Chapter 242 : Chapter 242
Chapter 242
It was a form of siege warfare.
The Imperial Army had just passed through the narrow gate, and the West greeted them with full preparations.
The West was inferior in both numbers and quality, and they themselves knew it.
A fortress wall stood where a plain had originally been.
This was thanks to the Widow Queen Aida moving the terrain before she left.
On top of that, the mages of Hohopran Magul had clung to it, erecting a Triple Gate and solidifying the defenses.
Even for the Cordis Imperial Army, it could not be easily breached.
“Circle around!”
A rose hung upside down beneath a crow's feet.
It was the symbol of the Herring Knight Order.
As one of Maesh's 3 Great Knight Orders, they waged a fierce, close combat even against the Cordis cavalry.
“Without rest, more fiercely!”
“Don't give them an opening to break through!”
The knights rode their horses, circling around.
It was as if a vortex was brewing on the battlefield.
The momentum was so tremendous that the infantry did not dare even approach.
Several Cordis cavalry units tried to pierce the Western knights' defensive formation, but all attempts ended in failure.
Unlike the Cordis legionnaires, who underwent arduous training even in normal times, many of the Western soldiers were hastily gathered farmer-soldiers.
However, in the quality of high-ranking combat personnel, including knights, the West did not fall far behind.
This was due to the influence of noble culture.
Knights armed with spears dashed forward from the gate front like a vortex, keeping the soldiers in check.
The Imperial Army cowered and could not easily step forward.
The massive mass of men and horses became one, kicking up dust, making anyone inevitably shrink back.
The sound of thousands of hooves, daga-dak, even felt frightening.
At that time, Secundus Debius stepped forward.
He was the Three-Mi Grand General.
Despite being the supreme commander of the seventy thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army, he boldly rode his horse to the very front of the battle line.
However, no one was worried.
“Hmm.”
As the enemy's general appeared, a rain of arrows poured down.
Thousands of arrows, along with long spears and fireballs everywhere.
But Secundus did not avoid them.
Such things could not even pierce his skin.
An arrow struck Secundus's forehead.
It then bounced off.
The arrowhead was crushed, and there was not a single scratch on Secundus's forehead.
The man who had blocked dozens of arrows with his bare body added a short grunt.
“Euh-hmm. My armor got scratched.”
It's armor I cherish, too.
It was the same for the horse he rode; it was not injured by the arrows.
Secundus's favorite horse was twice the size of other horses.
It was not an artificial magical beast created by the Empire, but a genuine Magical Beast that had aged for three hundred years.
“I will break through.”
Secundus spurred his horse.
A booming roar echoed with every kick of the ground.
He charged, pounding, as if firing a cannon.
The entire battlefield cowered.
“Hr-hmm!!!”
He leaped straight into the flank of the circling knights.
Swords and spears aimed for him, but he struck them all aside.
Eight knights lost their balance and fell, and the flank of the defensive formation was broken.
Kateka Keshulei shouted.
“…The Grand General has broken the flank!”
“Follow him!”
Secundus smiled with satisfaction and grabbed the spear slung on his back.
That fellow Kateka, he'd grown up well.
At one time, he only read books in a corner of his room, but now he was faithfully fulfilling his role as adjutant.
Secundus's honor guard of two hundred dashed forward, digging into the flank of the broken formation.
Secundus did not stop.
He charged right up to the fortress wall erected by the West and wedged his spear into the crack of the gate.
It was closer to a thick iron rod than a spear.
He grasped the wedged-in spear and put his strength into it, as if lifting a lever.
“Eu-eum-!!!”
The castle gate shuddered.
It was a weight no human could possibly lift, yet as Secundus wedged the iron rod in and applied strength, the hinges creaked.
The soldiers guarding the gate were dumbstruck, trembling in fear.
As he applied strength like that, the iron rod gradually bent.
Then, with a snap, it broke.
Hmm. It broke. Secundus took a new spear from his back.
He had prepared four from the start.
He inserted the new iron rod into the crack of the castle gate and once again applied strength.
The gap gradually widened, and it seemed that if just a little more time passed, a person could pass through.
A human, twisting open a castle gate with a thick iron rod.
Even if it was a hastily built fortress wall, it was an incomprehensible event.
The Western soldiers were beyond baffled, they were terrified, but I, Shion Pollinglight, was calm.
I already knew what kind of man Secundus Debius was.
“Shion of Merion. Hasn't my turn finally come?”
“It seems so, Bradley.”
“The time has come to prove that the White Lord isn't the only one in the West!”
Bradley Bennet threw himself.
He landed from atop the fortress wall, down beside Secundus Debius, who was in the middle of twisting the gate open.
Bradley's build was even larger than that of Secundus, who was already three heads taller than other men.
“Hmm. It's rare to find a man bigger than me.”
“A pleasure, Three-Mi Grand General!”
The man laughed heartily.
“I am Bradley Bennet of Konland.”
“A name I've never heard.”
“That's because Konland is in the westernmost part of the West. If I were a man of Maesh, the Empire would have feared Bradley Bennet more than the White Lord.”
The man called Bradley was overflowing with confidence from start to finish. Watching the two massive men confronting each other in front of the fortress wall, the soldiers briefly stopped fighting.
Secundus let go of the iron rod he was using to twist the gate open and scratched his chin.
“Hmm. You don't look that impressive.”
“I wonder if you'll still say that after seeing this.”
Bradley confidently put his hand into his bosom.
A long twine came out.
Secundus Debius recognized that twine as the Ancient Weapon, ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’.
Bradley Bennet raised his voice.
“I too am a possessor of an aptitude for the Ancient Weapon ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’! I will not be lacking as your opponent!”
Secundus nodded his head.
‘So it's this guy.’
Bradley was a deliveryman of sorts.
He himself might not know it, but I, Shion, had chosen him for the role of delivering the ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’ to Secundus.
Bradley wrapped the ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’ tightly around his spear and fist.
“I finally get to test myself against the Debius family!”
Secundus's horse snorted.
“The spear of Bennet is also not lacking compared to the Debius Forged Horn….”
“You talk too much.”
Bradley realized Secundus had disappeared from his field of vision.
Secundus was already behind him.
“Did you even see me?”
Bradley Bennet also realized he had become a one-armed man.
“Far too lacking to discuss the Forged Horn.”
“…Ah… Aah!”
A groan burst out.
Blood poured from the place where Bradley Bennet's right arm had been.
Just when you think he's struck, he has already struck the Debius Forged Horn.
In Secundus's hand were Bradley's right arm and the ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’.
He seemed to be a man of some renown in the West, but to Secundus, he was just ridiculous.
Secundus Debius retrieved the ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’ and then threw Bradley's right arm back to him.
“I'll return your arm.”
“…Ugh, uuh….”
“If you hurry with treatment, it might reattach.”
Bradley picked up his own right arm, which was rolling on the ground, with a trembling hand.
The pain must be severe, but he wanted to give him credit for not screaming like a little girl.
Or was he simply terrified? Either way, it didn't really matter.
“What are you doing, not opening the gate, you Western bastards!”
He suddenly shouted.
“Are you going to let your vanguard die?”
Secundus turned his horse.
There was nothing more to be gained.
No knight could hold him back.
As Secundus turned his back, the castle gate slowly opened. Bradley Bennet clutched his severed arm, trembling, and hid inside the castle. Secundus shot a glare at him.
“Go back and report! That I, Secundus Debius, have taken back the ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’!”
***
Even after Bradley Bennet's defeat, the battle continued for four days.
The stolen ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’ was held in Nana Nereyades's hands, pressing down on the West.
As Secundus and Nana roamed the battlefield, the West trembled in fear.
However, two men from the West also stepped forward.
One was a drunkard, and one had jade-colored eyes.
With Obro Denoebang and Amethus opposing them, even Secundus and Nana could not act as they pleased.
There were four monsters, each one capable of turning the tide of battle.
The battles of ordinary people naturally could not grow beyond a certain scale.
This was because they had to be wary of when the opposing side's monster might appear, so the battle could not escalate.
It was just as I and Secundus had secretly intended.
During the four days of battle, the number of Western casualties was just over seven hundred.
The Cordis Empire was more than five times that.
Even considering it was a battle advantageous to the defending West, it was an enormous figure.
In the end, the Cordis Empire could not break through the Waist Gate and was forced to temporarily set up camp.
It was a victory for the West, which had defended it.
However, they had lost the Ancient Weapon ‘Sinew of the Great Sea’.
I and Secundus both knew that the other had kept their promise.
***
Since one battle had flowed as intended, things went smoothly after that.
We exchanged victories and defeats.
We also led the battles in a direction that minimized casualties as much as possible.
As this happened, the West gradually came to feel fear at the name Secundus Debius, and the Empire came to gnash its teeth at my name, Shion Pollinglight.
However, I and Secundus did not care what people said.
Secundus was satisfied that there were fewer futile deaths, and I felt a thrill as Ferbias's neck drew closer.
***
“Report, Bureau Director Kentil.”
The 50th Emperor of the Cordis Empire, Ferbias Caseptus Cordis, spoke in a solemn voice from the throne.
His close aide, the Bureau of Evil-Chasing Director Kentil, hastily bowed his head.
“…Your Majesty.”
“I told you to report.”
“…Yes, I shall report.”
Kentil cursed inwardly.
Ferbias must already know the situation in the West through the intelligence agency.
So why on earth was there a need to receive a report through Kentil.
Complaints arose, but he did not voice them.
If he did, even two necks would not be enough.
“…First, I will report on the Throat Gate.”
Bureau Director Kentil read fluently from a long scroll.
He reported on where and what battles had occurred, how many had died, and how the phase of the war had changed, speaking as clearly as possible.
Emperor Ferbias had an uncomfortable face from start to finish.
“So, in other words.”
Both of Ferbias's pupils were golden.
“It means there is no progress.”
“…It is because both Grand Generals are being prudent.”
“It means they are completely blocked, does it not?”
The Emperor's displeasure became anxiety and fear for others.
Kentil bowed his head deeply.
It was the same for those attending to him at the side.
“Sen Hostanio and Secundus moved, yet both are said to be unable to even step outside the gate. Hah!”
He nervously stroked his beard.
“They said the calamities have all been exposed, too.”
He could not understand.
Why on earth were the calamities, which had been secretly passed down since the time of his father, Great Emperor Continua, all being exposed at this particular time?
“…The White Lord has revived, and the Queen of Schmeizen has two Ancient Weapons… damn it….”
“Your Majesty, your language….”
“Silence, Bureau Director Kentil.”
Ferbias's golden eyes flashed.
“Do you really think you are my true aide?”
“……”
“If your only talent is flattery, then just flatter. Quit this aid-playing that doesn't suit your station.”
Kentil felt a deep sense of humiliation.
He was originally the dean of the Imperial Academy of Magic, a four-star mage.
To say his only talent was flattery was a great insult to him. But he himself had chosen to stick by Ferbias's side, desiring power, so he could blame no one.
“…Moreover, damn it…. My soldiers are increasingly becoming like Secundus's private army….”
Ferbias covered his face.
In truth, it was a natural course of events.
The soldiers' hearts were bound to turn not to the distant Emperor, but to the Grand General who displayed his prowess right in front of them every day.
Moreover, Secundus Debius was also of the Great Emperor's bloodline, the Emperor's half-brother.
“…It cannot be helped, it truly cannot be helped….”
He let out a deep, a very deep sigh.
It was the trace of pride he had set down.
“……I must go see my Father-Emperor.”