The day Yulian appeared, and the necklace began to glow, Ghislain had a dream—a dream he hadn't had in ages.
"...Got it?"
A voice murmured faintly, tickling his ears.
The dream world was blurry and unstable. All Ghislain could discern was that several figures stood before him.
The people moved busily, engaged in their own tasks. Ghislain watched them like an observer.
But everything was so ambiguous; he couldn't identify who they were or what they were doing.
In a gray-tinted world, all he could sense was the fleeting, blurry movement of something passing by.
Among them, only one figure had a faint trace of color.
Ghislain knew exactly who it was.
'Erenes?'
Erenes was smiling—a bright, lively smile he had never seen before on her usually stern and expressionless face.
Could she really smile so brightly?
Moreover, she appeared younger. Though it was hard to be certain with elves who live long lives, her aura felt less mature than it did now.
But as is often the case with dreams, Ghislain didn't realize he was dreaming. He simply accepted the moment as natural.
...Master.
Ghislain stared at the brightly smiling Erenes and the surrounding gray shapes for a long time.
He, too, felt a strange sense of happiness. Though he didn't know why, it felt like they were all her friends.
...Master.
One of the gray shapes turned to look at him. Though its form was indistinct, it seemed to be smiling.
Ghislain smiled back.
The moment he acknowledged the figure, his surroundings began to sharpen and grow clearer.
Just a little longer, and he felt he could recognize every shape.
— Master!!! Wake up!!!
Flash!
Ghislain's eyes snapped open.
As he woke, Dark exclaimed loudly,
— Master! You're awake? Are you awake!?
"Yeah... What's going on?"
— Damn it, I don't know! Something tried to invade your mind! It tried to override your memories! I couldn't even see what it was!
"..."
Ghislain didn't say anything.
Something had tried to invade his mind?
The mind of someone who had achieved transcendence and a complete world couldn't be so easily breached.
Moreover, no one had deliberately cast a spell.
The reason could only be one thing.
Dark shouted again.
— Throw away that strange necklace! That's it! That's the culprit! It's making me feel weird too!
"You're feeling it too?"
— Yeah! It's just... unsettling!
Ghislain pressed his temple, lost in thought.
He hadn't had dreams since reaching master-level. In fact, he barely needed sleep at all.
During those brief moments of rest, his body focused entirely on recovery. To Ghislain, closing his eyes for a moment felt like a full night's sleep.
And yet, he had dreamed—a strange and unidentifiable dream.
This wasn't due to his body; an external force had interfered.
"It's because of this necklace, isn't it?"
He hadn't experienced this before wearing the necklace. It must have started after meeting Yulian.
Dark urged him again.
— Just toss it! Get rid of it! Why keep carrying around something so unsettling?
Ghislain briefly considered it.
Dreams and interrupted sleep were one thing, but something trying to invade his mind was a serious matter.
Yet, Ernheart's words lingered in her mind.
— "After realizing my 'mission,' I began dreaming vividly every day. The dreams continued like an ongoing story."
'If this dream is something like that...'
If it were a revelation or some means of conveying a message, it might be worth investigating.
It wasn't an ordinary dream. Perhaps this necklace and the dream held clues about the Salvation Church's intentions.
"I'm not throwing it away. I'll watch it for now. If it happens again, don't wake me—just observe."
— What? Just observe? Something unknown is trying to invade your memories! If you keep letting it happen, I might not be able to stop it next time!
Dark had likely blocked the intrusion with his ability to neutralize mental attacks. That was probably why the dream hadn't been clear.
Ghislain dismissed his concern lightly.
"It's fine. If it's not an external attack, just let it be. If anything dangerous enters, I'll handle it."
His mind had grown unshakably strong through death and regression. He trusted himself.
Dark clicked his tongue.
— Why take such risks? Why deliberately step into danger?
"Because I'm curious. If something's frustrating, you have to face it head-on to solve it."
Ghislain had always been one to embrace life-threatening challenges in his training.
He couldn't leave his curiosity unanswered. It had to be scratched.
Knowing his personality, Dark said no more. He simply steeled himself for the worst, preparing to deal with whatever might come.
Truthfully, he was also curious about the strange feeling.
After the commotion settled, Ghislain fell asleep again. But this time, he didn't dream.
Apparently, the phenomenon didn't happen every time.
So all he could do was wait for the dream to return.
***
Lutania and Turian had established the Sardinia Kingdom as the center of their allied forces.
The Sardinia Kingdom had no say in the matter, as Lutania and Turian had helped resolve its internal conflicts and stabilize its divisions. Besides, it lacked the strength to oppose them.
Thanks to Ghislain and Yulian, several kingdoms had quickly ended their civil wars.
The Salvation Church and a portion of the rebel forces had fled, making things easier.
The kingdoms that had ended their internal conflicts contributed some troops to the allied forces.
The gathered allied forces numbered about 200,000. Including those fighting elsewhere, the total exceeded 300,000.
The allied commanders from various kingdoms felt more at ease now.
"Haha, with this many troops, the Salvation Church won't stand a chance."
"Rebels are retreating from every front, aren't they?"
"It's all thanks to Lutania and Duke Fenris. Hahaha."
They glanced at Ghislain, throwing in compliments. After all, the Salvation Church's decline was largely due to her efforts.
At this rate, the Salvation Church would be eradicated, and the allied forces would emerge victorious. Hope was finally on the horizon, lifting everyone's spirits.
"But... how do we deal with the rifts?"
"Hmm, won't we figure it out as we eliminate the Salvation Church?"
The rifts' expansion had been halted. They had been sealed with magic circles to prevent them from absorbing surrounding energy.
But the mere presence of the rifts remained a source of anxiety. Nothing could be built nearby, and constant surveillance was required.
Without knowing how to deal with them, all they could do was leave them as they were.
Ghislain said little about the matter. He didn't know a safe way to close them either.
'If we deal with the Salvation Church, we'll find a solution.'
For now, as long as the giant beasts—masters of the rifts—didn't emerge, it would suffice to keep them contained. After the war, the mages would surely discover a way to close them.
In his past life, considerable research had already been done.
To achieve this, they needed to eliminate the Salvation Church quickly. While finding Ernheart was also crucial, that was secondary to the immediate goal.
As the strategic meeting began, Marquis Gidion unfurled a large map. Together with Claude, he was serving as the allied forces' strategist.
"As Duke Fenris mentioned, it's certain that the Salvation Church is gathering in the Atrode Kingdom."
"How did the civil war there turn out?"
"Duke Leinster claimed victory. The rebels from nearby kingdoms are converging on the Atrode Kingdom."
"Hm…"
"They seem intent on regrouping their forces into one and planning a counterattack."
Ghislain, who had been listening quietly, asked, "What does the general staff think?"
"Expanding the front line won't benefit us. It'll just lead to a repeated cycle of gains and losses. It's better to push through decisively while we can."
Ghislain nodded. The prolonged chaos was due to the Salvation Church spreading across the land and inciting rebellions everywhere.
If the enemy regrouped and scattered again, it would force their side to divide their forces to chase them down.
It was better to finish them off while they were concentrated in one place.
A noble attending the meeting asked, "Ahem, a quick, decisive battle might be the fastest and most effective solution, but… isn't it extremely risky?"
What made the Salvation Church so terrifying? It was the fact that they produced superhumans as if they were baked goods.
Even if incomplete, superhumans were superhumans. While most kingdoms were lucky to have one or two, the Salvation Church deployed two or three times as many.
That was why most kingdoms had been overrun by the rebels.
Now, the Atrode Kingdom was home to a massive army, likely with many superhumans. If they fought and lost, it would be the end.
Marquis Gidion puffed out his chest and said, "We just have to win."
"…."
He turned his head slightly to look at Ghislain with a smile.
"Don't you agree?"
Marquis Gidion's gaze shifted to Yulian. As long as he was with them, losing didn't seem like an option.
Ghislain replied with a hearty laugh, "Well, I don't think we'll lose."
After all, three of the Seven Strongest from his previous life were gathered here. If Erenes returned, that number would rise to four.
On top of that, the kingdoms brought their own skilled superhumans and knights.
'And there's one more ally who'll join us soon.'
Ghislain thought of an old comrade from his past life. It was about time for that friend to rise to prominence.
If that friend heard of the allied forces, they would surely join immediately—just as they had in the previous life.
With such power assembled, the thought of losing seemed absurd.
In fact, the situation was better than in his past life. Back then, they had been too busy fighting the Rift Beasts to even think about the Salvation Church.
Still smiling, Ghislain turned to Yulian and asked, "What do you think about crushing Duke Leinster of Atrode Kingdom right away?"
"Not a bad idea."
Some kingdoms were still struggling with the rifts and rebels. However, if they destroyed the Salvation Church's base, they could quickly come to their aid.
There was no reason to reject a strategy to end the war faster.
Yulian, who had no concept of fear, didn't even consider the enemy's strength.
Watching him, Ghislain smirked.
'There's no one more reliable in a war.'
Yulian grew stronger the more he fought. Though his current strength was already incredible, he still had a long way to go before reaching his past life's level.
However, Ghislain was also different from his past self. He had ascended to master-level more quickly and was becoming stronger by the day.
'When this war is over, let's have a proper duel.'
This time, he had no intention of relinquishing the title of the continent's finest sword. Not that he had given it up willingly in his past life, anyway.
With that, the strategy meeting concluded. In the end, no one else had a say. Whatever Ghislain and Yulian decided became the plan.
Preparations for the allied forces' campaign proceeded rapidly. Though additional kingdoms joined along the way, the initial 200,000 troops were the main force.
The rest were deployed to struggling kingdoms or positioned as reserves against potential ambushes.
Once the preparations were complete, including determining the route and securing supply lines, all that was left was to set out.
At that moment, a messenger covered in dust came rushing in, shouting urgently.
"Th-The Kingdom of Farsali has been invaded! The Farsali army is being pushed back at the frontlines!"
"What?"
Ghislain frowned. He hadn't been too concerned about the Kingdom of Farsali since the rebels had been retreating there. They had even recently sent word that they would contribute troops to the allied forces.
"What happened? Explain."
"A massive army of 200,000 launched a sudden invasion. The forces gathered in the Atrode Kingdom moved swiftly."
A force of 200,000 would indeed be difficult for the Farsali Kingdom to withstand. It seemed the Salvation Church had devised a strategy and acted on it.
Still, it was odd that the Farsali forces had already been pushed back. Large armies inevitably required time for marching and resupply.
It had only been a few days since Farsali had pledged to join the allied forces.
For a kingdom that had been holding off the rifts and rebels to collapse so easily was puzzling.
Before Ghislain could ask for more details, the messenger spoke again, his face pale with fear.
"A-a massive army of the dead is advancing. No matter how many we kill, their numbers keep growing."
For a moment, Ghislain paused, then let out a crooked smile.
"So that bastard has sided with the Salvation Church."
It seemed he knew who the enemy was.
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