Crest of the Strongest Knight

Chapter 119 - Into the Fray

It was an uphill battle even from the start.

Even during their long march, the forces of Dietrich fief knew the battle ahead would not be an easy one, but it was only now as they crashed upon the wall of enemy soldiers that they understood the magnitude of what they strove to accomplish.

Armored soldiers pushed desperately against one another, each side struggling to gain purchase against the other. Unlike the war being waged in the north, Revelo duchy's civil war was not a theater for the glorious heroics of knights, but a bloody battlefield that was drenched in the sweat and tears of common men, all of them fighting for the ideals that they believed in whether that was simply duty, money, or what they thought was right.

"Forward!" Marilyn cried as she cleaved a path through a stream of soldiers, her sword slicing through flesh and steel with equal ease as she tore apart the battlefield. She fought recklessly, diving through the men brave enough to stand in her way without pause, her mind focused solely on the thought of avenging the duke, her former lord.

Emboldened by the carnage the senior knight wrought, Dietrich fief's soldiers followed in the wake of Marilyn's bloodstained trail, her bloodlust fueling their own. Though the Castellia Unit's march had been slow to start, they had gradually caught up with the main force throughout the next two days and now descended upon the enemy together with the baron's main army.

More than accustomed to wanton bloodshed, the criminals and vagabonds comprising the Castellia Unit felt at home in the chaos of the battlefield, wielding their panoply of weapons with a great deal of effectiveness. While there was certainly a benefit in the standardization of equipment for permanent large-scale forces like a fief's private army, the unpredictability of the unit's weaponry composition allowed them to sow mass confusion in the enemies that they engaged, tearing through their ranks before the trained soldiers quickly began to adjust to the unfamiliar weapons.

Meanwhile, Medrauta and Riku sat in the rear with the archers, watching the scene of bloody pandemonium unfold before them. With both their noblewomen shoring up some much needed numbers for Dietrich fief's small unit of ranged infantry, the two were relegated to guard duty despite their burning urge to fight on the front lines in an effort to hasten the push toward Revelo Castle.

As it turns out, Bastiche had been prepared for their imminent attack despite Medrauta and Viviane managing to intercept Henri's missive. If anything, Medrauta was willing to bet that Bastiche himself was capable of seeing through the eyes of Amelia's familiars as well, allowing him to stay informed on the movements of Dietrich fief. Because of that, the other junior knights like Trianna and Pamela had been assigned to the supply column as guards in case Bastiche decided to send a mobile strike force to cut off their support during the siege.

"Y'know, I never thought you'd be wearing heavy armor with the way you fight." Medrauta remarked as she glanced at Riku. This far back from the front lines, she didn't have much to pay attention to, especially with Marilyn and Dietrich's few but fierce knights laying waste to the enemy formation.

Riku simply shrugged in response. "I didn't think I'd get pushed to the rear. This is the first real battle I've fought, but during simulations, Lady Sakura is capable of maintaining her Crest on me even from the rear. I thought we would be doing the same here. And you? Do you not wear armor when you wade into battle?"

"My mobility is my lifeline," Medrauta answered, shaking her head. "I'd probably do a lot worse in heavy armor."

Riku nodded, recalling how the silver-haired knight fought during their match. "I suppose so. I've not seen you participate in mass combat, but I gather it must be a lot more difficult than in the arena."