If Keldric had to pick the biggest variables in battle, he would, after much deliberation, offer two.
One was an act of God, like a sudden change in weather or terrain, and the other was encountering the enemy in an unexpected place.
And this time, Keldric was the one creating the variable.
‘Lord Rutger…’
Keldric spurred Avelin on, frantically searching for Lord Rutger.
He was grateful that Lord Rutger was keeping Lord Gerhard occupied.
But if asked whether Lord Rutger could win against Lord Gerhard… Keldric would rather hope for a stroke of luck.
In the midst of all this, a frightened Alyssa clung tightly to Keldric’s waist. Keldric’s large hand gently covered Alyssa’s hand.
“Alyssa, please bear with me a little longer.”
There was no reply. But he felt her forehead press against his back as she nodded.
Keldric had no intention of keeping Alyssa in such a dangerous place for long either. To do that, he had to end this quickly.
After searching around for a while, two knights caught Keldric’s eye in the middle of the chaotic battlefield.
“Damn it!”
Keldric roughly urged Avelin onward. Avelin, looking slightly tired, kicked off the snow and dashed forward.
Lord Rutger, visible in the distance, was already slightly losing ground to Lord Gerhard.
Lord Rutger was a knight who had begun his decline, while Lord Gerhard, like Keldric, was a hot-blooded knight riding a rising wave.
It was only natural that there would be a difference between the two.
The fact that the flow of the battle seemed roughly equal was simply because Lord Rutger was making up for his lack of strength and motor skills with his experience.
On the other hand, Lord Gerhard was rampaging like a runaway colt, slowly pushing Lord Rutger.
The pure white snow had already been completely churned up. The hard-frozen earth began to crack.
And the time it took to decide the evenly matched fight was only the blink of an eye.
“Ugh!”
Lord Rutger fell from his horse as Lord Gerhard pushed him with all his might.
The situation was urgent!
“Lord Gerhard!”
Keldric immediately spurred Avelin towards him, joining the fray.
Lord Gerhard turned his head at Keldric’s shout, which echoed loudly across the chaotic battlefield.
And the moment he spotted Keldric, the eyes inside the horned helmet shook violently.
Keldric didn’t miss it.
In general, the difference in martial prowess was doubled by the depth of learned fear.
“I’ll settle the unfinished match with you!”
Strictly speaking, Keldric was interfering in the fight between Lord Rutger and Lord Gerhard.
But Keldric didn’t care about such things.
Whether he was interfering in an honorable fight or not, saving a precious knight who might die at any moment was more important.
Lord Gerhard seemed very flustered by Keldric’s sudden intervention, and hurriedly raised his weapon.
Clang!
“You goddamn bastard! Do you know nothing of honor!”
“I’ve only come to settle yesterday’s fight! You, of all people, shouldn’t dishonorably run away this time!” “You spew whatever comes to mind!”
An angry strike flew wildly. Keldric reacted immediately with his longsword.
However, what he noticed belatedly was a dagger sneaking in like a snake, aiming for his armpit.
Lord Gerhard’s secondary weapon. Recognizing that, Keldric quickly reached out with his left hand.
The dagger, which had been trying to penetrate the gap, was stopped with a single gesture.
The two knights, swords locked, glared at each other through the eye slits of their helmets. “Lord! Surrender! I promise you mercy!”
“I know no surrender!”
Lord Gerhard pulled his head back sharply. He was trying to knock him off balance with his forehead.
Keldric quickly turned the reins. Avelin’s black giant swayed violently. Alyssa’s scream was swallowed up by the shouts coming from all directions.
A cracking sound came from the frozen ground. Avelin’s body tilted precariously.
“Hmph!”
Keldric immediately put strength into his legs. The tilting balance was corrected as if bouncing off the reaction.
And Keldric’s longsword, using that recoil, rushed in like thunder.
Lord Gerhard, terrified, barely managed to block it with his sword, but it was not an attack he could deflect.
Lord Gerhard, forced to half-sword, gritted his teeth. A gruesome sound was heard from inside the helmet.
“Eee, eeeek!”
Veins popped out on his neck and forehead. His eyes were bloodshot.
Even amidst the shouts of the battlefield coming from all directions, the two knights faced each other completely, engaging in a duel.
But Keldric was a busy man. He couldn’t afford to waste any more time like this.
Glancing at Lord Rutger, who had fallen to the ground, Keldric saw him staggering, holding his head.
The impact of the fall was tremendous. Especially in the case of a knight armed with heavy armor.
“Waaaah!”
Lord Rutger was swept away by the crowd clashing swords and spears from all directions. Keldric felt anxious for the first time.
Even if Lord Rutger was a knight, if someone stabbed him in a vital spot while he was still disoriented…
‘Damn it!’
There was no time. He had to end everything at once.
At this moment, Keldric had to become the sharpest dagger and aim for the gap.
To do that, he had to deal with the knight in front of him first.
Bang!
Lord Gerhard threw a punch with gusto. Keldric’s tin-can-like helmet rang.
For the first time, Keldric felt his vision blur. Hot blood surged through his body as he faced the crisis.
His heart beat violently. Keldric regained his slightly blurred vision. He was able to avoid the second punch.
In that instant, Keldric’s fist did not miss Lord Gerhard’s unguarded vital point.
Bang! Bang! Wham!
“Ugh!”
A large fist rushed into Lord Gerhard’s side. Lord Gerhard, who had been holding out with his sword against Keldric’s, gasped.
From Lord Gerhard’s point of view, it was tit for tat. Lord Gerhard exhaled irregularly, as if he had difficulty breathing.
“Ugh! He’s being pushed back!”
“Shit! Kill that bastard!”
Just in time, mercenaries of unknown affiliation who had been pushed aside pushed Lord Gerhard’s warhorse. Lord Gerhard’s body lost its balance and swayed.
Keldric was in the same precarious situation, swaying on horseback.
He had to squeeze through the throng of mercenaries swarming from all directions, and in the meantime, he had to fight while virtually carrying Alyssa.
Strong thigh muscles held Keldric’s body like roots. A calm murderous intent settled in his dark blue eyes, where the agitation had subsided.
Keldric strained to reach out his arm. Soon, Keldric’s hand touched the horned helmet.
He groped to grab the helmet, but Lord Gerhard, drooling under his helmet, struggled desperately to escape.
“Kuh…!”
As his fingers scratched repeatedly on the helmet, Keldric changed his mind.
Even if he had struck his side, grabbing the helmet of a knight still on horseback was too naive.
It was also dangerous to expose vital points such as the armpits for too long. Keldric’s hand, having quickly made a decision, grabbed something else.
Grip!
It was Lord Gerhard’s solid arm, extended forward to resist.
An arm filled with bulging muscles, protected by a long gauntlet.
Keldric, gripping the arm tightly, struck it with the pommel.
Bang! Crack!
“Kaaaaa!”
With a gruesome sound, Lord Gerhard, who had been struggling to pull out his arm, screamed. Even that was drowned out by the surrounding noise.
What was certain, however, was that Lord Gerhard’s left arm was either broken or fractured.
Taking advantage of the gap, Keldric narrowed the distance and stretched out his arm.
A strong hand grabbed Lord Gerhard’s neck under his helmet.
“Kuhuk! Kuh-heuk!”
“Enough…!”
The longsword went behind him. Alyssa inadvertently received it.
And in Keldric’s right hand was a heavy metal rod.
“It’s over!”
Wham!
The mace, reflecting the light of the snowfield, fell powerfully. The roar of metal against metal echoed across the battlefield.
Lord Gerhard, whose chestplate was dented, trembled for a moment before slumping limply on his horse.
Keldric gasped for breath. It was almost the first crisis he had experienced. If he had fallen from his horse, he would have been finished in an instant.
But there was no time to rejoice in surviving and winning.
“Lord Rutger!”
Keldric grabbed the reins of Lord Rutger’s warhorse and immediately kicked Avelin’s side.
Avelin, who was already running out of stamina, moved his legs with difficulty, drooling.
Keldric’s eyes shook wildly. People, people, all people. Blood and metal were rampant around him, and a fishy smell stung his nose.
The situation was turning too chaotic. It was hard to tell which side was winning or losing.
“Lord Rutger! Answer me! Lord Rutger!”
Lord Rutger’s voice, buried in the crowd, was not heard. Keldric felt the blood drain from his entire body.
If Lord Rutger had been killed by the mercenaries…
“Lord Keldric! Over there!”
Alyssa pointed to one place. Keldric’s head turned sharply.
In the distance, a familiar helmet caught his eye among the soldiers jostling mindlessly.
Keldric hurriedly spurred Avelin towards it.
As if no one wanted to be trampled by the giant warhorse, the soldiers, who could not distinguish between friend and foe, cleared the way in horror.
“Lo, Lord Keldric!”
Lord Rutger, caught in the midst of the bustling soldiers, seemed unable to move properly.
The battlefield was a wide open space, but this place, where more than four hundred men were crowded together, had no room to set
foot in as it approached the center.
Keldric stretched out his arm with all his might. Lord Rutger also struggled to pull out his arm and responded.
The two hands barely touched, and Keldric quickly grabbed his hand and pulled Lord Rutger.
“Ugh…!”
But that was not something Keldric could easily do. He had to pull out the body of a knight, who was already heavy, with one hand,
and in the midst of a dense crowd.
Inside the helmet, veins bulged on Keldric’s forehead. Blood rushed to his face, turning it increasingly red.
As a result of straining with all his might, even using the strength he had used to suckle milk, Lord Rutger’s body was lifted out like a
radish being pulled from the ground.
“Uaaaah!”
Lord Rutger flew through the air for a moment before landing safely on the warhorse.
“Tha, thank you!”
“Lord Rutger! We have to go back quickly!”
Avelin was already exhausted. It was impossible to continue the battle with Alyssa on his back.
As if agreeing with that, Lord Rutger also nodded. Knights who also needed to change horses were leaving the battlefield one after
another.
Keldric frantically spurred Avelin towards the allied Military Camp.
As soon as they arrived at the Military Camp, he switched to Boreas, and Alyssa staggered as she stepped onto the ground. A new spear was gripped in Keldric’s hand.
Turning his horse’s head back towards the enemy camp, Keldric struggled to catch his rough breath.
However, even if a horse is tired, it should be allowed to rest, but a knight who has entered the battle has no time to rest.
Even more so if they want to unilaterally sound the victory cry through a single engagement.
“Charge! Charge!”
“To a glorious victory!”
Five knights who had changed horses began to charge again. The bugle announcing the return of the soldiers did not sound.
As Lord Rutger had advised, Lord Lothar, who had little experience, was also sensing it.
They must not spend a second night in a standoff. There was no better opportunity than this.
If an opportunity is seen, even if it is as thin as a thread, you must reach out, and if you have grabbed it, you must not let go, even if you die.
They must win.
“Th, there!”
And it seemed that the victory was already tilting.
Keldric, riding Boreas, saw a group of people rushing out of the enemy Military Camp.
A flag was raised high as if to mock them, and a few knights and soldiers struggled to keep up.
“That coward!”
“We must catch him!”
“Run faster!”
It was Baron Gottfried. Sensing defeat, he was leaving the battlefield earlier than expected.
Keldric’s eyes flashed. The other knights felt the same.
However, the distance was too great to chase after those who had already begun to flee, and it was absurd to split up and pursue them.
By the time Keldric and the knights arrived at the battlefield, Baron Gottfried’s group had become smaller than fingernails, disappearing beyond the snowfield.
“Damn it…”
Lord Henri muttered, grinding his teeth. To have missed Baron Gottfried was extremely frustrating.
However, a lord leading an army fleeing meant only one thing.
“Lord Keldric! Let’s wipe them out!”
“You lowlifes!”
Keldric and the knights charged back into the battlefield.
Victory was at hand.
☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩ ☩
“So, you missed him?”
“Yes. It seems he was preparing to escape, quick on the uptake.”
Lord Lothar’s face flushed red.
He had missed the opportunity to prove himself to his father after finishing the territory war, which was understandable.
“Ugh!”
Lord Lothar suddenly shouted and kicked the snowfield. The roughly scattered snow flew at the feet of Lord Rutger and the knights.
“We could have ended everything! Everything! It was the perfect opportunity to end this goddamn territory war!”
“…”
“But, you missed him!”
However, venting his anger on the knights only earned Lord Lothar colder stares from them.
Lord Lothar gritted his teeth, calming his trembling breath. The target of his anger was not the knights.
Whether it was a trick of fate or not, it was because he had failed to stab the tenacious Baron Gottfried, who was somehow clinging to life.
“Lord Lothar. Calm yourself.”
Lord Rutger stepped forward with a solemn voice, unable to watch any longer. Lord Lothar, belatedly regaining his reason, flinched.
No matter how much Lord Lothar was the eldest son of Baron Yaben, he could not afford to clash with Lord Rutger, who was trusted by that same Baron Yaben.
“…I’m sorry.”
In the end, it was Lord Lothar who backed down.
He offered an apology with a sulky expression and went into the military tent, saying that the accolades could wait until daybreak.
Keldric watched him with a slightly awkward expression.
‘Whatever the ending…’
Keldric had confidently seized victory. And with tremendous performance.
Countless mercenaries had seen Keldric rampaging around, and they were generally well-connected.
This would serve as a stepping stone to increase the value of the knight Keldric.
Moreover, since he had even captured Lord Gerhard, his pockets would be full just from the ransom.
The first territory war, and the first full-fledged battle.
The night of victory deepened.