「UOOOOOOOOOOOH-! Push, push, push! Keep pushing forward with the numbers advantages!」

「Stop them! Defend! Defend! If we allow the enemy to break through the center, the front lines will collapse in an instant!」

「Damn it, what happened to the nobles stationed there!」

「Who cares? They were put on the front lines for betraying us, they might as well be dead……watch out!」

「Uoooooh! I won’t let them! I won’t let them!」

「We will win! We will win! For Prince Mercurio’s sake, we will definitely win!」

「Long live Prince Shurus! Long live Prince Shurus! Long live Prince Shurus!」

「Diediediediediediediediediediediediediedie!」

「Mercurio’s head! Once we take the traitor’s head, this battle will end! Damn it, you’re in the way, get out of the way!」

「Don’t you dare say that! I won’t let you kill the innocent Prince Mercurio! We’ll take the heads of Shrurus and Kabajid, who were the ones to start this war!」

「You dare call Prince Kabajid by his name as a mere foot soldier! You will pay for that disrespect with your lives!」

The center of the front lines was by far the most intense place of fighting between the punitive force and Mercurio’s army.

Until recently, it had been quite back and forth there, but it was no longer the case.

The punitive force had changed their tactics, charging head first through the center, relying on sheer numbers to break through.

Shouts could be heard all across the battlefield, some to raise morale and others to insult the enemy.

But, no matter how hard Mercurio’s army tried to encourage themselves, it couldn’t offset the difference in numbers.

The three traitorous nobles, who had been placed at the center front line, had already been wiped out……in the literal sense. They were all dead along with their soldiers.

They had fought bravely, absolutely not wanting to die, but the difference in numbers had been too great to make up.

Ultimately, one by one, their subordinates fell. And, despite fighting, crying, and wailing, their lives were taken by the soldiers of the punitive force.

Even though they hadn’t wanted to die, the three nobles had still fought bravely, carrying out their duties much better than had been expected.

If they had chosen to serve Mercurio’s honestly, it might have been possible for them to achieve much greater successes.

However, their end was here in the grindstone of the front lines.

As a result, the next force to bear the brunt of the punitive force’s attack was the true Mercurio’s army.

The force that had been sent to supervise the three nobles quickly withdrew as their reinforcements advanced to defend against the punitive force’s attack.

As they defended, the supervisory force, which had fallen back, made their own attack by firing arrows into the enemy’s rear.

Since their role had been to attack the three nobles if they did anything strange, they had no need to change their equipment. They simply retreated behind their reinforcements before regrouping to attack.

Regrouping to attack after falling back might have been difficult for less trained troops, but for the well trained supervisory force, it wasn’t a difficult task.

Rather, the real problem was……

「Hey, is it true that the guerrilla unit has run into problems?」

「Yes, that seems to be the case. That’s why the punitive force has increased the pressure on their side.」

「……But, the guerrilla unit……if we just consider their strength, aren’t they the most elite force we have?」

「I don’t know. But they’re led by Captain Rei, right? I can’t imagine they would do something like betray us.」

「……That’s true.」

The soldiers of the supervisory force exchanged words as they loosed their arrows.

Their thoughts regarding the guerrilla unit weren’t that of betrayal……but doubt.

Normally, hearing that their own soldiers had starting fighting each other would raise suspicion of betrayal.

However, while they were suspicious, it was more doubt.

The main reason was Rei.

Anyone who knew Rei wouldn’t be willing to betray him, no matter the reward offered.

No matter how much money they might be given……even if it was platinum coins, you couldn’t spend it if you weren’t alive.

And for those who knew Rei’s character, or those who didn’t know him well but had a passing understanding of what he had done up until this point, they all knew that betraying Rei was nothing more than suicide.

For that reason, it was hard to believe that even one or two people in the guerrilla unit would betray them, let alone the significant number of them that had started fighting among themselves.

If anything, it was more likely that they had been plotted against by the punitive force successfully……which was correct.

Only those who were wearing the newly made Wyvern leather armour had gone crazy, attacking friend and foe alike.

Of course, everyone knew that the Wyvern leather had come from the Wyverns of the Dragon Knights Rei had defeated.

Even that aside, many soldiers had seen the guerrillas skinning the Wyverns and some had even ate some of the Wyvern meat that had been cooked afterwards.

If they really had been planning something, they wouldn’t have been so obvious about it.

And, above all……

「If Captain Rei really had betrayed us, he wouldn’t have needed to go through all this trouble. He could have just unleashed a fire tornado behind us or charged at us with Overlord’s Armour. That alone would have made us helpless.」

『Indeed.』

The other soldiers in the surroundings voiced their agreement as they continued to shoot arrows at the enemy.

「You guys! Stop talking nonsense and just keep shooting, shooting, and shooting to stop their advance!」

Nodding at their captain’s words, the soldiers stopped talking as they focused on firing arrows.

They could have continued their chatter while shooting arrows, but their fellow soldiers were clashing with the punitive force in a fierce fight.

Considering that, their captain’s words were the right thing to follow.

(That water dragon……it disappeared without causing much damage to us, so someone on our side must have defeated it……there aren’t that many people who could have defeated an A rank adventurer though.)

A soldier from the supervisory force thought to himself as he took a glance at where the huge water dragon had been just earlier.

However, it was no longer there now and his captain would probably scold him if he decided to bring it up, so he just continued to draw his bow.

 

 

Back at Mercurio’s main camp. Vihera smiled as she saw Theorem’s shocked look at who she was carrying.

She seemed amused to see the usually calm and collected Theorem look so visibly shocked.

However, anyone who saw who Vihera was carrying would probably say that Theorem’s reaction was natural.

After all, the person Vihera was carrying was Digma, an A rank adventurer.

A rank adventurers were already considered quite inhuman in terms of their abilities.

So it was only natural for everyone to be surprised at the sight of Vihera carrying one in her arms.

Digma was completely unconscious.

This meant that he had been knocked out somehow and it was obvious who had done it.

But, just to be sure……one noble spoke up timidly.

「Vihera-sama, could that person be……」

「Yes. It’s Water Dragon Digma. An A rank adventurer. We met on the battlefield and fought.」

「Y-You fought him……just like that……」

The noble muttered in shock at Vihera’s reply.

The reason was simple. Water Dragon Digma was a renowned adventurer in the Bestir Empire, known for his skill.

His strength was incomparable to that of ordinary adventurers, not the type of opponent you would defeat and then bring back like a souvenir.

「It was a good match up for me, I suppose. I specialise in one on one combat while Digma is better suited to large scale engagements. The fact that I was able to drag him into my specialty was a big deal. ……So, what should we do with him? Can I just leave him here?」

「That would be a problem.」

A noble replied immediately.

The rest silently, but adamantly agreed.

If Vihera were to leave him here, no one present could realistically deal with him.

Theorem was the most skilled person present, but even he didn’t have the confidence to handle an A rank adventurer……especially one with a title like the Water Dragon.

「Even if you say that, we’re being pushed back right now, you know? As long as Rei can’t move, there’s no way I can stay back, right?」

「That’s true, but……」

They were managing right now, but as Vihera said, they were slowly being pushed back.

Ever since the punitive force had started to push through with sheer numbers, Mercurio’s army had been taking increasing casualties.

The only reason they had been able to hold out against an army four times their size was mainly due to their very high morale and the presence of renowned fighters like Rei, Vihera, and the White Rose Knights.

The also had other top tier forces like the Demon Soldiers, the guerrilla unit, and Gurgast.

But, if the situation continued as it was currently going, they would eventually be overwhelmed at one front, and if that happened it could cause the entire army to collapse.

To prevent that from happening, they needed to push the enemy back somehow. Vihera, who was well known for her command skill and personal strength was the perfect person to do that.

It was precisely because she knew this that she announced to all present that she had to return to the battlefield.

But, even knowing that, the people present found it hard to accept.

If Digma were to regain consciousness and go on a rampage, killing Mercurio, they would lose their reason for fighting this war.

That said, if things continued as Vihera said, the was a high chance they would lose regardless.

Since Rei hadn’t achieved the result they had expected, Vihera was the only one they could rely on in this moment.

「……I see. In that case, let’s do this.」

Vihera pondered the noble’s words for a few seconds before laying Digma on the ground and lightly hitting him with a Magic Palm.

「Gah, hah!」

Digma regained consciousness as the magic power raged inside him.

Seeing that, the nobles gasped in shock.

「Vihera-sama, why would you do such a thing!?」

「You went to all the trouble of knocking him out, so don’t try to wake him up now!」

「Call for the soldiers!」

「No need.」

Vihera dismissed one noble’s sudden call for soldiers.

Knowing that the nobles were all still looking at her, Vihera ignored them as she spoke to Digma, who had just opened his eyes.

「So, you’ve regained consciousness. Do you understand your current situation?」

「I……I think I fought you……yes, I lost.」

Digma closed his eyes as he sat back up and recalled what had happened before he lost consciousness. Vihera nodded back.

「That’s right. And then I captured you and took you prisoner.」

Digma nodded back at Vihera’s words.

He remembered losing and he was also now among Vihera’s companions.

As an A rank adventurer, he had also met with Theorem, the man who effectively controlled Mercurio’s army, several times before.

That was why it was impossible for him not to realise that he was now in Mercurio’s camp.

「I will guarantee your life. So, will you behave properly as a prisoner?」

「……What about you, Vihera?」

「I’m one of the main forces in Mercurio’s army. Naturally, I have to return to the battlefield. But, I can’t take you with me. So, as a prisoner, I would like you to behave properly and not do anything strange.」

Vihera’s blunt words made a few of the nobles, who had been listening in, gasp.

Only Mercurio and a few others smiled and laughed.

Theorem had spoken with Digma several times before and was familiar with his personality, so he wasn’t too worried.

Digma thought for a few seconds after hearing Vihera’s words……

「I understand. I lost to you. I could be dead already, but you spared my life. So, it’s only natural that I will obey you for now.」

The eyes of the nobles around them went wide as Digma spoke in a matter of fact tone.

They hadn’t expected Digma to accept it so readily.

(Even if I want to fight Rei with all my might, I can do so after the civil war ends.)

Digma’s original goal for coming to the battlefield was to fight against Rei without any restrictions.

Noiz had taken over that role in this battlefield, but Digma still had hopes he could do so after the civil war.

Of course, Vihera had also saved his life.

「Really? Well then, I believe you, Water Dragon Digma. I’ll leave everything else to you guys.」

Saying that, Vihera returned to the battlefield.

As he watched Vihera’s alluring figure leave, Digma felt something stir within him.

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