Chapter 265: Victory: Sun’s odd command
Byun let out a low whistle, shadows curling lazily around his boots. "Farmboy, if you keep this up, even the enemy’s going to start cheering for you."
Tirel flicked ash from her fingers, her grin sultry despite the exhaustion lining her face. "Let them cheer. I rather enjoy watching him steal the spotlight."
Elise ignored them both, rushing forward with trembling hands glowing soft and white. She pressed against Jae’s cut leg, mana flowing into the wound. "You need to rest," she whispered, her voice urgent but steady. "You’ve pushed too far already."
Jae looked down at her, smirk faint but warm. "Rest later. We’re not finished yet."
And as if summoned by those words, the enemy ranks rallied. A horn blared in the distance, and their captains shouted orders, trying to pull shattered discipline back together.
Their soldiers tightened formation, dragging their wounded behind the line. With a collective roar, they surged forward in one last desperate push.
Jae raised his blade high, fire licking the air. "Hold the line!" His voice carried, sharp and unyielding. Every cadet within earshot snapped their heads toward him, instinctively moving where he directed.
And then another voice rose.
"Retreat!"
The command cut across the battlefield, sharp and commanding. Cadets froze, turning toward the ridge where Sun stood tall with his dual swords drawn. His scowl was carved deep, his voice as iron-hard as his father’s court. "All units, fall back! Retreat to the ridge at once!"
Confusion rippled through the field. Some cadets took a step back, instincts trained to obey the crown prince’s voice. Others glanced between Sun and Jae, hesitation splitting the line like a blade.
Byun cursed under his breath. "He’s throwing it away."
Tirel spat fire into the dirt. "Coward."
Elise’s eyes widened, disbelief flashing across her face. "Why would he? We can win! We can end this here!"
Sun’s swords glimmered as he raised them high, his Sovereign Vein already stirring in the air like a tide threatening to crash. His voice boomed again. "Retreat! That’s an order!"
Jae’s red eyes narrowed. For the briefest moment, his smirk faded. He could see it clearly, Sun wasn’t pulling them back for strategy, or to protect lives. This was about him. About making sure the battlefield’s victory wouldn’t belong to Jae.
But hesitation was death here.
Jae lifted his blade, flames roaring bright once more. His voice cut through the air, louder than he had ever spoken, calm yet unshakable. "Stand your ground! We don’t retreat!"
The fire in his words carried more than mana. It carried certainty. Resolve. Soldiers who had begun to step back froze where they stood. The line steadied.
Jae smirked faintly, lifting his blade higher still. "The weakest flank, remember? We said we’d make it unbreakable. Now we finish it!"
A roar answered him. Cadets, their fear burned away in the heat of his fire, rallied with renewed strength. Swords lifted, spears braced, shields locked. The retreat order dissolved into smoke as the weight of their voices drowned it out.
Jae stepped forward, flames exploding at his heels. His Ember Step carried him into the enemy’s charge, Dragonfire Blade sweeping in a blazing arc. Fire consumed the front rank, scattering men who had once moved like wolves into a panicked herd.
"Forward!" he bellowed. "Drive them back!"
And the cadets surged with him.
Byun’s shadows whipped through the air, snaring enemy legs and dragging them down for cadets’ blades to finish. "Don’t say I never support your reckless plans, farmboy!" he shouted, grinning like a madman as he carved another soldier down.
Tirel’s flames spiraled skyward, crashing down in fiery waves that forced the enemy into tighter knots. Her laugh rang sultry and wild, even in the chaos. "Burn for me, darlings! Burn!"
Elise pressed through the thick of it, her mana flaring soft but tireless. She caught collapsing cadets before they hit the dirt, knitting flesh, forcing strength back into faltering limbs. Her dark eyes blazed with resolve, her timid nature buried under sheer will. "On your feet! We don’t stop here!"
The line surged, tighter, harder, unyielding. And everywhere Jae moved, cadets followed, his fire not just burning enemies but searing fear from his allies.
The enemy cracked. Their desperate push turned ragged, men tripping over one another in retreat. Shouts of order were drowned beneath screams, beneath the thunder of cadets pressing forward. Jae’s blade carved through their rear guard, flames scattering the last of their resistance.
At last, a horn blared again, this time not to rally, but to surrender retreat. The rival army broke, scattering into the haze, dragging what wounded they could while abandoning the rest.
The battlefield shook with silence, then with the rising roar of cadets’ voices.
They didn’t cheer for the retreat Sun had ordered. They didn’t even glance toward the ridge where he still stood, his domain shimmering faintly. Their eyes turned to Jae, to the farmboy with the flaming blade still blazing at his side.
The cheers erupted like fire catching dry wood. Names shouted, voices crying out his title, not prince, not noble, not commander, but hero. The farmboy hero.
Jae lowered his blade at last, letting the fire gutter into smoke. He smirked faintly, brushing his hand through his sweat-matted hair.
His body ached, his leg still burned where Veynar’s spear had cut him, but he stood tall. He didn’t need to say anything. Their voices filled the field for him.
Byun flopped against a shattered shield, shadows curling lazily around him. His grin was soft, tired, but sharp. "Congratulations, farmboy. You’ve officially stolen a kingdom’s army."
Tirel sidled close, her laughter low and sultry. "And their hearts. Careful, darling, or I’ll get jealous.
Elise only pressed her hand against Jae’s arm, her healing mana flowing soft and constant. Her voice was barely a whisper, but he heard it all the same. "You were... incredible."
On the ridge, Sun stood rigid, his swords lowered at his side. His scowl was deeper than ever, but his eyes burned not with exhaustion but with something darker.
He had watched his retreat order crumble, watched soldiers ignore him, watched Jae seize the field that was meant to prove his birthright.
The cheers washed over Sun, but none touched him. He stood apart, silent, as hatred smoldered low and steady in his chest.