Episode 27
* * *
“Who is the strongest among those you have?”
Young Dale drew the knight’s sword that hung askew on his sword belt. The blade at the tip of the sword shone a cold, frosty glare in the pouring sunlight.
The crux of this battle lies in the clash between the cavalry forces of the two great lords… the Black Duke and the Holy Swordsman.
This does not mean, however, that the forces of the two barons were insignificant.
“Have you called, Your Majesty?”
At Dale’s call, a tall knight strode forward and answered.
The knight who guards the Baron’s closest side. There is a faint smell of alcohol coming from his mouth.
“… … .”
Dale didn’t answer right away.
Dale dismounts from his horse and swings his sword around, slamming it into the ground.
At the same time, the hem of Dale’s coat began to flutter tangledly.
“Your Majesty the Green Belt must be.”
To be exact, it is an artifact that resembles a black surcoat, the ‘Shadow Cloak’.
“You may be doubting my abilities.”
Dale continued, his cloak fluttering.
“How can such an important battle be entrusted to a ten-year-old child without any prior consultation?”
“That, that… … .”
Baron Greenbelt couldn’t hide his bewilderment at the unexpected words and trailed off. It was the point.
“But I too doubt the capabilities of the soldiers you command.”
Dale spat out coldly. A provocation that bordered on insult, depending on how you heard it.
“There is no surer way to dispel each other’s suspicions.”
Sreung!
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
As if responding to the provocation, the knight guarding the Baron drew his sword.
“I, Haberk, will prove the sword of the Baron family with the honor of a knight!”
“Okay, Sir Harveck.”
Dale nodded blandly.
Instant showdown.
Soon, the aura created through the mind method spread throughout Lord Harvek’s danjeon.
In any case, it is the most certain evidence that he is giving his all as a knight.
Dale, too, created a flow of magical energy within his body by rotating the circle of his heart.
Although it is not comparable to that of the knights, it is not impossible for the wizards to ‘strengthen their bodies with the power of mana’. Above all, Dale’s beloved sword was not a knight’s sword that was stuck in the ground.
“You’ve heard about my sword, right?”
“Haha! I know a lot about Confucius’ ‘strange sword’.”
Dale asked just in case, and Lord Harveck answered as if there was nothing to worry about.
‘Do you have any faith in anything?’
Dale tilted his head for a moment at the sight of such a confident figure.
However, it is nothing new that Dale was far from being an ‘orthodox knight’ in the first place.
‘It’s better now. I can give it my all with peace of mind.’
Taat!
The showdown began, and it was Lord Harveck who kicked the ground first.
It was fast. However, it was not at the level where the power of Aura could be imbued into the blade. No, in the first place, how many knights of that level would there be on the entire continent?
Among the knights under Dale’s command, only a very small number of high-ranking knights are capable of wielding the ‘Auror Blade’.
And even if they could use the Aura Blade, the image of a Sword Master slaughtering enemies one-on-one on the battlefield is closer to the vain ‘literature of knights’ in this world. The true power of the knights is not a single Aura Blade, but the tactical destructive power that comes from thorough organization.
But the best way to see that thorough organization is, in the end, through the individual knights’ brute force.
Kaang!
The strike of Lord Harvek swinging in front of his nose was blocked by the ‘Shadow Blade’ rising from under Dale’s feet.
Even though it was a mock match, the opponent was giving it his all. So Dale, in order to respond, sharpened his sword.
A sword that is used to thoroughly take away the opponent’s life.
“… … !”
Sir Haberk hastily parried Dale’s savage blade, and shadows stirred beneath Dale’s feet once again. A dozen shadow blades formed along the shadow of the cloak and began to orbit Dale.
A blade of darkness that sweeps without being restricted by the size and shape of the sword or the number of hilts.
Even though it is a theoretical story that can only be realized if the user’s capabilities are supported, it was by no means an empty theory to Dale.
Dale continued to attack unilaterally, thinking of it as someone else’s business.
‘The skills are just okay.’
In the first place, how much could one expect from a mere knight of the Baronial Territory?
‘What on earth do you believe in… … .’
In contrast to Dale, who always maintains his cool.
‘This can’t be happening!’
Under the baptism of shadow blades rushing in from all directions, Lord Harveck’s movements became increasingly restless.
I had no intention of letting my guard down just because she was just a ten-year-old child. I wasn’t letting my guard down. However, no matter how hard I tried with the power of Aura, I couldn’t think that there was a ‘possibility of defeat’ against a ten-year-old child.
‘That can’t be happening!’
A knight who exerts all his power through the power of aura is on the defensive in a duel of pure swords.
Even if it was an ominous sword from the artifact of darkness, how could I, who had spent my entire life sharpening my sword, be overwhelmed by a ‘sword’ by a mere ten-year-old child!
Wasn’t the opponent at best a ‘ten-year-old child’?
It was impossible.
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──Even though I neglect my training and spend my days intoxicated with reckless drinking.
──Even if you skipped swordsmanship training this morning and had a few drinks with your subordinates.
In any case, by Lord Harveck’s standards, it was ‘impossible’.
Phew!
‘uh?’
And then an unexpected sound was heard.
“Ahhhh!”
With an unexpected scream.
“Ahhh, ahhhh!”
“Ha, Sir Harveck!”
Baron Greenbelt raised his voice in astonishment.
‘uh?’
Seeing that sight, Dale had to doubt his own eyes again. Because he couldn’t believe it even after seeing it.
Dale’s ‘Shadow Blade’ tore through Lord Harvek’s shoulder plate and shoulder blade, protruding beyond it.
‘no.’
Among those led by Baron Greenbelt, the so-called ‘strongest knight’ was defeated after only being able to counter a few attacks.
‘You can’t avoid this? Really?’
Not only that, but with injuries that made it impossible to continue fighting, the knight’s name was added to the shame and screams.
It is truly an unbelievable sight. Yet, I cannot help but believe it.
“… … Is this true?”
“It was so ridiculous,” Dale muttered.
Even though I didn’t have high expectations, I never thought it would be this bad.
* * *
“Oh, Prince Dale!”
Leaving the ‘strongest knight’ behind, who could no longer continue the battle.
“What on earth is going on!”
Baron Greenbelt raised his voice in astonishment.
“In the run-up to such an important battle, one of our Baron’s elite knights became incapacitated!”
As if to reprimand Dale’s actions.
‘I’m going to turn around.’
To be honest, it was something even Dale didn’t expect.
No matter what, I never thought that a proper knight who uses the Auror method would be destroyed without being able to handle something like this.
“Even if you are Confucius, this kind of behavior… …!”
It was just then.
“Who dares to raise your voice in front of me!”
One of the pitch-black knights assisting Dale opened his mouth in an angry voice.
He swore endless loyalty to the eldest son of the Duke’s family, and gathered five hundred knights under his command.
The Night Raven Knights, the pride of the Duke of Saxony, the greatest prince in the North.
“Hee, heeeek!”
The earth-shaking roar startled Baron Greenbelt and he fell on his butt.
Dale wordlessly extended his arm and stopped his knights.
“Greenbelt Ball.”
After stopping him, Dale opened his mouth coldly.
“Don’t you understand your situation right now?”
Towards the Baron Greenbelt, who was quick to doubt his own abilities, in a cold voice without even a shred of emotion.
“Have you trusted in the name of our Saxon family and watched your sword rust and fall out like this, sucking your thumb?”
There was not a trace of the gentleness of the past in his voice.
“That, that… … .”
“Is this the ‘strongest knight’ you boast about, who is defeated so helplessly in front of a mere ten-year-old?”
Dale continues, his voice bordering on self-mockery.
Rather, it is understandable that Dale’s defeat was due to the ‘difference in talent’. However, Sir Harveck’s defeat was by no means a defeat due to his talent with the sword alone.
Dale could tell because he had been honed in combat experience throughout his life.
“We, the House of Saxony, will not hesitate to be a shield for our loyal house.”
A flash of color came over the Baron Greenbelt’s face, but Dale continued speaking in a calm, emotionless voice.
“But that is no reason for you to neglect your duties as lord of this land.”
“… … !”
“Therefore, until the battle approaches, the knights of our duke’s house will sharpen your swords.”
With five hundred knights of Saxony behind him, Dale opened his mouth.
“So, put your head in it right now.”
In front of him, there were not many decisions that a single lord and his ragtag band of knights could make.
* * *
That night, in the Baron’s bedroom.
‘There is no answer.’
That was Dale’s first impression as he inspected the troops under Baron Greenbelt.
‘… … I was a frog in a well.’
And then you realize how miserable the world outside the well is.
How strict and high standards he had grown up with.
It is not the end just because you have been knighted and mastered the Auror method. Just as Dale clashes swords with the knights of Saxony every morning at the duke’s castle, it is a knight’s duty to never slack off in training and to constantly sharpen his sword.
However, not all knights in the North can be like the knights of the Duke of Saxony.
‘Even so, I never thought it would be this bad.’
This was not a comment on Lord Harveck alone. The rest of the knights were no exception. They were all a ragtag bunch who were ashamed of the name of knight.
There were even reports that they were forming a gang, skipping practice every day, and indulging in drinking and partying.
There is no need to even mention the conscripted soldiers made up of serfs from the fiefdoms.
‘An unexpected ambush has appeared.’
Even if the core of this battle is the cavalry power of the two great nobles, you can’t just abandon all of the baronial forces. After thinking about it that far, you soon realize it.
This is exactly what the opponent is trying to do. At least, the Holy Sword Master must have known the actual state of this territory in advance and pointed to the Green Belt Baronial Territory.
Under the name of the North, it targets the ‘weakest link’.
The trap of the Holy Sword.
‘I guess that’s how it’s going to turn out.’
That’s what war is all about. The enemy is never stupid. Before the clash even begins, there are plots and maneuvers, and you always end up facing unintended situations.
At least for Dale, who had been through a lot, this was nothing new.
