Chapter 70 : The Pitched Battle of the Jupenheim Plains (5)

Chapter 70: The Pitched Battle of the Jupenheim Plains (5)

Anyone can throw a spear.

Wouldn't even a ten-year-old child know how to throw a spear?

However, throwing that spear with great precision and power was a different matter entirely.

-Paaat!

-Swoooosh!

Shatien picked up a lance that had fallen on the ground and threw it again.

This time, one knight blocked it with his shield. However, he could not absorb the impact, and he was sent flying backward with a resounding sound.

"This is insane!"

"What kind of monster is that!"

"That is Shatien. Kill him at all costs!"

As a result, the Emperor's knights shouted fiercely, their morale reignited.

They remembered how the knights, including Sir Alfred, who had fought earlier, had died so miserably.

Violating customs and killing them all in a battle between honorable knights. This was unprecedented. Even for a battlefield, this was going too far.

Therefore, the Emperor's knights wanted to eliminate Shatien and restore their tarnished honor.

"Mercenary Knight Shatien! Well met. I will avenge Sir Alfred! He was my friend!"

"Alas, how regrettable!"

Shatien's sword quickly grazed the arm of the boasting knight like an arrow.

-Slice!

"Ughhhhh!"

The knight's forearm was cleanly severed and fell to the ground. The knight, who instantly spurted blood, turned pale.

"You m-monster bastard!"

The knight, fighting through the agonizing pain to regain his fading consciousness, shouted that. He was clearly intimidated, but the knights' momentum did not subside.

Other knights charged straight toward Shatien.

"Shatien! I will fight you this time."

"If you dare to challenge me, come prepared to die. I will not spare you just because you are a knight!"

In a word, he meant that he would kill them all without taking ransom. It was intended to intimidate them, but it only infuriated the knights further.

"Fool! What do you take us for! We do not fear death."

An unnamed knight covered his entire body with his shield and charged. He seemed intent on blocking Shatien's attack once with a shield bash and then trying something else.

But Shatien was already prepared.

-Ziiiiiiing

He planned to invoke the mystery of his bloodline to find the shield's weakness, penetrate it, neutralize it, and strike the knight down.

"?!?"

However, surprisingly, the shield showed no weaknesses. When Shatien struck the shield with all his might, it shuddered, but the shield itself remained intact.

"Kgh. My shield is not easily broken!"

The knight shouted, perhaps reading Shatien's mind. But he failed to absorb the impact properly.

He staggered even while holding the shield.

'Is that the famous Dwarven shield?'

Shatien had seen wealthy knights carrying high-quality shields in his previous life. The quality of this shield was certainly not human-made.

He was likely correct.

'But so what?'

Shatien gave a cold, scornful look and immediately adopted his next stance.

-Bang!

He kicked the knight, who was trying to regain his balance, shield and all.

"Ughh?!"

Due to the unexpected impact, the knight tumbled backward. The shielded knight desperately tried to get up, but it was too late.

"Grab him!"

"Now's the time! Get revenge on the knight bastard!"

The surrounding mercenaries swiftly rushed forward, grabbing the knight's arms.

"L-Let go! Let go! Mfgh! Ugh! Ugh!"

As a result, the knight, who resisted for a brief moment, finally met his end by a mercenary's dagger.

"Insane! Are you really trying to kill us all! You madman Shatien!"

Seeing the situation unfold like this, the Emperor's knights were terrified.

Shatien looked at those knights and sneered coldly.

"If you want to live, surrender! I have no mercy for those who resist until the end!"

At that, the remaining Emperor's knights began to lower their weapons and raise their hands one by one. The surroundings were filled only with Count Bellua's mercenaries. For them, being surrounded meant that only a meaningless death awaited if they resisted.

The mercenaries quickly rushed forward and disarmed the knights.

Shatien watched them for a moment and then quickly checked the battle situation.

It was evident that the Emperor's knights in other areas were also running out of stamina, as their movements were becoming sluggish. If the battle continued like this, their sector would likely be secured.

"Huff, huff... Damn you, Shatien! Thank you very much!"

"Centurion Jenga. You are still alive I see."

"Damn it! Then did you want me to die?"

"Of course not. Can you still command the unit?"

Centurion Jenga's condition did not look good. Shatien was considering taking over his command if necessary to continue the battle. Then, Centurion Jenga jumped up and shouted.

"I can do it! I can do it! Don't abandon me."

"Abandon you? I was just offering help. The battle is still ongoing."

"Hghh... Is it still not over? It will continue?"

Centurion Jenga said that while breathing heavily, but he soon had to retract his words.

-Bwooooo!

-Chaaaaaarge! Advance, advance!

Suddenly, the sound of a horn trumpet rang out, and the Emperor's infantry in the rear began to advance.

"It's the enemy! It's the enemy!"

"It's the infantry this time! Damn it!"

As expected, this was not a battle that would end easily.

Shatien shouted forcefully.

"Everyone, stay focused. The pitched battle will continue until tomorrow morning! We will quickly form a defensive square. We must fight by taking turns to rest and fight."

"Wha... What? Until tomorrow?"

"You're lying, right Shatien?"

Centurion Jenga and Miles cried out in horror, but Shatien's words were true. Just as Shatien said, the battle only concluded when the sun rose the next day.

* * *

The pitched battle that lasted for two days ended without any significant gain.

It was not a victory for either side.

Of the Centuria Shatien commanded, which numbered 300, only about one hundred survived. Since almost half of the unit members were lost, the Centuria was practically wiped out.

Since Shatien suffered this level of damage, there was no need to mention the casualties of the other Centurias.

It was a small mercy that Captain Mordo and the Centurions had somehow survived.

Since the key officers were all alive, rebuilding the unit would not take long.

It was just disappointing that the mercenary company, which had numbered over a thousand, had suddenly shrunk to around 600 men.

In the current situation, numbers equated to influence in the war councils, and Captain Mordo's power had somewhat diminished due to the devastated state of the mercenary company.

Nevertheless, talks of a truce naturally began after the battle ended.

Both sides had suffered excessive attrition, and important nobles had been captured as prisoners.

By dealing with all the captured knights, Shatien once again acquired gold coins.

He managed to secure enough gold to rebuild the heavy infantry unit, even after paying a portion to the surviving mercenaries.

This was because he had successfully stopped all the knights who had charged toward his sector.

And looking at the halved mercenary company, Shatien realized something clearly.

'I need to train pikemen and halberdiers as soon as possible.'

Losing troops like this in every battle would be disastrous. He understood why mounted knights were called the flower of the battlefield.

There was an urgent need to quickly establish means to effectively stop them. Only then could the mercenary company be consistently maintained.

'But something feels strange.'

Baron Ludwig was certainly not dead, but he was nowhere to be seen. It was fortunate that Baron Ludwig had not participated; otherwise, the damage could have been even greater.

Of course, something felt uneasy.

He had interrogated the prisoners before releasing them, but no relevant information had surfaced. It seemed they truly did not know, rather than hiding something.

The most critical person of interest was missing. He needed to find out quickly. He decided that if push came to shove, he would have to investigate it himself.

Just then, rumors circulated that Branch Manager Marhen would be coming here. Surely the Merchant Guild's information network could track him down?

That was Shatien's thought.

"It has been a while, Branch Manager Marhen."

A few days later, a merchant convoy led by Branch Manager Marhen visited Count Bellua's army camp.

"Oh my. You look perfectly fine, Sir Shatien. I heard you have gained an incredible reputation recently, yes?"

"It is merely a hollow reputation. It is nothing worth mentioning."

"Aww... But you gained the terrifying nickname, the Knight Killer? That's amazing and scary. How did you do it, hoho."

At Branch Manager Marhen's words, Shatien just smiled lightly and shrugged his shoulders.

"I am nothing compared to the Elder."

"Hmm. That is true. Compared to the Elder, well."

Only then did Branch Manager Marhen seem convinced.

"But why were you so eager to find me?"

"I have something I need to look into. Do you happen to know anything about Baron Ludwig? I expected him to participate in this battle, but he was absent."

"Hmmmmm."

Branch Manager Marhen shook her head.

"Since the Merchant Guild sided with the Anti-Imperial faction, information about the Imperial faction's camp has diminished greatly. I haven't heard anything about Baron Ludwig's situation. If you want to find out, you might need to speak with a high-ranking noble in the Imperial faction. Do you need that? It might take some time."

"Hmmmmm."

This time, it was Shatien's turn to draw out his thoughts.

Speed is of the essence when it comes to information.

If it took too long, it might not be necessary.

"Then I will forgo that."

"I am sorry I could not be of help. Hnng."

"Not at all. Rather, I was the one making an unreasonable request. On another note, I acquired a large quantity of knightly armaments this time. Can you purchase them?"

The knights' armaments were of very high quality. They were not passed down for generations for nothing. Especially among the knights' gear, like the shield he acquired this time, there were armaments containing the secret techniques of the Dwarves and Elves.

"I would need to check their condition first."

"Well, as for the condition, you can assume their state from having been on the battlefield. They are not good. I will leave the decision to you, Branch Manager Marhen."

"Oh my? What if you are completely defrauded?"

"Well, wouldn't that mean that Branch Manager Marhen's trust in me is only that much?"

When Shatien shrugged nonchalantly, Branch Manager Marhen giggled and swished her skirt.

"Shatien is interesting, as always. Both when I first met you and now."

Branch Manager Marhen then earnestly promised to sell them for a good price. She said that just as Shatien trusted her, she would return that trust.

Then, Branch Manager Marhen discovered a piece of equipment and tilted her head.

"Hmm? Where did you get this?"

"That? I took it from a knight. It is a spoil of war. It looks like Dwarven-made equipment, doesn't it?"

At that, Branch Manager Marhen perked up her ears, looking very intrigued.

"This is not just simple Dwarven equipment."

"Then what is it?"

"It seems to be a shield imbued with mysteries passed down from the Ancient Empire era? That is amazing, hohoho."

"Oh... Then is it expensive?"

"......"

Asking if such an armament was expensive made him look a bit tacky, but so what? He needed a lot of money to rebuild the mercenary company. Shatien decided to be shameless.

Fortunately, Branch Manager Marhen did not seem to think badly of it.

"Well, if that is Shatien's thought, I suppose I should sell it for a high price. However..."

"However?"

"I think it would be better to present it to a noble rather than sell it."

"Huh?"

A gift, suddenly?

If she meant to gift it to a noble, did she mean to give it to Count Bellua? In fact, their bond was already tighter than Branch Manager Marhen might think.

But Branch Manager Marhen's words were unexpected.

"I think I might have found a way. A way to find Baron Ludwig's whereabouts."

"Oh...?"