Subaru Natsuki, who returned from the new Three Kingdoms

A hero's end, a mighty ruler's path to ruin.

Blood flowed from Natsuki Subaru's forehead, slid down his eyes, and mingled with his tears as it fell to the dust.

He couldn't see Yuan Shao's expression.

But then they heard Yuan Shao's next words, which were a sigh.

"Since you insist on doing so, then you shall cover my retreat."

Natsuki Subaru was stunned.

Yuan Shao's voice was calm.

"Remember, if you have no other choice but to surrender, I won't blame you."

"My lord, I would rather die than surrender!"

"Go."

Yuan Shao looked at him.

"This is a military order."

Subaru Natsuki wanted to say something more.

But those two words were like a nail, pinning him to the spot.

Military order.

The lord's military order.

He looked at Yuan Shao one last time.

Yuan Shao didn't look at him again, but turned around and looked at the already irreversible defeat.

Natsuki Subaru gritted his teeth, turned around abruptly, and charged towards the front line.

He certainly did not surrender.

Even though Yuan Shao had already left those words for him.

Even though he vaguely understood that it wasn't permission.

It is not a request, but a trust.

But Subaru Natsuki still did not surrender.

He just kept killing.

They killed until they couldn't even lift their arms.

Countless drops of blood stained his armor crimson.

Every swing of the Killing Heaven Sword Technique felt like squeezing out the last bit of strength from his bones.

When the enemy troops saw him, they instinctively retreated.

But he still couldn't stop the defeat.

The landscape is like a painting, the setting sun like blood...

Yuan Shao's army was defeated...

The 700,000-strong army was routed under a shower of fiery meteors and was cut down by Cao Cao's 70,000 troops.

That's something that can't be salvaged by human effort.

Even if Subaru Natsuki dies tens of millions of times.

Even if he practiced the Heaven-Hating Sword Technique until his palm resembled a real sword.

Even when he fought his way through the enemy lines to the point that neither side dared to approach him.

Ultimately, he was exhausted and was forced to the ground in the mud.

The rope tightened around his wrists.

Blood smeared his eyes.

Someone shouted from the sidelines, "Generals in battle, may you leave your names?"

In his dream, Subaru Natsuki grinned, his mouth filled with the taste of blood.

“Tell me my name, and I’ll give you a shock.”

"I am Subaru Natsuki, General of the Front Gate, under Lord Yuan's command!"

But before he could finish his sentence, his mouth was covered, and he was dragged away by his shoulders.

They dragged him to a tent.

Familiar laughter came from inside the tent.

"Hahahaha!"

Subaru Natsuki looked up.

He saw Cao Cao.

Boss Cao stood in front of the tent, looking at him with a frighteningly bright gaze.

That wasn't the look you gave a prisoner.

That's the look in their eyes when they're looking at a treasure.

"How can such a person be tied up?"

Cao Cao waved his hand.

"Untie them!"

He then looked at the generals around him, his laughter so loud it made the torches in front of the tent flicker.

"Yuan Shao is a mediocre man; how could he be worthy to be the lord of a fierce general like you!"

The rope was untied.

Before Natsuki Subaru could react, Cao Cao had already walked up to him.

Then, in full view of everyone, he knelt down and tied his untied shoelaces.

An uproar erupted around them.

Natsuki Subaru stared blankly at Cao Cao.

Cao Cao looked up at him and laughed heartily.

"Subaru Natsuki."

"Would you be willing to serve me?"

Subaru Natsuki did not answer immediately.

He simply looked down at the shoelaces that Cao Cao had tied for him.

But Yuan Shao's last military order flashed through his mind.

[If you have no choice but to surrender, I won't blame you...]

"I did not surrender..."

"I will not surrender..."

"I didn't lose..."

"I was just caught by you..."

In the dream, Subaru Natsuki's voice was hoarse; countless deaths had driven him mad... His words were a mixture of Chinese and Japanese, utterly incomprehensible...

But Cao Cao seemed to understand, and laughed loudly again.

"Good, well done, you've been caught."

He straightened up and patted Natsuki Subaru on the shoulder.

"It would be a real pity if someone like you were just buried with the defeated army at Guandu."

Subaru Natsuki looked up.

Cao Cao's eyes were still frighteningly bright.

"Yuan Shao ordered you to cover the rear, not to die."

"If he really wanted you dead, he only needed to keep you by his side and wait for the defeat to come with him. It would be the will of Heaven."

"But he insisted on sending you to the front lines."

Cao Cao looked at him with a smile and said:

He brought you to me!

Subaru Natsuki's pupils trembled slightly.

"Cao Mengde, you're talking nonsense!"

Cao Cao didn't care at all about Natsuki Subaru addressing him by his given name to his face; instead, he waved his hand dismissively:

Whether you're talking nonsense or not, you know the truth in your heart!

“You risked your life for Yuan Shao, and he saw it.”

"So he couldn't bear to let you die again."

"By having you cover our retreat, he's giving you a way out!"

Cao Cao took a step forward.

"Natsuki Subaru! How can someone like you be reduced to nothing more than a loyal skeleton?"

"If you still want to protect something, then live."

"If you still want to hate the heavens, then follow me and hate until the whole world hears it."

"If you still want your sword to be useful, don't bury it in this mud."

Subaru Natsuki clenched his fist.

He wanted to argue.

I want to curse Cao Cao.

He wanted to say that he would never betray Yuan Shao.

But Cao Cao just looked at him.

Those eyes were so bright.

It was as if they could see through his pain and Yuan Shao's last bit of reluctance.

"Subaru Natsuki."

Cao Cao spoke again,

"Would you be willing to serve me?"

At that moment, Natsuki Subaru felt as if the tens of millions of times he had died in Guandu were pressing down on his chest.

Yuan Shao's words, "I don't blame you," seemed to come from the depths of a fiery meteor shower.

So he finally lowered his head.

It's not kneeling or worshipping.

I was just too tired to stand up anymore.

But Cao Cao reached out and helped him up.

"it is good."

Cao Cao laughed.

"From this day forward, you shall be my general, Cao Mengde."

I will treat you well~

With a wave of his hand, he summoned General Xiahou En, who carried a sword, to his side, took the Qinggang sword from his hand, and stuffed it into Subaru Natsuki's arms.

"A fine sword is a hero's gift! From now on, you will be the general with the sword!"