Rose Empire

Chapter 33: The Necromancer (Part 3)

The knights and their squires arrived at the castle one after another.

Since it was just past noon, Charlotte guessed that some of the knights might not have had lunch yet, so she had the kitchen prepare some bread and cheese in advance.

The first to arrive were Rayne Nazares and the forty-four knights who had accompanied Charlotte. Their camp was the closest to the castle, and they had rushed over as soon as they received the news.

The second wave consisted of scattered southern knights. Some had already been relocated to the north, while others still lived in the southern regions closer to the castle.

The third wave was a group of northern knights led by Ed Adkins. Among them, Charlotte spotted a familiar figure Celine Adkins. While the other knights were clad in heavy, iron-like armor, the girl still wore her dusty leather armor, standing out prominently in the crowd.

Charlotte smiled and winked at Celine. The girl, startled like a frightened animal, hid behind her father.

"Celine, come here," Charlotte called out directly.

Celinewanted to pretend she hadn't heard, but Ed Adkins didn't cooperate. Seeing Charlotte addressing his daughter, he stepped aside, leaving Celine with no choice but to step forward.

"What do you want?" Celine asked stiffly.

"Child, how can you speak to the viscountess like that?" Ed Adkins scolded softly, emphasizing Celine is youth in the hopes that Charlotte wouldn't mind her rudeness.

Charlotte smiled, showing she didn't mind, and even stepped forward to take Celine is hand. "Come with me."

Though reluctant, Celine had no choice but to follow Charlotte under the watchful eyes of everyone.

The northern knights watched Celine is retreating figure with approving smiles.

Many southern knights, however, felt a pang of envy. Why didn't they have a young talent like Celine who could catch the viscountess's eye?

As Charlotte led Celine deeper into the castle, the surroundings grew quieter. Celine, feeling uneasy, suddenly stopped. "Where are you taking me? What do you want?" Her small hands nervously clutched her chest.

"With a battle imminent, what could I possibly do?" Charlotte asked with a laugh.

"Oh…"

Indeed, they were about to go to war. Even if Charlotte were driven by lust, she wouldn't act recklessly at a time like this. Why had Celine forgotten that? Relieved, Celine couldn't help but feel annoyed at herself for always seeming to lose her wits around Charlotte.

As they walked, Charlotte continued, "I didn't expect you to come."

"I didn't want to. My father made me," Celine lied.

In truth, Celine had always been fond of martial arts but had never been on a real battlefield. When Charlotte suddenly summoned all the knights for battle, Celine, curious about what a real battlefield would be like, had asked to join her father. Ed Adkins, considering that his daughter held the title of Charlotte's companion and that fighting for Charlotte was her duty, had agreed.

After lying, Celine felt a bit guilty, but fortunately, Charlotte didn't press further. The two descended the stone steps to the castle's basement. Charlotte nodded to the guard at the door, who understood and turned the handle, opening the heavy iron-clad wooden door.

Inside, the room was filled with treasures and chests of Fuso. Celine, who had never seen so much money in her life, was awestruck. To Charlotte, however, the million Fuso here would barely suffice in times of crisis. But to Celine, this was no less than a legendary treasure trove.

"Over here," Charlotte said, leading Celine to a flat wooden box. She opened it to reveal a finely crafted suit of armor with a silvery sheen and intricate patterns, nestled in soft white wool felt.

"Try it on," Charlotte urged.

Under Charlotte's insistence, Celine removed her leather armor and donned the magnificent silver suit. The armor was clearly designed for a young woman, with proportions that better fit a female figure. The chest area was padded with soft silk for comfort, and even the edges of the skirt armor were embroidered with decorative patterns, clearly not meant for combat.

Celine, who already possessed a healthy beauty uncommon among sheltered noble ladies, had her charm largely hidden by her usual dusty leather armor. Now, clad in the stunning silver armor, Charlotte couldn't help but be impressed.

"Beautiful," Charlotte praised with a smile, then explained the armor's origins.

"I had this custom-made for myself by the royal craftsmen in Platinum City. It's made primarily of Ice Gem Steel and enchanted with a self-repairing miracle. I didn't expect it to fit you so well."

Ice Gem Steel was an alloy forged with various supernatural materials using a special process. Its crystalline surface, resembling gemstones, gave it its name. The surface was as hard as gemstones, yet the material was far more flexible and elastic than ordinary steel, making it one of the best defensive materials on the continent. The formula for Ice Gem Steel had always been a royal secret, inaccessible to ordinary nobles. Even a great noble like Mellerfield could only purchase the finished product from the royal family.

Celine ran her fingers over the armor's surface, feeling the gem-like texture. The flowing miracle light made it even more exquisite. The self-repairing miracle was commonly used in the Oran Empire's standard knight armor, but Celine had carefully observed her father's armor and never seen such a fluid, luminous effect. Clearly, even miracles of the same effect varied in quality.

Wearing such fine armor for the first time, Celine felt somewhat overwhelmed.

"If it fits, it's yours," Charlotte said, clapping her hands.

"Give it to me?" Celine shook her head repeatedly. "No, it's too expensive."

"Going to battle is dangerous. This armor is much safer than your leather one," Charlotte insisted.

"You could wear it yourself. My leather armor is enough…" Celine still resisted.

Charlotte pressed a finger to Celine is lips, silencing her. "I'd rather entrust my life to my knights than to armor. Will you protect me, my knight?"

Celine is body stiffened, her cheeks gradually reddening. She mumbled for a while but couldn't bring herself to say yes or no, instead fiddling with the hem of the silver armor.

Celine is leather armor wasn't wasted. Charlotte lifted her hair and said, "I don't have any other armor. Help me put this on."

"Okay…" Celine obediently stood by Charlotte's side and helped her into the dusty leather armor.

It was the most common type of leather armor found in armies, with only slight alterations to better fit Celine is smaller frame.

"I… I'm not a knight yet," Celine suddenly whispered, her head lowered.

"Then you'll have to earn your merits quickly. I look forward to the day I can rightfully call you my knight," Charlotte said with a smile, adjusting her sleeves.

Once dressed in the leather armor, Charlotte and Celine left the basement. Before exiting, Charlotte grabbed a black cylinder from a weapon rack.

After they left, the guard locked the iron-clad door. Later, during the evacuation, the guards would move large stones from the garden to block the staircase leading to the basement. That would be enough. Charlotte didn't believe a bunch of corpses could chew through stone and iron.

Outside the castle, the southern and northern knights had mostly assembled.

This time, forty-eight southern knights and forty-seven northern knights had arrived, along with Charlotte's trusted retinue, totaling one hundred and thirty-nine knights and about two hundred squires.

"Milady, the main force of the walking corpses is very close. If we don't leave soon, it'll be too late," Hermann Green reported.

Charlotte tossed the black cylinder to Hermann and walked out of the castle, saying, "Then let's set off immediately."

"Also, according to Knight Jack Moore's reconnaissance, there are many scattered wandering corpses on our planned eastern flanking route," Hermann added.

Charlotte slowed her pace slightly. "Is that good news or bad news?"

"Both good and bad," Hermann explained. "The good news is that Miss Lilith believes this phenomenon indicates the necromancer has created too many corpses to control effectively, suggesting his strength hasn't exceeded our expectations. The bad news is that if we still take the eastern flank, we might be discovered by the wandering corpses."

"Then abandon the pincer plan. We'll focus on one route and flank from the west," Charlotte decided.

"Yes," Hermann immediately went to relay the orders.

Charlotte stepped onto the castle's front steps. Rayne Nazares raised the banner, and the knights before the castle fell silent, hands on their sword hilts, standing solemnly.

"Knights, as you know, a necromancer of unknown origin has appeared in my territory. He has slaughtered my people, trampled my land, and now seeks to attack my castle. This is undoubtedly an insult to me and to Mellerfield. I, Charlotte Mellerfield, cannot and will not tolerate such an insult."

Charlotte slowly drew the viscount's sword bestowed by the emperor and spoke in a calm yet anger-laden voice. "Knights, bring me his head."

"Your will!"

Over a hundred knights shouted in unison, then mounted their horses and followed Rayne Nazares, who carried the banner, westward.

As the main cavalry force advanced, they also sent out some squires who hadn't yet earned their knighthood as scouts. These scouts wore no armor and carried no weapons. When they spotted corpses in the distance, they waved small flags to signal the main force, which would then take a wider detour to avoid detection, silently galloping toward Cowbell Village and Green Fish Village.

Regba Dando controlled the corpses, slaughtering every village he encountered along the way, then reanimating the slain villagers and the remains from the village cemeteries to join his army. His forces grew larger and larger, marching toward one target the castle of the Ripple Bay Viscount.

From the memories of an old man in Green Fish Village who had rarely left his home, Regba Dando learned the location of the Ripple Bay Viscount's castle and that the viscount was a well-known fool.

No wonder he had done something as ridiculous as blocking the trade routes!

Even his knights were despicable!

Regba Dando felt even more justified in his decision to take revenge on the Ripple Bay Viscountcy.

During his march, Regba Dando encountered two patrolling knight squads. As he had expected, the young knights leading them only displayed One-Wing strength and quickly retreated upon seeing the overwhelming number of corpses.

After that, Regba Dando encountered no further resistance. The path to his target was surprisingly smooth.

Even though he had never commanded a battle before, Regba Dando couldn't help but feel suspicious. Were the nobles of Ripple Bay Viscountcy really going to let him run amok without any resistance?

Finally, as dusk approached, the lord's castle came into view through the eyes of the corpses he controlled. The joy of reaching his destination dispelled his doubts, and Regba Dando immediately ordered an attack on the castle. Under the necromancer's control, the corpses let out hoarse, terrifying cries to intimidate the enemy while charging at the castle's outer fence with unnatural agility.

And then…

They got in.

Without any resistance.

There were no defensive structures like barricades, trenches, or caltrops outside the castle only a bamboo garden fence, clearly decorative and offering no real protection.

Regba Dando had expected the Ripple Bay Viscount and his knights to at least put up some defense of the castle. Instead, the castle gates were tightly shut, and not a single living soul was in sight.

Where was everyone?

Where had they gone?

Regba Dando felt a surge of frustration, like punching air, with no way to vent his anger. He considered breaking down the castle's doors and windows to force his way in, but it wasn't easy. The Ripple Bay Viscount's castle, though old and dilapidated, was still a castle. Without siege equipment, forcing entry would be difficult. The heavy gates would require a battering ram to break through, and even if the small windows were shattered, they were too narrow for an adult to climb through.

Fortunately, Regba Dando was resourceful. He used adult corpses to toss the bodies of children into the castle for reconnaissance. The result was disappointing the castle was empty.

For a moment, Regba Dando was at a loss. Had he captured the lord's castle? What now? He was still wanted by the Religious Tribunal and couldn't stay in Ripple Bay for long. But leaving like this felt unsatisfying, as if his revenge hadn't achieved the desired effect.

"Cowards of Ripple Bay! Stop hiding! Come out and fight me, you filthy, spineless pigs…"

Regba Dando controlled a recently deceased male corpse to shout insults and make mocking gestures in front of the castle.

Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed in his ears.

With so many corpses under his control, Regba Dando couldn't immediately pinpoint the source of the noise. It took him a moment to locate the corpse nearest to the sound and shift his primary perspective to it.

Boom.

Another explosion rang out.

Regba Dando saw iron hooves shatter the village fence, followed by a tall warhorse carrying a spirited girl in silver armor, raising a greatsword.

In his final glimpse, the sword's light was as pure as snow.

That was… Cowbell Village!

You called, and I came, was the only thought that crossed Regba Dando's mind in his shock.

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