, he had clearly begun walking this path long ago.

In other words, the matter of succession had actually been settled long ago...

Looking at his grim-faced Second Brother, Isaac sighed inwardly for him. So really, why had he been so determined to compete with Caesar?

To be fair, Eldest Brother Caesar was truly exceptional—a born commander, one could say. Even as a transmigrator, Isaac had felt an urge to bow his head in submission when he was young. His charisma was genuinely outstanding.

So even if there had been nothing wrong with his body, Isaac most likely would not have gone up against Eldest Brother Caesar. That would have been far too foolish.