A skirmish—or rather, a one-sided slaughter—was unfolding in a small clearing just off the highway.
Anyone happening upon the scene would have likely doubted their own eyes. On one side was a pack of fierce-looking men, their faces and bodies covered in scars. On the other was a group of beautiful women clad in pristine white armor. It was the scarred men who were being systematically decimated.
"Dammit! Why are there experts like this out here?! Archers, now! Increase your volume of fire! We don't stand a chance in close combat! Shoot them down from a distance!"
The man screamed as he irritably slammed a fifty-centimeter length of wood against the ground. Only a few minutes ago, he had been wielding a fine battle axe, but the handle had been sheared clean through during the melee.
Even so, as the leader of this bandit gang, he had been fortunate to get away with only a destroyed weapon. His subordinates hadn't fared nearly as well. Most of those who had attempted to attack with longswords or spears had already been wounded, and several had lost their lives.
"Cursed luck! How did it turn out like this?! The word was that we could do whatever we wanted right now!"
He spat the words out with venom, though his rage did nothing to improve their situation. The only reason his crew hadn't been completely wiped out yet was that the women in white—knights of the White Rose Knight Order—were maintaining a defensive formation around a carriage.
Their presence here was the result of a tip-off. The leader had heard from a fellow thief that they could run wild on the highway near the Imperial Capital. That contact had supposedly heard it from another source: that the highway connecting the Imperial Capital and Count Obrisin's Territory was currently a lawless zone where bandits were free to do as they pleased.
The bandit leader normally kept his territory about five days away from the Imperial Capital, but when he heard that merchants heading for the capital were ripe for the picking, he couldn't pass it up. He was well aware of the civil strife, of course. When he heard that the Subjugation Army had suffered catastrophic losses and that highway patrols had been abandoned, he had accepted the information without a second thought. Driven by greed, he had led his men to the outskirts of the capital.
They had immediately launched an attack on a merchant carriage, only for ten cavalrymen to suddenly appear mid-raid.
The result was a disaster.
"Boss! It’s no use! We have to pull back! Lotz and Golzo are already dead! If we stay, we’re finished!"
A subordinate’s frantic shout echoed through the trees. It wasn't just a warning; it was a pure, unadulterated scream of terror.
The bandit leader understood the reality of the situation, yet he couldn't bring himself to call for a retreat. This was their first job since moving to the capital's vicinity. If he turned tail now, he would lose all respect. He knew the nature of men: they would be the first to agree to flee when their lives were at stake, only to mock him behind his back later for being a coward who lacked the guts to finish the job.
The fact that they wouldn't say it to his face only made the prospect more grating.
Furthermore, his pride was stung by the fact that the knights of the White Rose Knight Order were all such beautiful women.
"Shut up! I’m not losing to a bunch of women! Besides, a chance to bag prizes like these doesn't come often! If we capture them, we can sell them or hold them for a massive ransom! If you want the gold, don't run! Grab those women and—guh!"
"Silence, you fiend. You've spoken quite enough."
Lightning arced from the longsword of the female knight guarding the carriage, striking the bandit leader square in the head. While the bolt wasn't powerful enough to shatter his skull, it was more than enough to stop his heart instantly.
"B-Boss!"
"Shit, he’s dead?!"
"No way... What do we do now?!"
"Without the boss, we don't have a prayer..."
Unrest rippled through the bandits. The man who had just been killed was their strongest fighter, and seeing him fall so effortlessly broke what was left of their morale.
"Dammit, I’m out of here! I’m not fighting monsters like these!"
"Me too!"
"Run!"
Panic took hold, and the bandits began to scatter in a desperate bid for survival.
"Captain Videre!"
"I see them. You, from here to there—stay and protect the carriage. The rest of you, follow me! We’re putting an end to these pests of the Empire!"
"Understood!"
At Videre's command, the knights raised their voices in a sharp, unified cry.
Half the squad remained to secure the merchant, while the other half followed Videre to strike down the fleeing men from behind. These were thieves, after all; they were happy to play the predator, but as soon as the tables turned, they were quick to abandon their own allies to save their own skins. Not all bandit gangs were so honorless—some lived by a strict code of brotherhood—but this particular lot possessed no such loyalty.
"Kill them! If we let them escape, they'll only prey on other citizens!"
Following Videre's lead, the knights rode down the fugitives, slashing with longswords, thrusting with spears, and crushing them with halberds. The fight at the carriage had been a display of overwhelming dominance, but this pursuit was a massacre.
Videre carried out the execution without a hint of hesitation. As she had just stated, letting these men go meant endangering everyone else on the highway and the residents of the nearby villages and towns. To show misplaced mercy now would only lead to regret when more innocent lives were lost later.
With that grim conviction, she swung her magic sword, systematically extinguishing the lives of the thieves.
The pursuit lasted about ten minutes. Men on foot had no hope of outrunning Videre’s mounted knights. Nearly every bandit was put to the sword. While a few might have managed to vanish into the deeper brush, those survivors would never forget the terror they felt this day.
Once the area was cleared, Videre and her detachment returned to the carriage, where the rearguard was waiting.
"Good work, Captain."
No one asked about the outcome. The result was plain for all to see.
"And the carriage?"
"A merchant bound for the Imperial Capital. We’ve checked the manifest; no illegal contraband. However..."
Videre saw the conflict on her subordinate's face—the hesitation of whether to speak or not. She prompted her to continue. "Go on."
"Yes, ma'am. He claims that the number of bandits near the highway has surged recently."
"Well... that's expected during civil strife, isn't it? No, wait."
Videre paused as the final words of the bandit leader she had just executed came back to her.
(If I recall, he said something about hearing they could 'do as they pleased' here...)
In other words, this influx of criminals wasn't just a natural byproduct of the war. Someone had intentionally lured them here.
For a brief moment, the image of the First Prince, Cabajid, wearing an elegant, mocking smile, flashed through her mind. However, she quickly dismissed the thought with a shake of her head.
(Surely even His Highness Cabajid wouldn't go so far as to summon thieves into his own territory... and how could he have predicted the situation would unfold exactly like this? No, that’s unthinkable. But if that's the case, what is the motive? ...Dammit, I’m getting nowhere. I need to report this to Commander Angela or Her Highness Frizion.)
Deciding to delegate the strategic analysis to her superiors, Videre turned her attention to the merchant watching from beside his carriage.
"We are members of Her Highness Frizion's Army."
"Yes, so I’ve been told," the portly middle-aged man in his 50s replied with a respectful bow. "I’ve already thanked the other knights, but allow me to express my gratitude to you as well for the rescue."
"Don't worry about it. We can't claim to be entirely blameless for the current state of affairs. More importantly, what are your plans? We can escort you as far as Her Highness Frizion's current encampment while we make our way toward the Imperial Capital."
The merchant hesitated for a moment. It was only natural; as had been established, the chaos on the road was a direct result of the Imperial Family's internal war. Hearing the name of a royal member likely stirred complicated emotions in him.
He was too wise to voice those grievances, however. He eventually bowed low to Videre. "I would be honored. Truly, the knights under Her Highness Frizion are as kind to the people as the rumors say."
Videre noted the calculated flattery—it was a subtle deterrent meant to discourage the knights from "requisitioning" his goods for the war effort. She simply nodded in acknowledgment, well aware that the civil strife was a heavy burden on the common folk.
"Understood. We move out!"
"Understood!"
At Videre’s signal, her ten subordinates and the merchant carriage began to head back toward the main road. Two cavalrymen galloped ahead of the group. They needed to report the bandit attack and relay Videre's suspicions to the command center as quickly as possible.
Her instinct was correct, but unfortunately, the warning was already a bit late.
"Lord Rei, Her Highness Frizion requests your presence immediately."
A knight of the White Rose Knight Order rode up to Rei to deliver the message. Rei had been scouting the perimeter of the Frizion Army from a distance, riding atop Seto’s back.
"Me?"
"Yes. She wishes to seek your counsel on a certain matter."
"...I see."
Rei tilted his head in slight confusion but lightly tapped the back of Seto’s neck. Understanding the silent command, Seto banked and flew toward the head of the Frizion Army. Rei noticed that the female knight who had delivered the message was watching the Gryphon with an entranced expression, but he ignored it; it was a scene he had grown accustomed to.
When they reached the royal carriage, Rei found Her Highness Frizion accompanied by Commander Angela, Marquis Lognos, and several other nobles, some of whom Rei recognized and others he didn't.
"I heard you called for me. What’s the situation?"
At Rei's characteristically informal greeting, a noble who wasn't familiar with his status opened his mouth to protest, but Marquis Lognos silenced him with a sharp look. Rei ignored the silent exchange and looked to the leadership for answers. Angela spoke up on Frizion's behalf.
"A subordinate of Captain Videre just returned. I had sent her to check on your status after your flight."
"I see. She took her time... wait, Videre's subordinate? Not Videre herself?"
Rei didn't miss the detail. Angela nodded grimly.
"That's right. She was heading back after confirming you had finished off those Dragon Knights when she found a merchant carriage under attack by bandits. Videre and her squad handled them easily enough, but the man leading the thieves said something peculiar before he died."
"Peculiar?"
"Yes. Apparently, rumors are spreading that the area near the Imperial Capital is currently lawless due to the civil strife and that bandits can do whatever they want. It’s caused a massive spike in criminal activity on the road."
"...That doesn't sound so strange to me," Rei countered. "The war is real, and the breakdown of public order is a natural consequence of it."
"True," Angela conceded. "But don't you find the timing odd? Why would bandit activity peak so aggressively right at this moment? And remember the Dragon Knights you fought—you said they were used almost like they were disposable, didn't you?"
Seeing the gravity in Angela’s eyes, Rei finally understood the concern weighing on everyone in the carriage.
"You think this is all being orchestrated by the other side?"
"...Specifically, by Big Brother Cabajid," Frizion added.
Rei frowned. "So, you're saying he anticipated we would try to link up with the Rebel Army and planted these bandits and Dragon Knights as a distraction to slow us down? But surely even he can't predict things that accurately. Besides, bandits are one thing, but aren't Dragon Knights a bit too valuable to use as disposable bait?"
"That’s exactly what’s bothering me," Angela replied. "If it were just the bandits, I could write it off as Big Brother Cabajid's typical scheming. But the inclusion of five Dragon Knights complicates the theory. What do you think, Rei?"
"I'm inclined to think it's just a coincidence. However..." Rei paused, his expression darkening. "If he really did calculate all this to delay us, then it means something is likely happening to the Rebel Army's main force right about now."
As if the collective anxiety of the room had finally reached him, a trace of concern colored Rei's voice.