"Strehl said he couldn't see any of the former Berkelstock knights where the feint battle was taking place. Those there must be the former Berkelstock knights, without a doubt."
The place
"The former Berkelstock district lords, incited by Lady
"My Lord has already sent word throughout Ehrenfest to prepare for battle. The district lords' summer mansions should be well-stocked with Magical Tools and such. Let's join up with them as soon as possible before the enemy can seize them."
At
"...However, we should crush the former Berkelstock squad that's still en route to join up. It would be troublesome if they're allowed to merge and swell their numbers."
Ferdinand looked down at the areas where the reddish-brown earth was spreading and said he wanted "to exploit the numerical advantage." The red-soil patches visible at this point were four in number, scattered here and there. He pointed at the reddish-brown circle closest to the path toward the main battlefield where the knight orders were fighting. It seemed he wanted to wear down the enemy's fighting force as much as possible before they could join up.
"
"Yes."
"
"Yes, sir!"
Against a squad of some thirty district lords, a combined force of one hundred and fifty from Ahrensbach and
"Ferdinand, sir! I have a request!"
Matthias called out. Ferdinand turned around.
"Please let me go check the hut where Lord
"...To confirm the trap, then... Permission granted. However, you are to maintain stealth and only confirm. Do not get drawn into combat on your own. Report back the moment you find anything."
"Yes, sir! Thank you very much."
Having granted Matthias permission, Ferdinand added ten more Dunkelfelger knights to guard me and Hannalore, then rode off toward the squad with the Dunkelfelger knights on their riding beasts.
"Matthias..."
I called out to Matthias, whose face was stricken with anguish. He shut his blue eyes tightly, having let a momentary flicker of emotion show.
"Gerlach is where I was born and raised. I never imagined it would be ravaged this badly. And to think that Grausam is the one orchestrating this..."
His homeland had been trampled by the former Berkelstock nobles seeking Magic Power, transforming one patch after another into barren, reddish-brown earth drained of Magic Power. And the one commanding it all was his own father, who had once been this land's district lord. Deep in Matthias's chest, feelings too painful for words must have been churning. The fists clenched so tightly they trembled with fine shudders conveyed his anger and frustration.
"Grausam must be captured as soon as possible. Lady Rozemyne, I'm terribly sorry, but may I borrow Laurentz? I cannot let knights from another duchy know the location of the management hut in the forest."
"...If anything happens, please raise a Lute immediately."
"I promise you."
Matthias descended into the forest with just Laurentz and himself. As I watched the two of them go,
"You're right. I need to send an Ordonnanz to my Lord..."
Following Leonore's direction, I moved higher into the sky. Then, just as Ferdinand had instructed, I sent an Ordonnanz flying.
"Lord, it's Rozemyne. I've arrived in Ehrenfest together with Ferdinand and the Dunkelfelger knights. Our current location is Gerlach. I'd like to reinforce the Gerlach district lord knights and, as Aub Ahrensbach, stop and capture the Ahrensbach knights. I'm requesting your permission."
"Lady Rozemyne! It appears there were more squads—part of the forest has disappeared over there!"
Almost simultaneously with the Ordonnanz taking flight,
"There must still be several squads hiding in the forest. Assessing them is also our duty, Lady Rozemyne."
Nodding at Hannalore's words, I enhanced my vision and scanned the Gerlach lands. There was no way to tell how many enemies were lurking.
"But something's strange. Even if they're using black weapons to steal Magic Power, each person can only hold their own amount. Could a human body really absorb that much Magic Power from such vast territory?"
I nodded at Hannalore's question as well. Even if they were stealing it for their own lands, the amount seemed to exceed what thirty people could possibly absorb.
"And besides, even if they steal it all, what do they intend to do afterward? If Lady Georgine is thinking about obtaining the foundation of Ehrenfest and ruling it, then stealing the land's Magic Power would be a terrible move."
The Aub must fill the land with Magic Power. If they stole it this brazenly, then after becoming Aub herself, she would have to fill it all back in on her own. Hannalore, who had attended lectures on filling a territory's land with Magic Power as a lord candidate, looked down at the vast expanse below and nodded: "That's certainly true."
"What do you suppose she intends to do with Ehrenfest after obtaining the foundation?"
"It really seems she's only thinking about destroying Ehrenfest..."
While Leonore was saying this, multiple Ordonnanz took flight at once from the direction Ferdinand and the others had headed. Small white birds soared toward the main battlefield and the other reddish-brown circles. Everyone fell silent, staring intently at where the Ordonnanz were flying.
"Lady Rozemyne, I've confirmed seven Ordonnanz! It appears to be the main battlefield plus six squads."
In other words, there was one more squad.
"Have you confirmed the location?"
"Two of them seemed to fly toward the main battlefield as well. It could be where the knight order and Grausam are. They may have already joined up."
"Lady Rozemyne, there are several scout-like movements from the squads and the main battlefield. They seem to have noticed our presence."
As voices rang out one after another from the surrounding knights, an Ordonnanz from my Lord flew in bearing the message: "Permission for military force is granted."
"Ferdinand, the number of Ordonnanz that took flight was seven. Two of them headed toward the main battlefield. Also, Aub Ehrenfest has given his permission."
I sent the Ordonnanz to Ferdinand. The white bird flew at high speed, and a few seconds later, a booming explosion rang out and trees were mown down.
"...The moment permission was given, things got rather lively."
"It looks like the Dunkelfelger knights have begun their attack with great enthusiasm."
Hannalore said somewhat apologetically, "The Dunkelfelger knights are going to end up trampling all over Ehrenfest's land."
...I can't exactly blame them, but I do wish they'd be a little gentler about it.
Having crushed one squad by leveraging their overwhelming numerical advantage, Ferdinand sent an Ordonnanz to have us join up with him. Leaving a few knights on watch overhead, Hannalore and I headed down to join the others.
"Whoa!?"
About half the Dunkelfelger knights burst out of the forest with a tremendous whoosh, charging toward the next squad with incredible force.
"Lady Rozemyne, let us go join up with Ferdinand."
Hannalore said this while glancing at the Dunkelfelger knights. As she'd instructed, I headed to where the saffron-yellow, lavender, and blue cloaks had gathered. I could see Ferdinand and the others surrounding about thirty captured nobles lying on the ground.
"Black weapons and small Holy Cups were being used."
Ferdinand held up a small Holy Cup toward me. It seemed to be one that had been in a district lord's possession.
"The former Berkelstock district lords were apparently promised that they would become the new Ehrenfest district lords once Georgine obtained the foundation."
The captured nobles from the squad glared up at us from where they lay.
"As you know, the small Holy Cup is a Magical Tool that stores up Magic Power to fill a territory. If you use a black weapon to charge a small Holy Cup with the Magic Power from Ehrenfest's land, it makes it a bit easier for Georgine to take the foundation."
Stealing the Magic Power from the land was the same as reducing the Magic Power of the foundation. And if the small Holy Cups were filled with Magic Power, that Magic Power could be used to fill the land once more. After Georgine obtained the foundation, the small Holy Cups' Magic Power was apparently meant to be returned to Ehrenfest's land. In that way, the former Berkelstock nobles would become the lords and nobles of the filled territory, and they apparently planned to relocate their own people there.
"A land without an Aub cannot be filled no matter how much Magic Power you pour in. No matter how much you pour, it amounts to nothing—the frustration of the people you're supposed to protect growing dissatisfied, the helplessness of your own powerlessness. Do you understand that!?"
A captured former Berkelstock district lord appealed to me, the new Aub.
"Even if Ahrensbach appoints a new Aub, it won't save Berkelstock. Even if forced to wear cloaks the same color as Ahrensbach's, it is a separate duchy separated by a border!"
The Magic Power in the land dwindled, and their people began to starve. Even if they petitioned the Aub for more Magic Power, of course the Aub would prioritize filling their own land over some extra territory they'd been ordered to manage by royalty. Berkelstock would always be put last. Even if they wished for "just an Aub—any Aub at all," without Greutrissheit the royalty couldn't reopen the foundation, nor could they dispatch a new Aub.
"If we abandon a land called Berkelstock—one cast aside by royalty, with no new Aub forthcoming—what blame could possibly fall upon us? In a land that has an Aub, my people would not go hungry. Lady Georgine gave us hope!"
Hearing the former Berkelstock district lords' arguments, I understood that they were, at the end of the day, district lords who simply wished to protect their own people, and I lowered my gaze for a moment.
"I understand that you each have your own reasons. However, the fact remains that you wore the cloaks of Ahrensbach, stole the Magic Power of another duchy, and invaded its territory. As the new Aub Ahrensbach, I cannot allow such things. You have committed grave crimes. Please have them transported to the summer mansion in Bindewald."
At my words, the Ahrensbach knights responded with a sharp "Yes!" and set into motion.
"Please confiscate the small Holy Cups from all the Ehrenfest district lords who are present. Under no circumstances must they be taken elsewhere. The Magic Power stored in those is Ehrenfest's."
"Yes, sir!"
I couldn't help but let out an amazed sigh at Georgine's cleverness—she had even incorporated into her plan the small Holy Cups that had been distributed to district lords who could never fill them.
"Don't zone out, Rozemyne. Large-scale Magic Power drain is occurring here, and Ehrenfest's knight order has been deployed to
At Ferdinand's words, I whipped my head around. Images of the lower city and everyone at the
"First, we finish this. Capturing the former Berkelstock nobles is the job of Aub Ahrensbach. After that, we'll need to obtain permission from Aub Ehrenfest to enter the city. ...Even though you've become Aub Ahrensbach, you'd likely be allowed in, but I and the Dunkelfelger knights cannot enter without the Aub's permission."
Even wanting to help, being told he couldn't enter drove home the reality of how Ferdinand was being treated as an outsider from another duchy. Not even married yet, and already he couldn't return home without permission. Under such circumstances, he could hardly think of Ehrenfest as his own place.
...I absolutely have to get Ferdinand home.
Just as my resolve renewed, an Ordonnanz flew in from a knight who had been keeping watch overhead.
"Ferdinand, the squads that received the Ordonnanz have begun moving to join up with the knight order. If all the squads merge, the district lord knight order could be wiped out in one fell swoop."
Rather than the reddish-brown earth spreading, the lavender cloaks had apparently begun moving toward the main battlefield. Then another Ordonnanz flew in—this one heading not to Ferdinand, but to me.
"Lady Rozemyne, it's Matthias. We've found the hut where the trap was broken. Grausam is without a doubt in this territory."
"Bonifatius's trap was broken... He's more formidable than I expected."
Ferdinand murmured quietly. It was a trap that Grandfather and Matthias had set—not something that should have been easy to break, but Grausam had managed it. A sharp pain tightened around my stomach.
"Have Matthias return to us, Rozemyne."
"Yes."
I sent a reply to Matthias and Laurentz to come back. As if swapping places, another Ordonnanz flew in.
"Ferdinand, Dunkelfelger has crushed another squad."
"Good. Strehl, take command of transporting the prisoners. Rozemyne, once you've recovered the small Holy Cups, we'll break through the former Berkelstock knight order and join up with the district lord knights at the main battlefield."
I was told to absolutely not stick my head or hands out of the Lesser Beast, and to keep my eyes forward no matter who was attacked around me.
"I'll do my best!"
This is the beginning of the Battle of Gerlach.
The former Berkelstock district lords who possessed small Holy Cups.
The hut where their trap had been broken.
Having crushed two squads, we head toward the main battlefield.
Next is Part 2.