Translator: Skythewood

Editor: Hiiro

Ⅱ

The next day after their brush-in with Heat Haze.

Olivia"s group left the Dessert City Keffin. They already obtained intel from Alvin, so there wasn"t any need to stay in the city. The Guard Captain was very disappointed, but his mood turned better when he heard that the chance of an Imperial Army attack was very low. He sent the Regiment off gleefully, his personality was very easy to figure out.

—Two more days pa.s.sed.

The Autonomous Cavalry Regiment was just a short distance away from Emreed. This was because their movement speed had increased drastically since they didn"t have to scout for enemies. Olivia enjoyed riding on her horse, and would even sleep while riding.

“Major, please don"t sleep on the back of the horse. It"s dangerous.”

Claudia reminded her out of concern. Olivia stretched her back, yawned, and then looked up to the sky:

“It"s all because the weather is so nice. If I can lie on the plains, I can sleep comfortably. Well, shall we take a break?”

“You already said that two hours ago, and we rested just like you wanted. We will reach Emreed soon, please bear with it a while longer.”

Claudia said exasperatedly. Ashton who was riding beside them smiled awkwardly. It seemed that her plan to take a break on the plains had failed.

“Claudia you meanie! Hey, Ashton, is there anything tasty in Emreed? There is, right?”

“Why are you asking me. Hmm~ since it"s a fortress city, there should be nice food.”

“Major, I didn"t say anything mean. Besides—”

“Be quiet.”

Olivia placed her index finger on her lips, and looked in front. She could sense someone approaching.

“What is it?”

Claudia asked tensely. Ashton took out a telescope and scanned the front.

“— A rider is coming towards us!”

“Halt!”

Claudia immediately gave the order. All eyes were focused on the front, and a man in armour appeared with the sound of horse hooves.

“That"s… a soldier from the Royal Army.”

“That"s right.”

“He looked fl.u.s.tered. What happened?”

When the man noticed Olivia"s group, he looked relieved— and immediately moved in with a tense face.

“It"s an emergency, please allow me to report on horseback. I a.s.sume you must be Regiment Commander Olivia of the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment, correct?”

“Yes, that"s right. And you are?”

“I"m Private First Cla.s.s Ritz from Major General Hosmund"s unit. Our unit is engaging the Crimson Knights on the Almheim plains, and the battle is going badly. Please… help us…”

It took everything he had to say this much. Ritz"s body swayed a little, and he fell off his horse. Ashton quickly dismounted and help Ritz up.

“… He"s fine, he just lost consciousness.”

Claudia sighed in relief when she heard that, but quickly tense up her face.

“Our vanguard has already engaged the enemy. Their opponent is the formidable Crimson Knights.”

“They will be in danger if we don"t hurry and help.”

Claudia nodded firmly.

“The Major is right, we can"t ignore our allies who are in peril.”

“Let"s hurry then.”

“Please wait.”

Before Claudia could give the order, Ashton said with a frantic voice from behind. She turned back, and saw he was more serious than ever before.

“W-What"s wrong?”

His face that looked different from usual made Olivia a little nervous.

“Just like First Lieutenant Claudia said, the Crimson Knights are formidable, and it would be too heavy a burden for new recruits. We need a strategy to keep everyone alive.”

When she saw Ashton"s serious face, Olivia started thinking. From what Ashton and Claudia said, the Crimson Knights was no pushover. She looked at a few fresh recruits, and found them trembling with their face pale.

He was right, if they didn"t prepare some sort of plan, the fresh recruits would end up dead.

“Ashton, any ideas?”

“Sorry… I"m the one who brought it up, but I don"t have any clues.”

Ashton hung his head in shame. She looked towards Claudia, who only shook her head in silence. Neither of them had any good suggestions.

(This is difficult. It will be fine if I"m alone though... Hmm? Alone? That"s right, alone!)

Olivia snapped her fingers. Ashton and Claudia looked at each other, and asked at the same time:

“Have you thought of a plan?”

“Major, please tell us.”

The two of them leaned in close, which surprised Olivia.

“E-Erm, I"m thinking that we should let three men work together to take on one Crimson Knight. One will attack, one defend, and the last one will support. That will be one team. The fresh recruits should be able to handle that, and minimize our losses.”

“I see… each soldier will focus on his own task. The recruits will be of some use then.”

Ashton was impressed and nodded, while Claudia looked hesitant.

“Hmm? Claudia, is something wrong? I think it is a good idea though.”

“No, there"s nothing wrong… But even if they are the Crimson Knights, ganging up on them is a little… As a knight that values honour, I"m afraid...”

“This is war, and the recruits aren"t knights?”

“Of course I know that… Ahhhh!”

Claudia"s eyes turned red, and she scratched her head as she mumbled something. Olivia pulled away from Claudia on reflex. Claudia was a little scary right now, so she decided to observe quietly.

— A while later.

“Let"s go with that then.”

It seemed to take everything Claudia had to say that. Her inner battles seemed to be over. She was really interesting at times.

Hosmund regretted his rash actions. It was true that he didn"t want the citizens to be caught up in the flames of war, but he was also blinded by his ambitions. This was the result of his greed for war merits.

(Fufu. Is this my punishment for my avarice…)

In front of him was a gigantic man swinging a huge war axe. The brave soldiers who challenged him were crushed by that weapon, splattering blood and sinew everywhere. Hosmund even started to wonder whether humans were really that frail. Selim was right, they should have waited for the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment.

But Selim was gone. He had journeyed to the underworld in his valiant effort to protect Hosmund.

(But… I couldn"t allow such vile acts to go unpunished!)

When he saw the terrible state of his scouts, Hosmund"s eyes turned red. When he realized it, he had ignored Selim"s call for restrain, and was charging on the Almheim plains.

— Without realizing this was a trap by the enemy.

Hosmund attacked too deep, and got surrounded by the Crimson Knights. He immediately ordered his men to adopt defensive formation, but the instruction wasn"t relayed swiftly because of the chaos.

As a result, the troops were ravished helplessly, and their retreat path was cut off.

“Hey hey, are you really the Seventh Army that decimated the Southern Imperial forces? You are too weak. And I don"t see any monster girl.”

The man rested his war axe on his shoulder, and said with a disinterested face. When Hosmund heard the term ‘monster girl", he realized the enemy was after Olivia.

“Unfortunately, that girl is a.s.signed to another unit. This Major General here will duel with you in her stead.”

“Tch! That Lamia was so c.o.c.k sure, but the intel is fake. No, the enemy is the Seventh Army, so they aren"t wrong…”

But that man just muttered to himself, and didn"t think Hosmund was even worth responding to.

“Hey, your opponent here is a Major General, not good enough for you?”

“—Hmm? Sigh, I"m very dissatisfied, but you will make do. I have to return a gift in kind to Lady Rosenmarie anyway.”

“Return gift?”

When he heard Hosmund"s question, the burly man laughed coldly, then placed two fingers on his neck.

“Since you are a Major General, then sing a good song for me.”

His expression changed as he swung his war axe like the fangs of a beast. Hosmund defended with his sword, but his stance was in shambles because of his opponent"s enormous strength.

Hosmund changed his posture and tried to deflect the blows instead. However, that man adjusted his attack in response. He wasn"t just someone who relied on brute force.

In the end, Hosmund"s sword was bent, and the war axe slowly sunk into his shoulder.

“Gwahhh—!”

“That"s right! Sing! I"m taking my time out of respect for your rank! Let me hear a splendid tune!”

That man smiled sinisterly as he sunk the war axe deeper in. Hosmund was bleeding profusely from the shoulder, and his vision blurred. He felt his body being pulled to the ground, and he collapsed onto his knees.

(This is the end…)

As Hosmund was certain he would die, a hurricane attacked suddenly, blowing the man away. The sudden changed surprised Hosmund, and he forgot the pain. He couldn"t say anything as a bell-like voice came from behind.

“Right in the nick of time.”

The familiar voice made Hosmund turn around slowly, only to find a girl with an innocent smile— It was Olivia.

Ⅲ

“M-Major Olivia……!?”

“Set up a square formation here. Don"t let the enemy come near.”

“““Yes Mdm!!”””

The soldiers" morale were high after receiving Olivia"s orders. Olivia nodded at them, and looked towards Hosmund.

“That was close. Ah, wrong, I"m glad that you"re alright!”

Olivia felt using honorifics were troublesome as she saluted the dumbfounded Hosmund. Hosmund smiled awkwardly, then said with his hands on the wound on his shoulder:

“This is a battlefield, and now isn"t the time be saluting leisurely.”

“Is that so? — No, will that be alright? Adjutant Otto always tells me that I have to salute when I see a ranking officer though?”

Olivia tilted her head inside her heart as she swatted away a stray arrow. She couldn"t imagine Otto being wrong about manners, since he was the personification of military discipline.

“That… will depend on the time and place. At the very least, salutes are unnecessary during a battle. I heard that you are a queer one, but I never thought it will be to such an extent… Ugh…”

Hosmund said with a bitter face. Otto and Hosmund, who was right? Olivia was really bothered by this, and decided to ask Otto the next time she saw him.

“Major General Hosmund, please fall back for now. Claudia and the others have secured a retreat route, please leave this place to me.”

Olivia called two nearby soldiers over, and got them to help Hosmund. If Hosmund died here, then the effort of Olivia and the others rushing here would be in vain.

“Sorry…”

After a curt apology, Hosmund left with the support of the troopers. As Olivia watched him go, a booming voice came from behind her.

“— Well, are you done talking yet?”

She turned around, and found the burly man she sent flying with a kick standing there with a nefarious smile. That man stabbed his war axe into the ground and cracked his neck.

“Yes, we are done. Sorry about that kick.”

Olivia apologized with a smile, and that man waved his hand gently.

“Don"t worry about it. Your attack is like a work of art, it has been so long since someone knocked me down. It"s a shame that the Major General didn"t finish his song, but it"s fine. I finally get to meet you.”

“Ehh… ? But I don"t remember ever meeting you though?”

Olivia tilted her head, she had never seen a man the size of a bear before. She looked like a child compared to his huge figure.

The huge man laughed heartily.

“You might not know me, but I know you. The beautiful girl who traumatized a few thousand soldiers is famous in the Imperial Army. Don"t you have any self awareness. You. d.a.m.n. Monster.”

The large man said gleefully, and Olivia frowned. It seemed the nickname monster had spread before she knew it. Olivia felt it was a pain, and the thought of being called a monster wherever she went annoyed her to no end.

Z already gave her the wonderful name Olivia, she didn"t want that to go to waste.

“Sigh… I"m not a monster, I"m Olivia.”

“Oh, pardon me. You might be a monster, but you still have a name. By the way, I"m Volmar. Volmar Ganglet. Nice to meet you.”

Volmar placed his left hand on his chest and bowed respectfully. This graceful movement that didn"t match his appearance surprised Olivia. She had to give a proper response.

“Well met, Mr Volmar Ganglet. Let me introduce myself again, I"m Olivia Valedstorm. It"s a pleasure to meet you, our time together will be brief, but I will be in your care.”

Olivia gave a proper lady"s greeting she learned from a book. She lifted the hem of her skirt a little and did a curtsey.

“Fuhaha! It"s been a while since I last got so excited. Your song will be a real gem, Olivia!”

The next instant, the war axe clashed against the dark sword, throwing sparks everywhere. Volmar"s eyes were full of life and he was enjoying himself as he swung his war axe.

Olivia couldn"t figure out Volmar"s joy as she parried the a.s.sault. He wouldn"t get to eat delicious food again once he was dead.

“Not bad! Olivia is the best! There"s not many people who can stand up to my strength! Now, take this!!”

Volmar pulled his right leg all the way back, then twists his waist to swing his war axe in a big arc. The force behind the swing was transferred to Olivia, and she was airborne.

“Uwah!”

Olivia immediately tucked her legs under her left arm in the air, performing a somersault to reduce the impact. But when she lands—

“Huh?”

She realized her swordarm was still shaking. The power of that attack was not completely dissipated. It had been a long while since Olivia felt that way, and this reminded her of her time with Z.

“Hey hey, that isn"t my full power, but it is enough to crush bones into dust. Olivia, you are pretty good.”

They were enemies, but Volmar didn"t hold back on his praise for Olivia.

“Hee… Judging by your strength, you are a human with high ‘Odic force". You are the second one that I have met.”

“Odic force? What"s that?”

In contrast to Volmar"s confounded look, Olivia smiled wryly.

— The first was a friend by Olivia"s side.

— The second appeared before Olivia as an enemy.

This must be fate. Z would be happy about this.

“Don"t mind me. This might be the last time we can chat, so let me thank you first. I"m very grateful, Mr Volmar. I can serve a good meal to Z now.”

“Serve a good meal to Z? What are you talking about?”

Volmar was getting more confused.

But Olivia didn"t answer, and slowly lowered her center of gravity.

The Autonomous Cavalry Regiment who rushed in as reinforcements was locked in intense combat with the Crimson Knights.

They had already broken through the encirclement of the Crimson Knights and rescued the crumbling Cavalry Regiment under Hosmund"s command. They were now escorting the injured out of the battlefield.

Claudia was fighting at the very front, and was covered in the blood of her enemies.

(Did the Major make it to Major General Hosmund in time?)

Olivia led 300 cavalry to rescue Hosmund. Considering her peerless martial prowess, she should be fine. But their opponents were the Crimson Knights, so she couldn"t let her guard down.

“First Lieutenant Claudia! The enemy is trying to flank us!”

The one-eyed soldier Gauss yelled, snapping Claudia out of her thoughts. She looked at the direction he was pointing at, and found a company-sized calvary breaking through her allies" defences and striking for the center of the formation.

(In terms of individual fighting potential, the enemy has the advantage…)

If she let them continue on, the Royal Army would be clamped in a pincer attack. Including Hosmund"s troops they had the advantage in number, but the enemy still had the upper hand in this battle. As expected of the Crimson Knights.

“Gauss! Take the second cavalry company and stop them!”

“Yes Mdm, leave it to me! Alright boys, follow me!”

“““Yes Sir!!”””

On Gauss" orders, 500 cavalry rode forth to engage with gusto. Claudia started moving towards the enemy"s main force, but had to join in the fray after meeting with resistance.

A man"s head and helmet were crushed, popping his eyes out. A woman"s head was turned in an impossible angle after a collision with a horse. As all sorts of corpses were manufactured on the battlefield, a male officer in a chestnut colored horse asked Claudia:

“Hey you, is the commander of your reinforcements a young girl?”

“What if I say yes?”

Claudia clashed swords with that man as they spoke.

“From your reaction, I must be right. Sigh, the Lieutenant Colonel will be pleased.”

The two of them pulled on their reins and crossed swords. Claudia judged that they were evenly matched, and kicked at the eye of her opponent"s horse. At almost the same time, the man did the same thing. Both war horses neighed in pain, and threw both riders to the ground.

“Tch!”

Claudia immediately got up and took a stance, just in time to jump and evade the man"s attack. At the same time, she kicked the man in the face.

The man who got outplayed looked bitter.

“… Fufufu, well done.”

He wiped away the blood from his nose with a sinister smile.

(Hmm…? What is she up to?)

Seeing Olivia lower her stance, Volmar was wary and held his war axe up defensively. She was strong enough to take on his attack, and as nimble as an acrobat. There was no doubt this girl was a top cla.s.s fighter. No wonder Rosenmarie ordered him to take the field. If that girl could talk nonsense, she probably had more up her sleeve. Volmar couldn"t afford to be careless.

— However, she wasn"t strong enough to strike fear into the Imperial Army, and be called a monster.

(Normal soldiers couldn"t stand up to her, but I"m different.)

Rumours like this was usually over exaggerated. Volmar was confident of defending against any of Olivia"s attack. However, he quickly realized how naive that was. Olivia suddenly appeared before him with a loud thud.

“—!?”

Thanks to his long experience on the battlefield, Volmar barely reacted in time. His survival instinct pushed him to block the dark sword coming towards his neck. If he was just a little slower, his head would be gone now.

And so, the match between Volmar and Olivia began.

“Woooahhh!!”

Volmar grit his teeth so hard that he almost crushed them as he swung his war axe. This wasn"t his usual swagger move, but a strike with full force. Anyone else would be smashed into bits on the ground. But Olivia"s slender figure blocked the hit without moving an inch. She was even smiling coldly.

Cold sweat rolled down Volmar"s cheeks.

(Did I… take on something I couldn"t handle?)

Anxiety, frustration— and fear struck Volmar.

Emotions he had not felt for a long time welled out, and slowly gripped Volmar"s heart. As long as he could remember, Volmar had always stood head and shoulders over others because of his buff body and immense strength. Before he met Rosenmarie, he had never lost before.

That was why this negative emotions were so hard to wave off. In order to control fear, you need to get used to it over time, but Volmar had never felt fear before. He was inexperienced in this aspect.

Volmar observed Olivia standing beyond his war axe.

She was tall for a woman, but only reached until Volmar"s waist. But in Volmar"s eyes, Olivia was like a giant that reaches the sky.

“It"s my turn.”

“—!”

Olivia"s words were like the scythe of a Death G.o.d, and Volmar swung his war axe with all his might. However, all his attacks were parried by Olivia with ease. She then slashed her sword hard at the war axe. It was Volmar"s turn to be airborne.

(She hit me into the air!? How is that possible!?)

The fantastical scene plunged Volmar into deep confusion. But his instinct told him that it would be all over if he fell to the ground like this, so he prepared to break his fall. This was the result of his training, however—

“First, your right arm.”

“Gwaahhh!!”

Volmar"s right arm was severed by Olivia who appeared before him suddenly, and he screamed from the pain. He was too shocked to think about breaking his fall, and slammed into the ground just like that.

“Bleah!”

All the air in his lungs was squeezed out in one go. He was only conscious because of the pain from losing his right arm. After struggling to breath for a while, Volmar stood up with his war axe as a clutch.

For the first time, his body felt as heavy as lead.

(d.a.m.n it! Where did she go!)

He searched desperately for Olivia, and a bone chilling voice came from behind.

“Next will be your left arm.”

“Gaaaahhh!!”

Volmar was turning when his left arm handing his war axe flew into the sky. As his gushing blood stained the ground, Olivia said “Left leg” and “right leg”, as if she was chanting a spell.

The intense pain numbed Volmar"s brain, and he couldn"t think properly. He stopped caring about his body mid way.

When Volmar realized it, he was looking at the endless sky.

— How pure and beautiful.

That was the only thing on Volmar"s mind.

“—How about that? I saw the Royal soldiers ma.s.sacred by you on my way here, so I want you to try the same thing. Is it to your liking?”

Olivia who appeared within his field of vision bent forth and asked, covering the sky. Her silver thread like hair flowed down her shoulders, brushing against Volmar"s nose.

“Ahh… Ughh… Ahh…”

“You can"t hear me anymore? I was right to thank you early. —Well then, become a lavish meal for Z.”

He shouldn"t have earned her ire.

He shouldn"t have gotten involved with her.

—She"s a real monster!

Olivia slowly raised her mist covered dark sword.

Volmar watched with half open eyes, and lamented his naiveness—

“Regiment Commander Olivia have slain the enemy commander!”

“““Waaarrrggghhh!!”””

The troops of the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment roared in cheers. The Crimson Knights couldn"t believe their eyes, that Volmar had been defeated.

Olivia sighed gently and looked up to the sky. Countless crows circled in the air.

“I wonder if Z has received my present…”

Lamia slashed vertically— but switched to a horizontal cut midway. The woman was surprised, and immediately jumped back to evade. Lamia was proud of his sword skills that mixed feints with real strikes, but it only left a faint scratch on his foe"s armour.

The woman"s exceptional physical abilities surprised Lamia.

“You are really good. Hey, why don"t you turn towards the light, and join the Imperial Army? It will be a pity for someone of your skills to die. I will give you a recommendation, so how about it?”

The woman furrowed her brows in response to Lamia"s sincere offer.

“It seems you are looking down on me. There"s a limit to your nonsense, do you really think I will accept that offer?”

“Hey hey! I"m doing this out of my good will. No matter how you slice it, the Farnesse Kingdom has no future to speak of. Or do you want to die?”

Lamia spread his arms exaggeratedly. In contrast, the woman shrugged and scoffed at his proposal.

“I"m an honourable knight of the Farnesse Kingdom, turning coat just because the situation is unfavourable is a disgrace.”

“… No matter what, you have no intention of serving the Empire?”

“Shut up. We are both knights, but you are just a useless c.r.a.p fly.”

With that, the girl braced her sword horizontally, determined to slay the man who defiled the virtue of a knight.

“… Hee, you got guts— you are useless to me then, die!”

Lamia pushed himself off the ground and pounced at the woman with a flurry of slashes. But the woman saw through all the attacks, and dodged with the tiniest of movements. She wasn"t just physically gifted, she had excellent dynamic vision too. Lamia"s all out attack only managed to cut off a few strands of her hair.

Lamia felt the woman"s eyes were shimmering a little, and wondered if he was seeing things. In any case, he couldn"t end the fight like this. Lamia was slowly getting fl.u.s.tered.

“Tch!”

Lamia jumped off his left foot, and slashed vertically again— before changing it to a horizontal attack once more.

“I already saw this move! You think this will work on me!?”

The woman bent almost to the ground, and swept her foe"s leg. Lamia"s weak spot was attacked, and he couldn"t react in time. He took the hit and fell down. The woman didn"t let this chance go, and pointed her sword at Lamia"s throat.

“— The match has been decided.”

The woman said coldly. One wrong move from Lamia, and the sword will reap his life. He sighed heavily.

“Sigh, I lost, huh… Do it. But you will be joining me in h.e.l.l soon.”

“… Still shooting your mouth off, huh? You are really a disgrace of a knight.”

Lamia said defiantly to the scornful Claudia:

“No, I"m not running my mouth. You will definitely die to the Lieutenant Colonel who will end that rumoured monster!!”

Lamia wasn"t taunting her out of spite or wishing for a quick death. He wanted to agitate her and seize the chance to turn the table.

But contrary to Lamia"s expectations, the sword on his throat didn"t waver one bit. The woman breathed out calmly, and looked at him with cold eyes:

“… You got two things wrong.”

“Huh? What"s wrong?”

The woman didn"t care about Lamia"s mean mug, and continued:

“First, that Lieutenant Colonel is already waiting for you in h.e.l.l. You can work on your chivalry in that world.”

The woman said so surely, it was as if she saw the moment Volmar died. Lamia was feeling confused, and the woman continued.

“Second, the Major is not a monster. The Major is— Olivia is a hero!!”

With that shout, the woman stabbed her sword deep into Lamia"s throat.

Ⅳ

Olivia"s duel ended with Volmar Ganglet"s death.

And now, the Royal army was in hot pursuit of the retreating Crimson Knights. Both the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment and the enraged soldiers under Hosmund were involved.

On the other hand, the one in charge of the retreat was  Captain Gordo Kreis. He was 55 years old, but still maintained his dignified bearing. Roughly 60% of his forces had been killed, but he still worked tirelessly to save as many soldiers as he could.

“Everyone, hang on a while longer!”

“““Yes Sir!!”””

Gordo rallied his men, who responded energetically. The commander Volmar and his deputy Lamia both died in battle, but morale was still high. This was because of their loyalty towards Rosenmarie, and their pride as a member of the Crimson Knights.

It was questionable whether the retreat would go smoothly. To be frank, Gordo felt that chances were slim.

— The reason was clear.

“Captain Gordo! Second Lieutenant Burghardt"s defense line has been breached!”

His attendant, Henrik, who was following him on a horse shouted. Gordo turned, and saw a girl with flowing silver hair on a black horse.

“That monster! She caught up so quickly!”

This monster in a guise of a girl seemed to have cut down Volmar the ‘Perisher" down to just his torso. This was a reply to Volmar"s invitation letter to the Seventh Army. And now, Gordo finally understood why she scared the s.h.i.t out of a few thousand soldiers.

Gordo immediately gave the order:

“Let the wounded retreat first! The rest of you, form a square formation! Pikes to the front, stop the enemy"s charge! Archers behind are to fire in three staggered volleys! Don"t let a single one of them pa.s.s!”

“““Yes Sir!!”””

“Major, the enemy has taken a square formation. They seemed determined to fight to the death.”

When she heard what Claudia said, Olivia nodded thoughtfully:

“The Crimson Knights, huh… How disciplined. If we continue to charge, our losses will start to mount too. I will take the lead and disrupt their formation. Claudia, launch an attack when you see a chance, okay?”

“Yes Mdm, leave it to me!”

Claudia accepted immediately. Ashton blew a horn to inform the entire unit.

“Change formation to crescent moon! —Olivia, I know how strong you are, but don"t push yourself.”

“Yes, I know. Thank you for your kind concern, I"m going off then.”

Olivia smiled and waved at the worried Ashton, then moves off from the vanguard.

“Horsie, I"m counting on you.”

Olivia strokes the back of her horse gently. The dark horse understood the intention of its master, and started accelerating. Z told Olivia in the past that horses were intelligence creatures, and this black horse had grown on her. Olivia decided to give it a proper name after this battle was over.

“—Pikemen, advance!”

On the order of one man, part of the enemy soldiers formed neat pike formations. The pikes were as tight as an iron wall, showing their determination to stop the advance of their foes. Olivia deftly took out a crossbow from her back and aimed at the man giving the orders— and pulled the trigger.

There was a dull thud of a metallic spring. At the same time, the bolt pierced the forehead of that man with great precision. Olivia continued to load and fire with smooth movements, and a pikeman would fall each time like puppets with their strings cut.

(Hmm, this toy is really convenient. It"s more powerful than bows, and can fire repeatedly with enough practice. I was right to take this from Mr Bloom.)

Olivia kept the crossbow onto her back, and drew out her dark sword with a swoosh. She spurred her black horse forward and charged into the enemy.

“Don"t be afraid of that monster! Surround and stab her!”

Their captain yelled loudly. Olivia cut off the pikes coming her way, then cut off that man"s head. Blood splattered onto her enemy"s armour, dying them into a darker shade of red.

The soldier who swung his sword towards her blind spot got his head sliced in half, together with his helmet. His brains spilled out like pudding. Olivia charged around on her dark horse, striking fear into the Crimson Knights and forcing them back with every swing.

— And so, their formation began to crumble.

“First Lieutenant Claudia, a corner of the square formation has been broken!”

Ashton shouted.

Claudia took in a deep breath.

“Here"s our chance! Crush their formation in one go!”

““Yes Mdm!!””

On Claudia"s order, the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment and Hosmund"s Cavalry Regiment started their all out charge. Even the elite Crimson Knights was reeling from the coordinated attack.

One by one, the lives of the men in red were extinguished on the battlefield—

“C-Captain! We can"t hold out any longer!”

One soldier shouted in anguish. The square formation was in shambles, and the enemy"s encirclement was tightening slowly. It was impossible to rally their formation again.

Looking forward, that monster in the guise of a girl was unstoppable. In the wake of her dark sword, groups of soldiers would fall in despair. It was like watching a subpar theatre play.

That dark sword covered in black mist and dripping blood didn"t seem to be of this world.

“Captain Gordo, if this continues…”

Henrik was almost groaning.

“How many casualties have been evacuated?”

“About… Half.”

“I see… Continue to support their retreat. And when you find the chance, withdraw together with them.”

“Hah? What about you, Captain Gordo?”

Gordo ignored the confused Henrik, and rode towards the monster on his steed. As he rode, he took out a pendant of the G.o.ddess Citresia and prayed.

(Great G.o.ddess Citresia, please watch after this old fool.)

Even Volmar the Perisher was toyed by her, he stood no chance of winning. But even an old man like him could buy some time for his men to retreat. Even a few seconds would be precious—

“Hold it right there, you monster! I, Gordo Kreis of the Crimson Knights shall be your opponent!”

“Again… I"m not a monster, I"m Olivia.”

Olivia braced her sword with an irate face and charge in. Gordo thrust his trident at Olivia"s heart when she got in range. Even a monster would die if her heart was pierced.

“d.a.m.n it!”

However, his first attack completely failed. Gordo tossed aside his trident and pulled out his sword. At the same time, he turned the horse around to face Olivia.

“Had enough yet?”

“… What do you mean?”

Gordo didn"t understand what Olivia meant, and asked on reflex. Olivia tilted her head a little and then opened her eyes wide in enlightenment.

“Ahaha, sorry. I messed up my lines again — well then, I"m going for the kill now.”

“… I see.”

She was a monster, so she wasn"t familiar with the human language. With that in mind, Gordo tightened the grip on his sword. After taking a deep breath, he spurred his horse and charged Olivia again.

“Die!!”

The most perfect horizontal slash of Gordo"s life was blocked by Olivia easily. His sword spun around the dark sword for a while, before it flew into the air.

Gordo who couldn"t help tracking his sword suddenly saw something dark.

“— This is!? A scythe!?”

The sudden appearance of the black scythe shook Gordo. On a closer inspection, Olivia wasn"t holding a dark sword anymore. But just like the dark sword, it was emitting an ominous black mist.

(This is just like the scythe wielded by Death G.o.d in fairy tales… Death G.o.d...? Fufu… Fufufu… I see, so that"s it!)

The sudden thought he got made Gordo laughed.

(It was impossible to win after all. Lieutenant Colonel Volmar died in vain. After all, what is a man to a G.o.d?)

— The same goes for a G.o.d that had the prefix “Death”.

“I finally understand now. You are not a monster.”

“That"s right. I"m not a monster, I"m Olivia Valedstorm. I finally found a reasonable person in the Empire.”

Olivia nodded happily. In contrast, Gordo shook his head hard.

“That"s not what I mean… You are definitely a Death G.o.d.”

“Ehh? —Z is a Death G.o.d, not me.”

Olivia opened her eyes wide and swung down the scythe. An incredible pain coursed through Gordo"s body— and his world was dyed in white.

“… Did Mr Gordo know about Z? I should have captured him instead of killing him.”

Beside the feet of Olivia who was holding her head with regret, was Gordo"s bisected corpse.

Beside his corpse, a pendant glittered brightly.

Intermission: Guile Marion

Fortress City Emreed, Training Grounds

Evening, swooshing sound could be heard from the training grounds.

“As expected, you are here… practicing your sword again?”

“That voice, Ashton right… There"s no one around, so I will save the honorifics.”

Guile didn"t look at Ashton, and continue focusing on his vertical slash.

“It"s fine. But why are you working out so late today?”

Ashton watched Guile concentrate on his practice with a face that was half impressed and half exasperated. Ashton would usually have the place to himself when he trains at this timing.

“Isn"t it obvious? In order to keep up with commander Olivia, half a.s.sed skills won"t cut it. I"m painfully aware of that after the battle against the Crimson Knights.”

Guile had practiced swordsmanship for a year, and the more he trained, the more he realized how absurd Olivia"s prowess was.

(Speaking of which, I really said something stupid back then.)

Guile remembered how he boasted that he had grown stronger on the way to the Iris Plains, and how Claudia looked at him with pitiful eyes. And now, he understood what was the reason. That memory was so shameful that he wanted to burrow inside a hole.

“Even so, you have grown much stronger now, Guile. You even took out a Crimson Knights platoon captain by yourself during the last battle?”

“…Hey Ashton, what do you think is the difference in prowess between me and commander Olivia?”

“Why are you asking me that all of a sudden?”

“Don"t mind me, just say it.”

“Even if you ask me to compare… I have no idea.”

Ashton shrugged in resignation.

“Let me tell you then. The difference between me and commander Olivia is as vast as an ant to a One Horned Beast. We are not in the same realm.”

“So it"s that huge… It"s true, from the way Olivia looks during a battle, that might be true. But to me, all of you are very strong. It makes me envious.”

Ashton looked at Guile unhappily, and Guile couldn"t help laughing.

“Oh, you want to be stronger too, Ashton?”

“Of course, I"m a man too. Of course I want to be stronger.”

Ashton slowly drew the sword on his waist, and started swinging it. He still couldn"t control the balance of his sword well, and his body was even swaying from the weight of the sword. Guile watched the entire process, and Ashton turned his head towards Guile like a rusty door being forced open.

“Have I gotten any stronger at all?”

“… Well, Ashton, being strong isn"t limited to swinging a sword.”

“Y-You don"t have to console me.”

Ashton sounded a little unhappily.

“I"m not consoling you— don"t you even know what makes you strong?”

“What makes me strong? As you can see, I"m useless with spears and swords?”

Ashton laughed self mockingly. Guile pointed at Ashton"s forehead:

“You are really dense at times like this. What makes you strong is here, right here. You have something I can"t have no matter how much I yearn for it. Compared to that, my prowess are miniscule.”

If Guile died during a battle some day, it won"t have too much of an impact on the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment. At the most, the soldiers of the First Platoon will feel sad. But if they lost Ashton who was the brains of the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment, that would be devastating loss. Ashton once said that compared to the number of enemies you kill, keeping your people alive was more important. That was an arduous task. He didn"t have many men under him, but Guile understood how difficult it was to manage people.

Ashton nursed his forehead that was turning red from Guile"s poke, and muttered grudgingly:

“But if something happens, I won"t be able to protect myself. Isn"t that shameful for a man…?”

“There"s no shame in that. If it comes down to that, I can still protect you, Ashton. I don"t want commander Olivia to be in grief.”

“Olivia will be sad…?”

Ashton was surprised, and Guile poked his forehead again.

“Are you just pretending to be r.e.t.a.r.ded? Do you think she won"t be sad if you died?”

“No, I have never seen her sad before. Olivia is always smiling without a care in the world…”

Guile sighed deeply when he heard that:

“Sigh… You are so smart, so why are you so dense during times like this. Well, I guess that"s your style.”

“Sorry for being dense.”

“Forget it, you will understand when the time comes.”

“What do you mean by that? You mean I will understand, Guile?”

Guile sheathed his sword and cast a dubious look at Ashton.

“At least I"m a bit stronger at that than Ashton.”

Ashton wanted to say more, but Guile stopped him.

“Commander Olivia!”

“So you"re here, Guile— Hmm? Ashton"s here too.”

Olivia hollered as she looked their way through the half opened door. Guile sprinted to her.

“You don"t have to trouble yourself by coming here, just send the word, and this Guile will rush to your side.”

Guile knelt on one knee and placed his hand on his chest. Olivia smiled stiffly at that. It was a beautiful smile that he would show Guile from time to time.

“I-Is that so? I want to ask you if there"s any Blood Suckling Bird around here. It"s been a while, and I"m in the mood to eat one.”

“Blood Suckling Bird, huh? —please wait a moment.”

Guile swiftly took out his “Valkyrie notebook”, and started flipping through it. This was an important book he was using to record Olivia"s favourite food, and was invaluable. And of course, it also included the latest information he found out from the hunters in Emreed.

“Let me see… there are reported sightings of Blood Suckling Bird in the Ebona hill to the west.”

While he was saying that, Guile flipped to a new page, and wrote down 《Likes the meat of Blood Suckling Bird》.

“Ebona hill to the west, huh. Thanks a lot— See you too, Ashton.”

Olivia waved and decided to leave. Guile frantically tried to stop her:

“Are you going to hunt the Blood Suckling Bird by yourself, My Lady?”

“Yes, best hit the iron while it"s hot. And I can see just fine at night too.”

Olivia turned back with a brilliant smile.

“Shall I go with you? Despite how I look, I"m familiar with the hills, and will be of use.”

“Now that you mention it, Guile used to be a hunter. No wonder you are so good at finding prey, and you are peerless in plucking feathers too…”

Olivia put her finger on her cheeks and thought for a moment, and then agreed.

“Why don"t we go together?”

“It will be my honour!”

Olivia nodded, and she strode forth. The high spirited Guile was about to follow, but Ashton pulled him back.

“What is it? Do you want to come too, Ashton?”

Ashton opened his eyes wide and whispered to Guile:

“There"s no way I want to go! You know that"s a Blood Suckling Bird right, a Blood Suckling Bird! A Type 2 danger beast. If you are a hunter, then you should know that.”

Guile didn"t need Ashton to tell him that. Hunters call the One Horned Beast the lord of the land, while the Blood Suckling Bird was the lord of the sky. Blood Suckling Birds were covered in l.u.s.trous black feathers, and sanguine eyes.

It"s wingspan was three times that of an adult man. The Blood Suckling Bird would circle in the sky before swooping down and pierce its prey with its beak. And as it names implies, it would drink all the blood of its prey.

Run if you see a fresh corpse that had been drained of blood. That was the rule amongst hunters.

“Of course I know that.”

“Then you are still going? You say I"m r.e.t.a.r.ded, but aren"t you the same?”

Ashton was at a loss for words.

“No matter how strong the commander is, I can"t let her go by herself, right?”

“Then tell her not to go.”

“You think she will listen if I try?”

“… No. I won"t be able to stop her either.”

After a short silence, Ashton sighed deeply.

“Right? The only one who can stop the commander is First Lieutenant Claudia. And the commander is in a good mood, so I don"t want to sour her mood.”

Guile said as she looked at Olivia who was humming happily.

“Don"t worry, if anything happens, I will protect the commander with my life.”

Guile patted Ashton"s shoulder to soothe him, but Ashton swat his hand away with a worried face:

“No, you are the one I"m worried about.”

“So I"m the one you are worried about!?”

“Guile, if you are not coming, I"m going to leave you behind.”

Guile looked towards the direction of the voice, and saw Olivia who had walked away standing there with puffed out cheeks.

“Oh no! I need to go.”

“Wait—”

Guile ignored Ashton"s pleas, and sprinted to Olivia.

—The next morning.

The tables in the dining hall was full of meat.

The soldiers of the Autonomous Cavalry Regiment was overjoyed by this pleasant surprise. But Guile who couldn"t read the mood told everyone loudly that it was Blood Suckling Bird meat, and no one dared to take a bite.

Chapter 5: Picked Apart One by One

Ⅰ

Imperial Army, Windsam Castle, Commander"s Office

Lieutenant Colonel Volmar Ganglet was slain in battle!

When he received this news, Gaier hurried over to the commander"s office.

“Your Excellency, there"s an urgent report.”

“I can guess what it is from your face… but let"s hear it anyway, make it short.”

Rosenmarie gestured at the piles of doc.u.ments on her desk. Upon closer look, there were dark circles under her eyes, she was probably working overnight on her paperwork. Seeing that, Gaier glared at the attendants standing in the room, who lowered their heads fearfully.

“Don"t be so fierce, I"m the one who insisted on working all night. That aside, what do you want to report?”

“Yes My Lady. Lieutenant Colonel Volmar clashed with the Seventh Army on the Almheim plains, and engaged that rumoured monster. The Lieutenant Colonel died valiantly for our nation, and 2,500 of our troops lost their lives. It was a terrible loss.”

Gaier submitted the report. Rosenmarie took the report, browsed through it, and tossed it onto the table.

“This monster forced the Swaran Army to retreat from Pes.h.i.ta Fort, and now, she killed Volmar. So the perisher of humans has been perished by a monster. Don"t you think it"s funny, Gaier?”

Rosenmarie said with a laugh.

“Your Grace...! This is no laughing matter. The Swaran Army didn"t matter, but Volmar being destroyed like this is a problem.”

All of Volmar"s limbs were cut, and his heart was pierced. That fitted the style of a monster, but Gaier wasn"t in the mood for jokes like Rosenmarie. Volmar"s death had quite an impact on the entire Knights Corp.

“Sigh, don"t panic. Like I said before, I will kill them all when the time comes— So, who"s that man beside you?”

Rosenmarie looked at the black clothed man standing beside Gaier— Alvin.

“Pardon my late introduction. This is First Lieutenant Alvin from Heat Haze. He has a message from the monster for you.”

“The monster"s message for me? —Interesting, let"s hear it.”

Rosenmarie waved her hand, and Alvin stepped forward:

“Yes Mdm, I will pa.s.s the message as is. She said 『Clean your neck and wait. Your head is mine.』.”

“What!?”

Gaier was shocked beyond words. Alvin insisted on reporting to Rosenmarie directly, so he didn"t hear about the message ahead of time.

(I see. He thought I would stop him if I knew about it in advance, and refused to tell me. Heat Haze does have the authority to do so, but it"s still infuriating.)

Gaier glared at Alvin, but Alvin was unfazed. Gaier looked at Rosenmarie, and saw that she was trembling a little.

“Your Grace……?”

“Ahahaha!! She wants my head? And wants me to clean my neck and wait? That"s gold!”

He thought she was trembling from rage, but she was slamming the table from laughter instead. Rosenmarie"s reaction shocked her attendants, but that was only natural, given this bizarre scene.

“… Lady Rosenmarie, may I offer you a word of advice?”

Alvin didn"t mind Rosenmarie"s outburst, and appeared calm and collected.

“Even if you are from Heat Haze, you have overstepped your bounds. First Lieutenant Alvin, you are being rude to Her Grace.”

Heat Haze wasn"t constrained by the normal chain of command in the Imperial Army, so even though Gaier outranked Alvin, he couldn"t give him any direct orders. That was the reason why he couldn"t ask for the message earlier. The most Gaier could do was chide him a little.

“Ahaha… It"s fine. That warning of yours piqued my interest, please let me hear it.”

Rosenmarie crossed her hands to support her chin, and asked intriguely.

“Yes Mdm. That monster killed four of my elite soldiers in an instant. I"m only alive because of her whims. With that said, I hope Your Grace will be more careful.”

Alvin"s advice surprised Rosenmarie a little.

“Hee, to think Heat Haze will go that far. And with Volmar"s death, this has gotten my interest.”

“It"s fine to be interested, but—”

Rosenmarie raised her right hand.

“Don"t say anymore, I get it. I will take the Heat Haze"s warning to heart.”

Heat Haze"s intel gathering and battle prowess was well known, and Gaier felt that aside from those two points, the most valuable thing about them was their outstanding a.n.a.lysis. Rosenmarie couldn"t dismiss the Heat Haze"s warning easily.”

With that, Alvin left the commander"s office. After hearing the door close, Gaier looked at Rosenmarie.

“… What should we do then?”

“Where are they headed?”

“As expected, the Seventh Army had set their base in Fortress City Emreed. Their main forces will probably show up soon.”

“I see… Continue to observe them.”

Rosenmarie closed her eyes and leaned back.

“We just need to observe them?”

He was hinting at her if they could stop sending units after the enemy. Gaier knew that sending more men would be futile, and he didn"t want to lose his men for nothing.

However, Rosenmarie did say she was interested in that monster, so he couldn"t be stingy about the methods. Gaier needed to do everything he could to stop Rosenmarie from despatching anymore troops on a whim.

“No problem. As long as the Crimson Knights stands, they can"t retake the north. Even if they don"t want to, they will have to come to me.”

With that, Rosenmarie narrowed her wide open eyes, while unease continued to linger in Gaier"s heart.