The Extra Wants To Live

The sword that Carl pulled out with force was caught in the scabbard and pulled out in a straight line. The moment the sword's tip was caught on the edge of the scabbard and then pulled out, the sword spun around Carl's hand and swung around at high speed.

Shhh!

The sword that rose from the lower left to the upper right scratched the arm holding the axe, and in an instant, it swept away the mercenary's exposed eyes that were not covered by his small shield.

Clank!

Carl's body suddenly turned around as he swung both swords to the right, but stopped abruptly as he touched the ground with his right foot. The ground shattered, debris flew, and the steely roar of armor pierced the air.

When the red cloak spread open and blocked his vision, Carl was already looking at the bridge in front of him, his left hand gripping the sword in his right hand.

'Ah...'

A miserably brief moment, so brief that even sound couldn't be conveyed. Darian couldn't even properly recognize what he was thinking.

The sword held in Carl's left hand easily kicked away the spear that Darian was swinging powerfully at. Darian couldn't even see it and had to pay the price of standing in front of Carl, exposed and defenseless.

Boom!

Not only did Darian's neck snap, but his shoulder hit the ground as his body floated up and flew away.

Because his neck was completely broken, Darian's head dangled like a toy as he flew.

With a sickening thud, he landed with limp legs. Thanks to the helmet, his head didn't fall off, but he couldn't live like that.

He died instantly.

"Hmm."

Carl grumbled.

He threw away the sword in his right hand, now just a piece of scrap metal, and took hold of the sword in his left hand with his right, drawing the flag again.

Just one second.

That's how long it took Carl to use his mana to kill three mercenaries.

Unfortunately, Carl's mana was still low, allowing him to fight like this for only five seconds at most. And he couldn't send mana to objects, so the sword bent and broke under the enormous force.

"Billford, join us and annihilate the enemy."

"Yes, Master Carl!"

Billford, having confirmed that the mercenary was dead by Carl's orders, ran behind the imperial soldiers, raised his hand above his head, and brandished his spear.

Carl raised his flag, dropped his sword, and watched the battle silently.

The attack was left to Catherine, Philaine, and Billford, while the soldiers focused only on defense, ensuring there were no casualties.

"D-Darian is dead!"

The mercenaries, belatedly realizing the situation as they saw the emperor's flag standing tall and fluttering, retreated hesitantly.

They had risked their lives for Darian's special attack, drawing attention to themselves. But now, there was no reason to continue the reckless battle since it had already failed.

"Stay in line!"

Carl gave instructions again in a firm voice. He wouldn't chase down and kill the retreating mercenaries.

There was no need for that. As Hardion's forces remained motionless, the mercenaries began to flee in panic to the other side.

"Kkaaa!"

"Help me!"

However, on the other side, Tumaria was fiercely attacking, intent on killing more mercenaries than Hardion. It didn't take long for the helpless mercenaries to scream for help before all falling dead.

"…"

"…"

Carl stepped forward, holding the flag in his left hand and the sword in his right, and looked up at Yusuf.

Yusuf, standing on the hill of corpses, looked down at Carl.

Carl, with clean armor and not a single drop of blood on him, faced Yusuf, covered in blood after slaughtering mercenaries.

"Yusuf, it's your victory."

Carl spoke. Despite his apparent victory, Yusuf simply looked at Carl with a darkened face.

"Shouldn't you enjoy the victor's rights? Go back and tell them of your victory."

"…Felt's, Carl…"

Yusuf rolled the name over his mouth as if he couldn't hear Carl.

Looking up at the narrow sky with his long longsword hanging down, Yusuf let out a long sigh.

The moment he realized that Carl had no intention of competing properly, he knew he had been fooled.

Hardion, struggling and unable to do anything, was now engaging in a 'match' with Tumarias on equal footing.

Rather than giving in and doing whatever, Yusuf could have overwhelmed Carl from his superior position. As Yusuf pondered his conversation with Carl, he realized where he had made a mistake.

'What are you going to do if Hardion wins?'

With that one word from Carl, Yusuf had descended from his superior position. And now he had taken Hardion's troubles into his own hands, earning a clean sack.

"…"

Inside the canyon blocked by corpses, silence lingered.

Carl looked up silently at Yusuf, who lowered his head again and looked at him quietly. A feeling as if a raccoon were crawling over his body. Yusuf's deep dark brown eyes gleamed as black as pitch in the darkness.

A violent whirlpool swirled within them.

"I'm going back now. There's no point in staying here any longer."

Carl said, ignoring Yusuf's glare.

Crunch.

The sound of the sword Yusuf held echoed ominously. Carl of Felt… He was too dangerous. If not now, Yusuf might never get the chance.

Crunch.

The sound of the armor echoed quietly. Everyone could feel what was going to happen next.

Carl slowly tilted his head and looked up at Yusuf, standing proudly in front of everyone, waving the flag, without any fear, with his small and tiny body.

"Yusuf, didn't I tell you to go back? I said I would go back too."

"…"

Yusuf's eyes narrowed.

If they fought here now, Carl would be at a great disadvantage. Although he did wield mana, it was only a handful.

Tumaris had three skilled mana users, including Yusuf. But how could he be so confident?

Doo doo doo doo doo doo…

The sound of horseshoes. There were a lot of them. Yusuf's eyes twitched.

Felt's Carl, just how far ahead did he see?

"…Excellent. Next time…"

Yusuf took a deep breath and spoke slowly.

"…I hope to see you again next time, Felt's Carl."

"Same. Well then, that's it, Yusuf."

Carl turned around without hesitation and walked confidently back between the knights and soldiers who cleared his way.

Yusuf glared at Carl's fluttering red cloak, then turned and walked away as well. They didn't look back.

Carl joined the Knights of Davron, led by Govan, and safely escaped the rocky hill.

Yusuf also retreated, joining the forces of Tumaris who had responded to Davron's sudden actions.

Carl withdrew his forces to the castle of Davron, and Yusuf withdrew all his forces and returned to the distant wilderness.

One day, Carl arrived. Hardion defeated the Salgarez mercenary group, and Tumaria won the match against Hardion.

Things ended well, and both parties were satisfied. On the surface, that is.

***

Late at night, Yusuf received a short message via messenger.

"Felt…"

A family that could hardly be called noble, as all they did was produce low-level administrators for the Hardion Empire.

A family barely noticeable, though sharply wary of the Hardion Empire and barely paying attention to Tumaris.

Why was such family information in Tumari?

"…Fourth Prince, his name is Carl Hordion…"

Yusuf sighed deeply.

The sickly fourth prince, who no one cared about because they thought he would die soon. He had suddenly recovered from his illness, and now this happened?

Yusuf covered his heavy eyes with his palms, feeling deep fatigue.

'If I had known he was the prince, I would have killed him on the spot, even if it meant starting a war…'

Even if he regretted it, it was already too late. But he regretted it because he couldn't help but feel miserable, knowing that..