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Volume 7 Chapter 3 Part 8

Still, her own army was superior in numbers, and the Norse people are extremely brave. And the 「Berserk」Banner given to Ulrika by her father further transformed them into the daredevil killing machines they were universally feared as.

「There’s no way I can lose to them! 」

Ulrika placed her battle axe on her shoulder and narrowed her eyes.

「If we defeat the Queen of Haman here and take her Crest, we’ll be able to claim Haman as our own territory. Even if we don’t take away the castle from her, we can still continue to lead the fleet and aim for Artuk and Castle Unicorn. 」

「I think that’s acceptable as well. 」

The contracted Mage showed a relieved expression.

「Just don’t let your guard down. I feel a strange kind of heat in the enemy army. It’s similar to a Norse berserker’s thirst for blood… 」

「That naked older woman is Edochia, right? I think I’ve seen the young woman next to her before as well… 」

「That’s Laura Hadley, queen Edochia’s contracted Mage. 」

Ulrika’s contracted Mage used magic to clearly see her face before answering.

「She was the contracted Head Mage of Earl Vilar of Artuk, so you should’ve met her at Castle Unicorn, right, Lady Ulrika? 」

「Ah, that’s right, now I remember! After she said something cheeky, she drank poison and killed herself! But then… why the hell is she still alive when she’s supposed to be six feet under?! 」

「She must have taken a drug that put her in a state of suspended animation. 」

「You mean to say that she deceived me?! 」

Ulrika felt immense anger right now.

「I’m afraid so. 」

The members of Ulrika’s entourage nodded their heads.

「If that’s the case, then I cannot forgive her for committing such an open transgression against me! This time, I’ll cut off her head with my own hands! 」

Ulrika swung her axe around in anger.

「We, the people of Haman, have given you everything we had! But we will not become your slaves! We choose to be free, even if it means losing our lives! 」

Edochia calls out to Ulrika as loudly as she could.

「Well look at you, acting so bossy as if you owned the place! 」

Ulrika replied with a sneer.

「Hear me, the slave soldiers of Stark! I’ve been told that a large-scale slave rebellion has started in your homeland! With it, Stark will become a free nation once more, so there’s no reason for you to be following the Norse people anymore! 」
Edochia continued her speech, this time addressing the enslaved soldiers from Stark.

「What the hell are you trying to pull here?! Tou really think that’s going to work… 」

Ulrika’s face contorted in even bigger anger, but then much to her astonishment…

「That’s right! 」

Someone from among the slave soldiers shouted as such.

「We’ve been secretly communicating with each other, and by now we’re all uprising. Praise be to the name of Theo Cornero, the hero who liberated Sistina. If we don’t stand up now, our children and grandchildren will become the slaves to the Nords, and they will suffer from their tyranny. Look at the Queen of Haman. She’s practically the same as we, the people of Stark! Everything has been taken away from her, and she’s been left practically naked. However, the queen still chose to protect the freedom of herself and her people, even if it means giving up her life. So let’s all follow the queen! The enemy we must fight is not the champion of Haman, but the raiders of the Nords! 」

「Who the fuck said that?! Shut him up immediately! 」

Ulrika screamed in anger.

The Norse warrior tried to break in among the slave soldiers to find the source of the voice. However, the slave soldiers resisted them with open arms.

「For freedom! 」

Someone else screamed.

「For freedom! 」

Someone else followed, and soon there was a chorus of voices chanting up the exact same thing.

「If you fight for the Nords, you can become free citizens! If you fight back, you will just die here like dogs! 」

Ulrika became furious and tried to attack the slave soldiers.

「It’s dangerous here, Lady Ulrika. Please stand back. 」

Her aides grabbed the enraged Ulrika and tried to pull her away from the crowd of soldiers.

「Sound the horn! Haman’s army and slave soldiers will all be killed here! 」

Ulrika made her Crest shine and made the 「Berserk’s」 Banner appear.

「Nord warriors, take up the Banner and fight! 」

However, the Norse warriors were confused by the unexpected situation.

「Norse people, look out to sea! 」

Queen of Haman pointed her finger towards the sea. Ulrika reflexively turned her gaze towards that direction as well. And there, hundreds of ships could be seen off the coast.

「It looks like Dartania’s ships. 」

Someone close to her said.

「Those must be reinforcements heading towards Castle Unicorn, right? 」
「No, that fleet is different. 」

After using magic again to confirm it, the contracted Mage’s voice trembled.

「You can certainly see Kuches’ crescent noon flag on the mast, but its design is different from the one used by Lord Milza. Also, the Earl of Sistina’s maelstrom flag and the unicorn flag of the Artuk Treaty are also present along with it. 」

「What do you mean? 」

Ulrika yelled at the contracted Mage.

「That fleet is led by Ender Selik Kuches. He is heading to reclaim Dartania from Milza, the traitor who killed his own father. And in Dartania, he is fighting together with the tribes that were destroyed by Milza. The survivors have gathered together and a rebellion has begun! 」

Queen Edochia spread her arms high, exposing her naked body. Then, speaking at the top of her voice, she continued.

「Come now, let’s fight together! For freedom 」

「That can’t be true! It’s all a lie from the Queen of Haman! 」

Ulrika ran wild trying to stop her soldiers from breaking into a riot. However, many strong men were grappling with her, and she couldn’t shake them off.

「If it’s true, our escape route will be cut off and we will be wiped out! 」

By that time, the slave soldiers were cheering as they attacked Stark’s warriors. Haman’s soldiers also began to charge while shouting.

「Everyone, get back to the ship! Take Lady Ulrika back to Stark! I’ll protect you from here! 」
The person who shouted that was the oldest leader of the Nord clan that had settled in Stark. He is leading the largest group of warriors on this expedition.

「Don’t make your own decisions! I won’t run away! 」

Ulrika continued to scream as her entourage dragged her back to the ship.

When Ulrika returned to Stark, she was informed by the Werewolf Flint that a slave uprising has begun all across Stark. People rose up in the name of Theo Cornero, the hero who liberated Sistina. Moreover, for some reason, it has already been reported that Ulrika suffered a crushing defeat at Haman.

The instigator of all of this was the current head of the Rossini family, the former Lords of Sistina, and apparently he also spread the word about how terrible his tyranny was in Sistina, claiming that the tyranny of the Nords was even worse than theirs. Apparently, the slaves decided to rebel because they could not bear to see their children and grandchildren go through such suffering under the Nord’s heel.

「WHAT… HOW… WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?!!! 」

Ulrika screams hysterically.

A few days later, the Nord clans that had settled in Stark held a council of chiefs and decided to abandon the area, concluding that there was nothing to be gained by staying there any longer.

* * *
Half a month has now passed since Milza Kuches, the Viceroy of Dartania barricaded himself in Castle Unicorn. All this time, Theo Cornero’s army remained stationed outside of the castle, and the number of the soldiers in his army was not decreasing at all, most likely because they were being periodically replaced.

There were also information that King of Selvis, Lassic David, has sent out a large army in order to aid Theo. However, no reinforcements have arrived for Milza from anywhere, and he was unable to contact his home country of Dartania or Ulrika in Stark to get a proper grasp at what was happening.

「WHAT IN THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE?!!! 」

Milza was venting out his uncontrollable anger. It was so intense that his entire entourage retreated to the walls and some even hid behind the pillars. As always, the Mage Terius Willian was standing nearby, since he was the only one who was not as afraid of Milza’s outbursts as anyone else anymore.