Chapter 38

Time passed like the wind.

Life in the empire had been far more hectic than I expected. Before I knew it, two whole months had gone by since I arrived.

It was now June, Year 1241 of the Kingdom Calendar.

Within the Valcan Empire, our faction—centered around Her Highness Princess Valtrune—was steadily gaining momentum as new personnel joined our ranks one after another.

In particular, the newly established Special Vanguard Unit had begun to take form, filled with powerful individuals regardless of their social class.

Leading the charge were talented commoners, with Litzia-Reite at the forefront. Petra, Ambros, Stiano, Mia, and Faddy had also risen as key figures.

Of course, the nobility wasn’t left out. We appointed several of them as well.

Flegel , for instance, had been tasked with serving as our intermediary with informants still in the Kingdom of Reshfeld. I often caught glimpses of him dashing around, always pressed for time.

Even so, we were still few in number.

But I had no doubt that the Special Vanguard Unit—handpicked by Her Highness and me—would soon deliver solid results.

“Princess Valtrune, the Special Vanguard Unit is ready to deploy. We can move out at a moment’s notice—your orders?”

Right now, Princess Valtrune and I were stationed on a wide plain within Marquis Rigel’sterritory, preparing for a full-on clash with his forces.

The reason was simple.

Faddy had unearthed irrefutable evidence of Rigel’s crimes, which Her Highness had presented to Emperor Glaude.

“It’s a baseless accusation! I’ve done nothing of the sort!”

Marquis Rigel had tried to deny it, but a magic tool entrusted to Faddy had captured visual proof of the marquis’s illicit dealings. There was no refuting it—his guilt was laid bare.

Her Highness had orchestrated the entire thing.

“Even after seeing this, do you still intend to deny your crimes? Be honest and accept responsibility.”

Cornered, Rigel turned pale, like he’d bitten into something unbearably bitter.

“I-I refuse to admit anything! And I will never accept that some little girl like you is a legitimate contender for the throne!”

He spat those words like venom and turned to flee. But no one gave chase.

All anyone did was watch his pathetic retreat.

Eventually, Emperor Glaude spoke, his tone calm and resolute.

“Sigh… Valtrune. Defeat Marquis Rigel. See that justice is done by your hand.”

“As you command. I will see it through.”

And so, Rigel fled back to his territory, digging in and preparing for war.

Thus began Princess Valtrune’s first military campaign—against none other than Marquis Rigel’s forces.

If she triumphed here, her reputation would soar.

“Ardhea, how’s the formation?”

“Yes. Our Special Vanguard Unit is deployed in a pincer formation surrounding the enemy. Her Highness’s main force will push forward from the center. Meanwhile, General Litzia-Reite is commanding the left flank, and I will lead the right. Our strategy is to encircle and crush them before they can drag this out into a prolonged battle. General Litzia-Reite has already severed their supply lines to prevent that.”

“Understood. Thank you for the report.”

Our numbers were about equal. But in terms of troop quality, we held a decisive advantage.

Not to mention, Princess Valtrune herself was commanding us on the battlefield. Our victory was all but assured.

Still, a simple win wouldn’t be enough.

This battle needed to end in a clean, crushing defeat for the enemy—to solidify Her Highness’s authority beyond question.

“Mia’s wyvern cavalry is scouring the area from above, flushing out any hidden ambushers. The chances of a surprise attack are virtually zero. Barring any extraordinary circumstances, our superiority should hold.”

Before waging war with the Kingdom of Reshfeld, it was necessary to cleanse the empire of its internal rot.

And Marquis Rigel was the cancer at its core.

On top of that, he was aligned with the pro-Reshfeld faction among the nobility.

Taking him out now would kill two birds with one stone.

“Your Highness, your orders.”

All the pieces were in place.

All that remained was to seize the moment and claim victory.

Just as I was bracing myself to fulfill my duties as her personal knight in this first campaign, I heard Her Highness draw a slow, steady breath.

From atop the high ground, the entire Special Vanguard Unit looked up to us.

Their morale was high. The tension in the air said they were ready to charge at any moment.

“From this moment, we begin our assault against the traitorous forces of Marquis Rigel! Wipe out every last fool who dared sully the honor of the Valcan Empire! Special Vanguard Unit—advance!”

At her command, the soldiers raised their weapons to the sky.

“““UWOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!!!”””

The thunderous war cry shook the plain.

Princess Valtrune turned to me with burning resolve in her eyes.

“Ardhea, I’m counting on you. Capture Marquis Rigel. Make him pay for what he’s done.”

Her words were filled with trust.

As a first mission in my official capacity as her knight, it certainly came with weight.

I dropped to one knee and bowed deeply before her.

“As you wish. I shall rout these rebels and deliver Marquis Rigel to you, Your Highness.”

And so began the first battle of my new life in the Valcan Empire.