Chapter 207: The Lightning Knight

Using the Commander Scouter, I pinpointed the exact location of the officer leading the troops and charged toward the commander who was rallying his badly shaken soldiers. He was a knight of Rheinkalsen.

"Damn it, where the hell did these bastards come from?!"

If not for Count of Baschurten, I never would have seen the southern rebels’ surprise attack coming. In the end, it came down to razor-thin margins. And the ability to seize that razor-thin margin was a skill in itself.

What would have happened without the system I’d been given when I stumbled into the world of Medieval Knight? The thought alone made my knees weak. That Hilda and Feuzen were safe was nothing short of a miracle.

I’ll pay back this dizzying, spine-chilling terror to every last one of you. I swung my cavalry sword at the knight of Rheinkalsen.

"Welcome to Feuzen, you son of a bitch!"

"Goddamn it! What the hell is this! Gaaah!"

I struck the neck of the knight who failed to block my blade. His full plate armor prevented a clean cut, but the impact was severe enough to send his upper body lurching violently.

I pressed the attack without mercy. I’d ridden all the way from Rosenheim to Feuzen, and between the cavalry charge and cutting down countless enemies, my body should have been growing heavy. Strangely, though, strength kept surging through me.

"I am Leopold, knight of Rheinkalsen! Who are you?!"

"The lord of the Feuzen you attacked!"

The knight froze for a split second. His face was hidden behind his helmet, but his mind was clearly rattled. He never could have imagined that Feuzen’s lord would appear on this battlefield.

Under normal circumstances, their plan would have succeeded.

Taking down a knight whose movements had dulled was child’s play.

I grabbed the dazed knight’s arm and yanked him straight down. Having lost his balance, he couldn’t support the weight of his own armor. The moment he hit the ground, my men swarmed him like wolves.

After bringing down the knight of Rheinkalsen, I captured three more commander-class knights. They came from a variety of regions. Then, in the distance, a knight in conspicuously ornate armor caught my eye.

"Stay calm and hold the line!"

Judging by how coolly he was rallying the soldiers around him, he had to be one of the detachment’s senior commanders. He was formidable, cutting down every one of our cavalry riders who charged at him.

The soldiers under his command avoided the chaotic melee and did everything they could to maintain formation. While everyone else was scrambling to flee in every direction, these men were holding steady and mounting a defense?

Elite troops, no question. Attacking infantry in formation was a considerable burden for cavalry. Given the scattered melee, their disciplined defense was proving highly effective.

The Manager Scouter identified the senior commander as Sigmund von Handendorf, a vassal knight of the Count of Basel and lord of Birsfelden. And his profile carried a special title.

[Lightning Knight]

Other than Klugen, the Rose Knight, this was the first knight I’d seen with a named title. Sigmund was attempting a breakout with his men. But our cavalry wasn’t about to let them go easily.

Sensing a big catch, I dug my heels into Mont Blanc and rode straight for him.

"My lord! We must retreat! At this rate...!"

"It’s over, Vansen. We’ve lost this battle."

"We still have troops left in Baschurten! You must fall back!"

"Take the men and run. I’ll buy you time."

"What kind of retainer abandons his lord and runs?!"

"I’ll be fine. Even if I’m captured, it’s just a matter of paying the ransom. And if something worse happens, Luther will carry on after me. Now go!"

By the time I drew near, the knight was ordering his retainer to take the men and flee. Flee? Did they really think I’d let the bastards who attacked Feuzen get away?

"I am Sigmund von Handendorf, knight of Basel and lord of Birsfelden."

It was a courtesy rare to find on a battlefield drowning in screams.

"I am Wolfgang Ritter von Streit, lord of Feuzen."

"I would ask the honor of a duel with one of Beren’s finest knights."

Sigmund’s soldiers began their retreat. They calmly fended off the cavalry’s attacks while keeping their formation intact. Elite troops indeed. But they wouldn’t be able to shake off the cavalry.

"I beg your understanding. I have no choice but to buy time to see my men safely away."

"Fiel! Viktor! Pursue the ones fleeing and wipe them out! Don’t let a single one escape!"

I gave the order and charged at Sigmund. The instant his blade met mine, I felt a weight and sharpness unlike anything I’d experienced before.

Clang! Cl-clang!

His follow-up strikes, targeting my weak points with uncanny precision, were remarkably clean and efficient. His swordsmanship reminded me of what Hilda had emphasized when she taught me mounted combat: eliminate all unnecessary movement.

Right after deflecting Sigmund’s blade, I raised my elbow to try to unseat him, but he grabbed my shoulder, held firm, and shoved me back instead. I nearly toppled off the other side.

Considerable strength.

I tangled the crossguard of my cavalry sword against his blade to lock it in place, then quickly drew a dagger to stab at the gap under his arm, but he spurred his horse and pulled away.

Just as I used Mont Blanc for unorthodox attacks, Sigmund too was skilled enough to control distance at will with his own horse. Thanks to that, I lost one of my two daggers.

"Gale Knight, though my renown extends only within Basel, I am called the Lightning Knight. My skill may be inferior to yours, but here and now, I intend to show you everything I have!"

True to the name Lightning, he was extraordinarily fast and sharp. His speed—from binding blades to reading the next move through Fuhlen—was exceptional.

I’d never faced a blade this fast, and I was pushed onto the defensive.

But I hadn’t earned the title of Gale Knight by gambling, so I calmly defended against Sigmund’s attacks. His swordsmanship resembled fencing. Gradually, I began to adapt.

I watched for my moment to counterattack.

When he thrust at the slit in my visor, I quickly deflected it to the side, grabbed the middle of my cavalry sword, and swung it in a spinning arc. The blunt crossguard smashed into his head.

Wham!

"Guh...!"

The crossguard near the handle was blunt enough to double as a bludgeon. This was Halbschwert, half-swording, the pinnacle of armored combat technique. Caught completely off guard, the Lightning Knight reeled badly.

Thwack!

As I closed in to wrestle him off his horse, he pulled a concealed bludgeon from his waist and cracked me across the head. The dull impact reverberating through my helmet nearly unseated me instead.

He pressed the opening and thrust at my visor, but I caught the middle of his blade, pulled it toward me, and threw him off balance. Then, with my one remaining dagger, I stabbed him under the arm.

Gripping the deeply embedded dagger and twisting, I hooked the base of his stirrup with the top of my foot and lifted, sending him over completely. Once Sigmund hit the ground, he could no longer resist.

"Ngh... Impressive, truly. You live up to your name. I yield."

"You’re one to talk... Ugh, hell of a hit to the head."

[D-Rank Knight (Military Power 40%, Courage 40%)]

Having taken that bludgeon square on, my skull felt like it was rattling. I half-wondered if I had a concussion. Sigmund’s men, battered by Fiel and Viktor’s relentless attacks, finally broke apart.

"I surrender. Please, show mercy to my men..."

With those words, Sigmund lost consciousness. He was the enemy commander, but I couldn’t help being impressed. A nobleman who sacrifices himself to give even just his men a chance to escape was a rare thing.

He held immense value as a senior commander, and he was also a rare lord knight with a disposition aligned with justice (good). In the end, I accepted Sigmund’s surrender and took his men prisoner.

"I captured a knight!"

"I got one too!"

All around, riders were cheering about their knightly captives. This wasn’t just about military merit; it was a chance to earn enormous ransom money. For the cavalrymen, it was a goldmine.

Unable to hold out any longer, the enemy had only two choices: flee or surrender. This battle was a total victory for us. It had essentially been decided the moment the breakthrough succeeded.

"Commander! Look over there!"

Anton urgently pointed to the rear, where a group of riders was fleeing toward the forest. I didn’t need to look twice. That coat of arms belonged to the Imperial Knights. I’d been wondering where they’d disappeared to. So they’d been here all along!

"Anton, signal the rally!"

I spurred Mont Blanc, who still had plenty of energy. As I galloped across the battlefield, Anton followed, waving the banner signal, and the scattered Gale Knights began gathering one by one.

Their numbers quickly swelled to around fifty.

Despite the chaos of the melee, the Gale Knights hadn’t suffered heavy losses. Fiel and Viktor joined up as well. They were still hungry for blood. The fleeing Imperial Knights were plainly our prey.

That’s right, commander of the Imperial Knights.

Let’s end this feud here and now.