Chapter 264: Beyond the Mist (2)

Ainzer felt that something was not right.

He was an experienced knight.

In his youth, alongside Fiore Briol, he had massacred orcs as part of the allied army, and over the years he had continually taken part in territorial wars, mediating disputes between lords.

Therefore, he knew the nature of war well, and as a soldier he understood how extraordinary Yuri Briol was as a commander.

However, this time Yuri had made a decision far too risky.

Certainly, if he managed to advance to the heart of the Empire as planned, he could take them by surprise and gain the advantage in the war.

But the information was insufficient.

Advancing the army solely based on the fact that Imperial forces were concentrated on the eastern front was, at its core, an act dependent on luck.

“Do you think this will go well?”

Asked Ainzer’s aide in a low voice, a knight who had shared countless battlefields with him.

“It seems too reckless to me…”

“Who knows.”

“His Highness must have his reasons.”

“I hope so.”

“Maybe he knows something we don’t.”

“You trust him a lot, huh?”

“Are you worried?”

“How could I not be worried?” the aide whispered. “The Empire is not a stupid country. On the contrary, it’s very cunning.”

“It’s not an easy opponent.”

“I recognize that His Highness is formidable, but this decision seems questionable to me.”

“Yeah…”

“Attacking the enemy immediately before was the same. Right now we are inside Imperial territory. The annihilation was a success, luckily, but to think we can attack Imperial troops in their own territory and not be discovered is far too naïve.”

“There’s Inariel. I would trust his magic.”

“Even so, in enemy territory you always have to be cautious. They might already have discovered us without us knowing. If that’s the case, the Imperial army will already have formed a defensive line.”

It was obvious, but in war, defense generally has the advantage over siege. The aide was pointing that out exactly.

“And you’ve seen it with your own eyes. We don’t know how many more horrors the Empire might have.”

Ainzer remained silent, guiding his horse, while his aide let out a sigh and added:

“Of course, it could also go surprisingly well. After all, His Highness is an extraordinary man. I’m just worried.”

After a moment of silence, Ainzer replied.

“I understand how you feel.”

“Yes.”

“But it’s already decided.”

“Understood.”

The aide said nothing more.

Ainzer was a steadfast knight.

Just as you cannot take back a sword once swung, once he decided to follow someone, all that remained was to trust and obey.

The march continued for quite some time, until in the distance a village began to come into view.

Ainzer frowned.

“Was there a village here?”

He took out the map and checked it. But nothing was marked.

“It must be an old map.”

“Yes?”

“The terrain changes, and it’s not rare for new villages to spring up.”

Briol’s army decided to take a long route to go around the place.

They were already quite close to the heart of the Empire, and being discovered at this point would ruin everything.

“They chose to go around the village even if it takes more time.”

“As much as possible, we must avoid it.”

The Anti-Imperial coalition advanced slowly.

It was almost strange that, being so deep inside the Empire, they still had not encountered enemy troops.

Ainzer began to feel an uneasy sensation creeping in.

The fact that the Imperial army had not appeared could mean something else—that they already knew their route and were waiting for them.

If not, they could not have advanced so straight, as if the enemy had purposely cleared the path.

While they continued their march with that concern in mind, suddenly there was commotion at the vanguard, where Yuri was.

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know.”

There was a brief pause, but the march continued.

Soon they reached a hill.

“Huh?”

Then, below, something began to come into view.

“Ah…”

Ainzer let out a low murmur, and his aide opened his mouth in surprise.

What they saw was an Imperial defensive line, with barricades set up.

Its mere existence could only mean one thing—the Empire already knew that Briol’s army was approaching.

“It’s not too late to retreat,” said the aide.

Although it would mean having lost time, they could turn back. That way they would minimize casualties and could plan another attack.

They had to do it before the Imperial army cut off their retreat.

But the column at the front did not stop and kept advancing. They were going to fight.

“Are you sure about this?”

“It’s already clear they’ve discovered us, and we’re still going in?”

“Wait.”

“But now…”

“Wait a moment.”

Ainzer raised a hand, stopping his aide by the chest. The latter fell silent.

Ainzer’s eyes moved quickly.

He looked at the Imperial troops ahead, then at Yuri’s back at the front, and finally raised his gaze to the semi-transparent barrier surrounding the army.

“Count?”

“Don’t tell me…”

Ainzer’s eyes widened in surprise, and then narrowed with a smile.

“Hahahahaha…”

“What is it?”

“If you have your eyes open, look at it.”

Ainzer extended his hand, took the sword hanging at his waist, and pointed toward the Imperial army in the distance.

“Look closely at where we are.”

“Huh?”

At that very moment, the sound of a horn announcing the start of battle rang out.

Ainzer shouted:

“This is what I call a real surprise attack!”

***

The eastern front had been broken.

However, Liberta did not surrender.

Since not all of the east had fallen, they stationed troops in the bastions and offered constant resistance.

But at a certain point, the movements of the Imperial army became strange.

They stopped their offensive and pulled back to their positions.

The endless supply of troops was also cut off.

While they already had a large number of soldiers gathered, no further reinforcements arrived.

Some even began moving back toward the interior of the Empire.

Because of this, a debate arose in Liberta.

“It’s not certain, but what if another anti-Imperial alliance has decided to march?”

“Would they make such a risky decision?”

“With young blood, anything’s possible.”

If Briol had really decided to advance on its own, they would have to do something.

Liberta had already suffered a blow to its pride for being the only alliance front that had allowed the enemy to pass.

“Let’s move as well.”

Voices arose in favor of using all available resources to retake the eastern front.

But there was no immediate acceptance.

Then, someone spoke firmly.

“Let’s attack.”

It was none other than Sven Gain.

After serving in the allied forces, he was now recognized as a true knight.

He had also matured as a person, and many hoped he would one day take up Liberta’s future.

With strength in his voice, he said:

“If we can’t resolve this by ourselves, we won’t win this war.”

“We could lose all our troops. Besides, Lord Moyongchan was injured. Fighting with only what we have…”

“Can’t we fight without Lord Moyongchan?”

“It’s not that, but we should be in full condition.”

“The enemy won’t wait for us to be ready. And from the start, this war was unfavorable to us. If we worry about that, we won’t be able to fight.”

In Sven Gain’s eyes burned a determined fire.

“Liberta can do it.”

But his opinion was not accepted.

However, a condition was adopted: they had to be ready to set out at any moment.

Following Sven’s suggestion, Liberta’s army did not lower its guard and continued to watch the situation around them closely.

“Huu…”

Sven rode out alone from the camp to observe the Imperial army.

At that moment, someone approached him.

“Looking again?”

“Father?”

It was his father, Wolf Gain.

“It’s not a pleasant sight, what do you keep staring at so intently?”

“Nothing in particular.”

Wolf observed the Imperial camp. Several types of monsters roamed about there. It no longer looked anything like a human army.

“It’s a strange feeling.”

“Feeling?”

“Yes. I don’t know how to put it… as if something were about to happen and I didn’t want to miss that moment.”

“It happens sometimes.”

Wolf nodded calmly.

“When you’re a knight, there are moments when you must trust your instinct more than reason.”

“That doesn’t sound like something you would say.”

“Must be I’m getting old.”

“You still have a long way to go.”

Both laughed lightly. Sven continued.

“That’s exactly why I think Yuri Briol wouldn’t move so obviously. If he really planned something, he would fool everyone without anyone noticing, and then strike by surprise.”

“You talk as if you were an old friend of his.”

“He’s a comrade I’ve rolled across the battlefield with.”

“True.”

“That’s why I keep having this feeling… as if…”

Sven pointed at a hill.

“All of a sudden, a great army appeared there and crushed the Imperial troops we have in front of us.”

“That would greatly reduce their forces.”

“Exactly. The Empire also had to strain itself to break the eastern front.”

“Let’s hope so.”

“Let’s hope.”

Both fell silent, looking toward the hill.

Suddenly, something fluttered.

They said nothing. They thought they had imagined it and blinked to refocus their gaze. Calm returned.

Again, something fluttered.

There was no doubt now. It was not an illusion.

“Son.”

Wolf spoke first. After a brief pause, with his voice slightly tense, he said:

“Do you have the horn?”

“No.”

“Then, let’s go quickly.”

As if it were a lie, just as Sven had said, the army of Briol was beginning to appear on the crest of the hill.

***

At the vanguard of Briol’s army, Yuri was riding when he suddenly spoke.

“Laurent.”

Instead of replying with words, he acted.

From a little further back, he sent an aura slash toward Asana, who was riding along with the column.

Asana jumped from her horse just in time. The slash struck the mount, which fell dead.

“Hey, hey. Calm down.”

“And you think I can treat her calmly?”

“Of course you can.”

“Then you do it.”

After a brief commotion, Laurent and Jared subdued Asana.

Bound hand and foot, she was placed on a horse like a sack.

“Your Highness, what does this mean?”

“So you don’t run away.”

“You think I’m going to run?”

“Yes.”

“What are you talking about?”

Even in the midst of the confusion, the army advanced.

They soon reached a low rise.

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

“What…?”

“Raise the banners!”

Yuri’s order made the standard-bearers lift the banner of Briol and the anti-Imperial alliance, followed by the insignias of each house and knightly order.

At the crest of the hill, the Imperial camp spread out below was revealed.

“This is not Imperial territory.”

Asana’s eyes wavered.

“We’ve come east, not north.”

“Huh?”

“That barrier you see wasn’t deceiving the Empire, but our own allies. You know what they say— to fool the enemy, first fool your allies.”

Asana was silent for a moment before speaking.

“Since when did you know?”

Yuri turned his gaze from her to the countless Imperial troops that explained why Liberta had been overrun.

“From the beginning.”

“How?”

“Who knows…”

“Was there something in the letter from Briol?”

Yuri smiled wryly.

“No.”

He made a hand signal. A soldier blew the war horn.

Asana called to him just as he was about to launch the attack. He gave her a smile filled with murderous intent in return.

“Asana. I’ll tell you the details after I kill all of them.”

With that ominous smile, he disappeared down the hill.

The Order of Vengeance followed him, and then the whole army plunged toward the Imperial camp.

On the eastern front, the roar of Briol’s army rang out.