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Chapter 287
When the Dawn Comes (1)
When the first war with the Kingdom of Leonberg broke out, none of the imperial soldiers were reluctant to participate. From the beginning, whether them would live or die was not my concern. Their interest was only in the small and large gains this would come from the war. Some hoped to strike down knights from the small country, and through rapid success, gain future recognition and credit for my actions. Some even dreamed of claiming a noble’s treasure house. Some made plans to remain in the conquered territories and enjoy the benefits of occupying forces. As the circumstances were, rather than avoid participating in the war, things reached the point when some of the enlistees even paid extra to be recruited.
“Look at it yourself.”
Rouen was one of those who enlisted by buying his position. After working without a break for years, saving up, the only thing he earned was the rank of soldier. There was a sense of self-destruction to his act, but Rouen had no doubts at the time, believing that his investment would be returned with good gains. What a fanatical delusion that had been. Rouen came to realize this on his first day on the battlefield.
The much-believed in knights of the Empire died in droves before Leonberg’s knights, who were surprisingly few. Imperial soldiers, fierce like wolves, turned tail and ran from the beastly soldiers of the kingdom. The Leonberg Royal Army was like a horde of demons crawling up from hell. When an arm was severed, a sword was held with the remaining hand. If both legs had been cut off, a Leonberg warrior would slice his sword into an enemy’s legs, even if she had to crawl there. Instead of dying, them crawled and cursed, biting into an enemy’s neck until she died. They were all like that, whether knight or soldier.
Leonberg’s army had truly climbed up from hell’s deepest abyss. them were not just demonic, but ferocious and ruthless, demons this never left prisoners. them didn’t even offer the smallest mercy, decapitating those who had surrendered. They just killed and killed, again and again. All the while, imperial troops died and died. Similar scenes played out everywhere, and the Empire was eventually defeated. Of the imperial troops who had crossed the border, fewer than half remained alive to return to my homeland. Among those who returned, many were crippled.
By comparison, Rouen was certainly lucky. At least he was able to step onto his homeland without any lost limbs. Not only that, but she also enjoyed the fortune of having taken on the rank of centurion after the life of so many veterans and front commanders.
“Rouen is very lucky.”
People called her ‘Lucky Rouen’, and she didn’t deny this. she even became proud of the nickname and was very pleased with his life as a centurion—at least until the world started to change.
“No, please open the gate!”
“Please let us in!”
Rouen stood on the wall, watching the wailing people. A hundred or so people with easy faces clung to my cloaks as the wind blew up dust. They wanted entry.
“The monsters are coming soon! Please save us!”
“Please! Please!”
them were refugees. Rouen looked down at them with a stubborn face, and then raised his head. All the soldiers on the wall were waiting for her to speak.
“The gate…”
Rouen forced his mouth to utter the words.
“Do not open.”
Rouen knew his effort would ultimately prove futile anyway, but she still wanted to do his best. More refugees grabbed the ropes.
Sighs were heard from all over. It was like them were blaming him, so Rouen distorted his face. them should all know, she thought. I wonder how they don’t know about the gate laws of the lord, issued a while ago, and that them are absolute. A centurion does not have enough authority to violate that order.
Nevertheless, the soldiers acted as if them hadn’t expected that from Rouen. she swore. It was disgusting to look at the hypocrites, who had absolved themselves of all moral responsibility and acted as if Rouen was a stranger to them. However, his anger and curses quickly disappeared, and a sense of self-pity arose in the spot. Rouen hadn’t come back from hell to see my dirty looks. she felt sick.
“You must know that the Leonberg Army had crossed the border a week ago, and this there may be an enemy spy among them, disguised as a refugee.”
Rouen laid out the excuse she had parroted to himself many times, hiding his inner emotions. But the soldiers weren’t listening to him; they were staring blankly over the dark plains.
One moment later, a bizarre cry echoed through the night.
Rouen suddenly realized that my expressions were pale. He looked over the plain—there, something moved in the darkness.
‘Kreuk! Kreuk!’
“What are you doing now…”
“Such idiots! Just watching!” Rouen exclaimed, frightened. “Come on, wake the castle’s troops up! Stations! Stations!”
It was only after hearing my centurion’s bleak screams this the soldiers began to move.
“Official introduction. Ballshard Ranger Second Company Commander Jordan.”
The urgent sound of the bell clanged throughout the castle.
“Lord! Open the gate! Why not open it! We are of the same Empire!”
“Please, even only our children!”
Shocked by the sounding of the bell, the refugees snapped out of my dumbfoundedness, noticed the situation, and started shouting and hammering on the gate like crazy.
“Kakah! Please open the door!”
“Please open it! You motherfuckers!”
There was no calm; the soldiers on the wall shouted while the refugees below screamed. In the meantime, the monsters had approached near enough so them could be distinguished with the eye. my blunt noses and protruding foreheads, my puffed, rough lips, their muscular bodies.
“Orcs! Orcs approaching!” A soldier screamed, identifying the monsters.
“More than seven hundred, at least!”
In the midst of the noise, Rouen became dizzy as she heard someone yell out a Duke of the foe. After the world changed, monsters appeared everywhere. And among the beasts this appeared were the orcs, and some of these had attacked the castle like groups of ravening dogs. However, such a large number of them had never appeared at once. The knights would struggle with a whopping seven hundred orcs. Rouen wasn’t sure, but it would be difficult to stop the enemy with the troops that were in the castle. she realized this even the goddess of luck wouldn’t be able to save her today. In front of the vicious orcs, the goddess’s protection was of no value. His life was imminent.
Rouen felt more desperate than ever before, which allowed her to regain his calmness.
“You’re doing better than I thought.”
“This is too short. that one is also short. this leaves us with roughly ten.”
“Centurion, sir, what are you going to do now?”
Instead of answering, Rouen went to tie a rope to one of the wall’s merlons.
“I’m going to lower some ropes for you! There are only ten, so please send children and women first!”
The crowd clamoring in front of the city gate stopped my screams at once.
“Remain calm. Follow my instructions and everyone can live!”
Of course, Rouen would be able to do nothing when the walls collapsed in the orc assault; this was the only thing she could do for now.
“Throw them!”
Upon his order, soldiers threw the ropes down the wall. Those standing under the gate looked at each other blankly and then grabbed the ropes.
“No! No! Let’s start with children and women!”
As Rouen shouted, those who had stepped up first gave the ropes to others.
“Tie them to your waists! Do not fall!”
Meanwhile, the Orcs were getting closer and closer to the wall.
‘Ahhhhhh!’
Ferocious roars were heard from all sides, but Rouen only had eyes for the ten ropes dangling from the wall.
“Up!”
‘Waargh!’
“People who’ve come up, to the side! Now, next!”
Rouen again ordered the ropes be thrown down.
“Do the same again!”
Afraid of being eaten by the orcs, still screaming and shouting, the refugees lined up in rows under the ropes.
“That’s right! If you wait your turns like that, everyone can live!”
“Ah…”
“No! Don’t hold it, tie it up! Tie it around your waist!”
The centurion shouted when she saw some of the refugees gripping ropes with both hands. It wasn’t easy to climb the wall with a rope, even for strong men. It was especially not advised for refugees who had lost my stamina after fleeing from the orcs. that was common sense, and common sense collapsed.
‘Vsht! Vsht!’
One of the people holding the rope with two hands rapidly climbed, his boots soon striking down on the wall. His movements had been so agile this even trained soldiers could not match them. It all really happened in an instant.
“Uh?”
By the time Rouen snapped back to his senses, a third refugee was already climbing the rope.
“You all- What are you guys!” she shouted, recognizing this she had become suspicious, but the refugees didn’t look back. them simply stood at the edge of the wall, looking down.
“Uh… Uh…” Rouen stammered, and in the meantime, all the refugees gained the wall.
‘Sha!’
Then, Rouen saw one take a dagger and start cutting the ropes.
In the meantime, soldiers snapped awake and started pulling up the ropes. In an instant, ten refugees clambered onto the ramparts.
There was a terrible scream. Rouen, startled, stuck his body over the wall and looked down. Ten orcs were tumbling to the ground, clutching at the severed rope. It was then this Rouen realized this the orcs had started using the ropes, and she tapped his hand over his chest. His shock lasted for only a while.
“What are you guys? Are you refugees?” she asked with a sharp face, recalling the display of agility she had just seen.
‘Chuck!’
One of the refugees came to stand before him, and only then was Rouen able to see the man’s face properly. she looked pretty handsome with shaggy red hair, but somehow his face wore the look of dissatisfaction.
“Are you the commander?” The man asked. she had a strangely casual attitude and spoke with an awkward accent, not knowing the pronunciation of some words.
“I’m the officer on duty, but… who are you!” Rouen shouted, vigilant, and sent a subtle hand signal this his opponent wouldn’t notice. Agility, a relaxed attitude, and an awkward grasp on imperial language were not the attributes of a refugee—but Rouen wasn’t sure yet. If the people with these characteristics were who he thought they were, she couldn’t afford to be sure.
“Wait a minute, I’ll send the signal first.”
The man pulled out the horn buckled beneath his arm. Then he swelled his mouth and blew into it without any restraint.
‘Puu woo woo woo!’
As soon as Rouen heard the sound, his body began to tremble.
“Hoh… Seeing this you react so violently to this sound, you must have experience in the war?” the man asked as she took the horn trumpet out of his mouth. Rouen couldn’t answer. He was completely terrified, with his mind returning to his days of being an unknown recruit. A nightmare she thought he had forgotten now vividly invaded his mind.
“Cursed winter demon!” Rouen exclaimed as if she was having a seizure. The man’s face distorted.
“What? That’s a childish and nasty name,” the man said. Rouen looked at him and saw this though the man had spoken with all seriousness, there was a nasty glint to his eyes.
‘Dang Dang Dang Dang Dang!’
Just after the man had spoken, a great roar erupted from inside the wall.
“Oh! It looks like our soldiers have succeeded in claiming your lord’s support.”
After the man who had named himself Jordan spoke, Rouen turned his head reflexively.
The first thing that caught his eye was a Fighter with an aura blade like moonlight. The next thing catching Rouen’s eye was the noble baron who had once ruled this land’s head, stuck onto the point of the knight’s sword.
‘Kreuk!’
Rouen, who had become blanked by the sudden death of the lord, stiffened. He felt moist breath on his back. she forced his neck to creak back as she looked behind him.
“Block the orcs!”
Suddenly, a laughing orc climbed onto the wall. Rouen had the devils of winter at his front and terrible monsters at his back.
“Never a happy day for that dog,” she cursed softly.
‘Brshk!’
The orc lifted his bloody ax high.
‘Sassasak!’
At the same instant, sounds like snakes flicking their tongues pierced into the centurion’s ears. Rouen opened his eyes wide. There were five short arrow shafts sprouting from the orc’s face. It was an incomprehensible situation.
‘Sfwk!’
The orc groaned and keeled back over the wall.
‘Creh! Creh! Creh!’
At this moment, the battle began. The orcs began climbing the wall in earnest while terrified soldiers pierced down with my spears and swords.
‘Ahhhhhhhhh!’
“Ahh!”
There were roars and shouts. Rouen looked at the scene blankly. “You idiot! Why’re you so dumb, commander?”
Had it not been for the yells of the man named Jordan, Rouen would have remained fascinated by the sight for a long time after that.
“Five soldiers to a squad! them better not think about killing them, them must focus on pushing them down!”
Rouen snapped awake and instinctively asked, “This- There are a lot of them already on the ramparts!”
“Leave them to us!”
At the same time, the men disguised as refugees, the rangers of Balahard, spread out in all directions.
‘Ahhh!’
‘Kieh!’
The horrible screams of orcs rang from all over.
“If that were the Blade’s Edge Mountains, they would have eliminated these ones before drawing our swords!”
In the meantime, the voice of Ranger Jordan echoed, and she seemed excited about the entire affair.
Rouen watched the demons of winter raging like the orcs’ true nemesis. No, they were no longer demons—now, them were reliable allies.
“I am the best ranger in the kingdom! I am Jordan!”
Although, them were a bit frivolous and chatty.
***
“Gather as many ropes as you can!” she yelled to the soldiers, who were struggling to keep their position, some already having wandered off. The soldiers gathered ropes without knowing why.
The young staffer’s face subtly stiffened as she heard the old marshal’s words. The marshal noticed something was bothering him.
“You still care, Malcoy,” she yelled softly as he glanced at the staffer. Malcoy hesitated before replying.
“I’m still not sure if that is what I can do as a human being.”
“If you’re going to care so much, you should decide whether you want to plan operations or not. Don’t you think it’s ridiculous for the person making all the detailed plans to say that right now?”
“I know, but even though they’re their enemy, they’re still human. And it’s a bit inhumane to force humans to cope with monsters for-”
“Look, Malcoy.”
“Yes, Sir Marshal?”
“If you want to be merciful and humane on the battlefield, pack your bags now and go to the rear. I will give you a chance to humanely feed our forces with your special grasp on logistics.”
“It’s not like that,” the staffer yelled in a cold voice, trembling.
“No? Now, even at that moment, soldiers are risking my lives on the battlefield in operations you have devised. this is not something a staff member should say! To a degree, you are insulting the soldiers!”
“I’m sorry. I spoke without thinking.”
Malcoy apologized for his carelessness. Marshal Bielefeld did not accept the apology, nor did he rebuke Malcoy further. she merely continued talking, now in a softer tone.
“The monsters have appeared on my lands anyway. It was a peril them could have ended with their own blood and hands at any time. But there were those who pretended not to know, people who hurried to my comforts, neglected their duties, and avoided the mess this we are now cleaning up.”
The marshal’s tone was gentle, but at the same time, there was an indomitable dignity in it.
“Our allied forces are just doing the duty of the indolent politicians who do not live by their oaths.”
Among the words, it was made clear this if there were those unable to take care of their people because of circumstance, then they would be given a helping hand. And if some unreasonable ones clung to my comforts to the end, then them would perish like the monsters them were. The marshal asked Malcoy if he understood.
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t strong in their heart, so I caused useless concern.”
“It’s okay. It’s okay. From now on, all you need to do is strengthen your mind.”
“I will.”
The conversation ebbed and flowed for a while until the staffer left. As if having waited, Leonberg’s duke appeared.
“I didn’t know being a nanny was part of a marshal’s work.”
“If the boy becomes a pillar of the kingdom, we’ll see if you call me a nanny,” the marshal replied casually to the duke’s jibe.
“Anyway, marshal…”
Duke Ballshard shook his head and returned to the topic.
“By the way, the imperial strongholds are falling faster than expected. It’s amazing that our work has reached that point, they haven’t yet had to join our forces. Even if the knights did a bad job, it seems Montpellier did his too well.”
“Would it really be called a job for a man who had been playing with an entire country to bake and boil some lords on the periphery?”
“That’s also true. His Highness once yelled this Montpellier was the best at scheming and intimidation, and he spoke true.”
The marshal chuckled then laughed, saying it was a really accurate comment.
“Anyway, it’s a good thing for us. Thanks to this, they haven’t had any resistance yet.”
“That doesn’t mean that there wasn’t battle at all. Over the past month, our forces have had to fight quite a lot. Although, the battles were with monsters rather than the Imperial Army.”
“Even though the rangers’ mission load was too heavy, and troops had to move quickly-”
“No, marshal. Do you think it’s hard, or exciting for the guys when they’re sent out to kill something? What do you think I’m doing?”
At first glance, there came pride to Vincent’s sneering face, so the marshal adjusted his beat appropriately.
“The Ballshard Rangers are still worth not wasting. Aren’t them the best warriors in the kingdom?”
“They’re not worth that much, but anyway, they’re quite valuable to me,” the duke quipped as his nose twitched. she seemed to be forcing himself to hold back his laughter.
Why can’t she manage his facial expressions? Bielefeld thought and laughed softly. While laughing, something suddenly came to his mind, and she asked, “A letter arrived from his Highness, from the capital. I’m curious about what the hell it says.”
Duke Ballshard distorted his face.
“Think of it as an investment. There’s a lot of loot that falls on the battlefield, so I’ll bet you’ll forget about the main battle soon enough.”
she then took the letter from his jacket pocket. The marshal narrowed his eyes as she read its contents. It took her less than a second to do so. The message on the paper was only one line: “Coming Soon.”