Chapter 40

Mass release – 1/5

***

The knights left quietly. As it was not a glorious expedition, there were no military ceremonies or grand marches.

In a letter from the Capital, they were told to go south without stopping at the Imperial Palace. The situation on the battlefield seemed more urgent than expected.

Their journey to the south was long.

Supply distribution was smooth and the lords welcomed them wherever they went, but it was not easy to traverse the vast Imperial lands. Moreover, they were not in the mood to receive hospitality, as they had just lost their master and companions.

Mortheon refused all banquets, demanding only beds and food.

The knights traveled in silence.

Frequent messengers only brought serious news.

The Grand Duke and his knights were slaughtered by the assassins who attacked them in the middle of the night, but they still didn’t know who they were or how they were not discovered. As it wasn’t previously known that such powers existed in the Southern Kingdom, the battlefield was in a state of chaos.

“Who are they? Mercenaries? A secret squad?”

“It’s not important. It doesn’t matter. What matters is how they killed so many knights in one night.”

Leonard and Carlz talked quietly. The three of them lagged behind the pack, guarding the rear.

Victor said.

“Command is making various assumptions. They said that they must have sprayed strong sleeping incense, they must have been knights with monstrous skills, or they were wizards from the Eastern Kingdom.”

Leonard frowned.

“Wizards? Does such a thing really exist?”

“There might be. But even in the Eastern Kingdoms, it’s rare.”

“It’s all nonsense. It must have been the sleep incense or something.”

Leonard clicked his tongue. Carlz responded immediately.

“I think wizards make more sense.”

“Why?”

“There is no scent in the world that can put a person to sleep so deeply,”

He said firmly. It was a sharp tone.

“It’s ridiculous to say that those knights kept sleeping even after hearing the clashing of the swords.”

The two quietly agreed. They were Morte’s knights, and they knew how skilled their comrades were. None of them would have been so easily killed by assassins.

The three of them spoke quietly. If it was under normal circumstances, they would have had a lot of fun on this trip, but after they saw the consequences of war, they weren’t the same as before. The death of family and colleagues still pressed down on the hearts of the young knights.

Leonard asked.

“How much farther do we have to go now?”

“About two days.”

“Okay…”

They were already completely south.

The trees were wider and the lakes were a clear emerald color.

As Carlz said, it was beautiful, but neither Leonard nor Victor, who had never been to the South before, enjoyed the scenery to the fullest.

The battlefield was fast approaching.

After a month’s march, they finally reached the southern tip of the continent.

***

The battlefield was a mess.

The Empire’s army was thrown into chaos when several commanders, including the Grand Duke of Morte, were severely injured or killed. Morale had already been weakened by the prolonged war.

In the midst of this, they were even more distracted because they were planning an attack on the main island of the Southern Kingdom.

As soon as Mortheon heard their plan, he and Victor went to the Empire’s headquarters. That day, Victor felt the limits of his patience.

“…I understand what you mean, your highness. It’s not that easy.”

“Is it really that difficult to plan a strategy around the navy?”

Mortheon asked as calmly as possible.

The chief of staff of a southern noble family replied with a twist of his mustache.

“The main focus of our military is knights. Our navy is also powerful, but what is the point if our knights cannot participate? That’s why we thought about it for a few days and then planned the landlocked operation.”

“But the Southern Kingdom is an island. Even if our knights don’t land, if we constantly wage naval war on them and isolate them, we can make them surrender. There is no need to send a supply ship for the landing knights…”

“No, then what about our honor?”

Another man intervened. The knight commander of a northern noble house raised his voice.

“We have gathered to protect this country. What kind of a disgrace would you be if you went home without ever drawing a sword.”

“Now is not the time to question whether it is disgraceful or not.”

“Well, in my eyes, the Grand Duke is too weak.”

Victor intervened.

“You are being disrespectful. Do you know who you are talking to?”

All gazes turned to the young master for a moment.

Victor clenched his jaw and glared at them.

All of their words were bullsh*t.

There was a more efficient way to end the war, but they made an unreasonable plan just for the sake of honor. They also called people who dared to point out the absurdity of their operation weak. It was hard to believe that these people were the knights and soldiers representing the Empire.

Mortheon stopped him with a fierce expression.

“…Stop. I’m sorry, sir. I apologize for my brother’s disrespect.”

“It’s fine. You two are still young.”

The knight commander replied in a sneering voice.

Victor wanted to cut out the knight’s tongue, but he clenched his fists and held back.

Mortheon calmly stood up.

“Okay. That’s what the lord’s opinion is. As long as we are part of the military, the Knights of Morte will follow the will of command.”

“Thank you, your highness.”

Mortheon left the meeting without hesitation.

Victor stared at them fiercely before following his brother.

***

The military camp was noisy. Soldiers were moving back and forth, carrying weapons and food.

As soon as they were away from the tent, Victor spat out.

“How dare he say such a thing to you, brother?”

“It’s okay. It hurts less than being ignored.”

Mortheon laughed bitterly.

“I thought we were going to be kicked out of the command center because we failed.”

“Failed?”

“We lost both our knight commander and knights in one day. They are looking down on the Knights of Morte quite a bit.”

Victor’s stomach turned.

Morte’s reputation was only upheld thanks to their strong knights.

Although the Morte estate was home to the Grand Duchy, little was known about it because it was far from the Capital and didn’t participate socially. So, as soon as their knights were defeated, they were ignored. Mortheon spoke as if he read his brother’s thoughts.

“We’re able to fight.”

“…”

“Do you want revenge?”

Victor stared at Mortheon quietly.

His older brother was not a person who ever spoke of revenge. He taught him that a knight was merciful and forgave others. But this time, it was different. Mortheon was granting him revenge.

Victor answered in a calm voice.

“Yes.”

“Let’s do it. Revenge.”

***

Soon, the day of operation dawned.

The so-called ‘Southern Kingdom Landing Operation’ was so simple that it was ignorant.

After their navy fought against the South’s navy and penetrated their defenses, the army would split into groups and sail to the mainland. After they captured a city, they would use that as a base, and advance further inland together.

Most of the soldiers protested that they would be stationed on a hot tropical island where supply distribution would be difficult, but there was nothing they could do. Command was stubborn and focused on getting the ball rolling.

The first battle started early in the morning.

While their navy was bombarding the South, Morte’s knights prepared to launch.

Heavy iron armor, spears, and horses were useless on a wet beach. Instead, they wore leather armor and tied their swords around their waists. They also brought peppermint ointment for sunburn and cloaks for the rain.

The Southern Kingdom’s navy, which couldn’t withstand the Imperial navy’s constant offensive, retreated.

The knights quickly divided into groups and sailed towards the mainland.

“D*mn it, what the hell is this?”

Carlz, who leaned limply against the edge of the boat, cursed.

“If I had known this would happen, I would have stayed in the south and became a pirate.”

“It is not knightly to complain about orders, Carlz Denion.”

Leonard scolded.

This was the first time in his life that he experienced seasickness. Carlz asked, appalled.

“How can you still sound like that in this situation?”

“I was just talking about the duties of a knight.”

“If it were me, I wouldn’t have given such a stupid order.”

Victor sympathized with him inwardly, but he couldn’t say it. If he, the next knight commander, complained, morale would decrease even more.

Victor tried to think about the battles to come, but it was not easy. Shouts and the sound of waves were constant, and their incomprehensible plan disturbed him deeply.

He wondered if he would be able to fight properly at this rate.

But Mortheon, as always, was calm. He exclaimed as he looked out his small window.

“Our destination approaches! Prepare to land.”

Hearing this, the knights firmly gripped their swords and prepared to draw them.

***

Landing wasn’t too difficult. The civilians had already fled, and the remaining army fled in confusion as soon as they saw the knights.

Mortheon cried several times.

“Don’t kill those who don’t want to fight! If they surrender, spare them!”

‘Why?’

Victor had a twisted thought.

Even though he spoke of revenge, Mortheon didn’t seem to want it.

But regardless, he followed his brother’s orders.

Because a master’s orders were absolute.

Victor controlled his strength, inflicting only minor injuries to the enemy, and then allowed them to escape.

The knights set up base and sent word to command.

A reply came back quickly.

It seemed that there weren’t many troops that landed without any difficulties. They said that there was a ship that was hit by a cannonball and sunk.

Morte’s knights clicked their tongues, but they couldn’t stop the operation that had already been put into motion.

In the sweltering heat, they chewed endlessly on dried jerky.

It was the beginning of a long war.