A black knight sweeps across the plains, swords in both hands. Atop her steed, she looks like a raven stretching its wings. Lady Kuroi, are you planning on diving head-first into that mass of five hundred vampire soldiers? Then I shall shave away at their outer perimeter, fighting for no one but myself and my own fame.
I raise my hand above my head and show five fingers. I flex them once, then bring my arm down. A thousand cavalry split into five platoons. With the high speed of two hundred cavalry, they control the battlefield.
Then we watch the fury of Lady Kuroi.
Surrounded on all sides by malice, she unfalteringly charges forward. Lightning and boulders hurtle towards her, but reddish black shadows shield her as she races forward. The rest is a chaotic dance. Infernos shoot up with every flash of Lady Kuroi’s dual blades. Shrieks echo and ash flies through the air.
Her black horse fears no vampire. It bears down upon enemy after enemy, almost as if enacting a violent dance itself. And they’re not alone. Red-black shadows appear to fight alongside them.
Strong. Lady Kuroi is strong. She’s stronger than she was before, and she’s still trying to get even stronger. Lady Kuroi, what is it that you seek to destroy after throwing yourself without conceit into your training? What is stronger than Golden? The Demon? The Dragon? Or possibly... No, more like...
It is awe-inspiring. An Apostle’s presence is heroic beyond comparison. She is still just a human, of course, so she performs reckless actions and suffers wounds, but... it’s as if her duty is to become a blade.
We cannot lag behind, then. There is no honor or glory in letting our great leader fight alone. I flash a hand signal—bending my thumb, I sweep it through the air. Two hundred cavalry split into four groups. Fifty cavalry become a single sword. All along the perimeter, my men follow suit, forming twenty small blades. The vampires, forced to pay attention to Lady Kuroi, are easily shredded. Sharply and swiftly, we exterminate them. From the inside, a raging inferno; from the outside, twenty rings of fire. We will not let these beasts, too used to tyrannizing the weak, escape.
Five hundred vampires destroyed and turned into ash... and not a single man lost. Lady Kuroi is unharmed, as well. Now, she begins her usual rounds. She’s been doing this ever since we started our hit-and-run tactics. She patrols the battlefield, her feet turning white with ash. She seems to be trying to find something, and refuses to get on her horse.
Another step. Yet another step. What is going on? In this way, she descends even further into—no, ascends the stairs to glory.
I send out scouts, set up patrols, and have those who will be resting here do maintenance on their horses and equipment. We cannot let our guard down, but we can take a small breather. We have been in dozens of battles so far.
The horrors of the western side of the Frontier are almost too much to bear. Based on messages alone, it would be impossible to estimate just how deeply the vampires have invaded our territory. The liberated towns were all ravaged beyond repair... they are unrelenting savages.
The five hundred vampires we just defeated were the largest force in the area. This should buy us the time we need to evacuate the citizens, but regardless, the situation is unsettling. The vampires’ actions were extremely systematic. Normally, considering their beastly nature, one would expect them to attack humans in a more scattered fashion. Such highly coordinated tactics...
Furthermore, the expected follow-up to multiple invasions by smaller forces would be to charge clean up with a larger force, yet there’s no trace of a great army approaching. Are they just testing the waters? Or perhaps disturbing the frontlines to see how we react? If that was it, then their retreat tactics really need some work. We have Lady Kuroi’s power—what’s the point in having all of their forces destroyed? In fact, I don’t believe they have the strength to attack the fort any longer.
What is the vampires’ goal? Until we find that out, our hit-and-run strategy will not end. Hm, Lady Kuroi has gotten onto her horse.
“Wait a second—” I was going to suggest we eat.
“Mmgh?” Something fills her cheeks. A dried potato? Lady Ange must have given it to her. Whoa, she’s stuffing another one in.
“Be sure to chew well. Those can sit heavy in the stomach,” I warn her after a pause. She nods and speeds up her mastication, then tilts back her water flask. Finally, she swallows. What a strange way to eat.
Her dark steed’s horseshoes echo against the ground. The wind tosses her raven hair. In her eyes, two fires burn as she looks at me.
No, these battles are not ending yet. I understand. If it is your next enemy you seek, then I shall lead you to them.
God positioned Lady Kuroi not on the Frontier or the Hell Expanse, but here on the western front. Perhaps I should think more about what that means.
I set off, my horse cantering forwards. On to the next battlefield. And then the next battlefield.