Late at night in the forest, the birds, beasts, insects, and ants rustled without restraint.
Only three people who didn't belong here lay hidden beneath a covering of dead branches and leaves, holding their breath, not daring to make a sound.
"This is truly humiliating..." Laban, a bearded knight-commander of the Kingdom of Midland, found himself sandwiched between his two remaining guards. "I actually have to do this just to survive..."
Generally speaking, even if nobles were captured, they could be treated fairly well, and after the fighting was over, they might even be ransomed back to freedom.
But that approach didn't work in Doldrey.
Especially if he fell into the hands of General Boscogn. Laban knew he would certainly die, his head hung from the city gates to be pecked by crows and vultures as a warning to the Midland army.
That was precisely why Laban and his knights had fled so desperately from the Black Iron Boar Lancers.
Many knights had sacrificed themselves to protect Laban, but unfortunately, Laban and his two guards were still trapped in the forest, surrounded by enemy troops. They had to hide like this to avoid discovery.
"Hss..." Laban suddenly couldn't suppress a quiet cry of pain.
The two guards had been watching their surroundings, but now they both looked at him nervously. "Lord Laban, you... what's wrong?"
"I'm afraid it's poison." In this situation, Laban could only smile helplessly. "During the day, I crossed paths with Adam, the commander of the Green Tiger Rampaging Knights. He shot me."
"Although the wound was treated in time, it seems I've been poisoned after all." Laban shook his head as he spoke.
"His arrows were poisoned? That despicable bastard!" One of the guards couldn't help but curse.
"There's no use talking about it now." Laban said calmly. "Our priority is to rejoin the main army. I believe the White Tiger Knights and the knights under Irvine's command are hurrying to our aid."
"We'll continue hiding. In the second half of the night, when we're sure the pursuers aren't nearby, we'll make a dash for the base camp... As for whether we can find an antidote before the poison runs its course, we'll leave that to fate."
For now, that was all they could do.
They lay quietly beneath the decaying leaves.
Suddenly, Laban frowned and whispered, "Hasn't it gotten... too quiet around here?"
At that moment, the two guards also realized it. The birds, beasts, insects, and ants that had been rustling moments ago had fallen completely silent.
"Damn it!" A sinister feeling rose in Laban's heart. "We've been discovered. Get out of here!"
Both guards obeyed Laban's order without hesitation. They stood up and brushed the branches and leaves from their bodies, but then they saw a dim yellow light flicker around them, followed by another light...
In an instant, their position was encircled by a dense ring of torches.
Soldiers in heavy armor emerged from the firelight, their shields emblazoned with the emblem of a black boar.
It was indeed the Black Iron Boar Lancers!
This cavalry regiment numbered three thousand in total. Though not all of them were gathered here, Laban took a quick look and estimated there were at least a hundred cavalrymen present.
He could only sigh helplessly. "To capture just me, you've actually mobilized this many troops..."
"So you are indeed Laban."
The commander of the Black Iron Boar Lancers, mounted on a heavily armored warhorse, a lance and shield in his hands, slowly emerged from the crowd.
"You're one of the young leaders of Midland's knights. Just think what kind of reward I'll get when I present you to Governor Gennon and General Boscogn!"
The Black Boar commander licked his lips greedily beneath his helmet.
Beside him, another cavalryman appeared, wearing the armor of the Kingdom of Midland. It was the same cavalryman who had recently volunteered to help Laban and the others by drawing off the enemy.
Back when they were surrounded, Laban had no choice but to use a desperate tactic, releasing that cavalryman to mislead the enemy. He never expected the man to surrender and betray them, accurately revealing where Laban and the others were hiding.
Laban didn't even look at the traitor. He drew his longsword, and the two guards followed suit.
"It seems you don't want to be captured alive?" The Black Boar commander chuckled and waved his hand. "Then I'll grant your wish! Archers, fire!"
A squad of crossbowmen stepped forward, raised their weapons, and loosed a hail of bolts at Laban and his two men.
To escape, Laban and the others had abandoned their exhausted horses and heavy shields along the way. All they had left now was their armor and their longswords, which they could only use to desperately bat away the incoming bolts.
In the first volley alone, the two loyal guards were struck by several bolts, taking wounds meant for Laban.
Laban himself wasn't hit, but the poison from earlier was taking its toll. He gasped, half-kneeling on the ground, barely managing to stay upright by gripping his longsword, which he had driven into the earth.
The crossbowmen reloaded, preparing for a second volley.
The Black Boar commander raised his hand to stop them. "Only one left. Let me finish him. Laban, dying by my hand will be an honor."
Laban clutched his poisoned wound, sweat pouring down his face, his complexion pale. But he still glared defiantly at the Black Boar commander.
The commander saw only a dying man's last struggle, which he found amusing. He spurred his horse and charged the heavily armored warhorse toward Laban.
And it was at that moment that someone at the very edge of the encirclement suddenly screamed.
If it had been just one scream, perhaps someone might have thought they'd heard wrong.
But then more screams followed, accompanied by the crunch of bodies being cut down, tearing through the formation from the outside in.
The Black Boar commander and Laban both stared in shock at the direction from which the sounds came, watching as the cavalry hastily tried to deal with this "spear" that had pierced the night!
Fwoosh!
Nidhogg, cloaked and armored, carved his way through on the spirit steed Torrent. His Lordsworn's Greatsword, his brass shield, and his armor were all splattered with blood.
One man, one horse, charging alone, had completely shattered the formation here.
The Black Iron Boar Lancers, despite their overwhelming numerical advantage, couldn't bring their heavy armor to bear effectively. They were being toyed with, cut down one after another, dying within moments of his approach.
Crossbows, lances, and shields flew into the air one after another, then fell into the blood-soaked mud.
Fwoosh!
Nidhogg casually cut down another cavalryman with his greatsword, then looked toward the center of the encirclement.
Laban knelt there, staring at him in stunned amazement, utterly bewildered by what was happening.
Nidhogg spotted Laban and whistled.
Torrent deliberately kicked out with his hind legs, smashing the head of a cavalryman trying to sneak up from behind, then leaped and soared through the air.
Thump!
Torrent easily cleared the loose ring of cavalry and landed right in front of Laban, who was full of astonishment.
Nidhogg hung his brass shield and reached out his hand to Laban. "Come with me!"
Laban instinctively reached out, and Nidhogg grabbed him, pulling him up onto Torrent's back.
"You... you are..." Laban was bewildered. He didn't recall such a heroic figure among the people he knew.
"We'll talk about it once we're out of here," Nidhogg replied briefly. He squeezed the horse's flanks, and Torrent prepared to break through in one direction.
Finally, the Black Boar commander, who had watched the entire rescue unfold, couldn't accept that the cavalry regiment he had meticulously built was being easily shredded by one man. Nor could he tolerate being ignored from start to finish by this stranger.
"Raaaah!"
The Black Boar commander roared, and his heavily armored warhorse charged at Nidhogg with surprising speed, his lance aimed straight at Nidhogg's vital points.
"Behind you! Behind you!" Laban, already dizzy from the poison, still mustered the strength to warn him.
Nidhogg had indeed noticed the Black Boar commander. But the commander's heavy armor and warhorse were no match for Torrent's speed. He was about to let it go and just escape.
But after Laban's warning, he changed his mind.
Instead of leaving this threat to chase after them like a vulture eyeing carrion, it was better to deal with it now. The Black Iron Boar Lancers were already in chaos. This might buy them more time.
With that thought, Nidhogg reined in Torrent.
Torrent understood immediately. He turned and charged straight at the Black Boar commander.
"Hah, you fool..." The Black Boar commander, confident in his heavy armor, saw Nidhogg's lighter gear and knew his lance would easily pierce it. "Die!"
Fwoosh!
The lance, propelled by the momentum of the charge, thrust forward—but Nidhogg dodged it with a swift lean.
The Black Boar commander's thrust met only air. He turned in astonishment and saw Nidhogg, having passed him, also wheel his horse around. Nidhogg gripped his Lordsworn's Greatsword with both hands and swung in a spinning strike!
CRACK!
The sword crashed down on the Black Boar commander's head!
The helmet and the commander's entire head were split in two—from the right eye down to the chin. His terrified expression was frozen there forever!
Thump!
The Black Boar commander, his head cleaved in half, couldn't stay on his horse. He tumbled to the ground in a grotesque heap.
Nidhogg flicked the blood from his greatsword and looked around. He saw shock, fear, doubt, panic, and hesitation in the eyes of the surrounding cavalrymen.
When he urged Torrent to break out again, the Black Iron Boar Lancers, having lost their commander, gradually ceased their pursuit and encirclement. They could only watch in a daze as he and Torrent carried Laban away and vanished into the night.