Chapter 180: 180. Aftershocks

Sylvester noticed that even when the drums were being blasted, many of the remaining men on the battlefield were not retreating. Instead, they were so blind in rage and thirst to survive that all they saw were the enemies around them.

"It will soon be night. We need to end this fast." Sylvester muttered and put his palm over his chest, facing the sky over the battlefield.

Then he started to chant a holy hymn and made the palm shine bright.

Boom!

When the halo appeared behind his head, a light beam shone from his palm so brightly that it covered the sky. It illuminated the entire battlefield, and all the men on the it, who didn't respond to the drums, looked up in wonder.

As they looked up, the sound of retreat drums also registered in their ears. They looked left and right and found themselves standing in the middle of a primarily empty battlefield; as far as their eyes could see, there was only blood and gore on the ground.

Sylvester noticed how many fell to their knees in despair, realising their brother, father, or friend were likely among those who were slain. Some threw their weapons away and started walking towards their army's side.

There were two drums repeatedly beating, which left the third army on the battlefield confused and devastated. The war had been for nothing, but they were yet to know this.

Woosh!

Sylvester stopped sending his light around and looked back at Duke Grimton and Duke Zephyr. "Let's head to the castle now."

In silence, they all got on their horses and made their way towards the end of the west side, where Count Jartel's Castle was. However, they didn't go through the battlefield and circumvented it from the sides.

Most men were confused about what was happening since a new fourth army had appeared and started to surround the castle. But soon, Sylvester told the Lords to address their men about the situation before some senseless rumours started spreading.

"Tell them to start collecting bodies and prepare for the mass burning. We need to give the dead a proper funeral, or else this land will see the rise of Bloodling in a few years." He advised them.

After managing the matters outside, they all entered the castle. Lady Aurora was already waiting for them.

"Archpriest, a word, please." She softly asked him to come to the side.

He let everyone else proceed in and went to talk with Lady Aurora. "What's the matter? Did you find something?"

She nodded and replied in a whisper, "I'm afraid we're too late. There has been more damage to the County than just the army. It appears that the..."

"NO! This can't be! No!" All of a sudden, loud cries came from the crowd that went ahead. The voice was especially recognisable to that of Count Jartel.

Lady Aurora finished speaking. "It appears that Sir Walder, or whatever his real name was, killed the entire family of Count Jartel before leaving."

Sylvester sighed lightly and looked towards the depths of the castle. "I feared as much. If Sir Walder aimed to weaken the region, the best way was to mentally destabilise all the lords. Did you find the granddaughter of Duke Grimton?"

"Not yet. But I have found three surviving men from the platoon and sent them to search. So if she's in the castle, we will find her soon."

"Alive... I hope." Sylvester muttered and walked to where the scream had come from. He found Count Raftel patting his older brother's shoulders and trying to get him to calm down.

The big lord was crying and shivering as there lay a pile of bodies, knowingly put there to ensure maximum mental anguish. One on top of the other, all the remaining brothers of the Count, their wives, kids, and the Count's own son, newly-wed daughter and Son-in-Law were dead.

Each body had precise slits on their throats. It was imaginable how they all died a slow death as they bled and felt unable to breathe. It was a death that even those on the battlefield would not wish for.

"That bastard! My daughter... my son! Why? I didn't deserve this! Why?"

Of course, there were no definite answers to the Count's questions. They could only watch in pity as the Count reached out to hold his ten-year-old son's body in his arms and slid towards his daughter's body. In the process, he himself turned into a bloody mess.

"May the lord bring peace to their souls." Duke Zephyr muttered loudly.

Meanwhile, Duke Grimton was already feeling despair, wondering if his little Thea had also suffered the same fate. He hoped he was wrong... he prayed to god that he was wrong.

Sylvester walked forward and took charge of the situation. He didn't try to make Count Jartel leave though. The man needed time to let his tears flow.

"Duke Grimton, don't worry. Men are searching the castle as we speak. Don't lose hope. Duke Zephyr, please send your men to search the castle as well. Sir Walder has likely escaped, but we must be sure of that first."

The Duke of Zon nodded and gestured to his men to move.

Meanwhile, Sylvester headed to Sir Walder's room, hoping to find a clue. He believed that since the man was a spy, he likely had many hidden spaces to keep certain items.

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"Look at the bodies of the soldiers." Felix was with him as they went deeper into the second castle. "Sir Walder was able to kill them while being a cripple? The man was a god, I must say."

"He was likely not a cripple. At least, not anymore. I believe sometime in the past, he truly got hurt in an accident, but then he decided to keep the act going to ensure nobody suspected him of what was to come. From the looks of it, he was likely a highly skilled warrior." Sylvester noted. His reasoning was simple. He had not smelled lies from Sir Walder before when he talked about being crippled due to an accident.

"What are these weapons plunged into their throats? Discs?" Felix walked closer to one of the dead bodies of the castle's guards.

Sylvester pulled out the weapon that was used to kill the man. It was in the shape of a flat hollow disc with sharp edges. He could imagine they were used as throwable weapons. "Chakram?"

"Chakram? What's that?" Felix asked.

'Well, it was called Chakram in my past world. I wonder if it's the same here. But does this mean the Western side of Sol has a society so different from this side? Different weapons?' Sylvester thought to himself.

"I don't know what it's called. But it must be like throwing knives, I believe," he replied and kept the disc to himself. He would try to master it later as it could be useful.

They then proceeded to enter Sir Walder's room. It was not much different from any other noble lord's room. There were a lot of items from the west, such as finely crafted rugs, curtains and bedsheets.

There was also a table at the side of the room with many books and other documents. The wheelchair was also left as it was.

"Don't touch anything. We don't know if any traps are set to hurt those who come here." He warned Felix and started to move around the room while carefully looking at everything.

He looked at the bookshelf and noticed most of them were religious books. There was even a copy of the compilation of his hymns. But this was not the official church version, as the cover was different. Instead, it was likely copied from a monastery.

He didn't find anything in the room. The walls and floor were made of stone, so there was not much opportunity for a secret space. The walls were also of normal size, and the bookshelf didn't appear suspicious either.

So, at last, he returned to the table and looked around. The first thing he noticed was a book about agriculture. When he opened it, he found a specific bookmark placed between a few pages.

"Ah! He was behind it too?" Sylvester exclaimed after reading the contents of the page. "Sir Walder was behind the decrease in crop growth in Jartel County. He was adding a certain pesticide to increase crop growth, but in reality, it was killing the crops and hurting the soil."

Sylvester looked at other books too. There were many things, from books related to construction, religion, politics, geography and much more.

After being unable to find anything else, he looked at the wheelchair. It was one thing that was with the man at all times.

He caressed his hand over the various parts of the wooden body. Its wheels were made of steel, and the seating area and the backrest were made of wood. However, his eyes were mainly focused on the armrest, as he found they were too thick.

Knock!

Knock!

"They're hollow!" He exclaimed. "Felix, try opening the other side."

Both of them started trying to pull it and break it apart. But they didn't put too much force either in fear of destroying what was inside.

Sylvester looked below it, picked up the wheelchair and placed it upside down. There, he noticed keyholes under the armrests. "We need to find the keys."

"Just break them open, Max." Felix blurted.

"No! There could be chemicals inside to ensure everything in it burns if opened forcefully. The man was no fool, Felix. And I feel he left something for us--after all, we spoiled his plans."

So they walked around the room and looked for the keys. Under the bed, between the cracks in the walls, and inside each book on the bookshelf. But the key was nowhere to be found.

Bam!

"Lord Bard!"

All of a sudden, a man from the platoon appeared, panting. "Lord Bard! Duke's granddaughter has been found in the basement! They are calling for you! I-It's not good..."

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