Ch.93Chapter 93. Battle of Hispil Castle (3)

“Haaaaaah!”

Lishfalt’s spear and Erinandorf’s blunt weapon collided.

With that as the signal, soldiers on both sides entered into combat.

In terms of simple numbers—the Serpina army had an advantage over the Aeshus army, which had its forces spread across both fronts.

However, more than half of the Aeshus forces were elite soldiers originally mobilized from Valhart Castle to invade Raclaine Castle.

These soldiers, already highly experienced in combat, had been trained by the exceptional general Irene Juliette.

While the northern Serpina army was also quite formidable, they had suffered a considerable number of injuries during their invasion of the central region, and had absorbed many soldiers who previously belonged to the Brans army, making it inevitable that they would be at a disadvantage against the Aeshus army in maintaining formation and engaging in battle.

Moreover.

Clang!

‘Kuh…!’

Though Ian was boldly leading the charge and dueling with Erinandorf—

After exchanging just a few blows, he could easily tell.

‘This bastard… how can he be so ridiculously strong…?!’

When he had graduated top of his class from the Academy and was deployed to the battlefield of this chaotic era, slaughtering the Brans army—

He had thought that perhaps he was far more exceptional than he had given himself credit for.

Though he regretted not having been able to test his mettle against Kalintz Brans himself, he had nonetheless been advancing victoriously, racking up one triumph after another.

But.

Naturally, he was just a youngster who had barely reached the age of majority.

Compared to a general like Erinandorf, who had played a major role in founding a nation, he was bound to be vastly outmatched.

Of course, it might not be appropriate to compare Erinandorf, who was currently at the peak of his potential, with Ian, who still had significant room for growth—

But this was a battlefield, not the Academy. Growth and potential meant nothing; this was simply a place where one wrong move could cost you your life.

At the Academy, even if you were defeated, you could try again, train harder, and become stronger—

‘Here, defeat means death…!’

Ian slowly backed his horse away, blending into the gaps between the soldiers.

Erinandorf swung his blunt weapon and shouted.

“Are you running away!? How pathetic compared to your big talk!”

‘Hmph, say what you want.’

While Ian certainly had a strong sense of pride—

He wasn’t the type of commander who obsessed over battles he couldn’t win, living and dying by honor.

Death is the end.

This was the teaching left behind by his father, who was no longer in this world.

Beyond his own life.

If he dragged out a battle he was certain to lose and ended up with his head rolling on the ground, the morale of the Serpina army, having lost their commander, would plummet instantly—

And if that happened, he might ruin this “overwhelmingly advantageous situation” that his lord had created with his own hands.

Ian feared ruining this favorable situation through his misjudgment far more than losing his own life.

“…What a bland fellow!”

Rather than fixating on Ian, Erinandorf began to focus on slaughtering the soldiers fighting around him.

As several soldiers fell at once to his blunt weapon,

Ian switched to the bow strapped to his back, firing at Erinandorf and the enemy soldiers to draw their attention while shouting.

“Don’t panic and maintain formation! If we continue like this, we have the advantage!”

“”Waaaaaaah!!””

Thus, at the front, the Aeshus army was clearly winning against the Serpina army, if only by a small margin.

The problem was the Aeshus army at the rear, facing the mercenary corps.

“Aaaaargh!”

“Save me!”

“Fight until death!!”

Unlike the front where they were fighting with awareness of the enemy’s presence, this side had been suddenly ambushed.

Naturally, their formation was in complete disarray, and their forces were melting away without even having a proper chance to fight.

‘What should I do? Should I call Ern back from the front? But he’s facing the Serpina army there…’

Anima desperately wracked her brain—

But she couldn’t think of anything that could overcome this situation.

Despite having holed up in a small shack in the mountains and thoroughly studied so many military strategy books!

‘Damn it…!’

When she lost her hand and could no longer wield a sword.

Honestly, that fact itself wasn’t so devastating.

She had chosen the sword simply because she needed to learn something, not because she had any attachment to or talent for swordsmanship.

What gave Anima a sense of fulfillment during her Academy days wasn’t her own abilities, but watching the talent of her childhood friend Yurie fully bloom.

That’s why she was able to cleanly give up her life as a swordswoman without any wandering and focus on studying to become a strategist.

When she first began leading the Aeshus army, she thought that the path of a strategist was her true calling.

While the commanders she led were indeed exceptional people in their respective fields, she firmly believed that she too was performing something only she could do among them.

Even when she handed over the position of national strategist to Ginor Nighthart, that belief didn’t change.

But.

Was I perhaps… just an ordinary person after all?

Was that why I was naturally the first among the five to lose my position?

Yurie was a woman superior to me in every aspect.

That was one fact that Anima herself knew better than anyone.

If such a Yurie chose Ginor… perhaps my role had been fulfilled from that moment…

‘…Snap out of it!’

Slap!

Anima struck her cheek hard.

For now, staying in this carriage was dangerous.

Although soldiers were guarding the carriage… if enemy forces who wondered ‘why there’s a carriage here’ attempted to seize it first, the commander—herself—would be captured.

‘I need to get out of here first…!’

Having made this judgment, Anima opened the carriage door and carefully surveyed her surroundings.

Fortunately, it seemed the enemy forces hadn’t reached this area yet.

“Ah, Lady Anima! It’s dangerous here!”

A soldier guarding the carriage spotted Anima and spoke in an urgent tone—

Anima looked at the soldier and answered as calmly as possible to help him stay composed.

“I’m planning to leave this place. If it’s alright, could I ask for your escort?”

“Lady Anima…!”

The soldier, understanding the meaning of leaving this place, silently stared at Anima’s face—

Then, as if having made some resolution, he nodded heavily.

“…Understood! I will definitely escort you, Lady Anima.”

“Thank you. That’s very reassuring.”

Anima smiled as relaxedly as possible and, with the soldier’s support, slowly got out of the carriage.

“Now, this way please. I will definitely… keep you… safe…”

“…?”

Anima barely managed to catch the soldier who suddenly collapsed toward her with her one arm, then examined his face.

Suddenly… as if a human had malfunctioned, the expression had disappeared from his face.

Upon closer inspection… a sword had pierced through the soldier’s armor into his abdomen.

“!!!”

Swoosh!

As the sword was pulled out, bright red blood gushed like a fountain from the abdomen, soaking Anima.

Thud.

The Aeshus army soldier—or more precisely, what used to be a soldier—collapsed to the ground.

Behind him appeared a middle-aged man with black hair, holding a blood-soaked sword.

A man with a massive build no less imposing than Erinandorf’s, emanating an overwhelming aura as if he had been born and lived on the battlefield.

“…!!!”

Anima realized something the moment she saw the man’s face.

This man… was missing an eye.

With a strong sword scar, he made no effort to hide his closed eye.

And only then did she recognize the identity of the “Serpina army” positioned at the rear.

“…Sad Astron…?”

“Hooh.”

Sad Astron.

The leader of the Astron Mercenary Corps, notorious for being the most brutal among mercenary groups, especially specialized in ambush warfare.

Unlike other mercenary corps that remained loyal to a country once they pledged allegiance, they would do anything for money, earning them a reputation for lacking honor even among mercenaries—

But their abilities were certainly proven, making them attractive to any lord who could afford their fee.

Were they now working under the Serpina army?

“Seems you recognize me? Khah! That’s why one should become famous first. Even a one-eyed cripple like me gets treated like a person, right?”

“…”

“Anyway, you’re quite pretty… bringing a carriage to this battlefield? Are all the Aeshus army commanders this thoughtless? …Wait.”

Sad’s gaze, which had been scanning Anima up and down, fixed on the cloak draped over her right shoulder.

“…”

Swoosh!

Sad quickly lifted the right cloak with his sword.

Anima didn’t bother to avoid it. There was nothing there anyway.

And—upon confirming that there was nothing where an arm should be, he laughed for a while as if finding it extremely amusing.

“I see. So that’s why you brought a carriage. You’re quite the spirited woman, just as I’ve heard. Anima Ingram!”

Anyone who roamed the battlefield would know that the Aeshus army’s strategist was one-armed.

It was the same principle by which she had recognized Sad by his missing eye.

“Well, I’ve caught quite an unexpected big fish.”

“…!”

“Whoa, whoa. Why are you glaring at me like that? You’ll ruin your pretty face. We cripples should stick together, don’t you think?”

Anima sensed it.

That this moment was just as dangerous as when the Academy was attacked.

* * *

‘…Time is running out…!’

Despite fighting relentlessly with his body covered in blood, Erinandorf could tell.

He could see that soldiers from the rear were gradually approaching this area.

Not long after the battle began, he realized they were surrounded on both sides, and his plan was to defeat the Serpina army at the front as quickly as possible and then eliminate the forces at the rear one by one—

“Haaaah!”

Clang!

But with Ian wielding his spear and others, the situation wasn’t collapsing as easily as he’d hoped.

‘At this rate, Anima will be in danger…!’

If the battle continued to drag on, defeat was inevitable.

Overcoming a difference in troop numbers was difficult even for the most exceptional general.

Moreover, the rear had essentially been ambushed, so they would collapse even more helplessly.

‘Damn it…!’

After Anima stepped down from her position as strategist.

Erinandorf felt as if it was all his fault.

He truly believed that because he wasn’t skilled enough, he had failed to properly execute the strategies Anima had proposed.

And as these failures accumulated, they had ultimately led to this situation.

That’s why he spent even more time training his body.

He was the first to step forward whenever there was a battle.

He wanted to become even stronger than the excellent generals Emma and Epinel, to make Yurie reconsider once more.

It was the same this time.

He had said she could order him to do anything. He had promised they would definitely win.

Wasn’t it for this day that he had undergone such harsh training to make the impossible possible!

‘Huff… huff.’

He felt his vision gradually blurring.

He had lost too much blood. He thought that if he didn’t retreat at this moment, he might truly die.

But.

‘I absolutely cannot lose…!’

Until the very last moment… he would fight with the determination to keep his promise.

Even if it meant taking the head of that youngster Ian.

Even if he were to die here… the sole determination not to make Anima a failed strategist.

That determination alone was fiercely driving him even as his life was fading away.

“Uaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!”

Erinandorf, already half-covered in blood, began to rampage through the enemy lines with a roar.

The sight itself couldn’t help but be terrifying to the Serpina army.

“Mo-monster!”

“Don’t be afraid, everyone! He’s just one general after all! Surround him and concentrate your attacks to bring him down! Akil! Berdo! Come over here! We’ll take him down in one go! I’ll join in too!”

At Ian’s shout, the Serpina army soldiers began to regroup.

Several commanders appeared on horseback.

“Yes!”

“We’ll follow you, General!”

‘…Come… youngster…!!!’

Just as Ian was about to charge at Erinandorf with two Serpina army commanders—

Suddenly, the atmosphere on the battlefield became chaotic.

“Everyone, fall back!”

“Prepare to retreat! Fall back!”

“…?”

Ian’s expression, which had been about to rush toward this area, became visibly serious.

And not long after…

The Serpina army began to withdraw its forces.

“…What’s… going on?”

Erinandorf watched the retreating Serpina army and wondered.

What on earth had happened?

* * *

At an unknown time, in the royal castle of Valhart Castle.

At the very moment when everyone, including Yurie, was anxiously waiting.

Creeeeak-

As the door to the audience chamber opened.

A young man with white hair slowly walked toward the throne.

“Swen, you’ve returned safely! How did it go?”

“…”

The white-haired man, Swen, knelt down and reported to his lord, Yurie.

“…I wasn’t too late.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Swen raised his head, showing a very confident smile.

And then—he spoke the words she most wanted to hear.

“Don’t worry. The Serpina army will retreat.”

He said.