“She’s a pillager, but she’s clearly different from anything we’ve faced before,” Lady Yue explained. “Until now, they simply launched attacks to plunder our goods, but this time around, they didn’t stop there. They used information warfare. They checked beforehand to see if any superhumans resided in our towns. They carefully observed their enemy and came up with a plan. Indeed, a messenger of Toqto’a Khan visited me and tried to invite me to their side. I declined their proposal and politely sent the messenger back, but thinking back, I should’ve beheaded her.”
Please, Lady Yue. Please don’t say anything that’ll make me draw parallels with the Mongol Empire and the reality of this world.
“Lady Yue, was the unit under your command defeated as well?” Lady Nina chimed in. “I can hardly believe that that would happen.”
“I didn’t lose,” Lady Yue replied. “I was victorious in the battle for my city. All day and night, I used my bow and arrows to pierce and kill hundreds of enemies. And they obediently retreated.”
I’d expect no less from a superhuman. But then why did they ultimately lose? Admittedly, I can sort of imagine why.
“But I cannot fight if they don’t face me,” Lady Yue said. “The nomads, unified under Toqto’a Khan, completely ignored the cities where superhumans like myself resided. They tore through the other lands like paper and methodically conquered every city.”
If they couldn’t win small battles in regions, they could simply win elsewhere. If they were victorious overall, that would be good enough. I see… That’s very logical.
“A fortress city could become a sturdy shield and stand its ground in the face of nomads, who used their mobility as their greatest weapon,” Lady Yue explained. “We continued to protect our farmers and citizens, but ultimately, we couldn’t stand up to Toqto’a Khan. She possessed the means to siege fortress cities.”
“But how?” Princess Valiele asked. “Nomads can’t possibly be capable of that.”
Everyone would agree. If I hadn’t possessed knowledge from my previous life, I would’ve had the same question.
“There was a traitor among us,” Lady Yue said.
She slammed her fist against the table. I guess there are untrustworthy people in any world.
“I belonged to a nation called Fei Long,” Lady Yue said. “Ah, it means ‘the legendary flying dragon’ or ‘a dragon that soars through the skies’ in my language.”
Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if a dragon or two existed in this world. We’ve got some fantasy elements in this world anyway. Unfortunately, I doubt I’ll ever lay eyes on such a mythical creature.
“The engineers of Fei Long accepted Toqto’a Khan’s invitation,” Lady Yue continued. “The best ones were already scouted. The catapult engineers didn’t just hail from Fei Long. Among them were some from another nation called Parsa.”
What the hell? That’s just straight up Persia. And they’re using trebuchets, it seems. This was turning into a nightmare. I wonder if the Holy Gusten Empire has someone with superhuman intelligence, like how I’m blessed only with physical prowess. Is there someone who’s just insanely smart? Archimedes, my man, I need your help. I internally prayed to one of the greatest mathematicians of classical antiquity, but no God answered my plea. Come on… If some sort of God reincarnated me into this crazy world, surely you could give me a little freebie or two. Aren’t you a God? Who’s gonna punish you?
“A battle ensued for a month, but ultimately, the fortress was besieged,” Lady Yue said. “Confusion and pandemonium broke out as citizens fled, but they were all captured. The men were tied up and sexually assaulted in front of their wives. Men and women were massacred. The citizens were slaughtered one-sidedly. The royal family surrendered, but they and all their relatives were killed. And that was the end of our dynasty.”
I’m not surprised. It made sense to kill the royal family, who might cause trouble later on. But that wasn’t all. It was logical to massacre innocent citizens without much reason as well. This sort of slaughter wasn’t a method that only the nomads employed; it was a common tactic that nations used when they destroyed another country. I couldn’t claim that the nomads were being especially cruel.
“The city that I resided in also surrendered when the royal family gave in,” Lady Yue said. “The moment they surrendered, I fled the city. I couldn’t imagine that the nomads would let me stay alive after I’d killed hundreds of their kind. I especially went after generals who stood out and wore flashy ornaments.”
As I thought, Lady Yue’s archery skills are extraordinary. No normal person could just aim for enemy generals and take them out in a flash.
“At first, I wanted to help my family to escape with me,” Lady Yue said. “But the city was surrounded by enemies, and we couldn’t all flee. My relatives all came to me and promised that they’d fight and resist until the very end. They said that I was the hero of their family, and I could at least escape by myself. They begged me to survive so that our bloodline wouldn’t die out.”
Lady Yue’s hand rested atop the table. She clenched it into a fist, unable to endure her emotions, before she slammed the table once more. Her superhuman strength caused the table to creak loudly.
“I deserted my family and barely escaped with my life from the city that Toqto’a Khan surrounded,” she said. “If my trusty steed, Yukigarasu, hadn’t been with me, I doubt that escape would’ve ever been possible.”
I’m surprised that she made it out alive. But a superhuman like her must’ve been presented with a special horse from her nation. I doubt even the cavalry tribes could keep up with such speed.
“There were still a few merchants traveling across the Silk Road,” Lady Yue said. “A merchant on their journey told me of a kingdom in the west. Even a person of the east could rise through the military ranks and attain prestige in that nation if they displayed their power.”
And that was Villendorf.
“The journey was impossibly long,” Lady Yue continued. “When I finally reached the kingdom, I showed off my archery skills to a guard, and after an intense screening process, I was finally granted an audience with Queen Catalina. I told Her Majesty of the threat of the nomadic cavalry empire.”
She did very well. Had Lady Yue not made the journey and spread word of the threat, a weak lord knight like me with only three hundred citizens would’ve never known of the destruction that the nomads were capable of. Queen Liesenlotte likely would’ve prioritized easing the minds of the people and kept this threat secret from regional lords. She was a smart monarch, though. She likely would come up with a plan to deal with the threat.
“Princess Valiele of Anhalt,” Lady Yue said. “I beg of you to please tell your kingdom of the threat that looms over the west. They will come; it’s only a matter of time. They’ll strip everything away from you: your kingdom’s wealth, the lives of your citizens, and anything else that they can plunder.”
Princess Valiele nodded. “I understand now.” She turned to me. “I plan on honestly telling my mother all the details. What do you think, Faust?”
“I believe that’ll be for the best, Your Highness,” I replied. “I shall also join in and entreat for action.”
“You will? You usually don’t like to meddle with political affairs.”
This situation won’t allow me to stay silent. Yeah, honestly, I don’t want to involve myself in politics, but I truly don’t know what’ll happen. After much agonizing, I wasn’t quite sure if this nomadic empire would journey west. Would they give up on the endeavor for some reason? I genuinely didn’t have the faintest clue. While I could draw parallels from this world to my previous one, they weren’t identical. But I knew that we had to be prepared for the worst.
“If needed, I shall put my life on the line to face this nomadic cavalry empire,” I said.
“Really? You’ll go that far against the nomads?” Princess Valiele asked.
I have to. This world didn’t have the concept of Europe just yet, but there was a cluster of nations in the west. The feudal system was still the norm, and many still didn’t employ a centralized government. If these kingdoms didn’t unify, we’d have no chance of beating the nomadic empire.
At the very least, it was vital that Anhalt and Villendorf form stronger ties and exhibit solidarity. I mean, I know that’s not enough at all, but you gotta start somewhere. I wanted to prevent my Polidoro fief and my citizens from being trampled by the nomadic empire and vanishing from the records. I simply couldn’t allow my mother’s grave to be defiled by the hooves of horses before it was washed away by a wave of history.
As a weak lord knight and as a person who’d reincarnated into this world, I genuinely feared these theoretical Mongolians heading west.