Anwen Village was just a small village that was slightly famous for its delicacy, the Silver Smoked Fish. There were countless villages like this in Sleuweir. At this time, the snowflakes were slowly falling, and the originally peaceful village was no longer as peaceful as before.
The fence that could only be used to block wild beasts could not stop the real beasts. Taking advantage of the midnight, the grey Wolf Riders entered the camp, and a feast of slaughter unfolded in the small village.
The guards and night watchmen of the town were wiped out immediately. Under the surprise attack of the well-trained Wolf Riders, the militia that had at most challenged the ogres did not even have the chance to sound the alarm.
At two in the morning, thirty Wolf Riders entered the village. At two fifteen in the morning, the militia captain, the village chief, and the local gentry were dragged out from their warm beds. Their headless bodies were fed to the wolves at the entrance of the village, and their heads were used to dig out the will of the resisters.
At two forty, the five hundred people in the village were dragged to the small square at the entrance of the village. The women and children over the age of one were dragged to the side, and the massacre began. Perhaps none of the young men were spared.
Some tried to resist, but in front of true professional warriors, the resistance of the commoners was meaningless, not to mention that the Wolf Riders were the elites of the strong Orcs.
After the highly efficient massacre, the Wolf Riders left at three in the morning. Before they left, they set a fire, and the bloody wolf feet left bloody footprints in the snow. The bloodied Wolf Riders were still silent, but there were only burning ruins and fire behind them. The heart-wrenching cries were nightmarish.
Perhaps they were hesitant at the beginning, but this was already the fourth village they had destroyed in a week. From entering to leaving in less than an hour, this was already a highly efficient massacre. As for the guilt of the massacre? They were already numb.
This was war. It was neither holy nor just. The only thing to consider was the path to victory.
The mission of the Wolf Riders was to roam the hinterlands of the human kingdom, creating more chaos and panic, and dragging down the enemy's strength and energy. Although their methods were extremely vile, they had indeed succeeded.
Beastmen were not beasts without a bottom line. Every powerful individual despised villains who slaughtered civilians from the bottom of their hearts. The people worshipped fearless knights who dared to charge at giant dragons, but they would never respect a butcher who slaughtered civilians for fun from the bottom of their hearts.
"Father, how many battle results did you get from the humans this time? How many human generals did you kill? "
"No, I just slaughtered thousands of civilians."
When he thought about how his child would ask him when he returned, he didn't know how to answer the question even though Akeri, the leader of the wolf riding team, was a famous warrior in the tribe.
At this time, his sensitive sense of smell was still filled with the pungent smell of blood. Dreaming of the child's interrogation was his worst nightmare. He could feel the exhaustion in his heart.
In the eyes of the Beastmen, dying in battle against a strong enemy was a supreme glory. However, slaughtering the weak would inadvertently show that the strong was weak. Such a warrior would be despised in the tribe, and would be rejected by the God of War after death.
"This is an order from our superiors. This is for our tribe's long-cherished wish to return to our homeland. This is for the greater good of our tribe!"
Oh justice, how many sins have been committed in your name! Behind the bright flag stands the criminal executioner.
He also knew that he was deceiving himself, but at least with this excuse, he could ignore his conscience and continue the slaughter.
"The troops are getting quieter and quieter. Looks like I have to think of a way to boost their morale."
Only the most shameless villains would flaunt their "battle results" of slaughtering civilians. Looking at the tightly knitted brows and stiff expressions of the cavalrymen, they probably hadn't reached that stage yet.
However, they still did it without any hesitation. After all, this was war, an evil war, a beautiful war, a war that could cloak all sins with a holy coat.
"Awooooo!"
Wolf howls sounded in front of them. That was the report from the eagle tribe Beastmen scouts. These three howls undoubtedly meant that there was an enemy blocking their way. However, the enemy wasn't strong and they could charge forward.
Very quickly, they passed through the forest. The "enemy" was right in front of them. It was a golden-haired young man with snowflakes all over his head. He looked rather young, but the two-handed greatsword in his hands was exceptionally eye-catching.
"Sigh, another young man who chased after us alone. He's brave but not astute. It's a pity, he's about the same age as my beloved Kaur …"
Looking at the young swordsman who was about the same age as his own child, Akerli paused for a second. Then, he swiped his thumb across his neck. That was an order to kill the enemy on sight.
"There are more youths around the same age as Kaur in that village. Then, for the sake of Kaur's bright future, you should accompany them … That's weird, why does this sword look familiar? I think I've seen it there before. "
There was no need to think too much. Even though there was only one opponent, the Wolf Riders still got into their most proficient wave charging formation.
The few Wolf Riders with the strongest mounts were in charge of melee combat. As the strongest, Akerli and the others prepared for a surprise attack. The nets and javelins behind them were already at the ready.
Even the powerful Gryphon Knight could be killed in an instant by the Wolf Riders. In the eyes of the Wolf Riders, this arrogant young man was already a dead man.
Facing the fatal attack of the Wolf Riders, the young man suddenly smiled. His smile was filled with cruelty. This familiar smile made Akerli remember where he saw the sword before.
"Oh! Isn't that the person on the statue in the small town who can release sword aura? It's the Sword Saint! … That sword? Could it be the Roland Sacred Sword? Saint Knight Roland? "
This was the last thought in Akerli's mind. The snow-white glow of the sword flickered in the snow. The flying sword aura started to claim lives. However, the Wolf Rider Captain felt a chill on his neck. The view of the Wolf Rider Captain tilted, sliding from the back of the Wolf Rider to the snowy ground.
The last thing he saw was the silver-armored Sword Saint waving his two-handed sword, slaughtering his Wolf Riders one by one.
At this moment, the Wolf Riders were completely defenseless. They were like powerless chicks that had encountered a butcher. It was no different from the evil deeds he had done in front of the statue half an hour ago.
"Those who kill will always be killed. How ironic …"
In just a single exchange, the Kara Tribe Warrior had lost his head. As a butcher, he no longer had to worry about how he would explain this to his children.
"A debt of blood must be paid with blood. Die!"
It was unknown who was the first to shout this sentence. Very quickly, everything returned to normal. However, there were a few more headless corpses on the ground.
Yes, a debt of blood must be paid with blood. However, where did the debt start? Did it start from this war? Or the war from twenty years ago? Or the war from three hundred years ago? Perhaps, this was destined to be a messy debt that could never be settled.
… …
After killing the last Wolf Rider, I was also a little tired. Thus, I stabbed my sword into the snow and rested on the battlefield.
While waiting for Irene Béla to clean up the fleeing Wolf Riders, I remembered some other things that I could do.
I took out a sheepskin bag from the Wolf Rider's chest. As expected, other than supplies, there was also a map of the nearby villages. The red crosses on the map meant that the Wolf Riders had already been there, so there was no need for me to rush there.
All I could see were corpses and blood. However, for some reason, I felt a little thirsty. Thus, I opened the water bag that the Wolf Rider left behind and gulped down a mouthful. Somehow, I spat out the sweet, low-quality horse milk wine.
"Pui, bitter and astringent, just like back then."
While I was complaining, Heloise had already finished deciphering the route of the Wolf Rider Squad. Thus, my next destination was confirmed.
"Blue Lake Village? I hope that I can rush to the front this time. I don't want to see such ruins ever again. "
Thinking back to the tragic state that I saw in Anwen Village, I quickened my movements and quickly tidied up the battlefield. After confirming that I didn't miss any information, I leaped onto Irene Béla's saddle and rushed to the next target.
This was already the twelfth Wolf Rider Squad that I had eliminated in the past week. My comrades were all reporting their harvest. I, who was moving alone, had the least harvest. However, compared to the overall situation of the battlefield, my harvest was still a drop in the bucket.
Everyone understood the logic of interdependence. Once Sleuweir was finished, the ones who would suffer next would definitely be the Northern Kingdoms. Thus, the snow only weakened slightly before the armies and reinforcements from the Northern Kingdoms were already on their way.
We were the fastest to arrive, but we also had the fewest people. One hundred Undead Knight and three hundred rookie Knight probably wouldn't be of much use on the main battlefield, which had tens of thousands of troops.
Considering the current situation in Donglan and the Beast Horde that they had to face in winter, the fact that they were able to send out troops was already shocking enough. Furthermore, the one leading the troops was me, which made all the unnecessary noise to shut up. Un, at least in front of me.
Of course, quantity was one thing and quality was another. My Undead Knight was reliable and those rookies were the backbone of the newly established armies. The only thing they lacked was experience.
As for me, I was indeed uninterested in the main battlefield in Antoon. The reinforcements from the other countries were heading towards the main forces of the Beastmen, but I focused my attention on these scattered troops.
The Beastmen's strategy of splitting up their troops was already effective. The domain lords of the Sleuweir Kingdom were busy clearing out the rookies in their own territories. Naturally, they ignored the request for reinforcements from the capital. As for the domain lords who had some spare time, they were pinned down by the other three Beastmen armies.
It wasn't a rare strategy for light cavalry (not just Wolf Cavalry) to hunt and pin down the enemy. However, when paired with the elite Beastmen troops, it was extremely effective on a tactical level and extremely cruel.
For a normal village, it didn't matter if the attacker was a Sword Saint or a Bronze-rank Wolf Cavalry. Either way, the village would be annihilated.
Chasing down these rookies was the typical example of a strenuous and unrewarding task. They were too mobile and elusive, making it difficult to catch up to them. Even if they caught up to them, with their superior individual combat strength, it was hard to tell who would win and who would lose.
Before the main forces of the Beastmen were wiped out, the military strength of the various countries wouldn't have the spare time to care about the small villages of other countries. However, I intended to do so.
"Who cares about those nobles? Since we are here, if we can help, we might as well."
My men were indeed few in number, but the individual strength of the Undead Knight wasn't weak. It was easy for them to face a small team of Wolf Cavalry alone, and the rookies could serve as their support to accumulate experience.
Thus, I disbanded the battle group and allowed them to move freely in the form of one leading three teams to hunt down the small team of rookies.
However, what was unexpected was that this kind of action brought about great support from the people. After all, the nobles and the royal family, who were supposed to be protecting the territory, were doing nothing, and my Undead Knight was the best symbol of their support.
"The previous King Roland has brought his army to save the people of Mist. That fake King Füml, after ignoring the warning of His Majesty Roland, once again ignored the suffering of his people. He only cared about his own authority and safety, hiding in the capital."
From a certain point of view, the previous announcement of the Sleuweir Royal Family was continuously displaying the meaning of foolishness and courting death. I, who had 'let bygones be bygones', became more and more popular with my anti-hunting actions. The Undead Knight began to receive passionate support from the people, and they became even more motivated.
What happened next was something that shocked and even inconceivable to everyone.
Seeing this situation, even though Antoon's war was still in a tight spot, Füml warned me through the Church not to take advantage of the situation to buy the people's hearts. He even announced that I wasn't the previous King Roland, and that I was just an imposter to deceive the people.
Obviously, in the eyes of that 'His Majesty', the Beastman army was just an external threat that would be expelled sooner or later, and my Knights and I were indeed 'ambitious schemers'.
At that moment, I almost turned around and left. However, after thinking about it, I was amused.
"Fine, since you said that I am buying the people's hearts, then I will really do so. Knights, take out our battle flags and military insignia. We are the legitimate reinforcements, so what is there to hide? "
Of course, from a certain perspective, I was very clear on the difference between the two. The citizens were the citizens, and the royal family was the royal family. But more importantly, there were some things that were difficult to stop once you stepped in. Was it really that because of that idiot Antoon, I would just watch as the villagers died?
When this news spread, the reputation of the Sleuweir Royal Family plummeted. Every day, countless refugees chose to flee to Donglan, which they would never have chosen in the first place.
It was said that when Füml heard this news, he immediately smashed the century-old heirloom of the royal family, the Rainbow Jade Wine Cup. After that, he regretted it deeply and was very sad. After hearing this news, in order to console him, I even sent him a message through the Church.
"Rainbow Jade Wine Cup? Isn't that a byproduct of the glass I burned back then? Don't worry, don't be fooled by its appearance. In reality, it is just glass, so it isn't worth much. Actually, that isn't a wine cup either. It is just a small spittoon that failed to burn properly. It even contained crickets before … The back of that cup should have a secret inscription that Roland created. If it didn't shatter too much, you can try looking for it. "
Alright, I heard that he really managed to put it back together, but this time, it wasn't just a wine cup that was shattered.
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