WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Translator: Abood

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◈ Friedrich's Battlefield

Chapter 52: The Recapture of Ostburg Fortress (1)

Among the Bachstein Duchy forces, a battalion of three hundred elite fighters was hastening to secure Ostburg Fortress.

Along the way, they unexpectedly encountered knights of the kingdom who appeared to be on patrol near the fortress, and to their frustration, the knights slipped away. Several factors contributed to this failure. Their cavalry was fully equipped for battle, while the opposing side was lightly armored. At the moment of encounter, the enemy held the top of a mountain pass, while their own troops were at the base, forced to rush uphill in pursuit. Additionally, the kingdom’s cavalry horses were of better quality than those of the duchy forces. As a result, despite their desperate efforts, they failed to catch the fleeing knights.

There was no doubt those knights would report their approach to Ostburg Fortress. That message would also be passed along to the advancing Ferdinand Regiment. Though they would arrive at the fortress first, they would need to hold it against the Ferdinand Regiment until the main force arrived.

For that reason, after capturing the fortress, they wanted every possible second to strengthen their defenses. That’s why they pushed forward with all their might.

“Do not stop moving! If you want to rest before the battle, then reach Ostburg Fortress before dusk!”

The one shouting encouragement was Knight Franziska, commanding the battalion. As the daughter of Duke Ernst Bachstein’s cousin, her orders were obeyed without question. Knights and soldiers alike strained their legs forward. Though fatigue showed on their faces, no one’s spirit was broken.

They already knew they had raised their banners in rebellion against the royal family under the name of their supreme commander, Ernst. They had been told there was only one of two outcomes: defeat and execution as traitors, or victory and reward with gold, land, and titles.

Originally, they had planned to reach the fortress by dusk, lay siege, and begin the assault the next morning. But under Franziska’s orders, they pressed forward, hoping to capture it before the day ended. Finally, they closed in close enough to spot Ostburg Fortress.

At the same time, a single knight came riding straight toward them. He was not a kingdom soldier but Roman, a knight directly under Franziska’s command who had been sent out as a scout.

“Well done, Roman. You got pretty close to the fortress. What about the enemy?”

“The fortress has been abandoned. The gates were wide open, and there wasn’t a single soul inside.”

“You actually went inside the fortress? That was bold... but it’s good news.”

Franziska smiled as she listened to Knight Roman’s report.

“Everyone, that morale boost you had just got spoiled! The enemy has abandoned the fortress and fled! No chance to show your valor today!”

Her words brought a mix of deflation and relief among the battalion soldiers.

If they could take the fortress without a fight, all the better. Franziska, who joked with them, felt the same. With battles still ahead, they wanted to avoid unnecessary losses as much as possible.

“Now, let’s get inside and secure the fortress before nightfall. Tonight, by my authority, you can eat as much of the fortress’s stored provisions as you want!”

Cheers rose up from the troops, and the battalion of the duchy army marched proudly into the fortress they had secured unscathed.

・・・・・・

Three days later, the battalion led by Franziska was holding Ostburg Fortress firmly. They maintained a state of full readiness, prepared to enter defensive combat the moment the kingdom’s Ferdinand Regiment arrived.

“Everyone, don’t let your guard down while on standby. Today’s the day we expect the Ferdinand Regiment to show up.”

After three peaceful days, Franziska called out to her troops, who were beginning to relax just a little.

The timing of the Ferdinand Regiment’s arrival depended on when they had left the royal castle, but Franziska had been told they might have arrived as early as yesterday.

If they hadn’t come yesterday, then probably today, or at the latest, tomorrow, they would arrive and launch an offensive.

The main force of the duchy army and the Arelian troops wouldn’t make it in time. They had to assume this battalion would hold out alone for about a week until reinforcements arrived. Because siege battles overwhelmingly favored the defenders, the fortress wouldn’t likely fall unless they became seriously careless, but they still couldn’t afford to slack off.

“But Captain, Roman’s been taking an unusually long time to return.”

“Yeah. Maybe something happened in the capital that delayed him.”

Franziska nodded in response to the words of the soldier beside her.

Knight Roman had set out as a messenger to report back to the ducal capital, Remcheid, the morning after securing Ostburg Fortress. While it would take nearly two days for a force of three hundred including infantry to make the journey, riding alone he could cover it in a single day. Everyone had expected him to return by yesterday, but he had yet to come back.

Franziska hoped Roman would return before the Ferdinand Regiment arrived.

Even if three hundred soldiers could hold the fortress for the time being, there was a huge difference in morale between besieging with knowledge of exactly when reinforcements would arrive and doing so in complete uncertainty.

Her true desire as commander was to have Roman bring back news of when the first advance from Remcheid, where the forces were presumably gathering, would begin.

Even after the Ferdinand Regiment arrived, if the enemy siege wasn’t too tight, a lone messenger might slip through to welcome them. But she wanted to avoid risking such dangers as much as possible.

“Captain! A convoy of supply wagons is approaching from the northwest!”

At that moment, a lookout on the castle wall by the fortress’s west gate shouted out.

“Supply wagons, you say?”

Franziska raised a slightly puzzled expression but climbed up to the wall with her men. Looking down the road stretching northwest from the west gate, she saw two covered supply wagons approaching, led by knights.

“Judging by the direction, there’s no doubt this transport convoy came from the ducal capital, Remcheid.”

“The knight leading the wagons is Roman. He’s finally back.”

“Well, no wonder he took so long with that entourage in tow. Makes sense why he was late.”

Watching the convoy steadily approach, Franziska exchanged words with her subordinates.

The knight at the head of the column was definitely Roman. Although each knight’s armor was different, there was no way she would mistake the armor of one of her direct subordinates. He also carried the small military flag that was standard for messengers.

“But what on earth are they hauling in those wagons? We weren’t told about any supply transport starting before the main force’s arrival.”

“No, we weren’t. But war rarely goes according to plan. Maybe there was a request from the Kingdom of Arelia to move something ahead of time... Either way, Roman will report on it.”

War seldom goes according to plan. Though Franziska spoke as if she understood this well, her actual combat experience was limited.

No battles had occurred in decades along the border with the Novakian Kingdom or in the Elzass Corridor. For the most part, the Bachstein Duchy forces only occasionally participated as auxiliary troops in minor skirmishes across the Northern Plains and Beiral Plains.

Franziska herself had taken part in two such skirmishes, but in neither did she engage the enemy directly. She considered herself a competent knight, but she could not claim to be well-versed in warfare.

So, faced with an unexpected supply convoy, she merely accepted that such things could happen.

“Prepare to receive Roman and his group. Open the west gate—”

“Ca-captain!”

At that moment, one of the knights posted at the eastern gate, the expected arrival point of the Ferdinand Regiment, came running in a panic.

“We’ve confirmed the kingdom forces approaching! The banner of Count Hosenfeld is flying! It’s definitely the Ferdinand Regiment!”

“…They’re here.”

As the news stirred unrest among the troops, Franziska quietly muttered. She ran along the wall toward the fortress’s east side and surveyed the southeast direction. With her own eyes, she confirmed the banner that marked the presence of the living hero, Count Hosenfeld.

The formation advanced with cavalry at the front, followed by archers, then infantry. Scouts on horseback circled the formation at a distance. The thousand-strong force carried an imposing presence, amplified by their battle-hardened reputation.

Then the Ferdinand Regiment showed signs of movement. A lone scout who had been scouting around the fortress suddenly dashed back to the main force at full speed, and shortly after, the cavalry at the front began to advance not through the east gate, but moving around to the north side of the fortress.

“This is bad! They intend to cut down Roman’s transport convoy!”

Franziska shouted, her face drained of color.

Among the kingdom forces, the Ferdinand Regiment’s cavalry was the elite of the elite. Nearly a hundred riders moved swiftly and with perfect coordination. Meanwhile, the duchy’s transport convoy, dragging supply wagons, was slow and vulnerable.

“Hey, get Roman and the others inside the fortress quickly! They’ll be caught if they stay out there!”

Shouting, Franziska hurried back along the northern route toward the west gate, chasing after the enemy cavalry. The transport convoy, noticing the approaching enemy, hastened their pace under Roman’s urging. The drivers cracked their whips, and the horses strained desperately forward.

Thanks to the drivers’ and horses’ desperate efforts, the transport convoy managed to retreat just in time. Two supply wagons, along with the handful of knights escorting them, entered the fortress as the gates were shut behind them. Seeing the gates close, the enemy cavalry halted their advance.

On the fortress walls, Franziska let out a relieved breath. Meanwhile, before the west gate, Roman and his group were greeted by their comrades who had made it inside.

“Haha, that was close, Roman. You had me sweating watching you out there.”

One of the knights spoke casually to Roman. But Roman, having dismounted, gave no reply and didn’t even remove his helmet.

“Hey, what’s wrong, Roman? Too tired to speak? …Gh—!”

A knight let out a strange sound and suddenly froze in place. A sword was growing from his mouth.

With astonishing speed, Roman drew his sword and thrust the tip into the knight’s mouth.

In that instant, the air around them seemed to stop. A brief silence fell, lasting only a blink.

Then, in the next moment, the knights and soldiers of the duchy army were thrown into shock and confusion. Some screamed and stumbled backward, others drew their swords with grim expressions.

“Sir Roman just killed one of our own!”

“W-what’s going on?! Why would he do that?!”

“No, that’s not Roman!”

“H-hey! Enemies are coming out of the supply wagons! Kingdom soldiers!”

Chaos spread before the west gate, where several supply wagons stood. About twenty soldiers emerged, pouring out rapidly.

One of the soldiers who had been on the driver’s seat of a wagon grabbed a crossbow set beside him and stood up. While doing so, he removed the hood he’d been wearing instead of a helmet, revealing vivid crimson hair.

Footnotes:

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