Chapter 3.

Roman is inside his tent facing a silver disc hanging on the side looking at his blurred reflection, with a small knife on his hand, he started shaving his facial hairs.

After cleaning himself up, he went out of his temporary shelter and looked around.

Roman now displayed his full gear, his left arm is fully covered with steel pauldrons and gauntlets, while his right has only leather bracers. He's wearing a light-brown padded jacket with a steel breastplate.

At the same time, his hand is clenching the hilt of his sabre on his right waist.

….

Their location is on top of a rocky plateau, within a deep, and narrow valley surrounded by tall cliffs. He and 25 other men placed tents in the only area where some thin but tall and slender trees were.

Roman turned around trying to find a particular someone, yet he seemed to not see this person anywhere in their camp. Instead, he called someone nearby.

"Danii!"

A younger man in light-brown gambeson, and steel breastplate was sitting near the bonfire with several others, when he suddenly jolted up from where he sat, he hurriedly went closer to Roman and stood in attention.

"Yes. Captain sir?"

"Where is Anton?"

"Ahhh.."

"The vice-captain rode out with two others a while ago, sir."

"How much a while ago?"

"I believe it was more than two hours ago, sir."

"Tsk!"

'This undisciplined pigs! Doing whatever..' Roman thought.

Roman looked annoyed and turned away from his squire. He is of a noble birth, though not from a prominent family, still an aristocrat and an amateur knight.

He walked closer to the edge of the plateau, staring beyond the horizon, to the north is the former kingdom of Collancia and to the east is also the former Kingdom of Arsaw which by now are both conquered territories.

He and his men are currently posted on the border.

It has already been four months since he graduated from the military academy in Kaznadr, the city which is considered to be the western capital of Bosilia. He was then sent to the northern fortress city of Perma as a newly appointed officer with a rank of captain.

The man believes that he was sent to the frontlines as a border officer because he doesn't have any connections and or doesn't have enough to bribe his commanders for a safer assignment.

Fortunately for him, the border didn't see any military action and no army crossed it. While a few refugees crossed the border their number wasn't substantial since the biggest influx of people running away from the conflict came in the later months of last year till the first quarter of the current year.

Furthermore, refugees weren't his primary responsibility but of the other patrol units, he and his men are only to keep watch and immediately report when enemies finally show themselves.

Roman tried to act cool in front of his men thinking that they would soon go back to Perma.

"So be it… I'll eat breakfast inside."

Danii bowed a little and was about to do as he was told.

"Also inform me when the replacements arrive."

"They should already be here by now, I bet those idiots are dragging their feet."

"Yes sir."

….

A couple of hours later, Roman is half-asleep in a sitting position when successive crack noises erupted. He quickly got up with his sabre on hand. But before he got out of the tent he took a matchlock pistol beside his bed.

He got out of his tent and saw a commotion at the edge of their camp, a number of his men were in a struggle with unknown men when four of those men were suddenly struck by a destructive blow that sent them flying a couple of metres.

Those soldiers weren't able to get back up on their feet, two of them upfront suffered severe injuries and died on the spot. While the other two lost consciousness suffering with lacerations and broken bones.

A few metres away another man was using short swords on each hand, hacking and stabbing a number of Roman's subordinates.

Behind the two attackers are five others, four of them have their swords and crossbows out, while the last one was walking casually behind them with his left hand resting on the hilt of his sabre.

A few of Roman's men had time and were able to load their muskets, and eventually one was now ready to fire. The soldier was about to aim when his head was struck by something sending him pale and lifeless on the ground.

The remaining gunmen halted seeing this but quickly regained their senses thinking the enemy marksmen had already killed several others before and must've been trying to reload right at this moment giving them time to finish their own preparation. However, to their dismay a successive gunshot followed killing another pair of gunmen.

The remaining unready musketeer then began to scramble trying to avoid being shot.

"Knights!" Roman muttered realising something after seeing their enemy's combat prowess.

These raiders are slaughtering them like they're normal and untrained villagers, except they're trained soldiers with even some of his men being veterans having extensive combat experience.

Furthermore, the enemy was capable enough to sneak closer without being discovered by his sentries, which by now are probably all dead somewhere.

Day 2 of the 12th month.