Oukoku e Tsuzuku Michi

Chapter 219

Chapter 220

Third Person POV-

Vandolea . Vandolea's Second Invasion of Malt . Malt Invasion Second Division Army Corps .

「Fellow commander Bejček, I guess I should first congratulate you on returning safely . 」

「……I am grateful for your consideration, fellow commander Bulzark . 」

Bejček's head remains hanging down as he answers with a sullen expression on his face .

Nobody could blame him as the other person's tone, facial expression, and atmosphere are clearly criticizing him .

「No really, how brave of you to return unharmed while the invading army lost half its forces! ……oh right, you surrendered to the enemy, didn't you . 」

「If we continued to fight at that point, we would only get decimated! We still have to fight with Altair! Making sure to get even one more soldier home is-……」

「You're exactly right! The conquering of Malt Kingdom is nothing more than a secondary operation . In spite of that, you lost a large amount of our precious men, moreover you were routed and now intend to add yourself to our Third Division Army Corps…… you should be ashamed of yourself!」

Vandolea's army is separated into division corps 1 to 3 .

There are other temporarily-formed armies like the Malt Invasion Army, but the main force consists of the three divisions .

Learning that the Malt Invasion Army suffered a defeat, one of only three divisions of the main force didn't have much choice but to make a move .

With the country currently staring off against Altair, they could not overlook the danger of being counter-invaded from the north borders .

Bulzark yells as he slams the table and Bejček responds by shouting back .

「The information was different! We easily defeated the Malt soldiers as planned . Goldonia…… Hardlett dispatched his army!! This isn't just a military problem anymore, it's political!」

「Only a single feudal lord of some remote region joined the battle! ……enough, your inquiry is not my duty . Save your explanation for the People's Assembly . Have fellow commander Bejček get on a carriage to the capital . Assign guards…… no, an escort, got it?」

Bejček took his leave as Bulzark's subordinate stares coldly at him .

「Hmph, that incompetent fool . He should be hung . 」

「I hear the Representative is also extremely enraged at the defeat . I doubt that guy will ever see the light of day again . 」

Bulzark smiles happily at his adjutant who comments obsequiously .

The young female adjutant returns the smile but quickly hardens her expression .

「The enemy before us is the pseudo military volunteers that Bejček mentioned…… they're believed to be an army of Goldonia . 」

The expressions of Bulzark and the other staff officers change to match the serious expression of the adjutant .

「Without a doubt . It's not rare for the army of another nation to disguise as military volunteers . ……but do they know how to disguise themselves? I've never seen military volunteers with a unified set of equipment or orderly lines . 」

Some of the subordinates chuckle .

「They have approximately 10 000 soldiers and it appears a high percentage of them are cavalry . Currently, it looks like they are slowly retreating . 」

A staff officer tells Bulzark the information he received from a scout .

Since the border zone is a plains as far as the eye can see, it is impossible to conceal forces . Unless they are a great distance away, the strength of the entire enemy force can be grasped .

「So they're trying to lure us into the plains, a natural plan for an army with lots of cavalry . 」

「Should we shift the battlefield and lead them to a wetland or forest?」

Bulzark shakes his head at the adjutant's words .

「No, I don't want to take too much time . We can't stay here for too long . I want to finish this in one battle, compel Malt to surrender and them return home . 」

「I see, if we create a situation where it is hard to attack, then it will be troublesome for us if they withdraw while trying to preserve their forces . 」

Bulzark nods .

「For that reason, we'll challenge them in a decisive fight on the plains where they believe they have the advantage, then annihilate them . We'll need to do it as fast as possible too . 」

The adjutant steps forward again .

「Then shall we begin the battle right away? Preparations are……」

The woman looks at one of the commanders, who then steps forward with a straight posture .

「Battle preparations are complete, we are ready to sortie at any time!」

「……fumu . No, let's do it tomorrow . It's already way past afternoon . It will get dark in about two hours, and there is a high chance the enemy escapes after it turns into night time . We'll start early in the morning and make the most of the entire day to crush them . No objections, I assume!?」

「「「No sir!」」」

After proper salutes, everyone disperses .

Night . Vandolea Camp .

In order to prepare for the start of battle the next day, Vandolea sets up camp for the night .

The only arable land which had an unobstructed view was the wheat straw fields after being harvested, but despite being 30 000 strong, they had no trouble spreading out their camps .

Since they will be setting up camp next to the enemy, they naturally have countermeasures prepared for a night time ambush .

Watchtowers were built and look outs were stationed around the perimeter of the campgrounds, in addition a simple camp with a campfire was set up somewhat further away to detect any approaching enemies as quickly as possible .

「Uwah, arrows! Enemy attack! It's an enemy attack!」

A volley of arrows rain down and scatter around the Vandolea camp, prompting the young lookout to shout in a panic .

However, the thirtyish-looking experienced soldier who appeared after hearing his cry smiles and calmly pats the young lookout's shoulder .

「New recruit, look carefully . There aren't many arrows and none of it reached us . The enemy is trying to scare young pups like you by shooting randomly . They'll run away even if you give chase so it's better to leave them alone . 」

「I-is that so……」

「Listen, the campfire we placed over there as a precaution is roughly the same distance as the range of the bows from our ally camp . In other words, you won't get hit if you don't get close to that spot . 」

The arrows released by the enemy landed around the campfire .

That means the distance between enemy and ally is twice the range of their bows .

「Anyway, make sure you keep watch properly and don't fall asleep . 」

After saying that, the experienced soldier left .

The young soldier clears his throat, embarrassed at his loss of composure .

「They're lighting something again . Now that I look at it, it's kind of pretty . 」

The appearance of enemy soldiers faintly enters his vision, a volley of flaming arrows fly…… but don't reach .

The soldier has gotten used to this, though he suddenly realizes something strange .

「Haven't they gotten closer than before……」

The enemy archers seemed further in the distance in the beginning and now their figures seem to have gotten slightly larger .

「No, the arrows are falling in the same place…… must be my imagination . 」

Nothing around the campfire could be seen and the countless fallen arrows remain smouldering in the same area .

「Is it my imagination or does even the campfire seem closer than before? My eyes must be tired or maybe it's because I'm more exhausted from the cold after coming to the north . 」

The soldier rubs his eyes .

He sighs, hoping a shift change would come soon so he could retire for the night in preparation for tomorrow's fight . He then tries to distract himself by looking to the watchtower beside him to check on fellow soldiers who should be sharing the same suffering he is .

「Nobody's there…… hey guys, slacking off as a lookout is against the rules and is punishable by execution, you know?」

He looks to the watchtower on the other side but doesn't see anyone either .

「Is the military such a relaxed place……」

Right when he sighs while thinking to himself why he was acting so diligent in a place full of slackers, he sees a flame flicker in the darkness .

「Oh…… this time there are a lot of time . If they flew closer, it would really warm me up……」

Many more flaming arrows than before easily fly over the soldier's head and into the campgrounds .

「Eh?」

Shouting and yelling could quickly be heard coming from all over the camp as tent after tent went up in flames .

「Eeeh?」

Countless more arrows can be heard zipping through the air above the soldier's head .

He couldn't actually see them in the pitch black of the night since they were regular arrows but he could tell they were flying several times faster than the flaming arrows .

「H-how is this possible, there weren't any enemies near the campfire……」

To double-check, he looks over at the burning campfire .

He was able to get an accurate feel for the distance with his ally camps on fire .

The campfire was much closer than the place his allies prepared earlier in the evening .

「W-when did this-…… how!?」

At that moment, a black shadowy figure casually jumped onto the watchtower and landed lightly on the platform .

Something jumped onto the tower which was built up from the ground through labor and could only be climbed up using a ladder .

「Wha-, how, a-an enemy……」

Before the soldier could shout, his head fell to the ground .

The voice which reached his ears after his head was separated from his torso was as pretty as a bell .

「Why do I have to act like some small fry soldier? Trying to sweet talk me by saying he can't count on anyone but his older sister…… geez, Siegfried! This one's the last! What did he say to do next!?」

The soldier's consciousness silently faded into the night .

-Aegir POV-

Goldonia . Troop Headquarters .

「The surprise attack by the vanguard was successful, the enemy cannot react!」

We did not light a single bonfire so I can't see Celia who should be right next to me, but this cute voice unmistakably belongs to her .

If Leopolt was mimicking her voice, I would start some friendly fire on the spot .

「Who would have thought that approaching head on would work out so well . They should have been wary of ambushes too . 」

「Their campground was a common camp . It is an excellent choice with the least holes according to standard practice but it isn't perfect when we are fully aware they will use it…… there were several holes in their guard . 」

The plan we executed…… was simple and can practically be called a trick .

Our archers would just loose flaming arrows while advancing forward, making sure to keep the shooting range short by having the arrows fall in the same place .

It is easy to cause an optical illusion with visible light in complete darkness .

It was hard for them to realize we were closing the distance if the arrows landed in the same place every time .

The flames of the campfire they set up made for a good landmark for trained archers to aim at even at night .

「Normally, you would also station lookouts at the precautionary bonfire set up some distance away from the main camp . They might get taken out by the enemy, but they should at least prevent a surprise attack on the headquarters . 」

I see, I should do the same when I set up camp next time .

Well, the same thing might have happened even if they did that in the first place .

「In addition, I anticipated the spreading fire of the flaming arrows would make the enemy mistake the original position of their campfire…… however, the lookouts not even making a sound was an unexpected result . 」

I did something secret too .

It might also be easier to pull tricks when the lookouts are chasing the flaming arrows with their eyes .

「Does that have anything to do with the black, windowless carriage yesterday……?」

Celia is pretty sharp, let me pat her head .

「Let's end this explanation of assumptions . In reality, the surprise attack worked . We should play out our next hand . 」

Leopolt doesn't seem interested in the fine details .

The little trick provided some reinforcements and caused havoc within the enemy camp .

That shouldn't be enough to defeat the enemy though .

The real night raid commences now .

「Luna, Myla, Irijina, do as we arranged beforehand . If 'that' thing isn't damaged then prioritize aiming for it, and don't push yourself to do too much once you have dealt with it . Just tap it lightly and finish . 」

「「Yessir!」」

「Pipi is here too!」

Luna leads the bow cavalry, Irijina leads the spear cavalry and Myla supervises the entirety of the cavalry as they all charge forward .

Because of the initial flaming arrows, there is a huge conflagration in the enemy camp and the area has gotten brighter .

「I hope it goes well . 」

「The initial surprise attack, which we were the most uncertain about, was successful . It should be fine . 」

「They shouldn't be expecting a night raid by cavalry after all . 」

The speedy cavalry are not normally suited to night raids .

With so much excess momentum, allies would be worried about crashing into each other and would not make use of the speed, plus there is a high chance to trip over obstacles in the dark .

「That's what the flaming arrows are for……」

The flaming arrows which appeared to be fired randomly are smouldering outside the enemy's cautionary line .

The area outside that line should be safe for the horses to run on .

「The cavalry will charge in from the west first!」

There should be some form of preparation on the north side of the enemy camp…… in other words, the area in front of us .

That's why the first charge will detour around and come from the west .

The sound of the horses' hooves will be heard in the dark night but it should still be hard for the enemy to grasp the whole picture .

Then there was a remarkably loud scream which came from the confused enemy camp .

That was quickly followed up by yelling and shouting, and then clashing metal sounds .

「It seems the charge is a success!」

With that, half of our plan is complete .

The fire in the enemy camp grew larger in size and became intense enough to be visible to people far away .

「They're going wild, huh . 」

I can see the cavalry chasing the enemy around in their headquarters .

Horses running in the night make for pretty effective weapons just like that .

The enemy, who should have been prepared for a night raid, are hastily trying to put out the fire while fending off the cavalry . Many soldiers who were sleeping got out of their tents to check the situation only to be knocked down by the galloping horses .

The cavalry unit were told to break into the enemy camp from the west, then escape by heading straight to the south where the defences were the weakest .

If our cavalry stopped in the middle of the chaos or changed route, they would end up getting caught in the mess too .

「Wahahaha!! Take that, and that!」

I can see Irijina swinging her spear around on horseback .

Or rather I can hear her .

「To be able to hear her even amongst all that noise…… she has an incredible voice . 」

「It's necessary for a soldier to have a loud voice…… though she's the same in the mansion . 」

Of course, she doesn't only have a loud voice .

She's also one-sidedly mowing down fully armed soldiers who look like reserve troops to be used in critical moments .

She's trampling the enemy as they try to deploy in a hurry, repeatedly thrusting her spear at them in the chaos .

I did a quick count and she's already finished off 10 people .

The other cavalry are also killing off the agitated enemy and throwing flaming pots of oils to spread the fire to untouched tents .

The brilliantly shining lights from the fire made the enemy camp seem as bright and beautiful as the city of God mentioned in stories .

「It looks like the cavalry escaped to the south . 」

「Good, if the next phase goes as planned we'll head out too . Get ready . 」

The roughly 6000 infantry around me are not playing around .

If everything progresses smoothly, it will be their turn to act next .

The 3000 cavalry who entered the enemy camp from the west and escaped to the south are using the blazing fire as a landmark to change route to attempt another charge from the east .

That swift action was so ingrained in their bodies from the continuous training and did not even give the enemy five minutes to catch their breath .

Even so…… it didn't seem to be enough .

「The enemy has constructed a defensive formation on the east side! And here as well…… a defensive formation has made its appearance on the north side! It looks like they are rapidly collecting themselves!」

「Fumu, they seem much better trained than the previous invading army . 」

「Yes, immature soldiers would fall apart if our cavalry devastate their forces, though in reality it is doubtful whether a thousand enemies got defeated or not in such a short period…… not to mention it is more doubtful when their actions are restricted in this night battle . It seems they are well aware of this . 」

The upper limit of our forces is 10 000, so even if they had half of their soldiers dedicated to extinguishing the fire, they would still have enough men to defend us .

Once they have mostly calmed down, they could counterattack at any time .

This calm decision-making ability has seeped down to even the lower ranked commanders .

The defensive formation constructed on the west side is a hastily built one but rather sturdy and doesn't look easily penetrable .

For better or worse, the burning flames of the nearby tents make it easier to see .

We have pretty much lost the element of surprise at this point .

「The cavalry unit is charging forward!」

Even so, Myla is still going forward with a charge towards the defensive formation .

Which means, that thing is there .

「Leopolt, get ready for our charge too . 」

「Right, an all-out charge, your target is the enemy front . 」

The infantry look at each other .

They seem to be asking whether it's a good idea to charge into an already-prepared enemy .

「It won't be a problem . The enemy formation will collapse now . 」

As the bow cavalry and spear cavalry charge head-on towards the anti-cavalry long spears lined up by the enemy, the well-ordered enemy seemed to hesitate for a moment as if thinking this attack on them was a hopeless one, though they quickly fortified their defences .

At this rate, not only will we not be able to breakthrough, we'll suffer heavy casualties .

That's where the trump card comes into play .

「Aim well…… and fire!」

About a hundred bow cavalry nock flaming arrows and all of them fire simultaneously after moving to the front of the army .

The basic strategy of my army is to use the range of the bows to throw the anti-cavalry formation in disarray, however things are different this time .

The released arrows were not aimed at the hardened defences of the enemy but instead at the bundles of straw carelessly lying around and within the enemy camp .

At this time, the byproduct of the threshing of wheat should be all over the land .

The dry straw didn't take long to catch fire and burn intensely .

It's obvious straw won't have much fire power and they'll turn to charcoal after burning out .

The enemy's formation wouldn't change much and they'll only get distracted briefly by the tall flames .

「That's if the straw was normal straw . 」

It seemed as though the corners of the mouth of the usually expressionless Leopolt lifted slightly .

Sparks fly .

Then there was a delayed roar and a stomach-rumbling shock .

A gigantic pillar of flame incomparable to the initial flames burst into the air .

「T-that surprised me . ……good thing it didn't leak . 」

Celia wasn't the only one surprised as the other infantry are oohing and aahing while the horses also seemed slightly agitated .

Schwartz was the only one who huffed nonchalantly .

There wasn't just a single explosion .

Continuous blasts…… according to the number of bundles of straw packed full of gunpowder, went off one after the other .

「You should not pull back the army to where the enemy are . If it is unavoidable, you should do a thorough investigation leaving no stone unturned . 」

I'll have to remember that too .

Leopolt's voice was interrupted by the continuous explosions .

「The enemy soldiers are in complete disarray! Their formation is non-existent!」

The unlucky ones who were close by when the bundles of straw exploded were blown away while those who got caught in the blast are not enemies which need to be we need to concern ourselves with anymore .

They dropped their weapons and retreated feebly .

「The enemy is in shambles . There's no better chance than this . Charge!!」

「「「Uooooooh!!」」」

The soldiers who were flustered by the explosions soon realized this was all part of Leopolt's plan and regained composure, shouting as they push forward into the enemy lines .

On the other hand, the enemy soldiers protecting the north side are restless and completely panic-stricken .

「Crush them! Those who contribute more will be given a special reward!」

I say that but I'm the one leading the charge .

Gido and Celia are screaming while chasing after me, but it can't be helped that Schwartz is so big and fast .

「F-forget what's happening at the back! We have to stop these guys in front of us!」

The commander of the confused enemy tries to regroup the army but it's too late .

I charge straight into the incomplete and disorderly spear line .

Schwartz leaps right before impact and lands directly in the center of the enemy ranks, crushing two soldiers with his hooves while knocking three other soldiers with his large body .

He looks at me and snorts as if saying it's my turn next .

「I don't need you to tell me!」

I twist my body around while wielding my spear with both hands, making a full spin after pausing briefly .

「Guwaaah!」「Gyaaah!」

The single strike containing my full strength mowed down all the enemy soldiers in a semi-circle in front of me .

Arms and heads fly every which way and a big hole opens up in the spear line .

One…… two…… seven, huh . Looks like I win .

Schwartz seems disinterested as he resumes his gallop, forcefully changing directions to trample over two more enemies .

What a petty guy this one is .

After seeing my ally infantry push the hole I opened even wider, I hold my position and finish off more enemies .

Unlike the beginning where I was trying to run past them quickly, this time I'm attacking to deliver fatal blows .

「I'm the general . Try defeating me!」

「Someone finish him off! If we defeat him, the commanders will also- hagyaah!」

With a swift thrust of my spear, I puncture the shouting commander's face and hurl him towards men who seem like his subordinates .

Two more heads fly in the air and Schwartz drops his hooves on the last one to get an agonizing death throe .

「Keep your distance and thrust at him! Do it at the same time and from multiple directions!」

That's a good idea but not when you let me overhear it .

Thrusts come at me from the front and sides . Schwartz first tackles the one in front .

I take my own spear and lop off the head of the soldier on my right before his spear could reach me .

For the enemy on my left, I deflect the incoming spearhead with my arm guard before grabbing the shaft tightly .

A smile unconsciously forms on my face .

「Hiiih!」

The soldier abandons his spear but I'm not letting him escape .

I thrust into the enemy soldier's back with his own spear and throw both him and the weapon into a burning tent .

「Gugyaaaaaah!!」

Oops, the man who fell after being tackled by Schwartz was still alive .

I similarly thrust into the back of the man who tries to get up and run away, then throw him into the same burning tent .

The two enemy soldiers can be friends .

「Who's next?」

The enemies around me quickly dwindle while my allies instantly push forward .

We have the superiority here, but the overall state of battle has not been decided yet .

I guess I'll go to a different area .

「Prepare yourself!」

Just as I turned my back, a single cavalry charges at me .

If you're going to come, come sooner .

As the man extends his spear while rushing forward, I twist my body to evade, then skewer the center of his body through his armor .

I used his own momentum against him so it was quite easy to stab through him .

While the man was still stuck on my spear, I swing it around to shake him loose and fling him somewhere .

The blood spraying everywhere while the man flies through the air against the bright and fiery background looks quite pretty .

「Is there anyone else?」

The enemy soldiers crossing swords with my allies shake their head furiously .

Oh I see, fine then .

The fighting continues for a while, so I leave the frontlines and oversee the battle with Leopolt .

The initial explosion was effective and granted us the advantage in the fight, but we aren't able to instantly annihilate an enemy with three times the number of our forces .

When the enemy eventually recovers and maintains order, the battle will become more like a tug of war situation where each of us will try our hardest to overpower the other side .

「It doesn't look good . 」

We should have caused the enemy to suffer considerable damage from the first offensive .

Though it's hard to think we defeated anywhere close to 20 000 soldiers .

「The enemy is regrouping faster than I expected . They are fairly poised in dire situations . 」

It is exactly as Leopolt says .

Their army must have seen carnage on the battlefield and been through their own hell just like our army has .

They properly understand that becoming unravelled will lead them closer to death .

We can disrupt them temporarily but they regain composure fairly quickly .

「I have an option to finish them off here . With such heavy losses, their army shouldn't have forces to spare to chase us and invade Malt . We can win even if we withdraw from here . 」

「They might replenish their military strength and come again though . 」

I know that Vandolea can't fight with us for too long with Altair practically knocking on their doorstep .

That is the same for me as well, since I can't station my army in Malt forever .

We need to deal them enough damage to eliminate any thoughts of them invading a second time .

「Then we'll have to aim for the head . 」

「Right . 」

No matter how powerful the army is, once the commander is defeated, they'll quickly collapse .

But it's hard to find that person in the messy fights of a night raid…… .

「Hey . 」

What a beautiful voice and beautiful long blonde hair unfit for a battlefield…… Brynhildr is standing in front of me with an unhappy look on her face .

「My job is already done . I can't stand being in such a disorderly place any longer . I'm taking everyone with me and going to sleep!」

「Aah, thanks . Have a good rest . 」

I asked for the impossible and had her help me out with the night raid .

I can't rely on her anymore than this when the battlefield has become so jumbled .

「Hmph, as promised…… I'll be taking plenty of that stuff . 」

She purposely spoke in vague terms instead of mentioning blood in front of Celia and Leopolt .

Brynhildr is even taking my standing into account .

「While I'm still here, I might as well tell you there is a fancily-dressed army near a large tent to the southeast . They just stood still for the whole time and bolstered their defences . 」

「It's them!」

I hug and kiss Brynhildr before jumping on Schwartz .

「Hawah! What are you doing in front of other people!? Can't you be a little more considerate about where-…… he's gone . Siegfried, go and help him if he looks like he's about to die . If he suffers a fatal wound, bring him to me even if you have to drag him . ……I won't let him die . 」

「……understood . 」

As I advance towards the large tent in the southeast with my escort unit in tow, the density of enemies visibly get higher .

「Bullseye . 」

「It looks that way . 」

The enemies were shocked that we headed straight for them but were still able to put up a good fight .

「How annoyingly slow…… Schwartz, break past them . 」

I can't dawdle here or else the enemy general will run away .

What I need now is speed and penetrating power .

「Charge!」

Schwartz stamps his hoof to the ground once as if revving his engine before dashing forward .

The acceleration was fast enough for the force to push my body backwards and made the weight of me, my armor and Schwartz's own armor feel as light as a feather .

「He's fast, block off the path!」

I cut down the enemy who tried to attack me from the side and then Schwartz leaps over the infantry blocking the path .

Following that, two enemy cavalry appear in front, charging with their spears pointing at me .

「Stop him!」

The enemies close the distance at full speed and Schwartz doesn't slow down either .

In no time, the space between us disappears .

Right when I thought we would collide, Schwartz lifts his head and glares at the opposing horses .

「Uwah!」「Dowah!!」

At the very last moment, the enemies' horses swerved to avoid Schwartz and I, swinging the riders off and sending them tumbling to the ground .

This guy has guts at least .

After breaking past the crowd of enemies, I see a squad of soldiers with completely different attire, in particular a gold-colored decoration on their shoulders which doesn't appear to be an item designed for battle .

With no doubt, these guys are from the headquarters .

「So you guys are the generals!?」

I yell at them in a loud voice while dismounting Schwartz .

「Guh…… what are our allies doing? Pull back to the headquarters, stall for time!」

At that one man's command, all the soldiers moved accordingly .

How nice of him to make it clear to me that he's the general .

Ten or so heavily armed men step forward, distinctly unlike ordinary rank and file soldiers .

I can't let my guard down .

「Aegir-sama! We will fight too!」「Me too!」「Y-you mean me too!?」「It is inevitable . 」

It looks like Celia and the others followed after me and broke through the other enemies too .

And then the fighting began .

「Dorya!」

I attack one man, which he blocks with his shield, but that shield gets crushed and he is brought to one knee from the powerful strike .

I follow up with a kick to send him to the ground and then finish him off by sinking the tip of my spear into his throat .

I see a large sword being swung at me from the side and it grazes my helmet, creating an impact which rattles my head .

As the man gets ahead of himself and goes in with a second strike, I make a single slash to his arms, then the man collapses to the ground screaming after losing both arms .

「They're pretty tough . 」

Celia and the others are each fighting one enemy .

Celia avoids blocking with her sword and chooses to dodge the enemy's attacks while aiming for any gaps, however the enemy also realizes her intentions and doesn't make any excessively large swings, turning the battle into a standoff .

Gido is exchanging blows with his enemy .

He seems at a disadvantage in the power department but he is displaying his superb speed and technique .

It doesn't look like the fight will be over anytime soon .

Kroll is…… .

「H-hey, how come you're not in a stance!? Are you looking down on me!?」

「A stance is unnecessary . Come at me however you like . 」

「This is a no-stance stance…… f-formidable . So I got matched with someone unbelievably strong!」

His opponent seems like an idiot too, Kroll should be fine .

Let's see, Christoph is…… .

「Uwaaah!!」

「Aah! Christoph got hit!」

When I looked at him, Christoph took a sword to the top of his shoulder and passed out .

Fortunately, the attack didn't penetrate his armor and his opponent didn't have time to deal the finishing blow since there was a crisis in the headquarters .

I can't prolong this fight .

I'll have to break through myself .

「Move it!」

I dive into the enemies and head in a straight line towards the enemy general .

The first enemy swings horizontally at me which I dodge by crouching, then counterattack with a sweep at his feet .

I block the downward slash of the next enemy with my spear and then punch his face with my left hand, sending his head flying after the man staggers .

The third and fourth enemy attack me at the same time .

I block their simultaneous attacks by positioning my spear horizontally, then quickly drop my weapon so I can grab both of their arms .

「Hngh!」

I throw the two soldiers up in the air with a powerful toss .

Both of them ascend high before making a disgusting splat and cracking sound as they crash to the ground in an unnatural posture .

One of them broke his neck while the other one appears to have snapped his spine .

「Sorry for making you wait . 」

I pick up my fallen spear and face off against the enemy general .

Nobody else is standing my way .

「…… you monster . Do you have a name?」

Judging he would not be able to escape safely, the general draws his sword .

「……Aegir…… Hardlett . 」

「So the guy Bejček mentioned . I'm Bulzark…… the commander of Vandolea's renowned third division army corps!」

The man rushes towards me with his sword .

I block his first and second strike .

His attacks seem very polished but he isn't overwhelming me at all .

Besides, Bulzark is already a middle-aged man so his power is nothing like the men before him .

The moment he confronted me, his fate was sealed .

He must realize this himself as well, but I guess his pride or stubbornness as a soldier of the renowned Vandolea army urges him to keep fighting until the end and not surrender .

「It won't look good if I half-ass this . 」

After blocking his third strike, I put some distance between us and brandish my spear .

I'll decide this fight in the next attack .

「Do your worst!」

Along with his yell, Bulzark readies himself in a thrusting stance and then charges at me .

I rush forward as well and unleash a full-powered, unrestrained thrust .

Bulzark's sword brushes past my head while my spear destroys everything from above his chin .

The battle is over .

「Aaah!! Your Excellency…… how dare you…… bastarrdd!!」

I hear a woman's scream from behind .

I turn to look and see that it's the same enemy soldier who defeated Christoph in one blow .

So that was a girl, I couldn't tell with the helmet on .

Whew, that was close . I'm glad Christoph got matched with her .

「His Excellency's killer! Prepare yourself!」

I sidestep the sword of the woman who runs and slashes at me .

Her attack doesn't look heavy at all but seems rather quick, almost like Celia with a little more weight .

「You keep dodging…… aau!」

I watch her movements closely and then parry her sword, then reach for her neck with my hand .

「Guh…… aaghh…… aau……」

Once I start squeezing her neck, the girl struggles wildly but eventually becomes listless .

Of course I didn't break her neck or anything .

I draw her close to me and make sure she's breathing before carrying her on my shoulder and yelling out victoriously .

「We won!! Everyone raise your voices!!」

「Ooooooh!!」

After seeing Bulzark's death, the soldiers fighting Celia and the others also gave up and ran away .

The persistent soldiers of the Vandolea army also quickly collapse with their commander dead and the battle became a one-sided rout when the sun started to rise .

「So…… that woman will be a prisoner of war? Or will you use her as your plaything?」

Myla's gaze hurts .

「You can't fuck a prisoner of war! A warrior needs to be treated suitably!」

Don't say that as well, Irijina .

This woman seems related to the headquarters so she might have some important information .

I'll let her go after the next step is complete .

「Then you aren't going to treat her as your woman?」

「No, I'll seduce her . 」

I'm not hoping for much but she might let me mount her .

I won't know unless I try .

「「「I knew it!」」」

Protagonist: Aegir Hardlett . 23 years old . Autumn .