NOVPUBNoticing I was lost in thought, it was Serpina who spoke up first—once again.
“As always, something must’ve come up.”
“...There is something, yes. But even so, the fact that we’ll win hasn’t changed.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean that it doesn’t change the outcome—our army will win.”
“Then there’s nothing to worry about, is there?”
Well, if you look at it from a general perspective, that might be true—
But when results like this appear, it usually means we’re going to win the battle in exchange for losing something else.
Still, there was one thing I could say for sure—
‘Lady Serpina will be safe.’
If something bad were going to happen to Serpina, the result wouldn’t have been this lukewarm.
It would’ve said something like “an overwhelmingly favorable outcome for our side,” or something along those lines.
But in that case, then what are we losing?
Regardless—now that a condition like “as long as nothing happens” had appeared, I needed to understand what was going on inside Serpina’s head.
“My lady. If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to ask you a few things.”
“I’ve already prepared for that. Ask whatever you need.”
Good.
Then let’s do it again. The same fitting-together process I’ve done countless times since I arrived in this world.
“In that case, I’m glad. First question—”
***
Alkanwood Castle had effectively become the capital of Chel’s forces.
After gathering every last soldier from the various territories under his control, the first thing Chel did was personally lead their training.
It was unheard of for a sovereign to personally manage the soldiers in the barracks—but thankfully, that act played a major role in maintaining morale.
The soldiers under Chel weren’t idiots.
Even if they banded together like this, they still understood they couldn’t defeat Serpina’s overwhelming army.
And yet—the fact that the man once known as Brans' greatest sword had come forward to personally rally them... it meant a lot to the veterans who had served Brans for years.
They didn’t hope for a miracle—but maybe, just maybe, they could deal Serpina a major blow.
True to his roots as a general-turned-sovereign, Chel succeeded in instilling a kind of sacred “battle resolve” in his troops, even as they faced a hopeless fight.
And it wasn’t just the common soldiers—the remaining officers felt the same.
Chel had even said himself that if any of them valued their lives, they could step down.
Everyone had resolutely chosen to offer their lives in this battle.
If miracles did exist, then this was a force that had prepared for them in every possible way. That was the best way to describe the Chel army as it stood.
Even so— n𝚘𝚟𝚙u𝚋.co𝚖
Chel wasn’t chasing miracles. More than anything, he was coldly and precisely evaluating the situation.
‘This should... be enough to deal some damage to Serpina.’
He had no intention of winning.
His only goal was to deal a serious blow to Serpina.
To slow her conquest of the continent—even if only a little.
It wasn’t for Lyn or Carlints, his siblings. It wasn’t for the people of the continent’s territories either.
It was the final pride of a man who had lived his life on the battlefield.
The pride of refusing to go down easily before Serpina. That pride alone was what drove Chel now.
From Serpina’s perspective, he was the worst kind of opponent.
If he had any lingering ambition, she could’ve used it to pressure him from multiple angles.
There’s a reason they say a man with nothing to lose is the most terrifying opponent.
One day, after yet another round of intense training—rallying the troops with his own hands—
“The Serpina army is on the move?”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
At the report from a soldier wearing a red armband, Chel calmly asked,
“How many troops?”
“Roughly 148,000, sir...!”
“...Hmph.”
He had scraped together 80,000.
That number was lower than the expected 160,000, but—
‘That woman must’ve been working with what she had.’
Managing a massive army isn’t as easy as it sounds.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
Especially when attacking a fortress like Alkanwood, located in rugged terrain rather than open plains.
The more troops you have, the harder it is to manage supplies and maintain a fast march. And since they’d be using siege weapons anyway, there was no real need to drag along more troops than necessary.
Besides, they had a hidden card in play. No doubt she didn’t want to inflate the scale of the operation needlessly.
‘Well, whatever. She’ll regret not bringing all 200,000.’
“Who’s commanding them?”
“Lady Serpina is the supreme commander. Swen is the chief strategist. Cransis appears to be leading the vanguard.”
‘So Cransis will be the one I face, then.’
That wouldn’t be enough.
If possible, he wanted to drag two or three of the occupying generals down to hell with him.
“What are your orders?”
“We’ll intercept them at the outer wall. Tell everyone—the time has come. Prepare as planned.”
“Yes, sir!”
The messenger ran off.
Chel slowly reached for the sword at his hip.
Pausing for a moment, he drew it slowly—feeling, just faintly, the self he once was... the man who roamed the continent to conquer the central lands.
‘This will probably be the final battle of my life.’
He’d been born to be a warrior.
He’d always found more joy in soaking his blade in enemy blood than in navigating politics.
Though he’d somehow been pushed into this miserable situation, he was oddly satisfied that the final chapter of his life would be a battle against the villainess, Serpina.
‘...Let’s go.’
Whatever form it took—he would leave a fitting mark.
Muttering to himself, Chel slowly departed the royal castle.
***
Outer perimeter of Alkanwood Castle.
On the battlefield heavy with the scent of war, Cransis—vanguard commander and general of the occupying force—was finalizing his assessment of the enemy’s movements.
“Commander.”
It was Irian, standing by his side, who spoke to him.
Ever since stepping down from his position as acting lord, he had resumed speaking to Cransis with formal respect.
“Our lady has given the order to charge when the time comes.”
“...What about the ‘siege weapons’ she mentioned?”
“They’re ready.”
Irian answered, then cautiously offered his opinion.
“What are your thoughts on the possibility of an intercept?”
“High probability that they’ll send out a small force. Likely to counter the siege weapons. But I’m convinced they’ll stay defensive overall.”
“Convinced, sir?”
“Chel isn’t a fool. He might seem reckless at times, but he’s not the type to personally throw himself into a disadvantageous battle. ...And Lady Reika?”
“I was told she’s prepared, but... I doubt she’ll be deployed this time.”
“I agree with you on that.”
Reika could only attack within a certain range.
Her magic was undeniably powerful, but having her location exposed in a situation like this was dangerous.
With someone like Chel—a general highly skilled in [N O V E L I G H T] maneuver warfare—there was a high likelihood he would launch a focused assault on her position.
And once allies and enemies were mixed on the field, it would be nearly impossible to pinpoint enemy structures alone with her spells.
Of course, aside from all that—
Given the “preparations” they had made, there was no real need for Reika to step onto the front lines.
“Our lady has also ordered that the siege weapons she prepared be the primary tools of engagement.”
“I know. Where is General Airen?”
“She seems to be on a separate mission, but beyond that, I’m not sure...”
“I see.”
The vice commander always handled her role well enough, so there was no need for concern.
The intercepting force would almost certainly include Chel himself, meaning they’d have to accept considerable losses—but if they could at least wipe out that small intercepting unit, they’d be able to freely use siege weapons and magic against the forces inside the castle.
Once the calculations in Cransis’s mind were complete, he gave Irian a nod and spoke.
“General Irian. Proceed as planned.”
“Yes, sir!”
Just as Cransis began to push forward with the siege weapons and commence the siege in earnest—
“...Huh?”
“Th-The gates! The castle gates just opened!”
Even before they had finished setting up, soldiers began pouring out of Alkanwood Castle.
‘...So the intercept unit’s already on the move?’
The intercepting force itself wasn’t unexpected... but there was one difference.
That difference was—
“T-The number...!”
“They’re flooding out!!”
The sheer size of the force was far greater than anticipated.
***
The outskirts of Alkanwood Castle—battle had begun.
WAAAAAAAH—!
“Fire! Burn them all!”
“Damn it!!!”
In the chaos of war, one man stood out more than anyone—Chel Brans.
At the head of the vanguard, Chel was literally cutting down Serpina’s soldiers like a reaper on horseback.
“D-Don’t run!”
“Stay calm—don’t lose your heads!”
Serpina’s officers were doing their best to maintain order, but seeing a man who looked like Death himself galloping toward them, swinging his sword—it was enough to freeze them in terror.
As Chel ripped through the vanguard forces, a soldier from his side rushed over to him.
“General!”
“What is it?”
“It seems the mage... didn’t appear!”
The one Chel had been most concerned about—the mage.
He hadn’t seen her fight firsthand, but based on the rumors he’d gathered, the mage couldn’t cast from long range. That much seemed reasonable.
If they dug in for a siege, she would likely be even more terrifying than the siege engines themselves. How could they possibly win against someone who could conjure endless fireballs?
Faced with this overwhelming asymmetrical threat, Chel had chosen a completely insane tactic—
He did not leave a single soldier behind for defense. Instead, he sent everyone out as part of the intercept force to mix with the enemy ranks.
In other words—Chel had abandoned Alkanwood Castle!
All for one goal: to deal as much damage to Serpina’s army as possible.
Since the castle was destined to fall anyway, the only way to avoid being annihilated by magic was to mix their troops with the enemy’s forces on the battlefield.
And thus, a defending army with no intention of defending the castle was born.
This act of madness—driven by a singular obsession—allowed Chel to successfully shatter the formation of Serpina’s army.
—Up to this point, everything was going exactly as Chel had planned.
