"Everyone, stay calm and maintain your composure! The enemy forces are not that numerous!"
Chel Brans, who had been leading the ambush, shouted urgently to keep the chain of command intact, but he was just as flustered as anyone else.
'The ambush has been uncovered? Why? Why did this happen?'
How many messengers had been sent before he arrived here, bringing news of the current situation at the fortress? He had seen what appeared to be preparations for a ritual, and heard that the soldiers were on high alert, maintaining strict security. Most importantly, he'd received reports that the commander, Epinnel, was personally overseeing things, moving around and giving orders.
There was no possibility that the messenger had lied... so... in the end...
'Could it be that they somehow saw through our plan before we even made a move?'
The thought of "seeing through" brought to mind something Parfalle had said to him earlier.
Swen is an extraordinary strategist. He was already aware that the Aishus army, along with the Aleffel and Charam armies, were working on a deceptive strategy against us. He had also predicted the northern rebellion would occur. Surely, he must have also prepared for the defense of the fortress in detail.
'Could it be that all of this is part of Swen's calculations?'
At that moment, Parfalle had said, "As long as Swen is present, we cannot touch the fortress." But what if... what if everything, including her thoughts and actions, was something Swen had anticipated once more?
'What is this...!'
Come to think of it, the first time he had encountered Swen was when his lord—his younger sister, Lyn—had told him that "a great talent is hiding" and they had gone to deal with the now-destroyed Lunarian Army.
As those thoughts spiraled in his mind, Chel shook his head to clear it. Just because Swen had shown some miraculous insight didn't necessarily mean he was the one who had foreseen this exact plan. In uncertain matters like this, jumping to conclusions in fear would only paralyze him from taking action.
'So, should I withdraw the troops immediately now that we've been exposed?'
Parfalle had mentioned that the chance of failure was low, but if, by any chance, their unit's movements were detected before a proper siege could occur by the Aishus army, they should withdraw immediately. She had advised leaving only the minimum number of soldiers to delay pursuit, and pulling back the rest.
Though he felt frustrated and embarrassed about running away like this, Parfalle was an advisor he respected. He knew well enough that following her advice was often the best course of action in most situations.
'Then I must give the order right away...
As he was gathering his resolve, a familiar female voice reached Chel's ears.
"Here you are."
He turned his head to see the source of the voice.
On horseback, the Brans family's warrior—Airen Juliet—was staring at him with cold eyes.
"...Who is this? A filthy traitor who abandoned the country?"
"..."
Without responding, Airen just glared at Chel.
"You've certainly recovered, haven't you? After what you did. If it were me, I'd have been consumed with guilt and killed myself. But here you are, brazenly holding your head high. It looks like you learned that from your father?"
Chel's words were clearly provoking, but Airen didn't take the bait.
"How pathetic, Chel Brans. Because of your cursed bloodline, you can't even leave a sinking ship. So, how does it feel to be the helmsman of a doomed nation?"
"What did you say? You filthy...!"
Chel, in a fit of rage, drew his sword and yelled at her.
"Are you mocking Chel Brans?!"
"Oh? You want to fight? You better do it now while you still can."
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Clang!
Chel, riding toward her, swung his sword.
Airen parried his strike and squared off with him, locking eyes.
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"With this meager force, you can't stop our army! Accept your damn fate. I'll personally take your traitorous head!"
"You’re just as vulgar as your sister. You really want to rush to your death? Fine, I won’t stop you. Come at me!"
"Oh, you filthy wench! This will be your grave!"
Airen remained unshaken, continuing to face Chel Brans.
They exchanged blows a few times, and Chel was undoubtedly strong. He was known as the strongest swordsman in the Brans army, after all.
But after training his swordsmanship day in and day out, Chel felt like he could finally hold his ground against him, even if just for a short time. In fact, he even began to think that Chel might be weaker than Lunarian, which gave him some confidence.
'Good. That should be enough provocation.'
Swen had once said that if they could see through the strategy, they would inevitably find themselves in a favorable position. He had also mentioned that it was crucial to eliminate as many of Brans' troops as possible here.
Swen's goal was to reduce the enemy's forces.
If that was the case, then Airen was simply running toward that goal.
In the same vein, provoking Chel, the commander, and keeping him here was her strategy.
Airen, who had once served closely under Chel, knew his personality well. He was a powerful general—an irreplaceable weapon in the Brans army.
His only weakness was his hot-headedness.
The name Brans, with its pride and glory, meant everything to him. The mighty, ferocious general was obsessed with his reputation.
Provoking someone like Chel wasn't an easy task, but if you touched on the pride he held in his name, it was like flipping a switch...
"Haahh!"
Clang!
'He’s taking the bait...!'
Airen felt a slight tremor in her arm as she blocked Chel’s sword. But from the perspective of Aishus’ army, provoking him to prevent retreat and disrupting Brans' formation to wipe out their forces was a brilliant strategy.
However, if you focused not on Aishus but on Airen herself, it wasn’t as perfect a plan as it seemed.
She would have to keep fighting him until most of the soldiers were dealt with, buying as much time as possible. Even though she had improved to the point where she could somewhat hold her own, objectively speaking, defeating him was almost impossible.
She wasn’t inexperienced enough to fail to realize that.
But...
'If I’m going to fulfill Swen’s plan... I have to push myself even harder...!'
The man who freed me from the chains that bound me to the cursed fate of the Brans family. The man who sincerely told me that protecting myself was the most important thing above all else. For that man... Swen... there was nothing Airen wouldn't do.
With that resolve, she continued to engage with him.
How much time had passed?
Airen’s expression tightened slightly as she began to feel the strain on her stamina. Chel, never missing an opportunity, flashed a wry smile and taunted her.
"Ha! I can feel your tiny hands starting to shake. For all that tough talk, you’re weak after all! Airen! You didn’t honestly think you could beat me, did you?!"
Airen, hearing Chel’s words, responded with a provocatively sly smile.
"...You have a long tongue, Chel Brans. I pity you."
"...What?"
"Because of that proud bloodline of yours, you’ll never be able to escape the foolish rulers who control Brans. You’ll rot there, stuck for life in that doomed family, won’t you?"
"What... what did you say...?"
Chel visibly trembled with rage, his true fury—something even Airen had never seen before—surging through him.
"...Airen Juliet. I swear on my sword, you will die here."
Clang!
‘...Ugh!’
Chel's attacks became fiercer, with every strike aimed at her. How many generals could fight this freely on horseback, pouring attack after attack without hesitation? Airen had managed to land a few blows in return, but right now, all she could do was focus on defending against the onslaught.
‘I have to endure... If I don’t, I...!’
"I’m glad you’re safe, Airen..."
There was someone waiting for her return now. Someone who had searched for her, who had affirmed her existence, who was waiting for her to come back.
‘I can’t die here... I mustn’t die...!’
Crash!
‘This...!’
Airen’s sword slipped from her grasp as she tried to block another strike. Chel, noticing her loss of weapon, sneered and let out that irritating laugh, which filled the battlefield amidst the soldiers' shouts.
"This is the end, Airen!"
‘Damn it, Swen...!! I...!’
At that moment.
"AAAHHHH!!"
"....!!"
Airen heard a tortured groan from Chel. She quickly assessed the situation.
An arrow had lodged itself deep into Chel’s left hand.
Turning her head, she saw Emma, with her bow, and Hernandorf, wielding a massive club, riding toward them.
It seemed the soldiers who had gone to invade Aleffel had heard the message from the messenger and arrived here.
"Damn it...!"
Chel cursed as he grabbed the arrow sticking out of his hand.
And then...
"AAAAHHHHH!!!!"
With a violent scream, he yanked the arrow out. The wound gushed with bright red blood, but even in this dire state, Chel's focus remained sharp as he assessed the situation.
Turning his head, Chel saw Emma, the renowned tactician of Aishus, and Hernandorf, the formidable warrior, charging toward him.
‘Damn... has enemy reinforcements arrived?’
Only after losing some blood did Chel’s rational thoughts start to return.
This wasn’t the time for this. He should have retreated the troops much earlier.
If this continued, there was no chance of victory. He might not even survive this battle, let alone kill Airen, especially with Emma and Hernandorf joining in.
‘I have to pull back... now!’
"Everyone! Retreat! Cancel the operation! Prioritize retreat!"
But his command, lost amidst the chaos of the battlefield, echoed in vain, unheard by his soldiers.
Chel realized too late that it was already too late.
‘...Damn it!’
If he died as the commander, it would truly be over. Chel turned his horse, shouting for a retreat as he fled the scene.
Watching him retreat, Airen saw Emma ride up to her.
"I’m glad I made it in time, Airen. It’s been a while since I used a bow, so I was a bit nervous, but I’m glad it worked out."
"...Thank you, General Emma."
"No, we should be thanking you. If you hadn’t stopped the ambush, we would have lost Valharat Castle."
As Emma had said, had Airen not taken the lead and stopped the ambushing soldiers, the situation could have escalated disastrously.
"You’ve done well. Let’s clean up the remaining forces."
"Yes, understood. I’ll help as well."
"Don’t overdo it."
With that, Airen followed Emma’s lead and began organizing the Brans army’s forces, who were unable to retreat properly.
The failed ambush aimed at Valharat Castle had cost Brans Army more than 45,000 of their main troops.
This was the greatest failure Brans Army had suffered since their domination of the central continent.