Ch.365Chapter 365. Lunarien vs. Brans (7)

* * *

At the same time.

At the foot of the hill, inside the fortress of the Brans army.

“Green flag confirmed. It’s the Lunarian army!”

“So they’ve finally arrived.”

Lynn let out a long sigh.

She had worried about what would happen if they arrived while formations were still being set, but that concern was unfounded.

The Lunarians only showed themselves after all the formations were complete and the fortress fully established, even after Hesna’s reinforcements had arrived.

“What do you think?”

“I believe they prioritized preserving their forces above all else. Regardless of our condition, it means they’re confident.”

Lynn frowned at Farfalle’s words—though she couldn’t deny them.

Her forces slightly outnumbered the enemy. Moreover, unlike the Lunarian army that had traveled a long distance, her troops were well-rested.

Anyone could see that the Brans army had the advantage in this battle… at least according to conventional wisdom.

In this new era of warfare pioneered by Reika, the first mage.

In a situation where traditional battle tactics were being overturned, excessive optimism was tantamount to claiming one preferred stagnation and obsolescence over progress.

Tifa was one of the standard-bearers of the new era replacing the old one represented by Chel Brans, Epinel Rosenkroz, and Seta Rolland.

An assault mage! Unlike Reika of the Serpina army, who embodied the traditional mage form known in legends, she had made a name for herself as something entirely new—a magic swordsman.

And that wasn’t all.

The Lunarian army, no, the most dangerous entity in the southern continent—perhaps the entire continent—the Red-Eyed Dragon Lunarian.

The seedling she had failed to crush despite Irene’s advice had finally grown to bear the name of a dragon, now baring its fangs at her.

Lynn closed her eyes and realized:

—That the outcome of this battle would greatly influence the future direction of the continent.

“The Hesna general… who was it again?”

“General Alfonso, ma’am.”

“Contact him as well. Tell him to charge immediately once they enter the plains. Inform our troops too.”

“Yes!”

Shortly after Farfalle left, soldiers carrying bright green flags began entering the plains one by one.

Thump, thump.

Lynn clutched her trembling heart.

Foolishly, she found herself thinking of the red-haired female knight who was no longer by her side due to her own mistakes.

‘Irene… no matter what you think of me… until the very end… I won’t remain… a shameful ruler in your eyes.’

Then, with her eyes open, slowly.

In the loudest voice of her life—

“——CHARGE!!!!”

The battle at Aspallan Gorge-Bittenheil Plains, on the border between the central and southern regions.

After a considerable time since the battle at Zeilandt Castle—once again, the blades of the Brans and Lunarian armies were about to clash.

* * *

“Don’t panic, everyone! Charge forward! Maintain formation!”

“Strategist, please come this way!”

Ginor observed the overall situation from a distance, as his subordinate suggested.

With Commander-in-Chief Lunarian at the vanguard, it naturally fell to him to coordinate everything from the rear.

“Tell the two mercenary captains to take their positions where I previously instructed!”

“Yes, sir!”

“General Charlotte’s forces are lacking! Send reinforcements to that flank!”

The mage Tifa was slaughtering soldiers with her axes wrapped in mana.

“Come at me, you bastards!!!”

“Don’t panic! We can take her if we attack from behind! She uses different magic than the Serpina army’s mage, so there’s no need to fear!”

The Brans army commanders maintained their composure despite facing the mage Tifa.

Apparently, since some time had passed since her first appearance, they weren’t thrown into confusion like the Karelia army had been.

While she was certainly performing admirably… there was no sense of “we can never win against a mage” in the atmosphere.

In fact, it was the ruler Lunarian who was making an even more prominent showing.

“Be careful of the Red-Eyed Dragon!”

“Don’t be afraid! Kill that woman and victory is ours!”

“Let’s teach this reckless ruler who dared to come out a lesson!”

The Brans army commanders were fighting at the front, encouraging morale in their own ways.

Among them, some young warriors even mustered the courage to charge at Luna, but…

“You damned woman…!!”

Clang!

“Ugh, guh!”

Clang!

“W-wait… aaaargh!!!”

…their heads were quickly severed after just a few exchanges.

After cutting off a head, Luna didn’t pause for even a moment before swinging her sword behind her, slaughtering the soldiers surrounding her.

The Adina Sword, already stained with the blood of the Rolland army, was now being painted anew with the blood of the Brans army.

Luna’s arms and body were splattered with blood everywhere.

She didn’t falter. Without even pausing to breathe, she was literally grinding down the Brans forces.

“M-monster…!”

“Where has such a woman been hiding all this time?!”

While individually the Lunarian army seemed to be dominating—

Nevertheless, the Brans army, far from being anxious, was pushing back against the Lunarian forces with increasing momentum.

In reality,

The battle itself was turning in favor of the Brans/Hesna alliance.

Outstanding heroes were certainly assets in battle. What soldier wouldn’t be inspired by the sight of a commander worth a hundred men leading the charge?

However… in the end, numerical advantage was what determined victory or defeat.

A much larger number of troops, many more commanders even if they were minor ones, and troops who had enjoyed much more rest.

The Brans army was clearly gaining the upper hand against the Lunarian forces.

‘…It’s fine. The flow isn’t bad.’

Lynn remained vigilant until the end as she looked at Farfalle.

“The situation?”

“Lunarian’s and Tifa’s forces are being pushed back, but it seems Charlotte’s forces might be able to break through somehow. If we can crush their main force, we can throw the enemy into disarray.”

“What are our chances of winning? Objectively.”

“…If we succeed… I believe we will win this battle.”

“Understood. I’ll delegate full authority to you, so do something about Charlotte’s forces.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Just then.

“My lord!”

A man rushed to Lynn and bowed as he spoke.

His name was Belut Ruga, a young general not particularly renowned but full of enthusiasm.

“What is it, Belut?”

“Please entrust me with the important mission of breaking through Charlotte von Einhart’s forces!”

Lynn fell into thought for a moment.

While his enthusiasm was commendable, his abilities were not particularly outstanding.

Perhaps it would be better to use him as an aide here, but—

‘…No.’

Realistically, the current Brans army didn’t have many exceptional generals.

In that case, wouldn’t it be better to use someone with enthusiasm?

“Very well, Belut. But don’t overdo it. Charlotte is not an opponent to be taken lightly. Know when to retreat if you find yourself outmatched—that’s how you grow. Understood?”

“Yes! I’ll keep that in mind!”

“Farfalle. Quickly organize an attack force centered around Belut to disrupt Charlotte’s formation.”

“Understood!”

Lynn ran her finger across her lips.

For Irene’s sake, who sacrificed everything for me, I cannot lose to you, Lunarian. Absolutely not.

* * *

“Haaah!”

Clang!

Charlotte fought desperately. From her perspective, this was the fight of her life.

With Francis absent from his usual position fighting alongside her, she was working even harder to ensure his absence wasn’t felt.

However, talent sometimes makes people miserable.

Despite being somewhat countered, Tifa was never completely overwhelmed, and Lunarian stood like an immense wall.

Even with the Raven Mercenary Corps and the Chilrain Mercenary Corps attached to her forces, Charlotte’s side had the least weight.

The Brans army knew this too, which is why—

‘They’re coming…!!’

Naturally, they would converge on the weakest point—Charlotte!

Clang!

A Brans army general rode toward Charlotte on horseback and clashed weapons with her.

“My name is Belut Ruga! Charlotte von Einhart, how about testing your mettle against mine?!”

A young general with distinctive short black hair and a rugged appearance.

Honestly, he wasn’t particularly famous. But Charlotte knew all too well that without the Einhart name, she wouldn’t be much different from him.

“Challenging me? You must not value your life!”

“I’ll at least praise you for not running away!”

Clang!

After exchanging a few blows, the generals quickly assessed each other’s abilities.

‘I have a slight advantage…!’

Charlotte’s grip on her weapon naturally tightened.

This is manageable!

‘Guh…! I’m not completely outmatched, but…’

Belut recognized his shortcomings.

Still, it was worth the fight. The gap wasn’t so wide that he couldn’t possibly overturn it.

In that case… for the sake of the Brans army, I must fight with all I have!

‘I just need to buy time until our main force can deal with Charlotte’s unit…!’

Clang!

“Ugh!”

The one-on-one duel between Belut and Charlotte continued for quite some time.

Belut was clearly at a disadvantage in this confrontation. However, he didn’t flee. Just a little more, just a little longer…!

Charlotte, for her part, was quickly assessing the situation.

‘I can’t keep wasting time like this…!’

The moment she turned her horse’s head to retreat slightly.

“Are you running away, Charlotte?!”

Clang!

‘Damn it…!’

“I won’t let you escape!”

Clang!

“Ugh!”

Despite his words about not letting her escape, Belut immediately took an effective hit from Charlotte.

“You really must want to die! If that’s your wish, I’ll grant it!”

“That’s right! If you want to pass… you’ll have to kill me first!”

‘Damn it…!!’

Despite bleeding, Belut’s fighting spirit made Charlotte break into a cold sweat.

Clearly, I have the advantage. At this rate, I should be able to defeat this general.

But if this continues—

—Waaaaaaah!

‘The unit… is being pushed back!’

If the front defensive line breaks, troops will flow toward the center where Lord Ginor is!

I must prevent that at all costs!

In an already disadvantageous situation due to the difference in troop numbers… I absolutely cannot retreat!

‘That man… I must kill him!’

Clang!

Charlotte readjusted her grip on her weapon and attacked Belut.

After several more exchanges—

“Ugh!”

Finally, Belut dropped his weapon and fell from his horse.

Charlotte didn’t miss the opportunity. I need to quickly kill this man and return to my unit to—

“Capture her!”

“…?!”

Startled by the sudden shout, she looked around to find not a single allied soldier nearby.

All she could see were soldiers wearing armor engraved with the Brans army’s insignia.

Could it be…!

‘I’ve… been tricked?!’

In contrast to Charlotte’s pale face—

‘It worked…!’

Belut, lying on the ground with blood streaming down his face, smiled.

Charlotte surveyed her surroundings.

She was surrounded by hundreds of soldiers, more than she could quickly count.

Unless I were Lord Luna or Lady Tifa… this is unwinnable…!

“……”

Charlotte dropped her weapon and raised both hands in surrender.

Belut didn’t miss the gesture and shouted:

“Take her prisoner!”

“Yes, sir!”

The first prisoner of this grand battle was Charlotte von Einhart of the Lunarian army.

For Belut, this was practically the greatest achievement of his life.

* * *

As time passed and the tide of battle was slowly but surely turning in favor of the Brans army—

“What did you say…?!”

News from the Ohana army in the southern continent reached Alfonso, the commander of the Hesna reinforcements—

And with that, the tide of battle began to change dramatically.