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Volume 1 Chapter 5 Part 12

Then, at night, the fighting had stopped once more. But for Siluca, the real battle was yet to come.

 

She decided to settle the negotiations no matter what. She decided to die together with Theo. Maybe I was the power of the 「Patriot」banner influencing her, but he thought she would have made the same determined decision even if there had been no war.

 

「It was just for one day, but I felt like I was the King of Selvis. 」

 

Lassic said in a laid-back tone.

 

「You also managed to get some more military fame for yourself. As a Lord, I think you should feel pretty satisfied with what you managed to achieve. 」

 

「It was an honor for me to fight alongside Lord Lassic. Let’s do it again tomorrow. 」

 

Moreno spoke in his usual light tone of voice as well.

 

「This is unforgivable. Master Theo fights proudly, and his case is also justified. To take his life out of a petty grudge is nothing but blasphemy against the Crest entrusted to him by God. 」

 

On the other hand, Priscilla was pretty outraged at the current situation.

 

「I am sorry that I could not be of any more help. 」

 

Siluca apologized to Theo. She always thought she was a genius, but now she realized that she was just overconfident.

 

「No, it was only for a short time, but ever since I met you, I have been feeling more fulfilled than ever. I’ve learned, felt, and thought about many things. It’s a pity that my dream has to come to such an early end, but I think that the satisfaction from being able to chase it for so long is much greater than the feeling of loss. 」

 

Theo said and asked Siluca for a handshake. Siluca hesitates, but agreed to it in the end.

 

「Life exists for the sake of other lives. When we forget that, the meaning of life also eludes us. The battle from tomorrow onwards is to remind those who have forgotten the meaning of life what it truly means. In order to take someone’s life, you have to be prepared to lose your own life. That is why we have to show our enemies that they should be risking their lives not to take it from others, but to save as many of them as they can! 」

 

When Theo appealed in a loud voice, everyone gathered on the spot shouted Theo’s name all at once, and the cries erupted again and again throughout the night.

 

*          *          *

 

The next day, the battle began early in the morning.

 

With the help of the other soldiers, heavy knights of Waldrind began to climb to the top of the mountain, and once they reached it with the additional assist, the battle began in earnest. There was no formations and no mobility on their part. They were a slow, but tough target.

 

The castle soldiers attacked relentlessly. Also, soldiers who left the castle last night and hid themselves in the mountains launched a surprise attack when Waldrind’s forces were least expecting it.

 

On the other hand, the castle walls collapsed in several places due to the shooting of the heavy crossbow bolts infused with holy energy, and the number of casualties increased by the minute.

 

The infantry infiltrated through the walls of the castle and tried to take control of it, but they were repulsed by the troops led by Lassic, and the battle turned into a complete war of attrition. As time went by, the knights of Waldrind began to realize the pointlessness of the battle. However, the sacrifice they already made were great and there was no turning back.

 

At the end of the day, the defenders of the castle managed to defend it without giving any ground to the invaders.

 

The knights of Waldrind were weary and descended down the mountain without the victory they were expecting, and that night the air at the war council surrounding Marine was oppressive. More than 100 knights have already lost their lives. If the battle continues like this, it was clear to everyone that many more knights were going to lose their lives.

 

「The enemy had already admitted defeat. Lord Theo was willing to give his territories up while retaining only the rank of Knight, and in place of the late King of Selvis, Lassic David, who has gained his title and territory from the ruler of the previous generation was to be made then new King of Selvis and then swear loyalty to Lady Marine. Those were not the conditions that we could not have accepted. 」

 

Aubest said it in a tone without intonation, with his usual expressionless expression.

 

「If there are so many casualties, then our Artists are not going to be of much use. No matter how much damage is done, we have no choice but to continue fighting until the enemy is annihilated… 」

 

Commander Erich said with a bitter expression. Among the knights who attended the military council until yesterday, two lost their lives today. Even Erich knew that he had made a mistake in ordering the withdrawal. However, the knights, including himself, felt guilty that they despised and provoked King of Selvis to attack, causing him to become impatient with his military prowess and being felled at the hands of the enemy. His Crest has also been taken by the enemy.

 

It was his own fault that he died in battle.

 

However, this battle was a battle to help King Selvis regain his lost territories, a request that he made personally. But now, the rumors around the encampment were that if the heavy knights of Waldrind are going to continue fighting, they are going to be defeated. In order to avoid that, there was no choice but to seek a result equal to or greater than King Savis’ life.

 

The only thing of such worth was the life of Lord Theo. Theo killed the King of Selvis and, as if to say that this was the purpose of this battle, let the independent Lords and militia escape from the castle, showing that he valued the lives of his subjects above everything else. His attitude was so deeply moving that the knights even felt jealous of the young Lord.

 

「Let’s settle things tomorrow. If we surround the castle with all of our forces, we should be able to destroy it in one fell swoop. 」

The youngest knight participating in the war council spoke enthusiastically, and the other knights nodded strongly.

 

「But if we do that, there will be no one left to protect Lady Marine. Artuk’s forces often rely on devastating stealth tactics, so its soldiers may already be hiding near this battlefield and watching us to exploit any gaps in our defenses. 」

 

Aubest objected to that idea indifferently.

 

「The Earl of Artuk will not make any moves, because he will not be able to make a calm judgement if helping Lord Theo will also mean helping the Mage who humiliated him so much. 」

 

A knight who raised a voice to surround the castle with an entire army mocked Aubest outright.

 

「Everyone here knows that the Earl was humiliated by the Mage Siluca Meletes. However, so far, the earl has not taken any sort of action against her. If he took that matter to the Mages Association, then he has no choice but to wait for the Commission of Inquiry. Perhaps they are going to subject her to a severe punishment, and that is going to be enough for him? 」

 

「Do you claim to understand the thoughts of the Lustful Earl? 」

 

Argued by Aubest, the knight had a bitter look on his face.

 

「Do you know what the Lustful Earl is thinking? Then how do you know he won’t attack us? 」

 

Aubest continued, and the knight lost his words for a while.

 

「…I-I’m sure there will be a report from the spies. I heard that a magician named Siluca was scorned and driven away by Artuk’s contracted Mage. That was supposedly the only reason why the Earl of Artuk agreed to negotiate with her in the first place. 」

 

「I see… 」

Aubest raised and lowered his neck very slowly.

 

「He had reason to believe, and acted to back up that belief. Everyone thinks Artuk won’t move. Don’t you think that is the perfect time to move? 」

 

The knights gasped at Aubest’s words.

 

「Let’s leave only 100 people here, and attack the castle with the rest of the army then…」

 

Erich spoke out against the knight who was still trying to object.

 

With 100 men, even if Earl of Artuk’s army were to attack, they should be able to fight back. Then he stared at Marine as if asking for her verdict.

 

「All right…」

 

Marine nodded quietly.