General Dor wanted to retreat, but the Frankish noble lords weren't having it.
They were all fuming.
The Frank Kingdom was a nation founded on martial prowess. Every last one of its nobles was a hardened soldier. Etiquette was for peacetime; now that their blood was up, there was no way they would let this band of Gray Dwarves off so easily.
"Avenge the Earl!"
They continued their charge against the Gray Dwarves, hot on the heels of the Gray Dwarf Cavalry Corps.
Dor ordered a portion of his men to cover their retreat, choosing to sacrifice a part to save the whole. He had no desire to get into a war of attrition with these humans.
'The road ahead is long,' Dor thought. 'This is only the second fortress. I haven't even touched the truly wealthy lands yet.'
Robson, however, did not charge with his comrades. After confirming there were no enemies nearby, he put his bow away.
In this world, the Franks shared an unspoken bond with their homeland. Robson had been powerless to prevent the Earl's death, but retrieving his body was something he could do.
He initially planned to ride his horse over, but then decided it would be disrespectful. Robson dismounted and walked over to Count Offman's body.
With a long sigh, Robson performed a final Knight's salute over Count Offman's body.
Strictly speaking, he too was a vassal of the Deriman Family.
Regardless, Count Offman had done him favors, and Ed was his friend. Retrieving the Count's body was his proper duty.
At that moment, the Unicorn that had been Count Offman's mount in life trotted over, nuzzling its head against the Count's body.
'All things have a spirit,' Robson mused, before placing Count Offman's body onto the Unicorn's back.
He led the Unicorn over to the body of the Fire Phoenix. The creature had shrunk to a fraction of its former size, its wingspan now only about three meters. A massive sword gash marred its body. Lying beside it was the corpse of Earl Leo.
A pity about Earl Leo. To cover the breakout, he had been forced to use a Forbidden Spell and merge with his Beast Pet. The price of the spell was the utter depletion of his Magic Power, which ultimately allowed General Dor to close the distance and finish him.
Otherwise, his ascension to the Legendary realm would have been a sure thing, and he would have undoubtedly left his mark on the history of the Human Race.
After performing a Knight's salute to Earl Leo, Robson intended to place his body on the Unicorn's back as well and take him back to Shirel Fortress for burial.
To his surprise, a wisp of flame drifted up from the phoenix beside him and landed on Earl Leo's body.
Earl Leo and his Beast Pet burned fiercely together on the battlefield, turning into a cloud of ash that scattered to the wind.
'This is definitely not some prank,' Robson knew. 'The Earl must have arranged this before his death.'
Since that was the case, Robson would certainly respect the Earl's own choice. He wasn't trying to gain anything by retrieving Earl Leo's body; in this, at least, his actions were born of respect.
'Huh? What's this?'
After Earl Leo's body turned to ash, a fiery red egg, about the size of an ostrich egg, was left behind.
'Could it be?' Robson's heart began to race.
The phoenixes of this world were different from those of Robson's previous life. Here, there was no distinction between male and female varieties; the species was uniformly called the Phoenix.
If a female phoenix died while pregnant, her offspring would not perish with her.
In a process known as phoenix nirvana, the child inside her would become an egg and be born immediately.
Sure enough, with a cracking sound, a phoenix wing emerged from the shell.
Then, a small phoenix wriggled out of the eggshell, about the size of a common chicken.
'Wait, isn't this just a chicken?'
Robson was taken aback. Aside from its fiery red feathers, this so-called phoenix looked for all the world like a common chicken.
"Human! Have you seen my father?" the little phoenix asked.
'It's a female,' Robson thought, somewhat disappointed.
Aside from a few special species, male Magical Beasts were generally a bit more powerful.
"Father?" Robson was taken aback.
The little phoenix sniffed the air, and its eyes suddenly froze.
"Dead?" There was a hint of panic in the little phoenix's voice.
'Huh? Dead?' Robson realized he had just stumbled upon a massive secret.
'The one who died here, who was connected to the Phoenix Race...'
'I'm speechless! Earl Leo and his own Beast Pet actually... did something like that!'
Robson could hardly believe it. Although phoenixes could take human form, cross-species romances were rare due to the different aesthetic sensibilities among the various races.
'No wonder I heard the Earl wasn't on good terms with his family...'
'If I were a member of the Dolan Clan, I'd also be too embarrassed to admit that our earl had fallen in love with—and actually slept with—a Magical Beast...'
"This is bad! I have to get out of here!" the little phoenix cried frantically.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" Robson quickly blocked its path.
'Whether Earl Leo was into Magical Beasts or Beastmen had absolutely nothing to do with me,' Robson thought. 'But this little phoenix right here has everything to do with me.'
'Although this phoenix looks for all the world like a chicken, that's only because it's still a juvenile. Once it matures, its appearance will naturally change.'
"I have to get away! Someone here actually dared to kill a phoenix! This place is terrifying!" the little phoenix cried in a panic.
"And where would you run? The Beast Race's army is all over the place. Do you know how the Earl died?" Robson asked.
"That Dwarf?" the little phoenix asked.
'It even knows its father was an Earl. It must have memories from the womb! It looks like this really is a phoenix!' Robson's probing had succeeded, and he understood the situation perfectly.
"To be precise, he was pulled down from the sky by a wicked Gray Dwarf. The Earl had intended to retreat, but he was a step too late and was killed on the spot," Robson explained.
"Ah!" Although the little phoenix's expression remained relatively calm, Robson could still see the panic in her eyes.
"Don't worry," Robson said. "As you surely know, the Earl was on this campaign to protect us. I certainly can't abandon his child. You'll be safe once you follow me to the Siriel Defense Line."
"You're not trying to trick me, are you?" the little phoenix asked, suspicious.
'So it really is the Earl's child!' Robson could only offer his respect. 'Anyway, this kind of unnatural human-and-beast affair...'
'Even if she can take human form, it still feels a little... off. I, Robson, still prefer tall, mature, blonde beauties with wavy hair.'
"I'm Silver-tier. In your current state, who could you possibly defeat?
"To be honest, even if you don't agree, I'm taking you with me. I have to repay the debt I owe Earl Leo," Robson stated.
And he wasn't lying. He truly did owe Earl Leo a debt.
"Well..." The little phoenix considered this and realized the human's words were not without reason.
"Then I'll follow you for now, I guess," the little phoenix replied, a hint of uncertainty in her voice.
DING! Huang Na Dolan has joined your party.
Hearing the notification from the Mount & Blade system, Robson couldn't help but smile.
"Huang Na, can you not transform into other forms?" Robson asked.
"You know my name?" Huang Na asked in surprise.
"Of course," Robson said. "As I told you, I was a trusted subordinate of the Earl and am in his debt. He mentioned you to me before."
Huang Na nodded, half-believing. She had been inside her mother's womb until now, so her knowledge of the outside world was limited. Her ability to speak the common continental tongue came from the racial memory unique to High-Tier Magical Beasts.
"Mm, it seems you really were a friend of my father's," Huang Na said with a nod.
With that, Huang Na's form rapidly shrank. She transformed into a small lark and perched on Robson's shoulder, staring blankly at the top of his head.
After confirming that there was nothing unusual about Huang Na's current state, Robson took hold of the reins of Count Offman's Unicorn and mounted his own horse.
'This time, I've really hit the jackpot.'