"How... could this happen...!"
Sagnard's adjutant, Faker, finally managed to steady his spinning vision and lift his head.
He was sure he had lost a lot of blood. That was his first thought.
On top of that, the loud explosion from earlier had likely ruptured his eardrums, as a constant ringing sound continued to echo in his ears.
Everything around him was in utter chaos.
Large boulders, much bigger than a person, were scattered all over, clogging the already narrow valley corridor.
Blood seeped from between the rocks, and limbs, impossible to identify whose they were, lay strewn about haphazardly.
The acrid smell of burning still stung his nose, and the desperate pleas of those begging for help echoed around him. But he knew all too well that the people making those sounds wouldn't survive for long.
All of this horror had unfolded in the blink of an eye.
When they had entered the valley in pursuit of the Star's Legion, Faker realized too late that they had ventured into a danger zone.
The anger over the shocking death of his revered commander, Sagnard, had blinded them, leading them to tread into an area they normally wouldn't dare approach.
He had tried to give the order to retreat, but by then, it was already too late.
Most of the soldiers had been consumed by their rage, deaf to his commands.
Some officers had even openly mocked him, asking if he was afraid. They said they couldn't face Sagnard's body without bringing back the heads of the Imperial soldiers.
But, of course... they would never get the chance to stand before Sagnard's body again.
When the valley collapsed, they were buried alive.
Even Faker, who had been more prepared than the others, ended up in this state. How much worse must it have been for the others?
Annihilation.
There was no better word to describe the battle.
'But I must get out of here...!'
Gritting his teeth, Faker struggled to free himself from the pile of rubble.
Even if they had been outwitted, he had to save as many lives as possible. Only then could he seek revenge, or surrender, or whatever else might come.
"Adjutant Faker? Over here! There's a survivor! Help us!"
At that moment, a familiar voice called out to him. He couldn't remember the name, but it was one of the subordinates that his favored adjutant had thought highly of.
With their help, Faker managed to free himself from the debris, gasping for air.
He forced his eyes open, trying to steady his vision. Several soldiers were looking at him, all bearing the appearance of defeated remnants.
"You're alive! Thank goodness!"
Their faces were filled with relief. The mere fact that even one leader had survived brought a sense of hope to the troops.
Suppressing the blood rising in his throat, Faker forced out his voice.
"Survivors?"
"...So far, we've found about twenty."
"Eight hundred cavalry chased them... and only twenty survived."
It was a result that didn't even warrant a bitter laugh.
He had known they had been decimated, but this was so close to complete annihilation that the word itself felt inadequate.
"We're still searching for more survivors, so we might find more."
Faker nodded heavily.
They might be right. There could still be others trapped under the rocks, waiting to be rescued.
But even if there were more survivors, they would never again be a fighting force. The Claymore Knights, who had been a symbol of terror to the barbarians and a prestigious order, would never recover from this.
A single mistake had led to their downfall.
That truth weighed heavily on Faker's heart.
***
Despite everything, Faker was still determined to find an opportunity to strike back.
'Thankfully, there are cavalrymen who didn't enter the canyon. There are also troops that stayed behind at the castle. If I can regroup them...!'
He vowed never to make the same mistake again, gathering the remaining troops and leaving the canyon.
However, Faker soon realized something strange.
There was no one pursuing them.
'Wait a second. They buried us in the valley, but... there's no second attack?'
From their perspective, there was no better opportunity to finish off their trapped enemies and claim glory. Yet, they hadn't pursued further?
There were two possible explanations for this.
The first was that something unexpected had occurred during the battle, preventing them from launching a second attack. Perhaps a part of the army that hadn't been caught in the trap had attacked the Star's Legion from the side, forcing them to retreat. This was the more favorable scenario.
The other, however...
'They believe they can claim an even greater victory…!'
This was the more ominous possibility.
It meant that the Star's Legion had turned back and was now attacking the remaining forces that hadn't been caught in the trap.
Faker had a strong feeling that this second scenario was more likely.
From Sagnard's assassination to the valley trap, these were strategies only a tactician highly skilled in military strategy and warfare could have orchestrated.
If such a person were involved, they would surely have planned for the aftermath as well.
He needed to confirm the situation as quickly as possible.
And then.
"L-Lord Faker…!"
"You're safe! Thank goodness."
"What... what happened to you all?"
Faker's uneasy feeling turned into reality.
As they made their way back to the castle, the soldiers they encountered all bore the look of defeated remnants.
And what they told him was shocking.
After the valley collapse, the cavalrymen that avoided the trap regrouped and chased the Star's Legion.
Or more accurately, they collided with the Star's Legion, which had turned around.
And
They were utterly defeated.
"They were like ghosts, appearing and disappearing!"
When they first saw the Star's Legion, they thought they were dealing with a ragtag group.
It was clear the unit had only recently been formed. While the individual members were skilled, their lack of cohesion would surely lead to their defeat.
On the other hand, the cavalry were seasoned veterans, having defended the eastern frontier together for years.
To them, comparing themselves to that rabble was an insult. They still outnumbered them significantly, after all.
Yet, they were the ones who lost.
The Star's Legion employed tactics so ghostly and unpredictable that it was as if they were dealing with specters.
Whenever they tried to attack one formation, another would appear behind them. If they turned to face that one, a new formation would strike from the flank.
On top of that, the Star's Legion seemed to have an endless supply of scrolls, using magic freely whenever it was needed.
By the time they had been chased around in confusion and forced to retreat, they found themselves in this sorry state.
'Not only are they skilled in strategy, but their command ability is also exceptional…?'
Faker's anxiety deepened.
He couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't just the cavalry that had suffered.
Still, he tried to calm his mind as he led the remnants of his forces back to the castle, gathering more soldiers along the way.
All of them spoke of how they had been utterly outmaneuvered by the ghost-like tactics of the Star's Legion.
And at the center of it all was one woman.
'The daughter of the Blue Lion! So Isabelle Weyl was here all along!'
Although her beauty often overshadowed her other traits, Isabelle Weyl's intelligence and wit were well-known in high society. It was often said that even though she had not succeeded her father as the head of the Blue Lion family, she was capable of bringing even greater prosperity to their household.
But it seemed her knowledge and intelligence extended to military strategy and warfare.
At this level, she wasn't just an advisor.
She was a strategist.
A figure capable of using various strategies and methods to shape the battlefield to her will.
In an era filled with powerful warriors and high-level masters, the presence of such a strategist had been somewhat forgotten... and yet here she was.
Faker's suspicions were confirmed when they finally reached the castle.
He saw the flag raised high on the watchtower.
An owl perched atop a book.
It was the flag of the Melvinger family and the Star's Legion.
"How... how could this happen...!"
"What in the world is going on…?"
"Oh no, Lord Sagnard…!"
Among the stunned remnants, Faker bit his lower lip.
***
Rumors about Elric spread rapidly.
"Did you hear about it?"
"Hear about what?"
"The rumors about the head of the Melvinger family."
"Weren't those just lies?"
"No way. There are witnesses, apparently."
The rumor was that with only a hundred or so followers, Elric had single-handedly captured Ketrain Castle.
At first, no one believed such rumors.
Even though Elric had recently made a name for himself, how could he capture a castle with such a small, non-elite force in just one day?
It was only natural to be skeptical.
As a result, even the main camp dismissed it as baseless gossip.
Likewise, the nobles took this opportunity to criticize Elric.
"The Radiant Star Duke sure knows how to pull off ridiculous stunts."
"Indeed. He's put so much effort into building his reputation and adorning himself, only to end up embarrassing himself like this. Seems like a desperate move."
"Even if he tried, it was bound to be exposed. How shortsighted."
"Well, he is still young."
"Looks like the last remaining flame of the magic royal family will be extinguished with this."
Most of them had been displeased with the revival of the Melvinger family.
Naturally, they didn't miss this opportunity.
In fact, they were even plotting to ensure that the Melvinger family would never rise again, trampling them thoroughly.
"And what about the Blue Lion's daughter, who's aiding the Star's Legion? Her reputation will fall just as low."
"With the internal conflicts plaguing her family, they say she's been unable to manage her household properly. This will only make things worse."
"I'm more worried that this whole affair will harm the Fourth Prince."
"The Fourth Prince personally called the head of the Melvinger family his friend. He should watch his words more carefully."
As a result, not only the Weyl family, who had been close to the Melvingers, but also Prince Cromhel, who had called Elric his 'friend,' were at risk of facing negative repercussions.
However, Herman and Cromhel showed no signs of concern.
In fact, they seemed confident that they would hear some amusing news soon.
Meanwhile, the main camp was preparing for the imminent full-scale battle. While Elric and the Star's Legion kept the Red Lion family distracted, they were waiting for the perfect moment to launch their attack.
After a few busy days of anticipation passed, a messenger from the Star's Legion arrived at the main camp.
Though the messenger's appearance was ragged, as if he had been through a grueling battle, his eyes burned brightly with intensity.
When the messenger announced that he had brought a gift from Elric for the Crown Prince, many believed Elric was trying to bribe the prince to regain favor.
But when the 'gift' was revealed in the main camp...
"Gasp!"
"T-That is…?"
"H-How could he…!"
The gathered nobles and soldiers were all in shock.
It was the head of Sagnard, one of the Red Lion family's revered 'Four Claws,' placed right before them.
[T/L: You can read ahead chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]