Oukoku e Tsuzuku Michi-Novel

Chapter 350: Southern War ① Jumbled Cavalry

We advance south on the road in a long queue.

「It’s been a while.」

「How long has it been since we fought side-by-side?」

Myla and I converse on horseback.

She didn’t come along to the Federation so it really has been too long since we fought together.

The fight with Zillovely doesn’t count as a war after all.

「It took only a day to get here from the Libatis border...... it feels like everything I’ve learned until now is outdated.」

Myla looks down.

「Don’t worry about it. I always go on the offensive during wars, so it’s natural for a defense expert like you to do things differently.」

We set out to provide reinforcements for Libatis after receiving orders from the king.

An army of 15 000 had been arranged and was garrisoned in Trisnia.

My own personal army would be added to that.

Erich seems to have readily accepted the burden of supply which accompanies such a mission.

“Sorry for the half-hearted numbers. I understand sortieing with a small force is foolish, but these were His Majesty’s orders...... I will work hard after their departure to make him reconsider. For now, do your best with what you have.”

He even apologized.

「I wonder if the king has something in mind. Well, I’ll leave those kinds of concerns to Leopolt.」

「Now then, please confirm the total numbers in your army again.」

Goldonia Royal Army – Seventh Division Army Corps: Over 15 000 men

Infantry: 11, 000

Archers: 2000

Cavalry: 2000

Hardlett Army: Over 4000 men

Bow Cavalry: 4000

Escort: 200

Chariots: 80

「About 20 000? Sounds about right.」

「I put that together! Myla-san stole it from me!」

「No need to stress the fine points on the battlefield.」

Celia is making a fuss from behind.

Actually, glimpses of her face have been popping up beside us for some time now.

This isn’t all of the army though.

The only ones here are the cavalry, bow cavalry, escort and chariots―― in other words, just the troops using horses.

We headed south after convening in Trisnia, however only the fast-moving cavalry went on ahead.

We’ve done this countless times before.

According to Leopolt, it’s apparently inefficient for the infantry and cavalry to march together, excluding siege situations.

「The biggest weapon cavalry have is not their offensive power, it’s their mobility. Eliminating that can be nothing other than foolish.」

「Pfft.」

When I imitate that guy’s expressionless face and tone, Myla bursts out laughing.

Seeing how well it was received, I do more impressions.

「Although my face looks like this, I’m actually a big pervert on the inside. The rumor of me liking men is not entirely baseless.」

「S-stop it please.」

It was worth practicing in the mirror.

What should I do next?

「Lord Hardlett, the number three scout is not returning. I propose getting light cavalry to do a forced reconnaissance.」

「Uu, uuh, yeah sure.」

Leopolt came up from behind before I realized.

It’s not anything he said, it’s just really awkward.

Myla also stops laughing and looks in another direction.

「If we continue down south, we’ll encounter the enemy in no time. Please use your time effectively」

「......got it.」

Schwartz is moving strangely...... he’s totally laughing, isn’t he.

If you don’t stop, I’ll throw a caterpillar inside your ear.

The next thing I know, Myla is off inspecting the soldiers.

She must also feel awkward to be by Leopolt.

It’s been such a long time that we’ve had a real battle so I brought almost all the military personnel I have.

The only one left behind is Tristan.

Myla has some influence over the royal army with her baron title so I let her look after them.

Luna looks after the bow cavalry exclusively while Celia manages the escort unit. Irijina is allowed to rampage as she wishes in the raid unit.

Finally, Leopolt oversees the entire operation, making this a perfect and efficient composition.

Wait, something is missing.

「Uuu, Aegir-sama.」

Why is Celia making such a sad face?

Why not try following Irijina’s example and taking it easy?

「Wahaha, I’ve been longing for battle! And with this many brave soldiers, there’s no way we’ll lose!!」

Yeah.

「More reinforcements will soon follow! There’s nothing to worry about!」

It would be nice if Erich did his best.

「The South Yuguria army is nothing to be scared of!!」

「Celia, make Irijina be quiet.」

「Mogh! This fight, mgghogh! Is practically won!!」

Afterwards, I dispatched a reconnaissance unit as Leopolt advised and they discovered the South Yuguria army surrounding a certain fort on the west side of Tortoent.

I was a little surprised when I received that information.

「So they’re all the way here? I thought they would be further south.」

I checked the location of the fort and realize it’s actually really close to the capital of Libatis, Tortoent.

So they’re attacking this far in?

I remember hearing how strong the Libatis army was though.

「Libatis does not have much in terms of geographical advantage so the enemy is able to enter deep in their territory from a surprise attack. With that said, an invasion reaching this point is on the bad side of my predictions.」

Leopolt looks a little more stern...... no, maybe it’s the same.

「In any case, we should do something as reinforcements. It’s convenient for us that they are in an encirclement. We can charge in from their flanks.」

Myla nods and Leopolt doesn’t say anything.

I guess his silence means that he’s fine with what I said.

The royal army marching in columns and the bow cavalry separate before picking up the pace.

Me and the escort unit, along with the chariots, follow them a slight distance behind.

「Enemy flag sighted! As reported, they are surrounding the Libatis fort, but it doesn’t look like they’re attacking. What I can confirm is that they have roughly 6000 cavalry and carriages!」

Gido stands up on his horse and shouts.

So we have about the same numbers.

「They likely rushed here in the same formation as us. If that’s the case, they’re probably aiming to cut off the Libatis supply line instead of conducting a proper siege.」

From what I can see, the Libatis fort appears sturdy with it being on a small hill, although its size isn’t the biggest.

I don’t think it holds a large stockpile of supplies.

「We won’t hide. Let’s charge at them head-on.」

I can’t do any tricks and there’s no need to.

The bow cavalry fires arrows into the air as they run forward.

Red flames light up the sky.

That’s the signal to begin attacking.

「Attack!」

「Charge!」

War cries and the thumping sound of horses galloping at full speed resound while the Goldonian flag, as well as my intentionally all-black flag gets raised.

We charge straight down from the north.

A group of cavalry travelling on the plains won’t go unnoticed by the enemy.

「Reinforcements!? Not from Tortoent, but the north!?」

「Goldonia!? We received information of their departure from Trisnia not long ago!」

「Hey, don’t panic! We’re cavalry like them. Don’t take their attacks, attack back!」

The South Yuguria army showed the slightest apprehension before quickly recomposing themselves and switching from an encirclement to a field battle formation.

That was a response beyond what we imagined.

「Reinforcements from the north. I see the Goldonia flag!」

「Ooh, we’re saved.」

The flag on the Libatis fort is waved vigorously.

If you carelessly send forces out and it becomes chaotic, things will be problematic, so please just wait patiently.

The first to approach the enemy is the bow cavalry from the left wing.

Under Luna’s command, they split into smaller groups and form a wide triangle.

On the other side, the enemy is in two large triangles.

There is a rather large gap in between.

「We can easily breakthrough the middle...... ah, the enemies on the side aren’t wielding spears! They have crossbows!」

Celia realizes the enemy’s intentions.

I see, they positioned cavalry with crossbows to the side when they saw us take a formation that wants to run through the middle.

They want to use them to attack from or flanks and insert them where we are disordered.

「Bow cavalry, continue charging towards the middle.」

「That’s fine.」

Neither I nor Leopolt retract our orders.

It’s impossible to do so even if we knew the enemy’s aim.

「Loose!」

Out of the two rapidly approaching groups, the bow cavalry were the ones to fire first.

Countless arrows rain down from the multiple squads.

That was the reason for dividing the bow cavalry into smaller units.

Soldiers in the rear of a single large formation could not see the enemy and take aim.

Spreading out like this allows all troops to participate in battle.

「Guwah, at this distance...... and archers on horseback!?」

「While galloping at full speed too!」

「Such forces were not in―― gyaaah!」

The enemy formation suddenly falls apart from the accurate barrage.

Maintaining speed, the bow cavalry loose another volley right before collision.

「Their speed is impressive as usual.」

「Yes. It isn’t something you can learn with a little bit of training.」

Sufficiently trained archers still can’t match their speed.

The bow cavalry are hitting the enemy with pinpoint precision and doing so on horses racing at top speeds.

Enemy cavalry fall over amusingly like toys.

Mounted troops are large in size as it is and make for perfect targets.

The enemy waiting with crossbows can do nothing except crumble when the bow cavalry are pelting them with composite bows outside their range.

「All troops, take up your sword! Charge!」

At Luna’s command, the bow cavalry stow away their bows and draw their swords.

They can quickly change into skilled light cavalry for a fight at close quarters.

「They’re clashing!」

They’re clashing, but not exactly clashing.

The lightly armored bow cavalry are not directly engaging the enemy, they’re running past and cutting down the enemy as they go.

The enemy spear cavalry intersect with the sword-wielding bow cavalry.

Piercing metal sounds and neighing, as well as screaming, soon follow.

「Normally, spears would be the stronger of the two.」

「With how messed up their formation is, they can’t leverage their longer reach. The difficulty of manipulating weapons with that length is actually more outstanding.」

As Celia described, the enemy cavalry wanted to finish off the bow cavalry with a collective thrust, however each individual bow cavalry have more flexibility to change direction, making it hard for the enemy to deal with.

Spear cavalry usually want to line up in a horizontal formation, but with allies to the right and left either late or unable to get in position, many of them end up isolated.

They quickly get finished off by the bow cavalry.

That was when a rather peculiar scene could be seen.

「What is that?」

「That’s...... no, it can’t be.」

A strange rider near Luna is sweeping away any enemies aiming for the commander.

The strange part is the rider is not doing the sweeping, it’s the horse―― or rather, the lizard.

「Pochi, standing up and using your arms is against the rules. Ooh, you’re also using your tail.」

「Their concentrated attacks don’t seem to be effective. The spears are all breaking.」

When surrounded, Pochi would spread its wings and roar, causing the horses to run away.

Pochi looks to be about 5 meters when standing up and its roar is loud enough that I can feel the vibrations in my stomach from all the way over here.

Let’s look at the big picture now.

「The bow cavalry have successfully broken through the center! And the crossbows...... can’t get a good shot!」

The cavalry with crossbows were being targeted heavily so their formation was in the most disorder and they could not utilize the opportunity to shoot from the flanks.

Sporadic bolts would fly, although that is far from enough to stop the bow cavalry.

「Switch to bows, and loose!」

After running past the enemy, the bow cavalry take out their bows again and fire while facing backwards on their horses.

Arrows poured down on the heads of the enemy from the opposite direction and I can see how badly disorganized their ranks are from where I am.

That should eliminate the left wing’s fighting strength.

Subsequently, the royal army cavalry led by Myla charge from the right wing.

Cavalry equipped with spears make up both of our main forces with a few heavy cavalry leading the charge.

「We are the royal army. We can’t fall behind another lord’s personal army!」

「A fight between cavalry is the flower of battle, let us proudly decorate this field.」

I sense a burning spirit within the commanders of the royal army.

「We won’t allow ourselves to be defeated here!」

「They don’t have any unusual soldiers! Meet them head-on and crush them!」

The enemy on the right wing isn’t scared, instead their fighting spirit increases.

Compared to the acute triangle formation of our allies, the enemy is in a wide triangle almost nearing a horizontal line.

「They’re colliding!」

This time they’re colliding for real.

Both sides charge in with spears and swords.

Crumpling metal and booming thuds from weapons making contact echoed incomparably louder than when the bow cavalry charged in earlier.

「Gyaaaah!」

「Uooooh!」

I can hear the thunderous sounds of spears punching holes in shields, helmets being squashed, armored horses bumping into other armored horses...... adding to that is a terrifying chorus of deathroes.

「The battle is...... swinging back and forth!」

Celia shouts grimly.

Both sides suffer similar losses and experience the same amount of disorder.

Since they collided head-on, their momentum gets stopped almost immediately and both sides are left to fight on horseback.

It isn’t easy to deal significant damage as either side possesses durable shields and armor.

「Perhaps it’s my turn.」

I draw my longsword.

「No, it’s unnecessary.」

Leopolt promptly raises his hand.

That acts as the signal for the carriages slightly to the rear of the battlefield―― the chariots, to launch their pre-loaded ballistae.

Hey, what am I going to do with my sword then?

「Guwah, what the-?」

「Ballisate? Impossible, when did they have time to―― gyaaah!」

It wasn’t hard to see how much the 80 chariots rattled the enemy.

The large bolts tore through their shields and armor like paper.

With such tremendous power, bolts easily took heads off bodies and impaled both horse and rider together. It was an effective tool to pressure the enemy both physically and psychologically.

The chariots boasted long range as well, so it wasn’t something the enemies could stop while engaging our allies.

Even if they got close, the chariots had blades attached to the wheels and soldiers holding crossbows riding on it. Th1s chapter is updated by n)ovel/\bin/\

Slowly, but surely, the tides of battle tilt in our favor.

「The cavalry which moved back to the rear are getting ready to charge again.」

「That’s a fine plan.」

Allied cavalry gather where Celia and Leopolt point to.

Myla had gradually extracted some forces from the front line melee and formed a new group.

That squad organized itself in the rear and charged towards the chaos.

Despite the small number of soldiers who have stopped moving, they cannot stop horses with enough momentum built up.

「R-retreat! Fall back for now and reorganize..」

「Those who can’t return to formation, disperse!」

The enemy’s right wing eventually collapses as well.

As a whole, the enemy shifts to the south of the fort, which completely undoes the encirclement.

「I think now the soldiers will come out from the fort―― shall we wait?」

「No, we’ll end it now.」

Leopolt points at a certain spot in the enemy camp.

Located there, in the middle of the fleeing enemies, is a squad supporting both wings.

「That is the enemy headquarters. If you destroy them, they will completely unravel. This is where Lord Hardlett should go.」

「I see.」

Now I unsheathe my longsword and toss away the scabbard.

「Follow me.」

I kick Schwartz to urge him forward.

「Aegir-sama is moving out! Don’t fall behind!」

Celia yells and gets the escort unit to accompany me.

We’re using the familiar triangle array――which is named as such by how sharp the shape of the formation is, and I’m at the very front.

「200 heavy cavalry charging straight at the headquarters!」

「We won’t let them do as they want, intercept them!」

Heavy cavalry rush out from enemy headquarters to greet us.

They’re aiming for me.

My first five opponents are wrapped in thick armor and equipped with standard spears and shields.

「How foolish of you to charge like this!」

Five spearheads point at me.

The cavalry are lined up in a neat row.

Schwartz doesn’t decelerate in the face of those weapons.

Well, I would have put a caterpillar in his ear if he chickened out.

「Let’s go.」

I jump right in the middle of the five units with my longsword raised.

Their spears close in from both sides.

「Hmph!」

My right hand brings down my sword.

It cuts through two of the spears thrust at me and also splits one of the riders in half.

「This side too.」

My shield takes care of the two spears coming from the left.

Both spearheads snap off after crashing into my shield and the broken pieces fly back at the soldiers who thrust them.

「Uwah!」

Their reactions were fast enough to block the shrapnel with their shields, but it didn’t make any difference for me.

When my dragon scale shield, which weighs about the same as an average human, slams into them, they get sent flying like scarecrows made of straw.

Those two get knocked into the other cavalry approaching from the left and all of them wipe out magnificently.

「Wahahahaha!! Skewering time!!」

「Gyaaaah!」

One of the riders who lost his spear was taken out by Irijina from behind.

She really seems to be having fun.

That just leaves the enemy in front.

「My hands are full. Do something about the last one.」

With a displeased neigh, Schwartz fixes his eyes on the enemy and maintains his route.

He doesn’t take his eyes off the spear thrust at him and then takes the attack on his forehead.

Since we’re on the battlefield, Schwartz is wearing his armor and the part covering his forehead is the thickest part.

Other horses would look away and get poked in the eye or neck. This guy has courage if nothing else.

I’ll put some of Nonna’s expensive perfume on his ear when we get back.

「What the-!?」

Seeing the spear bend on contact surprised the enemy soldier.

Schwartz follows up by veering off to the side slightly, pulling his body back and then tackling the enemy horse.

The opposing horse lets out a high-pitched neigh and tumbles to the ground.

As for the rider...... he’s unfortunately under the poor horse.

He’s a squashed frog for sure.

「This is no time to be distracted.」

More enemies come at me.

I adjust my longsword and spear, then shout.

「Those who want to die, bring it on.」

「What bullshit are you spouting, foolhardy warrior!」

I deflect the spear of the heavy cavalry who rushed at me upward and then slice the man in half horizontally from the chest.

「A sole cavalry underestimating us!」

I pierce the chest of the light cavalry who brandished his sword, then toss him up in the air.

「So you’re a famed knight? Let me add you to my collection of achievements!」

The knight hides his body behind the shield while holding his spear out.

I generate more power in my next sword swing, separating the horse’s neck and the man’s upper body all at once.

「HIiih!」

I smash the following man’s head along with his helmet using my shield as he charges while screaming for some reason.

That reminds me, Myla’s often been telling me, “Lord Hardlett is using a shield wrong.” and “It’s not a blunt weapon.”, although I think that’s what makes it so handy.

「Are there any more?」

I take a look at my surroundings.

With perfect timing, the light cavalry I threw up earlier falls back down and hit the ground with a splat.

「Uu......」

「What’s with this guy......」

I see nobody else wants to try me.

Now then, the enemy commander should be here in the headquarters.

The battle will be over once I take him out......

「Argh, you cowards. Get out of my way!」

When I turned around, a knight steps forward.

He looks to be as tall as Mack and I can feel a scruffy aura through his armor.

For some reason, there are lots of metal spikes on his armor.

The horse the man is riding is large and also wearing armor with spikes.

「So you’re next?」

「Next and last opponent you’ll ever face!」

The man points the weapon he shouldered at me.

It’s a morning star and also huge...... this guy really likes his spikes.

「Ooh! It’s Gorilan, the knight!」

「No one can stand against the spiked warrior, Gorilan!」

That guy called Gorilan poses proudly when the other soldiers cheer for him.

Before I knew it, the escort squad has caught up and is making a ring around us like the other enemy soldiers.

They’re practically forcing us to fight.

「Whatever, let’s get this over with.」

If I take too long, the enemy commander might escape.

No matter how I look at him, this guy is all brawn and no brain, not fit to be a commander at all.

「Did you say something, Leopolt?」

「Aegir-sama, Leopolt-san isn’t here!」

Was it just my imagination?

「Enough small talk. Here I go!」

Gorilan begins his attack.

「Hnngooh!」

He launches the iron ball with an unpleasant grunt which I block with my shield.

I was hoping it would bounce back and end the battle.

「Mu......」

My shield was pushed back instead.

He’s stronger than I expected.

「Hmphmph! Hmp hmp hmp!」

Feeling pleased after seeing me falter, he unleashes a consecutive assault, letting out more disgusting grunts with every attack.

「Don’t get cocky.」

I time his fourth strike with an upward motion of my shield.

「Guoh!」

I deflect his morning star and Gorilan staggers.

Now it’s my turn.

「Hup.」

I swing my longsword down from above.

「That’s nothing!」

He brings back his morning star and blocks my attack.

The handle attached to the large lump of iron is made of thick steel so I can’t easily cut it in half.

「Tch.」

I immediately follow up with a horizontal sweep to his torso.

「Not good enough!」

He blocks with the spiked orb.

I can’t smash the steel ball.

「Muhaha! Is that all you’ve got!?」

Blood rises to my head when he provokes me with his scruffy voice.

「......hup.」

「Mugh.」

When I aim at his face, he reacts in time to defend, although the point of my sword takes out a chunk of the armor covering his face.

Blood trickles out from the tip of his nose.

His face is scruffy and ugly like I thought.

Let’s end this with the next attack.

I drop my shield so I can wield my sword with both hands.

My full powered swing aims to cut him and his iron ball in half.

To my surprise, his horse suddenly runs at me.

Schwartz was bracing for my attack and couldn’t defend himself.

Normally, Schwartz would not budge from a little push, even if the other horse was big.

However the spikes on the armor of this guy’s horse stabbed into his belly.

It was slight, but Schwartz lost his balance.

My swing could not be made at a worse timing as the force of my attack amplified what was only a small stumble by Schwartz.

Cheers and shouts come from the onlookers.

「Ooh, the horse gets the credit!」

「Gorihorse is a well-known horse too.」

「Schwartz, what are you doing!?」

He didn’t let the opening slip away.

I was forced to defend in an unstable position.

Even so, I was able to block his morning star with the base of my sword, or so I thought――

「Guh!」

Although I received the impact, one of the spikes hits my left hand.

My excellent armor prevented it from penetrating, but my hand became dumb for a split second and I let go of my sword.

The poor position I defended myself in ruined my chances of a clean battle.

The enemy soldiers cheer and Gorilan roars as he pounds his chest.

I heard Celia scream through all of the noise.

「Uhohoho! This will be the finishing blow!!」

Gorilan pulls his morning star behind his back.

The moment he swings his iron ball down, my right fist sinks into his face.

I certainly felt the impact and that was enough to stop Gorilan.

「A-a punch!?」

「What power...... Gorilan was shaken with a single punch.」

「There isn’t anyone who can match Aegir-sama in raw strength!」

「Bufh......」

Gorilan staggers while blood drips from his nose.

His sturdiness is impressive because I was trying to cave his face in with that punch.

If he carried out his attack through my punch or if I hadn’t carved out the face portion of his armor, I would have been in a bit of trouble.

I let too much blood rush to my head.

I was about to pull out the Dual Crater at my hip, but Schwartz moves before I could do so.

He also seems to be pretty pissed from that attack he took earlier.

After letting out a furious neigh, Schwartz rams his body into Gorilan’s horse.

This time he was prepared to get stabbed by the spikes and didn’t falter.

Gorilan’s rocking back and forth up top throws his horse off balance.

「Hey, hey.」

Schwartz doesn’t stop his attacks there.

He finds a gap in the other horse’s armor and bites down.

The unexpected pain makes the horse step back.

Next, he raises up on his hind legs and launches a front kick with his forelegs.

Schwartz delivers the final blow after seeing the other horse unable to withstand his relentless assault.

He puts his entire weight into his kick and breaks the other horse’s forelegs.

There was a dry cracking like the sound of a twig snapping, and then a pained neigh.

「「「Oooh!」」」

The crowd groans as Gorilan and his horse falls to the ground.

「Uggh...... it isn’t over yet......」

That guy hasn’t let go of his morning star yet.

「Oh, that’s good.」

I would have been left with an unsatisfying feeling if he admitted defeat from that.

I jump off Schwartz and unleash a kick of my own.

Soon after, my fists come flying at his face from the right and left to knock him on his back.

「Guaaah!」

「It’s over.」

When he tries to lift up his head, another kick lands a perfect hit on his face.

Blood squirts on impact from his nose breaking and he lays motionless on the ground.

I didn’t crush his skull so he probably isn’t dead, however the outcome of the battle has been decided.

More importantly, we’re still in the middle of a war so I don’t have any more time to bother with him.

Once the fight was settled, the escort squad resumes their engagement with the enemy.

「We’re going to find the commander.」

I climb back on Schwartz.

「Hold on a little longer. It’ll be over soon.」

I look around as Schwartz is trying to keep a calm face, his ears seem to move unnaturally.

「If this is a category of an independent cavalry unit then the headquarters should be to the rear of the right wing of the stronghold, around there.」

One of the escorts make a suggestion.

Ooh, now that I look, the fancily-dressed cavalry I saw in South Yuguria are lined up there.

That must be it.

「The heavy cavalry protecting the headquarters had to come intercept us. They should be close to unprotected now.」

「If so, we must hurry. Come on.」

This guy knows a lot about the enemy.

He sounds really sarcastic though.

Don’t tell me the soldiers think Leopolt is the commander.

Celia and I, as well as a few escorts rush toward the place thought to be headquarters.

Those fancily-dressed soldiers panic. It was just as I was advised, and their escorts seem to be all gone.

「Hey.」

I give a little greeting before decapitating one of them, making the rest of the enemies stare dumbfoundedly.

「They’ve reached the headquarters!」

「Eei, the 200 men of the fourth company couldn’t stop them!?」

They make a fuss as they draw their swords, however I can tell from their equipment that they probably didn’t expect to have to fight.

I guess that goes without saying for people in headquarters.

「Guwah!」「Gueh!」

Celia and I cut down the headquarters personnel like vegetables.

「How fortunate. Truly.」

The escort who gave me advice came along too.

He took another sword from the enemy and is wielding it along with his own.

Was such a guy always in the escort squad?

His fighting style seems familiar.

All the personnel have either been killed or ran away, leaving one person behind.

「So are you the commander?」

「Indeed...... I am South Yuguria Empire Eighth Army Corps Commander, Menkaura.」

The man draws his sword.

I draw my Dual Crater in response.

Celia and the others read the atmosphere and stay back.

「Here I come.」

The man charges forward with a short shout.

I step sideways to avoid his attack and then chop his head off with one swing.

His head bounces twice on the ground and then the headless body slowly collapses as well.

「The commander is dead. We win.」

「Aegir-sama has taken out the supreme commander! Let it be known!」

The escort unit cry out in victory at Celia’s prompt, followed by the bow cavalry and the royal army.

Our shouts also inform the enemy of what happened.

Both wings are scattering in retreat during the chaos.

「Pursue them and thoroughly el――」

「That’s probably not a good idea.」

Celia’s mouth gets covered by that same escort.

「6000 is too little. There is likely another independent army nearby. If we get overconfident and chase too far, we’ll be the ones who get flanked.」

I see, so it’s better if we join up with the Libatis army in the fort and let our soldiers rest.

Schwartz’s movements are getting somewhat worse too.

Leopolt seems to have the same idea and the royal army is slowly meeting back up with my personal army.

「......what’s the meaning of this, acting like you’re so important.」

Celia confronts the escort squad member.

So he was actually a she.

「You, do you really not know?」

「Hey now, don’t get into a fight. More importantly......」

I gently rub the woman’s shoulder.

「You fight well. You will be rewarded later, but......」

When my hand moves to her ass, I don’t encounter any resistance.

「Don’t you get fired up after battle? If you don’t mind, how about spending a night with me?」

The moment my hand slips into her armor, her helmet gets removed.

「You pervert.」

「Ah!?」

「Sekrit, it’s you.」

No wonder that fighting looked familiar.

「That Myla woman stopped me. That’s why I followed you disguised as a part of the escort unit.」

「...... it looks like stricter control is required.」

Celia’s shoulders drop.

Still, it should have been hard for her to sneak in without the proper armor.

「I approached one of them and used a hole.」

「Wait, what!?」

I shout loudly in surprise.

She seduced a man with her body just so she could follow me...... I appreciate the sentiment, but I can’t help feeling jealous when someone else gets to put their dick in Sekrit.

「Don’t get the wrong idea. I didn’t use my own.」

「What?」

I don’t get it.

「I shoved a few things in his ass, that’s it. It didn’t take long for him to become my loyal dog. Kukuku, I didn’t think such a thick vase would fit though.」

I don’t know who it is, but I’ll reprimand him when I get back.

The gates of the fort open and Libatis soldiers can be seen coming out cheering.

「......it’s convenient for us that they stayed there until everything was over.」

Celia looks troubled.

「Their mission was to protect the fort. It’s good that they aren’t stupid enough to rush out recklessly.」

I put Celia on my shoulders and head to the fort.

「For that, we can enjoy our share of the fort’s food and drinks tonight.」

We have to get the infantry in the rearguard to join up too.

Resting in the fort is much safer than out in the field.

In any case, this is our first win and a good sign of things to come.

――Night. Fort’s Stable.

「Your belly got gouged a little. If I put some ointment on it and you rest, it’ll heal in no time.」

I slap Schwartz’s ass.

He snorts back at me.

「Man, you’re not cute at all. Here, have an apple.」

I toss the fruit into his mouth.

Schwartz munches on it without looking my way.

It was covered in honey so my hand is sticky.

「――checking on your horse? How nice of you.」

It’s Sekrit.

「It would be troublesome if I lost his legs.」

I throw him another apple.

It made a bump sound when it hits his head and then I hear the noisy crunches as he eats.

「I see.」

Sekrit takes a bite of an apple before tossing it to Schwartz.

The speed at which he eats that one is clearly faster.

So he prefers her half-eaten one over the ones I prepared? What an ungrateful and perverted horse.

「Give me a reward too.」

Sekrit pulls down my pants.

「Hey, all of a sudden?」

「You’re saying that when you’re this hard already?」

I can’t help it.

It always gets hard after battle and it’ll stick out of my pants if I’m not careful.

「You damn sex beast.」

Sekrit opens her mouth and swallows my rod.

「Hey, it’s dirty.」

I haven’t bathed yet.

There was a well in the fort, which the soldiers fought over to drink from.

I’m not mean enough to casually jump in there while they’re doing so.

「Yeah, it’s pretty filthy...... stinks too. I guess that’s natural if you didn’t wash it for days.」

Sekrit licks from the head of my dick to the base, all the while badmouthing me.

She’s using her tongue to thoroughly clean me.

That thoughtfulness makes me even bigger and harder.

At this size, I have to cum at least once before I can fit it in my pants again.

「There, it’s cleaned up.」

Sekrit looks up at me when she’s finished and then puts her hands on the wall of the stable.

I don’t say anything and grab her waist.

「「Jiii.」」

That was when I felt somebody staring. When I turned around, Myla and Celia were peeking around the corner.

「Tch.」

Sekrit clicks her tongue.

「I won’t let you be the only one who does it.」

「We’re going to join too.」

Is this the development where the four of us does it together?

Fufufu, I’m sure hearing us have sex all night long will help Schwartz heal faster.

「We’re a little sweaty too......」

「At least the most important parts have been wiped clean......」

The two of them swiftly strip.

It’s okay to be a little sweaty, it gets me going.

「Wait! I’m joining in too!」

Irijina’s here too.

「I haven’t bathed yet, but please make love to me too!」

Irijina throws her clothes off...... and then a whole bunch of smells mixed with sweat waft into the air.

「Uwah! You really stink!」

「You didn’t wash at all since you left from Trisnia, did you!?」

「......tch.」

Irijina always had a strong body odor to begin with.

Adding on to the fact she hasn’t let loose in a real battle in so long, she ran extra hard this time.

「It’s all fine, once I fuck all of you so much and get all of you drenched and sticky, you won’t be able to tell.」

That night, we had an intense session in the stables.

I don’t know if it because of the smell or being in an enhanced state of arousal after an invigorating battle, but it was rougher than usual.

By the way, the perverted horse was in a bad mood the next day.

I made sure to have him in mind when I did it, how ungrateful can he get.

Protagonist: Aegir Hardlett. 24 years old. Winter. Wartime.

Libatis Reinforcement Army Supreme Commander

Subordinate Squad – All members: Approx. 19 000 men.

Goldonia Royal Army – Seventh Division Army Corps

Infantry: 11, 000

Archers: 2000

Cavalry: 1750

Hardlett Army

Bow Cavalry: 3900

Escort: 190

Chariots: 80

(including vacancies left by wounded)

Subordinates: Leopolt (chief staff officer), Celia (adjutant), Myla (commander), Irijina (commander), Luna (bow cavalry commander)

Gido (escort unit), Pipi (special cavalry), Pochi (war lizard), Marta (assistant)

Current Location: West Tortoent, Fort

Achievements: Defeated siege army