Prison-1

I'm Leonardo Fire Lion, or at least I was.

I mean, because I'm from a noble family, a very high class one at that, I had to follow some rules. Very strict rules. Unlike other noble sons and daughters, I couldn't spend money on 'Useless Things' and have 'Improper Friends'. So, I was generally hiding in our residence, spending my time while reading books and sometimes learning swordsmanship. Because of it, I can't say that people like me that much... I don't doubt it. There may be even some people who don't know me that much.

I also had some cold feelings towards other nobles and a feeling that always made me nervous about going outside, so it was not a big problem. I, however, was lonely. Because of it, I had a great amount of personal time that I chose to spend alone in my room. It didn't bother me that much though, I loved being alone. That may also be the reason for my unstable relationship with my big brother. Honestly, he is only a sick fu**** so let's skip that part.

Anyway! As I was lacking in both discipline and ability, as well as social skills that every Noble has, my father suddenly thought of an incredible idea! What is it you ask? Sending me to a division.

Yes. He chose to send me, who only knows the concept of war and battlefield from books, rather than my incompetent brother who is always lagging behind everyone in everything. I don't even know why my father is keeping him, as my brother is already 27 this year.

Now let's get back to the point. Albeit reluctantly, I complied with my father's request after learning that he is sending me to the Steel Veins division. You know, Steel Veins Division is directly under the Count Oglum. Count Oglum is a Royal Mage as well as a great tactician who leads 2 different divisions, which he uses them just like a spear and shield.

Obviously, Steel Veins Division is the Shield. It is much safer compared to other fighting divisions and has better conditions regarding food and accommodation. Still, it's several times stricter than normal Noble Households. Even me, who grew up under my Father who is obsessed with Knightship, found it pretty hard to get familiar with the system.

Yet, the most important point is the placement of the Division. As I said, Count Oglum leads 2 divisions which he uses for attack and defense. There were several books and handwritings that my superiors gave me to read, as my father already told them about me and they inspected my belongings when I came here first, so they knew that I mostly loved to read books. They probably thought that I was some kind of tactician or wanted to be a general so these notes and books would be useful to me.

Though I don't have any intention to lead an army, I still found the papers very interesting and useful. I will skip over the advantages of organization and how the system works, as they are not things I'm proficient in. What I interested in was the Geography and movements of the Division.

As a 'Shield', Steel Veins were, obviously, placed on the border between the Lore Kingdom and Demi-Human Aenon Empire. Now, because of the different races of both sides, there are constant skirmishes and wars. These fights are always small sized but no one knows when will the other side start a conquest so everyone is always on guard.

Steel Veins are placed at the western border. The western border is covered by high mountains that pierce the clouds and there are several rivers flowing through these mountains. Some local villagers call them 'Rivers Of Ice' as they are always freezing cold. These rivers are like lines that part the faraway Plains and our Mountain Range, making a natural border.

Because of the mountain range, it's nearly impossible to flank attack and the Rivers Of Ice limits the movements of huge forces hugely because of the temperature and side effects of cold. The only way to easily attack is the southeastern side of the border, where lays a narrow valley. Yet, it's also not easy to pass through there as fierce Steel Winds pass through there constantly, breaking and tempering the passage.

These Steel Winds are strong enough to crack the small rocks and shatter simple creatures' bodies so it's free from Magical Beasts other than Aerial Beasts who are carefree. To pass through this valley without mages is a huge waste of resources. Yet, even if the other side has incredible mages and skilled warriors, there is still one last obstacle: Steel Veins Division.

Steel Veins Division has near to 2400 men with 1/6 of them being women. It's not a surprise to see a woman in the battlefield, as traditions of our Lore Kingdom is vastly different than Demi-Humans who see women as only a tool to breed, but it's a surprise to see a woman at Steel Veins Division. Reason? Simple:

Steel Veins Division gets its name because of the Steel Winds inside the valley. Each member has to have incredible physiques with huge strengths so that they are not even a bit affected by Steel Winds, which makes them 'Steel Veined' Soldiers. As a result, each member of the division looks like fierce bears with very few of them being 'Wooden Sticks' like me.

So, each woman I saw was just huge bags of bulky muscles who had deeper and louder voices than me. I was actually a bit nervous when they said I would have a woman with me in a tent at first. When I was greeted by a 2.10 meters muscle dude who wore an impassionate smile I screamed in fear and ran as she chased behind me saying ''Hey! Hey! Hey! Where are you going! We just only met!''

It was only after another senior explained me the situation while patting my shoulder with fatal hits that I understood the fact. I felt a bit of regret too. I'm still a full-fledged 18-year-old handsome youth after all. I also have some impure thoughts, just like other youths like me, like holding the hands of a beautiful woman. My mother always said that my red hair and red pupils looked quite charming. I trust my mother in her statement.

Back to the point, because of the incredible physiques of Division Members and geological advantage, the chance of us being attacked is near to %0.

Actually, it was. I don't remember what happened as it was a night raid. I don't know how enemy managed to pass through such a harsh environment and attack us without alarming any radar and trap spells. They didn't even get spotted by patrols as Suddenly, the whole place turned into hell.

I was still dizzy from sleep but all senior members of the division were veterans, so counter-attack was also quite fast. Still, we were hugely outnumbered. The enemy had very few Aerial Beasts but each of them was very strong and used guerilla type of attacks to break our formations and spread chaos.

Though I was panicked and wanted to run, a feeling in my heart kept me from running away. I tightly stuck close to my seniors as we kept blocking the fireballs and Thunderbolts of enemy mages. Though I was a newbie who only came a month ago, I also benefitted from the harsh training and environment so my stamina was greater than my old self.

Still, it was not enough. After fighting broke out and 3 hours passed, everyone was tired and enemy greatly outnumbered us. Even the Division Leader Kars and Vice Division Leaders Uri and Marie were defeated. Still, no one surrendered. After our last struggle, the enemy captured us.

Maybe it was because of adrenaline but after I was sent back to a castle did I reacted to all the violent and gory scenery in my mind. It suddenly came like a wave and hit my mind, making me feel terrible. I threw up each time I remembered my Seniors dying right beside me. Yet, the most terrible feeling was the time when I stabbed a Demi-human with a sword. I still vividly remember his wrath filled face that looked at me with hatred.

Travel to Lukr castle took only a week but it was like a hellish year for me. I don't even know the route we reached here as I mostly tried to console myself and threw out the very little thing I ate.

The Lukr Castle was placed in a very dangerous place for enemies. It was right beside a cliff that stretched for thousands of meters. It was looking like a sword scar but the size of it made people doubt the origin of it. I heard some demi-human warriors boasting about a legend that said the first ancestor of their's made this scar with a slash of his sword. No comment from my side.

Though being beside a cliff made the defenders unable to escape other than flying magic and aerial beasts, both things were hard to come by and generally were for one person use. Yet, I don't think they will need to escape. As Demi-Humans are partly beast, their digestive system is also vastly different than us.

Their stamina and physical strength are generally stronger than humans but these are not as important as my seniors at the division can overpower most of the normal Demi-Humans. As half beasts, they can stand their ground against hunger and can eat all kinds of things, including hard rocks and steels. Also, they can eat the corpses of attackers to satisfy their hunger or just use auxiliary magic to create supplies. Though they taste very bad, no one can complain about it at war time.

Another point is that the castle has the higher ground. It's actually a long slope covered by trees and high hills so defenders can prepare traps or even use siege machines themselves to fend off attackers even before they can reach the castle. With such defensive advantage, it's very hard to breach. So, there is very little chance of us escaping. I can't feel the presence of trap magic. They are probably deactivated or just too high level for me to sense.

As I enter the castle, I feel several hundred gazes locking down to me. A pressure gathered around me instantly, making me kneel together with several other prisoners from our division. My breathing turns ragged as I struggle to raise my head. After a while, the pressure disappeared but I can still feel the bloodlust and killing intent covering me.

As other Demi-Human soldiers spit and yell insults at us, we enter through another door that's separated from the main door.

I'm greeted by a narrow tunnel. The tunnel's walls are made of a gleaming green rock. They are called Nature Iron as I remember. They can be found under the trees with vibrant mana and they can be used for many things but I never saw someone using them as a wall.

The lighting is near to none as there are only 2 small candles every 20-30 meters. If not for the torch of the soldiers that circles me, I'm sure that this place would be pitch black or very near to it. The floor is quite dirty and I can even see moss covering the sides of the cells and floor. The only sound that accompanies is the crackling flame of the torch as well as our small steps.

After a while, I realized that there were no more cells in the area but we kept moving. My nervousness started to build up as the thought of execution filled my mind. My anxiety rose to its limits as my steps became more and more unsteady. As I was going crazy with the thought of dying, we finally came to a stop.

I turned my head to look at the huge door. It was made from a strange material that I couldn't comprehend. There were no holes, only 2 levers at both sides of it. Its dark gleam gave me creeps.

''You are lucky, boy. This cell belongs to the strongest human we hold. Just be careful to not anger him. After all, even Head-Warden once died in his hands. Hahahaahahah!'' When I realized what was going on, my anxiety died off like a fire that has been extinguished. As the guard laughed, 2 other demi-humans got to the side and with a countdown, lifted them.

A huge sound like a ticking appeared as the door slowly opened. I was greeted by another door that was the same as the first one. the guard behind me pushed me from the behind. As I passed through the first door the 2 Demi-humans lowered the levers and the first gate once more closed. The moment first gate closed, the door in front of me opened as I gasped at the sight that welcomed me.