134 - The Battle of Anfang
The forces led by Baldos arrived in Anfang with the goal of capturing and killing Princess Ekaterina. They abandoned their original plan and launched a sudden assault on Anfang. The reason was the walls surrounding Anfang. Surrounded by high defensive walls, Anfang was no longer the size of the city Baldos knew. It had become so large that the army he brought could not completely encircle it. Upon realizing this, Baldos chose a surprise attack. He reasoned that if he could not encircle it, he should simply storm in without giving them any room to escape. This was by no means a gamble. The walls were far from complete. There were numerous gaps. He judged that if they entered through those gaps, they could suppress the city in a short amount of time. However, once he ordered the army to charge, another miscalculation became clear. There were defensive forces in Anfang.
"Push! Push them back! The enemy is few!"
The forces of Anfang deployed near the walls numbered around three hundred. In contrast, the army led by Baldos numbered two thousand. Baldos had brought that many men just to kill a single person, Princess Ekaterina. Rather than simply killing Princess Ekaterina, it was to strengthen his own power. This was the result of his plan to use this opportunity to increase the forces under his control. Baldos had no intention of being satisfied with being the Knight Commander of the Imperial Guard Knights in the new Laurel Kingdom. As a result, that ambition was helping Baldos. He intended to push through all at once using that overwhelming numerical advantage.
"Break through quickly! Hurry!"
Yet, they could not easily rout those three hundred. Although they had charged through the gaps in the walls, there were further walls deeper inside. And even further beyond those. The defenders utilized these intricate walls to attack skillfully. They were making full use of the geographical advantage.
"Enemy attack! New enemy reinforcements!"
Baldos was surprised by the shouts of his allies. The enemy did not consist of only three hundred.
"Their numbers!?"
"Approximately two hundred!"
Baldos felt a slight sense of relief at this answer. Even added together, they were five hundred. Still only a quarter of his force. Provided there were no other ambushes.
"...The enemy general is Myriad General Sieg!"
"W-what?"
Why was Sieg here? Baldos was shaken by the unbelievable report. That agitation spread to his own soldiers. Sieg was a symbolic existence of the Laurel Kingdom army. They were shocked that he was on the enemy side.
"...He is a traitor! Sieg is the mastermind behind the rebellion! You must cut him down!"
Sensing the agitation of the soldiers, Baldos hurriedly attempted to frame Sieg as the mastermind of the rebellion. The subjugation of the rebels who killed the former King—that was the purpose of this army. This sudden lie by Baldos worked. While the agitation did not vanish completely, the soldiers regained their will to fight. After all, their allies outnumbered the enemy four to one. They felt a sense of security.
"I should consider this an opportunity to eliminate the nuisances all at once."
Baldos, who had been momentarily shaken by Sieg's presence, reconsidered it as a perfect opportunity to slaughter the person who could become the center of the resistance. Princess Ekaterina of the royal family and Sieg, who could organize an army. If only these two were gone, there would be no one left to interfere with their plans. That was his thought.
"Hmm. Sieg is not the only target..."
He must not forget the original objective while distracted by Sieg. Baldos thought that this might be Sieg's strategy.
"Three hundred will suffice. Have them take a wide detour and storm the city without being noticed by the enemy army. We must not let the wicked woman who killed the Father King escape. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!"
Utilizing his numerical superiority, Baldos organized a separate detachment to slay Princess Ekaterina. It was a dire situation for the defenders. Just as Baldos suspected, Sieg appearing on the front lines was a strategy to make himself a target and draw the enemy away.
◇◇◇
The center of the walls surrounding the area. That was the original town of Anfang. A villa district where defensive power was practically non-existent. In front of the manor standing there, Princess Ekaterina watched the state of the battle occurring near the walls. She was too far away to know exactly what was happening, however.
"Princess Ekaterina. Everyone has headed north. We should escape soon as well."
Miria, leading a horse, urged Princess Ekaterina to flee.
"...Take Rainheart and escape."
"Of course. Therefore, Princess Ekaterina, please come with us."
"I will stay."
"Eh... why!?"
The enemy was undoubtedly targeting Princess Ekaterina. Miria could not understand the reason why she would not try to escape knowing that. They were to flee while Sieg drew the enemy away. Princess Ekaterina should have agreed to that plan.
"...Even if I flee, pursuers will come."
"If they pursue, we can just flee again, can't we?"
"To where? Wherever I flee will become a battlefield, you know?"
"That is..."
A force with the power to protect Princess Ekaterina from the Laurel Kingdom. If such a thing existed, there was only one. But Miria could not bring herself to say it.
"Rainheart's existence must not be known. If they find out, they will pursue us to the ends of the earth."
Rainheart was a boy who carried the royal blood. No matter who his father was, that was the case. They would never allow such an existence.
"...Hide somewhere."
"There is no guarantee that we will never be found. Rather than that, it is better for me to die here to put Neil at ease. Then the pursuers will stop."
Princess Ekaterina believed that if she died, King Neil would be satisfied. She did not know that the one trying to kill her was not King Neil. She did not know that King Neil already knew of Rainheart's existence.
"But..."
Miria wanted to persuade Princess Ekaterina, but she could not think of a way. If she accepted Princess Ekaterina's sacrifice, her plan seemed to be the best. Miria desperately thought if there was any other way. However, the situation would not wait for her to find an answer.
"Princess Ekaterina! Please flee! The enemy is approaching!"
The last remaining servant noticed the enemy's approach. Baldos's separate detachment. They had successfully stormed into the town. Sieg had also noticed, but it would take time for Sieg's forces, who were in a distant location, to arrive. Baldos was not one to easily allow that.
"Flee! Quickly!"
Princess Ekaterina ordered Miria to flee. There was no more room for hesitation. She had to let Rainheart escape, at the very least.
"You too, Princess Ekaterina!"
"I am fine, so flee! Protect Rainheart! This is an order!"
"Then I shall stay as well!"
She had always been by her side. Protecting Princess Ekaterina was her mission. Miria believed she had lived her life for that purpose.
"I beg of you. Rainheart is my everything. I can entrust him only to you."
"Princess Ekaterina..."
But when Princess Ekaterina made such a request, Miria could not refuse. Miria knew how deeply Princess Ekaterina cherished her son, Rainheart.
"I'll protect Mother!"
Unaware of the feelings of the two, Rainheart raised his voice. In his hand was a black-glinting sword.
"Ray... thank you. But Mother is fine. I will definitely catch up later."
An obvious lie.
"Promise, okay?"
However, the still-young Rainheart did not understand that. He had no reason to doubt his mother's words.
"Miria... I leave it to you."
"Princess Ekaterina... I..."
As Princess Ekaterina's Royal Guard Knight, protecting her was Miria's reason for living. Even if she understood Princess Ekaterina's feelings, even if she knew she had to protect Rainheart, leaving her side was painful.
"...Leave the Princess to me."
"Eh!? Wh-who are you!?"
A man in black clothing suddenly appeared. Surprised, Miria let out a cry of confusion.
"I was commanded by His Majesty to guard the Princess."
"Not a guard, but a monitor, were you not?"
Princess Ekaterina immediately realized the man's identity.
"You are correct."
The man did not deny it. Right now, it was more important that his identity be understood.
"Leave her to you? What do you intend to do?"
Even though he said to leave her to him, Miria could not simply accept it. She disliked handing over the role of protector.
"...Nothing in particular."
"What!?"
"I believe I likely have no need to do anything. My job is to convey this."
"And—"
How could he say to leave her to him? Miria's words were cut off by the sound of an explosion heard from a distance.
"It seems it has begun."
The man knew the meaning of that explosion. Seeing that the man was not anxious, Princess Ekaterina thought that their allies must have done it. When she turned her gaze in the direction of the sound, dust clouds were dancing there. The figures of enemy soldiers lying on the ground were also visible. And—.
A blast of wind suddenly erupted in front of them. A moment later, flames assaulted the soldiers. Because no enemies were visible in the surroundings, the separate detachment, which was completely off guard, was caught entirely by surprise, and the soldiers caught in the explosion fell to the ground. Fortunately, because they had hurried their entry and were running at full speed, their formation had been disrupted. Only a few soldiers who were leading the way were injured. At this point, it was merely a matter of fortune.
"Who are you!?"
Once the dust clouds were blown away by the wind, the soldiers noticed the man standing in their path. A single man, almost entirely in black clothing, with half of his face covered by a black cloth. Unfortunately, they did not know. A fact that anyone who knew him would have realized immediately. Who the white-haired person associated with Princess Ekaterina was.
"...The Demon King."
"W-what? Don't mess with me!"
"I cannot let those who heard this return alive. I had no intention of forgiving fools who point their swords at my lord from the start."
He had no intention of forgiving those who pointed their swords at Princess Ekaterina. He called himself the Demon King to make the slaughter a duty to himself.
"...Attack! The enemy is only one person! Attack!"
Although several had been cut down, there were still nearly three hundred allies. The enemy was one. There was no way they could lose. It was only natural to think so. Because they did not yet understand. That single person, Ray, charged into the three hundred enemies without any fear. With a single swing of Ray's sword, enemy soldiers fell to the ground. The nearly three hundred enemies quickly became two hundred, and then a hundred.
"A-a monster..."
Only then did they finally realize. It was too late.
"R-retreat! For now, retrea—gak..."
The soldier who shouted for retreat had his throat pierced by something black that descended from the sky with tremendous force, and he died instantly. He was not the only one. Toward the soldiers who turned their backs to Ray and tried to flee, the gliding black shadows pierced their necks and then flapped their wings to ascend back into the sky.
"That is..."
Watching this from a short distance with a stunned expression was Sieg. Having noticed the separate detachment sent by Baldos, he had hurriedly retreated to this point.
"Myriad General. What shall we do?"
"...We return. If he is fighting the enemy, then he must be an ally."
Sieg was one of the few who knew. That there was only one white-haired powerhouse who would fight for Princess Ekaterina, and who could slaughter three hundred soldiers alone. There was no need to worry about the rear. All that remained was to drive away Baldos's main force. The difference in combat power was great, but achieving that was his role. Thinking so, Sieg turned his horse toward the front lines.
And at those front lines, a force that neither enemy nor ally had expected appeared. Three thousand of the Northern Garrison Force led by Geel. A number that exceeded the forces led by Baldos. Not only that. In terms of quality, the Northern Garrison Force was far superior.
"Master... my vision is narrow in this."
From behind the full-face helmet, a muffled, dissatisfied voice could be heard.
"It can't be helped, can it? Your hair and skin colors stand out too much."
The Vampio race, who hid their appearances with armor and helmets, were part of the Northern Garrison Force. He thought that if they hid their hair and skin colors, no one would be able to tell.
"Well, I suppose I should think of this as training."
"Idiot. Don't take any battle lightly. It's not guaranteed that the strong will always survive. Don't forget this."
"As expected of Master. I will keep it in mind."
"Good. Now, let's go. You lot! Crush the enemy!"
"...Like bandits."
At Geel's command, the Northern Garrison Force began their charge. The forces led by Baldos did not have the power to stop them. They were losing in numbers, quality, and morale. Furthermore, being attacked from both the front and rear by the forces led by Sieg, they were doing their best just to prevent total annihilation. A short time after the Northern Garrison Force joined the fray, the battle came to an end.
◇◇◇
In the darkness of the night, bonfires placed here and there stood out. The daytime battle had ended in victory due to the participation of the Northern Garrison Force. However, it was not necessarily the end. Wary of a night attack, many sentries were deployed around Anfang, along with the bonfires. This was arranged by Sieg. In truth, Sieg felt that even if there were a night attack, it would be no problem unless it was an exceptionally large army. For the forces currently protecting Anfang, the darkness of the night was an ally. However, since he could not tell the knights and soldiers that, such vigilance was necessary.
"...There should be no problems for a while. But only for a while."
While there was no worry about a night attack, the future was full of anxiety. Sieg and Geel were discussing what to do about it.
"Do you think they will come again?"
"They likely will. We won this time. Because of that, they will surely view the Princess as an even greater threat."
"I guess that's true... we're rebels too, then."
The existence of Geel and Sieg would eventually be known. The army that attacked had not killed everyone, including their commander, Baldos.
"I do not know if we are actually rebels."
"Are you saying justice is on our side?"
"It is not that. Who do you think wrote the letter that was sent?"
"...Not His Majesty?"
That was what Sieg's question implied. However, Geel had no answer other than the King. There was also a side of him that was slacking off, thinking that if Sieg knew the answer, he would tell him.
"If His Majesty knew of the assassination plan, there is no way he would have taken no action. I would understand if he told us to return to the royal capital. But the order was for this location. It was one based on the premise of His Majesty's death."
"Is there no possibility that he had resolved himself?"
Taking action meant the elimination of his son, Crown Prince Neil. Geel considered the possibility that he had been unable to do that.
"I cannot say there is none. But if that were the case, he could have simply yielded the throne to the Crown Prince. Don't you think there is no need to make him a king who killed his father?"
"Well, maybe so... then, who do you think it is?"
"The Prime Minister."
"...I see. That's a possibility."
The signature and seal seemed like nothing but the real thing. If the reason for that was that other orders were not written by the King, then the only person who could do that, or was permitted to do so, was the Prime Minister.
"But if it was written by the Prime Minister, another question arises."
"...You're thinking about a lot of things, aren't you?"
"Of course. Because that determines how I should act."
He did not want to die bearing the stigma of a rebel. If it were only that, he would choose death cleanly. Sieg had that kind of loyalty toward the Laurel Kingdom. However, was his action a rebellion against the kingdom? That thought was what made Sieg choose to fight.
"So? What is that question?"
"Would the Prime Minister think of something that would throw the country into chaos? No matter how the accession happened, the Crown Prince was the successor from the start."
"...If only we knew what the Chief was thinking."
If it were the Prime Minister, he might think that way. Geel thought so, but he did not know the Prime Minister's character that well. The only thing Geel could use as judging material was the Chief's thought, but that had not been conveyed.
"The Chief of the Intelligence Organization?"
"Yeah, that's right. The Chief's subordinate brought a message to him. It was just 'the Princess'. I don't know what came after that. I don't know with what thought he tried to convey that."
"...He was at the scene, was he not?"
"Yeah. That's the story. I understand the feeling of wanting to have him protect the Princess. But if it's just that, it's a personal matter. Is the Chief of the Intelligence Organization that kind of person?"
"...The Chief also tried to protect the Princess for the sake of the Laurel Kingdom. If that is the case..."
"Even without thinking, we will know eventually."
There was a reason why Geel did not try to think as deeply about the truth of the matter as Sieg did. It was not just a difference in personality.
"...Where is he now?"
"He is pursuing the one who knows the most about the situation. Being pursued by them, there's no way he can escape. Protected by an army of ten thousand—no, even then it's suspicious."
"He had become stronger."
Sieg recalled the state of the daytime battle. In the end, not a single one of the three hundred enemies was able to escape; they were all slaughtered.
"That's true. He is... is this a taboo topic in this place?"
"It is."
◇◇◇
Ray, who was being discussed by Geel and Sieg, had achieved his goal far faster than they thought. If he had movement speed on par with the Demon Race, it would be one thing, but in a situation where they were fleeing while resting horses, and moreover, their destination was known to be the royal capital, there was no way they could escape Ray's search capabilities.
"...Is that everything you know?"
"............"
Baldos remained silent at Ray's question. Not only was he refusing to answer, but he also lacked the strength to utter words. Even so, Ray was not one to forgive.
"Giaaaaaaaah!"
Baldos screamed as his toes were sliced off with a sword.
"What, you're still energetic. Then, let us have an answer. What are the names of your comrades?"
"...K-kill me."
"Yes, I will kill you. Once I've heard everything I want to know. I'll ask once more. What are the names of your comrades?"
"...I-I don't know."
Even under torture, Baldos would not open his mouth. Baldos had served as the Knight Commander of the Imperial Guard Knights in the Laurel Kingdom. He possessed a reasonably strong mental fortitude.
"Does that mean you don't know the names of all of them?"
"............"
"Then do you know who the mastermind is?"
"............"
"Is Crown Prince Neil safe?"
"............"
"...Is he alive? I see. Without a king, you can't move anything. You issue orders in the name of the King and eliminate the nuisances. In their place, you put your own comrades. In other words, the newly appointed ones are your comrades."
"...I don't know."
Baldos denied Ray's words. However, that reaction informed Ray that his thinking was not wrong. Ray did not intend to draw answers from Baldos. He was probing the reactions to his questions.
"Ah, that's right. Let me ask this too. Is the current Knight Commander of the Imperial Guard Knights also a comrade?"
"...Yes, he is a comrade."
"I wish you would answer the other questions as honestly as that. I see. The Knight Commander of the Imperial Guard Knights is not a comrade. Perhaps you haven't completely seized control?"
"............"
Finally, Baldos noticed the strangeness.
"Do you know the Orb of Truth and Falsehood?"
"...No way?"
The Orb of Truth and Falsehood was a magic tool of the King-class in the Laurel Kingdom. Naturally, Baldos knew of it.
"It's the same as that. Even without putting it into words, the agitation of the heart cannot be hidden. You may think you are enduring the torture, but that is meaningless."
"............"
This silence was the same. The agitation of Baldos's heart was showing. To the extent that it could be understood even without a special ability.
"Even if you endure unbearable pain and maintain silence, you can hide nothing. Eventually, the truth will be revealed."
Ray further dealt a blow. For the sake of their ambitions, to protect their comrades. Even if he endured torture with such thoughts, it was meaningless. Knowing that, could he still endure the torture?
"By the way, there is another method. A method to make you release your feelings within pleasure. A method to make you obey orders unconditionally. But I won't use those. This is not torture to obtain information from you. This is torture whose purpose is to give you suffering for a long time."
"...K-kill me."
"Were you listening to me? I just said it. It's torture to make you suffer for a long time."
"...Kill me! Kill me! Please kill me!"
No matter how much Baldos begged, he would not be killed immediately. It is easy to draw information from an opponent whose heart has broken. Because there were many things Ray wanted to hear from Baldos.