Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: Even a Treacherous Subject Has His Uses
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Zelkard Baron stared at Beonald, startled by the words he had muttered under his breath. Beonald realized something was wrong and corrected himself.
"Ah, I misspoke. I should have said, 'This will be an easy victory.'"
"...What do you mean all of a sudden?"
"You'll see."
And then, an unbelievable scene unfolded before their eyes.
The mercenaries from the Loyen Viscountcy, who had been deployed on both flanks, suddenly betrayed their own side and began ravaging the rear of the Loyen Viscountcy's infantry.
As you know, they were Delmain Viscountcy's soldiers disguised as mercenaries. Those who had originally joined hands with the Loyen Viscountcy had now turned their backs on them.
'Hmm, as I thought, the political instincts of nobles are similar, whether 500 years ago or now...'
"Hah... Could this be your doing, Lord Beonald?"
"Yes, well~ I merely... made a proposal to Viscount Delmain."
"What kind of proposal did you make? It wasn't an unreasonable demand, was it?"
"Not at all. It was a perfectly reasonable proposal within common sense. I guarantee it. Anyway, this makes victory easy, so let's march diligently towards triumph."
Schlick!
Beonald cut down the knight before him, flicked the blood off his sword, and continued his advance.
The soldiers and knights of the Zelkard Barony, bewildered by the mercenaries' sudden betrayal, nonetheless took heart in the fact that they were now winning. Conversely, the soldiers and knights of the Loyen Viscountcy, shocked by the betrayal, saw their front lines begin to crumble moment by moment. Even the knights who had been fighting fiercely were stunned and didn't know what to do.
"W-what is happening?"
"No! Why is Sir Alrun attacking us all of a sudden?"
"Damn it! What the hell!"
With the infantry maintaining the front line being attacked from both front and rear, Beonald immediately moved to the back to help subdue the knights.
The Loyen Viscountcy knights, isolated in the rear, flocked around Sir Luton, their highest-ranking member, asking for instructions. But even he could think of no way to salvage a war that was already lost.
"...Sir Luton! What should we do?"
"Damn it! That bastard Viscount Delmain betrayed us! How could he, being of the same faction!"
"Sir Luton!"
"Sir Luton! The enemy is swarming in."
"Sir Luton! The enemy knights are forming an encirclement. If we want to break out, we must go now."
"What should we do?"
"...We surrender."
Sir Luton, closing his eyes tightly, realized there was no longer any hope of victory in this small war and decided to give up.
Though it would tarnish his honor as a knight and leave a stain, it wasn't worth risking his life in a fight with no chance of winning.
Of course, not every knight felt the same way.
"Hoo... Hoo......"
"Damn it! Those bastards of the Delmain Viscountcy actually betrayed us! No, was this the violet-haired young master's plan from the start? Tch, this damn war... We lost. Just what... what kind of monster is your young master?"
What kind of magic did he use to deceive everyone so perfectly and turn Viscount Delmain to his side?
That was something only Beonald knew.
In the end, from the very beginning, this war was nothing more than a plaything moving within Beonald's grasp. The outcome had been decided from the start... The foolish master, unaware of this, had essentially been tricked in a rigged gamble.
"Lord Beonald is not a monster."
"From my perspective, he is absolutely a monster! Hoo~ Well, your skills have improved a lot, haven't they? Anyway... you're the daughter of a knightly family, so you know I'm not in a position to surrender, right?"
"...Yes."
Even though he was surrendering to avoid a meaningless death, he was already a man who had once been captured as a prisoner of war, paid a large ransom, and returned in disgrace.
He was fighting Heidi now to reclaim that honor. If he surrendered here again, the disgrace that had already been branded on him would spread not only to himself but also to his children and his house.
Therefore, Sir Bent's fate was to die here, whether he defeated Heidi or not.
Dying in battle for his lord was the only way to avoid tarnishing his family's honor and passing on disgrace to his family and children.
"Uwooooooo!"
"Let's go! Alterio!"
Clang!
Heidi's spear and Sir Bent's spear clashed again, but perhaps due to the difference in aura pressure and the strength of the spears themselves, Sir Bent's finally broke.
Gritting his teeth, Sir Bent threw away the broken spear shaft and drew his sword. Realizing this wouldn't work, he abandoned his horse, leaped at Heidi, and pulled her down from Alterio.
"I'm going to die anyway... so even if it's a bit cowardly, don't say anything!"
"Ghk!"
Thud! Crash!
In an undignified posture, he mounted Heidi, punched her in the face, and tried to channel aura into his sword to stab through the gaps in her armor. The blade seemed to enter the armor gap, but the auras canceled each other out, and with a metallic sound, it could go no further.
"Damn it... Not just the weapon, but even the armor is... Ghk!"
Taking advantage of Sir Bent's momentary confusion, Heidi punched his jaw upward, sending him tumbling backward, and sprang to her feet.
At this moment, she felt incredibly fortunate for her tall stature and physical condition.
She immediately swung her spear, thrusting at Sir Bent.
"I'm returning the favor!"
"Kuh! Return? This is a battlefield! Whether you're a knight or whatever, you have to survive first! If anything, you should be grateful? Hah!"
Clang!
Knocking away the thrusting spear, the two engaged in a fierce battle on the ground.
Heidi was beyond surprise, moving into admiration at Sir Bent's tenacity.
Even though he knew he was already defeated, even though he knew death awaited him at the end, he could still fight so stubbornly. It seemed truly remarkable.
But even that eventually reached its limit.
"Ghk!"
"...Huh?"
However, the decisive blow wasn't some grand Imperial Knight Order technique, but a simple, deceptive thrust from Heidi.
The reason he fell for such a move was that the blue aura surrounding Sir Bent's body had become extremely faint, and he no longer had the stamina or energy to fight.
In contrast, the golden aura surrounding Heidi's body still shone brilliantly.
In the end, the difference in mana breathing techniques decided the victory.
"Damn it... If only I were ten years younger... Cough! Cough!"
"...Your martial prowess was truly incredible."
"Don't patronize me... Cough! Hah... Anyway... with this... I have fulfilled my honor and duty......"
Thump.
Unable to finish his words, Sir Bent breathed his last.
Heidi had finally defeated a seasoned mid-rank knight, but she felt an unpleasantness, as if she had won not by skill but by default.
Nevertheless, victory was victory, and it was also a fact that she had defeated Sir Bent, a renowned mid-rank knight of the Loyen Viscountcy.
"...You've worked hard. Alterio!"
Neigh!
Wondering what he was doing, she saw Alterio, who had been munching on Sir Bent's horse, quickly trot over at her call. Heidi mounted him, also loaded Sir Bent's body, and headed for the main camp.
She couldn't just leave the body of a prestigious knight lying there, it was undeniably her own achievement, and she knew that announcing his death would bring this war to a quicker end.
Meanwhile, Viscount Loyen, witnessing the unfolding situation, was pale-faced and dumbfounded.
Everything had collapsed, starting with the betrayal of Viscount Delmain's knights and soldiers. His territory's elite soldiers were all being slaughtered, while the knights and cavalry who had charged into the enemy's rear were beginning to surrender, making the defeat in the war all but certain.
"Ah, no. If this goes on... if this goes on, our family will......"
"Father! What on earth is happening? Why are we losing? Why?"
"Th-that! It's all because Viscount Delmain betrayed us... Why on earth? Why did he betray us? No, no, anyway! Anyway, this is not the time. We must flee from here first......"
Sweating cold sweat, he thought he couldn't let his family and everything else be taken like this. He tried to lead his remaining soldiers and knights out of the tent to escape, but behind them, Sir Maldrov and the Callermain Earldom's soldiers were already standing guard.
They had likely been deployed in preparation for such a situation at the point where the war's outcome was decided.
"Where are you going, Viscount Loyen? The war is not over yet. Fleeing would mean admitting defeat, and then you must pay the price of the loser."
"W-wait, Sir Maldrov! This isn't right! This war was a fraud from the beginning! It's invalid! Viscount Delmain betrayed us on his own......!"
"Why would Viscount Delmain be involved in this war? It's strictly a war between families. Don't tell me? Viscount Loyen, within your army......"
Swept up by emotion, he had blurted out something that should have remained an absolute secret. He flinched momentarily and scrutinized Sir Maldrov's gaze.
This war between families was formally being held under the mediation of Count Callermain. If it became known that there had been foul play within it, it would greatly damage their honor as well.
Not only that, but it would also damage the honor of the Delmain Viscountcy, potentially leading to immediate war with them next. He quickly denied it.
"Gasp! N-no, that's not it. No. I misspoke. Anyway, th-the mercenaries suddenly betrayed us, so......"
"That is also formally part of the war. Do you think the side that agreed to a war of 800 against 1,200 would have proposed it without any thought?"
"Anyway, this is! This is invalid! Invalid! I, I am going back. So please, open the way!"
"I cannot, Viscount Loyen. Then I will consider you defeated and restrain your person."
"Don't talk nonsense, make way! Sir Maldrov!"
As they tried to subdue Viscount Loyen and his subordinates, this time Lady Meira stepped forward and threatened Sir Maldrov to clear the way.
Although she was from the Loyen Viscountcy, she was also the mistress of the Callermain family. She thought they would obey if she gave the order, but reality was different.
"I cannot. This matter formally concerns the honor and authority of our Callermain family. Therefore, I absolutely cannot step aside. If you try to force your way out, even you, my lady, will have to face our swords."
"Sir Maldrov!"
"Or, promptly admit defeat and pay the price. Viscount, Lady Meira, even in this ugly moment as you try to irresponsibly flee, soldiers and citizens are dying meaninglessly. If you have any responsibility and pride as nobles, as lords, then hurry!"
"Grrr... Ugh! Fine. I... have lost."
In the end, Viscount Loyen closed his eyes tightly and made a declaration of defeat that was essentially forced upon him.
Upon clearly hearing the declaration of defeat, Sir Maldrov hurriedly deployed soldiers to stop the war. He then bound everyone from the Loyen family present here, including Lady Meira, with ropes.
Thus, the war that began at noon ended around the time the evening glow was slowly setting. In terms of time, only a few hours had passed.
At this scale, it was almost embarrassing to call it a war—more like a minor conflict. But still, a victory is a victory. With the surrender of the Loyen Viscountcy, the victorious cheers of the Zelkard Barony's soldiers and knights echoed across the plains and the castle.