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Bang!

A small firework burst at the east gate of Ferdium Castle.

“Let’s go!”

The cavalry unit, waiting nearby, confirmed the signal and began to charge forward at full speed.

Ferdium’s forces would have noticed the firework as well.

They needed to secure and hold the east gate before the enemy arrived.

Thud thud thud thud thud!

As the cavalry advanced, the infantry, who had been waiting behind, followed suit.

Although there was a significant speed difference, all that mattered was that the cavalry entered the castle first. While the cavalry fought, the infantry could catch up.

The cavalry commander, racing toward the gate, suddenly felt a strange sense of unease and tensed his shoulders.

‘What is this? Why is it so quiet?’

The castle gate, lit by flickering torches, stood wide open in the distance.

However, there were no signs of any fighting near the gate.

‘Did the informants and knights already neutralize all the soldiers? But that was far too fast, even if they were just regular soldiers.’

Ferdium was short on knights, so most of the guards would have been soldiers.

It wouldn’t be unusual if the infiltrating knights had subdued them quickly. But still…

‘Something feels off.’

The instincts honed from years on the battlefield kept gnawing at him.

‘Should I pull the troops back?’

As they got closer to the gate, cold sweat began to trickle down his face. His spine tingled, and goosebumps rose all over his body.

‘No, we have to go.’

The signal had been given, and the gate was open. Turning back now wasn’t an option.

If he retreated just because he felt uneasy, the knights inside would die even if they succeeded in their mission.

He was a soldier, and regardless of the danger, he had to follow the plan.

Thud thud thud thud!

In an instant, the cavalry drew near the gate.

‘There aren’t many infiltrators. It’s only natural that it’s quiet. Let’s go. Let’s…’

He steeled himself, urging his horse onward, but suddenly glanced back at the gate.

A chill ran down his spine.

The faintly glowing red gate looked like the open mouth of a demon.

Entering would mean certain death.

“Retreat! Retreat!”

The cavalry commander decided to trust his instincts.

Just as he turned his horse around,

Crack!

An axe flew from somewhere and embedded itself in his neck.

The commander fell from his horse.

Whinny!

The riderless horse stopped, rearing its front legs high.

Several men following the commander couldn’t halt in time and crashed into each other.

Thud! Thump! Thump!

“It’s a trap! There’s something here! It’s a trap!”

“Aaah! What’s happening?!”

“Turn around! Fall back to the main unit!”

Although the leading group had fallen into chaos, the remaining soldiers turned around and began fleeing as per the final order.

Watching from within the castle, Ghislain clicked his tongue, disappointed.

“Impressive. They’re quite skilled, indeed. We had traps set up, but it’s a shame it didn’t work out as planned.”

I had intended to lure them all inside and eliminate them, but the trap wasn’t perfect, given the rush in setting it up.

It seemed the enemy commander had noticed that gap.

No matter. Even without traps, I could capture them easily enough.

“Let’s go!”

Ghislain shouted as he mounted his horse, and hundreds of cavalrymen followed behind him.

Thud thud thud thud!

Ghislain’s cavalry charged through the castle gate, piercing through the enemies who were fleeing in disarray.

Boom!

“Aaargh!”

After swiftly dealing with the remaining cavalry, Ghislain turned his attention to the infantry advancing from afar.

The infantry commander, noticing trouble at the front, had already started to change direction.

Once the enemy realized they were under attack, they shouldn’t have tried to approach any further.

“Run! If you’re caught, you’re dead! Run, I said!”

The commander pushed his soldiers to run for their lives, urging them on relentlessly.

But the larger the force, the harder it was to change direction when they were already moving at full speed.

“They’re sharp! After them!”

Thud thud thud thud!

Ghislain urged his horse forward with a cruel smile, and the mercenaries followed right behind him.

In the end, the infantry was caught at the rear.

Boom!

“Aaah!”

“Hold them back! Stop them!”

“Some of you, stall them!”

Those who were already fleeing couldn’t defend themselves properly.

Ghislain and his mercenaries tore into the enemy like wolves among sheep, cutting them down without mercy.

* * *

Meanwhile, Viktor was maneuvering his troops, oblivious to the massacre occurring at the rear of the infantry.

He had been watching the east gate closely from a distance, and when he saw the signal, he raised a triumphant shout.

“It worked! Half of you, follow me! The rest, attack Ferdium Castle!”

Their main force was currently attacking Ferdium’s southern gate.

Viktor took half of his reserved forces and headed towards the open east gate.

The remaining half moved to pin down Ferdium’s forces at the southern gate.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Ferdium’s troops responded swiftly. Zwalter and Randolph led the soldiers back to the walls.

However, with the cover of night, it took a while for them to realize that half of Viktor’s troops were circling around.

“My lord! Enemy forces are moving towards the east gate!”

“What? Randolph! Take the troops and go reinforce them immediately!”

Following Zwalter’s command, Randolph pulled back half of his forces and hurried towards the east gate.

It was a move Viktor had anticipated.

“Heh, it’s pointless. You’re finished.”

The east gate would already be in chaos, thanks to the troops he had sent ahead.

With Viktor’s unit added to the fray, Ferdium Castle would soon fall completely.

While they might try to resist with street fighting, the difference in strength would eventually wear them down.

Viktor was brimming with confidence.

“Let’s go! Tonight, we’ll sleep inside the castle!”

A thousand cavalrymen surged forward behind him, and the soldiers followed with all their might.

No matter how small or poorly fortified, a castle was still a castle.

Leading a large army in a roundabout way would inevitably take time.

“Not much further! Keep moving… hmm?”

Viktor, who had been pressing onward, was suddenly confronted by an absurd scene.

“The main force! We’re saved!”

“Help! Hurry!”

“Over here! Here! Come quickly!”

In the distance, his soldiers were running toward him, their formations completely disorganized.

Viktor stared blankly at them, dazed.

He couldn’t issue any commands as he didn’t understand what was happening.

“Everyone, fall back! Pull back!”

Ghislain, who had been massacring the rear of the infantry, turned his horse around as soon as he saw Viktor’s main force and shouted loudly.

“Ahahaha!”

“You scoundrels, I couldn’t even sleep because of you!”

“But it was fun!”

The mercenaries laughed heartily as they hurriedly fled, following Ghislain.

Viktor snapped back to his senses and bellowed in rage.

“Chase them! After those bastards!”

Thud, thud, thud!

The cavalry set off at full speed, pursuing Ghislain.

However, they were hindered by their own infantry, who were scattered everywhere in their desperate escape, slowing their advance considerably.

By the time they managed to get close, Ghislain and the mercenaries were already entering the castle gate.

The commander of the cavalry pursuing them shouted loudly.

“Charge! We can catch them!”

If they collided before the gate closed entirely, they might be able to break through.

With the main force following behind, all they needed to do was buy some time.

Thud, thud, thud!

The cavalry put all their strength into their charge, and the mercenaries urgently rushed into the castle.

“Hey, you piss-pants! Move it!”

“Hurry up and get inside! They’re right behind us!”

“Let me go in first!”

In their panic, they jostled and collided with each other as they tried to get through the gate.

Screech!

The mercenaries barely managed to make it inside as the castle gate began to close.

Viktor’s cavalry lowered their bodies and raised their spears.

‘Just a little more!’

It was close, but it looked like they would make it before the portcullis came down.

‘We’ll break through!’

Just as the lead cavalry reached the vicinity of the gate…

Shhhh!

An immense rain of arrows poured down from the castle walls.

Thwack, thwack, thwack!

“Uaaaagh!”

The cavalry fell as they were hit by the torrent of arrows.

Bang! Bang!

The soldiers following behind couldn’t slow down in time and crashed into the fallen, tumbling to the ground.

Skovan shouted enthusiastically from atop the walls.

“Fire! Keep firing! Just shoot! Don’t stop!”

The east gate guards and the sentries from the Forest of Beasts, led by Skovan, unleashed a relentless hail of arrows.

Thanks to Ghislain, who had summoned them all and held them in readiness, they were able to respond quickly.

“Let’s help too! Fire!”

Randolph and his troops, arriving right behind, also began providing supporting fire.

Thud!

Meanwhile, the gate fully closed, and the portcullis descended.

At this point, without knights skilled in mana manipulation, it would be impossible to break through quickly.

The remaining cavalry had no choice but to turn around and retreat to the main force.

Watching the defeated cavalry return, Viktor seethed with rage.

“Argh! You bastards!”

He had been ensnared by his own plan. To make matters worse, his contact had fallen silent.

Counting both the cavalry and infantry he had stationed, the losses exceeded three hundred men.

Like clothes soaking in a steady drizzle, the damage had gradually accumulated.

“Let’s head back!”

In the end, he returned to his camp.

Cheers of victory echoed once more throughout Ferdium. Viktor ground his teeth as he listened to the sound.

Randolph, weaving his way through the elated soldiers of Ferdium, hurriedly approached Ghislain.

“Young Lord! What is this? How did you manage to stop them?”

He had rushed over after hearing that the eastern gate was in peril, only to find piles of enemy corpses when he arrived.

On top of that, the advancing enemies had all retreated.

Randolph couldn’t fathom what kind of magic had been performed to achieve this with such a small number of people.

“It was nothing special. The enemy tried to use their wits, but it didn’t work on me.”

Ghislain briefly explained Viktor’s scheme and the captured knights.

Randolph looked at him, bewildered.

“Hah, again with this….”

Once could be a coincidence. But could a coincidence like this happen twice?

The Ghislain that Randolph knew was certainly not someone capable of uncovering the enemy’s stratagems.

If anything, he had always been more ignorant than Randolph, never one to rely on his brains.

“Ahem, it does seem as if the Young Lord has changed a bit.”

Until recently, Randolph could hardly stand the sight of Ghislain.

There had even been moments when he had an itch to smack some sense into him.

But seeing Ghislain take charge whenever Ferdium was in danger had started to make him forget those feelings.

Feeling awkward, Randolph made a hasty exit and went to report the situation to Zwalter.

“Haha, so Ghislain managed to fend them off with those few men?”

No wonder Ghislain and the mercenaries had been nowhere to be seen; they must have moved toward the eastern gate in advance.

“It’s a relief. Truly, a relief.”

The earlier battle, where Ghislain had ambushed the supply unit, might have been won on instinct, but this required real strategic and tactical knowledge.

Thinking of how the war might have unfolded without Ghislain made Zwalter shudder.

Had things gone differently, they might have been crushed at the very first clash.

Reflecting on how his troublesome son seemed to have grown through this war, Zwalter felt a surge of deep emotion.

Now, Ghislain was an indispensable commander for the estate.

“To have uncovered the enemy’s scheme and turned it against them… Has he been studying strategy all this time? Haha, it seems I did well by entrusting him to Belinda’s care…”

Randolph cut Zwalter off with a serious look.

“Studying? The Young Lord? No way. He’s as ignorant as they come. I bet he’s even less knowledgeable than I am.”

Zwalter’s lips twisted at this.

No matter how troublesome a son might be, it never felt good to hear someone insult him.

And to be compared to Randolph, of all people?

Randolph, noticing Zwalter’s expression, scratched his head sheepishly, feeling the belated embarrassment.

Zwalter chuckled and waved it off.

“Well, he’s always done things his own way, so he must have figured out some method that works for him. Go rest. Let the soldiers rest as well.”

Zwalter decided to leave his questions for another time and focused on reorganizing the troops.

They needed whatever rest they could get to withstand tomorrow’s battles.

* * *

While Randolph was reporting to Zwalter, Ghislain dismissed the mercenaries and set off alone somewhere.

A sinister smile played on his lips.

“Viktor! So you’ve come!”

Through the captured knights, he had learned who the enemy’s commander was.

Harold Desmond’s sword, Swordmaster Viktor.

They had crossed blades before, during the war with the Ritania Kingdom.

He was a rather impressive foe, someone who had managed to hold his own against Ghislain, one of the continent’s top seven swordsmen, for dozens of exchanges.

Though Ghislain eventually split him in two, he remembered Viktor’s name well—it had left an impression.

“This is an opportunity.”

This was a perfect chance to end the life of someone who would become a future threat.

Before Viktor had the chance to grow further, he would lose his life here.

“To send someone he valued this much here…”

Harold must have wanted to give Viktor a taste of real battle experience and let him earn some glory.

If not for Ghislain, things might have turned out exactly as Count Desmond hoped.

“It was a mistake, Harold.”

Ghislain’s face twisted into a devilish grin as he emanated a palpable aura of killing intent.