Chapter 12: Battle (1)

A girl that did not seem to fit in with the wounded knights appeared. Her small body seemed to drown in the ranks of the tall and large knights. Thus, Cindy walked towards the temporary fortress wall that was made.

Cindy had already heard that this war was kept secret from the eyes and ears of the world. She felt sad about the knights who died just because of the land dispute between the two parties. As a citizen of the Marithus Kingdom, he must defend the knights of her kingdom. However, her heart ached to see the casualties of the Senova Empire as well.

Still wearing the brown cloak that covered her small body, she shouted, "Fotiá!"

Doom!

A burst of fireballs shot out from her hands. It hit several opponents who were within its range, about 20 meters. Cindy was still thinking of saving energy and intended to only injure the opponent rather than kill them.

"Fotiá!"

'If only I were a healer instead of a mage.' Cindy complained inwardly.

She could see the knights in pain. She would rather treat them than hurt them. Her human conscience made it difficult for her.

Cindy who continued to wrestle in her heart, did not realize that some of the knights in the back row who were with her began to notice her. Including the executive swordman of the K-Night Guild who had underestimated her.

"Captain! Who is that girl?" Someone from the Marithus Kingdom's line of knights asked.

The captain of the Southern Region Knight Brigade replied, "No matter who she is, she's still an ally. Help the others fight back!"

Having little chance of winning from the start, the knights were not motivated. However, Cindy's helpful presence could revive the knights' spirits.

They just didn't know that Cindy was overcome with fear right now.

"M-mom I'm scared ...." Cindy muttered to herself. She felt afraid of getting retribution from the empire for being the only attacking type mage there. It stood out.

She didn't realize that K-Night Guild Leader, Dean Volton was already accompanying her. That man was leaning against the back wall with his right hand stuffed into his pants pocket.

As Dean approached her, he could see that Cindy's hand was shaking badly.

'Apparently she's still an amateur.'

That man held the outstretched arm and made it straight. "Don't look shaky in front of the enemy. If you look brave and look down on them, they will think that they are easily defeated by you."

Cindy was startled by Dean's appearance, but still followed orders well. "Yes, Leader-nim!"

Dean left the girl alone. The war looked like it was about to be over with only a few imperial troops left. Until finally, something interrupted them.

Brugh!

Ssshhhh ....

A monster in the interior of the forest of the land monster type appeared. It was only one monster, but its presence disturbed the courage of the knights.

"Mo-monster!"

The knights were surprised by the appearance of the monster. It was even bigger than a house. It was a giant hedgehog standing on two legs. It was a monster that liked to eat humans.

Dean who saw the monster sighed. Although the monster was dangerous, but for him it wasn't. The monster moved very slowly, super slowly. Maybe it was the effect of its large body.

"You stay here. I'll take care of the monster." Dean spoke to Cindy without looking at the girl.

"B-but Leader-nim, that monster looks dangero—Leader-nim!"

Dean entered the battlefield without a signal. He jumped from the high fortress and landed unharmed. The imperial troops were confused by Dean's sudden appearance.

"Who are you?" The imperial troops wondered. The appearance of a man wearing only a black turtle-neck singlet was strange. Especially directly in front of the position of the imperial troops and the monster.

The monster was not affected by Dean's appearance and continued to walk slowly towards the troops. It made Dean feel annoyed.

"You don't see me as a human, do you? Okay, I'll show you my non-human strength." Dean said coldly to the monster.

Wooossshhh ....

The wind picked up after Dean said that. That man's body emitted white smoke. His eyes closed and his body muscles enlarged. His body slowly followed the enlargement of his muscles.

When his eyes opened, the pupils were vertical. Dean transformed into a half-beast. He looked a little creepy.

'If only I were really a pure beast people.'

Dean blamed himself inwardly. However, he still ran and attacked the monster.

Brugh!

With just a push, the monster rolled a few meters back. Dean still mercilessly beat the monster.

Pow! Pow! Pow!

Due to the continuous attacks, the monster slowly retreated backwards. Dean pushed it without mercy. That man kept pushing until it finally got too far away from the battlefield.

Seeing the scene, Cindy took courage and shouted, "Continue your attack!"

Her voice sounded timid. However, it was enough to wake them all up.

"For the sake of the Marithus Kingdom!"

The captain of the Southern Region Knights Brigade shouted encouragingly to them all. They continued to advance on the fallen knights of their opponents.

Doom!

This time, the opponent that caught their attention appeared. A person with hair as dark red as the blood in the heart. He looked dominating in his black armor.

"Sw-Sword Master has appeared!" The Knight Captain of the Southern Region Brigade was shocked.

It was said that Sword Master was the pinnacle of sword martial arts. For humans, it was difficult to obtain that title. A high aura and experience in swordplay made them a Sword Master. On the Gigana Continent, only a few people became Sword Masters.

One of the eight Sword Masters on the Gigana Continent had appeared as an associate of the imperial knight army. Whigeris, who was known to be the newest Sword Master on the Gigana Continent, appeared there.

"Whigeris is coming to the aid of the empire!" It seemed that the imperial knights were also pleased with the appearance of that person.

Unlike the Captain of the Southern Region Knights Brigade, he knew that they would have a hard time.

'How will we fight him?'

'If only the Captain of the Western Region Knights Brigade was here....'

There was another leader among the royal troops. However, that person was currently assigned to report to the palace. This war was an unexpected war.

Cindy looked up from above. Her robe-covered body could not conceal that she was trembling violently. The appearance of the Sword Master in this war made her realize that this could be her death.

Whigeris, Cindy knew that man. A Sword Master that the Senova Empire was publicly proud of because of his appearance. He was someone who was born in the slums. That man rose to stardom because of his skills.

Baron Esperen, Cindy's father, had talked about him. Whigeris was born with a background that made everyone cry, but painstakingly turned his fortunes around by becoming a Sword Master.

"S-should I fight him? B-but my skills aren't perfect yet!" Cindy panicked to herself.

Clinch!

She was stunned when she felt Whigeris's murderous gaze. Although far away, that man was looking directly into Cindy's eyes.

Hastily, Cindy raised her hands up. "Let's gather your courage, Cindy!"

Cindy made a super-sized fireball from before. She formed a dense and hot blob of fire. Fuck with the imperial knights, she was afraid of Whigeris now.

"Aarggghhh!" Cindy cried out in pain. She squeezed her mana to make the fireball. She did not even realize her disguise had been blown. Her caramel brown hair had turned pink.

Doom!

She aimed the super-sized fireball at Whigeris. The place became filled with smoke because of the flames. Fortunately, the royal troops had pulled over to avoid the flames.

"Haah ... haaahhh ... is he dead?" Cindy was panting and sweating after throwing the fireball. The place was foggy with smoke.

"Is it done yet—"

Her words were cut short when she saw a bloody hand emerge from the smoke, right in front of her face. That girl was unable to avoid the hand, suffocating her.

"Cough! Cough! Let go!"

Cindy was panting from being strangled. She could see bits and pieces of the person strangling her. A black knight's outfit appeared behind the smoke.

When his face appeared with red hair, Cindy panicked even more. It was Whigeris. With such a long distance, that man could easily climb up the wall?

"You ... little mage. It's funny to see that your mana reaches circle 5, but you can only cast circle 3 power. You should just shut up." Whigeris said in a condescending tone.

'I should have just obeyed father.' Cindy regretted in her heart.

She was not a Whigeris. Cindy was the illegitimate daughter of Baron Esperen. She should not have been greedy to learn magic. She should have been self-aware from the beginning and not studied magic because of her talent. From the beginning, she did not have a good fate.

"You're pretty, but it's a pity that I like the sexy type more than the cute one. Too bad, I have to kill you!"

Hearing those words, Cindy closed her eyes. The grip on her neck was getting stronger and she could not breathe properly. She left everything to Whigeris.

"Hey, are you giving up just like that? How is this, does the courage of the Marithus Kingdom end here?"

"Of course not. The Marithus Kingdom is not that crazy to burden a little girl to represent the war."

A man's voice interrupted them. The surrounding smoke had unknowingly dissipated. The imperial knights below had already left, dragging their unconscious comrades in the flames.

The presence of the man behind Cindy surprised Whigeris. "Who are you?"

The blazing blonde hair with bright purple eyes confused Whigeris. It looked like a member of the royal family of Whigeris's opponent.

Of course that man who had just appeared wore a witty smile. "I am a Captain of the Western Region Knight Brigade."

That man deflected Whigeris's hand with a swift punch and made Cindy fall down. He hugged Cindy and whispered, "It's okay, everything is fine."

Whigeris saw that man was very brave. "You ... are you the bastard son of King Gladius?"

The blond-haired man laughed. "Hahahaha, you're funny, my friend. I am his son, but not his biological son."

He let out his aura. A silvery aura that seemed to glow. Making Whigeris let out his red aura as well. Being welcomed, the blond-haired man smiled broadly.

"I was born with the name Rudolf behind me. I'm Sandy Rudolf."