Chapter 371 - Chapter 363: The End of the Knightly Nation
The army of the Margraviate of Dale had vanished.
Upon receiving that shocking news, Noein left the room immediately and hurried toward the conference chamber. While walking, he received a more detailed report from Helga.
"The first to notice were the soldiers at the barracks. Apparently, when they woke up in the morning, there wasn't a single member of the Margraviate of Dale's army anywhere in the barracks. Hearing that, we rushed to find Lady Evelina, but neither she nor her aides were there. When my father... His Majesty King Gabriel questioned the castle servants, he learned that they had secretly departed Luzure during the middle of the night."
"...Setting the castle aside, it was a failure to leave the security of Luzure's gates entirely to the Margraviate of Dale's army."
Immediately after joining forces, Noein had suggested that the Revelant Kingdom army and the Arqvist Grand Duchy army also take over part of the security duties, such as the night watch, but Evelina had stubbornly refused. Since this was her country, Noein and the others had not pushed further, but in the end, that had backfired.
"Um, what will happen to us from now on?"
"...Who knows. Now that the sovereign of this country is gone, we may have to retreat to a border that is easier to defend. That is something for your father and me to discuss and decide."
Noein spoke while casting a sidelong glance at Helga's anxious expression.
Though she was treated as a knight, she was beyond unreliable, but he figured this was simply how it was.
Since the military operations began, Helga had been inconspicuous, as if her vigor on the first day had been a lie.
In the end, she was still an immature girl who did not know society. Mixed among generals who knew real war, she could do nothing. Noein thought to himself that she was almost cute as long as she remained this quiet.
When he arrived at the conference chamber, Gabriel, Margrave Sulho Hakkarainen, and other knights of the Kingdom army were already there. Everyone looked as if they had just woken up.
Furthermore, Konrad was there in the corner of the room with a restless expression.
"Konrad, did you get through to Yuri and the others?"
Noein gave a light nod to Gabriel and the others before first calling out to Konrad. Currently, Yuri was stationed at the defensive position work site in Noein's stead.
"Yes. It seems the Margraviate of Dale's army chose a path invisible from the fortress, so Excellency Granat and the others did not notice their passage. For now, they say they will pursue them by horse and attempt to stop them."
"...It is likely futile. They have committed such a reckless act out of stubbornness. They will not listen to anyone's persuasion now."
The one who interrupted Noein's conversation was Gabriel.
"Margrave Evelina Dale reportedly left this note with a servant. Grand Duke Arqvist, you should read it as well."
Noein took the parchment offered by Gabriel and looked through it.
It was a letter like a declaration of resolve, stamped with a blood seal.
It stated that the most important thing they had inherited from their ancestors was their pride as knights. And that their very way of life was the embodiment of that pride.
The Margraviate of Dale was a nation of knights. If they were to discard their knightliness, that would be synonymous with the end of the nation. The end of a nation that comes after a knightly battle, and the end of a nation that comes from discarding knightliness. It was only natural to choose the former.
All of us shall face the battle as knights and their attendants until the end, and scatter gallantly. Our nation shall meet its end together with us knights.
After the Margraviate of Dale has perished, we pray that the protection of the spirits be upon the allied lords and their homelands. Let the manner of our scattering be carved into memory and history.
"...Ridiculous. They've lost their minds."
Noein muttered as if lamenting, tossing the parchment onto the conference table.
To fight and scatter with pride in their hearts. The individuals themselves must feel wonderful. However, if it only makes them feel good and produces no profit or results, it is no different from masturbation. By the common sense Noein knew, this was not an action a sovereign or noble of a country should take.
In comparison, the conservative nobles of the Lordberg Kingdom were almost cute for eventually obeying after being persuaded by Oscar.
"I cannot understand. Even if this is fine for them, what do they intend to do about the people of the Margraviate of Dale who are left behind?"
"I agree... but to the Margraves of Dale, the land and the people are all their possessions. They probably cannot understand the very concept of a ruler's responsibility toward the people."
Noein was speechless, but at the same time, he was convinced.
Royalty and nobility hold the right to rule the people, and simultaneously bear the duties and responsibilities of those who are noble. It is said that this philosophy was originally born in the Ancient Great Empire.
This philosophy, which came to be proposed during the process of the Ancient Great Empire's maturation, once fell into decline during the subsequent era of proliferating small nations.
Later, it was rediscovered around the time the reign of the Lordberg Royal Family stabilized, and was once again adopted within the kingdom and some surrounding nations. So it is told.
The nations of the northern continent that had once been under the influence of the Ancient Great Empire, starting with the Revelant Kingdom, maintained this philosophy or reintroduced it, similar to the south, leading to the present.
On the other hand, the Margraviate of Dale, which originally belonged to a different cultural sphere, was different. If one were to say that it was simply their value system that led Evelina and the others to consider the people as the possessions of the knights and disregard their fate after their passing, then that was that.
"Furthermore, Evelina Dale ascended to the position of head of the house at a young age as a woman. In order to make knights older than herself obey and unite the country to this extent, she likely felt that she herself had to be more knightly than anyone else."
"..."
So Evelina Dale was also a powerless individual whose fate was gripped by the circumstances of her birth. Noein thought such a thing.
"In the military council, I told the Margraves of Dale, 'If you wish to protect what you inherited from your ancestors,' but I never imagined they would interpret it this way... I should have chosen my words more carefully."
"...It is not Your Majesty's fault. This is, strictly speaking, their choice."
Noein could only offer those words to the grief-stricken Gabriel.
.....
The fact that Margrave Evelina Dale, the knights, and the attendants—totaling about a hundred people—had departed on their own authority spread throughout the Margraviate within the day.
The situation afterward grew even worse.
The peasant soldiers of the Margraviate of Dale who were left behind completely lost their will to fight after losing the rulers of the country. They were no longer in a state where they could face battle.
A significant number left their work posts and fled, and some of the people of Luzure also began to abandon the city and escape. The servants of the castle had also disappeared before anyone noticed.
From yesterday to today, the small independent nation had lost its form as a country.
"...It's no use now. There is no meaning in us being here. Let us retreat to the fort at the Fioluviki Gorge. We will merge with the soldiers guarding the border and face the decisive battle there."
"You are right. That would be better than fighting in an unfamiliar land."
In the conference chamber of the masterless castle, Noein nodded to Gabriel, who was looking down at the chaotic city from the window.
Some people had fled Luzure, but many still remained, perhaps because they had nowhere else to go. He did not know what fate awaited the people of this country, but they would almost certainly be caught up in looting. There would be those assaulted and those killed.
He did not know in what form they would be placed under the rule of the Virgoa Kingdom afterward. It likely would not be very good treatment. At worst, they would be made slaves.
However, neither Gabriel nor Noein could wager their own lives and the lives of their soldiers to protect the people of this country. The knights who could bear the responsibility of protecting them were no longer here.
"Sulho. Order the remaining conscripts of the Margraviate of Dale to disband. The Revelant Kingdom army is to prepare for movement. We retreat to the border... Also, load as many supplies as possible from the castle and barracks onto wagons, and let the soldiers carry as much as they can. It feels unpleasant, like looting during a fire, but still."
"As you wish."
"Yuri, have the Grand Duchy army prepare for movement as well. Have the Claymores help with the transport of supplies."
"Understood."
Receiving the orders of their respective lords, Margrave Hakkarainen and Yuri left the room.
Since there was no longer any use for the conference chamber, Gabriel also left the room accompanied by guards. Noein followed after him, casting one last look at the cityscape of Luzure from the window.
"..."
And then, he departed without saying a word.
The end of the Margraviate of Dale was thus decided.
.....
"Honestly, what a commotion to wake up to. My heart chilled for a moment."
"Hahaha, you are surprisingly timid, Cadne."
"It's because my legs ended up like this once due to being too careless. It makes one nervous."
The morning after reaching the northern plains of the Margraviate of Dale and establishing a camp. Cadne, moving while riding a palanquin carried by attendants, exchanged these words with Kaia, who walked beside him.
"But it was certainly surprising. To think they managed to cut in this deep."
Just a moment ago, news had raced through the camp that a small force of about forty infantry and sixty cavalry had launched a charge.
Fortunately, the sentry soldiers noticed and quickly sounded the alarm, but because it was a surprise attack in the early morning and the enemy's spirit was extraordinary, the damage was greater than expected.
The forty infantry who led the way first plunged into the camp and carved out a breach, and then the cavalry unit charged in with a momentum that seemed to trample the allied infantry along with them. Trampling over the soldiers who had not yet fully established an interception posture, they had pressed forward to the main headquarters in the center of the camp.
The enemy cavalry were pierced by spears from the flank, or shot through by arrows from the front, or fell from their horses as the mounts were slashed by swords, being cut down one after another. Even so, they did not stop their charge, and the last few riders, including the enemy general, pressed close enough to be seen from Cadne's tent.
For Cadne, who had a bit of trauma regarding surprise attacks, it was quite a chilling wake-up call.
Cadne and Kaia, having arrived at the scene where the scars of the charge remained, faced the captured enemy general.
"...Margrave Evelina Dale. Quite the heroine. I express my respect, even though you are the enemy."
"I came so close. It is a pity I could not take your head, Kaia Virgoa."
The female knight—Margrave Evelina Dale—who had arrows protruding from her shoulder and leg, answered with a smile, without even groaning from the pain of the arrow wounds.
"Is the one next to you the advisor called Cadne? Grand Duke Arqvist was quite concerned about you."
"I am Cadne Lancel First. Call me by my full surname... I see, Noein Arqvist was concerned about me as well. Does he still remember me? That is the best news of all."
When Cadne wore a smile mixed with hatred, Evelina, seeing this, spat out, "What a disgusting mutual affection."
Kaia placed a hand on the sword at her waist and spoke.
"...Margrave Dale. I had heard of your name and prowess. To be honest, I thought it a waste to kill a warrior of your caliber. I would have preferred if you had surrendered to my army..."
"Nonsense. We are proud knights. The Margraviate of Dale is a nation of knights. We would never succumb to the threats of an invader."
Saying so, Evelina puffed out her chest and laughed defiantly.
"And so? What will the king of barbarians who captured an enemy nation's female knight do? Will you violate your trophy?"
"Hardly. I am aware that my temperament is somewhat rough, but I am not a scoundrel. I express respect to a courageous enemy general... I myself shall cut off your head."
As she spoke, Kaia drew her sword.
"Hmph, I see. You are far more like a warrior than that Grand Duke Arqvist, who was once an ally."
Evelina, remaining in her bound, seated posture, lowered her own head.
"Margrave Evelina Dale. Any last words?"
"...Carve the manner of the battle fought by me and my subordinates into a part of history."
"Very well. I shall grant that wish, swearing upon the name and honor of Kaia Virgoa."
After exchanging only those words, Kaia poised her sword—and swung it straight down onto Evelina's neck.
The head rolled, and blood spurted from the cut of the neck. The body, having lost its head, collapsed sideways.
"Bury the body with honor. Along with this one's subordinates."
Kaia ordered the surrounding soldiers, and while wiping her sword with a cloth offered by a guard, she turned toward Cadne.
"Now, Cadne. How do you view this charge of theirs?"
"...It may be in accordance with so-called knightly pride, but from a tactical perspective, they simply deployed a small force and consumed it wastefully. I do not know about the King of Revelant, but I cannot believe Noein Arqvist would have permitted such a charge. It was likely Margrave Dale's independent action."
Cadne hated Noein, but at the same time, he recognized that he was a sharp-witted and powerful enemy. He stated his view based on that thought.
"Likely. I met Gabriel Revelant back when we were both still princes, and he should be a man who prioritizes practical benefit. Setting aside the infantry, I cannot imagine him letting sixty cavalry die in vain. For the remaining two nations, losing the Margraviate of Dale's army in this manner should not have been the plan."
"...In that case, the enemy will likely retreat to the border of the Revelant Kingdom."
When Cadne muttered this, Kaia raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Why do you think so?"
"If I recall, the border between the Margraviate of Dale and the Revelant Kingdom was a gorge. Such terrain is easier to fight in for the defender because they only need to protect the front, rather than setting up defensive positions on a plain. Now that there is no longer any obligation to protect the territory of the Margraviate of Dale, Noein Arqvist would retreat to a point advantageous to themselves... because he should love that kind of battle."
During a past expedition, Cadne had been defeated by Noein because the forest invasion route became the battlefield, making it impossible to utilize the advantage of numbers.
In the previous great war between the Lordberg Kingdom and the Betumia Republic, he had heard that Noein fought as one of the Kingdom's generals and used similar tactics to compensate for a numerical disadvantage.
If he were Noein Arqvist, that is what he would do. Cadne was confident in his analysis.
"Indeed, that is logical. It is better to assume the enemy will move that way... I do not intend to lack vigilance, but first, we shall take a short break after conquering the Margraviate of Dale. That will take a bit of time."
Along with the muttering Kaia, Cadne gazed toward the south.
Beyond these plains, Noein Arqvist was likely leading his army in retreat toward the border at this very moment.