The Clash on the Georg Plain - 2
In a fantasy movie I once watched, there was a scene of war where multiple races fought with the fate of the world at stake. It was an incredible sight. Even now, rewatching it would still be breathtaking. Though I’ll never see it again.
Compared to that, what I’m seeing now doesn’t seem quite so grand. There aren’t millions of soldiers like in the film, and the armies facing each other across the vast plain lack that same splendor. But to someone who can sense magic power, it’s clear this is far from ordinary.
Even the common soldiers have reinforced their bodies with magic power. Every movement they make is like the protagonists from those superhero movies I saw in the modern world. And now they’re gathered together as an army.
Alone, I ride my horse toward them across the plain. From Baron Aslan’s camp, another rider emerges to meet me. I’ve never seen his face, but it matches the portraits I’ve studied. This must be Baron Aslan himself.
We stop our horses once we’re close enough to see each other clearly.
“A pleasure to meet you, Baron Aslan.”
“Grrk!”
The baron’s jaw clenched so hard I thought his teeth might crack. My casual greeting had clearly struck a nerve.
“How dare you act so insolent, Count.”
“Haha. Use proper honorifics, Baron. We are both noble aristocrats of the Brahms Kingdom, are we not?”
Honestly, the way he’s glaring at me, he looks ready to kill me with his eyes alone. In fact, dust and pebbles around him are trembling as his magic power quietly radiates outward.
“Did you really think such an absurd pretext would work?”
“Hmm. But it did happen. Over a hundred years ago, from what I’ve heard.”
I do carry Georg blood, after all. The problem is that it’s a distant branch, and the actual lineage is quite thin.
Seeing the baron stare at me in disbelief, I turn my gaze across the plain.
“Lovely weather for a war, wouldn’t you say?”
“The tears you shed will fall like rain across this plain.”
Oho. How poetic.
“Is there really any need to spill unnecessary blood? You could simply hand over the basin quietly.”
“Nonsense! If I am defeated, I will not let this go lightly!”
“Hahaha. Very well.”
“I’ll show a brat like you what real war looks like.”
He ignores my words and says only what he wants before turning his horse away. I can only offer a bitter smile. Has the baron himself ever even fought in a war?
Well, fine.
“Let’s go.”
—Bwooooooooooo!
The war begins.
* * *
There are two main reasons nobles participate in battle. One is to intervene if their knights and soldiers are losing. They don’t join every war, but in territorial conflicts like this, they usually do.
Chloe dismounts in her armor and raises her spear high.
“For Dolgeooooooork!”
—Bwooooooooooo!
The horn blares. At the same moment, the knight order charges as one. Their charge is faster than their horses. Blue magic power erupts from their bodies and merges into a single force. Like a massive blue projectile, the charging knights move as if they are one living creature. Their magic powers connect and unite.
The sound shakes heaven and earth. Even from here, the vibrations travel through the ground. It is a devastating strike that could pierce even a noble’s defenses if they let their guard down. If aimed at a castle gate, it could bring down the walls themselves. This is why knights have never disappeared from the battlefield.
Watching them, I open my eyes. The second reason is the lord’s support.
—Fwoooooooosh!
A massive sun rises in the sky above my forces. The blessing of the sun is with them. That knight had said as much, and he wasn’t wrong.
—Kuuuung!
“As long as that sun shines upon us, defeat is impossible!”
“Chaaaaarge!”
“For Dolgeooooooork!”
Blue light gathers at the tip of the formation. Then it slowly begins to turn red. Faster, hotter—the knights’ charge, dyed in sunlight. Their assault, transformed into a colossal beam of light, is no less powerful than my own full-strength strike. In fact, it surpasses it.
There’s a scene that sometimes appears in robot anime—when something falls from space toward Earth. That’s what this looks like. The leading edge, glowing crimson, shoots forward like the mythical arrow that once aimed at the sun. The enemy is no different.
“Knights of Aslan, protected by the great sword!”
—Shiiing!
Their charge is narrower and sharper than ours. The flag bearing the Aslan family crest flutters, marked with a blue sword. Their spears begin to glow blue, just like that sword.
“We will prove here and now why we are the sword of Brahms!”
—Kuuung!
A tremendous sound echoes. They charge as well, launching forward like a single blade.
“Chaaaaarge!”
At the center of the enemy formation, my eyes meet Baron Aslan’s. Magic power radiates from his entire body, coalescing in the air into a blue sword.
“Chargeeeeee!”
Arrow and spear tip collide. The clash of the vanguards. For an instant, the plain falls silent. Then the shockwave begins to sweep across the land.
—Kiiiiing!
—BOOOOOOM!
A storm of magic power rages across the plain. The massive impact at its center reaches even where I stand, far from the fighting.
“Infantry units!”
“Charge!”
At Isabel’s command, the waiting infantry begins to move. On this vast plain where surprise attacks are impossible, the battle unfolds in the simplest way possible: the knights’ charge, followed by the infantry clash.
I tear my eyes away from the advancing infantry and look toward where the knight orders collided. From the mushroom cloud of dust rising in the aftermath, two massive figures burst through.
“No effective damage sustained.”
“Is that so?”
I nod at the report from the retainer beside me. Even with my own eyes, it doesn’t look like either side has taken significant losses.
“Knight battles always take longer than they appear.”
“I see.”
The fight between knights enhanced by their lord’s magic power depends on who tires first and whether the leading knights can hold their ground. Among them, I spot a knight smaller in build than the others.
“Sir Tristan is strong. Above all, his technique for dispersing magic power is unlike anything I’ve seen.”
“I wasn’t worried. Don’t be. I’m focusing properly.”
“My apologies.”
I understand what the staff officer is concerned about. It’s well known that Chloe frequently receives my grace. He’s worried I might make a mistake maintaining the sun while distracted by her.
Nobles don’t only enhance their knights. The soldiers moving like super soldiers are also receiving reinforcement.
“What do you think?”
“Basic physical enhancement is present, of course, but their weapons seem to shine sharper than the others.”
“As expected. They call it the Sword of Aslan for a reason.”
I adjust the ratio of enhancement. This is where the true battle between nobles takes place—not just in commanding troops, but in fine-tuning the magic power ratio given to each soldier. It doesn’t end with simple reinforcement. Coordination with the knight orders is essential. Enhancing recklessly only hinders them and leads to self-destruction.
Maintaining that speed and power while charging already requires immense training. Suddenly altering their physical capabilities, changing how much impact they can withstand, and recalculating the force they deliver to the enemy—all while in motion—demands extraordinary focus.
“Golden Star flag.”
“Yes!”
A soldier immediately raises the flag bearing the golden star. It was prepared for situations like this. Seeing it signals that the enhancement ratio is changing. They don’t actually know what the golden star represents—there isn’t even a real golden star drawn on it. I simply called this formation the golden star, and they accepted it as such.
After the flag is raised, our knights’ movements across the plain grow noticeably sharper. More precise, more solid. The enhancement ratio shifts, and the knights who receive it launch another charge.
—BOOOOOOM!
A massive shockwave sweeps across the plain. These knight battles require far more concentration and judgment than they appear to. They cross the plain at incredible speed, seeking each other’s weaknesses. Like fighter jets in a dogfight, they circle for an opening, constantly moving to avoid exposing their flanks, and must deflect incoming strikes when they finally collide head-on.
They cannot split their forces. If one side had overwhelming numbers it might be different, but when the forces are evenly matched, dividing them only reduces the enhancement ratio each unit receives and lowers their overall output. Forming units capable of handling the enemy is itself a challenge. If a unit seems insufficient, it’s better to keep them together as one.
If a noble makes a mistake in enhancement, if the leading knight steers in the wrong direction, or if they fail to properly withstand the enemy’s impact—the knight order will crash straight into the enemy infantry, and the enemy formation will collapse.
That’s why we must constantly watch the enemy while adjusting the enhancement ratios given to both our knights and infantry.
It’s almost like a game.
“My lord!”
A soldier comes running from the rear. Breathing heavily, he pulls a letter from his coat and hands it over. I accept it and unfold it.
“They’ve moved, sir!”
“As expected.”
I smile at the soldier’s words and the brief message written in the letter.
“Those Purple bastards. I knew they’d take the bait.”