Volume 1 Chapter 30 Kou Kairyou And Crown Prince Rouen, Moving Through The North Ii
"Infantry, secure the area! We must protect the people from harm──."
"This is so frustrating! Kairyou!!"
Crown Prince Rouen rides his horse fast.
"'Wolf Cavalry,' follow me!! We will wipe out the enemies of Aika Country!!"
"Please wait, Your Royal Highness!!"
Ignoring Kairyou's call to stop, Crown Prince Rouen urges his horse on.
The 'Wolf Cavalry' follows him.
Seeing this, Kairyou makes a quick decision.
"I'm going to stop His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. Cavalry and infantry, surround the people!"
He shouts to his subordinates.
"Only 3 of you come with me. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has disobeyed orders. We must stop him... and if necessary, punish him!!"
With that, Kairyou rides off.
The people show signs of worry.
They can sense that something unusual is happening.
Some of them run up the hill to see what's going on. There are 2 boys wearing hoods. As he orders them, "Stay back!!", Kairyou chases after the Crown Prince.
In Kairyou's sight, he sees enemy soldiers.
Their armor is dirty and has many dents. Their spears look shabby. At first glance, they look like bandits.
But something feels off.
The enemy is ready to face the Crown Prince and the 'Wolf Cavalry' charging at them.
The regular soldiers of Aika Country are coming at them all at once, yet they show no signs of panic.
They must be dangerous foes.
However, there's no need for Crown Prince Rouen to get directly involved.
If anything were to happen to the Crown Prince, the country would be thrown into chaos. The lives of enemy soldiers are not worth the heavy price of the Crown Prince's safety.
(Why can't the Crown Prince understand that!)
Kairyou desperately urges his horse forward.
"Under the orders of 'General Skybear', I, Kou Kairyou, command Rouen-dono and the 'Wolf Cavalry'!"
Kairyou approaches the back of the 'Wolf Cavalry' and shouts.
"Fall back!! The 'Wolf Cavalry' should be under 'General Skybear's' command! Follow my father's orders!!"
"It's too late! The enemy is coming at us!!"
Rouen turns around and shouts back.
He is right. The bandits are charging towards Kairyou and the others.
"'Wolf Cavalry', meet the enemy head-on!"
"""OOOOOOOOO────!!""
With a roar, the 'Wolf Cavalry' readies their spears.
Seeing this, the bandits turn their horses around.
They flee without even trying to clash their spears.
"Look, my friends. This is all the bandits are capable of!!"
Riding the momentum, Rouen chases after the fleeing bandits.
The bandits are heading towards someone who seems to be their leader. It's a boy with red hair.
He looks a bit older than his younger brother, Tenhou.
Riding a black horse, he holds a large spear. Next to him is a man with a black sand cloak covering his face. He has a black dagger in his hand.
They are shouting, calling the bandits over.
One of them must be the boss.
"Let's beat them up and make them confess where the bandits' hideout is!!"
The Crown Prince charges forward fiercely.
There was no time to stop him.
Crown Prince Rouen and the 'Wolf Cavalry' rush towards the enemy as if they are hunting.
(I'm sorry, Father. I can't stop His Royal Highness the Crown Prince...!)
With the Crown Prince and the 'Wolf Cavalry' added in, they outnumber the enemy.
Victory is certain, but that's only if the Crown Prince doesn't get hurt.
If it comes to it, he'll have to use his body as a shield to protect the Crown Prince.
Just as Kairyou was desperately urging his horse forward――
"Don't, brother! You can't fight them!!"
(──Is that Tenhou's voice!?)
In front of Kairyou, the man in the black cloak――vanished.
"────Gah!?"
Right after, a scream rang out as one of the 'Wolf Cavalry' fell off his horse.
The man in the cloak was standing on the back of the horse he was riding.
Just as Kairyou widened his eyes, the man approached another 'Wolf Cavalry'.
The man kicked the horse's side and soared into the air. He took down the second 'Wolf Cavalry'.
"――W-What!? What just happened!?"
"Did he cut down the guy on the horse with 'Dash'!?"
The man with the collar jumped into the air one after another, attacking the 'Wolf Cavalry'.
The 'Wolf Cavalry' couldn't respond to the attacks from above.
They were kicked in the head and stabbed in the gaps of their armor, falling off their horses one by one.
"W-What the heck is this guy!?"
Crown Prince Rouen finally slowed down his horse.
But it was too late.
Another enemy――a red-haired boy――charged towards Crown Prince Rouen on his horse.
"――Run away――guh!?"
"What is this enemy...!?"
"Ugh, guwaah!?"
The 'Wolf Cavalry' that got close to the red-haired youth were blown away all at once.
It happened in an instant.
They were knocked off their horses and groaned on the ground.
"Ugh, annoying. Is this the level of 'General Skybear's' subordinates?"
The red-haired enemy glared at Crown Prince Rouen.
He broke through the disorganized 'Wolf Cavalry' and headed straight for Rouen.
(These guys... are not just bandits)
They were probably from the Jinkyo Tribe. An elite unit, no less.
"Get away! I will stop that enemy!!"
"What are you saying, Kairyou! We have the numbers on our side!?"
"I am the commander! Follow my orders!!"
It was just a few seconds of back and forth.
But in that time, the red-haired enemy had reached right in front of Rouen.
"The people of the plains should just stay hidden inside the castle. If they come out, they'll die."
"Just a bunch of bandits!!"
The red-haired enemy's spear clashed with Rouen's spear.
With each exchange, Crown Prince Rouen was being pushed back.
"...What the heck. Who are you!?"
"You're weak."
The enemy soldier's spear sliced into Crown Prince Rouen's shoulder.
Rouen lost his balance.
Immediately, Kairyou urged his horse and charged between the red-haired enemy and the Crown Prince.
"Run! While I buy you time, hurry!"
"You're slow."
The enemy's spear was aimed at Kairyou. Reflexively, Kairyou blocked it, but his arm went numb.
The enemy's 'ki' energy was too strong.
He knew he couldn't block the next attack. Even so, he couldn't retreat.
(I'll avoid a fatal injury. In the meantime, I'll help the Crown Prince escape!!)
Making that decision, Kairyou readied his spear with his still-numb hand.
Watching Kairyou, the red-haired boy smirked.
"──The one who seems to be the commander is protecting someone. The one behind must be royalty!"
Kairyou didn't respond to the enemy's question.
He focused only on blocking the enemy's spear. And then, in the next moment──
CLANKKK!!
The red-haired enemy's spear was stopped by a sword that came down from behind.
"Please run, brother. This guy is on a whole different level!!"
The one holding the sword was Kairyou's younger brother, Tenhou.
He had jumped up using 'dash' and swung his sword.
He knew that someone was supposed to come to the fortress as a Ryougen-kun's messenger.
But──Kairyou could only understand that much.
──Why was Tenhou able to catch up to the horse?
──Why was he able to stop the movements of an opponent who overwhelmed Rouen and Kairyou?
──Why did the enemy in front of him sense the danger so quickly──
"Brother, get that person to safety. I don't want that person to die either!"
"...I-I understand."
Swallowing all his questions, Kairyou followed Tenhou's orders.
He called for his subordinates and entrusted Rouen's safety to them. He instructed them to take him to the back.
Meanwhile, Tenhou was engaged in battle with the red-haired enemy.
Next to him was another swordsman of the same age as Tenhou.
The two were desperately trying to hold back the enemy who was overwhelming Rouen.
"──Kairyou-dono! I will assist you!"
A nearby cavalryman charged at the red-haired enemy with a spear.
But──he was deflected. He was immediately struck in the jaw with the butt of the spear and fell off his horse.
The enemy's strength was abnormal.
"Tenhou! That person got away. Now, I will assist you──."
"Brother, please deal with the other enemy in the collar!"
Tenhou's voice came back.
"That man's name is Enki! He's a wandering martial artist skilled in 'dash' and daggers, and he's part of the group that tried to capture Seirei!! This red-haired boy is a powerful general of the Jinkyo Tribe!!"
While desperately fighting the enemy, Tenhou shouted those words.
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