The sunset glow illuminated the heavens with streaks of red. There were layers upon layers of gloomy, blazing clouds and in the vast, distant sky, the splendid blood-red color seemed to stretch on infinitely.
The sky and the brutal rays of sunset were descending upon the land. When the light of the sky settled unto the land, the snow plains appeared to have ignited! The earth absorbed the last of the light and warmth of day through its own method. However, the earth was hesitant, for the remnants of light from the setting sun wielded a powerful momentum. The earth started to tremble and the snow danced in the breeze. The small, narrow plains in front of Saijo Mountain appeared to shrink continuously and aggregate.
Finally, urgent drumbeats sounded in the snow plains and four ink-black horse hooves darted through the withering grass! Soon, more crowded and urgent sounds of horse hooves rumbled in succession. Countless horses stampeded through the withering grass and innumerable shouts coalesced to form a knife which point had been sharpened.
"Andrew Haila!"
The Narcissus knights used a volume as majestic as the mountains and oceans to greet the enemies who were fast drawing closer. The knights at the front lines already had their nearly three-meters-long lances out.
The commander of the Red Tiger Cavalry observed the enemy's lineup attentively at the front and even caught Division commander Murat gesturing towards him while galloping.
"Converge at the very front of the defensive line, rangers break off to the rear, battle cavalry converge with the center's heavy armored team!" The flag signals of the commander clearly communicated the battlefield orders.
Beneath the heavens, the Red Tigers were like a layer of clouds dancing among the mist, zipping past with exceptional speed. The formation of the knights was altering and during the cavalry's charging process, this was an extremely dangerous thing! If they were too close to their foes in the middle of changing formation, then without being able to completely organize themselves, the knights would be caught up in a state of confusion. If during the altering of formation, the distance was too far from their enemies, then the cavalry of the enemies could carry out appropriate adjustments to counter the formation.
However, the Red Tiger Cavalry commander, Major General Arcan the paladin would certainly not make that kind of mistake. When he had commanded the Red Tigers to gallop on to the battlefield, most of the knights in the current group following him to charge towards their foes had not even been born yet!
The Teutonic Knights across the battlefield possessed the military strength of an entire corps. They spread out a Front of four hundred horses on the front lines. There was only one outcome for the collision between the Front formed by the four hundred war horses and the Front of the Narcissus knights composed of sixty war horses, which was, groups of Narcissus knights would be separated and surrounded by the advantageous enemies!
At the very final minute before the charge reached the peak of their speed, Division commander Murat and Major General Arcan decisively passed down the order to converge the front lines and for the knights on the left to continue merging in and shrink their array. When the cavalry of the front lines had arrived at the peak of their charge, the Red Tigers had already readjusted their Front into a thirty-horse formation in the shape of a rhinoceros horn! These ferocious beasts from the mainland of Feru could destroy anything that hindered its advance effortlessly!
The sound of horse hooves blended into one. The Narcissus knights calmed down; they matched the tremble of the warhorses when they galloped while warily regulating their breathing frequency. White fog continued to puff out from the noses and mouths of the warhorses and knights. The Narcissus warriors had never been subjected to such disgrace. During the assembly of the battlefield, His Imperial Highness Prince allowed everyone to go relieve themselves and then placed a tattered cloth dipped in urine into their helmets.
Poison Doctor Percy stood at the position facing the battlefield in the Casualty Assembly Point at the peak of Saijo Mountain. His companions were giving it their all in certain matters; this doctor who was proficient in using poison was not a soldier, but at that moment valor was ignited in him and it surged and coursed through him.
"May the smoke bombs manufactured in Narcissus County bring good fortune to my friends!" Percy drew a gesture of prayer to the God of Light at his chest.
The Poison Doctor rapped on the head of his assistant; the battlefield had drawn the attention of all the wounded and the military medics.
"He won't make it!" Percy pointed at a warrior covered all over by slash wounds, "Next!"
"Next!" with his bowstring, Major Wellington Steinberger used his bleeding finger to release an arrow once again! He was roaming around the outermost edge of the battle group. In the attack, he had successfully snatched away the lives of four Teutonic knights' battlefield commanders.
"Next is that chap that is dressed like a mirror!" Wellington gritted his teeth and tolerated it, his bowstring had already struck the bone of his finger, but this pain was indeed nothing! Focus on the opponent's movement and pace his warhorse's movement frequency with the rhythm of his opponent's footfalls. Feel the rise and fall of the opponent, identify the position of the opponent's neck, feel the wind and tune in to the peaceful soul among ten thousands of stampeding horses!
The delicately feathered arrow shot through the exchanged rain of arrows from the rangers of both sides. In the blink of an eye, the noiseless long arrow had vanished into the cavalry group of the opponent. Among the Teutonic Knights, a General clad in silver armor inlaid with gold rolled off his horse and his figure instantly disappeared among the smoke and dust kicked up by the horse hooves!
The command flag of the Red Tigers was suddenly put away and a great knight sword that glinted with a red radiance replaced it. A hundred meters from the enemy Front! Ninety meters!
Major General Arcan brandished his sword to the back and suddenly thrust it forwards!
"Andrew Haila!"
The group of Narcissus knights gave off their last cry on the battlefield!
On the snow plains in front of Saijo Mountains littered with fire beacons and gruesome corpses, the two most valiant cavalries of Westland clashed violently against each other!
The clash of swords induced mesmerizing sparks. The collision of the warhorses stimulated the knights to let out heart-wrenching cries! The group of brave Titan warriors quickly dashed into the enemy's army group. Narcissus knights continued to fall and the bodies of the enemies littered the entire attack route! The Fierce Tiger Flag of Narcissus danced and fluttered among the group of Teutonic knights! The rank of war commanders and brave warriors at the front lines continued to hack away at the enemies. The enemies were knocked off their horses, sent flying, had their helmets split open and were thrown into hell! Despite the Narcissus knights noticing that their comrade-in-arms beside them changing repeatedly, they still pressed forward, using their lives to fill in the gaps left by their comrades and their breastplates to resist their enemy's weapons! It was as if the Narcissus knights were in a machine that harvested lives, scraped and knocked around, the components that made up the Red Tigers were delivered towards a limitless battlefield of massacre on a conveyer belt that continued to project carnage!
The heavy armored soldiers of Narcissus thrust out their spears and the enemies who were pierced by the steel still maintained their dash. Having succeeded in one strike, the heavy armored knight abandoned the spear and pulled out a sword! There were all veterans who had experienced hundreds of wars; no one attempted to pull out a weapon from an enemy's body during an assault. That would cause the upcoming enemies to strike them off their horses or their comrade-in-arms coming up from behind them to end up trampling on them.
Compared to the rhinoceros horn at the front lines, the Narcissus battle knights at the two wings had the toughest time attacking! Their enemies were ripped apart by the rhinoceros horn. They could only do their best to intercept the left and right wings of the Narcissus group. The brave battle knights continued to wield their bladed weapons and block the oncoming foes! The enemies were innumerable and it was an endless task of killing them! When a battle knight successful hacked down an enemy, the enemy that came charging next would end his life before he had time to withdraw his sword!
The ranks of rangers followed closely behind the heavily armored team. The archers on the horses continued to shoot their arrows in all directions. Although the cover provided by their battle companions was progressively dwindling, they still strictly maintained their formation! One of the enemy's cavalry finally took out the last of the group of rangers. In order not to provide the opportunity for the enemy to outflank them, the ranks, under the lead of their commander, used their mild dignity and agile bodies to charge towards the periphery. This process was the overture of their deaths because the Teutonic knights gave chase, intercepted and hunted them, but this group that was merely left with only a few people already managed to distract the enemy's force to outflank.
Oscar's left shoulder had an iron arrow embedded in it while his right abdomen had a copper arrow protruding out from it. There was a breach in the armor at his chest and blood was flowing out of it, leaving a captivating brilliance on the black armor! The machete was severely damaged, but this did not stop Oscar from hacking away. A wave of excruciating pain came from his thigh and Oscar dared not ascertain whether his limb was still intact! He did not even have the time to inspect. The machete arced into a crescent moon. Moonlight lit up his head and arms and brought out the vivid colors of the afterglow!
"I need to do my business!" the pressure at his anus and the cramping pain of his abdomen made His Imperial Highness Prince, being incapable of tolerating it anymore, bellow out. However, perhaps his knights had misunderstood, for all around the prince, tumultuous cheers of "Andrew Haila" rang out!
The scene unfurled into an open space! A serene snow plain emerged before the eyes of the warriors! The Narcissus knights charged out! They continued the legend of the undefeated God chosen warriors! With their most tenacious struggle, they tore apart the Front made up of the entire cavalry corps of Deiss Kingdom's most elite Teutonic Knights.
Marshal Veron Blundindt glanced to the front and then to the back. Before the commander of the strike, only the remnants of a defeated first and fourth corps of the Kingdom that was part of the four thousand-strong phalanx were left while behind the Marshal, there was nothing left. A group of soldiers who had lost their will to fight in a lax formation was the Marshal's last line of defense.
Oscar adjusted the speed of his Raytheon. If it weren't for this brute's reckless speeding, he would not have procured such severe injuries. The Narcissus knights who had charged out of the heavy encirclement flanked both sides of the black gigantic horse to form a unit! Major General Arcan, with his whole body drenched in blood, rushed to the young prince's side. The command flag of the Red Tigers had been sliced by the enemies but the paladin still raised it high above!
Being confronted with the enemy's last line of defense, the Narcissus knights roared and once again spread out their front lines.
169 men! The 2136 Narcissus knights who had launched the assault were only left with numbers that could not even make up a company when they charged out from the group of enemies! But this did not signify that the Red Tiger's organizational structure was scattered! Kamille had all the battle knights on both flanks remain on the battlefield to suppress the enemy's cavalry. Shaw Shorenstein commanded the sole remaining Ranger Company to continue contending against the enemies. Théleau Kleiner, the commander of the Red Tiger Heavy Cavalry was already not in the line up; his helmet was cleaved open by a saber. However, by an order of the commander made before the battle, a small squad of the heavy cavalry group still remained!
Although the group of Narcissus knights only had 169 men left, they were the most elite survivors of the assault! These 169 men bore the hopes of the Narcissus knights, the unfettered imagination of the Andrews and the glory and belief of the God-chosen Warriors!
The 169 knights formed the last assault Front. Eighty horses made up the front and another eighty horses took up the rear! Positioned in the middle of the formation were the nine generals that led the Knights in the charge to their deaths, their victory and their glory!
His Imperial Highness Prince O'Neil Andrew Morisette's machete reflected the blazing sunset. His blood and the Raytheon's sweat had blended together! The Lieutenant General was spitting saliva, dreading that he himself had no clue what he was shouting about. Lieutenant General Abassia had another new wound on his face. The coagulated blood had closed one of his eyes, but the single-arm General raised his sword. He was incapable of wiping it and more so did not care about these things. As for Lieutenant General Endorph Diaphise, he knew that he had forever lost the organizational structure of four groups under the First independent brigade, but the surviving group had captured the flag of Diess Kingdom's First and Fourth Cavalry Corps while they were wiping out the battlefield. This itself was sufficient for him to brag for a while before the God of Light!
Major General Murat Bedoya did not have any thoughts but continued to scan the battlefield. The division commander of the Red Tigers surveyed the overall battlefield and at a region not far from the battlefront, a group of Teutonic knights had started to pursue and attack while the other men were cleaning up the rear guards of the Red Tigers that remained.
Major General Arcan's paladin medal was glistening under the rising blaze of the sunset. The tattered military flag was held firmly in his hand; this was the final assault! He hugged the military flag close to his heart and took out a sword that had yet to be unsheathed.
As for Brigadier General Rabiel Tuonnes, to be frank, being an infantry commander, his horsemanship was really less than impressive. This General had lost all his soldiers in the counter and final assault! And this was probably why the lone commander did not drop out all this while.
Colonel Kamille Rayen, the paladin who had always followed the young prince, pursed his lips. However, it could be heard that he was reciting a religious chant under his breath. May God high up in heaven, grant your warriors eternal peace!
Colonel Shaw Shorenstein twisted his head around and a warm, bloodied tear fell and followed the blasting wind against his ear to fly towards the battlefield behind him. Just a while ago, he'd seen his group flag disappear among the glare of the weapons.
The skin and flesh of Major Wellington Steinberger's fingers were split open and a length of bone was showing, but he did not seem to care. The archer flung his empty quiver down and slung the last quiver filled with feathered arrows onto his waist.
The soldiers of the Red Tigers heard the mournful cries of the Deiss infantry group; the opponent had four of the thousand-men groups! On the other hand, the Red Tigers only had a meager 169 beaten men. How was this war going to carry on?
The cavalry commander once again gave his orders.
Colonel Shaw Shorenstein immediately ignited a flame and the ranger soldiers in the party pulled on their bowstrings in succession. When they were dashing past close to the commander one after another, the pointed arrowheads were already starting to emit thick smoke.
Although the Rangers had sacrificed a lot of knights who carried smoking arrowheads, in their final hour, the survivors still managed to accomplish their heavy responsibility of shrouding the battlefield in smoke. The rangers shot the arrows into the second thousand-men group on the left and soon, the white smoke that pierced their noses, followed the course of the Northwestern wind to drift into both the groups on the right.
The panicked Deiss infantries coughed violently. They cast away their shields and weapons and slipped out of the mist in a flurry, scattering towards both sides of the battlefield.
Just when the Narcissus knights were heaved a huge sigh of relief, the Deiss archers positioned at the rear of the Front finally sent out a horde of arrows their way. The knights who were already incapable of altering their formation could only raise their shields, but at that moment, the Narcissus knights who had thrown away their shields in order to allow themselves to more speed could only shut their eyes. Most of them were shot down from their horses and only a lucky few suffered minimal injuries or had charged out of the range of the arrows.
Oscar shouted orders to his Raytheon loudly. The hail of arrows that came their way caused the Raytheon, whose chest muscle was already torn open, to once again suffer grave injuries. The huge stallion broke into a gallop in a frantic rage. Despite it not being clear about what the white smoke in front of it was, it still charged into it without a second thought!
Oscar's machete was hacking away in the direction where the moans were coming from in the smoke. The Raytheon's chest, which had four arrows embedded in it, still managed to knock countless bodies obstructing its path away. Although the initial preparation allowed Oscar to repel the stench of the smoke, his eyes were still irritated by it and were aching.
Ola! His machete swiped across the last infantry's throat and Oscar realized that he was inside the pitch-black forest!
Marshal Veron Blundindt gave a cry of long live the Kingdom before he raised the saber in his hand and took the initiative to charge towards the Narcissus war General who was dashing past the Infantry Army Group.
The white-haired old geezer! Oscar waved his machete but his left hand instead brushed against his chest.
Soldier against soldier! General against General! The groups of both sides finally came face to face! Each man was searching for a target to fight and each person was brandishing a weapon that gave off a menacing glint!
The military campaign, having reached this point, was no longer about victory or defeat, the important thing was their spirit! How they handled the massacre, confronted the reek of blood and welcomed glory!
A crisp, sweet sounding rumbling suddenly traveled out from the forest! The "Short club" in the Titan prince's hand actually emitted smoke and fire! Marshal Veron Blundindt who was about to come head on with the young lad who had forced him into dire straits, spread his arms. His saber was grasped loosely in his hand. Seeing the bloody hole in the enemy supreme commander's helmet, he grinned in satisfaction. Under the astonished cries from the knights of Deiss, the commander of the people of Titan slashed his machete!
A black and a red fine steed brushed past each other. The helmet with an eagle crest engraved on it tumbled to the ground and a head covered with wrinkles and white hair flew up into the sky!
The Deiss let out an anguished, earth-shaking roar and braced their weapons before the black horse. A Deiss soldier who had lost an arm suddenly burst through the forest and with the spear in his only hand, pierced viciously through the black creature's abdomen! The Raytheon reared up and let out a tragic cry!
Infuriated and exasperated, Oscar used his machete to slice across the soldier who had lost an arm, but a wave of excruciating pain came from his abdomen! The young prince realized in bewilderment that countless Deiss warriors were surrounding him and the lethal weapon pierced into his abdomen was a spear with a bloodletting trough!
Holding fast onto the head of the spear, Oscar leaped off his horse. He chopped off part of the spear shaft, hacked and flipped over warriors, used the greatsword on his back to block a heavy blow and rolled to evade a battle-ax. Being faced with attacks from all sides, the prince who was enduring the pain still had no fear in the slightest. He made a mental note of the sound of the wind being sliced to the left and distinguished the figures that were attempting to draw closer to him.
The point of the machete swung upwards and taking the opportunity, Oscar left the lethal weapon in the body of a Deiss warrior! The long sword was blocked by a shield. Oscar gritted his teeth and plucked out the point of the spear embedded in his abdomen then pierced it through his opponent's eyes without mercy. At that moment, a saber finally impaled his back. Oscar threw himself backward abruptly and slammed into the arms of his attacker. Without even having to look, his long sword had pierced into his attacker's abdomen! Feeling his attacker's last twitch and being confronted by a huge crowd of enemies, Oscar twisted the long sword in his hand! The contents of his attacker's abdomen were churned into mush! The prince spat out bloody spit and he stretched out his hand to block the bloody hole made by the spear.
"Come on!"
Being taunted by the opponent, the soldiers of Deiss let out a howl and waved all sorts of weapons at the people of Titan's commander.
Not many knights were left in the group of Red Tigers who were following the command flag. They charged and killed dauntlessly in the woods, but there was no end to the enemies! Murat stabbed one of the opponent knights and used this brief interval to search the battlefield. Wretched Raytheon! Where have you taken My Highness?
A resonant neigh suddenly sounded from behind the Deiss! Just when the surrounding warriors spun their heads around in astonishment, the sunset filled sky darkened abruptly. An enraged vicious beast with arrows protruding from its chest and its whole body soaked in blood reared its forefoot. Both the hooves that were as huge as two dinner plates smashed down upon the crowd that was overwhelmed by horror!
With one strike, the warriors of Deiss were scattered on the ground. The Raytheon stepped over the crowd and snorted in anger while using its body to hide its master who was on the verge of collapse!
Oscar grabbed onto the Raytheon's brown mane and held up his body with difficulty. The hilt of his long sword was on the snowy ground and beside his feet was a puddle of blood that had trickled down from his body.
The Deiss again swarmed over. The Raytheon raised its hind legs swiftly and with a dull thud, the two knights who died with one strike tumbled back into the crowd. Looking at the spears that were getting closer to it by the minute, the Raytheon rubbed intimately against its master's head and Oscar finally raised his heavy eyelids. The satisfied Raytheon abruptly lifted its head and its sudden movement scared the Deiss surrounding its master, causing them to retreat by half a meter.
The noble creature of the battlefield gave a sneer. The rage of the Deiss warriors was stirred and they crept up again slowly. East! The Raytheon gazed out towards the east! It remembered that its home was to the East!
Sensing the whole body of his companion shuddering violently, Oscar took up his long sword and gazed at his old partner, stunned! The tall Raytheon was like a statue towering over the snow grounds. It mustered up all its strength and stood motionless! On the other side of the huge stallion, beyond Oscar's line of sight, the Deiss had buried countless spears into the Raytheon's body. They continued to lash out and retreat backward.
Finally, the confrontation ended and the Raytheon choked out large mouthfuls of blood. Slowly, it gave a final look at its master, who it had been with all this while and indulged in the last recollection of its mate and offspring, then light from the eyes of the noblest creature of the battlefield slowly diminished.
Oscar stood on the snow grounds, dumbfounded. He did not understand the last look his companion gave him.
The Deiss let out a strange hiss and their weapons were aimed at the commander's head.
A knight clad in black armor descended upon them out of the blue! He used the long sword in his hand to sweep away the enemies' weapons. A gigantic man covered all over in scars burst into the crowd and spun his battle-ax, forming a wheel, causing dismembered limbs and blood to spurt up all around him. A paladin equipped with innumerable rapiers leaped into the battle circle. The speed at which his rapier flew was indescribable and only the flash of the rapier's tip could be seen.
The Deiss retreated a few meters at lightning speed. In just a split second, more than ten corpses were laid out before them!
Paul tore off one side of his cloak and bound it around the pitch-black hole at the prince's abdomen.
The pain brought Oscar back to his senses and he glanced at his old friends, not knowing how to thank them.
"Should we do anything for the Raytheon?" Paul shot a glance at their old friend lying on the ground in a miserable state.
Oscar nodded his head lightly, "Yes, do you have any good suggestions?"
Paul pointed around at their surroundings. The infantry, cavalry, and people of Deiss had evidently received the news and surrounded the commander of Titan here.
"Ola! Good idea!" the prince nodded. He closed the eyes of the Raytheon and hid Vijdeline's mini cannon beneath his old companion. Lastly, he stood up with difficulty.
All four of them, Oscar, Paul, Sarlat Drosha and Hercules-like Mendez Blane, faced four different directions!
A command traveled out from the group of Deiss and the warriors threw themselves onto them screaming.
Murat sent spears flying and knocked foes to the ground. He panted, but this sharp cavalry Commander immediately came to apprehension that he had actually panted on the perilous forest battlefield! The Deiss seemed to have suddenly disappeared, what was going on?
The fortunate Narcissus knights already purged the enemies before them and joined their division commander. Murat sized up the last forty warriors of the Red Tiger. All their faces were familiar; they were the most tenacious of the soldiers!
"Who has seen His Highness Prince?"
The men exchanged glances among themselves in dismay!
"Everyone, look!" the great sword wielder Kirk Dexton pointed towards a direction in the forest. They could vaguely make out a group of Deiss warriors darting pass.
Murat glanced towards the direction the Deiss had vanished to, "There is only one explanation! Our Imperial Highness is in trouble! Does... Everyone still have the strength?"
All the knights shook their weapons.
"My commander!" Murat spun to face Major General Arcan who was raising a broken flag, "It had better be you who give the command!"
The sky was a murky black! It appeared as if only the snow grounds were emanating a dull white glimmer. The Black woods welcomed the winter night and even though the northern winter days were outrageously long, the forest had yet to grumble. It used its brooding gaze to examine the universe; its solid foundation rooted itself deep into the earth and onto the land of holy Titan.
The forest that was like night brandished the flash of blades, sprinkled droplets of blood, evaporated sweat and hatred and gave birth to exhaustion and death. The weapons assembled into a circle and the rays they produced as they slashed were like the Sun! The enemies were resisting, why were they still resisting? A warrior fell and his comrade-in-arms replaced his empty spot, but the person beside him fell once again. The men who came to fill the vacancies were evidently slower and in the end, the gap increased to three, four! They really did not understand what these people of Titan were made of. Why did they continue to resist when they had reached the end of the line?
Oscar relied wholly on his instincts in waving his long sword. He was elated because it made him reminisce about the days of the morning training sessions with the knights. It was this way back then as well; swords and punches coming from every direction!
Mendez Blane had his back pressed up firmly against the prince's back. His battle-ax was already chipped at one end, but with each hack, this Hercules would let out a terrifying howl! He was a Narcissus knight who had been blessed by the commander and his role was as fixed in the code of the knights.
As for Sarlat Drosha, before he entered the woods, this paladin had been rejoicing all the while, for after an afternoon of arduous battles, he had yet to sustain any injuries! But now, scars continued to appear and he was also left with his last rapier.
Paul, on the other hand, had never encountered such chaotic warfare. Usually, when he took a life, the people would not even see his silhouette. However, Snowstorm was after all the King of Assassins and was accustomed to look upon the world with the eyes of an assassin. Opportunity! This was the opportunity that the King of Assassins had been painfully waiting for. Although the four of them could not break out of the encirclement all the while, they had moved to a position that was extremely close to the commander of the Deiss.
The King of Assassins plucked and thrust his long sword. A warrior staggered backward without a sound and at that moment, Paul flung open his blood red cloak and it slid off in a beautiful arc. The throwing knives and short blades hung underneath it could finally be put to use. The menacing streaks were like a meteor shower shooting across the Milky Way and the enemies before him fell to the ground with a blood-curdling scream.
Paul used the force of scaling the tree trunk to soar into the air. He was unsure about the rank of the tiny built officer, but the burly knights and remaining generals of Deiss protected him in the middle.
Being confronted with the unforeseen attack, the Deiss responded fairly well. The spears of the knights jabbed upwards at the body falling from the sky but when the spears really penetrated through the body, the knights realized that they had only skewered a black armor.
A dark silhouette scuttled out from underneath the knights' horses and Paul kicked down one of the officers. He used the momentum gathered from stepping on the body and shot up like a lustrous bolt of black lightning, streaking straight towards the general in the middle of the defending crowd.
A tiny officer threw the hefty figure off the horse and as Snowstorm's short blade pierced into the back of the hefty figure, he could not forbear letting off a soft sigh!
The helmet rolled on the ground and a mob of light golden hair sparkled on the snowy ground. Oscar managed to break away from the enemy in front of him, then stabbed the horse of the knight and with the quickest speed, rushed to stand before the knight lying on the ground. This commander who had been forced into an impasse caught a lock of the enemy's hair and glaring into the scarlet eyes, brandished his long sword! Without a doubt, the long sword would fund its mark on the opponent's throat. The long sword that was bathed in blood would run through the enemy general's chest and abdomen, nailing the leader of the invaders onto the ground.
The sword was shining and the ray of light shone upon the opponent's eyes. As the gleaming sword slid further down, a poignant face reflected in the opponent's eyes. The tip of Oscar's sword descended onto the opponent's throat. The pointed edge sliced through the surface of the opponent's snowy white flesh and a breathtaking bright red trickled out. Oscar gazed at the drop of blood and plummeted into hesitation. The exhaustion of his body and the slaughter of rage gradually subsided before the stunning face. His sword refused to slide down any further because women should not appear on the battlefield and should not be the sacrificial victim on the battlefield.
Opareal Roulexberg was reluctant to admit that even though she had appeared multiple times on the Front, the first time being this close to the threat of death, she was trembling, gripped by fear and was muttering a silent prayer to the gods, begging the man before her! Time seemed to have frozen! But the feeling of immense shame was welling up inside and finally, the Princess of Deiss pulled out her saber. The man's sword had cut open her throat, but this was not important! Opareal whirled around on the snowy ground, and the uprooted blonde hair scattered into the air. Her saber cut open the man's breastplate and with a startled cry, slowly, gradually, the man's longsword slid down steadily onto the ground!
"Andrew Haila!"
Under the frightening shouts, the stunned Deiss warriors gave a start and came back to their senses that they should continue to battle. Encircling the princess and the enemy's commander, they formed circle upon circle resembling a ripple. They would not let anyone interfere here.
The Narcissus knights once again dashed into the densely packed enemy group, but this time they were powerless. The pikes pierced through the knights and the enemies who threw themselves onto them pinned them to the ground. However, the Narcissus knights still continued attacking and bellowing long live Andrew as a symbol of reassurance that they will not be defeated. As knights, they were bounded to snatch their commander back. Being unable to do so was no different than sacrificing their lives.
Wellington Steinberger's warhorse suddenly lost its footing. After the young man crawled up from the ground, he swiftly secured an arrow and pointed it northwards. His battle companion was tangled up with the enemy, tearing at each other. He pointed his arrow to the west and that warrior was already impaled and raised up upon the enemy's spear. He pointed his arrow Southwards and multiple swords already punctured that knight's body! Lastly, Wellington aimed his arrow to the East; a group of Deiss cavalry was charging towards him and since he could not save even a single person, what more was there to hesitate about?
The young archer tossed aside his bow and arrow then drew out the double blades he was carrying and rushed to meet his enemy, screaming!
Oscar surveyed his surroundings; all four sides were enemies. His eyes then flitted towards the weapons on the round but were unsure whether he could stand back up after bending down. He only knew that his friends and knights were attempting to save him, but... The prince once again groped his armor and the Deiss were so frightened that they retreated quickly.
Oscar fished out a white handkerchief that was soaking wet with blood. Although the handkerchief had lost its original color, everyone understood the meaning that sheet of white on the battlefield!
Murat sat on his horse and gaped. He watched his commander who was trapped among the horde of enemies. He knew that the child that was, would definitely have laughed joyfully for using a disgraceful symbol to save everyone's lives!
"Retreat! Fall back! Leave the battlefield! Get away from the battlefield!"
The Narcissus knights came to a halt, the same went for the Deiss. At the intertwining war Front, the people were gasping for breath. The Narcissus knights gazed at their division commander incredulously while he gave a military salute to His Imperial Highness and was the first to turn and leave.
When the last of the Narcissus knights had vanished into the dense forest, Opareal Roulexberg could not withhold a sigh. She glanced at the man who was covered in blood, just that, the man had already collapsed onto the ground, motionless!
Opareal stretched out her hand, wanting to check the man's breathing, but he suddenly grabbed her hand.
The night sky before Oscar's eyes lit up suddenly and the blue sky was dotted with twinkling stars. Who had seen stars in a clear day? Oscar contentedly shifted his gaze away and settled onto the beautiful woman before him. The woman had a face that was moving. One moment it was Annie, silently shedding tears, another moment it was young and ignorant Sasha, then it became Alanis with her hands on her hips and wide staring eyes, after that came Vijdeline, who was blooming with desire and burning with the flames of love, then it were Caro Arsia, Fenrar, Rolanda, Aeolia, Catalina! And lastly, the woman's face became his mother's.
"Kiss me!" hope that was difficult to resist, shone through Oscar's eyes.
Opareal looked at her archenemy and her heart twisted. She knew what she had done; this man who had defeated all the Kingdom's elite heroes at the front of the battlefield was about to die by her shameless sneak attack.
Opareal covered her lips over his. When their lips parted, O'Neil Andrew Morisette eyes were already shut, perfectly satisfied.
Church's year 797, the 31st day of the 3rd month, 7.08pm at night, a bonfire lit up under the pitch-black sky. The battlefield of Saijo Mountain welcomed the peace at the end.
The blaze shone red upon the faces of the survivors. On the battlefield littered with dismembered bodies and weapons, the singing of the priest who had come with the military rang out. Accompanied by a song that washed over their hearts, the soldiers of Titan started to clear up the remains of their comrades. However, the Deiss did not bother about the warriors who laid in a foreign nation, for Titan Empire's reinforcements were about to arrive and thus these remaining troops were retreating towards the dense forest.
Murat led a group of officers to gallop towards the Deiss Generals who were lined up at the edged of the forest. The war had ended with the Titans losing their prince and the Deiss losing their commander-in-chief.
Murat came to a halt and engraved the people before him into his memory.
Her Royal Highness Princess Opareal Roulexberg urged her horse and walked out of the formation. She stood still at a distance of about four to five meters from Murat and the Princess who had once again put on her helmet pulled out her saber. The sound of swords being unsheathed immediately rang out from the blood-soaked Front behind Murat.
The division commander waved his hand and immediately kept the impulsive knights in check.
Opareal stuck the shaft of her blade at her chest and the Deiss generals behind her all promptly made the same movement.
"Pay your respects to all the Titan officers and soldiers who had participated in the military campaign at Saijo mountain!"
Murat had yet to speak and only measured up the group of enemies coldly.
"Can you say a little about something else?"
Opareal withdrew her saber, "My medical officers are providing critical care to His Imperial Highness Prince O'Neil Andrew Morisette and the prisoners of war of the noble class are being treated well."
Murat shrugged, "In that case... Safe journey... I'm sure our paths will cross again someday!"
Watching the Titans gradually galloping away from the battlefield, Opareal found it difficult to calm her emotions. For Titan, this nation that had an abundance of fighting spirit and nationality secrets, all the Kingdom's military operations were merely false risks!
"As above, the whole process of the Saijo Mountain Defending War!" Marshal Robin Sparse sat in his classroom with all his History of War Theoretical Research seminar students from the fortieth batch of guards.
"According to statistics, including the Narcissus Knights Red Tiger Cavalry division led by the General of the guards, His Imperial Highness Prince O'Neil Andrew Morisette, the fourth infantry division under the fourth corps of the guards' Eleventh Region, the First Independent Infantry Brigade of the Steinberger Loantz Front and the Sukhoi's last-minute artillery soldier unit amounts to 11116 men. For the war, there are 84 among my Narcissus Knight Red Tiger Cavalry Division who survived, including the injured; the organizational structures of the Ranger Group and Heavy Cavalry Group were destroyed. The Fourth Infantry Division of the Fourth Corps under the guards' Eleventh Region has 1217 men left, including the wounded. The Steinberger Loantz Front's First Independent Infantry Brigade has 897 remaining men, taking into account the wounded. The Sukhoi last-moment artillery soldier group has 301 men left, including the wounded and a large number of technical and engineering staff."
"On the Deiss' side, the Teutonic Knights lost 9671 men, disregarding the injured and captives. The organizational structure of the First Infantry Corps was destroyed. The Second Infantry Corps lost 7389 men and the wounded aren't taken into account... It goes without saying that the Deiss casualty report was newly announced because the military Staff Department only started the count after the invaders were chased out of the country."
"So... What is the problem?" Marshal Robin snapped the thick file shut and massaged his temples. For the past half a month, he had suffered from insomnia and had problems calming down.
As soon as the Marshal finished saying that, the officers of the guard who have been holding their thoughts in for a long time, finally voiced out!
"Your distinguished Marshal, I wish to transfer back to my Region!"
"My lord, in what direction is the military going? Half a month has passed and our high ranking military officers are still holding meetings!"
"Sir, I wish to go to Dulin to petition to His Majesty Emperor and Marshal Alan!"
"Distinguished Marshal, the Deiss started an undeclared war! We cannot continue doing nothing!"
Old Marshal Robin Sparse did not try to stop the chaotic clamor, but instead opened the wooden windows of the classroom silently and breathed in a few breath of fresh air! Outside, dense clouds of spring drifted and a pattering drizzle was falling from the sky.
"Your distinguished Marshal!" another voice sounded, "Do you not know the situation His Imperial Highness Prince O'Neil Andrew Morisette is in? He has won a great victory for the Empire! He is the Titan nation's hero! The guard's..."
"Enough!" the Old Marshal spun around abruptly, "Oscar is like you bunch of ignorant fools! A fool who hasn't even learned how to walk and had started to run!"
Robin Sparse strode towards the sand table in the middle of the classroom, which displayed the areas that were close to Saijo Mountain!
"Look at what all your heroes have done! Saijo Mountain is a narrow area and is absolutely not suitable to engage in a decisive battle using the main military strength against an advantaged enemy! But he? He assembled his entire military strength there! The battlefield is three-dimensional and he does not even have any sense of space! The purpose of the Deiss launching this attack does not matter! Since they were discovered, they would definitely retreat quickly! This fool, having known that, why does he still want to engage in a full military decisive battle? He could have hidden the entire army in the Black woods and used the cannons and forest to fend off the enemies. Even if his Infantry Army Group was surrounded and annihilated, his Red Tigers could definitely use their mobile abilities to evacuate the battlefield and continue to deal with their enemies in the vast forest! If the Deiss deemed it as impossible, they would certainly have withdrawn from the battlefield. If this happened, then the main force of their cavalry division would be completely spared! There are many ways to victory. For the defensive war at Saijo Mountain, forcing the enemies to retreat is a victory and not the kind that Oscar chose... This method of life and death where victory and defeat are debatable!"
Having said that, the agitated old Marshal used his sword to swipe down the whole sand table decoration.
The officer cadets sat quietly in their seats. They had all heard that the Old Marshal regarded His Highness as his own son.
After a moment of violent panting, Robin Sparse straightened his military attire and strolled out of the classroom. Frankly, he wanted to criticize his own child, but this child really failed to live up to his expectations!
The Old Marshal gazed at the spring rain outside and gave a light sigh. The Emperor was hesitating, the military was debating, the Secret Service was shirking responsibilities; in that case... Who could tell him, "Where is my child?"
At that moment, Marshal Robin Sparse suddenly whipped around and faced the military officers, adopting a knowing expression.
"Remember! Strategising is an extremely important thought practice! Young hearts which are brimming with individual heroic opinions will forever be unable to attain a true sense of victory!"