LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 52: Revolutionary Period - Witch of the Storm
Translated by – Mara Sov
༺ Revolutionary Period – Witch of the Storm ༻
Due to the reinforcements from the Capital, both the Northern and Southern armies now bolstered their forces to 19,500 troops.
As the Grand Duke marched towards the Duchy of Lorenne, 39,000 Revolutionaries would face an army of 40,000 enemy soldiers.
At first glance, they seemed evenly matched, but an urgent message quickly shattered those beliefs.
“Imperial Mages? Is that even a thing in the Germania Empire?”
During the strategic meeting, Raphael Valliant frowned as he questioned the contents of the urgent message.
Until now, during their engagements with Francia and even the Kraft Kingdom, the Germania Empire didn’t reveal the existence of such an army division. So naturally there was little to no information about them.
“Our intel is solid. From what we can see this Imperial Mage Corps is composed of powerful magicians.”
Since the intel was obtained through the Aquitaine merchant guild during their dealings with the Holy Theocracy, and it was vetted by Christine herself, there should be no doubt about its credibility.
“The mages in this division seem to number 20 or so. They are mostly nobles of Germania who went to study abroad in the Magical Kingdom, or are some Mages employed for money and titles.”
“From Holland, huh……”
Valliant scratched his chin as he frowned.
A genius strategist he may be, but in the end, he was only a mercenary. Therefore, he was mostly ignorant of the dangers posed by trained mages.
And we, the people of Francia, the one ‘Knight Kingdom’ who looked down on mages are no different.
“……So, how much of a threat does this variable pose to us?”
In response to the Northern Army’s chief-of-staff, Alexandre Berthier, an uneasy silence lingered in the meeting.
That was the question here. And no one knew the answer to it.
We must know the level of the threat they pose, or at least what their capabilities are so that we can create ways of countering this new variable.
The only mages I know of, were the mages employed during the Civil war, who can at most conjure rain to nullify gunpowder weapons, or the ones who can set some poor sods ablaze after a lengthy chant.
While the reputation and esteem of the mages from Holland are well-known, they are only focused on their craft or their research over combat. So it’s a rare sight to see one of those esteemed mages on the battlefield.
“We know that their leader is Frau Wilhelmina Von Weinfeld. She is known as the ‘Witch of the Storm’ from her time abroad……And titles such as these are only given to mages who have achieved the ‘sage’ status. As of now, we only know about three of such ‘sages’.”
Christine freely shared every piece of intel she could get her hands on, due to her preparations for enrolling Louis in the Mage Kingdom. But honestly, even with all of this I still can’t understand the severity of this threat.
“A sage huh……Yeah, I did hear some crazy stuff about the magic these ‘sages’ can dish out.”
Everyone chuckled at Morelle’s words.
The problem with those tales is that they are simply too absurd.
Castle walls being blown to smithereens by a falling star, flooding entire cities with a single spell, burning entire forests……
Those tales were hardly different from those of Heroes of Myth and Legend.
And most of all, why would a sage from Holland even bother to join such a forsaken battlefield?
They could very well spend their time on their comfortable spires, conducting their research, publishing their findings, teaching their apprentices, or crafting some rather absurd artifacts.
With a tired sigh, I looked over the name of Frau Wilhelmina Von Weinfeld written in the report sent by Christine.
“The ‘Witch of the Storm’…….If a sage has such a moniker then it must be for a reason. Maybe it’s related to her abilities.”
The commanders all looked at me with serious faces, making their own observations.
“Perhaps she throws magic like a storm?”
“Ah, that would be terrifying. Maybe she’s a mage who specializes in wind spells.”
“How in the bloody hell are we supposed to deal with something like that?”
While everyone continued to speculate, Damien De Millbeau raised his hand.
“What if, she, well, summons storms with her magic?”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Then, after a few seconds, a round of snickers and chuckles broke out around the room.
“Pff-. Hahahhaha, what are you saying? That’s the stuff of legends!”
“Yes, if Holland had such power, they would have conquered the world by now!”
As Damien lowered his hand with a sour face, I couldn’t help but shiver as a chill ran down my spine.
This guy. No matter how useless he may seem……Has some absurd instincts. Summoning Storms….Really?
…..Heh, no way…Right?
But then again, if he’s right, how are we supposed to deal with that?
Valliant and I exchanged a look.
Both of our looks were completely resigned, I’m sure we had the same thought.
“…For now, we have no choice but to fight. But there’s one thing I’d like to request, General Lafayette.”
“Speak, General Valliant.”
“How about we distribute the Knights among the regiments? If they launch some kind of magical attack we won’t have the means to defend, but at least the Knights might provide some resistance.”
“……Hmmm”
Normally, the Knights would lead the cavalry, but they could serve as a defense against a magical attack.
Sigh-. Since we don’t have any mages in our army, this might be our best countermeasure.
“Acceptable. But I’ll consider it as a debt owed.”
Valliant’s smile stiffened.
“Ah, that would make it two favors eh?”
“Regardless, we still don’t know the full strength of the enemy. So, in this battle we should be prepared to retreat in case things go sideways.”
With our Knights spread around the battlefield, and with me focusing on picking any valuable targets while Eris offers her support, we just might have a chance.
……At least, that’s what I hope.
–
No matter how many times Valliant or I tried to lure the enemy into a trap, they never seemed to buy it. Perhaps it was due to the Grand Duke’s experience.
In the end, since our attempts to disrupt their consolidation failed, we had no choice but to confront them.
As such, on a clear sunny day,
The summer heat weighed on us, as nearly 80,000 men filled the plains.
Tens of thousands were clad in white uniforms, and on our side, tens of thousands were clad in blue uniforms. After the order was given, the blue tide advanced towards the white death.
Amidst the song of iron being intoned by the cannons on both sides, I, like the other Knights, stood at the forefront of the formation on horseback.
With a glance, I could see Raphael Valliant commanding his forces from a distance.
Even though I was the General of the Southern Army, the impact a Knight of my prowess could have on the battle couldn’t be ignored at this time.
Besides, I was quite confident in my archery skills.
My arrows were imbued with mana, so they were capable of not only piercing a mage’s shield but the soldiers behind it as well.
Therefore, I hoped this skill of mine would be useful against the new card of the Germania Empire.
Spurring my horse into action, I charged.
With a powerful neigh, my horse bolted forward, as a cannonball rushed past me, cutting through the wind.
Screams and wails erupted from those on my rear.
A droplet of cold sweat dripped down.
Curses. By sheer luck, I didn’t die by kissing a steel ball.
The fact that Eris is also in such a dangerous place is doing wonders for my mental health……
-Marquis! I’m a Saint you know? So God will naturally stop any stray cannonballs coming my way.
-……Weren’t you the one saying you didn’t believe in God?
-Ahh-. Maybe it will work if I start believing today?
……The conversation I had with her before this battle only increased my stress.
My musings were cut short by the sound of trumpets.
From the Northern Army, a group of infantry armed with muskets, the chasseurs, advanced in unison.
Those must be the ones Valliant used to subdue the Duke Lorenne’s Knights.
As the front-line infantry of both sides marched forward, the chasseurs lowered their stances and began shooting.
Through my telescope, I could see soldiers falling in the enemy lines.
These sharpshooters seemed quite adept in hitting their marks from a distance greater than the engagement range of the front-line infantry.
If I survive this, I’ll look into training some men to be like this.
As the artillery fire went on, Valliant’s troops were chipping away at the enemy with their hit-and-run tactics.
The flow of the battle wasn’t all that bad……
I turned my telescope.
Finding the mages within the enemy lines wasn’t all that difficult.
Their flamboyant robes made distinguishing them a lot easier.
The problem was what they appeared to be doing.
Were they casting a spell?
While both armies started their march, the distance between them was still a good 300 meters.
From this range, I wasn’t sure even my enhanced arrows wouldn’t lose their accuracy.
Just as I thought this, one of the mages hurled a fireball straight at us.
–
“To think that I, the man who was the commander of the Southern Army for a brief period, would stand on the forefront of this battle……”
Damien De Millbeau grumbled as he watched Valliant’s infantry skirmish with the enemy.
That man ordered Knights to deal with the incoming magic just because they didn’t have any mages?
Isn’t he using the noble Knights of this land as mere escorts for these…foot soldiers?
Just as this thought crossed his mind, a fireball soared from the enemy lines.
And of course, it flew straight toward Damien.
“Fuck! Why is it always me?!”
Damien quickly drew his sword and imbued it with his mana.
Spurring his horse forward, he prepared to deal with the magic as one would always do when confronting a mage on the battlefield, but-
“……What?”
Damien failed to notice a crucial detail, perhaps because of the distance, but now he could clearly see that the fireball was about twice the size of Damien when he was mounted on his horse.
“How am I supposed to block this shit?!”
Damien screamed, but there was no need to worry about blocking it.
The fireball arched in the sky and passed above Damien’s head, continuing its trajectory towards the advancing infantry.
Even though the fireball flew into the sky, Damien could sense the extreme heat, making the man shrink his shoulders while the infantry cried in terror.
“Ahhhhhh-!”
The soldiers tried to flee from it, but before they could scatter, the gigantic fireball crashed into their ranks and exploded.
“Uaaaahhh-!!”
“EEEERRRRGGHHHH… My skin!! It’s melting..!”
Dozens of men were engulfed in flames as they struggled to survive in vain. Damien turned away from such a horrific scene, his face pale, only to see dozens of fireballs covering the sky.
–
“This is fucking bullshit!”
These are mages?
They’re completely different from the mages we know!
I desperately drove my horse towards Valliant as the fireballs soared in the sky, emitting their scorching heat.
How are we supposed to stop those gigantic things?!
“KKKKKKKRRRRRAAAAAAHHHH… I… I Can’t… breathe…!”
“RUN!”
“Someone save us! Please!”
The infantry had descended into complete and utter chaos.
Our soldiers broke their ranks before even engaging the enemy.
However, just then, a curtain of gold light spread across the sky, shielding us from the fireballs.
There was only one person who could create such miracles.
“Eris!”
Behind the infantry lines, Eris staggered, her hands raised towards the sky.
“What is going on!”
“It’s the Saint! The Saint has come to save us all!”
“HOLD THE LINE! FOR THE SAINT IS WITH US-!”
“Shit! The Lord is with us!”
The soldiers were captivated by the miracle, while the commanders and Knights scrambled to get them under control.
Eris continued to concentrate while Sir Beaumont supported her trembling body.
I bit my lips with enough force to taste my blood.
It was fortunate for us that Eris was on the front lines.
But how many more of those spells can these mages cast? How much longer can Eris hold out?
At that moment, goosebumps traveled down my body, I could practically feel the tyrannical amount of mana in the air.
I looked at the source of this disturbance,
Only to see a mage floating in the air.
When I looked towards it with my telescope, I could see that the other mages were casting some sort of spell to assist the floating mage, while he gathered all that mana in the air.
What is that?
I could see the mana being drawn out of the air, and something was happening around the floating mage.
A magic circle of some kind was formed, its interconnected lines shining with energy. By this point, I realized what was happening. But it was too late.
The gigantic magic circle above the floating mage’s head was completed and it slowly rotated clockwise.
I furiously supported my horse towards Valliant.
“General Valliant! Are you seeing this?”
“I am. I’ve ordered artillery fire on that thing, but……”
Alongside his words, the cannons roared, but their accuracy wasn’t sufficient to hit a single human floating in the sky.
And even if it hit it, could a mere cannonball penetrate all that magic?
What kind of god-forsaken spell are they casting with such a tremendous amount of mana?
In the meantime, the enemy continued to shoot their artillery. Only to be stopped by Eris’s golden barrier.
I could see Eris’s body trembling, while our own meager mages – if they could even be called that – clung to her, trying to assist her even if a little.
Just by looking at her, I can see that Eris is at her limit.
“The plan is a bust. The Knights can’t defend their attacks. Even if we continue to fight I don’t want to know what that mage is preparing up there.”
“Ugh……”
“We retreat. If we continue to take hits like this one without a plan, we will only suffer more.”
“Dammit all……”
If we retreat now, Valliant will have to give up the lands he had conquered in his campaign.
As if well aware of this, Valliant grimaced.
“If we preserve our army, the land can be reconquered. But if we all die here, then we lose it all.”
“I know, I know……Alright, General Lafayette, let’s retreat.”
The horn signaling our retreat was sounded.
“The cavalry will cover our retreat and block the enemy Knights!”
While the infantry retreated, the cavalry set out to do their duty.
Even while our artillerymen were trying to move the cannons, the enemy continued their relentless barrage of cannon fire toward the infantry.
Valliant and I could only watch the scene in despair.
As time passed, the cavalry from both sides engaged in combat, and we were ready to retreat. But it seemed that the mage’s attack was nearly complete.
“Haaa-. How do we even deal with those damned mages.”
Just as our artillerymen began to withdraw and the main force was retreating-
Dark clouds gathered in the sky.
“……It can’t be.”
The sky turned pitch black.
“W-what is going on now….?”
“Oh Lord Almighty, please help us……”
Then, a torrential downpour fell from the darkened sky.
-What if she, well, summons storms with her magic?
It turns out that Damien’s cursed prediction actually came true.
As if the sky had been parted, the torrential tempest rained on our side……While the enemy side enjoyed their sunny summer day.
The image of the enemy troops advancing towards us under the clear sky, while we were shrouded in darkness and blinded by the storm, was utterly……fascinating.
Then, following the downpour,
Thunder roared.
Not once, not twice, but countless times.
Along with the thunder, lightning struck the soldiers who were stuck in the mud.
The thunder silenced their dying screams.
The thunder silenced both the screams, as well the commanders desperately shouting orders.
A natural disaster, an unstoppable force, something beyond humanity.
That’s the Witch of the Storm.
Had we not ordered a retreat, the entire army would have fallen prey to this.
Amidst the chilling dread this revelation brought, a pala-faced Valliant watched the disaster unfold, as he whispered.
“So this is why they say that……War is hell.”
TL Note: No more Mara.
***
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