“A revenge match… but do we have a chance of winning?”

    The temporary commander of the Imperial Knights, Silvan, revealed his anxiety.

    It wasn’t an incomprehensible reaction. Even though it’s a knight’s virtue not to retreat before an enemy, they too aren’t without fear. Especially when that enemy is a monster who single-handedly devoured seven Masters who were reliable superiors… Yes, it’s not strange that morale would be broken.

    “A chance? You never know until you fight. Since when did the Imperial Knights worry about such things?”

    Leonore’s sarcasm. Frider nodded as if he had similar thoughts without needing to say anything. However, Silvan continued with a stern expression as if what they were saying was nonsense.

    “Lord Leonore. I’m well aware of your bravery, but not everyone can show such boldness. Most ordinary soldiers and knights cannot fight without hope of victory.”

    “…Indeed, that is the correct theory.”

    Karl, who had been listening quietly, expressed agreement with Silvan’s argument.

    Leonore looked somewhat displeased but didn’t bother to add anything. After all, though small in scale, she too had been a commander of knights. She knew well the impact morale had on battle.

    “We do have some hope. We’ve gained two more Masters when there was only one before, and the Church of Menes has also provided support with a high-ranking Paladin. We’ve secured enough power to face about five Champions. And as for Rurik… we’ll have to trust the infamous Were Eater. The Radiance, the Empress of Blood. A legendary knight who has built such a dazzling reputation yet has never been defeated.”

    Frider smiled, pointing toward me.

    [Ha. What do you mean never defeated? If it weren’t for me, you would have been helplessly captured by that old Ghost Blade. Isn’t that right?]

    …That’s true, isn’t it?

    When I first fought Valenstein, I was clearly cut badly and defeated. Though I properly got my revenge later.

    “…Are you really sure about this, Count Median?”

    Silvan turned his head to look at me.

    In his wavering eyes, there was a strange mixture of desperate desire to believe and skeptical distrust.

    “Well… honestly, I’m not confident.”

    “What?”

    Perhaps it was something he never expected to hear from my mouth. Frider asked in surprise.

    Why are you so shocked? Of course I’m not confident.

    “-Confident that I’ll lose.”

    I grinned and put on a proud expression toward Frider.

    “…I think the witch must have hit your head wrong. Your intelligence seems to have gotten worse.”

    Frider put his hand to his forehead, sighed deeply, and shook his head.

    [I agree. Is this the time for such jokes?]

    ‘Well. The atmosphere seemed too tense, so I was trying to lighten it up a bit.’

    While it’s natural to be wary of Rurik, it’s not good to become so afraid that your thinking becomes rigid.

    …Though it doesn’t seem to have worked very well.

    “Anyway, leave that wolf to me. I’ll cut off his head and hang it on the city gate for all to see.”

    Despite everything that had happened, I had almost fully recovered thanks to proper rest.

    In fact, I was in better condition than before.

    Which was only natural. The Karma of Murder I accumulated at Jeren Plains, plus the achievements gained from subjugating Isabella, had added to my power.

    I don’t know how strong Rurik is, but I didn’t think I would lose in my current state.

    —-

    We continued the meeting while lightly filling our stomachs with tea and cookies brought by the maids.

    Discussing information about Rurik, the forces on both sides, the amount of war supplies stockpiled, and appropriate tactics.

    “…How about a short duel? I could go outside the castle, provoke Rurik to draw him out, and then if I win in a one-on-one fight, wouldn’t that be the end of it?”

    “Well, I don’t think that’s a good idea. Would those beasts really fight fair in a one-on-one duel? In the worst case, you might be attacked by seven Champions and Rurik together.”

    That’s certainly true.

    For them, this war is just a part of pack hunting. As beasts who know nothing of honor, they might not even have the concept of fighting one-on-one.

    So in the end, I’ll have to approach and subjugate him during the chaos of battle? This will be trickier than I thought.

    “It would be convenient if he flew in again.”

    If he did, I could either shoot him down in mid-air or predict his landing spot and wait to cut him down as soon as he crashed.

    “We’ve prepared for that… but it’s unlikely. No matter how clever a strategy, such methods don’t work twice. They probably know that well too.”

    “True, that’s how tactics usually work. They might be effective the first time, but if used again, they’re usually blocked, and by the third time, they’re turned against you.”

    Leonore nodded in agreement with Frider’s words.

    So no one falls for the same trick three times?

    …Couldn’t there be such people? I’m not sure. I feel like I might have known someone like that somewhere.

    —-

    Thus, the discussion about Rurik was tentatively concluded with me somehow dealing with him, but that wasn’t the end of the meeting.

    There was still plenty to discuss.

    “Rurik isn’t the only problem. Even if Elpinel’s ‘Radiance’ holds back the winter wolf, it will all be in vain if the others are overwhelmed. We need to prepare for that as well.”

    Noah, the high-ranking Paladin of the Church of Menes, pointed out the core issue in a grave voice.

    “True, we have plenty of silver-plated weapons… but even so, they won’t be easy opponents. Flora Priest, how many can you bless with silver moon at maximum?”

    At Frider’s question, Flora slightly raised her head and fell into thought.

    “Hmm… no matter how hard I try, two to three hundred would be the limit. The main force of the church hasn’t returned from the south yet.”

    “Three hundred… Then, prioritize the knights and keep enough holy power for a hundred more. If we use it all up, we won’t be able to respond to unexpected situations.”

    “I will do so.”

    Flora nodded.

    The power difference between pureblooded Werebeasts and knights is twofold.

    How much the walls of Faelrun and the blessing of the silver moon could reduce that gap… we would know in a few hours.

    “Will it be alright for me and Lord Silvan to command the imperial forces?”

    At Karl’s words, Frider readily nodded.

    Despite essentially entrusting the command of the entire force—two hundred knights and six thousand soldiers—he showed no sign of hesitation.

    “I’m counting on you. I’ll probably be too busy to command anyway. Lord Leonore, would you like to come with me to skin some Champions?”

    “That sounds fun. Can I keep the skins I peel off as spoils?”

    Leonore answered formally, using honorifics as befitting the official setting. Pleased with her bold response, Frider grinned.

    “As much as you want. If you’d like, I can even preserve them for you.”

    “I would appreciate that.”

    They get along well.

    The way they looked at each other and chuckled, it seemed like there was something that connected such brutal people. Though I wouldn’t know.

    [Eating, taxidermy, frying… all the barbarians have gathered here.]

    Hersella snorted and muttered.

    Eating aside, aren’t taxidermy and frying products of civilization rather than barbarism…?

    —-

    The meeting ended about twenty minutes later.

    There was a slight difference of opinion between Karl and me about how to deal with the Champions.

    “Count Median, how long would it take you to deal with a Champion other than Rurik?”

    “A Champion? It depends on the opponent… but I think no more than ten exchanges would be sufficient.”

    If it were someone like Natalya whom I faced before, I could probably finish them within five exchanges now. Even I think it’s an insane rate of growth.

    “You are indeed impressive. In that case, I have a strategy…”

    The strategy Karl proposed was simple.

    When the battle begins, ignore Rurik and prioritize finding and defeating the enemy Champions.

    “Then what about Rurik? If we try to block him with Masters, wouldn’t it just be a repeat of the North Wall?”

    “It would if we tried to block him with Masters. So, I plan to let Rurik roam freely among the soldiers. Even that monster has only two arms. There’s a limit to how many he can kill at once.”

    “…What?”

    It sounded crazy… but it was a rational idea when you think about it.

    No matter how strong Rurik is, he can’t kill a hundred people in one strike.

    Using soldiers as sacrificial pawns and overwhelming him with human wave tactics could keep him occupied for a while.

    …Though they would die by the second.

    I opposed it, but ultimately Karl’s argument was accepted.

    It wasn’t a result I liked, but what could I do? When you consider it, this was a battle with low odds of victory from the start, so we couldn’t afford to be picky about our methods.

    The enemy had seven to eight Champions, twice the number of our Masters.

    If equally skilled fighters fought fairly, it would be a difficult gap to overcome… but it was clear that if I could take down just two of them, the tide of battle would greatly improve.

    —-

    With me clicking my tongue but nodding, that day’s meeting was concluded.

    The deployment of soldiers and knights was handled entirely by Karl and Silvan, and in the case of Paladins and priests, Flora would command them after they had blessed the knights.

    Frider himself, Leonore, High Paladin Noah, and Demian (who should still be in the infirmary) would be responsible for stopping enemy Champions if they climbed onto the castle walls.

    I’m not sure if that bastard Demian can handle it well. It shouldn’t be too dangerous as long as it’s not one-on-one.

    No, should I hope for one-on-one fights?

    From what I can see, he needs to experience as much danger as possible without dying.

    Millia was assigned to sniper duty from a tower behind the castle walls.

    Although she had reached Master level, her skills were still immature compared to other Masters, and as an archer rather than a warrior, she wasn’t suitable for close combat with the Werebeast Champions.

    Come to think of it, is it more like artillery than sniping?

    She’ll be shooting arrows that are more like javelins from a bow twice her height.

    Shooting down Rurik if he flies toward the walls, destroying the enemy’s catapults outright… or attacking Champions fighting our allies from a distance. It was an important role in many ways.

    And after she runs out of arrows for the great bow, she would come down from the tower to support Demian. The two of them together should be able to overcome one Champion.

    “Will I be able to do well…?”

    “Of course. They’re all over 2 meters tall, so you should hit them even if you shoot carelessly.”

    After giving some encouragement to Millia, who seemed a bit unsure of herself, I returned to my room.

    Millia said something about going to see Demian for a moment.

    The dagger and javelin that Asha had given me.

    Frosting, now as familiar as my own body, and Durandal with its rubber band-like fluctuating performance.

    Since awakening to Karma, Frosting’s cold energy no longer had a major negative effect on me.

    Seeing the cold energy gradually strengthening, there might be problems again someday… but at least for now, there was no issue at all.

    And I took off the uniform I had been wearing while resting in the castle and put on the armor hanging on the wall.

    Werebeast hide with scales overlaid, and then another Werebeast hide coat on top… I’m completely covered in Werebeast. Wouldn’t they be thrilled to see me?


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