Chapter 51

"Since the flow is bad, I'll update two chapters.

'This is so troublesome... I want to go home quickly.'

'Don't say that. It's work.'

'Yeah, yeah. We have to do our job properly.'

Rong, Rozward, and Soyeon were guarding the border with the Dibel territory.

The guard consisted of sixty cavalry and a hundred infantry. It was a considerable force.

There was a reason for mobilizing such a large number of guards. It was due to the treaty with Rigar Dibel.

The treaty requested that the guards be strengthened to ensure that any future fugitives could be captured within their territory.

In other words, it was a veiled threat: 'We'll let this one slide, but we won't tolerate it in the future.'

Almus had no intention of openly opposing the Dibel family at the moment.

Therefore, they accepted the condition and assigned the guards.

'Captain! A group that looks like refugees is clashing with Dibel soldiers in that direction!'

'I see. Let's head there immediately.'

Rong and the others gathered the scattered soldiers and headed to the scene.

The clear border between the As and Dibel territories was a river. The river was no deeper than an adult's waist, even at its deepest point. Roughly, the east side of the river was the As territory, and the west side was the Dibel territory.

Upon arrival, Rong and the others immediately told the refugees, 'Arbitrary movement of citizens is prohibited by law. Go back to the Dibel territory quietly!'

When Rong and the others called out, the refugees seemed to give up, their shoulders drooping. If they crossed the border, the Dibel soldiers couldn't pursue them.

However, if the As soldiers were cooperative with the Dibel soldiers, the situation would be different. The escape would be a failure.

They had fled because they heard rumors that some had successfully escaped to the As territory. The lord of the As territory was said to accept fugitives.

Therefore, the shock was great, and they were captured by the Dibel soldiers without resistance.

Normally, the Dibel soldiers would have taken them back without incident. But this time was different.

'Hey, what are they doing?!!'

Rozward shouted.

The Dibel soldiers began to kill the fugitives right in front of Rozward and the others. They didn't just behead them.

They beat, kicked, and broke bones, torturing them before killing them, as if to show Rozward and the others.

'Hey! That's a child!!'

The Dibel soldiers started to kill the children without mercy. They cut off pieces of flesh, and Rong could hear their screams.

'...This is terrible.'

In front of them, a woman was being gang-raped. Her neck was strangled, her eyes gouged out for fun, and she was violated like a toy... Soyeon instinctively buried her face in Rong's chest.

But even with her face buried, the screams still entered her ears. No matter how hard she tried to block them out, the screams seeped through.

But they could do nothing. Because it was happening on the Dibel side of the border.

The As soldiers had no authority to intervene. If Almus were here, it might have been a different story, but...

Rozward bit his lip in frustration. They could do nothing.

Staying here any longer would only cause more pain. Just as they decided to leave, they heard a small girl's scream.

'Help!!'

Rozward couldn't help but turn around.

A small girl was being held down by several men. She was about five years old, probably not even at the age of her first menstruation.

Rozward's hand moved on its own. A spear was thrown from his hand, piercing the heart of the man who was about to violate her.

This was the beginning. The As soldiers attacked the Dibel soldiers one after another, rescuing the refugees.

'You fell for it.'

'As expected of Vermot!'

Rigar was in high spirits.

In essence, the first to use force would be at a disadvantage. But if they were attacked and sent troops to defend, it would be understandable.

After breaking through the enemy's guard and advancing, they would secure the rock salt mine. Almus As would likely send an envoy in a panic to negotiate peace.

In exchange for not pursuing the preemptive attack, the ownership of the rock salt mine would be transferred to them. According to Vermot's prediction, they could secure at least a third of the mine.

It would be impossible to take all of it, as the rock salt mine generated enormous profits.

However, this plan had a significant problem. The news of the massacre of the fugitives would spread. Even if they were fugitives, the massacre would be seen as excessive.

What to do? If they could kill someone who deserved it, there would be no problem.

There were several villages in the Dibel territory that had not paid taxes for years. In the Dibel territory, not paying taxes for several years was punishable by death.

However, killing them wouldn't turn corpses into gold coins. Since nothing could be done about it, it was customary to forgive them.

They would lend them seed for the next year and help them pay their taxes.

But this time, they decided not to forgive them. They were moved to a prison near the As territory along with people who had committed murder or robbery and their families.

In the prison, they would be executed repeatedly, and the guards would casually tell them that they could be saved if they fled to the As territory.

Then, coincidentally, the guards would get drunk and forget to lock the cells. This would complete the plan.

In other words, they were only killed because they tried to escape. What was wrong with that?

Vermot wanted to abolish the heavy taxes, but Rigar's relatives were obstructing him.

Reducing taxes would reduce their income. He wanted to distance himself from his relatives, but Rigar relied heavily on them, so it didn't work out.

'Then I'll go and scatter them. Lord Vermot, wait for good news.'

The most troublesome of Rigar's relatives, Gilbert, said.

He was strong and capable of leading a unit of a hundred men. However, he was not suitable for leading a larger army.

Still, he was better than the other relatives who did nothing and lived a life of leisure.

'You must win. Failure will cause a big problem.'

This time, Gilbert would lead three hundred and twenty soldiers. The enemy was estimated to be between one hundred and two hundred.

If they lost, not only would they be seen as oppressors, but also as weak soldiers. He wanted to send a larger army, but if too many soldiers were brought, it wouldn't be seen as an accidental military clash. This was the limit.

'Hehe, with this difference in numbers, it's enough. I hear the enemy commander is a young man not even twenty. There's no way he can beat me, who has fought in many battles.'

'Be careful. The enemy defeated King Verm.'

'You worry too much, Lord Vermot!!'

Gilbert laughed heartily.

'How are you going to take responsibility, Rozward?'

'Hey, don't push all the responsibility on me. You did it too!!'

Rozward and Rong were arguing about who was responsible. Rong argued that Rozward started it, so it was his fault. Rozward argued that Rong joined in, so Rong was also to blame.

However, the argument only made the situation worse.

'Stop!'

'Ouch!'

The two were crouching after being hit on the head with a staff by Soyeon.

'What's done is done. Let's at least get these people to a safe place... and then what?'

It was a reasonable point.

Fortunately, there was a small village on a mountain about a kilometer away. They could see it from here, so they could walk the refugees there.

This would temporarily postpone the refugee problem. Next...

'Well, we did capture or kill all the Dibel soldiers, so the information shouldn't have spread...'

Rong and the others could clearly see the Dibel army.

There were roughly two hundred to three hundred of them, far more than Rong and the others.

'How many soldiers do we have?'

Rong asked Rozward and Soyeon.

'To cover the wide border, we have sixty cavalry, a hundred infantry, and ten archers.'

'And four explosive spears. Almus gave them to us as a charm.'

It was a meager force to face about three hundred enemies.

'Should we run?'

'If we run, it will be meaningless to have saved those people. Plus, the village behind us will be in danger. And...'

Rong paused, then looked at the enemy.

'Negotiations are more favorable for the victor, right? If we win, we can turn the tables, can't we?'

'Is that so? I think that's fundamentally wrong.'

Rozward looked at Rong skeptically, but Rong was confident.

'Well, if we run, we'll definitely be invaded. We have to stop them.'

Soyeon agreed with Rong.

Rozward thought that if they attacked first and then crushed the defending enemy, it would only cause more problems, but since Rong and Soyeon seemed confident, he agreed.

Besides, once they had saved them, it was their responsibility to protect them until the end.

'So how are we going to win? We're outnumbered...'

'Why not use the cavalry?'

Rozward suggested.

The mobility of the cavalry could effectively attack the flanks of the heavily armored infantry.

However...

'The flanks of the heavily armored infantry are weak, but... they can still respond somewhat if they try.'

The heavily armored infantry had very long spears, making it difficult to change direction. If the same number of cavalry attacked their flanks, the infantry would be destroyed.

But Rong's cavalry numbered sixty, while the enemy had three hundred. With such a difference, they were likely to be overwhelmed.

They might win if they attacked from behind when the enemy was completely unprepared, but that was impossible without an ambush.

'Hey, I have an idea. Is it okay?'

Soyeon proposed a plan.

Rong and Rozward said in unison, 'That's it!!'

The writing has progressed significantly.

I plan to end the second chapter in about three to four chapters, probably around chapter 72.