Chapter 198
Dum! Dum! Dum!
The rhythmic beating of the drums drove people’s heartbeats in sync. Their hearts got warm as their breathing got quicker by the minute. The drums were promoting congruity among the troops while raising their morale.
Hooot!
A dazzling golden owl was gliding in the skies. Golden owls were famous for eating their own mothers if there wasn’t anything else for them to eat, but it was the emblem of the Pontier Family. And the Pontier Family would never let themselves be forgotten.
Icarus clenched her fists while standing next to Charles. It was all because she could see it. They were standing high up in the castle walls, so they could see thousands of enemy troops rushing toward them.
The tension among the allied troops was at an all-time high. Perhaps it was because they knew that once the fighting started, the fellow soldiers they were talking with just a while ago could become cold, bloodied corpses on the battlefield.
This was the bitter truth of wars, and each and every one of them was aware of it.
Someone tapped Icarus on the shoulder, and Icarus turned to face them.
“You don’t have to do this. If it’s too much, you can retire. You’re a strategist, yes, but you’re just a fifteen-year-old lady.”
“I’ll be sixteen soon. Besides, I know that knowledge is useless without the wisdom to implement it. Moreover, I have no intention of hiding. If that man, whom everyone is calling a ‘monster,’ can do it, then why can’t I?”
“Monsters are exceptions…”
“You sure know how to answer anything.”
“Hmph. The Masters’ Battle is over, but we still haven’t seen even the shadow of our master. What are we going to do about him?” asked Cain.
“...” Icarus' face darkened at Cain’s seemingly rude remarks.
“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound rude…” Cain rubbed his temples.
“Where is he?”
“He?”
"The Dark Knight of the Dennis River. I haven't seen him since we arrived here…”
Cain's expression stiffened. “About him, we have a problem...”
“Problem?”
“He vanished.”
“He what now?” Icarus stared at Cain.
“I followed him into the woods because I was worried that he wasn’t feeling well, but…” Cain sighed. He knew that the Dark Knight of the Dennis River was a fabled Death Knight, but he was the only one who knew about the Dark Knight’s identity.
As such, he was having trouble explaining things.
‘His demonic power swelled, and he exploded before scattering into smoke. Yep, there’s no way I can tell them that.’
Cain shook his head slightly. “He’s on our side, but he’s an unpredictable lad. I’m sure you don’t, but let me ask just in case—do you know him?”
“No, I don’t know him. However, I’m confident that Master sent him to us.”
“There’s really no way for us to know for sure. We also don’t have any evidence if Master really was the one who sent him here to help us,” said Cain.
Icarus paused with a stiff look. “Right...”
“Gah! don’t give me that look. I feel like I’ve wrongfully accused you. Anyway, let’s trust our master—I know that he won’t abandon his people and let us die like this.”
Icarus stared at Cain while maintaining her silence.
Cain poked Icarus on the side with his elbow.
Flinch!
“So…” Icarus' blue eyes shone peculiarly. Cain saw the change in her eyes, but he almost failed to notice it because it was barely perceptible.
“Why are you talking to me informally?” asked Icarus.
“...”
“…”
Cain awkwardly scratched his head. He had no idea how to respond. Certainly, he couldn’t just say ‘I’m talking informally because you’re like my younger sister,’ right?
“The enemy troops are marching!”
“...!”
Icarus and Cain simultaneously turned to look, and the person who shouted was right. It seemed that the enemy troops were finally close enough to Peril Castle.
“Prepare for battle!”
Dum! Dum! Dum!
The rhythm of the drums got faster as the soldiers got busy.
“I have something to tell you later,” said Cain.
“Wait…!”
“...?” Cain revealed a confused look.
“Look…!” Icarus pointed somewhere.
The enemy troops were indeed approaching Peril Castle, but a third group was approaching the enemy troops. The third group was a small group, a hundred at Icarus’ best guess. Their momentum was strong, they maneuvered deftly on horseback, and their black armor looked intimidating, despite its seemingly dull finish.
‘Are those the reinforcements of Marquis Crombell?’ thought Cain with a grim look. He had better vision than most people, so he made use of it to look at the third group of people on horseback.
He should be able to tell whom they were affiliated with once they got even closer, but based on their outfit from afar, it seemed that they could potentially be a part of the Mercenary King’s forces.
With a stern look and narrowed eyes, the members of the third group finally got larger in Cain's eyes, and Cain’s eyes got larger as well the moment he clapped his eyes on the person leading the third group.
The person at the helm of the third group had navy-blue hair that shimmered beneath the sunlight. The person was far away, but there was no way Cain wouldn’t be able to identify that person, especially with the former’s signature navy-blue hair.
“God…!” Cain’s jaws dropped to the floor. His face flushed as he exclaimed in excitement, “It’s Master!”
“What did you say?” Icarus hurriedly turned and followed Cain’s line of sight. At the sight of the navy-blue-haired young man, Icarus’ eyes welled up with tears. The third group consisting of knights clad in black armor, was rushing in their direction.
And at the helm of the knights was none other than Baron Joshua Sanders, their one and only Master…
***
Swish!
“Ugh…!”
Stab!
“Argh!”
Agonizing screams and the neighs of horses filled the battlefield.
The skirmish was straightforward. A hundred men, at most, against a massive force of five thousand. Marquis Crombell’s army didn’t even stop—what could a force that small do against them?
However, they soon realized that they were mistaken.
“Enemy! Enemy attack from the rear!”
Gehog finally scowled at the anguished screams coming from the rear of the army.
“Enemy attack?”
“We should go and take a look.”
“I thought you said they only have a hundred people at most?”
“Well, they turned out to be a hundred knights rather than mere soldiers…”
Stop.
Gehog came to a halt and frowned upon hearing Sir Wright’s words. Sir Wright was an A-Class Knight sworn in as a knight of the Crombell Family, so his words should be trustworthy.
“Are they hired knights? I haven’t heard about them at all,” said Gehog.
“They might not be working for the Pontier Family.”
“Then what the hell are they doing here? Helping the Pontier Family when they’re on the brink of defeat? Is this a joke?”
“It doesn’t matter who they are…” Sir Wright muttered.
At that, Gehog nodded and said, “I’m looking forward to seeing their headless corpses.”
“I hear and obey,” said Sir Wright.
“I don’t think we have to worry about them that much. Just bring two units’ worth of troops with you.” Gehog grinned. He then turned away and activated voice amplification magic before shouting, “The rest of the army shall continue marching!”
“I hear and obey,” replied Sir Wright. He bowed slightly before turning around. He then led two units’ worth of troops, about three hundred men, to face the hundred-strong enemy attacking the rear.
“Is that them?”
“Sir, yes, sir!” said a knight to Sir Wright with a bow. The knight had also been sworn in as a knight of the Crombell Family.
“I’ve never seen that coat of arms in Avalon. Their coat of arms…” Sir Wright scowled as he examined the hammers and arches emblazoned on the enemy troops’ black armor.
Their coat of arms wasn’t the main problem here. The primary issue was the fact that each and every one of them was highly skilled. Their swords were cutting down the allied knights like scythes harvesting wheat.
“Huh?” Sir Wright revealed a dumbfounded and an uncertain look at the same time. It was because of the handsome young man leading the troops.
Sir Wright was dumbfounded because the young man’s face looked extremely familiar to him, and he was uncertain because there was no way that the person he had in mind was a young man.
“Duke… Agnus?” Sir Wright muttered blankly. There was someone else related to Duke Agnus, whom Duke Agnus had cut ties with years ago. The young man became familiar throughout Avalon because he looked similar to Duke Agnus.
“He’s definitely Joshua von Agnus—no, Joshua Sanders—the most talented individual to have ever existed.” Sir Wright rubbed his chin.
The corner of his mouth couldn’t help but curl upward as he admired Joshua. He thought the rumors were exaggerated, but apparently, he was wrong. Joshua’s skills alone were a feat worthy of the history books.
“Ha…” Sir Wright stopped and turned toward Joshua. The three hundred knights following him looked at him strangely, but Sir Wright had always been like this, so they were quick to recover their wits.
Sir Wright and Joshua’s eyes met in mid-air.
“I’m a knight serving Marquis Crombell, and my name is Viscount Wright sean Nagari.” Sir Wright introduced himself first before saying, “I have heard of the rumors about you, Joshua Sanders, but I didn’t expect that we would meet like this.”
“...” Joshua remained silent.
Sir Wright’s smile deepened as he said, “However, I must say that you’re a fool for throwing in your lot with the losing team.”
The three hundred knights following Sir Wright jeered and chuckled.
“Are you worried about your men? Or are you afraid of feeling guilty for your entire life if you were to abandon them?”
Crack.
Joshua retrieved his crimson spear from the subspace and pointed the spearhead at Sir Wright before saying, “You talk too much.”
“...!” Sir Wright was startled. Eventually, he recovered and proceeded to unsheathe his sword as well before saying, “Young man, it seems that you have no idea about the gap between heaven and earth.”
“...” Joshua remained silent.
“My men and I will chop you into pieces, and I’ll personally feed your corpse to the dogs!”
Joshua’s expression darkened at the strong words.
“There’s no helping it. You pointed your weapon at me first.” Sir Wright’s sword shimmered as he activated his Aura Blade. Sir Wright’s fiery mana superimposed over the sword, making it look like the sword was on fire.
Sir Wright’s mana was also a tad bit deeper than the mana of those who had just become an A-Class Knight.
“...” Leo de Grans noticed the danger, and he cautiously crept toward Sir Wright with a grim look.
However, a soft pop interrupted them.
“Argh…!” Sir Wright’s eyes quivered as he looked down at his chest and saw a crimson spear lodged in his heart. “When… when did you…!”
Sir Wright would never receive an answer to his question as the light quickly faded from his eyes. However, a look of bewilderment could still be seen on his face as he perished. He died such a vain death for a proud A-Class Knight.
“...” An oppressive silence blanketed the battlefield.
The Wilhelm Knights gasped in awe while the opposing knights shuddered at the unbelievable scene.
“Listen, proud Wilhelm knights!” exclaimed Joshua as he shook off the blood on his spear with a swing.
“Sir, yes, sir…!” Leo de Grans was trembling, but in a different way from Sir Wright. He quickly dropped to his knee. The Wilhelm Knights clad in black armor remained frozen as they listened.
“Hurry up and eliminate these nuisances!”
“Your will is our command!” The Wilhelm Knights yelled as if they had been waiting for it, and then they quickly became like rabid dogs on the battlefield. After all, just what was there for them to fear when Joshua was the one leading them?
Joshua boosted their courage and morale so much that they even stopped caring about the difference in numbers between them and the enemy troops.
“Kill anyone who dares to block His Majesty’s path!”
.
“Kill…!”
A feast of blood started as the howls of the Wilhelm Knights pierced the heavens.
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