v2c4 (1/2)
Chapter 4 - Knights of Britain[edit]
Part 1[edit]
”Hohohoho, when I heard there were signs of the Tōkaidō ar at Motosu, I did not believe it was necessary to rush back”
Riding gallantly on a white wyvern, the young man was the epitome of an aristocrat
A silver-haired handsome man The British military officer uniform looked neat and stylish on him, while his poise and coance
”Fortunately, I changed my mind It orth it to rush back via transport aircraft and a wyvern I finally have a chance to meet you”
The English aristocrat looked straight at Masatsugu
His wyvern was hovering in the air, just like the tyverns and all Legions on the japanese side However, his sharp gaze was fixed only on Masatsugu
”I apologize for my previous rudeness My name is Edward and many people call me the Black Prince”
A s some kind of certainty appeared on the handsome face of the aristocratic Resurrectee
”Please do introduce yourself today”
”Tachibana Masatsugu”
”I have never heard this name before May I ask ere you born in this country?”
”Sorry, I can't answer that,” Masatsugu replied indifferently Rather than giving hiu's inborn personality was to do things at his own pace This naturally led to a lack of enthusiasm in his tone
In contrast, Edward smiled cheerfully
”I understand now! Until a few days ago, I had to live my days under an alias too I presume the case is the same for you?”
Masatsugu glanced at his companions
Hatsune, sitting on the Kurou Hougan's shoulder, and the three Chevaliers on a wyvern were listening to the Black Prince questioningly They did not know that Masatsugu was a Resurrectee
As for Princess shi+ori's reaction
She was riding the sa intently at the Black Prince
”Very well, what I aht's desire for a duel betarriors, rather than being 'flippant' as an worded it”
Ignoring the princess' gaze, Edward spoke openly, ”Ladies and gentlehts for the rudeness of standing in your way?”
”Whether we forgive theht?”
”Hohohoho, you are certainly quick on the uptake How splendid”
(Prince Fuji City and its vicinity, is not your stronghold Your Chevalier Strength is down to 10 Should I send, Sir Gary to converge with you?)
This was spoken through Morgan le Fay's noetic waves
The giant eyeball, ”Morgan's Eye,” which Masatsugu and co commander-in-chief
Edward rejected her suggestion, ”Isn't n Gary to defense Since Tachibana-dono has made a personal appearance, it is possible the Tōkaidō arht attempt a sneak attack”
(Affirmative)
”Tachibana-dono Shall we begin?”
His aristocratic voice alame of chess
Edward pulled back on the wyvern's reins as one would a horse, distancing hiroup Despite the casual tone of his voice, the Black Prince was leaking powerful noesis from his body and soul
After pulling back a hundrednoesis!
shi+ori's body also glowed golden for a few seconds
”Hatsune, take the three Chevaliers and land I have called for reinforcea as quickly as possible”
”U-Understood What about you and Onii-sama, Princess?”
”We will follow presently No need to worry”
shi+ori co further questions
Hatsune hastily directed the Kurou Hougan Legion to descend, taking along the wyvern that was carrying the three Chevaliers
They disappeared into the Tōkaidō mountain forest below
With only Masatsugu rehed
”Princess, personally, I hope you will escape together with them”
”If you truly believe that I am of no use, I shall comply”
Having asked unwanted bystanders to leave, shi+ori was now retorting nonchalantly to Masatsugu
Her response brought a su's face
Should one be impressed or exasperated? As a princess, shi+ori had no desire to stay in the back ranks to be protected After coth, sheto draw upon all her talents to find a way out of the predicament
This tee, but for a coood
”Then please keep me company for now”
”Gladly!”
Unlike these pair of liege and retainer, Edasbattle preparations of his own
In a sonorous voice, he commanded the noesis he had released
”Shame be to him who thinks ill of it Gather upon htly honor—My personal guard, the Order of the Garter!”
A pitch-black army appeared out of thin air next to Edward
The Black Prince possessed superior Legions in the forhts Edward's army numbered a round 100 here
Chevaliers were only able to suhold
In other words, suions here ith had exceeded 1000!
In contrast, Tachibana Masatsugu's ar a nue of more than three to one, but the enelish history This battle was on a different league than the one just now
Masatsugu kicked his wyvern lightly
Understanding Masatsugu, the retainer beast retreated behind the Kanesadas
Riding the sau's bosom Her body was stiff from nervousness and fear
One could hardly blame her After all, this was her first battle
However, the su-sama, please do not worry about me You have free rein!”
”Understood In any case, I'll just go with the flow and do what's natural”
Masatsugu glanced secretly somewhere
Hovering over there was a giant eyeball, seven or eightthe battlefield
Masatsugu whispered quietly, ”Achieving the objective will require quite a lot of effort”
”Then I shall inform you when a suitable opportunity arises,” shi+ori replied naturally, proaze at her
Due to the eu did not explain his approach in detail, but the clever princess had deduced his thoughts froaze and the current circumstances
It was also possibly due to their relationshi+p of increasing intimacy in various ways
Eaze, shi+ori blushed and turned her head away
”Masatsugu-saun!”
”Excuse me”
Masatsugu ordered his thirty Kanesadas to gather into a packed sphere
A spherical for, but it did offer defense in all directions Incidentally, the katanas used at Fuji City earlier had all turned back into bayonet rifles
The effects of Izumi-no-Kami Kanesada's Feat of Arms had vanished Conversely, Edward suddenly activated his own!
”The nostalgic Battle of Crécy It is tihts of the Garter, uphold England's pride and turn into archers!”
Of the hundred black knights, a change occurred to forty of them
Their bayonet rifles turned into steel longbows, just as the Kanesadas could suddenly turn their weapons into the renowned blade, Izumi-no-Kami Kanesada
”Archers back away Reuard!”
The Black Prince's Legions were called Knights of the Garter
They followed their lord's orders and changed their formation
In front of the forty archers, the reular formation in an array of ten rows by six columns
This closer-order formation was like a ”wall in the sky”
The archers in the back were shi+elded by the sixty Legions in the vanguard
”Fire!”
”Fire!”
The two Resurrectees gave the command simultaneously
However, the actions taken by their respective soldiers were completely different
In the packed sphere of the thirty Kanesadas, only the Legions on the front side fired their bayonet rifles
The ”wall in the sky” of the vanguard Garter Knights took on the barrage However, they did not return fire, si a protective barrier to withstand the Kanesadas' shooting—
The British barrier neutralized all the heat beams from the japanese side
The archers at the back attacked on behalf of the un ”wall”
Nocking arrows of light onto the black longbows, they aimed upwards towards the sky The released arrows traced out parabolic trajectories to attack the Kanesadas' spherical formation
ChronicleLegion 02 BW06jpg
The British and the japanese sides kept firing
The bayonet rifles used by the thirty Kanesadas were able to fire ten beams per second
In comparison, the British side's forty archers firedtook at least five to ten seconds The archers were highly skilled but the speed of
However
”O-Our side is losing in the shootout!?”
”As suspected, the eneer”
shi+ori was greatly surprised whereas Masatsugu nodded They atching the battle between Legions froantic bodies of the thirty Kanesadas up ahead of them
The Kanesada arainst the black English longbow
In contrast, the beams fired by the rifles could not hit any eneions in the ”wall in the sky” renable
”Well, I already knew they were no ordinary bows and arrows”
Last tiu was almost sniped by the same kind of bow and arrow
Now, he was able to witness the firepower he had predicted back then
After exchanging fire for atheiruse of their helmets and various armor to block the arrows or decrease their power
However, the rain of arrows continued to fall mercilessly upon the Kanesadas
Seven Kanesadas had already died, either shot in the vitals through gaps in their are These seven crashed down from the sky just like that
”Do you see this, Tachibana-dono? This is the prided bow tactics! Hoill you respond to that!?”
”I see”
The Black Prince sounded like he was exhibiting a treasure Masatsugu replied indifferently
”So using bows for both offense and defense roles is this so-called English style”
Currently, Tachibana Masatsugu was over a hundred meters away from Edward
Even so, Masatsugu knehat the other side was thinking It was probably the same for Edward In an encounter between first-rate chess players, sih to read each other's minds without any need for redundant conversation
As expert tacticians, Masatsugu and Edere on such a level
”Masatsugu-sama”
”Looks like we have to give up on shooting”
Masatsugu gently embraced the worried shi+ori
The two of theht back and body weight was leaning against Masatsugu's bosohtly in her hands
She was touching her trusted knight to relieve the fear and uncertainty in her heart
”All men draw your swords The blades will be your shi+elds”
Feeling the princess' delicate body against hiu issued a new command
The rifles of the re twenty-three Kanesadas turned into japanese swords again They kept their swords vertically upright in front of their faces to guard their bodies' center line
Nah the forehead, the nose, the throat, the sternum, and the crotch
Using the sword to guard the center h to parry arrows aimed at the face, the heart, or other vitals of the body
The barrier-penetrating arroere now blocked by Hijikata Toshi+zō's beloved sword
”Hohohoho Not a bad solution, but it is nowhere enough”
”You're right”
The Black Prince su remained expressionless
The battle between Legions gradually intensified The black archers continued to shoot repeatedly Although the Kanesadas were using swords to guard their vitals near the center line, their bodies were still getting pierced by numerous arrows
Theblue blood
Ectoplasions Excessive loss of ectoplasmic fluid would naturally stop movement Another three Kanesadas fell from the sky due to excessive injuries
At this rate, defeat was inevitable even if the rate of Legions dying had decreased
”Charge the defending black knights Make it quick”
Masatsugu ordered the Kanesadas whose numbers had decreased sharply to twenty
The Kanesada ar at the ”wall in the sky” forhts, they unleashed Tennen Rishi+n Style swordsmanshi+p—
Even with numerical superiority on their side, it was possible for normal Crusades to become careless and lose in this kind of situation
However, the rifles vanished frohts in the ”wall” ahead
What took their place was a rectangular shi+eld as tall as a Legion Holding shi+elds in both hands, the Garter Knights resisted the shi+nsengumi's vicious swords
The swordsh h these shi+elds!
”Shahts, you are protected by the insignia of the garter Now raise your shi+elds of justice to triump over evil!”
These were the holy words used by the Black Prince to invoke his Feat of Arms
The short inscription of ”Honi soit quiLatin, and a cross appeared on each shi+eld wielded by the Garter Knights
”The power to block Hijikata Toshi+zō's sword A Feat of Aruthe battle from a distance
The ar behind shi+elds No matter how fierce, the moves of Tennen Rishi+n Style could not win so easily Every free-flowing swing of the sas deflected by a shi+eld
Also, while the Kanesadas were busy attacking the shi+eld bearers
The archers originally in the back had circled behind the ar Kanesadas
Returning their longbows to bayonet rifles, they attacked the red-purple japanese army from behind—in melee combat!
Sandwiched front and back by the Garter Knights, the Kanesadas' defeat was sealed
Succeeding in their pincer attack, the British Legions swung the blades of their bayonet rifles to slice, stab, skewer, and gouge the bodies of the Kanesadas
A an
”Masatsugu-sama It is almost time” shi+ori whispered quietly at that moment
The princess had been holding Masatsugu's hand silently the whole tiainst his chest Her posture reht now, but there was a kind of vibrancy in her voice that belonged to someone who had found a ray of hope
Only nine red-purple Legions remained
This nuu's cheek twitched in a smile
”Howl, hts are not your opponents”
Masatsugu's target was ”Morgan's Eye” up high
Co the Fuji tutelary fort, this avatar was only one-tenth in size Currently, it atching the battlefield, bearing witness to Edward's battle
”Take out that spirit Do it”
The nine Kanesadas followed Masatsugu's orders and roared thunderously
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
This shouting of Legions was known as the War Cry
The fierce roaring resounded all around Using their ions e sound
The War Cry produced effects of noetic disruption and could cancel out electronetic radiation and noetic waves
Previously, the British Crusades had used the saa
(—Prince, reporting Ene noetic disruption Avatar, cannot be sustained)
The voice reported the situation in fragan le Fay's manifestation—slowly vanished
Seeing his guardian spirit defeated, Edward praised, ”Oh? You still an in an instant despite your unfavorable situation?”
”It worked in one shot precisely because of the unfavorable situation Otherwise, a spirit of that level isn't going to present any openings”
Edward and Masatsugua face-to-face conversation
Masatsugu had reasoned that using noetic disruption recklessly would not achieve much
The eneest class on the British side However, no matter hoerful a spirit, it would be only natural for her concentration to slip when seeing her e
Even if not to the point of carelessness, there would undoubtedly be a decrease in focus
shi+ori had been increasing her senses as a noeticin the opponent
As for Masatsugu—the round
He first had the Kanesadas start a War Cry, then carrying the exhausted shi+ori in his ar it to make a rapid descent
The wyvern flapped its wings and landed in the mountain forest
A giant white as already waiting on the ground
This was one of the Mibu wolves they had ridden to the Fuji River then disot off the wyvern and moved shi+ori, as unable to walk, to the Mibu wolf's back
”We succeeded, Masatsugu-sama”
”Yes, with that spirit gone, on't need to worry about noetic tracking Noe can escape deep into theto watch our back”
Holding the feebly su rode the Mibu wolf
Once again, the two of the the sa on land Hiding in thein the air since their goal was to evade enemy pursuit
Weaving through the trees in the mountain forest, the Mibu wolf raced as fast as the wind
Needless to say, their destination was Suruga City
”Thank you for your support, Princess We couldn't have escaped otherwise”
”No Without you in coo I should be the one to express gratitude”
The brave princess had been sticking closely to Masatsugu for a reason
While relieving her fear and uncertainty on one hand, she was also providing a sh intihts' fierce offensive had dealt a heavy blow to the Kanesadas, causing ectoplasher than usual
Without shi+ori's assistance, the Kanesadas th to unleash the final roar—
In any case, Masatsugu ”ith the flow and did as natural” and succeeded in upholding the principle of ”escaping as quickly as possible from a battlefield of certain defeat”
”It looks like Tachibana-dono does not share the knightly ideal of putting up a ht He fled with such speed and decisiveness”
On the saddle of his wvyern that was flapping its wings, Edward smiled wryly
The last of the red-purple Legions had just been wiped out in front of his eyes
Instantly killing nine survivors was a piece of cake Only the Black Prince, his wyvern, and the Order of the Garter remained in the aerial battlefield
”I could burn the whole mountain to conduct a search but it is unlikely that he would loiter in the vicinity”
Edward looked down at thehis shoulders
He recalled the girl as leaning against Tachibana Masatsugu's chest He originally thought she was si the ride for some kind of reason and did not pay much attention to her—
”That girl has an air quite similar to Eleanor's She seems to be well-versed in noetics too”
The beautiful maiden's noble and pretty face and platinu
Edward decided he should investigate her background
Tachibana Hatsune was running through the forest at full speed
Of course, she was using a Mibu wolf to do the running, instead of running on foot
The reinforce ere a reference to this whitethe three Chevaliers they had just rescued
”I hope the princess and Onii-sama are fine”
So far, there were no signs of the lady she served and the youngup
Just as she orrying about their safety, Hatsune sensed so behind her She had some recollection of this very sarcastic voice
Not too long ago, she had heard the sa the Feat of Arms—Kotouhihisshutsu
Hatsune had recalled how the voice offered to teach her a good plan Then the principles to using that secret an Yoshi+tsune was giving advice again
Hatsune focused to listen Sure enough, the blue scroll appeared in her right hand
”What's up, Yoshi+tsune-san?”
The scroll told her that her friends were out of danger At least, that was the e Hatsune sensed
”Really!? They still haven't shown up, and I orried sick This is great news!”
Well, with that dead fish in charge, failure would come as a surprise
”Are you talking about Onii-sama? Well, it's true that he's not a very lively person”
Talking to herself in front of a scroll was quite a bizarre scene
However, Hatsune was not in thetruth without any mental preparation beforehand
That isn't what I meant That man and I are the same In other words, ere awakened from our ancient deaths
”Huh?”
Hatsune jumped in shock Now, she really doubted whether her ears were hallucinating or not
Part 2[edit]
The expedition to Fuji City had unfolded with unexpected developments
After surviving ht shi+ori back to Suruga Along the way, they met up with Hatsune and the three Chevaliers who had ales No one was left behind Also, they had gathered quite a lot of information—
However, Akigase Rikka could not help but frown after listening to the report
”Perhaps I should not be saying this after requesting your aid, Your Highness”
Rikka was in the castellan's office, gruu
”What would we do if anything happened to our imperial princess? Please understand the importance of your safety”
”I aency situation, I overstepped my bounds”
The scolded princess apologized obediently, de contrition in her words and behavior in a perfect performance of docility Truly an inexperienced actress In the end, Rikka did not pursue the matter very far
Thanks to the princess risking herself, three Chevaliers were rescued
The three young Chevaliers were named Habuna, Maike, and Tabi, members of the Tōkaidō provincial arth was about 50
The noetic officers at the Suruga tutelary fort unsealed their Appellations for them
”I do appreciate gaining more subordinates, who need to be looked after, in this a for now”
Rikka grinned and did not complain any further about the princess' recklessness
The three new additions to their forces also brought unexpected effects They excitedly told their fellow soldiers in the Suruga tutelary fort about what they had seen and heard
Namely, the conversation between Edward the Black Prince and Tachibana Masatsugu during the retreat battle
'Until a few days ago, I had to live my days under an alias too I presume the case is the same for you?'
The Resurrectee leading the British forces had said so profound
Added to the original ruan to spread aa soldiers
Indeed, everyone was deeply convinced that Tachibana Masatsugu's true identity was precisely Hijikata Toshi+zō
The next day after their return from Fuji City—
Masatsugu had accompanied the princess to the tutelary fort While they were there, they separated at some point
While he was taking a stroll alone, the soldiers and officers' attitudes towards him was clearly more careful and polite than before The three Chevaliers, Habuna, Maike, and Tabi even went out of their way to greet him
At every opportunity, they would discreetly ask Masatsugu, ”Tachibana-dono You are Lord Hijikata, right?”
Every tiu reacted indifferently
”No” ”I have no idea” ”Not really” ”Who knows?” ”You've got the wrong guy, I think?” ”Don't believe in weird rumors”
Masatsugu simply repeated denials monotonously He could not be bothered to explain the reason