Plunder from the Sword Duke and the Frost Demons' Onslaught
In the war between the Frostwind Colonial Empire and the Holy Empire, the Valtenstein Detachment claimed the lion's share of the spoils. They had relentlessly plundered the Sanctus Cathedral in the merchant city using their priority looting rights, and they'd bound the Kreuz family knights who surrendered alongside the Sword Duke's heir.
Kreuz knight swords: 600 blades.
Kreuz cavalry lances: 300 shafts.
Emergency daggers: 150 pieces.
Kreuz full plate armor, chainmail, leather armor: 700 sets.
Holy Empire warhorses: 700 head.
It was a staggering haul. Truly overwhelming numbers, with minimal damage and excellent condition. The reinforcement cavalry had knelt helplessly, stripped of everything but their underwear in utter humiliation. The demoralized Kreuz subordinates had no choice but to suffer this disgraceful fate.
"What do you plan to do with them, sir?"
"I'll allocate some weapons to outfit the Valtenstein Detachment... but most will be sold off to the war bank."
"I've heard all the Kreuz family's armaments are masterworks from the forge city. Blades that channel mana superbly while boasting unyielding sharpness—every knight in the Holy Empire envied the Sword Duke's order."
"Congratulations. Your wish came true."
Take what you want. I distributed Kreuz weapons to the detachment's knights. Not just the arms—the full plate armor enchanted with defensive and support spells got the same treatment.
Thus armed with top-tier spoils, the Valtenstein Detachment ascended to elite status among the Colonial Empire's many units, boasting superior equipment across the board.
"From today, I'll cherish you sloppy beauties."
"Hah! Behold the sleek, straight-line beauty of these razor edges!"
"Must be the forge city's handiwork? This armor reeks of fancy perfume!"
To knights, weapons were lovers sworn for a lifetime. Which meant they'd be discarded the moment something better came along. Loyalty? Attachment? A single hesitation on the battlefield decided life or death. And most wars hinged on troop morale and weapon performance.
The Valtenstein Detachment—composed of battle-hardened veterans who supported the Yellow Path 12 Palaces—understood this well. So Rozalin and every knight swapped out without a second thought.
"Lord Valtenstein. Lady Lucien. The young lady summons you."
We were deep in weapon inspections when a knight serving the Edelgard family delivered the message. Leonora's call.
Rozalin and I headed to her office, where a stunning silver-haired beauty greeted us warmly.
"Facing your fellow Holy Empire natives from the Kreuz family must have brought hesitation and hardship... As a Colonial Empire vassal and War Council judge, allow me to thank you once more. You embody the finest example from the frozen lands."
Leonora flashed a fresh smile. Rozalin's cheeks flushed faintly.
Hmm. Surely not her type? I recalled Rozalin, drunk off her ass, toying with the cathedral nuns.
Romance fantasy tales always featured female characters who adored the heroine. In the original work, I'll Protect Your Empire, plenty idolized Zigrinde. But with the plot derailed, Rozalin never became her guard knight—instead falling under Leonora's command. The "admirer of the Steel Lorelei" vanished, replaced by the "devotee of the Ice Executioner."
"To honor your efforts, I've prepared a luxurious frozen treat from the frontier. Mint chocolate, crafted with care by the Imperial Capital's famed patissiers!"
"......"
The chefs set the dessert trolley trays on the office table. Slowly lifting the cloches revealed vivid emerald-green ice cream.
Silver-rimmed plates frosted over. Each held mana-chilled mint chocolate ice cream, garnished with chocolate chips and dark syrup, topped with the Edelgard crest flag.
What, did they whip up toothpaste with extra love? It looked like a buffet's finest mashed into dog chow on one plate.
"...Urk."
A retch escaped Rozalin's full lips. Her face, stoic even in life-or-death battles, paled like midwinter ice.
"Why mint choco... No, you must really love mint choco."
"It's a dessert dear to my heart, full of memories. On the frozen front where my father—the previous family head—perished for the empire... he'd buy me mint chocolate whenever this young girl threw childish tantrums. I loved the scoops he got me more than anything. Even now, that tender nostalgia lingers with every spoonful."
"......"
"My apologies for the slip. This is meant to celebrate your valor."
A textbook low-empathy Type T might've blurted, "Buying your kid mint chocolate every time? Was the old head right in the head?" But I couldn't ruin a beauty's sad tale. Trembling, I lifted a teaspoon and glanced at the paragon knight.
Rozalin was already shoveling the damned toothpaste dessert like a glutton.
"Milady! Urgent dispatch from Nilfheim!"
As I steeled for the puke, the door flew open. Ericsen, the Edelgard family elder, stormed in, his wrinkled face twisted in fury, voice booming.
"The barbarians beyond the wall lead the frostwraith horde in a raid...! And submammals from the ice sea have surfaced at the frontlines! You must return to Nilfheim at once!!"
The Colonial Empire's northernmost frozen wall, built to halt southern incursions by barbaric humanoids and monsters born of the cold. The Edelgard family, rulers of the tundra, bore the sacred duty to shield the empire and its people from these colossal evils.
Barbarians. Frostwraiths. Ice sea submammals. All dire threats to the frozen lands.
Leonora rose, her lovely face etched with fury and hatred. She ordered every Edelgard knight in the Imperial Capital to return home.
Nilfheim, heart of the Edelgard domain, and the tundra cities rose like spires around the wall—a defiant stand to never yield it to savages or beasts.
Razor blizzards. Vast plains of eternal solitude. Cliffs and valleys etched by time's relentless flow.
Tundra knights in black wolf-fur cloaks scanned the endless snowfields. The cruel barbarians and beasts always left malice in their wake, demanding eternal vigilance.
"Barbarian forces sighted!"
"Ready the cannons! Fire the moment they're in range!"
"Damn them...! Did they sniff out Lady Leonora's absence?!"
Alarm bells shattered the wall's silence. Reserves mobilized instantly to brace for invasion.
The brutal gale halted. Then the barbarians emerged.
Bodies covered in red tattoos. Bulging muscles bared to the freeze. Savage weapons and their razor-fanged, clawed beasts roaring as they advanced.
"Await orders!"
"Filthy savages...! Turn 'em into Swiss cheese!"
"Primitives might scale the wall! Knights, prepare for melee!"
As all cannons loaded—
BOOOOM!!!
The ground quaked with thunder. Frozen plains and sheer cliffs shattered as a colossal beast swam into view.
No doubt about it. The deep-sea submammal, a massive predator.
KRA-KA-KA-KA-KA──!!!
It evoked mythic world-ending sea serpents, with its form and sheer size. Thus, Nilfheim's knights dubbed these tundra terrors Jörmungandr.