His heart pounded.

He wasn’t sure if the Protagonist could win if they truly faced the army. Although his Magic skills had improved, he had rarely risked his life.

It seemed he hadn’t since he unleashed hundreds of ice Arrows in the Count’s Territory. There was the Duel with Norkin, but a Mage’s power truly shined in large-scale battles.

He wondered how powerful his Magic could be now. He felt confident that he could cast multiple high-level Magic spells if he pushed himself to the point of after-effects.

No sound was heard.

The protagonist had been mistaken. The Capital City was there.

It was a relief. It would be great if they could just go to the Castle without any trouble.

“We need to find a large Mansion. There will be fewer horses in a small Mansion, so there won’t be any left.”

The female Mercenary answered loudly like a Soldier who had received an order.

She drove the shaking Carriage forward.

Perhaps she was adept at being a Coachman. Even a skilled Coachman couldn’t pull a Carriage if a wheel broke in a sudden situation.

Rael told Mordon, who was riding a horse next to the Carriage, to also look for a Mansion. They had to get a Carriage.

“There’s a Mansion over there!”

Mordon, who had ridden back quickly, shouted.

As the Carriage followed him, a Mansion soon appeared.

It was spacious for a Mansion in the outer Castle.

They parked the Carriage in the Stable and looked around the vicinity.

The thought of being chased made them anxious. The idea that there might be danger in the Capital City made sleep completely disappear.

“It doesn’t seem like there’s a Carriage.”

“But there are wheels? There’s also a hammer next to them.”

The female Mercenaries chattered amongst themselves. It wasn’t very good news. They just needed to replace the Carriage wheels with new ones.

The Carriage wheels were difficult to remove.

Installing new ones required someone who knew how to do it properly. The female Mercenaries vaguely remembered seeing it done somewhere and pulled at the wheels roughly.

They couldn’t use too much force. If the axle bent by mistake, the Carriage would be unusable. While the Mercenaries exerted their strength, the rest of the group rested on one side.

The protagonist also closed their eyes and went into meditation.

Dragging the Golem around was slowly draining their mana.

Even for the protagonist, moving the Golem for a long time would exhaust them. However, they still had plenty of mana left.

At that moment, footsteps were heard in their ears again.

They were startled and opened their eyes.

Mordon, who was next to them, sensed something and asked.

“What’s wrong?”

“Didn’t you just hear footsteps?”

“Footsteps? I didn’t hear anything. You must be tired.”

They closed their eyes.

It was truly as he said.

They were quite tired even now. It felt like they would fall asleep if they lay down like this.

The protagonist closed their eyes, thinking they were very fatigued.

Then, the sound of footsteps came again. This time, there was also a rumbling of the ground.

The enemy is nearby.

For the ground to shake, it meant it wasn’t just a small group.

At least a hundred people had to march in unison for the ground to rumble.

They probably thought it was Skeleton Soldiers. They didn’t know how they knew there were people here and found them, but they had to fight.

When I turned my head, Mordon was also getting up with a serious expression this time. He took the scabbard and shield that were leaning against the wall.

He gathered his companions.

The Noble Knight had his head to the ground.

“The number of enemies is about a hundred. More might gather in the Capital City.”

“A hundred people?”

It was fewer than he expected. The evil Mage who appeared earlier seemed to have brought about three hundred. Still, a hundred wasn’t a small number.

“There’s still time. Are you planning to fight here?”

“We’re going to move.”

“Where to?”

“I saw a place on the way here.”

They couldn’t fight in the Mansion. This Place had a large, open yard. It was unsuitable for defending with a small number of people.

He hurried his steps.

He saw an alley he had noticed nearby.

It was a dead end but quite wide.

Even with the Golem standing firm, there was still room. He thought this was enough. It would be better if it were wider for the Golem to swing its arms.

“Have you been here before?”

The Noble Knight looked at the signs hanging around. These were shops located in a secluded corner. The Protagonist couldn’t help but know.

“I came to the Thieves’ Guild a long time ago.”

He turned his head and looked at the sign.

It was a sign with a hooded head drawn on it.

The Protagonist had almost been killed by an Assassin sent by the Noble.

At that time, he was so angry that he brought the Golem and caused a mess.

Now, he didn’t feel any presence.

It seemed everyone had left.

It was strange that they would just stay still with Skeletons wandering around.

Life was unpredictable.

Being stabbed was a painful memory, but if he hadn’t experienced that, he wouldn’t have visited the Thieves’ Guild.

If he hadn’t known the location of the Thieves’ Guild, he wouldn’t have thought of This Place and come here.

Perhaps he could have died fighting in unfavorable terrain. Thinking that, he felt it was fortunate to have been stabbed, even if just a little.

As his expression kept changing, lost in thought, the Noble Knight didn’t say much. However, the look in his eyes seemed to have improved.

“It seems you’ve had a run-in with an Assassin. Anyway, choosing This Place as the Battlefield was a good choice. No matter how many come, we should be able to hold them off.”

His back was blocked, and both sides were filled with Buildings.

Footsteps were getting closer from afar.

People were looking at the Protagonist.

He felt strange.

He felt as if he had experienced this before.

It was when he was kidnapped by Bruno.

Even then, he had taken a position like this and prepared to face the approaching enemies.

The enemy was numerous, and it was a difficult fight, but a Miracle occurred, allowing him to continue his life.

He wasn’t sure if he could do it again this time. No matter how strong the Protagonist was, if skeletons kept pouring in endlessly, his mana would run out and he would die.

He gritted his teeth.

One thing that had changed was that the Protagonist had been a Castle Lord, and this time, he was even giving orders.

When he fought the Goblins, he was just a rookie who could only shoot Water Mass. Now, the Protagonist was no longer a rookie. He was a great Mage.

“I haven’t asked your name yet.”

“Are you asking in this situation? My name is Bankel.”

“Bankel.”

It was the name of a Noble Knight. He felt that his role was important.

“You and Mordon, stand in the front line and block the enemies.”

“The Golem?”

“The Golem will go forward and fight. You in the front line just need to hold your shields and withstand any enemies that occasionally slip through.”

“Understood.”

He turned his head. This time, he saw Mary and the three Mercenaries. He couldn’t expect much from them.

“You’ll fight with spears. Before the enemies get close, use your bows and shoot arrows.”

“We only have swords for weapons.”

“There’s a weapons shop across from the Thieves’ Guild. Before the enemies swarm, grab a crossbow or a bow, anything. If there’s any displayed armor left, put it on too.”

He thought for a moment, then remembered that the enemies were skeletons. People feel pain and can die if hit by an arrow, but skeletons don’t.

“Wait a minute.”

“Why?”

“Arrows probably won’t work. Instead, get slings. And prepare some stones to throw.”

Throwing stones at skeletons was better than arrows.

It didn’t require skilled technique like shooting a bow. It was very easy; they just had to wrap a stone in leather or cloth and throw it.

“Understood!”

The female Mercenaries went into the weapons shop. He hoped the Shop Owner had left something behind. That way, they could have a slightly easier fight.

After a short while, the female Mercenaries reappeared, newly armed.

Their nearly bare upper bodies were now covered in quilted cloth armor. In their hands, they held spear shafts, and crossbows were slung across their backs. It was a relief.

“What do we do?”

The Princess, who had been disguised as an attendant, asked. Beside her was a Lady-in-waiting in elaborate attire.

“Can you use magic?”

“No.”

The Princess shook her head. He was a little disappointed, as he had assumed she could do some simple magic since she seemed to know a lot about it.

The Lady-in-waiting could only do simple tasks. She might have been born into a noble family and received an education, but unfortunately, what was needed now was the skill to kill enemies.

He wondered if the women could even pull back a crossbow, even if he gave them one. Even the Protagonist found crossbows difficult to draw.

“Go into that building over there.”

“Just stay quiet?”

“I’m doing this to protect you. If you die, it’ll all be for nothing. So shut up and get in there.”

“I-I suppose you’re the only one who would talk to me like that.”

“You should have revealed your identity from the start.”

He ignored it. He ordered the female Mercenaries to take the Princess away.

The Mercenaries were very obedient. It felt good to have people move at the Protagonist’s command. He even wondered if this was why people became Nobles.

The Princess said she would walk by herself and entered the Building.

Just in case, he told her to hide on the second floor. She slightly opened the window and looked down at them. He could see her anxious eyes.

“It seems you’ve experienced war. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to prepare so calmly.”

“I’ve experienced a lot in The North.”

“The Guard Captain also called you a Golem Mage. That you earned a Title for your great achievements in The North. I’d better pray that those Military achievements aren’t exaggerated.”

He didn’t have time to answer him. He had to use Magic that emitted Cold Energy to increase the Golem’s size. It wasn’t enough yet. He could make it bigger.

It didn’t take long. When he first made the Golem, it would have taken a long time.

He took a deep breath. His head cleared, and his mind settled. But the sound of footsteps disturbed his thoughts. Seeing that, Bankel said with a weary expression.

“You can win, right?”

“We have to win.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Even a Knight would be scared with such a difference in power. The Golem had to perform well. He couldn’t blindly trust the Mercenaries either.

There was also a way to escape by climbing onto the roof of the Building. Since there were many Buildings nearby, he could escape if he wanted to.

He turned his head. Fortunately, the female Mercenaries didn’t seem to have such thoughts. Their expressions were like mice cornered.

“Enemies are coming!”

Mordon shouted. He had good eyesight and was the first to spot the Soldiers coming from afar. He waited until they came into the Protagonist’s view.

The hand holding the staff trembled slightly.

He had fought many battles where life and death hung in the balance.

The Protagonist was no longer a rookie. Yet, this tension never seemed to get any easier.

It seemed to be because of the thought of dying in the Capital City.

Perhaps it was because he had accumulated more things, just as he had thought all along.

The Protagonist could not die now. He had to survive.

The Protagonist still wanted to dream more.