Chapter 47

A headless giant horse struck at Lambert with its large hooves.

Lambert dodged it and immediately countered the massive body’s charge with the flat of his sword.

The giant horse, unable to stop its momentum, galloped past Lambert but quickly turned by pounding its hooves on the ground and charged at Lambert again.

Perhaps frustrated by the easy repel earlier, the giant horse came to an abrupt stop in front of Lambert, lifted its front hooves high, and struck at Lambert.

Lambert did not dodge but instead readied his sword in front of him.

"Hey, Sir Swordsman! That’s no good!"

Albana, apparently realizing that Lambert was not going to dodge, let out a scream.

For a human to face, the headless giant horse was far too massive.

Lambert’s actions seemed nothing short of suicidal.

The giant horse’s hooves and Lambert’s greatsword clashed.

Albana could hardly believe her ears.

The weight of the giant horse, which was more than three times that of a normal human, was being matched by a single swing of a human’s sword.

"How... how can this be..."

Albana, who had been watching from a distance, cautiously approached Lambert.

"Hmm, indeed, splendid. You must have been a fine horse in life."

Lambert shouted "Haa!" and forcefully pushed the giant horse’s body away.

The horse’s exposed abdomen was now vulnerable to Lambert.

One more swing of the greatsword would surely deal a fatal blow.

"Yes, yes!"

Albana, with sweat on her forehead, strained to hear the end of the battle.

But Lambert did not launch a follow-up attack.

"......Huh?"

Albana muttered.

The giant horse, seemingly puzzled, stopped at a distance from Lambert.

"Did you also fall to your master? What a coincidence."

The headless horse tilted its neck as if listening to Lambert’s words.

In the next moment, it bent its back and lunged at Lambert.

Lambert immediately raised his greatsword and brought it down with a single, swift motion.

"Haa!"

The effort caused a miasma to leak from Lambert.

"!"

Albana stopped, opened her pale eyes, and crouched in a defensive stance.

Lambert’s greatsword shattered the ground, sending up a spray of sand.

The greatsword was not aimed at the horse but rather just beside it.

The giant horse, out of fear, pressed its belly to the ground and cowered.

Lambert slowly adjusted his stance and sheathed his greatsword.

The tension in Albana’s body eased.

Albana closed her eyes, placed her hand on her mouth, and laughed.

"I was scared... Your presence was so intense. But... Ahaha, did my story make you feel attached to it?"

"No, I just thought it was a good horse. I was a bit troubled by the time it took to move through the forest. But then, an ordinary horse wouldn’t be able to bear the weight of my armor and would collapse quickly. I couldn’t find a decent horse in the city I was in before."

"......Huh?"

Albana furrowed her brow in suspicion.

During the Eight Kingdoms Unification War, the Regius Kingdom was obsessed with breeding warhorses that could bear the weight of heavy armor. They selected the most physically fit horses, bred them with similarly large horses, and repeated the process to produce strong and resilient horses. Lambert, who needed to wear the Demon General’s magic armor, was given the finest of these horses.

To Lambert, who knew the horses of that era, the horses in the city of Ainzas seemed puny and not suitable for use.

In this regard, the headless giant horse was a fine horse, reminiscent of the warhorses of the Regius Kingdom during the Unification War. Despite its flaws, they seemed trivial to Lambert. Being an Undead himself, it seemed fitting to ride an Undead horse. Moreover, while not as good as his former beloved horse, the fur and demeanor of this horse had a certain similarity that touched Lambert’s heart. From the moment their hooves clashed, Lambert had decided to make this horse his own.

"No, no... No, no, no, no! Undead can’t be tamed! They are just a bunch of beings who cling to their former obsessions and thrash about! Sir Swordsman... Isn’t this a bit reckless?"

"......"

Lambert, who had been inadvertently contradicted, was slightly miffed inside. Ignoring Albana’s advice, he stroked the back of the giant horse lying on the ground with his armored hand. The horse shuddered but remained still and docile afterward.

"Look, our hearts have connected. What do you think? I’ve always been good with animals."

"......Isn’t it just that it’s scared?"

From Albana’s perspective, it looked like a wild beast had submitted to a larger and more powerful fellow. This was a common occurrence in nature.

Still, the sight of the giant horse, which should have been devoid of emotions like joy or fear and instead consumed by anger and madness, desperately bowing its head to Lambert was quite strange. Of course, Lambert was also an Undead, but Albana was unaware of this.

"Sir Swordsman seems to be a stern person... but, to put it mildly, a bit off... Ah, no, I mean, in a good way."

After stating her honest opinion, Albana added a quick compliment without much thought. Lambert, tilting his head at Albana’s words, continued to stroke the back of the headless horse with his free hand. The horse, despite being stroked, still seemed to be trembling in fear.

"Being with Sir Swordsman doesn’t seem boring... but the problem is that no one would believe this story, no matter how sincerely I tell it..."

Albana sighed deeply.