Volume 6, Chapter 54 – The Battle of Crieri’s Retreat (2)

“Damn it, scatter! Intercept them! As long as those Imperial soldiers aren’t here, they’re no match for us! Get the civilians moving!”

At Mathias’s command, the knights dispersed.

“Charlotte-sama, the fort is just a little further. Please, lead the refugees quickly!”

“Then Hugues-sama, you come with me.”

“No. If they break through here, the refugees will suffer heavy casualties. Therefore, I beg of you, Charlotte-sama, please lead the refugees to safety.”

“But!”

“Charlotte-sama, there aren’t many knights left. At a time like this, I cannot fall back when I’m our greatest fighting force. Besides, you are the one best suited to lead the refugees.”

“Even so! Hugues-sama, you are my knight. Is it not your mission to protect me?”

“Yes. Which is why I will stop the monsters here.”

“Hugues-sama…”

“Charlotte-sama, I promise you. I will certainly return to your side. And I promise that once everything is over, I will make you happy.”

“…I… under… stand…”

As Charlotte managed to squeeze out her answer, Hugues embraced her gently and stole her lips.

After a brief silence, Hugues gently pulled away.

“Ah…”

A small, wistful sound escaped Charlotte’s lips, and Hugues knelt.

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“Charlotte-sama, I am off.”

With that, Hugues turned on his heel and headed toward the swarm of monsters.

After standing dazed for a moment, Charlotte also turned around and dashed off to guide the refugees.

◆ ◆ ◆

“Hugues-dono! Where is Charlotte-sama?”

“Charlotte-sama will surely lead the refugees to the fort at Gaeribi Pass. We must buy her the time!”

Answering Mathias’s question, Hugues swung his Holy Sword, cutting down Forest Wolves and the Orcs that appeared soon after.

“We will not be outdone by mere monsters! We protect Saint-sama and the powerless people who adore her! Do not let a single one pass!”

Hugues shouted, and inspired by his words, the knights raised their spirits and began slashing through the monsters.

However, the monsters attacked without cease.

And then, several hours passed.

“Tch, this is already a Monster Stampede,” Hugues spat.

“At this rate…”

Hearing Mathias’s words, Hugues looked at him with a face of grim determination.

“Captain, I will go and take down whoever is commanding these monsters.”

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“What!? Hugues-dono, are you sane?”

“Yes. With this many monsters, there has to be something commanding them. If I kill it, the monsters should fall back.”

“But—”

“If we stay like this, they’ll eventually break through! I leave the rest to you!”

With that, Hugues charged alone into the monster swarm. Cutting through monster after monster in the blink of an eye, his figure soon disappeared into the horde.

“Wait! Hugues-dono!”

Mathias and the others tried to give chase, but monsters stood in their way, blocking their path.

Mathias clicked his tongue softly, stopped pursuing, and fought the monsters before him.

◆ ◆ ◆

Hugues pushed forward alone through the swarm of monsters. Behind him, piles of Forest Wolf and Orc carcasses accumulated. As he cut down monster after monster, heading toward where the numbers were densest, Goblins gradually began to mix in.

Then he began to see Hobgoblins, Goblin Archers, and Goblin Mages, and in the distance, he spotted a giant Goblin clad in iron armor, wielding a metal club.

“I see. I thought it might be one of the Demon Race, but the one leading this horde is a Goblin Lord.”

Muttering this, Hugues launched a sudden assault toward the Goblin Lord.

“Grrrrrrr!”

As the Goblin Lord growled, the surrounding Goblins formed a dense phalanx and thrust their spears forward all at once.

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However, Hugues deftly dodged the spears, dove into their midst, and cut down three Goblins in a single stroke.

Without any concern for hitting their own allies, Goblin Archers and Goblin Mages fired arrows and fireballs.

Hugues grabbed a Goblin and hurled it into the fireball to block the spell, then rushed the Goblin Archers and cut them down in an instant.

“Gah!?”

The Goblin Mage, whose fireball had been blocked, looked around frantically, searching for Hugues. Hugues approached from behind and sliced off the Goblin Mage’s head before dashing forward again.

The Goblins and Hobgoblins who had lost sight of Hugues looked around in confusion, but the Goblin Lord swung his metal club down with all his might.

“Hmph. I can see your movements, but in the end, you’re just a Goblin.”

Hugues scoffed at the Goblin Lord before accelerating in a burst.

Closing the distance before the club could strike, he sliced through the creature’s thick leg, armor and all.

“Gugaaaaaa!”

Having lost a leg, the Goblin Lord collapsed to the ground, and Hugues drove the Holy Sword into its neck, delivering a cold finishing blow.

“Gu… ga…”

The Goblin Lord stopped moving, and agitation rippled through the surrounding Goblins.

“Now, I just have to exterminate the rest of these—!”

Just as Hugues readied his Holy Sword again, a man’s voice reached his ears.

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“Kukuku… so it was the stronger Holy Knight who took the bait. Oh? And where’s the weaker Saint?”

Hugues looked back toward the source of the voice.

“Who are you?”

“Kukuku, I am—”

◆ ◆ ◆

“The monsters… they are retreating.”

Having arrived at the fort with the refugees, Charlotte looked down the road they had traveled from the fort’s watchtower.

“Saint-sama, it is cold atop the mountain. Please enter the fort before you catch a cold.”

“I will wait here for Hugues-sama to return.”

Charlotte answered with a brave smile, and for a moment, a cold wind blew strongly, making her golden hair flutter wildly.

“Saint-sama…”

Charlotte gazed intently, prayerfully, at the winding road stretching out below.

However, the figure Charlotte longed to see never appeared along that winding road.