Chapter 27: Salvation (2)

Yuri rode on horseback with ten knights, including Raymond. Among them were also Laurent and Jared.

Yuri smiled as he looked back.

“You all still look like the hangover hasn’t worn off.”

“That’s not true.”

“Are you used to the speed yet?”

“Yes!”

Thanks to the magic Hernand had cast, the horses were running much faster than usual.

“Jared doesn’t look too good.”

“I—I’m fine.”

Jared, who had drunk heavily, didn’t look well, but the others seemed okay.

Suddenly, Laurent rode up and positioned his mount next to Yuri’s. He seemed to have something to say.

“Prince.”

“Laurent.”

“Once again, I must express my admiration.”

“Huh?”

Yuri looked at him.

“To not only forgive those who insulted you but even extend a helping hand…”

Laurent’s eyes sparkled. He seemed to have misunderstood something.

“There’s no need to stoop to such pettiness. Your Highness opened my eyes to how short-sighted I’ve been, thinking only about putting them in their place.”

“That wasn’t my intention…”

Blind devotion was one thing, but the comment about “putting them in their place” irritated him.

“What was that about putting them in their place…?”

“That is…”

Laurent hesitated before continuing.

“I was planning to pretend to be drunk and pick a fight with the Holy Knights. It was poor judgment.”

Yuri stared at him silently. This wasn’t the Laurent he knew. Embarrassed under Yuri’s gaze, Laurent scratched his neck.

“I know it’s not right, but I just couldn’t stand them insulting Your Highness.”

“I see…”

Earning Laurent’s loyalty was good, but it felt a bit overwhelming. Still, he couldn’t help but praise such a devoted knight.

“Y-your loyalty is admirable…”

“Thank you for recognizing it.”

Laurent beamed. Seeing his pale face, Yuri felt something strange.

He couldn’t reconcile this pure Laurent with the one he had beheaded in his previous life.

Perhaps it was natural. He himself had changed, so it wasn’t surprising that others had as well.

People follow entirely different paths depending on their environment. And if Laurent had gone astray, it was due to Yuri’s own mistakes.

This time, he wouldn’t repeat that future.

“Laurent.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“Let’s do this right.”

“Huh?”

Laurent’s eyes widened, then he nodded firmly.

“Yes!”

Yuri smiled and looked ahead.

In the distance, the silhouette of Sybilla and the Holy Knights rode across the horizon.

“There they are!”

Raymond remained calm, Jared was throwing up from his mount, and the others were visibly tense.

Yuri spoke.

“This is the first battle against the orcs.”

All eyes turned to him.

Yuri wanted to give them advice, but he had nothing to say. You can’t teach battle through words.

Instead of advice, he made a request.

“Don’t get hurt.”

It was a sincere plea. Everyone nodded with the same expression.

Yuri sped up.

“Your Highness, we’ll go ahead. Please stay behind.”

At Raymond’s words, the other knights nodded.

Though Yuri had shown extraordinary actions, he had never fought in a real battle. They didn’t yet know his true skill.

An eighteen-year-old prince—how strong could he really be?

And more importantly, Yuri was the commander of Briol’s army. Protecting the commander was a basic rule on the battlefield.

“No.”

But Yuri shook his head.

“This is the first battle, so let me explain. And this is how it will be from now on.”

With a tilted smile, Yuri recalled his days as a mercenary.

They were different from knights. There were no ranks or hierarchies.

Respect among comrades was earned solely through skill and dedication. Only those who led at the front against the enemy could be acknowledged as leaders.

“I’ll be the first to enter the battlefield and the last to leave.”

“Huh?”

Yuri spurred his horse. He channeled his will through “Soul and Heart Cut.” Mana flowed into the animal, increasing its speed. No one could catch up to him.

A mist of white mana rose from his body like an illusion. The legacy of Erich Briol was being displayed on the battlefield for the first time.

“Prince!”

The knights called after him, but Yuri didn’t stop.

“Whoa.”

In the distance, Sybilla and the Holy Knights had all fallen together.

Those who had never fought orcs often underestimated them.

“That must hurt.”

As he murmured, Yuri spotted an orc approaching with a torch.

A fire attack. Yuri’s mouth twisted.

There was no time to think. Mana enveloped his body.

Sensing his will, the horse tightened its muscles and leapt. Yuri’s body shifted.

All at once: jumping from the saddle, slicing the orc’s neck, and snatching the torch.

It was a critical moment.

Fortunately, the tragedy of the entire high command of the Holy Kingdom army burning to death was avoided.

“Phew…”

He looked down. Sybilla had her teeth clenched and eyes tightly shut.

The corners of Yuri’s lips curled upward.

“Sybilla.”

One had their mouth agape, another was on the verge of tears. He also saw Fenek in a corner, completely pale.

“Open your eyes.”

Gradually, they began to understand the situation. Watching their faces change moment by moment, Yuri couldn’t help but tighten his stomach.

He tried to hold back, but it wasn’t easy. In the end, Yuri burst into laughter.

“What funny faces they have.”

***

The main unit of the Holy Kingdom’s army was effectively holding off the orc offensive.

The soldiers had formed a solid defensive formation, and the few paladins stationed at the rear were dealing with any orcs that slipped through.

The orc unit began to retreat before suffering further losses.

Watching the scene, Yuri muttered,

“As expected, they’re smart.”

Sometimes, orcs were even better than humans at battlefield strategy.

From the start, their goal hadn’t been the main force of the Holy Kingdom. They had confirmed that Sybilla and the paladins were separated and attacked precisely when they tried to regroup.

They may have even been monitoring Briol’s army. It seemed the orcs had received intelligence about the alliance.

“How did they get that information…?”

Yuri spotted an orc in the distance observing the battle. It was missing an eye and had a flag on its back.

“Orcbal.”

A high-ranking orc. Their eyes met for a moment. The Orcbal bared its fangs in a grin.

Yuri muttered,

“Usually, when someone smiles at me, I smile back… but with a face like that, I just can’t.”

The Orcbal shouted something, and the orcs began retreating even faster. The soldiers hesitated.

“What are you doing?!”

Yuri shouted in turn.

“Don’t let them escape!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Attack from the rear!”

Briol’s cavalry didn’t let the orcs get away. Laurent swung his sword with fierce force, severing an orc’s arm. The rest of the knights followed suit.

The chilling blades of Briol’s knights swept across the battlefield. The morale of the Holy Kingdom’s army surged.

The soldiers pressed the orcs harder. Weapons pierced their backs as they tried to turn.

“Is everyone alright?”

“Yuri.”

Sybilla and the paladins were just climbing out of the pit. She sighed as she watched the orcs flee.

In the end, they hadn’t been any help.

“You saved our lives. Thank you.”

She bowed formally to Yuri.

“If you hadn’t been there, we would all be dead.”

Fenek frowned, but seeing Sybilla bow, he too offered a bow, as if he had no choice.

“We give thanks to the third prince of Briol.”

Then, the entire Order of Paladins bowed to Yuri.

Yuri waved his hand as if to shoo them away.

“What are you doing? Allies help each other on the battlefield.”

He helped Sybilla up, walked over to Fenek, and patted him on the shoulder.

“Next time Briol is in danger, the Holy Kingdom can help us. Don’t you think?”

Fenek made a vague expression. Yuri smiled at him.

Even with his arrogant nature, he was still a valuable asset. Yuri didn’t want to judge him based on a single clash.

Had he himself been any different in his past life? Looking at someone like Fenek reminded him of his own past.

He too had been full of flaws. In his youth, there was much he didn’t understand.

“Don’t you agree?”

At his question, Fenek nodded.

“Yes.”

He looked Yuri directly in the eyes.

“I formally apologize for my disrespect today. I won’t forget what you did for us. Thank you again.”

“Thank you!”

The paladins echoed Fenek’s words.

“It’s fine. Apology accepted.”

Yuri thought Fenek wasn’t a bad person. The proof was in how the paladins followed him.

Though it might be unfortunate for Sybilla, the true leader of that group was Fenek.

“By the way…”

Just as he was about to continue, Yuri turned swiftly and swung Guilty. The arrow he intercepted clattered to the ground.

Fenek’s mouth fell open, stunned by his reflexes.

“A-are you alright?”

“Don’t worry.”

Yuri searched for the shooter. Among the retreating orcs, the Orcbal was aiming his bow at Yuri.

A deliberate provocation.

“Looks like that really stung.”

Clearly, the orc was furious that Yuri had ruined his strategy and saved the paladins.

Yuri grinned. There was nothing more satisfying than irritating an angry enemy.

After all, it had been a while since he set foot on a battlefield. One orc wasn’t enough.

Since the Orcbal had provoked him, blood would have to be spilled today.

“I’m going after him.”

“Huh?”

Mana surged from his core. With killing intent burning in his heart, energy flowed like a torrent through his veins.

Yuri planned to close the distance between him and the orc unit in a single leap. With that intention fixed, his body picked the most efficient path, propelled by mana.

He immediately sensed the terrain’s elevations and stepped at the right spot.

In the blink of an eye, he had reached the orcs’ rear line. He slashed with Guilty.

The last orc didn’t even notice him and was cleaved in two.

Two others charged with axes. He couldn’t take them head-on, so he dodged to the side.

He aimed to strike in their blind spot, but several weapons were already targeting him.

He rolled across the ground and looked up. Orc shadows loomed over him.

Surrounded by massive figures, it felt like he was walled in.

Distorted, fanged faces stared down at him.

He wasn’t afraid. In fact, it was a familiar sight. He gripped Guilty tightly.

After Briol’s fall, as a mercenary, he had wandered at death’s edge. He was always thrown into enemy lines.

He wanted to die but couldn’t. His senses sharpened in the face of death.

He picked up all enemy movements at once—one stepped forward, another drew back his shoulders, one roared, another lunged with a spear.

He visualized a single path to evade them all.

As the image took shape, mana from the Cut of the soul and the heart surged through his blade.

Attacks crossed. Two orcs spat blood and collapsed.

Yuri slipped between them and took a position behind their backs.

He was quicker to strike than they were to turn. He slashed backs and waists. The delayed attacks missed him.

The orcs around him fell simultaneously.

Their thick hides kept them from dying instantly, but that didn’t matter. Orcs didn’t help the wounded.

They just left them as bait to retreat faster.

Yuri picked up a spear one of them had dropped. Stepping on a fallen orc’s back, he leapt high while scanning for his target.

“Orcbal!”

Even without speaking the same language, proper names were mostly unchanged. The Orcbal with the flag on his back turned. Yuri hurled the spear with all his might.

The orc’s eyes widened in shock. He crouched low, digging his feet in and blocking with his twin-bladed axe.

His tense expression looked almost comical.

Crash.

The spear whizzed just above his head. The flag fell. Because he had braced for impact, he couldn’t react in time.

The Orcbal’s face twisted.

“Coward.”