The Brans Army's Invasion (3)
"What the hell?!"
"It's an ambush! The enemy's ambushing us!"
Under the sudden rain of arrows, the Brans Army's formation began to unravel in spectacular fashion.
I assessed the situation at once.
Soldiers I had never seen before were pressing in from both flanks, tightening the noose around the Brans forces.
...What is this?
Even at a glance, their numbers looked roughly equal to the Brans Army's eight thousand. A force of that scale had simply appeared out of nowhere and launched a surprise assault.
"Th-this is...!"
Kane, still completely unable to grasp what was happening, was staring around in open-mouthed confusion when a man came racing toward us at full speed.
His attire matched the soldiers attacking the Brans Army, not the Brans forces themselves. He stopped directly in front of Kane and put a question to him.
"Are you Sir Kane of the Lunarien Army?"
"I—I am, yes."
"Just as I was told."
The man removed his helmet.
"I am Kalle, vice-captain of the Raven Mercenary Group."
The Raven Mercenary Group?
A name that already existed in my memory had just come out of his mouth.
The Raven Mercenary Group. A mercenary company built around a specialized unit—the Raven Archers. Hiring them required clearing a specific event, meeting the conditions, and then handing over a considerable sum of money. Their absolute numbers were never that high relative to the cost, but their attack and defense far outstripped ordinary archers, so once you had them on the payroll they proved useful in all sorts of ways.
This game had any number of mercenary companies besides the Raven Mercenary Group and their special Raven Archers—but that wasn't the issue. The problem was the timing. They were not a group that should have been able to appear right now.
If my memory is right, these people shouldn't be able to show up yet.
The first condition for hiring the Raven Mercenary Group was capturing a total of three castles. We hadn't even managed that first step—and yet here they were, appearing out of nowhere to fight on our side.
Kane asked, still sounding as if he couldn't believe it.
"How on earth did you recognize me?"
"I'll explain later. You're under attack by the Brans Army right now, aren't you?"
"We are."
"Then we'll help."
With that, the man left our side.
The moment he was gone, I raised my voice as high as it would go.
"All forces—charge!"
Waaaaaaaaah!!!!!!
Bolstered by the sudden arrival of reinforcements, our troops—who had been staring down what looked like an overwhelming army of eight thousand—surged forward with newfound courage. Already thrown into disarray by the ambush, the Brans soldiers began dropping like flies.
Looking at the whole picture, our total numbers still fell a little short of eight thousand—but if the force that had just joined us was the Raven Mercenary Group, this was a fight we could win.
And just now, that man had looked at Kane and said something loaded with meaning: Just as I was told.
Little by little, I began to understand why I had been told to send Kane as the vanguard of the interception force.
As if on cue, Kane slowly turned his head toward me. Then, in a trembling voice that made it clear he still couldn't believe any of this, he spoke.
"Swen... don't tell me you foresaw that this would happen?"
"..."
I closed my eyes slowly. Then I put on the best performance I could of a man who had expected exactly this outcome.
"I'm just glad they arrived in time."
Even as the words left my mouth, I had to suppress an inward snort at how perfectly calculated they sounded. Anyone watching would take me for a brilliant strategist who had predicted every last detail.
"...This is impossible... How can something like this even happen? Swen, just what are you...!"
Kane was no doubt reeling in shock right about now. And into that reeling mind of his, a single sentence would be writing itself: When Swen speaks, listen first and ask questions later.
Even if that thought hadn't taken root yet, I was confident I could keep showing him—keep proving it—as many times as it took.
My predictions were one hundred percent accurate. No exceptions. No failures.
Which meant—
We would win this war as well.
If it had been a war we couldn't win, the conclusion would have been run.
With a confident expression, I shouted toward the soldiers once more.
"Victory is ours! Don't be afraid—fight with everything you have! We will hold Zeiland with our own hands!"
"Stay calm! Stay calm! Hold the formation! Prioritize wiping out those archers!"
The Brans Army had taken a sudden ambush from archers on both flanks—but Kalintz, at the head of the vanguard, somehow managed to restore order to the chaos and reorganize the shattered ranks.
Damn it all!
Looking around, he realized there were far more archers loosing arrows than he had expected. He couldn't be certain, but the sheer volume of fire was enough to plant a cold dread in him—the fear that more than eight thousand soldiers might be closing in around his army.
"Argh!"
"General! Take cover!"
"What are you—!"
One of the adjutants beside Kalintz let out a final scream as an arrow punched clean through his skull, killing him on the spot. Startled, Kalintz wheeled his horse and fell back—but only for a moment.
I can't run without even taking Zeiland Castle...!
This expedition was the Brans Army's campaign to pacify the central continent. They had already cleaned up the Walnut Army—the same force that had once made a fool of them. There was no way they could struggle against the Lunarien Army, whose strength wasn't even a third of Walnut's.
Kalintz had never managed to rack up proper achievements compared to his eldest brother, and that impatience was starting to rise in him—uncharacteristic of his usually cold temperament. Even so, he didn't let rage drive him into a reckless charge. He kept his head working fast.
Coldly assessed, if they could just deal with these archers, the interception force would be easy enough to crush.
Kalintz raised his voice again and bellowed at his men.
"Don't panic! Reform the ranks, split into three directions, and prioritize clearing out the archers on the flanks! We have the numerical advantage! Don't be afraid—defeat them in detail!"
There was no running from this.
At Kalintz's single command, the soldiers divided their formation and charged toward the archers on either side. The mass of eight thousand split into three groups, each engaging the archers on the flanks and the Lunarien Army to the front.
They had taken some losses, but if things continued this way, victory still looked well within reach.
Where the hell did these people come from?
The archers weren't wearing the Lunarien Army's insignia on their armor. That meant they were an outside force... a mercenary company? But how could a minor army like Lunarien's possibly afford a mercenary force of this size?
And after a few exchanges, he could tell. These people were no ordinary fighters. He hated to admit it, but if the infantry he had brought numbered even a little less than eight thousand, it would likely have been his side getting wiped out.
Damn it!
Still—as long as they could take them down, that was enough. If they conquered Zeiland Castle, a few thousand casualties would be forgiven.
He was fighting with that thought when—
"K-Kalintz, sir! Behind us! From the rear...!!"
"What is it?!"
A soldier came sprinting toward Kalintz in a panic.
"From behind... the enemy is ambushing us...!!"
"What...?!"
Kalintz's face twisted in disbelief. An ambush from both flanks hadn't been enough—now they were attacking from the rear as well?
If enemy forces were driving in from behind on top of everything else, it would be a fatal blow to troops already divided so they could defeat the enemy in detail from each direction.
Only after being hit did he understand. The staggered ambushes had been for exactly this purpose.
Realizing he had been dancing in the palm of someone's hand, Kalintz's expression crumpled.
Damn it...! Where did this go wrong?
Intelligence had clearly reported only about three thousand soldiers. Had they been hiding a force of this size all along, deliberately waiting for an invasion?
Looking back, it had seemed strange that they had made no combat preparations despite the Brans Army being so close. Even with the Walnut Army and other nations being swallowed one by one—news that must have reached Lunarien's own ears—they had spent their time in leisure, showing no sign of conscription or anything like it.
But if all of that had been a ploy to make the Brans Army, relying on its own intelligence, drop its guard... then everything made sense. The fact that their army was now in crisis was the greatest proof of all.
Lunarien Iniang... what a terrifying woman...!
"You must withdraw! At this rate we'll be annihilated. Please make a decision, Sir Kalintz!"
Another adjutant beside him shouted, practically pleading.
Kalintz hesitated for a moment... then resolved himself to retreat. First the flanks, then the rear. There was no guarantee another ambush wasn't still waiting.
"Retreat! All forces, retreat! Every adjutant—relay the order to withdraw at once!"
"Yes, sir!"
Kalintz turned his horse, grinding his teeth.
Lunarien...! I will repay this humiliation with my own hands...!
Near the walls of Zeiland Castle.
"Hyaaaaah!"
Tifa, gripping a massive axe, was holding the gate alongside her soldiers and literally butchering the enemy troops.
"Don't come at me in dribs and drabs—rush me all at once, you bastards!"
"Haaah!"
Beside her, the sovereign Lunarien herself stood at the front with a sword in hand, leading the charge and tearing through the enemy. Both generals possessed high Martial, so the fighting here looked nothing like the rear where Kane and Swen were issuing commands without entering the fray themselves.
The force that had launched this sudden assault on the castle was the Garamill Army, which controlled nearby Hoero Castle.
Garamill Letas, lord of the Garamill Army, watched the battle with a bitter expression. The fighting had settled into a stalemate. The Garamill Army had brought four thousand soldiers. The defenders of the castle—he couldn't be certain of the exact number—were fewer than his own. Of course, defending a castle was easier than assaulting one, so even throwing all four thousand at the gate, he had no confidence of breaking through the two monsters guarding it.
The only reason they had been able to attack in the first place was their secret pact with the Brans Army. The Garamill forces were merely probing, committing a few hundred soldiers at a time—testing the waters and nothing more.
"My lord, how long must we keep up this meaningless war of attrition?"
At the question from the strategist who had ridden out with him, Garamill nodded slowly.
"Word should reach us soon that the Brans Army is attacking the castle. We'll go in then."
They had raised their army under what was essentially blackmail and threats. There was no need to fight hard and die for nothing. Even if they waited until the Brans forces reached Zeiland Castle and joined the battle then, it wouldn't be too late.
But this sluggish fighting was dragging on longer than expected. According to intelligence, the Lunarien Army's total strength was only about three thousand. For things to be delayed this long, they must have somehow scraped together an interception force from that already small pool of soldiers—but even if they had, there was no way they could hold off eight thousand for this long. And their opponent wasn't some ragtag band; it was the Brans Army, the de facto hegemon of the central continent.
Has something gone wrong?
At that moment—
"My lord!"
A scout sent to check the forward situation came galloping toward them on horseback.
"What is it?"
"The Brans Army... the Brans Army is in full retreat!"
"What?"
The Brans Army had lost? Eight thousand men, beaten by a guerrilla force that couldn't even muster three thousand?
Judging by the considerable number of defenders right in front of him, the interception force couldn't have been three thousand—two thousand at most, maybe as few as one thousand. And they had still managed to stop eight thousand? On top of that, the female general said to be one of the Lunarien Army's strongest fighters was right here fighting on this front. If not her, the only general left was one old man.
There was more than one thing that didn't make sense—but right now, a decision was needed.
"My lord, what will you do?"
"Hmm..."
What was there to do? If the main force—the Brans Army—was already retreating, there was no reason for them to risk their lives fighting.
Garamill made up his mind at once.
"Pull the army back! We return to our territory!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Garamill Army quickly reformed its ranks and began withdrawing from the battlefield in unison.
Watching them go, Tifa approached Luna and asked,
"What's with those guys? Looks like they're running without even putting up a real fight. Want me to chase them?"
"...No. Leave it."
Luna lowered her weapon and took stock of the situation.
...Had they held?
Have we... defended Zeiland Castle?
Waaaaaaaaah!!!
The defenders' cheers, raised as they watched the fleeing troops, rang in Luna's ears.
The great invasion of Zeiland Castle by the Brans Army and the Garamill Army.
The victor was Lunarien Iniang... herself.