by Kasugamaru
“Eek!” She disappears headfirst into a nearby building. A very natural-looking slip. This must be the reason she’s known as a woman who’s clumsy on her feet. Shouts arise from our soldiers. As I thought, there was a trap.
“Ahh! V-Vampires!” Oh, a human? I’ve been witnessed, so there’s no helping her now. I tightly grab her by the throat.
“...Pregnant, eh?” I let go, lending support so that she doesn’t fall backward. My mother miscarried my younger brother because she fell. Humans as a species are just too physically weak.
“Listen. I swear on the baby in your belly that I will not kill you. But do not tell anyone about me. I am sure that life is hard on the frontier for a woman, but do your best to bear and raise that kid.” I hand her some silver beads. They’re worth far more than the window I broke, but just about right for the stress caused. War is so... Ugh. I set off into the night, making sure to leave a fair amount of distance between me and the sounds of battle.
17 The Knight Makes a Decision And Charges Into the Tyrannical Vampire Forces
To live is to fight.
Fight, fight, fight... Fight until you die.
-Knight Agias IV-
I am a man of the House of Willow. I have mastered the martial arts required of a top-rate knight, and studied the strategies required of a top-rate general. I have polished myself well. I do not hesitate when it comes time to set foot on the battlefield. Even if it might become my grave. So surely this stirring in my heart is excitement for battle.
Kuroi’s battle earlier was an amazing dance of swords and spears. She cut and pierced, cut and pierced her way through the horde of vampires. Even when her whole body was stained red, she continued to cut, cut, and pierce. Their inhuman strength and vicious weapons didn’t seem to bother her one bit.
I see now that her weapons are summoned via a special magic. But where do those sword and spear skills come from? Her clever melee combat? Her mental and physical stamina to continue fighting? Is it all thanks to God’s blessing? Does she only fight with a power that is given to her? No. It is a culmination of her training. I, too, have experienced the deftness of her blade, so I can understand. God’s blessing is, as they say in arithmetic, multiplicative, not additive. Those who do not do all they can before asking for help will not receive His blessing.
Yes. I have seen them myself, too. Kuroi’s curious habits. Every day, between shifts of heavy labor, she would continue to train. We all looked at her strangely, but she never faltered. She called it “preparation.”
Why did I not emulate her? How can I stand on this battlefield, satisfied with my training up until now? Bells ring. Someone is striking them. This sound is nothing like the earlier serenade. It carries a sense of urgency.
From the lookout tower someone shouts, “North!” An attack from the north. There. Is that them? They’re running across the roofs; trampling over the work of humans, the creatures of the night approach.
Vampires.
Wielders of monstrous strength and agility, they are humanity’s natural enemies. About a hundred of them are here. Their strength and hunger are enough to make anyone see this as a nightmare that will wipe out the frontier.
Above the three-story building where the elves are staying, a falcon flies. A very large falcon. Silently, without flapping its wings, it soars toward the vampire horde. But it is no living creature. It’s magic, a construct of many feathers akin to a dummy with no weight.
Oh! Now it shoots out something. Dozens of feathers slice through the air like daggers. They strike about twenty or thirty vampires, who all stumble and fall. The feathers did not appear to be traveling quite so fast, and there was a delay between impact and effect. I assume they were laced with poison. Vampires might be very hardy, but as long as they are alive they will be susceptible to poison. The ones who have fallen writhe in pain. Quite impressive, rendering almost half of their force immobile with one attack. So this is the power of the Dragon Warrior?
The elves are, however, outnumbered. Only ten were left to defend the Apostle. Flight gives them an advantage, but it only serves to fend the vampires off for a moment. The beast familiars they employ are also struggling in combat. It’s a complete defensive battle.
In other words, now is the time. This is where we must act.
“All calvary, charge!” From the shadows we appear and get on horseback. All 328 of us create a line of cavalry in the street leading straight to the elven lodging. I forced our wounded soldiers to be in charge of lookout and relaying orders, so concentrated here is our entire fighting force.
“Destroy the vampires! We may be helping the elves, but we are not submitting to them! Heed my words! Tonight, with this charge, humanity begins its fight!” Yes, this is our first step toward revolution. We cannot leave everything to Kuroi. This will be our first military action with our lives on the line. As Father Felipo would say, it is an excellent chance to make the elves indebted to us, and as Odysson would say, it’s an opportunity to gift the vampires’ faces with our fists. It is the best possible opportunity... as well as a desperate strike that may cost us many lives.
“Ready!” I order, gripping my lance. Half of our men are wielding lances, the others spears. Everyone’s weapon glitters. Bathed in the color of the evening sky, our armor and weapons blaze red. My hands are shaking... I can feel God’s blessing. I drop my helmet’s visor.
“Charge!” I roar and rush forward. I am the vanguard. Like a living arrow, my lance shoots ahead. My target is a vampire that has fallen onto the street before me. As he writhes in pain from the poison, I take aim. I was waiting for them to show weakness. It surprises me how much I wish to kill him.
The speed of my charge transfers into the tip of my lance. I pierce him. Then I lift him into the air. I can feel the warmth of what spatters me, even through my gauntlets. Their blood is a much thicker color than that of a human’s. These are the drops of life from a superior creature that eats humans. I shake it off onto the ground.
The man that was riding next to me is gone. Did he fall off? If so, he’s lost to us. A vampire is strong enough to force a horse to tumble with its bare hands. Another rider slows. Something appears to have grabbed his leg. I see a shadowy hand. The vampire managed to drive its claws into my comrade even while being dragged along. I am impressed, despite the fact that he is my enemy.
I abandon my lance and draw my sword. I urge my horse forward and slash, severing the vampire’s arm at the elbow. Before I can regrip my sword, his head goes flying, tumbles, and is crushed under my horse’s hoof. Someone followed up on my attack. Good. We must not forget to cooperate when fighting vampires.
We reach the north gate, and I take a roll call. Even with the element of surprise, we lost six calvary. Vampires also have quick reactions when it comes to battle. Truly natural warriors. And this is all the more reason that we, as knights, must strike down such fearsome enemies.
“Three Waves formation!” Cavalry works best when they are allowed to gallop. We are not suited to an inner-city battle. For this reason, all of our formations are based around charging.
“First wave, forward!” About a hundred cavalry wielding spears gallop forward, blocking the street. From the other end, the vampires charge. They kick off from the ground, leap over roofs, and ferociously swarm. There are about ten of them. That’s a lot. Even one of these monsters requires dozens of us humans to even match up.
“Second wave, forward!” A hundred cavalry knights with lances charge now. The first wave stirred up the battlefield, causing injuries on both sides. Another ten men have fallen. Now the second wave crashes into the same spot. They stab, then gallop off. And...
“Third wave, follow!” Go. On horseback and bending to the right, I aim my sword. The wind. The winds of battle shave at my cheeks through the grates in my helmet. The scent of blood mixes with the dust in the air.
Cursed vampires.
They rip spears and arms from their owners wholesale, filling their bellies with
the gushing blood. Tyrannical creatures. I will have their heads.
I let go of the reins, grip my sword with both hands, and swing. My arms feel the rush of life as I cut the vampire’s face in half. Bloody fangs fly through the air. I can already see stars in the crimson sky. It is a murderous night. My sword glinting in the starlight, I bark my orders.
“Men! Cut them down!” The third wave is also the rear guard. We move in with less speed and fight the vampires as we see them.
“Filthy, impudent humans! I won’t let you escape!” One of them comes, metal hammer in hand. He roars as he brings it down, and I evade with my horse. Immediately, another blow follows. Unable to evade, I respond with a thrust. The hammer strikes my shoulder. I manage to parry thanks to the smoothness of my shoulderguard, but I can hear the crunching of armor and the screaming of my bones. My posture, too, falters.
“Gah! M-My fingers!” However, my prize is two of his right fingers. He can no longer wield his hammer.
“Damn youuu!” Can vampires fly? Fangs bared and bellowing like a beast, it leaps above my horse despite being covered in scale mail. Fortunately, that weight is to my advantage. I thrust, piercing his throat.
“Gah—Ahhhhhh!” Its neck slides down my blade up to the guard. His face is one I do not know. I do not recognize the voice that curses me. Wide-open yellow eyes reflect in my helmet, spattered with dark blood. I twist my wrist, chopping through the neck. The severed head drops to the ground.
A blow rocks my side. I had paused for only a second, but that was enough for a punch to land. I grit my teeth, willing myself not to throw up. Under my armor is a shirt of padded canvas, and yet I’m still reeling. This guy’s head is half-severed, too.
A roar erupts, and the cavalry next to me explodes. The blow causes all kinds of bits and pieces to fly out from the gaps in his armor.
“Ha-hah! A fantastic smell!” a giant vampire shouts. Swinging a metal mallet, he searches for his next victim and his eyes land on me. That kind of destructive power cannot be blocked. I have to dodge. My only choice is to keep dodging.
“Your armor may be hard, but your flesh is so soft!” I dodge heavy blow after heavy blow, each one strong enough that it feels like my life is being shaved away just from being grazed. All the while, I hear the sounds of my allies dying. The cavalry, without their speed, are being felled one by one. One by one, they are killed.
“Die! C’mon!” This is a nightmare. The unending tyranny is like a natural disaster. And these fiends are simply playing with us, waiting until they can devour our flesh and blood. At my back, another enemy appears. Sinister claws adorn his fingertips. Those will pierce armor. How can I possibly avoid a fatal wound? No matter how I twist my body... Whoa! My horse rears. Why? Are you trying to defend me, partner? The claws slice into the horse’s belly, shredding skin and exposing pink muscle.
“Hey, this one’s mine.”
“What’s the matter, can’t handle a little livestock ya idiot?”
“This meat is so annoying. It’s only right that I make it suffer.” Even fallen to the ground with shadows all around me, my limbs refuse to give out. Finally I vomit, so I rip off my helmet and stand up.
“Huh? What’s with those eyes?” Blade tips pointed at me, I endeavor to smile back.
“Quiver in fear like a good human!”
“Wait! The horses are still—” Yes, come back, my wave of cavalry. Make the earth rumble.
“Captain! Your hand!”
“Forget me! Run them through!” I slice up through the clawed vampire as he’s recoiling from the oncoming horses, then bring my blade back down. Such swordwork makes me want to praise myself, but this is clearly not my work alone. It is God.
I step forward again. One of my allies spears the mallet-wielder, and I drive both of my hands towards his open neck. They pass through. Quickly, I pull back and readjust my aim. The vampire’s severed head writhes in pain.
18 The Sorcerer Fears and Worships the Flame Girl That Will Save Humanity
Before a battle, God strengthens His presence.
So when the opposite happens, I know that the battle is over.
-Sorcerer Odysson IV-
Well, well. I’m impressed, Agias Willow. I knew you were a cut above the rest, but I guess I should never have doubted the child-rearing of a famous military family. Not only did he fight on even ground with the long-ears, but he’s also gone and won against the yellow-eyes now! This military post has seen some real action. It’s still a seedy-looking camp, though.
“Good work out there, Captain.”
“Sorcerer... how are the citizens doing?” What an intense look on his face. Blood, mud, vomit, and shit speckle his face. That shit raises his value as a man. It ain’t something to scold him for.
“Relaxed as can be. It was the right choice to have them hide deep in the longhouses.”
“So it would seem. The church’s bell tower has been destroyed.” That was some scary shit, let me tell you. Damn yellow-eyes went too far when they escaped. Half their force was wiped out, so they should have just tucked tail and run like the whipped dogs they were. But I guess as long as it was just scary, it’s all good.
“In the end, it’s just stuff. It served us well as a decoy. The priest seems to have survived, as well.” The less people on our side dead, the greater the win. The death toll for the knight’s cavalry is about 39. Some are also seriously injured. We could have another ten die on us tomorrow, but those are still acceptable losses. There were a lot of those yellow-eyed fuckers. The long-ears screwed up, too. The fact that no citizens were killed or harmed is a testament to our military post’s hard fighting and...
“Mm? Where’s Kuroi?”
“Chasing down one that slipped away.”
“...She gonna be okay? Pretty sure that was one of their leaders.”
“I’ve sent a team of our fastest horses. If they do not return, I shall go myself.”
“Shouldn’t the elves be handling cleanup like that?”
“It is night. And they have an Apostle.” Even so, they should be. They have long-ears that fly at night. Especially that Dragon Warrior chick. She’s crazy. It was too far away for me to see the details, but I could tell she was using some incredible magic. I mean, freely controlling an infinite number of feathers? That’s almost like Kuroi’s magic! The Dragon Warrior is basically a semi-Apostle in her own right, yet she’s just a servant to one. Compared to an Apostle, she’s multiple levels lower. And yet she’s that strong? Actually, judging from that supernatural-level concert, that may be a rather reserved estimate.
“There you are.” The black-hearted priest makes his appearance. With a holy spear gripped in his hands and a great shield slung across his shoulders, he looks like he’s in full traditional battle attire. It doesn’t suit him at all. He looks more like a pompous rice cake.
“The elves’ main forces are returning now. I think they ran into an ambush. They requested quite a lot of stable litter.”
“Hm? How does that relate?”
“It means many silver leopards were injured. By black wolves, I’m guessing.”
“Ugh, those? They’re so dark and fast. Plus they resist magic.”
“The very same. The elves hate them most out of all familiars. In other words, the vampires brought out their full-on fighting force. For the scale, at least.”
“They were all skilled soldiers, too. Their offense and retreat were similarly practiced.”
“...This is giving me a headache.” No joke, my brain is starting to hurt. First the monster attack, now this? The good and bad come in such extremes. Just what sort of place is this? Is it cursed or blessed?
“How have the elves judged the night raid?”
“They haven’t said. However, I’d say they were on guard for it considering the Dragon Warrior didn’t follow them out of the city. We must watch carefully for their decision once the main force has returned.”
“If only they’d take each other out. Damn lon
g-ears. Just go back to the forest already.”
“...No, I’d say their bolstering of our defenses is preferable.”
“Haaah?”
“Yes, you’re right. But forget this Second Commander, bring us a First Commander.” What are these two blabbering about? The Second Commander is already unbearable. If we go up the chain of command even more, who knows what we’ll have on our hands?
“Oh, you don’t understand? I’m saying that even if the elves leave, peace will not return to the frontier.”
“...Isn’t there some kind of treaty?”
“Hostilities have already begun. Our only choice is to work with the elves to defeat the vampires.”
“Why? Just let the monsters fight each other like normal. Then we can swoop in and take the juicy parts for ourselves.”
“It’s not possible. Here, let me make it perfectly clear: it’s not because we took up arms. The situation has changed. Humans are now explicitly involved.” The situation’s changed? Well, I guess it’s been a rough couple of days. We experienced a monster attack the likes of which I’ve never even heard of, and then an unbelievable number of long-ears appeared. Among them was even an Apostle, who performed a concert for us that was beyond description. This in turn attracted a crazy amount of yellow-eyes, and... Hm? Thinking back on it, every one of those things is normally an unthinkable event. That’s why the treaty was created, wasn’t it? To prevent stuff like this from happening.
“Wait, you can’t mean...”
“The elves and vampires are both changing their strategies. They’re making quite aggressive moves with their armies. And they don’t seem to mind getting the human territories involved... or at the very least, it is no longer an absolute taboo. If it was just one side, maybe I could reason it away. But with both the east and the west doing it, I have to consider that this may now be permitted to a certain extent.”
“Permitted?”