Chapter 73

Urdino was a feudal state, a rarity in Apennia.

To put it a bit crudely, it also meant that the residents of Urdino were the personal property of the lord.

Thus, the Duke of Urdino, who ruled Urdino, did not have to struggle with recruiting troops like the surrounding city-states, nor did he need to hire mercenaries instead.

He just had to conscript men of a suitable age.

On a plain a short distance from the road to Fasa.

Duke Cavaldi of Urdino, clad in armor, stepped forward to review his legion.

In truth, it was barely the size of a few battalions, far from being a legion.

Still, the flags of Urdino fluttering on all sides made his forces seem several times larger, and Cavaldi's chest swelled with pride.

“Those Fasa bastards will get scared and open the gates as soon as I lead my army there.”

To Cavaldi's narcissistic remark, his subordinates laid on the flattery even thicker.

“That's right. Those cowards will surely submit to Your Highness' fame and valor. It is God's will.”

“If Your Highness takes but one step, a place like Fasa will crumble like a sandcastle built by a child!”

“Those Fasa bastards are truly unfortunate. To think they have to face His Grace the Duke.”

Cavaldi's vassals had long since figured out that their lord enjoyed flattery.

Therefore, they had not a shred of hesitation in laying it on thick.

Cavaldi, inwardly pleased, chided his subordinates.

“Everyone, your flattery is too excessive! That's enough, so see to it that you are not negligent in preparing to welcome our allies.”

“Understood, Your Highness. We shall make your glory known for all eternity.”

“Hahaha!”

The vassals immediately changed the direction of their flattery.

If they couldn't even manage this level of adulation, they couldn't be the Duke's close aides.

That wasn't to say that Cavaldi was an incompetent commander.

Enjoying flattery and command ability were two separate things.

Cavaldi surveyed the road with a cool eye.

The Urdino Ducal Army was scheduled to play an important role in this attack.

An ambitious plan where the Urdino Ducal Army would advance by land while other nations advanced by sea, to pincer Fasa from both sides!

Successfully completing that (and extorting money from Fasa), Urdino would rise as the hegemon of the south!

That was Cavaldi's ambition.

“Our chance has finally come! All troops, march out!”

At Cavaldi's command, the drums sounded.

The Urdino Ducal Army stepped forward.

The soldiers marched forward in lockstep to the officers' calls.

However, Cavaldi's ambitious dream would not be realized.

The Urdino Ducal Army, which had marched out vigorously, was defeated in the ensuing pitched battle against the Black Company, as if it were a lie.

***

From the hill, about a hundred cavalrymen, dyed silver by the sunlight reflecting off them, charged forth.

At their head was Rhom, the Troll Knight, a man of robust physique.

Rhom charged, excitedly rocking his body back and forth.

“Everyone, advance!”

“Leave none alive!”

A heavy cavalry unit formed by pouring in almost all of Fasa's military power.

Before them, the Urdino Ducal Army hastily formed up.

The Urdino Ducal Army, as trained, massed together and presented their spears.

Seeing them move calmly even in a critical situation, they were clearly elite troops.

Just as it seemed Rhom would be unable to avoid being skewered.

“Huh?”

“Uh-oh?”

“Oh!”

Thud!

Unexpectedly, the heavy cavalry led by Rhom easily broke the enemy's line.

Not only that, they penetrated deep inside and collapsed the formation.

Once he succeeded in breaking into the ranks, Rhom went on a rampage.

With every swing of his sword, enemy soldiers fell like scarecrows.

“Wow, I can't believe it. I didn't know Rhom had such a talent.”

I exclaimed in admiration while watching the battle from the top of the hill.

As I leaned forward, Tospol snorted as if he didn't like it.

But he quickly quieted down after Theo gave him a flick on the head.

“Young Master, don't even think about going forward.”

“I won't, so don't worry.”

Theo was holding the reins himself, just in case I decided to dash forward.

Next to him, Eleonor was recording the battle's progress.

“Sir Eleonor, did you know Rhom would be so successful?”

“He may be a country knight, but he is a knight nonetheless. Besides, being a troll, he has a great physique and fast recovery, so I was sure he would play an active role.”

“Now I see he was a talent suited for land, not the sea.”

“It is thanks to Lord Gryph not giving up and giving him a chance.”

“It's thanks to Sir Eleonor's recommendation.”

Rhom, the Troll Knight of Aosta, had served as the unofficial combat power meter of the mercenary company ever since his enlistment.

In other words, his role was to be the first to charge in and get beaten up.

I could immediately think of three people who had beaten Rhom up.

Eleonor, Selvi, Tospol, and so on.

Of course, it was mostly Rhom's fault for misbehaving.

I, too, had always found Rhom disagreeable.

How could I trust someone who acted like a jerk at our first meeting and was always seen getting beaten up by someone?

He himself seemed to know this well, as he made a fuss about wanting to redeem his name in this war, but I was still skeptical.

If Eleonor hadn't stepped up to defend Rhom, I wouldn't have even employed him.

“Please trust him once. His opponents have been tough so far, it's not that Rhom is incompetent.”

Eleonor's standing within the mercenary company was second only to mine.

I couldn't just ignore her advice, so I employed Rhom, hoping the gamble would pay off, and.

It turned out to be a huge success.

“I judged a person too rashly. I repent.”

Perhaps I had been thinking wrongly, trapped in my prejudices all this time.

As the leader of a group, it was ultimately my job to identify the talents and abilities of the members and place them where they could be best utilized.

Rhom's abilities were just hidden; he was a knight nonetheless.

A knight trained in combat in this era was a precious talent.

A being comparable to a tank in modern warfare.

To have simply ignored that was my mistake.

Having learned the important lesson that one should never judge a person by prejudice, I made a firm resolve.

“From now on, I should use Rhom more importantly.”

“A wise decision, Lord Gryph.”

Eleonor replied with a smile to my repentance.

Theo broke this harmonious atmosphere.

“It's a good thing for us, but……, I never thought that reckless plan would actually work.”

“Reckless? I was certain it would. I'm serious.”

“Honestly, the strategy the Young Master came up with was a much bigger gamble than employing Rhom.”

“You're really too much.”

I grumbled, but Theo didn't even pretend to listen.

Only Eleonor recorded my words with an impressed look.

“No. Sir Theo. The Captain is right.”

“Even if it's just lip service, thank you.”

“It's true. Duke Urdino is known to be a quite competent soldier. So this is the result of the Captain's brilliant stratagem working out well.”

It was embarrassing to have it expressed as a brilliant stratagem, but it was just as she said.

Things against Duke Urdino had gone too well.

“Still, I didn't expect a man of Duke Urdino's caliber to fall for a simple lure and ambush tactic.”

“It's a well-known fact that Duke Cavaldi of Urdino is full of ostentation and vanity. But isn't being careless in war the most dangerous thing of all?”

The achievements of the Black Company so far were only accomplished against pirates at sea.

Having no record or experience in land warfare, it was natural to be underestimated.

If Cavaldi had known that our mercenary company had a former Emperor's Royal Guard, a current Phoenix Knight, and a backwater Troll Knight, he would not have acted so rashly.

But Cavaldi didn't know that, and the synergy of ostentation, carelessness, and lack of information created the situation before our eyes.

The Urdino Ducal Army, which had advanced with such confidence, was now being pushed down into the valley, not knowing what to do.

It was an undeniable great victory.

Now, no one would be able to doubt the combat capabilities of the Black Company.

“Well, let's wrap this up. The signal horn.”

At my gesture, the waiting horn blower gave the signal.

Bwoooong─.

Then, the reserve forces of the Black Company, who had been hiding, revealed themselves on the hill.

Unlike me, who was in a state of forced celibacy, my subordinates were full of motivation.

As people who had flocked to see wealth and honor, they were all filled with the thought of showing off their valor in this battle.

And once they earned such tales of valor, they would go to find new lovers.

…Yes, even if I can't date, you guys should at least get girlfriends, right?

That's right.

“Alright, let's wrap this up.”

“What does ‘shimai’ mean?”

“Just get the gist of it. It means to finish up.”

“Well, I like the sound of that.”

“Everyone, charge! Forward!”

***

In the end, the battle that day ended in victory.

But unfortunately, my resolve to use Rhom more importantly could not be fulfilled.

Because Rhom was crushed again and taken to the field hospital.

“How many times is this now?”

“Uh, three or four times?”

I counted on my fingers.

Eleonor, Selvi, Tospol, and finally, an unknown knight from Urdino.

“It was four times.”

“That's a lot.”

Rhom really is a combat power meter.

With this disastrous record and result, even Eleonor seemed to have nothing more to say.

Still, she desperately tried to find a reason and defended him.

“It's not that Rhom is incompetent. But he lacks something important for a warrior.”

“What is that?”

“Luck.”

“Ah.”

“Rhom is just terribly unlucky. It's just his bad luck that everyone he meets happens to be stronger than him.”

Eleonor shook her head from side to side.

I truly agree.

Rhom had certainly performed so well that if I were the enemy commander, I would have said, ‘You play dirty!’ Rhom deserved to be the MVP of that day.

It's just that he was really, truly unlucky.

In the latter half of the battle, a knight dressed in the most splendid attire popped out from the enemy lines and knocked Rhom down with lightning speed.

The only reason Rhom didn't die was because the heavy cavalry with him protected him.

And while our allies were retrieving Rhom, the enemy took the opportunity to succeed in their retreat.

“How long do you think it will take for Rhom to return?”

“His recovery is good, so about two weeks? That's only possible because he's a troll. All his ribs were broken, yet he survived.”

“Ugh, just hearing it makes me dizzy.”

“Well, we should be glad he didn't die.”

That's true, but one question remains.

“Who on earth was the opponent who defeated Rhom?”

“That knight was probably Duke Cavaldi of Urdino. There's no way anyone else in the Urdino Ducal Army could be him.”

Eleonor gave a bitter smile, and I recalled what I knew about Cavaldi.

He's vain, loves flattery, and likes to adorn himself, but his skills alone make him a knight among knights.

Didn't he even manage to gather his troops and retreat in that losing situation?

Retreat is by no means an easy task.

Just by unraveling a complex situation, his ability is worthy of recognition.

“Still, it turned out well. With this victory, it has become possible to tie down the Urdino Ducal Army's feet.”

We looked at the firmly closed castle gates in the distance.

Currently, the Urdino Ducal Army, after being routed in one battle, was holed up in a nearby fortress.

It seemed the damage was more severe than expected, as there was no sign of them coming out.

But Randolfo, the mercenary company's treasurer who had followed us to the battlefield, scratched his head in a difficult manner.

“But Captain, it will be difficult to attack that fortress, won't it?”

“We came in a hurry, so we're not prepared for a siege. Why?”

“The amount of money being consumed each day is no small matter. It would be best to end the war quickly.”

“I will do my best, but it doesn't seem easy.”

I could only give a textbook answer.

Starting and ending a war were not within my domain.

Of course, I understand Randolfo's concern.

Because of this war, the city's prices have suddenly risen, and the mobilized Fasa forces number in the thousands.

Supplying the materials consumed by them is no ordinary matter.

From the treasurer's perspective, it's natural to be anxious.

But it seemed that wasn't the only problem, as Randolfo scratched his head in a troubled manner.

“Actually, the problem right now is supplies.”

“Of course we came in a hurry, but it hasn't been long since we set out, has it? Why are the supplies already running low?”

“But we really only have a few days' worth of food left.”

“?”

A thought suddenly flashed through my mind.

“It seems Albe Corsini is interfering.”

“That's right.”

Randolfo nodded with a firm face.

Albe Corsini was in charge of the city's defense in this war.

Naturally, he became involved in supply duties, and it seems he's playing games with it.

Aish, really.

This insignificant little thing keeps pissing me off.

“But we can't retreat either.”

“That's right. The Urdino Ducal Army is right in front of us.”

I silently looked at the fortress shrouded in darkness.

I suddenly felt the urge to recruit the retreat expert, Cavaldi.

“There's no other way. If they won't come out, we'll have to drag them out.”

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