Whiik!
Pang!
A small firecracker exploded near the eastern gate of Perdium Castle.
"Let's go!"
The cavalry, waiting nearby, spotted the signal and began charging at full speed.
The Perdium forces would likely have noticed the firecracker as well.
The eastern gate needed to be captured and held before reinforcements arrived.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
As the cavalry charged ahead, the infantry quickly followed. The speed difference was significant, but as long as the cavalry entered the castle first, the infantry would soon join the fight.
The cavalry commander, racing toward the castle gate, suddenly felt a strange unease and instinctively hunched his shoulders.
'What is this? Why is it so quiet?'
In the distance, the castle gate glimmered with the light of torches and was wide open.
But there was no sign of any skirmishes near the gate.
'Could the infiltrators and knights have already subdued all the soldiers? No matter how many were just regular troops, that was too fast.'
Perdium was short on knights, so most of the guards were likely soldiers.
If the infiltrating knights had neutralized them swiftly, it wouldn't be surprising. But...
'Something doesn't feel right.'
Years of experience on the battlefield kept nagging at his instincts.
'Should I turn back?'
As they drew closer to the castle gate, cold sweat trickled down his back, and his skin tingled.
'No, we still have to go.'
The signal had come, the gate was open—there was no turning back now.
If he retreated simply due to unease, the knights inside would succeed in their mission only to be left for dead.
He was a soldier and had to follow orders, even if it meant taking risks.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The cavalry closed in on the gate.
'There are only a few infiltrators. It's normal for it to be quiet. Let's go. Let's...'
Steeling himself, he urged his horse forward but suddenly looked up at the castle gate.
His whole body froze.
The gate, faintly glowing with a red hue, looked like the mouth of a demon, waiting to swallow him whole.
If he entered, he was sure to die.
"Retreat! Retreat!"
The cavalry commander trusted his instincts.
Just as he turned his horse around—
Whirr! Crack!
An axe came hurtling out of nowhere, burying itself in his neck.
The commander tumbled from his horse.
Neigh!
The horse, now riderless, turned wildly, its front legs raised high.
Some of the soldiers following him couldn't stop in time and crashed into each other.
Thud! Crash! Crash!
"It's a trap! It's a trap!"
"Argh! What's happening?!"
"Turn around! Fall back to our original position!"
Though chaos ensued as the lead unit fell, the remaining soldiers turned around, following the last order and began to retreat.
Inside the castle, Ghislain clicked his tongue in disappointment.
"They're quite skilled. I even set up traps, but it's a pity."
He'd planned to lure them in fully and wipe them out, but in the rush, the traps hadn't been perfect.
It seemed the enemy commander had sensed something was off.
Not that it mattered. He could easily catch them without the traps.
"Let's go!"
Ghislain mounted his horse, and hundreds of cavalry followed him.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Ghislain's cavalry charged out of the gate, slicing through the panicked, fleeing enemy soldiers.
Boom!
"Argh!"
After quickly taking care of the remaining cavalry, Ghislain turned his attention toward the approaching infantry.
The infantry commander, realizing something was wrong, had already started turning around.
If the enemy had discovered their ambush, they couldn't risk getting closer.
"Run! If you get caught, you'll die! Run!"
The commander urged his soldiers on, running with all his might.
But the larger the force, the harder it was to change direction while running at full speed.
"You're quick-witted! Chase them down!"
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Ghislain rode with a cruel grin, his mercenaries close behind.
Finally, the infantry's rear was caught.
Boom!
"Argh!"
"Hold them off! Stop them!"
"Some of you, delay them!"
Those who had turned their backs couldn't defend themselves properly.
Ghislain and mercenaries tore into the soldiers like wolves among sheep.
***
Meanwhile, Viktor, unaware of the slaughter happening at the infantry's rear, continued his movements.
He watched the eastern gate from afar, confirmed the signal, and let out a triumphant cry.
"It's working! Half of you, follow me! The rest, attack Perdium Castle!"
Their main forces were already assaulting the southern gate of Perdium.
Viktor led half his forces toward the open eastern gate.
The remaining half moved to keep Perdium's forces occupied at the southern gate.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Perdium's response was swift. Zwalter and Randolph led their soldiers back onto the castle walls.
However, with it being nighttime, it took them a while to realize that half of Viktor's army was flanking them.
"My lord! The enemy forces are moving toward the eastern gate!"
"What? Randolph! Take the troops and go to reinforce them immediately!"
Following Zwalter's command, Randolph took half the soldiers and rushed toward the eastern gate.
Viktor had anticipated this movement.
"Heh, it's too late. You're finished."
By now, the forces Viktor had sent to the eastern gate should have caused chaos.
With Viktor's forces added to the mix, Perdium Castle would surely fall.
They might try to resist through a prolonged siege, but with such a large gap in numbers, they wouldn't hold for long.
Viktor was confident.
"Charge! Tonight, we will sleep in the castle!"
Behind him, a thousand cavalry rode forward. The soldiers followed with all their might.
Despite being smaller and less fortified than other castles, it would still take time to move such a large force.
"Not much further! Let's... huh?"
Viktor, pressing forward, was met with an unexpected sight.
"Reinforcements! We're saved!"
"Help us! Quickly!"
"Over here! Hurry!"
In the distance, allied soldiers were running toward him, their formation a disorganized mess.
Viktor stared at them, dumbfounded.
Unable to grasp the situation, he couldn't issue a single order.
"Fall back! Everyone, fall back!"
Seeing Viktor's main forces, Ghislain, who had been massacring the infantry's rear, turned his horse around, shouting.
"Hahaha!"
"I lost sleep because of you!"
"But it was fun!"
The mercenaries laughed loudly, following Ghislain and fleeing.
Viktor, now snapping out of it, screamed in rage.
"After them! Chase them down!"
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The cavalry pursued Ghislain, charging with all their might.
But they were slowed down by their own scattered infantry, which had spread everywhere in their panic.
By the time they managed to close in, Ghislain and mercenaries were already entering the castle gate.
The cavalry commander chasing them shouted loudly.
"Charge! We can catch them!"
If they collided with the gate just before it closed, they'd make it in.
With the main force following closely behind, they just needed to buy a little time.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The cavalry charged with everything they had as the mercenaries frantically entered the castle.
"Hey, you coward! Move!"
"Hurry! They're right behind us!"
"Let me go in first!"
Panicked, the mercenaries jostled each other, causing a commotion as they scrambled inside.
Creak.
The last of the mercenaries entered, and the gate began to close.
Viktor's cavalry lowered their bodies, raising their lances.
'Just a little further!'
They were close, almost there. They could reach it before the iron gate fully closed.
'We'll break through!'
The leading cavalry reached the castle gate—
Swoosh!
From atop the castle wall, a rain of arrows poured down.
Thwack! Thwack!
"Argh!"
The cavalry, struck by the volley, began falling.
Boom! Boom!
The soldiers following them stumbled over bodies, unable to stop in time.
From above, Skovan shouted enthusiastically.
"Fire! Keep firing! Don't stop! Shoot everything!"
The eastern gate's defenders and Skovan's forest rangers continued the relentless assault, showering arrows without pause.
Because of Ghislain's preparation, they were able to respond quickly.
"Support them! Fire!"
Randolph and his troops, having just arrived, also joined in.
Boom!
By then, the gate had closed completely, the iron bars securely lowered.
Now, unless mana-wielding knights intervened, breaking through would be impossible.
The remaining cavalry had no choice but to retreat to their main force.
Watching their defeated allies, Viktor seethed with rage.
"Argh! Damn you all!"
His plan had backfired. Even the infiltrators had gone silent.
Combining losses from both the waiting cavalry and infantry, over 300 soldiers were gone.
Like a steady drizzle soaking his clothes, his losses kept accumulating.
"Retreat!"
Finally, he turned back toward camp.
Perdium Castle erupted in victorious cheers once again, and Viktor ground his teeth as he heard it.
Randolph, weaving through the jubilant Perdium soldiers, rushed to Ghislain.
"Young lord! What happened here? How did you stop them?"
Randolph had rushed to the eastern gate expecting chaos, only to find piles of enemy corpses.
Even the advancing forces had turned back.
What kind of trick had Ghislain pulled off with such a small force? Randolph couldn't understand it.
"It was nothing. The enemy tried something clever, but I caught on."
Ghislain briefly explained the captives and Viktor's strategy.
Randolph looked stunned.
"Wow, once again..."
Once could be luck. But twice? Was it possible for luck to strike twice?
The Ghislain Randolph knew was not the type to outwit an enemy.
If anything, he was more reckless than Randolph, not someone who'd think things through.
"Hmm, young lord seems to have changed somewhat."
Until recently, Ghislain had been a source of frustration for him.
He'd even felt the urge to beat some sense into him.
But with every victory, he was starting to forget those feelings.
Feeling awkward, Randolph slipped away and went to report to Zwalter.
"Well, well, Ghislain held them off with just those men?"
So that's why Ghislain and the mercenaries had been absent—they had moved ahead to the eastern gate.
"Thank goodness. Truly, thank goodness."
If Ghislain's actions had been guided purely by instinct in previous skirmishes, this time it took real strategy.
Zwalter shuddered to think how this war might have ended without Ghislain.
Maybe it would've been over in one swift blow.
Zwalter, moved by his son's growth, felt a wave of pride.
Now, Ghislain was an indispensable commander for the estate.
"To detect the enemy's strategy and turn it against them... Did he study strategy? Haha, I suppose Belinda's teachings paid off…"
Randolph interrupted, frowning.
"Study? No way. The young lord? He's even less educated than I am."
Zwalter pursed his lips.
No matter how troublesome his son might be, no one enjoyed hearing their child insulted.
Especially in comparison to Randolph.
Randolph scratched his head, feeling awkward as he noticed Zwalter's expression.
Zwalter chuckled, waving his hand.
"Well, he's always done things his own way. He must have his own methods. Rest now, and make sure the soldiers do too."
Deciding to save his questions for later, Zwalter went to organize his forces.
Any rest they could get would help them endure the next day's battles.
***
While Randolph reported to Zwalter, Ghislain dismissed the mercenaries and headed somewhere alone.
A cruel smile played on his lips.
'Viktor, so you came.'
Through the captured knights, he'd discovered who led the enemy forces.
It was Swordmaster Viktor, the sword of Harold Desmond.
They had crossed paths once during the war with the Lutania Kingdom.
A formidable foe who had managed to withstand dozens of exchanges with Ghislain, one of the continent's top seven swords.
Eventually, Ghislain had split him in half, but it had been a memorable duel, enough for him to remember Viktor's name.
'This is an opportunity.'
It was the perfect chance to eliminate a potential future threat.
That man would lose his life here before he had the chance to grow any stronger.
'Sending someone he valued here...'
Harold had probably wanted Viktor to gain experience and glory in real battle.
If Ghislain hadn't been here, things might have gone just as the count had hoped...
'A mistake, Harold.'
With a devilish smile, Ghislain radiated killing intent.
[T/L: Please support me and read extra chapters here: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]