Episode 89: Mauricio

“What the hell is going on!?”

“Damn it, they completely caught us off guard…!”

“Argh! For now, the priority is to get into position to intercept them!”

“Have orders been given to the frontline commanders!?”

“Hold on, more importantly, we need to unify our intentions at headquarters first—”

At the Serodonia Kingdom’s Western Army Corps headquarters.

In the operations room on the first floor, the command staff had gathered, faces drawn together upon receiving the report of the enemy attack.

However, faced with this completely unforeseen development, everyone was just shouting their own opinions, unable to reach any consensus, and confusion only continued to spread.

Into that scene, one man appeared. The second prince and commander of the Western Army Corps—Volfirio.

“Oh, Your Highness Volfirio…!”

In an instant, all eyes in the operations room focused on Volfirio.

“Your Highness! Please, give us your orders!”

The staff pleaded in unison. However, Volfirio himself seemed not to even hear their voices.

“Is it true… truly, that the Kirchhen Kingdom has launched an attack…!?”

To Volfirio’s question, the staff nodded deeply with grave expressions.

“Impossible… such a thing couldn’t happen…!”

The one most shaken was none other than Volfirio himself. As the person who knew the secret agreement between the Kirchhen Kingdom’s Eastern Front Army and the Serodonia Kingdom’s Western Army Corps in the greatest detail, his agitation was understandable.

(Why, Bertram… why are you attacking now, of all times!? Didn’t I just cooperate with your scheme last night…!?)

Responding to Bertram’s request to eliminate Siegfried, Volfirio had mobilized his subordinate Suneiras. In other words, until last night, the two armies had indeed been allied.

Because of that, Volfirio’s confusion ran deep.

—But that was only natural. He still didn’t know that both Suneiras and Bertram had already been slain, and that the Eastern Front Army was now under Siegfried’s control.

“Kiiii!”

Suddenly, Volfirio let out a strange cry and roughly tousled his own hair.

And then—.

“…Unforgivable.”

With that murmur, the look of agitation had vanished from Volfirio’s face. An anger intense enough to overwrite the confusion was beginning to take hold of him.

(I am the man who will one day become the king of Serodonia!? To challenge me to battle… it’s unforgivable…!)

Sweeping his gaze over the staff with eyes burning with rage, Volfirio declared.

“Mauricio! I entrust the command of the defense to Regiment Commander Mauricio!”

“M-Mauricio, sir? B-But, he is…”

One of the staff tried to interject. But Volfirio shouted him down.

“I don’t want to use a man like him either! But the only one who can turn this situation around—is that man!”

 

◇

 

At that time—the fierce battle was unfolding on the front lines.

“They’re coming!”

“Archers, keep firing!”

“Uwaaaah!”

The Kirchhen Kingdom’s Eastern Front Army charged into the Western Army Corps’ encampment. They smashed through the wooden barriers and surged inside with unstoppable momentum.

Toppling watchtowers and trampling tents, they advanced toward the Western Army Corps like a raging torrent.

The Serodonia Kingdom side had no way to counter it.

That said, the Serodonia Kingdom forces had long since determined that defending the outer perimeter of the encampment was impossible.

Their real focus was—the defensive line built within the encampment.

There, the soldiers were forming up their ranks.

While the soldiers guarding the outer barriers became sacrifices, the preparations for interception were being advanced.

At present, about 10,000 troops had assembled. More soldiers scattered throughout the encampment would likely continue to gather.

It was sufficient in terms of fighting strength.

But—the issue lay in the soldiers’ morale.

“C-Can we win!?”

“Why the hell is a real war breaking out…!”

Unease was spreading among the soldiers.

While the interception formation was coming together, their mental preparation was far from catching up.

In the midst of that, one soldier muttered quietly.

“Damn it, this ain’t no joke… I can’t deal with this…”

Ahead of his gaze—several hundred meters forward, the shadow of the enemy army was closing in. They would likely clash within a few minutes.

The chances of surviving… maybe 50 percent, or perhaps 30.

(I chose this posting because I heard there wouldn’t be any fighting… I don’t give a damn how many allies die. But me… I ain’t planning to die in a place like this!)

The man glanced around, and taking advantage of his comrades’ attention being fixed on the enemy—he quietly crouched down.

Then, weaving through the gaps in the formation, he retreated to the rear.

It was fortunate that the ranks weren’t fully formed yet, and he managed to desert without anyone reprimanding him.

(…Alright. If I can slip away in this confusion—)

It was at that moment, as he let out a sigh of relief.

“Just what do you think you’re doing… you there.”

The voice was low, carrying a creepy quality that sent a chill down his spine.

Reflexively turning toward it, the deserter’s gaze fell upon—a man on horseback, casting a sharp stare down at him.

The man’s skin had a leaden, dull hue, and a gloomy aura emanated from his entire being.

The instant he saw that figure, the deserter’s blood drained from his face.

“M… Mauricio, Regiment Commander…!”

Mauricio Pelgrano.

A high-ranking commander in the Western Army Corps.

A man who had made his name on countless battlefields, feared under the moniker ‘Laughing Mad Dog.’ His reputation was known far and wide, even in neighboring countries.

“You… were trying to run away just now.”

Mauricio stared at him quietly. A creepy smile played on his lips.

“N-No, that’s not it, this is…”

The deserter desperately tried to explain himself in that instant.

The longsword gripped in Mauricio’s hand came down mercilessly.

A sharp slash tore from the deserter’s shoulder to his heart, spraying vivid crimson blood violently.

“Gyaaaah!”

At the horrific scream, the surrounding soldiers turned as one.

“Wha…!?”

What met their eyes was the fresh corpse of the just-killed deserter and Mauricio holding a blood-soaked sword.

Everyone held their breath.

“This man attempted to desert. Therefore—I killed him. Desertion in the face of the enemy is punishable by death. Heh heh…”

With a smile plastered on his face, Mauricio declared this and ordered the nearby soldiers.

“Tie this corpse to a horse and parade it among our allies. And tell the troops that I executed him. To make sure the entire army knows that anyone who tries to flee will meet the same end.”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

The ordered soldier, face twitching, immediately complied with Mauricio’s words.

“Now then—are there any other soldiers who want me to kill them?”

Mauricio sharply scanned the soldiers. They merely remained silent, frozen in place.

“Hmm… it seems there are no other deserters. In that case—fight. Hold this line and push back the enemy. If anyone retreats, I’ll personally lop off their head.”

““Y-Yes… yes, sir!””

The soldiers readjusted their grips on their weapons and turned toward the enemy army.

No one uttered a single voice of fear anymore.

It wasn’t that their fear had vanished.

The object of their terror had simply shifted from the enemy army ahead to the superior officer behind them—Mauricio.

Mauricio remained on horseback, boldly glaring at the approaching enemy forces.

“The Kirchhen Kingdom army. You’re unlucky too… to have me here of all places.”

Mauricio was indeed an exceptional commander. But due to his sadistic temperament, he had repeatedly caused problems within the military.

Half a year ago, he had personally slain about 50 of his own soldiers simply because they were ‘gutless,’ causing a major scandal that shocked the upper echelons of the Serodonia Kingdom army.

As punishment, he had been assigned to—the Western Army Corps. A place of prolonged standoffs, utterly boring for Mauricio.

‘Stay quiet for a while. If you pull something like that here, next time it’s execution.’ That had been the directive from the higher-ups.

But ironically… war had broken out.

(Ah… how lucky I am. For war with the Kirchhen Kingdom to start. Now… I can kill as much as I want.)

Mauricio’s face broke into a grin at the scent of battle. Like a hunting dog baring its fangs in thirst for blood.