Chapter 65

After striking the wall with the pike to prevent the knights from recklessly responding, the soldiers armed with halberds began to slip through the gaps in the pike formation.

The halberd soldiers carefully advanced step by step, but the knights seemed distracted by the pikes in front of them, as some didn’t even notice the halberd soldiers advancing towards them.

Of course, even if they did notice, they were already panicking and in shock, causing their judgment to falter, so most couldn’t respond properly.

A short while later, all the halberd soldiers closed in on the knights and swung their halberds down from above.

At that moment, a loud sound echoed like a bell.

Some knights, caught off guard by the unexpected impact, were so startled that even those whose helmets weren’t damaged fell to the ground.

Even those knights who didn’t fall were so heavily struck by the halberds that they couldn’t regain their wits.

“Even the knights can’t maintain their composure after being struck on the helmet with a halberd!”

“I’ve always wanted to hit knights like this while living as a mercenary, and now I’ve fulfilled that wish!!”

“Oh no, what are we doing! Quickly capture the knights alive!”

Thus, the fallen knights were stripped of all their weapons and horses in accordance with ‘the customs of the battlefield.’

One might think they would escape, but since knights follow these customs, being deprived of their ‘weapons and horses’ means they simply surrender without resistance.

So the soldiers bound the knights and treated them with respect, as if they were our own allies.

Of course, they had to treat them that way because they would have to pay a hefty ransom, food costs, and various drink expenses to that household…

Additionally, if they sold the horses and equipment as well, a soldier capturing a knight could make nearly 50 gold coins—an exaggerated claim, but not far from the truth.

With that money, one could build a quite decent house at Croilet Castle and even prepare fields…

However, since this was a battlefield, our soldiers adhered strictly to training and military discipline, with some soldiers treating the knights with courtesy.

Despite having captured the ‘knights,’ the soldiers were entirely composed.

The knights of Nante, who were more experienced than regular foot soldiers and shared comparable salaries with low-ranking knights, seemed to be more shocked by this than the failure of their initial charge, as some began muttering in fear.

As a result, the enemy knights began to show signs of division due to their ‘low morale.’

“How do we deal with these insane people? There’s no justification for this war to begin with! Our lord, Your Excellency, has already disgraced himself. It would be better to become a prisoner here than to die in this fight.”

“What kind of nonsense is that? Have you given up your honor?”

“There are 5,000 of those soldiers in Croilet! And we’ve already lost to that damned wagon!!”

Among the knights openly creating conflict, a frightened one found himself silenced when another soldier struck his helmet with a halberd.

Looking around, he noticed that the halberd soldiers had stirred things up so much that the pike formation restraining the knights was half undone, and the enemy knights were now positioned within charging distance for a second assault.

Although they had already failed their first charge, they had no lance, which was essentially a one-use destructive weapon, and both the knights and their horses must be exhausted…

Even if they came charging at us at only about 4 kilometers per hour, we foot soldiers would either be trampled or eliminated by the weapons they carried.

Therefore, while the enemy was reorganizing, I ordered preparations for the most basic pike formation to respond to the charge.

“All pike and halberd soldiers, fall back 50 steps! And because we don’t know from where they’ll come, form a square formation. Signal to the soldiers!!”

At those words, a few soldiers to my left blew their trumpets long and a red flag waved.

Even the soldiers who had gotten far away returned to the main position as their bodies moved faster than their thoughts, just as they had learned in training.

Seeing the red flag wave, everyone followed me back to form the formation.

Next, the pike soldiers firmly planted the tips of their pikes into the ground, aiming them at the height of the knights’ necks.

The soldiers in the second row of the formation readied their pikes toward the horses’ necks, and the third row’s soldiers prepared to thrust into any gaps.

A short while later, the enemy knights charged furiously, shaking the ground beneath us.

Despite the absence of their most formidable weapon, the lance—which was their sharpest tooth—the bastard swords, flails, maces, and warhammers they held gleamed dazzlingly in the sunlight.

Like a tiger who needed no fangs to easily chew through something as weak as us standing idly against a wall.

As they approached us, ready to bury their teeth into our necks, the crossbowmen’s simultaneous fire whizzed above our heads.

As too many arrows passed, for a moment, it was as if we were under a tree’s shade, unable to see the sunlight.

The arrows struck the enemy knights and horses, and some pierced their bodies.

The knights and horses hit by arrows cried out in pain, while those fortunate enough not to lose their lives to the arrows seemed to realize, “If I can’t get through this, I’ll die…”

“Ugh, it hurts like hell… Ah, you crazy bastards!! I’m your ally!!”

“Get back! Sir Lancelot!!”

“Is this even real? You think I’m going to talk nonsense just because I’m on a horse!!”

Among those who remained unharmed by the arrows, some continued their charge with the mentality of ‘even if I have to trample on my allies.’

As a result, countless helmets, armor, and weapons were crushed and deformed under the hooves of the horses on the battlefield, along with the innards of the knights exploding like bombs, blooming the flowers of death.

They must have already given up their sanity.

The sight of them, having lost their minds and attempting to win by killing allies, was terrifying, much like a ‘gatekeeper of hell.’

Thus, I shouted to keep my spirit intact for the soldiers who fought with their lives for me.

“Hold on! Allies are coming soon! Hold on until they arrive, even if it means death! If we break here, Croilet will be looted, and your lives will become more miserable than before! Better to die as free men than to live as slaves, die with honor as soldiers!!”

In response to my words, the soldiers shouted back, with a hint of resignation but even more ‘enthusiasm.’

“Long live Count Croilet! Long live Croilet! Long live Deus!! It’s better to die here than to become slaves to an army led by trash not even worth a pig!”

“Victory for Croilet!!”

“Maria!! When I return, I’ll come back with a rank on my shoulders! I’ll ensure you’ll never have to get your hands dirty again! Agh!!”

After that, once again, a multitude of our crossbow arrows swept over our heads.

Once more, the enemy, lost in the frenzy of war, continued their charge while trampling our allies, and we just silently watched the scene, enduring while contemplating the weight of the enemy knights that would soon be felt at the ends of our pikes.

And just when the sound of breathing grew as loud as a drumbeat, the enemy knights reached the spear tips.

Indeed, many knights charged forward undeterred by the spear tips, but about 20% were impaled through their arms, legs, necks, and faces on the front row’s pikes, and around 20% of the horses were skewered by the pikes and died, unable to advance any further.

With 60% of the knights already having lost momentum and unable to continue their charge…

If this moment were to be lost, there might not be another chance.

Even if there were, it would be a dereliction of duty and negligence towards those who had pledged loyalty to me and the families waiting for their return.

Thus, I took hold of a halberd from one of the soldiers and spoke for a highly efficient and effective charge.

“Sergeant Randell, get the flag and prepare to follow right behind me! Halberd soldiers under Frost’s command will do the same! Everyone, charge!!”

With that, I lowered my helmet’s visor and, halberd in hand, burst through the opening in the pike formation towards the front of the advancing ‘knights clustered together.’

As I rushed out, halberd soldiers followed me, still somewhat bewildered, as they shouted.

“Count is with us! Let’s achieve glory by following our invincible commander!!”

“I’ll be damned if I let you die! Why? Because if you die, my future dies too—charge!!”

The enemy knights, seeing that spectacle, couldn’t properly see due to their helmets, but surely they were experiencing tremendous frustration.

Finally, some insane individuals began to commit the taboo of ‘running away before the enemy’ that knights are forbidden to do.

“Those are wicked soldiers from hell! We can’t win against such monsters!!”

“How could mere soldiers stop our charge… the honorable charge of Nante? This is a miracle… and we are the heretics opposing that miracle…”

“Running away now would be the only way to preserve our honor. Count Nante has been abandoned by Deus…”

Those who abandoned their honor began to strip off their helmets, gauntlets, and weapons, running for their lives.

For the sake of the poor souls bound by honor, I decided to show them mercy.

I hooked the halberd onto the armor of the knight in front of me and pulled him down from his horse, then threw the halberd to the ground and stabbed his neck with the dagger at my side.

With a squelch, blood spattered onto my helmet and armor, and even into my face through the visor’s gaps.

Though this man’s blood would be 36.5 degrees, the blood that splattered on me felt scalding, almost like it was 50 degrees, making me think it could burn me.

When I pulled down the next knight in the same way, the lower part of his armor was soaked…

Seemingly having lost the will to fight, I climbed on top of that knight and said.

“If you surrender, I will preserve your knightly honor.”

Upon hearing that, the knight stumbled towards our soldiers’ ranks, seemingly on his own accord, even though the soldiers weren’t watching.

Had he just fled to his side, he could have saved his life without having to pay any ransom… was he a fool?

Thus, I and the halberd soldiers I led subdued at least a hundred of them in unison.

A hundred knights would be equivalent to around 2000 regular peasant soldiers…

The war was already over…

Then, just as the remaining knights, having failed their charge, tried to flee…

A calamity began to unfold for them.

Our knights were charging across from the opposite side, kicking up clouds of dust while forming a thin and wide formation.

Having already been stripped of their souls by us, to do more was why wars are terrifyingly brutal.