Chapter 221 - Episode 214: Cleaning Up the Mess
Mid-November. At Aspida Fortress, located to the west of the capital city Noeina, the retainer Radley was on surveillance duty as usual.
Following the steady expansion of the Arqvist territorial army and the conclusion of a ceasefire agreement with the Princess faction coalition, which was in the process of seizing actual power in the Lancel Kingdom, the garrison defending the Bezel Great Forest Road had been reduced. The Ninth Legion of the Kingdom's army had already returned to their home base, leaving behind only a small unit of messengers.
The current combat strength for border defense consisted of just under 500 men from the Northwestern Noble Coalition Army under the command of Count Marcel, and about 60 men from the Arqvist territorial army, led by Radley. Additionally, 9 out of the 17 combat-ready golem users of the Claymore unit were stationed there. Although the numbers had decreased, the combat power was not significantly inferior to that before the Ninth Legion's withdrawal.
In the first place, while the defenses were strictly fortified, there had been no instance of Aspida Fortress being used in actual combat, and it was doubtful whether it would ever experience actual combat in the future. Today, too, would likely be a boring day consisting of nothing more than monitoring the forest road and patrolling the surroundings.
As Radley suppressed a yawn while thinking this—
"Tch! The regular patrol soldiers are returning in a hurry! It seems something has happened!"
A lion-man soldier of the Arqvist territorial army standing atop the watchtower reported this, utilizing his high visual acuity to monitor the forest road. The moment he heard that, Radley tightened his loosened focus and raised his voice.
"Open the west gate! Rick, prepare the ballistae for firing! Jeremy, come here!"
While shouting instructions, Radley rushed up onto the western ramparts. Jeremy, who had now moved into a position akin to Radley's adjutant, ran alongside him. Looking toward the forest road, the figures of the patrolling cavalry galloping back were visible even from atop the walls.
"Hey Radley, what happened!"
Questioned by Count Marcel, who had emerged from the stone headquarters, Radley looked back.
"The patrol is returning in a hurry! The reason is still unknown, but I've ordered the ballistae to be prepared just in case!"
Immediately after Radley answered, the watchtower lookout shouted again.
"That is...! A cavalry unit is approaching behind the patrol soldiers! The number is approximately... 50!"
Tension ran through Aspida Fortress upon receiving that report. It was absolutely impossible for this place to fall to 50 cavalrymen, but it was still not a number that could be underestimated. Furthermore, there might be following units.
"All personnel, prepare for combat! Everyone, take up arms! Crossbowmen and archers, get onto the walls!"
Following the words of Count Marcel, the highest commander on site, the soldiers of the Northwestern Noble Coalition Army also began to move frantically.
"Radley! Can I leave the defense command of this place to you!? Depending on the situation, I may strike out myself!"
"Yes, leave it to me!"
As Count Marcel, who wore his armor throughout the day, said this while putting on his helmet, Radley nodded immediately.
Shortly after, the cavalry unit presumed to be the enemy became visible from atop the walls. They appeared to be wearing matching black armor. Judging by the way they maintained a clean formation and ran in step, their level of training was likely reasonably high.
"Jeremy, can you tell at a glance if they are military nobles of the Cadne faction?"
"Those are... the Black Dragon Knights? I believe they are the private army of a Marquis house famous for being die-hard military nobles. Since that house would never defect to the Princess faction, they are likely the enemy."
"In that case, it's gonna be a fight after all..."
Then, the patrolling cavalry burst through the west gate. Simultaneously, the gate was closed.
"Re... report... a cavalry unit presumed to be the enemy, approximately 60! The reason for their approach is... u... unknown!"
The cavalryman, dismounting as if rolling off his horse and out of breath, gave a more accurate number of the enemy. Almost simultaneously, the lookout shouted, "Approximately thirty seconds until enemy arrival!"
The enemy's intention was unclear. What did they intend to do by charging into a fortress on horseback? While thinking this, Radley shouted an order.
"Rick, fire a warning shot!"
"Roger! Number one and eight, the outer edges, don't hit them yet... fire!"
Out of the twenty numbered ballistae, arrows were launched from the two ends of those facing west. As per Rick's instructions, the arrows did not hit the enemy, but instead thrust into the ground slightly outside the formation. However, with this, the enemy should have understood that they had received a warning.
"Enemy is not stopping! Twenty seconds until arrival!"
"Rick, you can kill them!"
"Numbers two through seven, hit them, fire!"
The remaining six west-facing units launched arrows. What had been loaded into them were explosive flame arrows.
Six explosive flame arrows detonated in front of the charging enemy. He thought they would stop now—but contrary to that, the knights forced their way through the flames and continued to charge. It seemed more than 10 riders in the lead group had fallen from direct hits, but their momentum did not stop.
Thinking they had considerable guts, Radley gave the next order.
"Hey Alain! Put all the golems on the west side! Charge from here too!"
Radley shouted the order to Alain, the most senior member of the Claymore unit currently stationed there.
"Roger! Hey, everyone deploy! Go smash them!"
At Alain's instruction, golems leaped out one after another from the scaffolding built behind the west gate, and finally, Alain's golem also ran up the scaffolding and jumped outside the fortress.
Nine golems charged directly in front of the enemy. This should surely be the end. Just as everyone was thinking that,
"What! They're dodging!"
Alain shouted upon seeing the enemy's movement.
As if to avoid the collision with the golems, the cavalry unit simultaneously diverted their course from a head-on collision path, shifting to the left of the road up to the very edge of entering the forest. The synchronized movement, like a single living organism, was impressive even for the enemy.
The golems, having gained acceleration, could not make a large change in direction at this point, and while they barely tried to catch the flank of the passing enemy, leaping onto mounted horses during a charge was not easy. They managed to grab some cavalry or ram into the flanks of horses, but they took down fewer than 10 riders. Conversely, several golems were ruined, being swallowed by the enemy formation and trampled by the herd of horses.
The enemy cavalry unit, remaining shifted to the left, passed through the road and reached the open land surrounding Aspida Fortress, then proceeded north as if bypassing the fortress.
"Lord Marcel, the enemy is circling around to the north!"
"Understood! Men, we strike out! This is the battle I've been waiting for!"
Following Radley's words, the Northwestern Noble Coalition Army led by Count Marcel, who had been waiting on the east side of the fortress, moved immediately. The cavalry unit, which had tried to flee east while ignoring Aspida Fortress, naturally flinched before the hundreds of troops that appeared before their eyes.
"Numbers nine through twelve, fire!"
There, explosive flame arrows were launched from the ballistae facing the north side of the fortress. They landed around the center of the enemy formation, and the cavalry hit directly became balls of fire. The fire spread to the surrounding cavalry and horses.
Then, the crossbowmen and archers on the walls launched arrows, further reducing the number of enemy cavalry.
Some of the enemy tried to return the way they came, but Alain and the others returned from the west, cutting off the enemy's retreat with golems. Now there was no escape for the enemy. All that remained was to surround and annihilate them.
"...Tch, I surrender! I surrender!"
"Please don't kill me!"
"I no longer have the will to fight!"
Just as he thought, the enemy survivors threw away their weapons, raised their hands, and shouted one after another.
"...Tch, take them alive!"
To think they charged so vigorously, then tried to flee by avoiding the fortress, and then surrendered immediately once surrounded. However, now that it had come to this, they couldn't kill them indiscriminately. When Radley gave the order, the soldiers stopped firing arrows.
"You cowards! Why did you stop fighting! Are you even knights, you bastards!"
Count Marcel, who had seemed one step away from entering a flashy melee, shouted while throwing away his helmet in front of the surrendered enemy. That loud voice reached Radley and the others on the walls.
"...Well, I can understand the feeling."
"...Hahaha."
Jeremy gave a wry smile beside the muttering Radley. Amidst days of doing nothing but waiting, Count Marcel probably thought he could finally have a proper battle. This was an anticlimax of the worst kind.
"Still, I wonder what that was all about."
Even if they could bypass and break through Aspida Fortress with a charge of only a few dozen riders, a horse's full sprint only lasts a few minutes. They wouldn't be able to escape and would only be annihilated, sandwiched between the garrison of the capital city Noeina and the forces of this fortress.
It was a mystery what the enemy wanted to achieve. That was something that could be understood by questioning the prisoners later.
"Another cavalry unit is approaching!"
At that moment, the lookout shouted again, and the air that had begun to relax became tense once more. A second wave of the enemy.
"Ballistae numbers one through eight, loaded!"
"Ready!"
Following Rick's report, Radley shouted the order.
The new cavalry unit that appeared from the depths of the forest road approached at full speed—and stopped. The knight at the front, presumed to be the commander, was waving both hands toward them.
"Tch! Don't fire!"
"Cease fire! Cease! Stand by!"
Rick shouted, and the ballista gunners took their hands off the triggers. While the new cavalry unit remained stopped, only the commander approached slowly on a single horse.
"Hey, someone bring me a horse. Also, call Lord Marcel."
Radley, descending from the wall, mounted a nearby horse and exited through the west gate. He joined Count Marcel, who had galloped from the north side of the fortress, and approached to a distance where he could converse with the opposing commander, while feeling the territorial army soldiers behind him still maintaining a cautious stance.
"We are the army of the Pro-Princess Noble Coalition. Are you the commander here?"
"I am. Noble of the Lordberg Kingdom, Count Edmund Marcel."
"...I am a noble of the Lancel Kingdom, Baronet Bernard Poitou."
Realizing the other party was a noble of considerably higher rank, the commander adjusted his tone.
"Was the group that attacked this fortress earlier nobles of the Cadne faction?"
"Yes, they are remnants of the Cadne faction that we were pursuing. They were the last Cadne faction forces resisting in the northeast of the Lancel Kingdom, but they took advantage of a gap in our lines and forcibly broke through the surveillance network of the Bezel Great Forest Road. We did not think the enemy would attempt to flee to the Lordberg Kingdom... we pursued them, but we let a non-negligible number slip away. My apologies."
Hearing the commander's story, Radley exchanged looks with Count Marcel.
I see, the enemy's charge was indeed a desperate act. He wondered what they planned to do by fleeing to the Lordberg Kingdom, but it meant the Cadne remnants were so cornered that they were running around without thinking of the consequences.
"It is fortunate that there were no casualties on our side... however, cleaning up the mess of your blunder is not included in the ceasefire agreement. This is your war; it would be problematic if you did not settle it on your end."
"...You are quite right. I have no words to excuse this."
When Count Marcel complained in a stern tone, the commander apologized honestly in a regretful voice.
"I shall report this matter to His Majesty Oscar Lordberg III. Furthermore, Viscount Arqvist, who governs the area adjacent to this Bezel Great Forest Road, will surely be displeased that foreign soldiers trampled through his territory... The man beside me is a retainer of the House of Viscount Arqvist. I trust you understand that the details will be conveyed to the Viscount as well."
Being looked at by the commander, Radley looked back at the opponent with a grim face. Then, the commander bowed his head to Radley with an awkward expression.
"As I am merely a low-ranking noble, I cannot say for certain, but I believe there will be a formal apology regarding this matter from Her Highness Princess Henrietta at a later date. To the King of Lordberg, and to Lord Viscount Arqvist."
"Naturally. I expect a sincere apology... We have taken about 15 of the fleeing Cadne remnants alive; their return will depend on your country's sincerity."
Even if they were of a different faction, they were prisoners of the Lancel Kingdom army. If they were to hand over their persons, it would be in exchange for an appropriate ransom.
"Yes. I shall convey that to Her Highness Henrietta as well."
"...Can the Princess faction coalition truly seize control of the Lancel Kingdom? In a state where they let hostile forces escape to a neighboring country."
"What! ...Of course. In this battle, the Cadne remnants in the northeast of the Lancel Kingdom were nearly annihilated, and their organized resistance has been lost. The irrational action of the remaining soldiers fleeing toward the Lordberg Kingdom was only because they were cornered to the very last step."
When Count Marcel questioned him, the commander answered as if he found it genuinely offensive.
"The Princess faction coalition is in the process of suppressing other regions, and soon Cadne himself will be captured or slain. No, it may be that news has simply not arrived and he has already been slain by now. We have practically already won. I ask that you please believe that."
"...Then so be it. I wish you martial luck."
Count Marcel did not break his sullen expression, but since the opponent was a friendly force for now, he gave words of encouragement.
"Yes, I thank you... Well then, we shall be going. I believe a messenger will come at a later date to convey Her Highness Henrietta's intentions regarding this matter."
After showing a salute to Count Marcel and Radley, the man who was the commander returned to the Lancel Kingdom with his subordinates.
This battle, which became the first actual combat for Aspida Fortress, was the final battle between the Lancel Kingdom's Cadne faction and the Lordberg Kingdom.