Brook Coverty, a regular knight of the Eastern 1st Knight Division, wore a troubled expression.
“Suddenly telling us to take in new squires?”
For knights, squires were both disciples and a reliable source of income. The financial support they brought, along with the networking opportunities, made them an important asset. Having one of those precious slots suddenly taken away would deal a serious blow. The parents of those squires were nobles with influence in their respective regions. How was he supposed to explain this to them?
Like the other knights, Brook Coverty voiced his dissatisfaction.
“He’s not even the son of some count. What are we supposed to do with a raw commoner?”
“A regular knight only gets two squire slots. If we’re going to follow the Commander’s orders, we have to let one of them go.”
“Damn it. This is going to be a headache.”
They began writing letters to the relatively weaker noble houses, explaining that they had no choice but to expel the current squires from their positions, while promising to reinstate them once the situation was resolved.
A commotion broke out, but the Commander refused to bend. In the end, new squires were assigned. However, Commander Carius did not simply issue orders. He presented an enormous carrot that instantly silenced the complaints.
“If your squire wins the swordsmanship tournament, you’ll receive personal instruction?”
“Not just the disciple, but the master as well?”
“Wait a minute. If that’s the case, isn’t this worth it? The Commander is one of the strongest knights in the Empire.”
“Honestly, when it comes to achievements, the others can’t even compare. The other Grand Masters are all quite old, after all.”
“Ahem! I should go take a look at my newly assigned squire’s face.”
“You were cursing up a storm just now, and suddenly you’re this enthusiastic?”
“Of course not. See you all later.”
The regular knights who had been voicing opposition scattered in an instant. Squires were essential, but they were not more important than advancing one’s own realm. If they simply grew stronger, money would come rolling in on its own. Fame and honor would follow as well. How could they possibly let an opportunity like this slip away?
Brook Coverty was no exception.
He rushed to the knight barracks and met his newly assigned squire.
“Salute! Knight Coverty, sir.”
Perhaps because he came from a soldier background, his military discipline was impeccable. In fact, it was rare to see such perfect form in other units. This was all thanks to Instructor Feltron’s hellish training. Who could have imagined that the ragtag Eastern Allied Army would grow to this extent?
“So you’re the soldier assigned to me.”
“Yes, sir. My name is Maves.”
“All right. Let’s see what you can do.”
“P-Pardon?”
“I want to check your fundamentals.”
“Ah, yes sir!”
Maves immediately moved his body. It was the basic swordsmanship that every imperial soldier learned. The movements were simple, yet fundamentals were always the most difficult. Even the squires who had previously passed through Brook Coverty’s hands had never performed them properly. Those young masters from prestigious families only wanted flashy techniques and had no interest in the basics.
Whoosh! Thud!
“Oh?”
However, Maves’ movements carried real power. There was not the slightest hint of looking down on basic swordsmanship as something trivial. His expression and gaze remained serious throughout, and it was clear he was pouring his full concentration into every single motion. His focus was on a completely different level from the previous squires.
Before long, a smile had formed on Brook Coverty’s lips.
“I’ll teach you aura.”
“It would be an honor, Knight Coverty.”
“But you must win the swordsmanship tournament.”
“Leave it to me!”
From that day forward, grueling training began. Aura cultivation methods, basic physical conditioning, and swordsmanship drills. Maves was kept busy without a moment to spare. He even had to split his sleeping time to temper his body.
Roughly two months later, an astonishing result emerged.
“M-Master! I’ve completed Aura Rotation!”
“What? Already?”
“Yes, sir!”
It was highly encouraging news. Aura Rotation involved drawing in the energy of nature, circulating it in a great loop inside the body, and sending it to every corner while maintaining perfect control. It required tremendous talent. Naturally, one could not know whether they had succeeded until they actually tried it.
Yet the squire who had been forcibly assigned to him possessed such outstanding ability.
“Heh. Maybe I’m just lucky?”
Similar phenomena were occurring everywhere.
A few days later, his fellow knight George Slorex came running over in a fluster.
“Bwahahaha! Do you know what happened?”
“What?”
“My squire completed Aura Rotation in just two months and a few days. It’s a new record! A new record!”
Brook snorted as he watched George boast with excitement.
“What new record? My squire finished it in two months. He’s three days faster than yours.”
“Wait, what? Why is everyone making such rapid progress?”
“Everyone?”
“Mergen said his squire is almost done too.”
“Hah!”
The two men could only let out hollow laughs. The soldiers Commander Carius had assigned them all possessed exceptional talent for aura. Not just ordinary talent, either. If they trained properly for another ten years or so, they would easily surpass their masters. They were that outstanding. The knights wanted to teach them everything they knew.
“Just how did the Commander identify the soldiers’ aura talent?”
“It’s strange. Normally you can’t tell until you actually try teaching them.”
“Maybe when you reach a realm as high as his, you develop a special kind of insight?”
“Like how he can gauge someone’s level just by looking at their posture?”
“Exactly.”
“If that’s the case, shouldn’t the disciples of Grand Masters also possess tremendous skill?”
“They’re all amazing, after all. There are even some who became Aura Masters in their thirties.”
“But in the end, they never surpassed their masters’ footsteps.”
“Hmm. That’s true.”
The knights could not hide their doubts. Wasn’t aura talent something even Grand Masters could not fully perceive? Yet Abel Carius had done it with ease. And not just one or two people—he had selected hundreds of talents.
In the end, the knights arrived at a single conclusion.
“There’s only one way to interpret this.”
“What?”
“Commander Carius has reached a higher realm than the Empire’s Grand Masters.”
“That’s a rather dangerous statement. But I agree.”
“Same here. Achieving great feats is one thing. Instantly repairing the walls was also…… Wait, honestly, that part is even harder to understand.”
The discussion veered off in an unexpected direction. It could not be helped. The accomplishments Abel Carius had achieved so far were on an entirely different scale. Not only had he repaired the southern wall, he had also swallowed up a vast amount of land. A new wall had appeared at the edge of the canyon. Yates Fortress, which originally had double walls, now possessed triple defenses. While the sheer size of the grounds was somewhat unsettling, most welcomed it with open arms.
“We were solving everything inside that cramped fortress. This is actually better.”
“Right. Because of the lake, we couldn’t expand backward anyway. So moving forward like the Commander did is the right call.”
“Hey, do you all know? This is the first time the Empire has advanced this far.”
“Does that mean we’re standing at the center of a new history?”
“It feels strange.”
The voices praising Abel Carius soon turned into nationalistic fervor. In truth, the knights were still restraining themselves. They could not make too much of a fuss for the sake of appearances. The soldiers, however, were burning with confidence and loyalty, casually mentioning both His Majesty the Emperor and Commander Carius wherever they went.
“Ah, I should head back now. My squire who completed Aura Rotation in just two months is waiting.”
“Tch! Don’t get cocky just because you finished it a few days earlier. My squire is going to win the swordsmanship tournament.”
“Don’t make me laugh. Bring it on whenever you’re ready.”
The knights growled and glared at each other, then burst into laughter. None of them had ever imagined that the squires they had once viewed merely as sources of money would change them this much.
“I’m off.”
“Take care.”
After exchanging light greetings and preparing to part ways, a small bat suddenly flew over.
Flap-flap! Thud!
The creature hung upside down from Brook Coverty’s armor. Immediately after, a booming voice filled his mind.
—All members of the 1st Knight Division, assemble! Gather at the first wall in full combat gear!
“W-What’s going on all of a sudden?”
Though it was a tiny bat speaking, Brook answered with respect. This creature was the Commander’s new messenger. A sharp voice then struck directly into his head.
—Full-scale offensive by the Mandus tribe!
“Combat ready! Bring my horse at once!”
Brook Coverty sprinted toward the knight barracks like a madman. Maves was already waiting with the reins in hand. He must have moved quickly the moment he heard the order. Brook smiled at the sight of such a proper squire. It had been a long time since he had seen something like this. The previous squires had always slacked off, relying on their family’s influence. Just look at them now. None of them were in sight, while only Maves had come running.
“Good luck, Master!”
“Yeah. I’ll be back. You return to the main force and join the battle.”
“Salute!”
Brook Coverty raced to the assembly point. His comrades were gathering one after another, so there was no chance of getting lost. Before long, a man dressed in a black suit and carrying only a single warhammer mounted his horse. It was Duke Abel Carius, who continued to build legends not only in the north but now in the east as well.
“Salute to the Commander!”
“Salute!”
The Eastern 1st Knight Division offered a unified military salute. After repeated reductions, only three hundred men remained, yet they had never felt more reliable. With that man leading them, it felt as though they could smash through any battlefield.
“This operation is somewhat complex. If you make even one mistake, we could all die. Follow my commands to the letter.”
“Yes, sir!”
At Abel Carius’s single word, the knights responded with powerful voices.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The knight division immediately began galloping across the newly secured grounds. The first gate had already been breached. Yet arrows still rained down like a storm. The soldiers on the wall were firing relentlessly while retreating to the left and right.
“Am I seeing things? Why does that wall have no seams and look so smooth?”
“The Commander built it. He made sure the Mandus bastards couldn’t climb it. And not just no seams?”
“Then what else…… Huh? There are no stairs either.”
“To get up onto that first wall, you have to start from inside Yates Fortress. The Mandus don’t have proper siege equipment, so they can’t get over it.”
“Even so, if the wall breaks it’ll be dangerous, won’t it?”
“That’s why they’re retreating like that.”
Brook Coverty nodded at his fellow regular knight George Slorex’s words. As expected of a wall the Commander had created. However, the gate’s defenses seemed to be lacking. The fact that the Mandus had already broken through to this extent proved it.
“Eastern 1st Knight Division, charge!”
At that moment, Abel Carius’s order fell.
The knight division swept through the inner grounds of the first wall, trampling the enemy forces. Their goal was to prevent the Mandus from approaching Yates Fortress. The moment the knights withdrew, a rain of arrows would pour down. It was a situation where the enemy was trapped and beaten from all sides.
Eventually, the Mandus had no choice but to make a decision.
“All forces, charge! We’ll break through the fortress with sheer power!”
“Uwooooooo!”
The sight of tens of thousands of Mandus warriors charging forward was truly spectacular. Each and every one of them was strong enough to rival cavalry on flat ground and apprentice knights on the walls. If the imperial forces could not withstand this numerical assault, they would collapse in an instant.
Just as the crisis loomed—
“Break their vanguard! Deploy Sword Wave!”
At Abel Carius’s command, the Eastern 1st Knight Division moved as one. Three hundred sword strikes unfolded as though they were a single body. A wave of aura crashed into the enemy vanguard. The Mandus charge was forced to falter.
And at that exact moment—
“Withdraw!”
Krrrrrrruuuuumble!!
Along with the Commander’s shout, the ground began to shake violently. An unbelievable sight unfolded behind the retreating knights. Brook Coverty glanced back and muttered with a dazed expression.
“How am I supposed to describe this? Did the god of war come down to the human world to play?”