I am the Monarch

I am the Monarch - Chapter 241: Northern Expedition (2)

"Amaranth! Charge!"

Roan Lancephil's voice shook the battlefield.

"Charge!"

The Amaranth Troop newly reformed with one thousand taemusas changed formation and ama.s.sed into a triangular formation.
A natural movement like water flowing and ama.s.sing.
At the head of the troop.
There was Roan.

Boom!

A explosive roar burst out every time the Travias Spear holding flame split the air.
The sharp spearhead drew lines onto the ground and created fissures.

Fwooos.h.!.+

From within those fissures, dark red flames erupted out.

"Kuak!"
"Ho, hot!"

Enemy soldiers turned into b.a.l.l.s of flame and rolled on the ground.
At every place Roan went, at each spot he stabbed, fire blossomed.
At that moment, a resounding voice pierced through the flame and was heard.

"Roan Lancephil! Take my, Bud Daly's spear!"

It was the Daly Troop's commander and one who uncommonly used as a n.o.ble used a spear.

Spat!

Roan lightly dodged the spear aiming at and flying towards his side.

'If he is Bud Daly, he's the n.o.ble who followed Simon in the last life and got his head cut off.'

In this life, he was continuing his life a bit longer as Roan eliminated Simon.
Of course though, that too would meet its end today, with this very moment.

"Spear isn't something to be used like that."

Roan lightly spat out the words as if to berate him and twisted his wrist.

Pbat!

The spearhead blazing with flame disappeared without a trace and then appeared before Bud's eyes.
A thrust fast enough to be difficult to chase with one's eyes.

"Hph!"

Bud gasped deeply and bent his body back.

Fwoos.h.!.+

A flame brushed past behind his nose.

Siiiz!

"Kuuk!"

His helmet redly cooked and pressed down on his forehead and nose.
He felt a pain intense enough for his mind to turn faint.
His flesh turned mushy and pus flowed down.
The flame wavering along the Travias Spear was that hot and fierce.

"This much is useless!"

Bud forcibly screamed out as if he were mad.

Neeigh.

At that time, Roan's warhorse neared tightly close.
The warhorses brushed each other's sides and lined alongside.
A situation too close for both to use their spears.

'He must plan to shorten the Travias Spear's length!'

Bud inwardly surmised Roan's intent and quickly flicked his wrist.

Chang!

With a clear metallic sound, a sharp dagger appeared from inside his wrist guard.
Bud planned to directly swing his arm and stamp down Roan's forehead.
A chilling smile hanged on his mouth.

'However brilliant a magic spear the Travias Spear is, it should take just as much time to shorten its le……'

The instant his thought reached about that point, his breath abruptly caught and his sight turned faint.

"Kuuk!"

A pain like his throat would rip off was felt.
Bud lowered his eyes and looked at the front of his chest.

"T, throat grab?"

Tips of his eyes sharply trembled as if he couldn't believe it.
Rather than controlling the Travias Spear's length, Roan instead skillfully extended his left hand, lightly deflected Bud's dagger aside, and then directly grasped his throat.
Although it felt as if Roan had abruptly grabbed his throat from Bud's position, in reality it was not such a simply trick.
Roan faintly smiled and spoke in a quiet voice as if to whisper.

"Not throat grabbed…… it is Reid Art of Fighting."

The motion of simply extending a fist, the motion of grasping the throat, in everything the essence of the Reid Art of Fighting was held within.
Because of that, Bud who was rather famed knight had given up

"Gguruk."

Bud writhed and rolled his eyes backwards.
A very painful sight.
Roan wished to quickly end that pain.

"Burn."

Quietly chanted word.
Simultaneously, a dark red flame erupted from the left hand holding the neck.

Fwoos.h.!.+

The flame directly swallowed Bud's head.
That closely brought to mind a h.e.l.l fire.

Sss.

When the flame subsided, Bud's head that originally should be there was visible no more.
Roan's flame had exactly turned only his head into ashen dust.
It was a terrifying might.

"Hihick!"
"He, he isn't a human!"

The Daly Troop's knights and soldiers looked at Roan and screamed.
All were of looks of jerkily falling back in fear.
Obviously, the formation and lines that had been strong collapsed apart.
And the one thousand strong Amaranth Troop pounced on top of them.

"Charge!"
"Destroy the enemy troop!"

Amaranth Troop moved shockingly quickly and smoothly and slaughtered the Daly Troop's soldiers.
There was not even a need for Roan to step up any further.

"My lord! The enemy army has been destroyed and are running!"

At the adjutant's report, Roan quickly gave out a hand signal.

"Snap the enemy army's flag! Take their troop flag and use it as a blanket for the horses."

That from the start was Roan and the Amaranth Troop's goal.
Right now, he was freely stirring up the battlefield as a detached force.

"Yes sir!"

Short and heavy answer.
The Amaranth Troop chased the fleeing Daly Troop, snapped off the enemy army's flag pole, and stole their troop flag.

Vvuuuu!

Soon, a sound of horn signaling the destruction of the Daly Troop echoed across the battlefield.
Roan grasped his reins and studied the battlefield.

'A hole opened up in the enemy's right wing from the Daly Troop's destruction.'

It was the desired result.
On the other hand, the center army which was the body and the left wing was still thick.
However, that side too was slowly being pushed back at the Lancephil Fief Regiment's fierce attack led by Brian, Harrison, and Pierce.

'I should split apart the b.a.s.t.a.r.ds' body.'

The next goal was decided.
Roan faintly smiled and powerfully raised his Travias Spear.
The Amaranth Troop was awaiting with its lines already reorganized for the next order.

"From the west to east! Pierce through the enemy center army! The next target is the Renji Troop led by Wilston Stark!"
"Yes sir! West to east! Pierce enemy center army! Wilston Stark! Renji Troop!"

The Amaranth Troop's soldiers repeated back in one voice and then grasped their horse reins.
All were of appearance of tightly pressing their chests into the horses' backs.
It was the moment for the gust-like charge to once again begin.
Roan once again stepped up to the vanguard and flashed a sharp light from his eyes.

"Let us burn the enemy army's heart."

The voice quietly pierced into the ears.
And soon, Roan pressed strength into his thighs and spurred his horse.

Pabat!

The warhorse kicked off the ground and began to race.
Behind it, Roan's sonorous voice shook the battlefield.

"Charge!"

"Just how did this happen, sir?"
"Isn't this different than what you have said, sir?"
"Five castles including a fort and one key region has already fallen into the b.a.s.t.a.r.ds' hands!"

The headquarter was noisy with all sorts of shouts.
The commanders who wore full armors all directed looks of condemnation towards one person.

"Everyone please calm down."

A soft voice.
The one who was receiving the stinging eyes was in fact Clay.
He looked at the various categories of reports and a map with complicated symbols drawn in above the table and formed a bitter smile.
The things the reports and the map meant was but one.
Rinse Liberation Army's defeat.

'This is rather beyond my expectation……'

Though he was laboriously smiling, Clay too becoming fl.u.s.tered was also the same.
Clay, with the war with the Lancephil Fief Regiment ahead of him, had completely grasped and prepared everything.
The number of soldiers, placements, formations, logistics, intelligence, enemy's condition, predicted paths, and even the abilities and personalities of Roan and the warriors who followed him.
He meticulously checked and rechecked without a single bit remaining and weaved the perfect military strategy.
No, he thought he had weaved it.
But just one amongst the things he thought was perfect had plainly turned amiss.

'Roan Lancephil, was he this strong?'

Only a bare few years had now pa.s.sed since he had left his side.
Clay knew that Roan's talent was only a little more outstanding a level than ordinary.
Of course, he also knew that he was a perversely hard worker and that an incomprehensible luck strongly followed him.

'I mulled plentily of various matters and situations and surmised to how much his various abilities including might will have grown……'

The surmised result was the level of Royal Palace Knight Order praised as the topmost level amongst the Rinse Kingdom's knights.
But Roan's abilities he had shown in these first battles of the war wasn't of just that level.

'At the least Royal Palace Knight Captain, no, he became a powerhouse counted amongst the top three within the Rinse Kingdom.'

A growth that far surpa.s.sed Clay's prediction.

'To think I've made such a mistake……'