Magic Knights were the pride of the Kingdom of Aylans. Under their dominance, the soldiers of the Holy Kingdom on the outer wall were slaughtered helplessly against their superb skills in both sword and magic.
The sword was a fast and powerful weapon, but its range was limited. Magic, on the other hand, was an overwhelmingly mighty force; yet, it was weak at close range, due to it being slow.
The Magic Knight was one who compensated for the weaknesses of one with the other. They were experts, their bodies strengthened through swordsmanship and their minds filled with arcane knowledge!
Count Shabel smiled. Now that they had stepped in, the outer gate and wall would definitely be held. At the very least, until the time that reinforcements from the capital arrived!
He was filled with confidence, but his bright smile grew somber before long. A similar thing happened to Magic Knights, who were heading toward their next objective—their bodies froze.
"What…?!"
Holy Knights, with their bodies covered in weighty silvery plate armor and red capes that held the image of a cross, were entering the outer wall through a siege tower.
"… Holy Knights? This is earlier than expected. Does this mean they don't want to drag it out for much longer?"
"Could be…" one of his advisors said. "I didn't think Holy Knights would pop out so soon either."
The Magic Knights looked at the Holy Knights and gripped their staves and swords tighter. The Holy Knights, in comparison, watched their determined foes while mocking them.
"Hah, the heretics put their faith in magic—formed through the miracle of God—and got full of themselves. I'll punish those that mistake magic as something of their own creation."
"I want to cut the heads of those heretics right now and present them as an offering so bad that it's making my body itch."
The knights of opposing factions glared at each other, preparing for the battle that would decide the fate of Canibar.
***
A day had passed. The outer walls had fallen due to the siege weapons, and the outer gates had been thoroughly destroyed by the battering ram. The outer wall of Canibar now flew the flag of the Holy Kingdom.
The soldiers of the Holy Kingdom slowly entered through the wide-open gates, stepping on the corpses of the Ayslansian soldiers and residents as they set foot in the city. The city burned, and those that couldn't escape were made into their playthings. The men were burned at the stake as heretics while the women were tossed aside. The rain washed away the blood which filled the streets of Canibar, as if trying to hide the goriness of it all.
Janus, who felt uncomfortable in the humidity of the downpour, frowned.
"We've finally broken through."
He, who had been riding on a palanquin, looked at his damp tent before turning toward the castle, which was the last defensive structure within the region. It was protected by sturdy walls, but compared to the city's outer walls, they wouldn't be difficult to break through.
"How was the expenditure of men, and how are the Holy Knights?"
One of the soldiers approached in response to Janus's question and kneeled with his head lowered.
"Yes, we approximate that 20,000 of the 50,000 were killed. We also have 22,000 sustained medium injuries, with the rest being only lightly wounded. 30 of the Holy Knights are slightly injured, with 10 suffering medium injuries. Unfortunately, 25 Holy Knights died during the battle for the outer wall."
Janus didn't like what he was hearing and shook his head. The casualties had been intense, as they had been forced to overextend themselves while trying to break through.
'It doesn't matter if the soldiers died, but the Holy Knights suffered that badly as well?'
"That many died? They should have vastly outnumbered the Magic Knights that had been dispatched to this area? Not only the honorary Holy Knights of the Allied Forces, but the true Paladins of the Holy Kingdom also died to those mere Magic Knights? Hah! For them to be so weak…!"
He felt enraged by the fact that 100 or so Holy Knights lost that many men facing 30 or so Magic Knights, along with the baby soldiers of Aylans. Who were the Holy Knights? Weren't they the knights pledged to God and the Pope? How dare such people be killed by mere heretics!
"What about their bodies?"
"We carefully stored them. Their funeral should be—"
"Toss them into the mountains."
"Yes?"
The soldier froze and looked at Janus in confusion.
"Holy Knights that died to heretics are Holy Knights no longer."
"… Ah, I understand."
The soldier nodded and retreated.
"Now… shall we slowly get started on that castle?"
Janus smiled and looked at the last thing standing in his way of completely conquering Canibar.
***
"Isn't this dangerous? Hm? Isn't it!?" Ellin shouted at Tom nervously.
"Dangerous. It's really dangerous! We're all going to die! Shit, I should've just ran…!"
Halsem looked as though he was about to break into tears as he grabbed at his hair.
Tom was sitting on the sofa with his hand on the table, tapping at it furiously. 'He'll come…' Tom quietly closed his eyes. 'Why aren't you coming, Count Shabel?' Tom was waiting. He was waiting for the count to 'agree to cooperate'.
'Are you delaying this long because you can't say that single phrase, Count Shabel? What you said was without lies, so why are you so hesitant?'
Time was slipping away. Canibar was all but conquered, and only this inner castle in the city's center remained. Tom could hear the sound of battle from the guest room—the shouts of the Holy Kingdom's soldiers and their cries to burn the heretics.
'…He'll come.'
'He will come. He has to come. If he doesn't, the plan will be ruined.'
'No, if he doesn't come, I'll just make a different plan. It's still not the worst situation.'
However, the soldiers he had pulled from the Demon Kingdom were already near this territory. As the manpower of the Holy Kingdom had already been reduced and exhausted from the prolonged battle, the Demons would be able to achieve an overwhelming victory.
Still, there was a problem. It was regarding the Demon Kingdom's 'nationality'. If an army invaded a defending land without permission, that would be a violation of the Continental Law.
Concerning humans, the Demon Kingdom had been allowed to ignore Continental Law, as they were considered a cluster of unorganized monsters that had never been accepted as a nation. But things were different now. Since they had only begun to set the mold of their transformation into a true nation, they couldn't break such a hard 'rule'. They had to follow such laws to truly forge their identity.
'In order to be accepted as one of the 'major forces' on this continent, this is the most effective time.'
If the Demon's soldiers were permitted to step foot into Canibar Territory under the permission of the Ayslansian Kingdom, their forces would be able to obliterate the Holy Kingdom's army. This would allow their image as a proper 'nation' or 'kingdom'—with a powerful 'army'—to spread throughout the continent.