Ch.324Northern Sigh

“…Why did you save me?”

The fox werebeast, Nazar, asked Oleg who was running alongside him in a low voice.

He should naturally express gratitude to the one who saved his life, but his feelings were truly complicated. Suspicion filled his mind.

If Oleg had just left him alone, he wouldn’t have been able to retreat alive.

He simply couldn’t shake off the persistent blonde female master knight.

That’s why it was even more puzzling. He and Oleg made no effort to hide their mutual disgust.

“Why would you, of all people…”

“Just like a fox cub to complain even after being saved. Would you have preferred I left you behind?”

Oleg snorted derisively.

“Valentin is dead, Lyudmila and Abigeyl are seriously injured, and if you died too, how would we fight the next battle? No matter how much I dislike you, saving you was the obvious choice.”

“The next battle…? I wonder if we’ll even have such an opportunity…”

Nazar responded skeptically.

Now that Valdemar and the knights of Faelrun had arrived, destroying Faelrun Castle was impossible.

‘It seems the soldiers haven’t arrived yet…’

In addition to hundreds of knights accustomed to fighting werebeasts, the masters who originally guarded the northern wall would have returned.

Even if the seriously injured Abigeyl and Lyudmila recovered, they had no chance against all of them.

“Stop talking like a coward. Opportunities aren’t waited for, they’re created.”

Oleg proudly recited his personal philosophy.

Despite being in retreat, he looked so confident that Nazar looked at him as if grasping at straws.

“…I suppose you have some strategy in mind?”

“None. Using my head isn’t my specialty. But if we keep fighting, things will work out somehow, right? If you fight until you win, you’ll eventually win.”

A refreshingly direct answer. Nazar sighed deeply inside.

‘…Just as I thought.’

He hadn’t expected much, but it was still a disappointing answer that made him feel foolish for having hoped.

—-

The werebeasts who had descended by scraping down the castle walls scattered in disorder and rushed northward.

Valdemar couldn’t pursue them. Though he desperately wanted to chase them, it was realistically impossible to pursue werebeasts sprinting across the snow plains on horseback.

In fact, it might have been fortunate for the imperial army that the werebeasts had fled.

The imperial forces defending the castle had suffered serious losses, and the northern army that had endured a forced march to Faelrun Castle was also quite exhausted.

If they had continued fighting, even if they could annihilate the werebeasts, they would likely have suffered devastating casualties themselves.

‘…How wretched.’

Upon reaching Faelrun Castle, Valdemar barely suppressed his boiling rage. Deep wrinkles formed on his furrowed brow.

His territory, to which he returned after an intense expedition, was damaged beyond recognition.

Bodies of humans and beasts piled like hills. Blood pooled and began to freeze, creating red ice sheets everywhere, and the stench of torn entrails mixed with the dawn air to create a terrible odor.

‘I never imagined Faelrun Castle would be damaged to this extent…’

The gate was not just dented but completely destroyed. The walls were damaged to the point of being practically abandoned. And the northern wall had been completely breached, reduced to flat ground.

The damage would take decades to repair.

Though the expedition had been necessary, he somewhat regretted leading all the northern forces south at the persuasion of Prince Leopold… now to be called Emperor Leopold.

“Look! The lord of the North has returned!”

Karl shouted loudly. Though his voice was half-hoarse, it still resonated powerfully.

“Glory to Faelrun!”

“Long live the Duke!”

Cheers erupted from the imperial army toward Valdemar as he entered with his knights.

Valdemar’s face was contorted with suppressed anger, but his expression was so naturally fierce that it didn’t look much different from usual to others.

“…Imprison anyone who shouted ‘long live’ for a day. What insolence to utter such words reserved for the Emperor.”

The phrase “long live” was originally praise reserved only for the Emperor.

Even the Duke of Faelrun, who held authority greater than kings of small countries, was still technically a subject under the Emperor.

People shouting “long live” to Valdemar could lead to accusations that the Duke was showing disrespect to imperial authority.

‘…How troublesome.’

Regardless of Valdemar’s true feelings, if his political opponents seized on this, he would have to provide tedious explanations.

Though speaking of opponents, the only one who could pose any threat to him was the Lord Wien.

—-

Upon entering Faelrun Castle, Valdemar immediately focused on handling the aftermath of the battle.

“Clean up the debris later! Robert! Check the remaining forces with Karl and report back!”

“Yes, sir!”

Robert, one of the masters of the northern army, saluted sharply and rushed toward the walls where cheers were still echoing.

“Priests, treat the wounded! Focus on the seriously injured and then transfer them to the inner castle! Just provide first aid to those with minor injuries!”

It was impossible to treat all the wounded right now.

Since the forced march was difficult for anyone but knights to endure, the number of priests who accompanied the Duke wasn’t very large.

“Your Grace, there are currently civilians in the inner castle…”

“Send them back! Isn’t the battle already over?”

“Ah, understood!”

The startled imperial knight bowed in apology and headed toward the inner castle.

With orders given, he needed to quickly return the civilians sheltering in the inner castle before the wounded arrived.

Fortunately, the residential area inside the walls hadn’t suffered much damage.

Though buildings near the walls were completely destroyed, as if they had been bombarded by catapults.

“Move quickly! We must complete the cleanup and reorganization before daybreak!”

At the Duke of Faelrun’s command, knights who had just arrived at the castle ran as if their feet were on fire.

Even Valdemar himself thought he might be rushing things a bit, but he couldn’t afford to spend much time on cleanup.

The escaped werebeasts would still be running while recovering.

As soon as the remaining forces were confirmed, he needed to discuss countermeasures and, if necessary, organize a pursuit team.

‘I hope Frider is safe…’

He was also worried about his daughter’s safety.

Though he didn’t think his daughter would have lost her life in a battlefield where even Karl survived, he couldn’t find her anywhere, which was concerning.

‘Surely she’s not dissecting werebeast corpses in some corner again.’

Valdemar sighed as he recalled his daughter’s hobby.

Still, as a father, he would rather have her indulging in her unsettling hobby than receive news that she had died in battle or was seriously injured.

—-

Fortunately for Valdemar, Frider was neither seriously injured nor engrossed in her hobby.

She had simply fallen asleep alongside her friend after resting and chatting.

When an aide reported finding the two sleeping soundly on a white fur laid over a pile of debris, even snoring, Duke Valdemar could only press his forehead and sigh deeply.

“I see… Good that they’ve been found. The woman with her must be Baroness Median, I presume?”

“Yes. Both are injured, but not seriously enough to require extended care. Currently, Sir Millia and Sir Demian are escorting them to guest rooms in the inner castle.”

Valdemar tilted his head slightly upon hearing the report.

‘Millia? Demian…?’

The names sounded both unfamiliar and somehow familiar.

After searching his memory briefly, Valdemar finally recalled the names of his daughter’s juniors that she had proudly mentioned.

“Ah, Frider’s academy juniors. It seems they survived well in such fierce battle.”

“More than survived, sir. One of the beasts’ champions was defeated by their hands. Though it was a joint attack, it’s an impressive achievement for knights who have just reached master level.”

Valdemar’s eyebrow twitched.

A word that couldn’t be overlooked had caught his ear.

“Wait, master level…? I heard they were both sixteen, at that age?”

Typically, talented knights reached master level in their late twenties, during their prime as knights.

Even the earliest was early twenties, and that alone was considered genius level.

There was exactly one exception he had met personally…

But that was beyond genius level, more like a monster with talent beyond comprehension.

“It’s hard to believe, but it’s true.”

“…Amazing. Unprecedented talent. Truly remarkable.”

Sixteen-year-old masters. Even Valdemar couldn’t help but admire such extraordinary talent.

“Demian, was it? With no family name, he’s probably not nobility… but with that talent, he could easily earn a title. He seems to get along well with Frider too, so perhaps I could secure a son-in-law while I’m at it.”

“…That might be difficult.”

The reporting knight showed an awkward expression and hesitated.

“Difficult? Is there some disqualifying factor?”

“Well…”

After hesitating a bit, the knight finally reported in detail what had happened on the wall.

The romantic drama, or something like it, between Millia, Demian, and the snow leopard werebeast.

Valdemar could only utter a single exclamation of disbelief.

“Young people these days…”

It was the typical lament of a middle-aged man.