Those Who Live Without the Law

Chapter 205

The Difference in Talent (2)Irena accompanied Kairus and went through all sorts of things with him, constantly watching his movements.

All of that became nourishment for her. Since there was someone walking ahead on the path, she only had to follow behind him.

Because she had talent, she did not need to be taught every single thing. By watching Kairus, she grasped many things and grew quickly.

Moreover, the swordsmanship she learned was Swift Blade, which made it even more possible.

“Did you think you grew that fast just because you were exceptional on your own?”

Irena could not answer and only looked at Kairus.

“You probably thought you had almost caught up. That’s right. You almost did.”

Even Kairus could say that much with certainty.

It was only natural. She had built up experience by staying at his side and watching him, so reaching a similar level was easy.

“If you don’t plan on trailing behind me forever, you’ll have to work even harder from now on.”

With the way things were now, Irena could not surpass Kairus.

At this rate, Kairus would move ahead first, and she would always have to follow behind him.

“You were an excellent student who earned good grades, but I’ve been a professor writing papers all this time.”

“….”

Irena should have thought about it at least once.

How had Kairus mastered Cloud Seizing Art just by reading a book? How had he become so accustomed to Veil of Plumed Mist so quickly that he could fly with such skill?

No one had shown him. No one had demonstrated it in front of his eyes, let alone taught him.

She had thought she had caught up.

Just when she thought there was not much left, Kairus had already surged ahead again.

Of course, Irena would be able to latch onto his back once more. That was no different from a guarantee coming from Kairus himself.

‘Like that… forever?’

The famous paradox about the runner and the tortoise flickered through her mind.

“If you want to keep learning, you can.”

At Kairus’s words, Irena trembled and tightened her grip on her sword.

“I’ll write papers too. That’s all I have to do, right!”

Rather than chasing the tail end of the road Kairus had paved for the rest of her life, she decided that even if the distance widened greatly, she would carve out her own path.

Kairus smiled as Irena rushed at him, wrapped in wind.

“They all say that at first. But once they actually become graduate students, they regret it.”

“Shut up! Do you think I’m going to spend my whole life chasing after you?! That’s humiliating!”

Then Irena, with an irritated expression, shoved her sword roughly into its sheath and turned around.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m going to pack! You told me to get lost to Bennett City! I’ll have a blast in Bennett City! You stay here and suffer all you want before you come back!”

Kairus let out a small laugh as he watched Irena stomp away in a huff.

‘At least he’s not telling us to drop dead here.’

Fortunately, Nora did not need to be persuaded. Rather, she seemed quite pleased by the fact that she would be returning to Bennett City instead of doing odd jobs in the Valorn Empire, which was already turning into a complete mess even if she did nothing.

“Oppa, did you fight with unni?”

She only said that while chatting briefly before leaving.

“I just said what needed to be said. Irena was simply shocked.”

At my words, Nora let out an “Ohh.”

“If it were me, I think I would’ve just left it alone.”

“Why?”

Nora hummed softly and smiled faintly.

“What if she ended up stronger than me?”

If I had not pointed it out, Irena would have trusted her talent and spent her entire life chasing after me. In other words, she would never surpass me no matter how long she lived.

“You’re living life too small-mindedly. An enemy’s challenge should be crushed miserably, but an ally’s challenge should be enjoyed.”

Irena was an ally. In a way, Nora was also an ally, but Irena was an ally who could never betray me.

What was wrong with an absolute ally becoming stronger? Besides.

“I never said I’d let you catch up. Not Irena—and not you either.”

“Aaang, you could at least go easy on me.”

That was the end of the conversation. Following my words, Nora and Irena returned to Bennett City.

“Are you satisfied now?”

“No. I’d rather we arrive at the Imperial Capital, fight Denver Hudson, and have it turn out that I was just a cowardly idiot who got scared all by myself.”

And then eliminate Denver Hudson and take the Emperor’s head. There was no way I would be satisfied until all of that was over.

“It will turn out as you wish.”

“I’ve already made my decision, so I might as well think positively.”

For various reasons, the advance had been decided. In that case, there was no need to whine like a child saying, ‘I told you not to advance, so why aren’t you listening to me?’

Since it had been decided, we would simply move forward, hoping for a good result. Toward the Imperial Capital, guarded alone by Guardian of the Nation Denver Hudson.

“Seems like everyone’s excited except me.”

There was strength in the footsteps of those advancing. Rather than the steps of people heading into battle, they felt like the strides of victors passing through a triumphal arch to the sound of a victory proclamation.

They were so soaked in positive emotion that even the hired mercenaries were marching quietly without causing trouble.

It was fine if we ate less. Fine if the march was hard. Fine if our sleep was shortened.

Because we were winning. And because we would win.

With the atmosphere like this, that must have been why Simid Kellogg said he could not order a retreat.

“…”

Thus, the march of rebellion continued and finally arrived before the empty Imperial Capital. While the rebel army advanced, it seemed that even the remaining imperial citizens had all fled.

“The name Imperial Capital doesn’t suit it.”

The empty Imperial Capital was splendid, but perhaps because of that, it looked all the more pitiful. Like a fallen noble who had squandered all their family fortune and become penniless, yet still adorned themselves with expensive dresses and jewels, unable to forget past glory.

Its splendor only made it more desolate.

“Look, Sir Kairus. Isn’t our victory certain?”

“Seems that way. Perhaps my thinking was too short-sighted.”

During the march, I had been tormented day and night in my own way.

I had to show myself among the rebels and offer encouragement and support.

‘I thought being someone people smiled at just from seeing your face only applied to relationships between men and women.’

Right now, within the rebel army, I was exactly in that position. Someone whose mere presence brought smiles.

I was the most crucial key to bringing them victory, so it was only natural. The treatment I received was also different. It wasn’t just a matter of getting a few extra pieces of meat on my plate.

‘I avoided having a say… on purpose.’

If I had intended to participate in operational command, I could have stepped in at any time. But I deliberately chose not to.

Once I took the Emperor’s head, that would be enough for me. It was inevitable that greater attention would lead to greater checks and restraints.

As long as I had to face Guardian of the Nation Denver Hudson, there was no longer any need for me to contribute further to this rebel army. The moment I tried to do more, I would draw the gaze of the rebel leadership.

From all that political infighting, I wanted to step back.

“Indeed. With the last descendant of House Featherwing standing with us, how could victory not follow?”

The exact operational outline was known only to the command staff and a few key officers.

The rebel forces would be reorganized into multiple units and repeatedly strike at the Imperial Palace. Simply to wear down Denver Hudson’s strength, even if only a little.

‘Sometimes it’s better not to know.’

In truth, it was tantamount to driving them to their deaths. But everyone in the leadership agreed that, for the sake of victory, this was the most efficient method.

As long as it was war, there was no such thing as a bloodless victory.

“Looks like it’s starting.”

It began with the sound of a trumpet. The prelude to an unending wave assault that would continue for at least three days.

They were reorganized into more than ten units. Taking turns, they would advance and retreat repeatedly.

“So, they’re coming.”

The trumpet’s call rang clearly even in the ears of Denver Hudson, who stood guard at the door leading underground. He merely gazed quietly at the wooden stake resting against his shoulder.

“There’s the tyrant’s guard dog!”

Knights and soldiers entered the Imperial Palace. Up to this point, it had been a bloodless entry. The only place they would shed blood was here.

Denver Hudson slowly rose from his spot and gripped the stake.

“Not many.”

With that alone, he understood the rebels’ intentions. A place guarded by one man.

If Denver Hudson fell, the battle would be over. Naturally, they were aiming for a prolonged fight.

“Welcome. Now die.”

In any case, Denver Hudson could not move beyond a certain distance from the entrance to the underground shelter he was guarding.

If they exploited that, they could exhaust him while minimizing their losses.

“It doesn’t matter if millions come.”

Why he bore the name Guardian of the Nation. Why Denver Hudson was the Emperor’s guard dog—everyone would come to understand.

The sun moved and summoned the moon, and the rising moon sought the sun.

At the end of darkness, dawn embraced the broad daylight; daylight called forth twilight, and black night followed behind.

Time continued, biting its own tail.

“…Still?”

The damage was accumulating. No matter how much they minimized it, the accumulated losses were unavoidable.

Through seven cycles of day and night, Denver Hudson remained unscathed.

“There’s no way.”

Denver Hudson had single-handedly blocked the rebel offensive for an entire week.

The army that had been divided into ten units for the wave assault had now been reduced to the point where it struggled to even maintain four.

Guardian of the Nation remained perfectly fine. He neither ate nor slept. No—he did not even have time to sit down for a moment.

And yet, despite a full week passing like that, he had not fallen.

“We can’t continue the wave assault any longer.”

If we were routed here, we would become a defeated rabble pushed back by a single man. The momentum that had made it feel as though we had already won when we first entered the Imperial Capital was gone.

An army being driven back by one man. The leadership was slowly fracturing.

“What if, at this very moment, the Imperial forces guarding other regions change their minds and start marching toward the Imperial Capital?!”

“Then what—are you saying we should retreat now, of all times?!”

The debate dragged on. Whether to continue this fight or withdraw.

“If it still looks like this after a whole week, then it’s meaningless.”

I, who had attended the council meeting for the first time in a while, spoke coldly and rose from my seat.

“That’s enough. Let’s not increase the losses any further.”

At my words, everyone fell silent. They all knew what I had said to Simid Kellogg before.

“I’ll go and settle it. If it doesn’t end in a decisive outcome, then we retreat. Be prepared.”

With that, I stood up. My thoughts were complicated.

‘How.’

Denver Hudson had fought for a week without a moment to catch his breath. And yet he was still fighting.

Was he exhausted? Based on the reports, it did not seem so.

‘I need to find out.’

Even if this rebellion ended in failure, I would not abandon my revenge against the Emperor.

To kill the Emperor, Denver Hudson was an obstacle I absolutely had to overcome. Through this clash, I had to uncover what exactly was going on.

Even if the rebellion failed. Based on what I learned here, I would aim for the next opportunity.

With that resolve, I headed toward the Imperial Palace. As I stepped through the shattered main gate, Denver Hudson, standing in the darkness, spoke.

“We meet again, Featherwing.”

“Guardian of the Nation.”

Corpses were piled like a mountain. Every one of them had a hole that looked as though it had been pierced by a stake. Denver Hudson’s body was drenched in blood.

The stake, too, was stained a dark crimson from drinking too much blood.

“You crazy bastard. So you really are immortal.”

I did not even need to cross blades to know. Denver Hudson was not fatigued in the slightest. The Denver Hudson before me now was just as intact as he had been a week ago.