by Hyougetsu
Next to him, a veteran mercenary loaded his crossbow and laughed.
“Don’t be, kid. We just gotta do the job we were paid for, nothing more. Better this than being a bandit, right?”
“I guess you’re right, but...”
If he’d stayed a bandit, he would have been hanged if he was caught. So in that sense, working as a mercenary was definitely the better option. But if he’d known one of his jobs involved invading the Black Werewolf King’s base, he would have stayed a bandit. At least, that’s how he saw it. The senior mercenary, on the other hand, patted him on the back and said, “Keep it together. If that princess wins, we’ll be rich as kings.”
“And if she loses?”
“Then we just gotta win our next battle. There might not be a next time for her if she loses, but there’s always a next time for us.”
The older mercenary had been walking at a brisk pace until now, but he suddenly stopped and cocked his head. The young mercenary stopped too, as did all the others. The senior mercenary muttered, “I heard something.”
Everyone present strained their ears, and in the distance they heard the beating of drums.
“Oi, isn’t that...”
“No doubt about it, it’s those bastards from Lotz.”
The mercenaries sheathed their swords, stowed their shields, and slung their bows. They were preparing to retreat.
“They’re already here, huh... And here I thought our job would be easy.”
“Oi, which one of you louts snitched to that old fart Petore?”
“No clue, but if I had to guess, it was probably Diego again.”
“It wasn’t me!”
The young mercenary looked around, confused.
“We’re going back? Lotz is that port city to the south right? What does that have to do with anything?”
The old mercenary placed a fatherly hand on the young mercenary’s shoulder and said, “Listen, kid. If you want to survive as a mercenary, there’s one rule you gotta remember. Never make an enemy out of Lotz.”
“But why!?”
The other mercenaries standing nearby replied, “If you tick that geezer off, you’re fucked. He knows how to hold a grudge, and he’ll chase you to the ends of the earth.”
“He doesn’t give a shit about our contracts. If we fight him even once, he’ll call his army on us until we’re wiped out.”
“But those guys from Lotz sure treat us nice when they’re the ones hiring us.”
“The Senate and the princess are done for, so how about we try hitting them up for work next?”
“Sounds good to me. Work as a warehouse guard’s pretty quiet.”
Still confused, the young mercenary asked, “But Lotz’s army is still outside the city, right? So if we invade Ryunheit, we’ll end up not fighting them. Shouldn’t we honor our contract?”
The veteran mercenary sighed.
“If Lotz’s forces decide to enter the city, we’ll be pincered. Besides...” He pointed to Ryunheit’s outer wall. “What do you see up there?”
“Huh... Oh, uhh, a flag? It looks red... and really tattered.”
A tattered red flag flew above Ryunheit’s walls. It looked as though an animal had raked its claws through it.
“Kid, burn that flag into your memory. That’s Vodd the Claw’s flag.”
“Vodd the Claw?”
The veteran mercenary said almost wistfully, “He was a legendary mercenary back in my day. He was a master of using hidden weapons. Even though he looked unarmed, he’d always pull out something or the other on you and cut you up with it. I can’t believe he’s still alive.”
A few of the other mercenaries scrutinized the flag.
“He had a few other nicknames too. Vodd the Ripper. Bloodthirsty Vodd. You know, stuff like that.”
“I heard his fighting style was so bloody he didn’t even want his allies to see it. So he always carried out his orders in secret, like an assassin.”
“And he always killed his enemies, so no one lived to tell what weapons he used, or where he hid them.”
Upon hearing the litany of terrifying legends surroundings this Vodd, the young mercenary timidly asked, “But are you sure it’s actually him in there?”
“Honestly, I’d rather run than find out. I heard he once went into a bandit stronghold alone and ripped all sixteen bandits to shreds.”
“Seriously?”
Seeing the fear in the young mercenary’s eyes, the old veteran smiled and patted his back again.
“Come on, kid, let’s go. I’ll look out for you, don’t worry. You’ll be all right.”
“Ah, okay.”
The mercenaries turned around and withdrew from the battlefield.
The Rolmund soldiers who’d been sent to take command of the east gate invasion were panicking.
“H-Hey wait! You haven’t honored your contract!”
The mercenaries shook their heads.
“Sorry about breaking the contract, but we’re Meraldian mercenaries. If we stay and fight here we’ll never be able to work in Meraldia again, and that’d be a problem for us.”
At that, the Rolmund soldiers grew angry.
“If you’re planning on running before the fighting’s even started, then you shouldn’t have come at all!”
“You’re right there.”
The mercenary captain smiled bitterly, then snapped his fingers. Instantly, the surrounding mercenaries pointed their crossbows at the Rolmund soldiers.
“Wha!?”
Smiling, the mercenary captain said, “You know, we can always kill you here and bring your heads to the Commonwealth for a reward.”
Another mercenary captain added, “But of course, we won’t. We’ll also return the money you paid us, and give you a little extra as an apology for breaching our contract. So be satisfied with that.”
The unsaid implication was that if the Rolmund soldiers weren’t satisfied, the mercenaries would kill them here and now. There were only a few Rolmund soldiers here, so they had no choice but to quietly accept the mercenaries’ conditions.
“Fine, do whatever you want, cowards!”
“Those are words of praise for us Meraldian mercenaries! See ya, Rolmund prudes!”
Grinning, the mercenaries mounted their horses and retreated.
Around the same time, a group of mounted nomads observed Ryunheit from atop a nearby hill.
“Stop the drums. The mercenaries are leaving.”
At the lookout’s command, the group stopped their performance.
“Are you sure that’s enough? If it’s for Sir Aram, we can continue all night.”
“No, our job here is done. Put away Lotz’s flags. We’re borrowing them from old man Petore, so if we get them dirty, he’s the one we’ll have to answer to.”
At Aram’s command, the nomads had pretended to be Lotz’s army in order to get the mercenaries to retreat.
“With this, Sir Aram will welcome our young nomad immigrants with open arms. He’s a man of his word.”
“That he is. Alright, let’s go back and give our report. I’m looking forward to the lamb stew he’ll surely treat us to.”
After confirming the mercenaries had left the battlefield, the nomads spurred their horses back towards Shardier.
* * * *
I left the unconscious Rolmund soldier in the care of Beluza’s landing force.
“Sorry, but can you look after the prisoner for me?”
“You got it, bossman! Oi, someone get me some water and a cloth!”
“Yo, I got your blankets.”
Despite their delinquent attire, Garsh’s men were well-disciplined. I should have figured that show-off had given me his very best troops. I’d decided to heal the wounded enemy survivors and keep them captive as prisoners of war. At this rate, I’d end up capturing half the mage corps. You’ll all make for some great hostages. I smiled and twirled a communicator ring I’d taken off of one of the soldiers between my fingers.
“Cap
tain, it’s him! The black werewolf!”
“Don’t let him get close!”
Intercepting the enemy’s communications, I easily cornered their “third light cavalry battalion.” They were the ones riding those large birds. Their mobility had been giving Beluza’s troops trouble, but since I could hear all of their communication it was easy for me to cut them off. There they are.
“What’s with this guy!? Why won’t he die!?”
“Fire! Fire everything you’ve got!”
Bullets of light came at me one after another. It’d be a problem if a few strays missed me and hit nearby houses or people, so I thrust my hands out. In my mind, I imagined them becoming a powerful vortex, and the bullets were all sucked into my palms. Naturally, they did no damage to me, and just restored my mana. No doubt about it, I definitely inherited part of Master’s powers. I could feel the inner scientist in me itching to experiment, but taking care of these enemies came first. I cast my best strengthening spells on myself, not worrying about the mana cost, and rushed forward at top speed. Normally these spells drained mana too fast to be viable in combat, but right now the enemy was providing me with free refills.
“He disappeared!?”
I didn’t disappear. I’m just behind you guys. The incident with that girl earlier had proven to me that Rolmund soldiers wouldn’t surrender. So I leapt into the middle of the enemy formation and let loose a full-powered Soul Shaker. Because of how much excess mana I had right now, its power was amplified more than even I expected.
“Waaah!?”
“Gah!?”
“Ngh!”
The soldiers were blown backwards along with their mounts and instantly lost consciousness. The sound waves shook the nearby buildings and shattered their glass windows. Dammit, I wasn’t trying to destroy my own city. For some reason, even though all the soldiers had fainted, I could still hear a voice coming from somewhere.
“...me!? You have permission to retreat! Pull out at once!”
It was Eleora’s voice, and it was coming from the communicator. I poured mana into the ring on my hand and said, “The third light cavalry division has been eliminated. You’re next, Princess Eleora.”
“Is that you, Black Werewolf King!?”
I laughed into the communicator.
“Now then, let’s see how far you can run. Let me enjoy this hunt.”
Without waiting for a reply, I cut off the ring’s mana supply. The reason I’d provoked her like that was to take advantage of her personality. I knew she valued her subordinates more than anything. To the point where it was detrimental to her planning. Not only had she lost the majority of her troops, but her assault on Ryunheit had also failed. If, in a situation like this, the enemy general told her to run, I knew running was the last thing she’d do. Normally, such cheap provocations wouldn’t faze her, but right now she was likely shaken up enough that they would. As far as I could tell, the battle on Ryunheit’s west side had been decided. The enemies on the east side hadn’t even bothered to attack yet, and Baltze’s Azure Knights were guarding that gate anyway. The enemy’s initial assault had been rebuffed. I’d already sent out runners to the surrounding cities as well. Come morning, their reinforcements would arrive. Once that happened, even Eleora would opt to retreat. Her forces had infiltrated the city in squads of 20, and from what I could tell, squads 2 through 5 had either been defeated or retreated. But I had yet to meet a squad 1.
I sprinted out of the west gate and headed toward the forest. My senses were heightened by magic, and I could pick up on mana signatures from a much greater distance than normal. Since Eleora’s troops used magic weapons, they needed to have larger mana pools than the average soldier. And if 20 of them were all standing together, tracking their location was a piece of cake. While I had nothing to fear from their Blast Canes, I was still a little nervous walking into an ambush comprised of 20 elites. That being said, if I didn’t have anyone to protect, I could probably manage on my own.
As expected, I found Eleora right away. She was sitting atop a boulder in one of the forest’s clearings. All around her, I could sense hostility and mana. There were 18 soldiers hidden in the trees and behind bushes. Warily, I walked over to Eleora.
“Eleora, there’s no point in trying an ambush.”
She smiled bitterly.
“So you noticed?”
“Unless your troops can hold their breath and make their scent the same as the earth around them, there’s no way to escape my senses.”
Surprisingly calm, Eleora asked, “So why haven’t you killed me yet?”
“Why, indeed...”
I could kill her whenever I wanted to, but killing an imperial princess would be a pretty big diplomatic issue. Frowning, Eleora spat, “If you don’t plan on killing me, why won’t you ask me to surrender?”
I smiled.
“What’s the point in asking, when I already know you have no intention to?”
The female soldier from earlier had tried to commit suicide the moment she realized she’d lost. My guess was Rolmund soldiers were forbidden from letting themselves get captured. No matter what they had to do, they wouldn’t let themselves become prisoners of war. In which case, it was obvious their leader wouldn’t surrender either. And as I’d predicted, Eleora nodded.
“Even a princess, no especially a princess can’t afford to surrender. That option isn’t available to me.”
“Then I’ll have to capture you by force. I won’t let you commit suicide.”
Eleora sighed in resignation.
“I really don’t have any right to choose, do I?”
She threw down her Blast Cane and saber, and got to her feet. Slowly, she walked over to me.
“Black Werewolf King.”
“What?”
“I admit defeat. You win.”
After accepting her defeat, Eleora seemed to be at peace with herself. She then said, “Like me, you’re an invader. But it seems your caliber far surpasses mine.”
I shook my head.
“That’s not true. I was just lucky.”
It was true. I was lucky to have such a competent master, and such excellent men. I was even lucky enough to be paired up against the right opponent. None of this was achieved with my power alone. Eleora sighed.
“If you brush aside your victory as luck, then wouldn’t that make me, the loser, even more pathetic?”
So you say, but... After thinking about it for a few seconds I came up with an answer that might satisfy her.
“If there really is a difference between you and me, it’s that I came here intending to integrate myself into their society, while you came here to impose yours onto them.”
Eleora looked stunned for a second, but then she nodded in understanding.
“I see... so that was it.”
It was true that I’d invaded my first city, but from then on I’d done my utmost to make sure those I’d conquered were satisfied with my rule, and had no reason to hold a grudge against me. Eleora took a few more steps toward me. We were close enough to feel each other’s breath on our faces.
“So in the end, your caliber really does surpass mine. Thank you for the valuable lesson.”
She smiled gently, looking somewhat forlorn.
“But I must say, Black Werewolf King, I’m rather tired.”
As she spoke, a tornado of fire rose up around the two of us. She’d summoned flames with magic! Within this burning bloom of purgatory, Eleora’s smile grew bigger. It was a genuine smile, one free of the burdens and pressures of her position.
“Did you know? I’m a master of destruction magic. If I’m not worried for my own safety, I can even cast spells like this. I’ll have you accompany me to hell, Black Werewolf King.”
Damn, she’s not joking. These flames felt as hot as normal fire to me. It made sense. Once destruction magic induced a physical force, that force followed the normal laws of physics. Meaning these flames may have been summoned through magic, but they were norma
l flames. I could absorb mana, but unlike Master, I couldn’t absorb other sources of energy like heat. This isn’t good.
Satisfied, Eleora crumpled to the ground, unconscious. She was still wearing that smile on her face. This princess really is crazy. Wait, this isn’t the time to be praising her. If I didn’t do something fast, I’d die too. Unfortunately, I didn’t know any magic that could dispel a blaze like this.
The tornado of fire coalesced, forming a wall that blocked me in from all sides. I had no way of knowing what was going on outside. And it was too risky to try and leap through the flames.
Still, I wasn’t completely helpless. I hadn’t been training with Master for more than 10 years for nothing. Strengthening magic had a few ways to cope with fire. I could increase my heat resistance while supplying oxygen to my lungs with magic, and force my way through.
I always preloaded at least one anti-fire spell before any battle too. I cast a heat resisting spell on both me and Eleora, then cast the spell that allowed people to breathe underwater on us. Eleora’s lungs would probably get burnt from the heat of the air still, so I precast healing magic on them as well. All of these spells consumed large amounts of mana, but I had plenty to spare. Sadly, the spells I cast only took effect on living organisms themselves. Meaning I wouldn’t be able to save Eleora’s cape. Granted, that was a small price to pay.
“Your Highness! Your Highness!”
I heard a panicked voice screaming out of her earring. It must be one of the soldiers waiting in ambush. If they’ve got one of her rings, they’re probably someone she trusts. I leaned in close to Eleora’s ear and declared, “Princess Eleora has lost consciousness, but she’s still alive. However I, the Black Werewolf King Veight, have taken her prisoner. If you value her life, then do not attempt to flee, or commit suicide. Surrender at once.”
With this, the Rolmund soldiers would probably surrender obediently. I hoped.
* * * *
—Adjutant Borsche’s Dilemma—
I could only watch helplessly as Her Highness engulfed herself in flames. I never imagined she would do this. Her Highness had mentioned that she would act as bait to lure in the Black Werewolf King, and that she had a plan for defeating him. And indeed, this was an effective plan to defeat him. Her Highness was one of the strongest destruction mages I knew. However, she was trapped within the same spell that was meant to destroy the Black Werewolf King. This wasn’t what she’d promised.