Translator: Skythewood
Editor: Hiiro
— At this moment, at a different place.
To the rear of the Imperial Army, Olivia and Claudia were lying p.r.o.ne in the gra.s.sy plains on high ground, and observing the battle using telescopes.
“As expected, the battle started days ago. What a blunder, how do we recover from this?”
The guilt stricken Claudia cracked the telescope in her hands without realizing it. Olivia looked at puzzledly and said:
“It can"t be helped, so don"t beat yourself up over this, Claudia.”
Going by the schedule, their detachment should have reached the Iris plains long ago. However, they ran into something unexpected at the Xymus river after going through the Ark Forest. Because of the rain from previous days, the river overflowed its banks, and crossing the river became a dangerous task.
Cut off from their path, the detachment unit had no choice but to set up camp some distance away from the Xymus river, and waited idly for three days.
“It is as you say… No, now isn"t the time for this. From what I can see, the situation looks bleak for our allies.”
“Yes. The Imperial calvary in the center appears to be the dominating force on the field. They are strong and well trained.”
Olivia complimented with a clap, and Claudia became agitated at that:
“You think it"s a good idea to be in awe!? We have to act quickly, and a.s.sault the enemy"s main basecamp!”
Claudia stood up to prepare for an a.s.sault, but Olivia pulled her down by the arm midway. Her immense strength pulled the hapless Claudia heavily onto the ground, smashing her face with the dirt.
“Bleah! W-What are you doing!?”
“Ahaha, your face is covered with dirt.”
Olivia pretend to be r.e.t.a.r.ded.
“It"s all thanks to you, Second Lieutenant Olivia!”
“Well, it"s still too early for us to make our move. Let"s observe for a while longer.”
“How can it be too early? Our allies are getting overwhelmed!”
This isn"t the time to watch idly. Claudia nursed her nose and shot an accusatory gaze towards Olivia. But Olivia replied without any tension in her voice:
“Claudia, it is a taboo to be anxious in battle. It will stop you from performing at your best. Leaving that aside, why don"t you use this telescope to watch the battle in the center again?”
Claudia who was offered the telescope reluctantly followed her orders. She couldn"t accept everything she heard, but it was true that the surprise attack would fail if she acted too anxiously.
“… Nothing changed. Our forces have adopted the crane wing formation to defend against the Empire"s cavalry charge.”
“That"s right. And don"t you find that weird?”
“Weird? What do you mean?”
Olivia"s vague phrasing irritated Claudia, and she urged her to go on.
“Well~ as you know, the penetrative power of the Imperial cavalry is strong, right? So why are our forces adopting the crane wings formation, which had a relatively thin center? Normally, shouldn"t they put more men in the center to stop the enemy from breaking through?”
“… Now that you mention it…”
As a formation that aims to encircle and destroy the enemy, the crane wings formation"s weakness was its relatively weak center. Like what Olivia said, the enemy had strong penetrative powers. If the enemy broke through the center before the flanks encircle them, it would be all over.
“Hey, isn"t that weird? Despite that, our allies are still taking the crane wings formation, so they must have a plan— Judging from the situation, they probably set up some kind of trap.”
“Trap… What kind of trap?”
Claudia asked, but Olivia just scratched her cheeks with a troubled expression.
“Hmm~ I can"t tell what kind of trap it is. But if the trap works, the enemy will definitely waver. They appear to be an elite force in the Empire, so if we launch a surprise attack at the right time, it would shake the entire Imperial Army up too. That"s killing two birds with one stone.”
“……”
At that, Olivia stretched her back, stood up, and dusted herself off. Claudia looked at Olivia and reflected on her own shallow thinking.
(I was too concerned by what I see, and neglected to consider the big picture. The pride of being given this important task had narrowed my vision.)
To perk herself up, Claudia pat her cheeks, and proposed to Olivia:
“Second Lieutenant Olivia. In order to be alerted quickly when the trap is sprung, let"s deploy a few lookouts on the high ground. We can then launch our surprise attack before the enemy can recover.”
“Okay. I don"t know why you are hitting yourself in the face, but I will leave this to Claudia.”
“Yes Mdm, I will see to it!”
In response to Claudia"s salute, Olivia returned the salute with an awkward smile. She tilted her head for a while before returning to where the cavalry unit was hidden.
With all kinds of thoughts in everyone"s minds, the battle on the Iris plains approached its climax.
As the rain poured down, George charged with a grin on his face.
“Your Grace, please slow your pace! The enemy"s movements are strange!”
Cyrus who had rushed to his side shouted. George parried the pike before him, and crushed the pikeman"s head with his lance. He shook off the brains stuck on his lance, stopped his warhorse and asked Cyrus with a glare:
“Strange movements? Explain concisely.”
“The enemy"s attacks are too weak. It"s nothing compared to the first day. I think there is a trap.”
George scoffed at Cyrus"s deduction.
“Hmmp. So what?”
“Huh? But if there"s a trap…”
“Then we just smash through the trap. That"s all. Or are you suggesting that the Full Metal Knights are weaklings that can be stopped by the weak traps of the Royal Army?”
As he said that, George placed his bloodstained lance on Cyrus" neck. Cyrus said nervously:
“N-No, I don"t mean that!”
“Then everything"s fine. Enough with your drivel, and focus on taking the enemy base camp. Don"t give any advice unless I ask for it.”
Before Cyrus could respond, George spurred his horse and charged towards the enemy. He had no time for this nonsense, honor and glory were ripe for the taking ahead.
As the Full Metal Knights charged right at the center, Neinhart returned his telescope back to his waist.
“It is just as Your Excellency predicted.”
“Isn"t that right? They can"t help but pounce on the bait before them. That"s the pathetic nature of beasts.”
Lambert said with a dreary tone. Neinhart couldn"t help laughing at the sight of that.
“Hmm? Did I say something funny?”
Lambert looked at him puzzledly. It"s hilarious— Of course Neinhart couldn"t say that, and he shook his head.
“No, it"s nothing. Since we lured the enemy in, let"s get started.”
“Have our allies in their path scattered yet?”
“Yes Sir, there"s no problem.”
“Alright then— Commence the operation.”
Once Lambert said that, Neinhart gestured to an archer. He was the best archer in the First Army. After drawing his bow fully, he shot the fire arrow into the air.
The flaming arrow drew a beautiful arc in the sky, and stab deeply into the ground in front of the Full Metal Knights. At that moment, the ground was engulfed in flames.
— Fire attack.
Neinhart had poured oil all over the place that the enemy was lured into. The Full Metal Knights who didn"t know better were swallowed by the fire. The smell of charred bodies spread in the air, and the plains were transformed into a living h.e.l.l.
At the same time, Olivia and Claudia were enjoying Ashton"s homemade mustard that had been spread on bread. Claudia nodded as she looked in awe at the bread Ashton made for her. As usual, Olivia was swinging her legs as she enjoyed her meal. Suddenly, the lookouts on high ground charged into the tent.
“Report! The plains have been set ablaze! It should be a trap by our allies!”
“Understood. Spread this news to everyone, and get them ready.”
“Yes Mdm!”
The lookout left the tent briskly, and Claudia said in surprise:
“It"s as you say, Second Lieutenant Olivia. But to use a fire attack in such a heavy downpour…”
“An impressive display of wits and guts. I wonder who thought up this plan? Thanks to this, our sneak attack will be much easier now. The enemy"s main forces is now pinned down in the middle of the battlefield.”
Olivia shoved the rest of the bread into her mouth, and stretched her back. She then left the tent. It was still raining, so the rain would wash away any blood that splashed on her.
Olivia smiled when she thought of that, and a few soldiers who were looking her way all averted their gaze. Olivia wasn"t sure what spooked them, and as she was tilting her head, she heard Claudia shouting: “Please don"t leave me behind!”
Imperial Army, Main Basecamp
Paris sighed, put down the telescope in his hand and reported to Osborne:
“Your Grace, the Full Metal Knights encountered a fire attack, and is in complete disarray.”
“What did you say!? A fire attack in such heavy rain!?”
“They probably poured a lot of oil, and covered it with straws. Lieutenant General George has fallen for this trick.”
The unexpected report from Paris made Osborne groaned. He already knew about the trouble George had against the fire arrows. That"s exactly why George saw this rain as a good chance to attack, and Osborne didn"t stop his forceful charge.
“But there"s no way George didn"t notice the enemy"s trap…”
“No… I think Lieutenant General George charged in even though he knew there is a trap.”
“What!? He intentionally trapped himself?”
George wasn"t stupid enough to spring onto a trap intentionally. Seeing that Osborne was puzzled, Paris sighed and said:
“He probably felt the Royal Army"s trap was insignificant.”
That was very likely, Osborne thought. George had absolute confidence in his Full Metal Knights. It wasn"t strange for someone like him who emphasize martial prowess over anything else.
“… Should we order them to withdraw?”
“Yes. But with how chaotic things are, the orders might not get conveyed properly—”
At this moment, a soldier barged in frantically.
“What happened?”
“E-Enemy units have appeared to our rear! They are storming our basecamp!”
— Rewinding time back a little.
“Second Lieutenant Olivia, it seems like the enemy detected us.”
Claudia said as she rode her horse. Before her was the rearguard of the enemy basecamp who were frantically getting into defensive positions.
“It appears so. But it"s already too late.”
Olivia drew out her sword with a smile, and spur her warhorse on. She lopped off an enemy"s head cleanly, then dispatched of the other Imperial Soldiers swiftly. Black smog was slowly spilling out from her dark sword.
The detachment unit soldiers who saw Olivia fighting for the first time all gasped at her overwhelming might and the carnage she wrecked. It was the same for Claudia. She read the reports before, but the impact from witnessing it first hand was completely different. Olivia"s terrifying strength made Claudia"s heart thump heavily.
However, there was no point in getting worked up. Claudia took care of the enemy in her way, and rushed to Olivia"s side.
“Second Lieutenant Olivia! Please don"t charge ahead so suddenly by yourself!”
“Ahaha, sorry. They were full of openings, and I acted before I realized it~”
Olivia stuck her tongue out, and at this moment, a rider approached them.
“Commander Olivia, another group of enemy is coming!”
In the direction the rider was pointing at, a division of 2,000 infantry was mustering to attack their flank.Claudia made a snap decision and said:
“Second Lieutenant Olivia, please continue your attack on the enemy base camp! I will hold them off!”
“Will you be fine?”
“Please leave it to me. We will link up inside the enemy"s basecamp later— Third and Fourth company, follow me!!”
“““Yes Mdm!!”””
Claudia turned and led 1,000 cavalry towards the enemy infantry. Olivia saw them off, then announced calmly to the soldiers of the detachment unit:
“Well, let"s not lose out to Claudia, and hurry into the enemy basecamp— oh, we need to kill all the enemies here first.”
With Olivia"s encouragement, the morale of the detachment unit surged, and their attack became even stronger. When the sword flashed, blood sprayed into the air like snowflakes. The Imperial Soldiers started whispering as they watched in fear:
“Hey, is that the monster girl mentioned by the soldiers who went crazy? She is wielding a dark sword.”
When he said that, uneasiness spread like a ripple amongst the soldiers, and fear was slowly gripping the entire unit. Before terror overwhelmed the troops, the commander of the rearguard, Major Brando, roared:
“What"s so scary about her!? How can soldiers of the Empire lose their nerves because of a girl!? Watch me, I will butcher her!”
Brando spun his spear above his head, as he closed in on Olivia, then thrust right at her face. Olivia riposte the attack easily, and only the lower half of Brando"s body with its guts spilling out was left on the horse.
“Hieee——!! Monster ahhhh!!”
Imperial Soldiers fled like water out of a busted dam. The detachment unit didn"t let this chance slip, and pursued the routed enemy. Olivia looked on for a moment, then cast her gaze towards the base camp where the banner of the crossed swords flew high. She muttered at an inaudible volume:
“Humans sure are combative and cruel creatures, Z.”
Imperial Army, Main Basecamp
The attack came from nowhere.
This unexpected development rattled Osborne a little. However, he didn"t let it show, and instructed Paris to gather more intel.
After collating the information— the enemy was a monstrous girl, and she slaughtered the commander of the rearguard.
“Your Grace, could it be…”
Paris showed a bitter face.
“You are probably right, it should be the girl who slew Samuel. What a surprise.”
“My apologies, it wouldn"t have come to this if I focus more effort into intel gathering.”
Paris said with his head bowed, and Osborne just waved it off. It was...o...b..rne"s fault for not prioritizing the investigation into that girl. Deep inside, he thought the murder of Samuel was just a trivial matter, and thought the entire matter of the monstrous girl was ridiculous.
That was why Osborne didn"t place all the blame on Paris.
“Don"t panic. The men might call her a monster, but—”
Before Osborne could finish, a soldier barged in with a scream. Paris furrowed his brows, and shouted with a murderous glare:
“What is it this time!!”
“T-The monster—!!”
The soldier would never complete his sentence. A dark sword had pierced his chest, and was drawn out slowly while the soldiers eyeball turned upwards and blood frothed from his mouth. When the sword was completely drawn out, the soldier fell onto the ground with a pomf.
Behind that soldier was a silver haired girl covered in blood.
“Who goes there!?”
Paris roared. He knew she was an enemy, but couldn"t help asking anyway.
“Hmm? My name is Olivia~. By the way, who is the commander? Oh, hiding is futile, I already know he is here.”
Olivia rested her sword on her shoulder, and surveyed the tent casually. The next moment, the four guards surrounded Olivia with their swords raised. Olivia spun as if she was dancing and there was a flash. The four guards stopped moving with their swords above their heads, as if they had been petrified.
It all happened in a blink of an eye.
The top half of their body slid horizontally, and fell to the ground, leaving their bottom half still standing. Blood spurt at that instant, and their organs spilled out. The pungent smell of blood filled the entire place. Osborne couldn"t do anything but gasp at this nightmarish scene.
Olivia glanced at the dead guards, and tilted her head.
“Hmm~ they look tough, but aren"t much— Oh! Is the commander an old grandpa like Lieutenant General Paul?”
Olivia then turned to Osborne with a faint smile.
“——Your Grace, you have to leave now. It"s hard to believe, but this girl really is a monster. I can"t buy you much time.”
With that, Paris drew out the two short swords on his waist, rushed up to Olivia and stabbed at her neck.
“… Paris… Sorry, but I can"t accede to your request.”
Osborne gently caressed Paris" head that had rolled to his feet, and closed his eyes. He then faced Olivia and declared with dignity:
“I"m the commander of the Southern War Theatre, Osborne von Gralvine!”
Royal Army Main Base Camp
“Your Excellency, the First Army had suppressed the enemy with a fire trap.”
“I was shocked when they deployed in the Crane Wing formation, but to think they used such a vicious scheme…”
If the Full Metal Knights wants to escape from the sea of flames, they would have to face the Royal Army"s elite pikemen. Their only choices were to be burned alive, or skewered by pikes. The flanks had finished their encirclement, and was tightening it right now.
Paul and Otto observed the battle in the center line with their telescopes.
“I was sweating bullets when it started to rain, but my worries were unfounded.”
“Didn"t I told you that Lambert will find a way—? But attacking with fire isn"t exactly his style.”
Paul furrowed his brows after putting down his telescope. Otto had an idea who came up with the fire attack scheme, but didn"t state it as he was more concerned with the detachment unit. And he was sure Paul knew anyway.
“But the detachment unit sure is slow.”
“… Maybe they ran into some unexpected obstacles.”
It had been four days since the battle started.
Otto felt it was unwise to wait any further. The Royal Army might have the advantage now, but if Fort Kiel send in reinforcements, the tables would be turned. That was the limit of the Royal Army"s advantage. If the detachment unit couldn"t achieve any results, then this would be the chance to press their advantage. With that in mind, Otto proposed to Paul:
“Your Excellency—”
Before he said anything more, Paul shook his head. He already knew what Otto had in mind.
“We have been working together for two decades now. I can guess what you are thinking, Otto.”
“In that case...”
“This is a good chance, but the enemy commander isn"t stupid either, and will pull his forces back since things were going awry. He will also request for reinforcements from Fort Kiel, and you know what will happen then.”
Otto furrowed his brows at Paul"s sharp gaze, and didn"t say a word. Paul smiled at that, and patted Otto"s shoulder:
“It might be a little late for me to say this, but Second Lieutenant Olivia will be fine. Otto, you devised this plan yourself, right? It is the duty of the superior to trust in their subordinates to carry out their mission.”
“… Yes Sir.”
“Hah, hah, hah— you wench! Are you really human!?”
“Ahaha, surely you jest. Of course I"m human.”
Osborne already used his sure-kill strikes several times, but the dark sword fended him off easily. Every time he clashed swords with his opponent, his hands would go numb. The gulf between their skills was vast, and he couldn"t shake off the ominous feeling of death clinging tightly on his back.
“Have enough already?”
“Hah, hah… If I say no, will you sheath your blade?”
He was only kidding, but Olivia pressed her index finger on her face in deep thought. Osborne couldn"t help smiling at her carefree att.i.tude in this fight to the death.
“Hah~ you have a point. I never thought about what I should do if someone says no. My choice of words are poor. Human language is complicated after all.”
Olivia changed her phrasing with a brilliant smile: “Forget what I said, it"s time to end this.” She flicked her sword to the side, and the blade covered in black mist felt familiar to Osborne. She then took a high guard sword stance.
“I"m coming!!”
“Yes, come at me, bro!”
Osborne slashed vertically while holding his breath, and the sound of his blade swinging echoed out loud. He swung with all his might, and normal people wouldn"t be able to track his sword— However...
“Mr Osborne, you have potential, but you are just a bit slow.”
The blade didn"t touch Olivia"s body, and slashed futilely through the air. With the sharp sound of a swing, the dark sword drew a beautiful arc and went straight for Osborne"s neck. With his body still moving under the momentum of his own attack, it was impossible to evade.
Osborne smiled faintly and close his eyes peacefully.
During the last moment of his life, what flashed across...o...b..rne"s mind wasn"t his beloved family or his subordinates in the military, but the thought that the mist around the dark sword seemed similar to the squirming shadows behind Chancellor Dalmes.
Olivia flicked the blood from her sword and sheathed it. At this moment, Claudia and a few soldiers rushed over with bated breath.
“Second Lieutenant Olivia! Are you alright!”
“Yes, I"m fine. What about you, Claudia?”
“Tis but a scratch, I will be fine.”
On a closer look, there were some dents in Claudia"s armour, her limbs were bleeding, but it wasn"t life threatening. Olivia sighed, and patted her shoulder gently.
“People die when they are killed, so take care of yourself.”
“Yes Mdm, thank you for your concern—! Speaking of which, did you kill the enemy commander?”
“Hmm? That head over there belongs to the commander-in-chief. He said he was...o...b..rne von Gralvine.”
Olivia pointed at the head with greying hair on the ground. Claudia approached it slowly, and gulped.
“You really killed their commander-in-chief…”
“Ehh? It"s our mission after all. Instead of that, aren"t you going to raise the smoke signal?”
“Y-You are right!”
Claudia squatted down to prepare, and a column of red smoke rose into the air in no time.
“Our forces will now launch an all out attack. What should our unit do now?”
“Well… To completely sap the fighting spirit of the Imperial Army, we need to spread the news that their commander-in-chief is dead. Stick his head on a spear and parade it around.”
“D-Do we need to go so far!?”
Claudia was shocked. In contrast, Olivia was very calm.
“The real thing will be more convincing, correct? I won"t force it if you don"t want to.”
“N-No, I will abide by your orders, and make the arrangements!”
Leaving Claudia who was issuing her orders to the troops aside, Olivia stretched her back. The battle was coming to a turning point. Next would be the attack on Kaspar castle.
Really now—
“Sigh, being a soldier is so much work!”
Claudia couldn"t help laughing at Olivia"s exaggerated tone that sounded like an actress in a play.
Royal Army Main Base Camp
“Your Excellency! Look over there!”
Otto pointed agitatedly to the distance. A column of red smoke was rising from the enemy base camp.
“Haha, you don"t have to shout. It seems Second Lieutenant Olivia completed her mission.”
Paul showed a sinister smile, and ordered:
“Contact Lambert, Elman and Hosmund. Tell them the silver lance has struck. Launch an all out attack, kill any who oppose us.”
“Yes Sir!”
Otto relayed the orders to the messengers. Paul got on his warhorse with practiced movements.
“We are going too.”
Without wasting any time, Paul led his 5,000 men to attack.
— An hour after the smoke column rose.
“Ugh, d-d.a.m.n it. Such petty tricks.”
“Y-Your Grace……”
After rushing to George"s side, Cyrus saw the place was filled with charred corpses, and George was glaring at this scene with demon-like eyes. The charred remains of George"s beloved stead laid beside him. Cyrus who was the bearer of grave news hesitated, but he steeled himself.
“Your Grace, our main base camp had fallen to the surprise attack by the enemy. They overrun our right flank, and our left flank won"t last much longer… Please retreat post haste.”
“… Adjutant Cyrus. I"m not in the mood for your jokes right now.”
George said coldly as he pointed his charred lance at Cyrus" chin. Cyrus suppressed the crushing fear that he felt, knowing that the situation was deteriorating with every pa.s.sing second, and there was no time to waste. As long as Kaspar castle still stands, they could come back from this devastating lost. But if they lose their life out of reckless bravado, then it would be all over.
When he thought about that, Cyrus mustered his strength and said again:
“Your Grace, allow me to repeat myself. We lost our main base camp. If this goes on, our retreat path would get cut off. Please order the retreat.”
“… Is Lord Osborne alright?”
“… Some of the enemy soldiers are saying Lord Osborne had died in battle. We can"t verify that, but the attacks of the Seventh Army had gotten stronger.”
“I see… I thought they were just a gathering of mobs, so this is the result of underestimating the enemy, huh? The result is the opposite of our fight with the Sixth Army.”
George muttered with regret. Cyrus felt this was uncharacteristic of George, but didn"t say anything more. He just waited quietly for George"s next words.
“— How many of our Full Metal Knights still lives?”
“We probably lost 30% of our forces… And half of the survivors are in no condition to fight.”
“Understood. The injured is to stay inside our formation, and deploy the rest around them. Once ready, we will retreat to Kaspar castle.”
“Yes Sir!”
Cyrus sigh when he saw a hint of rationality in George"s eyes. After the preparations were completed, their unit retreated towards Kaspar castle.
“Stop dallying around! We have to retreat to Kaspar castle!”
Minits shouted with bloodshot eyes. His attendants were trying to soothe him, while the officers ignored Minits, and swiftly prepared for retreat in an orderly fashion. They weren"t doing this on Minits orders, they just didn"t want to die. There was no chance they would want to die together with a r.e.t.a.r.ded supervising officer. They didn"t state this openly, but their att.i.tude showed this clearly.
Minits" attendants were unhappy about the soldiers, but didn"t dare to vent. They were afraid of drawing their ire if they say anything. They only realized now that Reoness was the one keeping the entire unit together.
When the preparations to retreat was done, the incident happened.
Historical records state that Major General Minits died in action to a stray arrow from the Royal Army. But the truth was—
“What"s wrong? Where is Lord Minits" horse? Are you planning on letting His Excellency run back by himself?”
An attendant asked irately, and Mars who was in charge of the retreat replied coldly:
“I"m not Lord Minits" stable boy. If you really need one, why don"t you get a horse yourself, Your Grace?”
“——!? How dare you...! What you just said amounts to treason. I will let you off this time, so bring His Grace"s horse here now!”
“You want to charge me with treason? Go ahead— try me!”
Mars walked to the attendant and punched him in the guts. That attendent collapsed onto the ground and groaned with his hands on his stomach. The other attendant swung his fist in retaliation, but he was too slow. Mars turned to dodge, tripped him, and kicked him so hard that the attendant pa.s.sed out vomiting.
Minits" attendants were just civil officers, and were no match for Mars who was a military officer. Minits finally noticed the uproar and yelled:
“You imbecile! What are you doing to my attendants!? I will cut off your head!”
“I doubt you can do that, Lord Minits?”
In response to Minits who drew his sword, the Officers in the tent all aimed their bows at him.
“What!? You filthy plebeians, how dare you point your arrows at me, who has royal blood in my veins!? What is the meaning of this!?”
Minits lashed out, while Mars gave a measured response.
“There"s nothing to explain. Because of your foolish command, our beloved Major Reoness fell in battle. And he did so to let sc.u.m like you escape.”
“So what!? His plan almost killed me! Of course he should die! What nonsense!”
“If you can"t even understand this, then die.”
Mars shot his arrow without any hesitation, and hit Minits right between the brows. Minits fell backwards and died on the spot.
“W-What a horrible—”
“Do it!!”
On Mars" orders, the officers shot the two attendants. Their maws gasped like fish out of the water, and died painfully.
“… It"s unfortunate, but Lord Minits and his attendants died honorably to the arrows from the Royal Army. Let"s hurry back to Kaspar castle and report this.”
“““Yes Sir!!”””
Mars got on his warhorse, and retreated with the surviving soldiers.
George and his Full Metal Knights fought a horrible retreating battle. While they were pulling out of the Iris plains, they beat off their pursuers more than twenty times. Historian of the Dubedirica continent rated the hardships faced by the Full Metal Knights as one of the worst on the battlefield.
“— After pa.s.sing through this rocky area, we will reach an elevated plain… We should be able to rest there for a while.”
“Unfortunately, you are wrong.”
As if they were mocking George"s words, a new group of enemy appeared before them.
“What a persistent bunch.”
“Y-Your Grace, look at that!”
Cyrus pointed to the front angrily. There was a girl mounted on a dark horse there, and to the girl"s side, Osborne"s head was stuck on top of a spear and raised up high.
“I see, they are the sneak attack unit that overrun the main base camp…”
George grit his teeth in anger, and could taste iron in his mouth because he used too much strength.
“Shall we exterminate them?”
When he heard Cyrus, George couldn"t help smiling wryly. They had less than 2,000 men left, and everyone was injured and exhausted. But despite all that, their fighting spirit was at its peak.
“Adjutant Cyrus, when did you start talking like that? That isn"t something an adjutant should say.”
“I probably got influenced by Your Excellency. And there is no way I can stand seeing Lord Osborne like this.”
With that, Cyrus drew his sword that had already been stained black. The other riders braced their lances, ready to charge.
“Hmmp, fools— but well, as expected of my subordinates.”
George raised the corners of his lips, and charged at the Royal Army soldiers that appeared. With that as the signal, Cyrus and the 2,000 Full Metal Knights followed his lead. Their teamwork and neat formation made it look like the movements of one single being.
George spurred his horse towards the girl at the center of the enemy formation. Normally, he would jeer at the weak Royal Army for sending a girl onto the battlefield, but his instincts told him the girl on the black horse was dangerous. George trusted his guts, and thrust his lance at the head of the dark horse to strip the girl"s mobility.
“What!?”
“It"s too pitiful for the horse to die.”
His lance was knocked into the ground by the dark sword. His grip on the lance was loose because of her enormous strength.
His instinct was right. This girl was—
“Are you the one who killed Lord Osborne?”
“Lord Osborne...? Yes, that"s right. I killed him.”
The girl glanced towards...o...b..rne"s head and answered with a smile.
“As I thought… What"s your name?”
“Me? I"m Olivia.”
“Olivia… I will remember your name. So— go to the other world in peace!!”
George drew his sword and slashed at Olivia. Vertical cut, horizontal swing, thrusting strikes, she evaded all the attacks deftly. George pulled away to catch his breath.
“Huff, huff, this is ridiculous. She dodged my blade so easily…”
“Had enough—? No, let me rephrase that. I"m going for the killing blow now.”
“In your dreams!”
George charge Olivia with his horse, and swung his sword diagonally up to the left with all his might.
“— H-How is this possible!?”
George looked up in the sky. Olivia jumped off the back of her horse to evade this blow. The last thing George saw was Olivia thrusting her sword vertically down from the air.
“Your Grace!? d.a.m.n you!!”
Cyrus turned around and slashed with his sword. Olivia s.n.a.t.c.hed George"s sword and threw it at Cyrus. The sword cut through the air and stab Cyrus in the face, pinning him to the stone cliff.
—— An hour later.
The renowned Full Metal Knights were wiped out.
On the fourth day of the battle.
The rain that started at dawn had stopped, and the sun shone onto the ground through the gaps in the clouds.
Chapter 4: Fated Encounter
Ⅰ
The detachment unit completed their mission of killing the enemy commander-in-chief Osborne splendidly, and followed it up by decimating the Full Metal Knights.
Olivia who received new orders headed west as she swept up the remnants of the enemy forces. Mars who murdered Minits was amongst the retreating enemy forces, but Olivia had no way of knowing that.
And now, the detachment unit had pa.s.sed through the Iris plains, and arrived at the highlands before Kaspar castle. The detachment unit linked up with Otto"s supply unit there, and restocked their food, medicine and weapons supply.
“So we will be the vanguard to attack the Kaspar castle. What an honor.”
Claudia squatted on the ground and said while she looked up in the sky. Her parents would be proud. The thought of that filled her with an incredible sense of accomplishment.
“Is it really such an honor...? I don"t feel anything at all. I prefer books and good food over fame.”
Olivia laid on the gra.s.s and said with furrowed brows. Ashton who was preparing her meals complained:
“By the way, why does it feel like I have become Olivia"s chef?”
“That"s because Ashton"s special mustard taste too good. So I can"t help asking you to make sandwiches for me~”
Olivia was all smiles. Ashton stopped his hands at the sight of that.
“Hmm— well, preparing two instead of one portion isn"t too much trouble, so it"s fine.”
Ashton"s expression relaxed, and he started slicing the black bread. This youth was good natured, and too easy to read. With that in mind, Claudia raised her index finger and said:
“Hey, Ashton. Can you make one for me too?”
“Ehh...? Did you like the one I made for you last time?”
“That"s right, it"s delicious. Your mustard is so amazing that I very much want to learn how to make them from you.”
“It"s true! So Claudia thinks so too, huh!”
Olivia found a kindred spirit and became noisy, and Claudia smiled at her. In contrast, Ashton looked surprised.
“Hmm? Did I say something strange?”
“Not really. Pardon me, but Lady Claudia is a knight, correct?”
“I do have the t.i.tle of a knight, but what does that have to do with our discussion?”
The t.i.tle of a knight is bestowed to n.o.bles with great martial prowess. Claudia didn"t see how that would matter, and tilted her head slightly.
“Well, I thought knights have plenty of chances to eat tasty food…”
“Yes, it"s true that I have more chance of eating better tasting food compared to commoners. But Ashton"s mustard taste better than that, you know?”
“Ehehe~ Is that so…? Hold on, I will make some for you.”
Ashton"s face relaxed even more after that. He took out a bottle of mustard from his backpack with a hum. This youth was just too easy to read.
After stuffing the bread she received into her mouth, Claudia thought about Paul"s orders. They were tasked with being the vanguard, but the detachment unit only numbered 2,000. Compared to the estimated 5,000 men in Kaspar castle, there was no way they could capture it. Normally, you would need three times the numbers to overwhelm the defenders of a castle.
However, the mission of the detachment unit wasn"t to seize the castle, but to tire out the defenders with constant attacks. So they had to grind away at the enemy"s defences before the main force arrives. Paul had no expectation of the detachment unit seizing Kaspar castle.
“By the way, what are your thoughts on attacking Kaspar Castle, Second Lieutenant Olivia?”
“Emem? tac ta gnimaercs ydal?”
“Drink some water first. Then you can talk.”
Ashton retorted, and Olivia nodded.
“——Phew. I don"t have any ideas though. I will think about it after I see the enemy. What about you, Claudia?”
“I don"t have anything to contribute… We have the honor of being the vanguard, but our mission is to weaken the enemy"s forces as much as possible before the main force arrives. So my take is to minimize our losses.”
Claudia said as she watched the soldiers who were eating lunch peacefully. Ashton nodded firmly in agreement.
“Hmm~ that feels too pa.s.sive… Oh right! I have an idea, why don"t we take Kaspar castle by ourselves?”
Olivia smiled brilliantly as she said something shocking. Claudia felt she was kidding, but as usual, Olivia"s eyes showed no ‘colours" that indicated Olivia was jesting. Claudia sighed, and said with a cautionary tone:
“Even for Second Lieutenant Olivia, that would be a mission impossible. We don"t even have siege weapons.”
Without a battering ram, there was no way to destroy the tightly shut castle gates. Even if they did have, they didn"t have soldiers who were trained to use them. And the enemy wouldn"t just watch idly, and would take measures to resist. With that in mind, their chance of success was at best 50%.
“Is that so? I think there are many methods we can use even without siege weapons… Ashton, do you have any tactics we can use to seize Kaspar castle?”
“Ehh!? Why are you asking me all of a sudden?”
He was surprised, but Ashton still crossed his arms and fell into deep thought. Claudia smiled wryly, since this was way above the paygrade of a mere trooper.
“Hmm~ If I remember correctly, Kaspar castle was erected during the beginning of the warring era, right?”
“Is that so? I only know it has a long history.”
“If I"m right, then this tactic might work—”
Claudia was shocked by what Ashton proposed. Olivia who was listening quietly to Ashton showed a brilliant smile and said proudly with her chest puffed out:
“Well? Didn"t I tell you that Ashton is suited to being a strategist?”
Imperial Army, Kaspar castle
The commander of Kaspar castle"s defences, Colonel Bloom, received news that the Royal Army was marching on them.
“Is it true?”
“There is no doubt, we have confirmation from the guards at several sentry posts.”
The Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) replied without hesitation, which made Bloom break out in cold sweat. The implication of this bad news flashed across his mind.
“What are the enemy"s numbers?”
“Around 2,000.”
“Two thousand—? They are probably the vanguards. What about the follow up units?”
“F-Follow up?”
The NCO"s face turned pale.
“Why are you so shaken? Answer me.”
“My apologies, this is too sudden, so my investigation isn"t so detailed…”
The NCO"s voice got softer and softer. Bloom was enraged, and slammed his table with a shout:
“Imbecile! You think that excuse is acceptable?!? Go and find out now!”
“Y-Yes Sir! I will work on it right away!”
Bloom glared at the NCO that left the room in a panic, and shook the bell on his desk. A door nearby opened, and his deputy, Major Lanchester, appeared.
“Colonel, you called for me?”
“Yes. Informed the troops that the Royal Army has invaded, and make the preparations to engage.”
Lanchester frowned and answered immediately:
“Yes Sir… Did our main force in the southern war theatre fell in just a week? That"s unbelievable.”
“I have no idea. But I don"t think Lord Osborne will…”
Osborne had the elite Full Metal Knights under his command. What Lanchester said made sense and Bloom would very much like to dismiss the news he had just received too.
“What are their numbers?”
“For now, at least 2,000 of them had been sighted.”
Lanchester"s gaze sharpened when he heard that.
“Two thousand, huh… I will make the preparations right away.”
Lanchester clicked his shoes with a textbook salute, and left the room briskly.
Some time later, the intel Bloom received confused him. The scouts didn"t find any signs of a follow up forces to support the initial 2,000 men they first detected.
(What"s going on? Are they planning to take Kaspar castle with just 2,000 troops? Maybe the Royal Army had been decimated, and the remnants are making a last ditch effort to a.s.sault the castle—? There"s too little intel.)
— Two hours after this.
The garrison forces in the Kaspar castle engaged Olivia"s detachment unit.
Ⅱ
The battle between the Kaspar castle garrison and the detachment unit had started.
As horns and war drums echoed out, the detachment unit launched an attack from range with their bows. However—
“Hey, don"t they even know the range of their bow? They might be scared, but are they seriously shooting at us from so far away?”
“That"s right, maybe they are a mob of fresh recruits?”
“Hahaha, but they are skilled at blowing their horns and beating their drums.”
“Sigh, it can"t be helped. Me, a skilled veteran, shall teach you a good lesson!”
“What can you even teach them!”
The soldiers laughed out loud. Their faces were tense before the battle commenced, but their nervousness were gone when they witness the terrible attack by the Royal Army. Their commander, Second Lieutenant Shisiru felt the same, but he didn"t laugh like his men.
“Enough. They are within range of our ballistae, hurry up with the counter attack!”
After Shisiru shouted at them, the troops hurried to the ballistae mounted on the castle walls.
On the other end, for the detachment unit that was being mocked by their enemies.
“All units, pull back!”
The unit defended against the ballistae with large shields, and retreated slowly. A short while later, they advanced again to attack with arrows despite being out of range. They did this repeatedly.
“Hey Ashton, will this really work? We aren"t suffering any losses, but won"t the Imperial Army treat us like fools?”
Claudia asked Ashton as she observed the situation through her telescope.
“Well, it"s true that they would laugh at us, but he who laughs last, laughs hardest. So it"s fine for them to mock us for now?”
Ashton paid no heed to the enemy"s mocking. Ashton who was temporarily elevated to the post of strategist by Olivia had to command the frontlines together with Claudia.
“You might be right, but for a knight, this battle is really… I"m impressed that you thought up such a plan!”
Ashton"s tactic was as follows:
During the early days of the warring era, the castles erected would definitely have a hidden escape route. The entrance was always situated in a dried well near the castle. That also meant the dried well was a shortcut to infiltrate the Kaspar castle. So they could split into two infiltration teams, with one infiltrating to disrupt the enemy from within, while the other would use this chance to attack the city gates and remove the latches. After opening the gate, the main bulk of the detachment unit could then charge into the castle.
And right now, the detachment unit was just attracting the attention of the enemy.
“This isn"t much of a plan. At best, this is just a reckless attempt based on Olivia"s overwhelming martial prowess.”
Olivia was already gone. After waving her hand as if to say “I will be gone for a while”, she led a hundred elite soldiers towards the dried well, with a stroll-like pace.
“Even if you say that, the plan stems from your knowledge of the castle"s structure. The Empire that captured Kaspar castle will never imagine that there is such a hidden pa.s.sageway. We forgot about it too.”
“Despite how I looked, I have read through all the history books. It will be great if this raises the chance of our survival. After all, I don"t want to die.”
Ashton said awkwardly. Claudia tensed up a little when she saw his face. Death was inevitable in war after all. The people fighting by your side today might be dead tomorrow. Ashton understood that, and it motivated him to think of the best way to minimize their losses. He did so despite the looming fear hanging over him.
“——That"s right. We made it this far, so we can"t just die so easily.”
Claudia gestured smoothly to order the retreat.
As the detachment unit drew the attention of the Imperial Army, Olivia"s group found the dried well easily and infiltrated the Kaspar castle.
“Commander Olivia, honestly speaking, I never thought we really infiltrated so easily.”
A one eyed man with muscular arms — the vice-commander for this infiltration mission, Gauss, commented to Olivia.
“Yes, it"s thanks to Ashton predicting the spot so accurately.”
Olivia nodded satisfactory, and stomped on a gutter rat that was scampering around. The soldiers behind her all winced and groaned at that.
Olivia"s group held torches and were walking along a dark pa.s.sageway made of stones. It was an escape route, so it was cramped and the air was still. The way was blocked by loads of spider webs, which meant the Imperial Army had not discovered this hidden pa.s.sage yet.
“So, how should we split our forces? To be safe, should we divide ourselves equally?”
Gauss asked as he swiped a spiderweb aside. Olivia shook her head immediately.
“I have already decided. I will create the distraction alone, everyone else will seize the gate and let Claudia"s group in.”
“You alone!? Commander, I know you are formidable, but how about taking ten men with you?”
The soldiers around them nodded in agreement with Gauss. Olivia smiled at them, and patted Gauss" back gently:
“Ahaha, don"t worry about me. It will be easier for me to swing my sword without holding back too. I don"t think I will hurt you guys by mistake, but it"s better to be safe.”
Olivia caressed the sheath on her waist with a smile. Gauss could only smile awkwardly in return and nodded. After witnessing Olivia"s exploits on the Iris plains, Gauss knew very well how tough she was.