Episode 17: The Knight Commander

Time rewinds to the negotiation between Siegfried and Fen, at its final turning point.

“I’ll—go along with your plan.”

In the valley dyed by the twilight, Fen spoke with resolute determination.

“It’s not like I trust you. But even I can tell.”

“Oh? Tell what?”

“That you’re no ordinary man.”

Feeling a shiver of awe toward the man before her, Fen held his gaze and declared.

“You’re probably a monster. Surely, you’re beyond my comprehension. But if I don’t join hands with a monster like you… my wishes will never come true.”

The Gray Wolves, Fen’s beastman tribe, weren’t fighting against Patrick alone. Nor were they up against the Arving Marquis House. Their true enemy was the very system of this country, symbolized by those figures.

Nobles held privilege, and beastmen like Fen could be reduced to slaves at their whims. That was the law of this land.

But this monster before her—this man with the madness to thrust a blade into his own throat—might just be capable of punching a hole through that law.

Of course, she didn’t believe Siegfried would act for the sake of the beastmen. The path ahead, allied with a monster, might be fraught with peril. Even so.

“I’ll follow your orders. So… let me take down Patrick.”

“Very well. Then first, we’ll have our forces and yours clash, damaging each other’s armor. We need to stage a battle to deceive others.”

“G-Got it…”

And so, the plan for the deception was set in motion.

 

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In the dark of the night, beastmen rose from the shadows of the valley. They drew their bows in unison and released their arrows.

“Gyaaaah!”

“Guaah!”

The beastmen’s arrows, cloaked by the night, pierced Patrick’s soldiers one after another. Each strike echoed with the soldiers’ screams.

“H-Hey! What are you doing?! Return fire with arrows!”

Patrick’s frenzied shout rang out. But the response from his soldiers was laced with despair.

“Tch, it’s too dark to aim properly!”

The night vision of the Gray Wolf beastmen was, as their name implied, wolf-like—far superior to that of humans in the dark.

The battlefield of darkness was a stage that favored the beastmen.

“Tch, filthy beastmen only good for slavery! I’ll kill you all!”

One of Patrick’s soldiers, half-mad with rage, drew his sword and charged toward the beastmen. But—

“Guh… ah!”

Before he could reach them, a Kreving soldier’s blade pierced his heart.

As per the prior agreement, any enemy attempting to directly attack the beastmen would be dealt with by Kreving’s soldiers.

Kreving’s men didn’t have the beastmen’s night vision. But they were more than capable of handling enemies who came close.

“I-Impossible…! We’re the ones being trapped…!”

“N-No way… this can’t be happening…!”

Patrick’s soldiers were on the verge of panic, overwhelmed by the one-sided situation.

But a sharp voice cut through the chaos, reprimanding them.

“Silence! Don’t waver!”

The commander of the Arving Knight Order, Ryudre, bellowed with authority.

“Knights, rally around Lord Patrick! Clad in full plate armor, we won’t fall so easily to mere arrows!”

“Ha… haha!”

At Ryudre’s command, about twenty knights gathered around Patrick.

“Listen well! We’ll protect Lord Patrick and aim for a breakthrough to escape! We’ll scatter these filthy beastmen and break out of this valley!”

“Hmph… as expected, he’s not just a man who flaunts his authority.”

A faint smile curled at the corner of my lips.

This Ryudre was indeed different from Izakko. Right now, he was a warrior worthy of being called a battlefield titan.

That’s right, that’s how it should be… his humanity may be trash, but his skill is the real deal—a perfect setup for a memorable villain.

“Well then, I suppose it’s time for me to make my move.”

“H-Hey…!”

Slipping free from Fen’s restraints, I darted through the darkness.

“Wha—!”

By the time the knight noticed my approach, my hand, glowing with condensed mana, had already pierced his heart.

Brandishing my azure-glowing hand blade, I cut down knight after knight, reaping their lives.

“S-Siegfried… you bastard!”

Ryudre swung his sword down, but it sliced through empty air.

“Hold on. I’m not your opponent.”

The moment I said that, a female knight with fiery red hair leaped into the fray, her locks flowing like flames.

“Lord Siegfried!”

“Beatrice… I’ll let you have Ryudre’s head. Show me your strength.”

“Yes, sir!”

Beatrice nodded sharply, leveling her blade.

“Don’t underestimate me!”

Ryudre’s entire being surged with a battle cry, a testament to his prowess as the knight commander.

“Die!”

A strike powerful enough to shatter stone. Yet, it cleaved only the air.

“Impossible…!”

Ryudre’s face twisted in shock. Beatrice’s sword had pierced through his armor, embedded deep in his chest.

“H-How… by a mere woman…!”

“That was your downfall, Ryudre.”

I spoke coldly.

“You, steeped in arrogance, against Beatrice, who harbors none. The outcome was clear before the fight even began.”

I gazed down at Ryudre’s body as it slowly collapsed.

“Arrogant villains are destined to lose—it’s a classic rule. That was quite a fitting end, Ryudre.”

The commander of the Arving Knight Order, Ryudre, died on the cold ground without hearing the end of my words.

“Now then…”

I surveyed my surroundings.

Patrick’s knights had already been annihilated by my hand. His soldiers were little more than targets for the beastmen’s arrows.

“All that’s left… is you, Patrick.”