Chapter 34

Chapter 34 - The First Subjugation War (5)

"We cannot abandon the knights. Sir Eugene! Pray, would you do us this favor?"

One who combines mobility and martial power, and an existence who would cause the knights who receive aid to lose less face... that was only Eugene, a fellow knight. Since the unit he leads is also composed of the Blackhand, the Dark Elves famous as elite skirmishers, they can sufficiently keep pace with a mounted knight.

"Leave it to me. I shall depart at once."

"I thank you." The Guard Captain bowed his head. "If the situation is poor, retreat immediately. Even if the other knights all die, it is enough if you, sir, return alive."

"Somehow, your way of speaking has come to resemble that of the Chief Magistrate."

Beside Eugene, who had a displeased face, Valda reined her horse in alongside him.

"Would it not be better if you remained with the main force?"

"Even if you are an outstanding knight, it would be difficult to find your way quickly in a forest you have visited for the first time."

"That is true."

Valda brought her long ears to her hand and tilted them toward the other side of the forest.

"I can feel the forest suffering from a viscous bloodlust and killing intent. If we follow that, the knights shall surely be there. I shall lead you by a shortcut."

"I understand. But if an enemy appears, pray, pull back immediately."

An elite unit composed of an elven magician, a human knight, a Beastkin squire, and twenty Dark Elf skirmishers set out.

"Do not think we are going to rescue them, but rather to observe. Be prepared to retreat at any time, and even if your arrows run out, refrain from close combat. As long as you maintain the formation, I shall handle the rest."

Eugene's method of fighting with a large flail while mounted is maximized when supporting allies who maintain a line.

"Leave it to us. That is the way we usually fight."

"Just how does the Sir Knight speak of our inner thoughts more precisely than we do?"

True to being a minority race, the Dark Elves preferred a combat doctrine that minimized losses. Eugene's command also cleanly dispelled the tension before an unidentified enemy.

"We shall turn left at the chestnut tree that shall appear soon. Immediately after, be careful as tree roots shall be thick on the ground." Valda, riding her horse in the lead, led the party perfectly. The magic of the forest was bestowing signposts that only she could see.

* * *

Led by Galia, the four knights rode their horses without hesitation. Starved for fame, they could never yield the glory of victory in the initial battle.

"Did they say Sir Eugene remained in the camp?"

"Yes! I confirmed until the very last moment; he did not even place a saddle upon his horse."

"Excellent, excellent." Galia was satisfied at the squire's report.

"Is it not natural? If one has monopolized the honor by participating in a trial by combat, one should know how to yield."

"That fellow is not entirely greedy, then." Knights Osram and Cain also increased their favor toward Eugene slightly.

"I see a large rock ahead!" At the squire's shout, smiles appeared on the faces of the knights.

- A fork in the road shall appear before a large rock! To the left is a large camp, and to the right is a small camp and the robber knight!

It's exactly as they heard from the captured bandit scout. The knights intended to lead this entire subjugation completely by themselves.

"Sirs! I shall take on the robber knight fellow who is said to be on the right! Since the scale of the camp is small, my subordinates shall be enough." Knight Galia shouted gallantly.

"I understand. We shall sweep clean the rascals on the left. Once the task is finished, let us gather again at the rock."

"I thank you for accepting my stubbornness!"

The other knights also wished to strike down the robber knight rather than bandits or mercenaries. For the grade of honor they could obtain was different. However, Galia was a knight from the wealthiest family here. Having been invited to the banquet he hosted and treated to much wine and food, it was better to maintain a good relationship for the future. Friendship among knights forged through banquets and battles lasts a lifetime. Wandering knights whose pocket situations were worse than Galia's needed to take a step back.

"Sir Galia, I wish you victory!"

"May there be martial fortune for you as well!"

The knights diverging at the fork in the road cheered for one another.

Thus, Galia led twelve subordinates and burst into the small campsite.

"It's an ambush!"

"Just what manner of watch were the scouts keeping?!"

The bandits and mercenaries had not thought that the knights would separate from the main force and push forward with brute force. While a movement of hundreds might be noticed, if dozens of cavalry were performing a maneuver, it is impossible for a mere bandit messenger to cover it. All of them prepared to fight with weapons and shields amidst their confusion.

"Argh!"

However, they were slashed across their arms and backs in an instant by the attacks of heavily armed knights and were left rolling on the ground.

"N-No! Sto—"

The following subordinates presented them with a hail of horse hooves.

Crack!

With the loud sound of bones breaking and abdomens bursting, corpses rolled about. The bandits who had lost their will to fight began to flee.

"You fellow! I have finally found you!" Galia, who had decapitated a fleeing mercenary, glared at the robber knight who appeared from the opposite side.

Wearing a black surcoat upon a black horse, and even his helmet being black, it gave the feeling of advertising 'I am a depraved knight'. To Galia who was starved for honor, he was a mouth-watering prey.

"It's very good." As the robber knight silently leveled his sword, Galia grinned. The opponent was not a lowly mercenary but a fellow knight. His fighting spirit and competitiveness boiled fiercely.

* * *

Eugene was in awe of the mobility and stamina of the Dark Elves. Even as he rode his horse at a canter, the third of the four stages of equestrian speed, they followed along well on foot.

"Lady Valda. Do any monsters capable of threatening the knights exist in this vicinity?"

"The environment here is not good enough for dangerous monsters to feed. Moreover, considering the surrounding conditions, if a strong monster were to reside here, rumors would have spread long ago."

Gradually, the faint sound of clashing armaments and shouts and screams were heard. It was a place so close that guidance was no longer needed.

"I shall go ahead! Follow at a speed that preserves your stamina!" As Eugene spurred the horse's flank and increased his speed, Valda and Homi followed.

"I can take care of myself!" Valda shouted, as if blocking Eugene's concern.

"I understand."

The Dark Elves did not stop Eugene. Because apart from his martial power, they knew he was a flexible knight who would wait for them if need be. Three riders traversed the forest quickly.

After a while, the large rock and the fork in the road appeared, and the sound of fighting was heard from the small camp on the right. The moment Eugene entered the place.

"Argh!"

He discovered a knight whose shoulder was being severed by the robber knight's sword.

"Sir Galia?"

He was the one who had visited Eugene harboring complaints for not being chosen for the Great Warrior duel. Since his shaving had been interrupted, he remembered the face.

"S-Sir Eugen—"

The severely wounded Galia discovered him and sent a pathetic gaze.

Flash!

As the sword-light flickered, Galia's head fell.

"Master!"

"No!"

The squires and servants who lost their lord had no time even to mourn.

"Ack!"

The scream of a comrade falling after being struck by a blade while they were distracted forcibly pulled their eyes back. They had to save their own lives from the enemies they were currently facing. They were being pushed back as additional enemy reinforcements arrived.

The robber knight shook the blood from his sword and turned toward Eugene. As if the newly appeared knight were more of an opponent than those rascals. There was no knightly cry of 'For honor!', nor a bandit's cry of 'Hand over everything!'. Only a bloodlust wishing to take Eugene's life was felt.

"You, you happen to be no ordinary robber knight, do you?" Eugene felt a magical aura from the enemy before his eyes.

As if he were surprised that his secret had been discovered, a strange light also appeared in the opponent's face.

Clank.

Eugene pulled out his flail instead of a sword. If it's a fellow who cradles magical power, one cannot be careless. It was best to deal with him safely from a distance. An iron bar that overwhelmed a common spear, thick chains, and a gruesome iron club.

"...What manner of fellow are you?" The robber knight showed a human reaction for the first time.

Eugene ignored him and spurred the horse's flank to charge. The robber knight also rode his horse as if he would not lose. Shortly before reaching engagement range, Eugene turned the horse's head to the side and swung the flail.

'Is he swinging already?' The robber knight was flustered. An outstanding warrior can roughly gauge the range by looking at a weapon. However, that large flail was extremely difficult to predict in both range and orbit. Moreover, the target Eugene aimed for was not the robber knight but something else.

Thump!

The gruesome iron club shattered the forehead of the black warhorse. As the horse died instantly, its head and upper body were driven into the ground.

Whirl!

The robber knight who had been charging with great momentum was catapulted forward like a rock shot from a catapult. Falling from a horse... especially if an armored knight were launched during a charge, the impact is immense.

"Cough!" The robber knight's internal organs were shaken, and he even bit his tongue, causing blood to flow from his mouth.

Clop, clop. Clop, clop.

Before he who had fallen on the ground could even struggle to rise, Eugene, who had circled back behind him, swung the flail once more.

Crunch!

His head was crushed along with his helmet, and he buried his face in the ground. It was a hollow end for one who had cut down two knights of the subjugation force.

"Strange polearms are truly convenient. Since no matter what trickery one prepares, the opponent cannot predict it."

Homi smiled at her master's easy victory, and Valda had a bewildered face.

"What is the matter?"

"Ah, it's naught. I congratulate you on your victory."

- How noble you were as you fought against Sir Badel and Sir Lipton!

It was a fight that somehow did not match the knightly ways of Eugene she had heard about from the city's noble ladies who had observed him. Valda glanced about frantically as if checking if there were any witnesses.

Eugene proceeded to support his allies who were fighting desperately. The backs of the bandits who had formed a line looked tantalizing.

Thump! Crack! Crack!

As he struck down with the flail like playing a game of whack-a-mole, one rascal toppled over every second.

"W-What?"

"What happened to the knight?"

The bandits were flustered. In a one-on-one match rather than a large-scale battle, a fight between knights does not reach a decision so easily. Both Derek the Dhampir knight and the recently deceased Galia reached a decision after an exchange that was not short. They had never imagined that Eugene would finish the robber knight in two bouts and strike their rear.

"Wooooooh!" On the other hand, the squires and servants who had been fighting with difficulty cheered at the soaring hope. Because they recognized that the one who had come to rescue them was the strongest knight of the region. Though the number of bandits was still greater, they had no way to endure once a knight burst in from behind and they were sandwiched.

Crunch!

As they tried to fight Galia's subordinates before them, their backs were crushed and they died instantly without being able to even scream.

Stab!

"Argh!"

And then, as they tried to check their rear, a blade was planted in their flanks and backs.

"If it continues like this, we shall all die!"

"Flee!"

The bandits fled while wailing. But since they were entangled with enemies they were fighting and had a knight trailing behind them, how could they flee? They all toppled over one by one and were annihilated.

However, by luck, one rascal succeeded in fleeing quite some distance. He was already more than forty meters away, so it seemed difficult to catch him unless it were Eugene atop a horse.

"Catch that fellow!"

"Do not leave a single rascal ali— Hut!"

As the servants, whose eyes were bloodshot for their master's revenge, tried to chase blindly, a long flail blocked them.

"Do not waste your strength needlessly; rest." Eugene held the flail backward and struck up an axe with the pole part. He caught it in midair and threw it at the fellow who was fleeing.

Whizzz!

The axe blade, which flew while spinning gruesomely, pierced through the bandit's back and emerged from his chest.

Thud!

"Y-You are amazing, Sir Knight."

"You have saved our lives, sir!" The servants looked up with awe-struck faces.

"I am Knight Eugene Meyer. I heard the sound of the trumpet requesting rescue and have come."

The knight who appeared at the moment of despair and rescued everyone... he was overflowing with dignity like an angel sent by God.

"Sir Eugene. It's not we who called the trumpet." Galia's squire, who was clutching his bleeding arm, reported. "The place where the trumpet rang is there." The place the squire pointed to was the campsite on the opposite side. No sound was heard, perhaps as if the situation had already concluded.

"You mean the fork in the road leading to the left from the large rock."

"Correct. The other knights ran that way, and a shout of battle was heard. After a while, even a horrific shriek." The squire's face was distorted as if the mere thought were terrifying.

"If it was a shriek, is it a monster? Can you tell what manner of monster it was?"

"It's a cry I have heard for the first time in my life." The servants also shook their heads with fearful looks. If they, who had mucha experience with monsters while following knights, did not know, it must be no ordinary fellow.

"I, as well, have something to tell you." Valda, who approached his side, pointed to the robber knight's corpse. "The fellow you struck down is a Pagan Knight."

"I felt a magical aura, but I never thought it would be related to pagans." Eugene, who had thought of it as a magical artifact or the like, was somewhat surprised. Since they acknowledge various gods here, they do not call one a pagan simply because they believe in different gods. There are no large-scale religious wars, nor cases where multiple denominations repeatedly recapture a single holy land. Therefore, pagans refer to truly nefarious and sinister faiths.

"I have confirmed the evil tattoos engraved upon the fellow's neck, arms, and forehead. Evil gods residing in another world often bestow power in such a manner."

"Is that the secret of him having cut down two knights?"

"Though tattoo magic has side effects, the power it bestows is certain. Tireless vitality, reduction of pain, or even stronger physical strength. If their basic skills were similar, it's only natural they could not match him."

"I understand that they are no simple bandit pack."

The existence of a tattooed Pagan Knight meant there was also one who had engraved them. It would also be related to the unidentified shriek the servants and the squire had heard.

"A Pagan Magician has allied with the bandit pack." Valda spoke as if she were certain.