Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 108

“Advance!”

The heavy castle gate lowered with a groaning thud, dust and rust falling from its ancient hinges as it bridged the dark moat. Nearly two thousand troops began to cross.

Ninety-eight knights, seven hundred and thirty crossbow cavalry, and nine hundred and twenty-two infantry.

It was certainly a force to be reckoned with, but noticeably smaller than the one that had attacked Tomodo Castle just two months before.

In the past, attacking Bipros Castle with this small army would have been like killing themselves.

‘Yes, in the past.’

The command staff was tense, but Logan was smiling.

“Logan… this feels very risky, doesn’t it?” Patrick asked, his voice tight with worry. “Aren’t you worried at all? Really?”

“How many troops do you think are even left at Bipros Castle? Duke Jordan ordered everyone to fight. His men would be too scared to say no.”

“And we are openly ignoring the warnings of that terrifying man.”

Patrick spoke with a stiff expression, but Logan still seemed full of confidence.

“Come now, our situation is different. Didn’t I tell you? Father agreed as well.”

“……”

“Father, please be positive. This is a chance to reclaim our ancestral lands after two hundred years. And the super strong person fighting his rival for power will not move fast, especially not for this little land grab on the frontier. And if he does move…”

“Then Valterheim will be ruined, so there’s no need to worry.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Patrick nodded slightly, but his face was still full of worry.

“What if the Second Prince’s faction wins the civil war?”

“We’ll have to side with the First Prince before that happens.”

“And if it’s the opposite, they’ll reach out to us instead?”

“Exactly. Either way, the civil war will end sooner or later. No matter who wins, Duke Jordan can’t do what he threatened. That is, if we take Bipros Castle and become a key card for both factions. Wasn’t that what you understood and agreed to?”

Logan shrugged, but Patrick continued in a more serious tone than ever.

“You do realize there’s a major flaw in your plan, don’t you?”

“……Yes?”

“The assumption that the civil war won’t end while we’re taking and growing in Bipros Castle. You seem quite certain that this civil war will last a very long time. Isn’t that right?”

Logan’s face stiffened slightly at those words.

Looking back through history, there were very few cases of a civil war within a country lasting more than a year.

The Grandia Civil War, which lasted a full three years, was a very unusual case.

His father’s question was natural, but Logan had inadvertently overlooked the fact.

“Ah… well… just looking at the current state of the war, it doesn’t seem like it will end easily.”

“It sounds like you have another reason for saying that, not just the war.”

“It’s just a hunch for now, but isn’t there a good chance? I think it’s worth betting our fate on.”

“Is it really just a simple hunch?”

“…What do you mean?”

“No, never mind. Haa… we’ve already decided, so let’s do what we can.”

Patrick looked up at the clear sky.

The cold air filled his lungs, reminding him that winter was getting colder.

Closing his eyes, the sharp coolness reached deep into his mind, and he recalled the image of his son he had seen at the royal palace not long ago.

The sight of him smiling coldly as he watched Larry Clett’s death still made Patrick uneasy, but he also felt a strange pride.

‘Surely… it can’t be.’

No, in fact, it didn’t matter if it was true.

Whether his son had accelerated the civil war or not, it didn’t matter.

Either way, the lad would have done it for the good of the family.

It wasn’t just this time, but he had often felt that his son was hiding something, but he trusted that much.

So, he should support him, not create unnecessary discord.

Now was the time to think of only one thing.

The ancestral lands.

The lost glory.

The opportunity to find all of that was now before them.

And when that time came….

“Haa… well. I don’t know if I’m crazy, or you’re crazy, or the world is crazy. But since it’s come to this, let’s give it a try.”

He couldn’t know what his father was thinking, but he could at least see that the anxiety had disappeared from his eyes.

Therefore, Logan could answer with a willing heart.

“Yes!”

– Open the castle gates and surrender quietly. Then, I will spare your lives.

“Damn it. What in the world are those lunatics believing in?!”

Rentor, the current commander of Bipros’s defenses and a high-ranking knight, spat out a rough curse as he looked at the approaching enemy forces beyond the castle walls.

Currently, Bipros only had twenty-two knights and about five hundred soldiers remaining.

The possibility of holding out against an enemy force of nearly two thousand was virtually non-existent.

If the enemy had at least declared war, they would have gathered even the minimum number of troops dispatched to other castles.

No, even if they had conscripted people to act as arrow fodder…

‘What good would that do now?’

He couldn’t retreat either.

[Peretta’s army will join you. Hold out and defend it as much as possible! You must!]

In fact, there was no mention of the main force returning in the lord’s communication.

Yet, he was told to defend it at all costs.

Was he saying that because he really thought it was possible, or was he being abandoned?

He couldn’t even properly grasp the true meaning anymore.

However.

“Hold out! Reinforcements are coming soon! Defend it at all costs!”

The words he spat out to the soldiers had to be hopeful.

Now that all the elite troops had gone to the central front, he, the only remaining high-ranking knight, was the only hope for the Bipros army.

“It seems they have no intention of surrendering nicely.”

“No need to drag it out. We’ll take it down immediately.”

“Yes!”

No sooner had Patrick’s words fallen than McLain’s army began to advance.

The towering castle walls, over twenty meters high, were as large and wide as they were tall.

But the magnificent size of the castle walls acted as a complete weakness this time.

They had to defend the entire wide wall with an overwhelmingly inferior force.

McLain’s knights advanced from the direction of the south gate, and the forces split left and right along the east and west walls, scattering into three groups, but even one of those groups outnumbered the total number of knights stationed in Bipros.

Unless some ancient magic was hidden in Bipros Castle, they would not be able to overcome this absolute disadvantage.

Therefore, there was no hesitation in the movements of McLain’s knights.

“Capture the castle!”

No sooner had the lord’s roar fallen than the knights charged from all three sides simultaneously.

About thirty knights from one side scattered and stepped onto the castle walls, leaping up.

And the knights of Bipros, who had to stop them, were gathered only at the front of the castle, the south gate.

Leaving only soldiers stationed at the east and west gates.

“Form a line and hold out! An opportunity will come if we hold out!”

Rentor decided to concentrate his knight forces on the walls of the south gate, buying as much time as possible, instead of blocking the enemies invading from other directions.

‘If the knights scatter, they’ll only be defeated one by one. We’ll hold out here!’

It would take a considerable amount of time just to deal with the soldiers on the east and west walls.

If they could preserve their knight forces intact, they could aim for a counterattack when reinforcements arrived.

It was a terrible strategy, or maybe not even a strategy at all, more like a betrayal.

And on top of that.

Neigh.

The north gate, the only gate the enemy had not attacked, creaked open. A fancy carriage pulled by four strong horses rolled out. Even with the chaos of battle all around, soldiers could clearly see six knights guarding the carriage.

Everyone was already losing hope, but then Rentor shouted loudly.

“Look! The noble ladies and young lords are safe! They have escaped! Nothing to fear now! We will fight to the end! We will defend this castle!”

*What about us?* the soldiers thought, looking at each other in disbelief. Rentor, not noticing their confused faces, kept shouting words that made the soldiers feel even less hopeful.

“Ha!”

Logan jumped onto the castle wall in just two quick leaps. He had chosen the east gate because it was unguarded; there were no enemy knights there at all.

*Screeeech!*

“Aargh!”

The sound of metal on metal and screams filled the air as soon as Logan reached the top of the wall. His sword flashed, cutting down soldiers with a single strike. Those soldiers fell silently, too quickly killed to even cry out. But the soldiers next to them screamed in terror.

Their screams spread along the wall as more knights followed Logan, climbing onto the wall and attacking. None of the Bipros knights, who should have been leading the defense and encouraging their men, were to be seen. It was sadly predictable.

“Kneel down! If you surrender, you will live!”

Most of the soldiers dropped their weapons and sat on the ground. They gave up because the knights were too strong, like super-humans, and the fighting was all on one side. Ordinary soldiers had no chance.

“P-Please, spare me!” cried soldiers in despair. Surrendering was the only thing they could do. Just like that, the east gate was lost. It was so easy, it was almost unbelievable.

But Logan didn’t waste any time. He quickly ordered,

“First Squad, go down and open the gate! Everyone else, follow me to attack the knights on the south wall!”

He glanced to the west wall and saw his father had already taken it in the same way. *If they are this much stronger, we don’t need plans. But is it really this easy?* Logan thought. *Well, if the enemy is foolish, that’s good for us.*

“Let’s finish this!”

Logan yelled and ran towards the south wall, fast as the wind. Tomodo was a huge city, much bigger than the castle itself. But that just showed how few enemy soldiers there were. Suddenly, a ridiculous voice echoed.

“I am Rentor, a great knight of Bipros! I challenge you to a duel! If you are a true knight, face me like a man!”

*Oh, please,* Logan thought, feeling embarrassed by the enemy’s words. He stopped running and chuckled. He didn’t want to waste his time on such an idiot.

Just then, their own soldiers rushed in through the opened east and west gates. Seeing them, Logan pointed his sword at the foolish Rentor.

“Archers, fire!”

The wall was wide open and clear. Arrows rained down on the twenty-two enemy knights who were grouped together.

*Tap tap tap!*

“C-Cowardly!” Rentor stammered.

“Yes,” Logan said. “And you are stupid.”

*Screeeech!*

The enemy knights fell, looking like pin cushions stuck with arrows. Then, Logan’s sword ended Rentor’s life. Logan cut off Rentor’s head, held it up high, and shouted.

“We have won!”

The land of their ancestors, taken from them two hundred years ago, was theirs again. Maclaine had won it back almost too easily.

“Everyone has done well,” Patrick said, his voice calm but full of strong feeling. You could see it in his hands, which were shaking slightly as he touched the armrest of his lord’s chair at the front of the Grand Hall. Knowing how their lord felt, the knights in the Grand Hall became quiet and respectful. Patrick looked around the hall in the silence. It was now decorated with flame designs everywhere, not the rose designs that used to be there. Even though this was not a complete victory, and the main enemy army was still outside, they had won this battle. They had taken back their ancestral lands.

Patrick took a deep breath, trying to control his strong emotions, and looked at the knights standing in lines in the hall. Then he spoke.

“Our Maclaine family has finally won back the land of our ancestors. This is all because of you, all of you here. I am lucky to have you as my loyal knights.”

His voice trembled a little as it echoed softly in the room.

“This place is not just for celebrating our victory and the great things you have done. First, we must remember and honor our friends who died in this fight. I will not forget them. The knights who made this victory possible…”

Patrick began to say the names of the dead knights, one by one. Each time he said a name, the knights standing in line slowly lowered their heads to honor their fallen friends. Some of them had been knights of Maclaine for many years, and some had come from Tesron or Silvan. Fighting together had made them brothers, no matter where they came from.

“…I will keep your names in my heart and remember you always. Because of your loyalty and bravery, I will take care of your families and make sure they have a good future.”

When Patrick finished saying all the names of the dead knights.

“Loyalty!” *Thump.*

“Glory to Maclaine!” *Thump.*

“I will give my life to be a burning sword for Maclaine!” *Thump.*

The ground shook as the knights stomped their feet. The sound filled the Grand Hall and made everyone’s hearts beat faster. When the feeling of that powerful moment began to fade, Patrick spoke again.

“I will always remember and value the sacrifices that made this victory possible. Now, we should talk about the future of Maclaine.”

Patrick looked at his oldest son, Logan, who was standing just below him.

“Father, I think it would be better if you said it,” Logan said, wanting his father to enjoy this happy day.

“When you drove out Tesron, I was amazed. When you built Maclaine Town, I was truly amazed. I knew then that you were beyond my expectations. It was a good surprise,” Patrick said.

“Father…” Logan started to say.

“And now, you have driven out Silvan and taken Bipros. You, not me, are leading our family. And the danger is not over yet. You are the leader now, and you should encourage the knights.”

Logan knew he couldn’t refuse anymore. He sighed and looked at the knights kneeling before them. He stepped forward.

“…As you know, a time of trouble is coming. Maclaine will not stop here. I hope you will be like wings for our family, carrying us higher and higher in this chaos!”

“Loyalty!!”

“All rewards will wait until this victory is truly certain. Don’t relax yet!”

“Yes! We understand!”

“We have won! And we will keep winning! And I will share all the glory with you!”

Logan’s ambitious words, full of hope, echoed through the Grand Hall.

“Glory to Maclaine!!”

The shout came back even louder, filling the entire hall.