Kingdom Of Styria - Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Half a day before the soldiers under Viscount Ruizen entered the mountain.

From the south side of the mountain, soldiers from the Kingdom of Revra set foot in the mountain.

They were soldiers who had come to the eastern part of the kingdom on the orders of the king, Zardis Revra, to hunt down Castor, who had escaped.

The Revra soldiers had set up checkpoints and blocked off the roads, and were canvassing the neighbouring towns and villages in search of Castor.

A week has passed since Castor’s escape, still no trace of him, and as the search for him was about to be widened, the soldiers of the Revra received a strong report. A dark-haired figure was said to be hiding in the mountains to the east of Alvan.

The information came from a mountaineer who lived in a village on the south side of the mountain. He had seen the dark-haired man drawing water from a stream in the mountains.

Black hair is a hair colour rarely seen on the continent. Naturally, the Revra soldiers decided that it was Castor who was the target, and sent soldiers after him.

Half of the Revra soldiers who had been sent to search for him – about 300 soldiers – decided to hunt the mountain, and they entered the mountain path from the south side of the mountain.

It was clear from the wounding of Zeke Rondos that Castor had a very good bodyguard. The mountain hunt was carried out with a sufficient number of men.

“……Archers!”

“The enemy! The enemy is coming!”

After several hours of searching, the Lebla soldiers finally succeeded in catching sight of the enemy. The Lebla soldiers finally succeeded in catching sight of the enemy. A mysterious figure, his face hidden by a hood, shot a bow and arrow from behind a tree.

“Go after him!　Don’t let him get away!”

“So fast……? We’ll lose him!”

“It’s a …… trap! Watch out!”

The Revra soldiers chase after the attackers, but the enemy is surprisingly quick on its trail. In addition, there were booby traps all over the mountain to keep the soldiers on their toes.

The Revra soldiers chase after the enemy, but when they reach the west side of the mountain, they are confronted by a new enemy.

“Enemy! Kill them!”

“How dare you do that to me just now!”

“W-what?”

Viscount LRuizen’s soldiers, who had entered the mountain slightly late, were attacked by the Revra soldiers.

The Viscount’s private army and the Revra soldiers, who were supposed to be in the same camp, quickly got into a melee and came to blows.

“You! Do you have any idea who you’re pointing your swords at?”

“You killed my men!”

“You’ve got me by the balls!!”

“Aaahhhh!”

The Viscount’s private army and the Revra soldiers begin to fight each other.

The mountains are filled with shouts and screams, and the blood spatter turns the green trees to red.

What they did not know was, this was the result of a plot drawn up by Hanbei Takenaka and realised by Fūma Kotarō.

Hanbei sent a paid villager to Viscount Ruizen and the Revra soldiers to inform them of the mountain where they were hiding.

Of course, they corroborated the information, but it is true that Castor is hiding in the mountain. There were others who had seen ‘the dark-haired man’ known as Yukimura Sanada, doing hunting and soldiers were soon sent to search for him.

But what was unexpected for both of them was that each side of the mountain was searching for Castor’s party.

And that they were fooled to fight each other by Fūma Kotarō, who was disguised using his ability ‘Ninjutsu Master.’

Kotarō made full use of his mobility as a ninja to guide the two groups and also made them aware of each other as enemies by disguising himself as the enemy and attacking both camps.

It was also significant that the soldiers had been divided into platoons for the search. The chain of command was dispersed, and the uncoordinated soldiers were caught up in the scheme one by one.

“It seems that …… your plan has succeeded, Hanbei.”

“Of course, who do you think was behind the ruse?”

In the meantime, Castor left his hiding place in the mountains early in the morning and escaped to the southern part of the kingdom by breaking through the thinly guarded barrier with ease.

Despite being thinly guarded, they had to rely on Yukimura to dispatch the Revra soldier during their escape.

Castor, Hanbei and Yukimura, each riding a horse taken from a Revra soldier, rode through the streets without being touched.

“Hanbei’s plan was brilliant, but it was Kotarō’s performance that made the difference. So he played the enemy to his advantage.”

“That is Fūma Kotarō. The ninja who defended the impregnable Odawara Castle from the shadows, that he is!”

He nodded his head in admiration, but his red armor was stained even redder by the blood that came back, making him look too dangerous.

Kotarō’s ability to use ninjutsu was a key element in this operation.

This blessing, with its unique power of disguise, enabled him to lure the enemy into a fight.

The Revra messenger who visited Viscount Ruizen’s house was also Kotarō in disguise. He disguised himself as a knight of Revra and made him feel threatened that he would be punished if he didn’t capture Castor, so that he would send out his soldiers.

“I’ve put Kotarō in a dangerous role, but …… I’m sure he’ll make it out alive.We’re going to head to the town where the rendezvous will take place!”

Castor tells the spirits on either side of him and shakes the reins to accelerate the horse.

They are on their way to the Duchy of Caesar. Ilius, the capital of the realm.

It was a place of hope and battle, where the remnants of the kingdom of Styria gathered to fight against the invading army of Revra.