The Duke’s Eldest Son Escaped to the Military

Translator: Pai_

As three locations collapsed at once, the God of War's pupils, which had been pressuring Iron, began to tremble.

-You… you bastard...

Seeing the trembling eyes of the God of War, a relaxed expression formed on Iron's face.

In contrast, the God of War's composure disappeared as he received news that the collapses were occurring one after another, unlike what he initially thought, that only one axis had been sacrificed.

-I must kill you, no matter the cost.

As the God of War glared at Iron, he began to reveal his killing intent in earnest.

As his will to kill was transmitted through sheer force, Iron also raised his sword with a solemn expression.

'If I can just survive, I win.'

Thinking that way, Iron quickly retreated.

He moved with the intention of thoroughly evading the God of War's attacks, and in response, the God of War launched an all-out assault against Iron.

Attacks came flying in from all directions to tie down his movements. The problem was that each and every one of these attacks was carried out with nearly textbook precision, making them impossible to ignore.

Kwaang!

"…Strong."

Iron muttered as he blocked the God of War's full-powered attack.

The spears stabbing in from all sides were a problem, but so were the shields that flew in when he tried to widen the distance.

The spinning shields flew in like tops, as if they were electric saws.

Kiiiiiiing!

As he blocked another incoming shield, sparks of mana flew out like he had blocked a saw blade, and a tremendous shockwave spread throughout the surroundings in succession.

At that moment, the God of War's spear shadows filled the sky.

Like an illusion sword master's technique, thousands of spears flew toward Iron.

"Baepsae!"

As Iron urgently summoned Baepsae, the surroundings suddenly turned white, and a translucent barrier appeared.

Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwang!

With a tremendous explosion, the God of War's attack was blocked by the barrier of light.

Seeing his full-powered attack blocked, the God of War's expression stiffened, and Iron's lips curled into a smile.

"Did you think I'd die so easily?"

-…….

The God of War remained silent in response to Iron's question.

If it were only the aura blade and swordsmanship fused with divine power, he thought it would be easy to win.

He assumed that with Iron's Divine Beasts attacking other locations, it would be enough to just take Iron down.

But Iron had one more powerful Divine Beast, even excluding the other three.

Neither a phantom species like the Phoenix or Thunder Bird, nor an ancient species that built up power over time like Two Moons, this Divine Beast was the most troublesome one for corrupted beings.

"Our Baepsae is quite strong, right?"

-Tweet!

Puffing up its tiny chest, Baepsae responded arrogantly to Iron's boast.

-A Divine Beast… possessing divinity?

At the God of War's muttering, Baepsae gave a short chirp and revealed its divinity.

As the phantom species and Two Moons awakened, Baepsae too had fully released the power that had been hidden within its body.

That was the power to eradicate the impure.

That power had combined with the faint divinity it had received as a reward, and finally created a form of authority.

Just like a Grand Master's Mental Image, Baepsae gained overwhelming power specifically against impure entities. Combined with its unique ability to handle divine power, it built an overwhelming force.

By using Iron's ability as the contractor to draw divine power infinitely, Baepsae further amplified its strength and created immense destructive force.

"Then shall we begin round two?"

The moment Iron said that, holy spears formed in the surroundings under Baepsae's control.

As long as Baepsae was present, Iron no longer had to consume mental power to manifest divine energy as he did in the past, nor did he have to struggle to use divine power within the limits of his physical endurance.

All powers, except for the divine power fused with the aura blade, could be controlled by Baepsae.

Though complete mutual trust was necessary, Baepsae, as the first Divine Beast to form a contract with him, had a stronger bond with Iron than any other.

-Krgh!

The God of War's movements were nearly perfect in execution.

The overwhelming force they created was completely changed with Baepsae's addition.

The God of War's experience and combat skills shine the most when the opponents are of similar caliber or when the power gap is not too wide.

Especially so when those skills are related to swordsmanship or martial arts.

Though he had reached the level of Grand Master, the God of War, who had been pressuring with superior experience and combat technique compared to a god, lost his advantage the moment overwhelming divine power appeared.

-Kuaaah!

The God of War tried to counter by producing thousands of spear phantoms with all his might, but Baepsae responded with thousands of spears formed through divine power.

The rotating shield, like an electric saw blade, was blocked by a massive shield of light.

As the two weapons born of chaotic power failed to demonstrate their strength, the momentum shifted in Iron's favor.

He walked forward in a methodical manner, with near-perfect movement.

Iron's iron path was activated, born from his will to advance despite any interference.

Withstanding the corrupted aura, pressure, and all the God of War's techniques, Iron pressed forward.

Before long, the God of War's body was covered in wounds, and his famed, textbook-like movements began to falter little by little.

-How unsightly.

At the moment when all his defenses were pierced and death was imminent, a god appeared.

It was the external god who had appeared during the first battle in the West and had escaped death by taking advantage of Zodiac's death. He clicked his tongue as he looked at the God of War.

-So that's what you've come to? After mocking me?

Seeing the God of War, who had once sneered at him, the external god let out a brief laugh.

But the God of War had no retort for his sneer.

When Zodiac died, he had mocked the external god for fleeing alone, but now, faced with Iron's unexpected power and on the verge of death himself, he had nothing to say.

-This is not the time for us to be fighting each other. That bastard must be killed. If we don't kill him here, our great plan will be threatened!

The God of War's words seemed to gain the external god's agreement, as he gave a small nod.

In that instant, the external god, who possessed the fastest speed, was suddenly behind Iron, launching an attack.

"Baepsae!"

The moment Iron called for Baepsae, a pure white shield appeared behind him and protected him.

Then the God of War also resumed his attack on Iron.

Thinking Baepsae was now tied down by the newly arrived external god, he judged that he had regained the upper hand.

And that judgment could be considered correct.

Without the help of divine power, it was difficult for Iron to win against the God of War.

But that was only if one thought in terms of victory.

-Block him!

-Why don't you block him yourself!

As the God of War shouted, the external god furrowed his brow and attacked Iron.

But without the aid of chaotic weapons or the Aerial Fortress, it was nearly impossible to stop Iron alone.

-This… crazy?

Chasing after Iron with murderous intent, the God of War cursed as he looked at his own body.

The moment he got farther from the Aerial Fortress, he felt the restrictions grow stronger rapidly.

However, this was still within what the God of War had considered.

As long as the fortress moved closer while he tied up Iron with his combat skills, the restrictions would weaken again, so he didn't mind.

The problem was the massive amount of divine power radiating from Iron's body.

-A Sanctuary?

The moment the God of War muttered that, a brilliant light burst forth around them, and a Sanctuary was formed.

Combined with Baepsae's divinity, the power to eradicate the impure, the corrupted aura vanished, and even the power of light emitted by the Aerial Fortress began to dissipate.

The God of War hurriedly tried to push back the divine power with his own divinity, but it was already too late.

The external god hastily escaped the Sanctuary, and just as the God of War desperately used all his strength to stop its expansion, Iron had already escaped far away.

-Damn...

The God of War frowned as he watched Iron disappear into the distance.

What they lost this time was by no means minor.

Beyond sacrificing the axis they had prepared for a long time, the God of War had also completely lost one of his divine relics.

And yet they had failed to capture the Apostle of the Lord God?

This was clearly their defeat.

-…The battles ahead will only get harder.

The God of War, thinking such thoughts, looked toward the direction where Iron had vanished.

The Sanctuary that had pushed back their domain.

Reflecting on that, the God of War realized that even he and the other gods could no longer guarantee victory in battles against the Apostle of the Lord God.

While the God of War was lost in such thoughts, Iron too was once again impressed by Baepsae's abilities during the recent fight.

"You're more amazing than I thought."

Iron spoke admiringly to Baepsae, who was perched atop his head.

In response, Baepsae puffed up its tiny chest proudly and let out a short chirp as if to say, "Now you realize?" The ref.er*en@ce versio+n$ of this& c&h^apt*er is on M*V**LEM!PY!R.@

-Tweet!

"More importantly, does the power to eradicate the impure include their divine power too?"

-Tweet tweet! Tweet tweet tweet!

At Iron's question, Baepsae gave a brief explanation.

Baepsae's power to eradicate the impure included everything it deemed impure.

However, to maintain this power, Baepsae had to preserve its purity, so the power could only be used against what it truly believed to be impure.

From Baepsae's perspective, the divine power of the external gods counted as an impure force that had a negative impact on this world, which is why it could be erased.

"I see... Then... its range of application is broader than I thought."

If it could erase not only corrupted auras but a wider range of impure energies, such as death energy or dark magic, then Baepsae's divinity could become a key factor in future battles.

Though it had been a great help in the past, Iron now saw Baepsae truly take on a central role in battle and smiled gently at it.

"Well done. You've grown a lot."

-Tweet!

At Iron's compliment, Baepsae poked him on the head, as if to say it had always been amazing.

Iron laughed and nodded in agreement.

Though he had retreated against the God of War, from a strategic standpoint, it was a complete victory.

He had collapsed four pillars and returned unharmed.

Moreover, the fact that an Aerial Fortress was stationed there meant the Western Front now had a high chance of victory as well.

As if to confirm Iron's thoughts, the communication orb lit up, and news of victory from the Western Front came through.

"Right on time."

Iron thought to himself with a gentle smile.

Since he had already received Ariel's report through the Mobile Field Army's private communication line before facing the God of War, he had no doubts about the Western Front's victory.

He believed that the elite troops of the Imperial Army in the northeast would be able to buy time, and if some of the Holy Alliance's main force was diverted to block his knights harassing the rear, then victory was assured.

-It was a complete victory!

At Ariel's report, Iron gave a small nod.

For the Holy Alliance, with part of its main force diverted, to defeat the Master-level power that included two family heads, would have been difficult.

"I'll continue operations here with the knights. Once the Western Front is reorganized, the Mobile Field Army should advance."

-Is it a simple advance?

"No. There's something we need to destroy in the West. I'll send data through the reconnaissance unit."

-Understood!

At Iron's command, Ariel's firm reply came through.

Having given orders to Ariel, Iron looked at the knights regrouping atop the massive Divine Beasts.

Seeing that all the knights had boarded the massive backs of the three Divine Beasts, Iron spoke.

"Casualties?"

"Twenty-three lightly wounded! Fourteen seriously wounded! Two dead!"

"Fifty-eight lightly wounded! Seventeen seriously wounded! Four dead!"

"Forty-two lightly wounded! Eleven seriously wounded! Three dead!"

Iron gave a small nod as he listened to the reports from the knights atop the Divine Beasts.

Despite most of the fighting being handled by his Divine Beasts, there were still serious injuries and deaths.

It was inevitable in war, but still regrettable.

However, the death toll was low, and Baepsae could heal most of the serious injuries, so there was no issue continuing the operation.

"Leave the bodies of the fallen to the reconnaissance unit. We're moving on to the next operation."

As Iron said this, he turned his gaze toward where the God of War had been.

"Now that we know their weakness, it's only polite to exploit it."

Muttering to himself, Iron soared into the sky.

Using the power over wind he had gained through his contract with Hræsvelgr, Iron flew high into the sky toward the location of his Divine Beasts.

Then, compiling the information the knights had gathered, he determined the next operation zone.

"Are you ready to deal a heavy blow to the gods?"

"Yes!!"

"Good. Let's make them pay for underestimating humans."

With a grin forming on his lips, Iron led the knights toward the next operation zone, wearing a smile more wicked than a demon's.

***

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