The Blood Knight’s Villains

My Villains Episode 361

61. The Art of War (3)

With Prince Ulkar at the head, dozens of lords and dozens of knights climbed the western outer wall. The officers who assisted these nobles and staff magicians were also present, so Munru quickly became crowded.

Fortunately, the walls of this world are much wider than the medieval walls of Earth. This is because the walls were built thick to withstand the magic or witchcraft used in the siege.

So many people climbed the top of the wall, but the seats around Ulkar, the seat of honor, were of course limited. No matter how closely they gathered, there were only a dozen or so people at most who could see the prince face to face.

“Please keep that out of the way. Let’s go.”

Of course, Sir Ankir, Sir Laam, and myself belonged to the most prestigious of the knights gathered here, so they were able to occupy that ‘high seat’.

…Really, this world is divided into different classes by different things.

After standing in front of the castle, following Lord Ankir, who deftly cut through the crowds, the western scenery came into view.

The vast fields beyond the dried-up valley were full of fallen trees, stumps and ashes.

There were also countless figures that looked like half of the little fingernails, or almost dots. It seemed that the number was at least well over a thousand, but I couldn’t tell exactly.

Experienced officer and sergeant scouts know the number of enemies at a glance, but I don’t seem to have that kind of ability.

Anyway, the figures that appeared to be soldiers of Mittergeland were busy moving. It is to drag trees with a rope, to strike with an axe, and to clear ashes.

Lord Ankir clicked his tongue.

“It used to be a forest not too long ago, but now it has become an empty field.”

“…what are they doing?”

“As you can see. It’s hard to move a large army in a thick bush, so I’m going to push them all out.”

Hearing his explanation, it was originally said that there was a dense forest spreading from a point about 2,300 meters away from the valley. But now the forest had receded so far that the bare branches looked like threads.

“The people of the highlands call that forest ‘Selntri’. It is a forest that burns whenever there is a war with the empire.”

Sir Liam, who was examining the field that would become a battlefield in the near future, opened his mouth with his eyes narrowed.

“But when it rains in summer, new shoots and stems sprout in seven days, and by the time the sun goes down, yew and dogwood trees are said to grow taller than people.”

“In one year? Isn’t that very fast?”

“Thanks to that, some villagers believe that a fairy lives somewhere in the forest. Of course it’s nonsense.”

It’s a fairy…

Even in this world, the fairies

are a similar race commonly called elves, which only appear in legends.

It is said that many similar races, including fairies, lived alongside humans during the ancient empire. But now, more than 700 years after the fall of the ancient empire, it has become a story that is difficult to grasp even the authenticity.

Of course, I could bet my entire fortune on the fact that elves actually exist. I don’t know about Wood Elves, but Dark Elves and High Elves were tediously killed in the Underground and Eternal Worlds.

“…Looks like slave soldiers from Alzenberg.”

Most of the lords and knights looked puzzled at Prince Ulkar’s out of the blue.

“How do you know that, Your Highness?”

“There are a lot of people with different skin colors mixed together. There are also Gellan soldiers who seem to be leaders.”

In Prince Ulkar’s eyes, he could see the skin color of those half-and-half little fingernails. Even though he was not naked, but fully armed with a chain vest and an iron helmet.

Although he lost his left arm, Ulkar was still an archer with peak prowess, and his eyesight was much better than that of a criminal. People who remembered this belatedly shook their heads and showed admiration.

“Your Highness, I have something to report about it.”

Among them, a middle-aged man opened his mouth. He was armed with a gold-rimmed silver shield patterned overcoat and a long chain mail, open-eyed sallet helmet.

“Tell me, Harold.” Oh I remember now This is a man I met in South Harbor. As one of Ulkar’s henchmen, he was a capable commander.

“The size of the enemy army, which was initially expected to be around 5,000, jumped to 15,000. The main reason is that the Duke of Avillambus hired mercenaries on a large scale and attracted conscripts, but Vice King Burcard also sent a huge number of additional slave soldiers.”

” how much?”

“Approximately 4,000 were added, so the total is estimated to be around 6,000.”

Commander Harold’s decisive words made some people hold their breath.

“Six thousand. No matter how strong the power of the electorate is…

“It’s true that he deserves to be called Vice King.”

“So, aren’t they inferior slaves? Just one shout from me will scatter them all, so don’t be afraid.”

Amidst the murmur, an old knight in black plate armor made a joke. He was Sir Ecbert, Viscount Cirillo’s knight, and he looked four or five times the size of his skinny, short lord.

“They would rather gather than disperse.”

A cynical middle-aged knight with a short mustache burst into laughter. He was wearing a famous sword, Vidain, with a large ruby embedded in the permal.

“If Kyung appears in front of starving slaves, wouldn’t they mistake it for an old pig?”

“Daily Ceed. You’re talking recklessly today, you damn bastard.”

Sir Ecbert, who had been known for decades as ‘Bronze with an Axe’ growled, but Sir Daylesse de, the Earl of Coburn’s deputy and the best knight of Odenlock, didn’t blink an eye and shed a sneer.

“For God’s sake, the land I own is a bit large. Shouldn’t Kyungs have to worry about going to and fro without a field plot in their later years?”

“what!”

Sir Ecbert’s lord, Viscount Cirillo, was famous for preying on his minor lords and courtiers. In particular, it was quite a famous story that three years ago, his son kicked out an old baron with only one illegitimate son and took over the manor.

Viscount Cirillo wiggled his eyebrows without hiding his displeasure, and Sir Ecbert sighed with his face dyed dark red.

“Don’t be too angry. You’re saying this because you feel sorry for the poor knight who can’t lay down his weapon until he’s in his later years.”

It was not Viscount Cyril or Sir Ecbert who reacted to Lord Daylaced’s sarcasm that followed.

“her. That’s something I just can’t get past.”

Another old knight stepped forward. It was Sir Gidebal, standing behind Count Os, the young great lord, who was observing his surroundings with his shoulders shrunken.

“It’s very sad, but I’ve seen too many young people who bloomed prematurely and then quickly withered away.”

“I hope you don’t.”

Sir Gidebal is the man Marquis Eabon has been using as the commander of the Knights Division for over 15 years. Receiving that much recognition from one of the most powerful people in the kingdom was tantamount to proving your skills in itself.

When the legendary old knight, called the ‘Golden Swordsman’, smiled, Daylaced’s closed eyes became even sharper.

“This tall goblin-like bastard.”

Sir Ecbert shook his beard in anger, probably because Lord Daylaced reacted quite differently to him than when he was dealing with him.

The temperature seems to have dropped by several degrees, perhaps because the three knights with superhuman skills radiated energy.

Lord Ankir, unable to watch a series of skits, growled, his face crumpled.

“…Everybody seems to be out of their mind. What are you doing in front of the prince?”

“Everyone, get out of here. If you really want to fight, why don’t we have sparring later?”

Is it because of the name of Ulkar, or because Lord Ankir is a knight who is famous for his so-called ‘Warring States War’? At his low cry, the three knights reluctantly withdrew.

“Thank you Lord Ankir.”

As he lowered the dog, Ulkar smiled.

“Harold, continue.”

” yes.”

Commander Harold continued his explanation with a calm face.

“Some people may have different opinions, but in the judgment of the commanders and staff, including me, those slave soldiers are not opponents to belittle.”

‘The army under the guidance of His Highness the Peace-loving Viceroy Alzenberg and the Lord’.

Alzenberg’s slave corps with such an official name was an army formed by mixing the Gelans, the main ethnic group of the Mittergerland Empire, with slaves from various other ethnic groups.

“They form a team of eleven. The captain and three archers are mostly Gellans, and the three pikemen and four shieldmen are pagan slaves. Gather nine of these groups to form a hundredth, then five hundredths to form ‘Dyulleti’. And the father-king or a commander appointed by the father-king directs all dhyoletti.”

Listening to it, the pagan slave corps seemed like a pretty advanced type of army.

Of course, I didn’t know much about the army, but it seemed much more organized than the kingdom’s army, which was grouped around lords or knights without any special organization, or was only occasionally divided according to military classes.

“I heard that they are slaves, so their morale and skills are poor?”

“It was like that in the past, but not today.”

Harold shook his head at a knight’s question.

“I heard that they brainwash slave soldiers by applying the slander that raised magic soldiers.” “Brainwashing?” “That’s right. Because of the heavy use of powerful drugs, you will become half-dead, and your personal skills will decrease. However, they are willing to give their lives for the sake of Alzenberg’s father, and they say that even if a fireball falls in the middle of the unit, the ranks will not be disturbed.”

“It’s threatening.”

Ulkar looked down under the chandelier for a moment, then turned to Harold.

“Then, have you figured out the overall size of the enemy now?”

“Currently, it is judged to be all 15,000.”

…Fifteen thousand. It really makes me vomit a lot.

“Please explain the overall composition of the enemy gathered like this. There are quite a few people who haven’t been familiar with it yet.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The total number of troops sent by Viceroy Buckard was about 7,000. Excluding the 6,000 pagan slave corps, there were 500 Alzenberg family soldiers and 500 magic corps.

“The slave army is also a slave army, but the real problem is the magic corps.” The Magic Corps was literally a unit made up of magic soldiers.

The magic bottle is a being created by mobilizing various drugs and spells, so to speak, it was a battle mage who learned only two spells. One of the two spells was an attack spell represented by a fireball, and the other was a ‘combustion’ spell that burned one’s life force or lifespan to recover mana.

“They were made only for war. It is proof of how crazy the past fathers of Altzenberg are.”

The heathen slave soldier is a toy soldier who has lost his senses, and the magic soldier is a human caregiver that uses his life as fuel to fire attack spells. As Harold said, the Elector Count of Alchenver, who fostered such an abnormal unit, could not have been sane.

“It is more powerful than I thought. What about the commander?”

“I am Prince Savellard, the eldest son of Vice King Burcard, and Prince Hopeken, the ‘master of the sword’.”

sword master. Aka ‘Sword Master’.

Through mysterious simbeop, mana is accumulated in the danteon, and milky-colored sword river is continuously poured out – of course not such an existence.

The title referring to swordsmen who obtained the right to create a swordsmanship school by proving their skills to the emperor was the master swordsman.

The currently surviving masters of swords are at most ten or so rare, and at the same time they cannot use swords, but they are incredibly powerful beings who have reached the pinnacle of humanity with only physical prowess.

“Hopecon… Did you bring the disciples?” “I can’t pinpoint it, but it probably is.”

“It must be tricky.”

Unlike Ulkar, who narrowed his eyes, the knights all had sparkling eyes.

“The sword master and his disciples.”

Ankir, who was crumpling his face in the war of nerves of the knights, whispered to me with his nose wide open.

“I’m excited. Isn’t it?”

“…You look like a pervert right now, so take care of your expression.”

“Hehe.”

Harold’s explanation continued behind the excitement of the knights.

“Unlike Burcard, who sent an heir, Abillambus left his family.”

“The Duke himself came forward?”

“yes. There are about 8,000 troops in Strom’s army, 70% of which are mercenaries and conscripts. He must be thinking of making up for the lack of morale and control with the authority of the Elector Count.”

Duke Abillambus, the instigator of this war, mobilized as many as 2,500 soldiers from the Strom family.

As well as being a standing army, they were elite soldiers who received all kinds of support from the vast territory. On our side, the only troops capable of dealing with them are the most elite soldiers directly under Prince Ulkar.

3,500 conscripts would not be that great, but mercenaries of over 2,000 could be a huge burden depending on the situation.

“Unlike the mercenaries whose performance depends on morale or war situation, the saboteurs dispatched from ‘Linhow on the Mountain’ will become a serious headache anytime, anywhere. Well, they’re so famous that there’s nothing to explain.” Destruction magicians are sorcerers who deal with pure power and force fields, and ‘Linhow on the Mountain’ is a historical school of magic that is the root of such destruction magicians.

I have never met the ‘main class’ saboteurs belonging to Linhow on the mountain, but I have fought against the ‘subclass’. It was because there were several saboteurs mixed with Count Mullin’s army that was attacking Longville.

The saboteurs were obviously threatening, but I remember that they were easily dealt with with a group of ambushes.

Come to think of it, when will Mungchi come back? It seems like it’s already been 15 days since we broke up… I just want them to reunite before High Castle is completely surrounded.

“Although there are assassins who sometimes break into the castle, there are no major damages thanks to the attention of the various lords and knights. Therefore, at this point, the most dangerous thing to increase the enemy power is-”

Kiyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa enemy!

“Exquisite.” Harold let out a small sigh at the roar coming from afar.

“It is these guys. Strategically and tactically, it is the target that allies should be most vigilant about.”

It was none other than the dragon knights that rose from the horizon. Knights riding the wyvern that Duke Avillambus is proud of.

They were the ones I had seen prior to the bloodmane mercenaries’ night raid, but today felt completely different. It was because there were well over fifty wyverns roaring and flying in unison.

“You must take refuge in the castle, Your Highness

.”

“Don’t you have any means to respond?”

“A bow and a crossbow cannot pierce the scales of a wyvern up high. long-established We are attempting high-angle shooting by modifying the ballista, but the aiming is so slow that the dragon knight can avoid it by just observing the movement of the bow.”

“…Wizards?”

Master Lymond, who was nearby, replied to the prince asking a question with a calm expression.

“It will be difficult. Sending spells farther than arrows is a vision among visions that only a few prestigious schools have, so “at least in this High Castle, there is no one with that skill.”

Harold interrupted Master Lymond and urged the prince.

“Battlemages will cast defensive spells, but they are not completely safe. Hurry up and go to the castle, Your Highness.”

“O uh”

—— I that.

Wyverns were fast among winged monsters, and dragon knights were those who specialized in making such wyverns fly with all their might.

As the dragon knights flew faster than expected, those gathered at Munru fell into confusion. Wizards hurriedly memorized spells, lords fled, and knights looked up at the sky with indignant eyes.

Ulkar, who had been hardening his face, finally turned around to head to the castle. Then he found me and opened his eyes wide.

“…Sir Phoenix’?”

“wait a minute.”

Taking the spear from a soldier standing guard, I broke the rear end of the spear and made it the right length.

“What are you doing?”

“Originally, the throwing skill is an essential skill for heavy armored warriors.”

“what?”

By the time the wyverns grew to the size of the palm of your hand.

“Sigh.”

At the end of a short run, he threw a spear while stepping on a stilt.

Wedge!

The soldier’s broken spear was shot so fast that the shape was blurry and passed by the neck of the wyvern flying in the lead.

Ayeek!

A death sentence that does not follow death.

The wyvern, whose neck was torn long and shallow, poured out blood, and the dragon knight barely calmed the crazed wyvern by twisting his body.

“…What is that?”

“What was it? Did you really throw it?”

For the wide-eyed knights, I snatched a spear from another soldier.

The spear that flew the second time pierced the middle of the wing of a Wyvern, and the dragon knight had to turn around and return to the west.

A dragon knight pointed this way and shouted something. In response, the dragon knights all at once poured large stones and fireballs into the gatehouse.

“Aurnetren!”

“Let the strong wind rise.”

However, Munruen was teeming with excellent battle mages including Master Limond and Master Epos, so the bombardment of the dragon warriors was in vain.

“lily!”

Just as the aftermath of the bombardment had subsided, Eson, who was chubby, jumped onto the door tower just in time and handed over a package of javelins.

“Good after.”

The familiar javelin showed a completely different hit rate than the crudely prepared one. I threw five javelins in quick succession and landed four hits, two of which ended up falling.

Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

The Wyverns screamed and turned

. Not just one or two, but over fifty Wyverns were all retreating.

“…under.”

said Prince Ulkar with a hollow laugh.

“I think we should prepare a seat for the Lord at the top of the castle tower.”

“If yes, I will be grateful.”

By the time Ulkar shook his head, the people remaining in the gatehouse burst into cheers.

After that day, I became a rock star among knights.