Sounds that I couldn't distinguish if they were screams or buzzing echoed in my ears.
Someone's limbs were scattered here and there.
A soldier who couldn't bear death cried as he picked up the internal organs spilling out.
"What is this..."
Stephen felt as if he were walking through a dream as he watched the scene unfolding before him.
This can't be happening.
Until recently, we were confident in victory.
"Come to your senses!"
A sudden tug on the collar.
Only then could Stephen shake off his strange floating sensation as a voice pierced through his deaf ears.
It was Godin, the knight commander.
"We need to move! It's not over yet!"
He could feel the force suppressing the chaos in Godin's eyes, shining brighter than ever.
Godin's drive usually felt like poison, but in the current situation, it actually became a boon for Stephen.
"Yes... that's right. It's not over yet."
It was only then that Stephen, meeting Godin's eyes, could catch his breath and look out onto the battlefield.
As he said, it definitely wasn't over yet.
On the battlefield, his father still shouted loudly and prepared his formation.
"Hurry up and stay on the right wall! Don't be foolish and get hit by arrows!"
Bayezid's cavalry suddenly attacked.
They took whatever they wanted with their first charge, but Gaidar had not yet fallen.
"Wagner! Lead the cavalry! Drive those madmen away!"
"Alright!"
Although he was a knight who lost his banner, everyone had to do their part in a situation like this.
Wagner quickly gathers the cavalry and separates from the main unit.
And Sigmund moves his formation toward the right wall they occupied.
Rutiger, who was catching his breath for the second assault, bit his lip as he watched Gaidar's army resolve the confusion faster than expected.
"Stephen, you stupid son! Didn't you understand what I said?"
Only when Sigmund shouted his name could Stephen return to his normal gaze.
His actions are frivolous and light, but his qualities as a monarch are true.
"They don't listen to my orders to set fire to the combat sieges!"
Stephen, suddenly regaining his senses at Sigmund's shout, looked at the charred gates of Deirmar.
Several siege weapons were scattered about.
Until recently, they had been used to capture the castle gate, but now they were used to block the exit of the Hainal army.
"Your squad follows me! Take all your oil and torches!"
Even now, Bayezid's eyes, staring at them head-on, are fierce.
However, the person more worrisome than them is Deirmar, who has no choice but to be placed right at the end of the formation.
"Damn it!"
Bayezid and Hainal are completely trapped between the two.
To overcome this situation, they must step forward.
The walls of Deirmar, which had been struck so forcefully, had already lost their function, so it would be pointless to break through them.
"Light it quickly!"
The carts and siege towers begin to burn one by one according to Stephen's instructions.
As soon as the massive bodies began to ignite, black smoke began to block the gates of Deirmar.
"Done!"
As he watched the roaring flames, Stephen's face began to turn red.
With this level of obstacles and fire, no matter how much you open the door, you won't be able to rush through immediately.
It would probably take several hours to remove the scattered siege machines, and that was enough time to buy.
Now Gaidar's army only has to deal with Bayezid in front of them.
"...!"
However, at that moment, Stephen's shoulders shuddered due to the sudden force he felt.
"Damn it."
A cold presence was felt behind the castle gate.
It was so quiet it seemed sinister, as if someone were lurking behind the iron gates of Deirmar.
"This bastard..."
Obviously, he couldn't hear it, but he could feel it.
The signal that someone is slowly catching their breath behind the gate.
The unforgettable duel of that day was slowly emerging in Stephen's mind.
***
Soldiers descending the narrow stairs, leaning on each other.
The stairs, which had been deliberately designed to be narrow for fear that the castle walls would collapse, held the soldiers' ankles and slowed their movements.
However, despite the slow retreat, they were able to reach the ground safely thanks to a knight still behind the soldiers.
"Ha..."
Bayezid's Knight. Vlad de Soara.
The once beautiful blonde hair was now dyed bright red here and there, showing the fierceness he had maintained until now.
However, if there was one thing that couldn't be taken off him, it was those blue eyes that shone alone.
Despite being completely soaked in blood, it was the only thing that retained its original color.
"Come again, bastards."
The end of his halting words echoed like the growl of a beast.
But knowing it wasn't a simple threat but a sharp warning, Gaidar's knights gritted their teeth.
"That crazy bastard."
"Leave that guy. Let's not waste our strength here."
Gaidar's knights began to retreat slowly, as if tired of the sound.
It was as if they were moving to open the way and let them go, but somewhere in their steps, there was a sense of helpless defeat.
It was a path of bright red blood that seemed to continue endlessly along the castle wall, but behind Vlad, the ground was completely exposed.
As if he had cut off the head of a snake, the young knight had cut the bloody path.
"Sir Vlad. Everyone has retreated."
"...Good."
Vlad looked back and confirmed that all the soldiers had retreated as Stephan had said.
"Let's go."
Vlad and Stephan slowly step back as they watch Gaidar's knights.
Clearly, he was fighting, but he couldn't hold out any longer.
The right wall of Deirmar was already crowded with Gaidar's soldiers, and even now, the knights who had fixed on a bright blue day were staring at him.
"Be careful."
Vlad looked at the knights in front of him without even blinking and slowly descended the stairs, relying on Stephan.
A strange distance is created between Vlad and Gaidar's knights.
However, although it was Vlad who was stepping back now, the expression of relief was beginning to emerge from Gaidar's knights.
'Gaidar...'
As Vlad slowly descended the stairs, his eyes filled with the flag waving above.
A flag with the eagle of Gaidar, not the tree of Hainal, engraved on it.
Seeing the target of revenge so close that he could no longer avoid it, Vlad silently strengthened his determination.
"Are you okay? Are you injured anywhere?"
After escaping from the castle walls, Vlad and Stephan quickly ran toward the reserve unit behind them.
As Vlad approached, voices of praise began to be heard gradually.
As soon as the soldiers of Hainal, who had collapsed from exhaustion in various places, saw Vlad, they began to rise with their heavy bodies.
"I'm fine."
Vlad wiped the blood from his face with the towel Jager gave him, then turned his head to the blue eyes staring at him in front of him.
"Because it was something I had to do."
His pursed lips seemed as strong as his neatly tied hair .
However, his worried gaze was something that couldn't be helped.
Vlad, who had a keen ear, remembered a faint voice shouting from afar, telling him to hurry down.
"Good job. Now rest."
Joseph said many words as he hugged Vlad's blood-stained shoulder.
The person who watched Vlad's struggles on the castle wall with more anxiety than anyone would have been Joseph.
"I'll go."
"...Don't be stubborn."
"Please let me follow you. Didn't you promise me?"
However, Vlad didn't sheathe his sword, as if he didn't want to receive Joseph's consideration.
A solid red line still dripped along the length of the sword.
Vlad's trembling shoulders, as well as his ragged breath, showed his condition, but he couldn't stop there.
"You said you would send me with Godin, didn't you? That was our promise."
"..."
The time promised by both had come.
The young knight was closer than ever to the blue moon and now confidently demanded his rights.
"If. It certainly was."
Joseph remembered it clearly.
You have faith, and I have honor.
So, if the opportunity arises and the qualifications, I will create a space for you to be able to seek revenge.
Because that was the condition imposed for seven years.
"I promise. I won't act recklessly this time."
Vlad wasn't just asking for it.
"Even if I stand in front of Godin, I will prioritize my responsibilities and duties as a knight."
I have made many mistakes so far, but I hope that this time you trust me.
Because I know who I am and what I must do.
Vlad, taking on the responsibility of being a knight, could no longer be a child who only thought of revenge.
"I won't ruin this war with my personal grudges."
"..."
Duty adds weight to life, and weight makes it more serious.
Joseph could only nod as he watched the boy, of whom only traces remained.
"It's alright."
Joseph ignored Alicia's piercing gaze as she approached him from behind and gestured to Noir to bring him.
"I trust you. The trust you've shown me all this time was clearly sincere."
The reason Joseph didn't let go of Vlad despite numerous mistakes was not simply because he coveted his talent.
Even as a child, Vlad was clearly a man trying to keep his word.
No matter how big and unbearable those words were.
Joseph appreciated Vlad's sincerity.
"You must not lose yourself to any anger. To lose oneself means to lose the way forward."
Noir's whinnies start to approach from afar.
However, the reason we can't take our eyes off Joseph is probably because the words he conveys contain many things.
"Gaidar blocked the door. The path we have ahead is narrow, and there will be no one to help you."
"Alright."
Vlad finally looked away from Joseph's eyes and looked at the tightly closed gates of Deirmar.
The pitiful castle gate was about to burst in several places because we did our best.
However, to move forward to a wider world, they would eventually have to venture out of the safety of the walls.
"Go. Go ahead and show our strength."
The gate begins to open slowly following Joseph's orders.
What was visible through the narrow gap in the gate was only an obstacle in several places, but even so, Vlad could clearly see the path he had to take.
A path appears through my deeply closed left eye.
Because the traces left by August showed the direction Vlad had to take.
"Then I'll be back."
If there's a way, there's no reason to hesitate.
Vlad, trapped in a closed world, was a person ready to break through even the narrowest gap.
Beyond the red flames and black smoke, Vlad's blue eyes began to gaze out from the castle gate.
***
"This is insane!"
Stephen looked at the scene in front of him and cursed inadvertently.
A blue perch burned silently beyond the black smoke.
Because that position was now running towards me without hesitation.
"Stop! Stop!"
The gates of Deirmar were only half-opened, as if something had been damaged by the harsh offensive.
However, even if it's just that much, it will be enough to overcome the short-term crisis.
For the boy from the dark alley, an opening like this was nothing short of a blessing.
"That guy is running!"
"You can't get through anyway! Just one or two obstacles!"
Lined-up siege carts ablaze.
No matter how skilled a rider he may be, he won't be able to overcome these obstacles.
Stephen, who knew this well, kept his eyes wide open, waiting for the moment when Vlad would stop.
Neigh!
However, the black prairie horse was a spiritual creature that defied common sense.
Noir, who perfectly recognized Vlad's path through the worlds they faced, ran forward without the slightest hesitation, cutting through the fire and invisible smoke.
"Oh my god."
Stephen opened his mouth stunned as he watched Vlad leap over his head.
A knight whose sword was taken away.
Vlad had been showing his teeth until now, but now he was looking beyond them.
"Let's go! Noir!"
Neigh!
The blue moonlight reminiscent of flowed through my deeply closed left eye.
No matter how painful the wound, it cannot be denied that it is the foundation of Vlad's world.
The world of the knights he first encountered at the bonfire. And for that, he lost his home.
Vlad, who had been repeating these words over and over until now, finally obtained the right to fully utter the name Moonlight.
"Go, Dean! Godin, Knight of Gaidar!"
Vlad and Noir run through Gaidar's still unformed formation, cutting down the soldiers in their way.
Everyone in Gaidar turned around as the knight suddenly appeared from behind.
"I'm here! You're a knight who didn't pay a fair price!"
Vlad advances alone through the towering waves.
Godin's fleeting gaze was looking at Vlad as if he couldn't believe it.
"Retract this, you son of a bitch!"
Although I still can't fully reach him.
But now the blue moonlight sees me.
A black lump thrown by Vlad flew towards Godin's wide-open eyes.
"I told you!"
On a cold winter day, there was a boy screaming as he crawled on the blood-stained ground.
"I'll definitely kill you!"
The smile of a rose filled only with silence.
A place where only the trembling of Jorge's neck and the sobs of the women became witnesses to the boy.
It wasn't just blood and tears that flowed there.
"Yes..."
A knight only accepts a fair price.
But Vlad, when he was a child, didn't accept the false reward offered to him.
I kept it for a long time.
Like a scar left by a wound.
"…Do you still have this?"
A piece of spoiled meat.
That day, a piece of beef jerky spilled over Vlad's head and ended up in his hand again.
Godin smiled helplessly as he looked at the black lump flying directly towards him.
"Get out of the way!"
Vlad cut directly through Gaidar's army formation and headed towards Bayezid.
A gap in the formation split straight like the tracks of an arrow.
Meanwhile, Vlad threw it with all his might towards the blue moonlight that finally looked at him.
Even the painful memories of that day that I kept with the jerky.
____
Join the discord!
https://dsc.gg/indra
____