A few hours after midnight, in Telas Kingdom, in the king's bedroom…

Thud thud thud!… Thud thud thud thud!

The loud banging on the door wakes King Telas. He blinks at it through the darkness, wondering if he was perhaps hearing things.

Thud thud thud thud!

「King Telas! Please wake up! Terrible news!」

A voice from beyond the door shouts after another series of loud bangs.

「…Enter!」

He shouts after a brief grumble, rubbing his face with his palm. The door hastily swings open.

「King Telas! The envoy from Redwing Kingdom returned! Queen Redwing demands the kingdom's surrender!」

The man shouts, pointing his finger in panic at the open door in panic. Half-awake, the king blankly stares at him from beneath his cover.

「…What!?」

King Telas abruptly jumps up to sitting, eyes wide open.

「The envoy said he was almost beheaded by her aide! They presented him with… Pictures of the razed village, and she wouldn't listen to a word he said!」

The man continues explaining as the king throws the blanket off and stands up with a greatly shocked and unnerved expression on his face.

「But why would she do that!? I've sent an envoy exactly as she-!」

The king goes silent as his eyes widen. He paces around the room back and forth, stroking his short beard in deep, intense thought while he stares at the floor.

「…This is a farce.」

The king says with disbelief in his voice as he stops in his tracks, turning his gaze back to the man.

「…Your majesty?」

The man furrows his brows, staring at him with confused eyes.

「This is just theater. She never intended to resolve this peacefully- Nay, it's entirely possible I have been made into a fool. She likely burned the village herself.」

「But why would she do that, your highness?」

「To give herself an excuse, fool!…」

King Telas shouts angrily at the man, stomping up to him. He takes a nervous step back, leaning away as the king shouts in his face.

「…She's a woman! She will be unpopular with the peasants! Warmongers are especially unpopular! Declaring an unprovoked war could stir an uprising!…」

The king continues shouting in the man's face. He then steps away, erratically pacing around the room again.

「…But if she were to frame me as an invader and herself as a glorious protector of the domain…」

He stops, clenching his fist and teeth in anger. The man by the door watches silently with a tight-lipped grimace on his face.

「…Grrrrrrh! Mobilize the troops! Immediately! I want armored units guarding the border while the rest assembles at Tollenheim! I will teach that brat her place!」

King Telas lets out a frustrated groan, then snaps his eyes to the man, shouting orders while he flails his arm around with a scowl.

「Yes, your highness! Right away!」

The man nods and runs out of the room. King Telas lets out another anger-filled sigh and sits down on his bed, then grabs his shoes and begins slipping them on…

…

In the dewy, cold early morning, by the border between Telas Kingdom and Redwing Kingdom…

A column of armored men are marching down a dirt road towards a village in the distance, the elements of their equipment clattering loudly. A brown banner with a white eagle flaps in the cold wind as it's carried by one of the soldiers in the column.

「…Now!」

They draw near a forested area flanking their sides when a shout comes from the trees.

Fffwap!-Clunk! Ffwap!-Krrk! Fwapfwapfwap!

「Ngh!」「Urgh!」「Gah! Fuck!」

Crossbow bolts come flying out of both treelines, piercing through their armored plates with a deafening clamor of metal on metal as the projectiles rip through their thin armor, and only stop at the soft flesh within. The men grunt and curse out in pain, and a chaos unfolds in their ranks as they scramble to surround themselves in raised shields. Some men are limping to the back, and some lost their grip on their shields due to a bolt stuck in their arm. The uninjured fraction of the troops quickly takes the initiative and moves to the front, shielding the rest. The frontmost men notice movement amidst the trees.

「Shields up! Shields up! Wounded to the rear! Advance toward the enemy!-」

An officer weaves through the stumbling troops and hops over some of the ones writhing on the floor, waving his longsword around while barking out orders to the men around him.

Fffwap!- Fwwap!- Ffwapffwapffwapfwap!

Another volley of bolts flies out of the forest, most of them bounce off the helmets of the front ranks and fly deeper into the formation, concussing the already injured casualties. Some of the projectiles manage to slip past the shield wall and puncture another hole into anyone unfortunate enough to not be in cover, forcing more panicked screams of pain out of the abruptly halted column. The eagle banner drops to the ground.

Tink!

One of the bolts impacts the officer's helmet and ricochets off, spinning wildly into the air. Dazed, he stumbles backwards into some of his men, blinking in surprise.

「…R- Retreat! Retreat! Keep those shields up! Get the wounded up! Retreat!」

The officer screams an order conflicting with the one he shouted just a moment ago, causing the men at the front to glance at him over their shoulders with confused, uneasy eyes. Some of the lesser wounded men pick up those with bolts in their legs by their arms and help them skip back to the rear of the now-disorganized formation. The men with the shields stop in their tracks, aborting their sluggish advance, and backpedal while trying to keep the shields as close together as possible. In their retreat, the armored men stomp over the brown flag, muddying it further. What was a regular marching column is now a panicked and hasty retreat.

Some of the attackers sail out of the forest, crossbows in hand. Lightly armored with only gambesons and leather caps on their heads, they point their crossbows at them.

Fwap! Fwap!… Fwap!

「Aagh!」「My arm!…」「Gnnghghh!…」

The armored men scream in pain as singular bolts fly towards them, accurately striking them from the uncovered flanks. The uninjured men at the front are forced to decide whether to keep a cohesive shield wall up, or try and protect the already battered and injured men being mercilessly pelted from the side by the ambushers.

Fffffwap! Ffffwap! Ffffwap!

Another volley of bolts comes from the treeline. As the distance between the armored men and the trees grows, the bolts become more scattered and inaccurate. Most of them are deflected by the shields, and some harmlessly deflect off the angles on their armor while the men themselves duck their heads right on cue of the fluttering feathers.

「Enough! Return to formation!」

A voice from the forest shouts. The handful of ambushers stalking the retreating forces turn their gazes back to the trees, then turn around and jog back, sparing the armored troops from another salvo of accurate fire. The ambushers return into the treeline, disappearing amidst the trees. Taking it as an opportunity to quicken the pace of the retreat, some of the men at the front turn and help the rest limp back faster. No further volley comes from the trees while the panicked armored troops groan and grunt, retreating after a disastrous encounter that took only seconds…

…

Around the same time, on a large hill by a main road interlinking Redwing Kingdom and Telas Kingdom…

A man on a horse gallops up the hill to Straf, Cycelia, and a handful of officers crowded around them amidst a tent camp.

「Minister! The skirmishers report that all the villages you ordered taken are ours! They now have full control over all three main routes!」

He exclaims as his horse slows down to a halt in front of them. Straf nods in approval with his fists on his trench coat covered hips.

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「Good. It's time for phase two. Tell the scouts to seek out enemy units and report at the forward camp when they locate the main force.」

Straf replies to the man, and nods his head towards the slope of the hill behind himself, where a thousand or more men are resting on the grass by wagons.

「Yes, minister! Hup-hup!」

The man nods and gallops down the hill towards the soldiers below. Straf turns his attention to Cycelia, who is wearing a set of plate armor. Her ornate cuirass bears a metal image of a dragon spreading its wings in brass or gold, her legs are covered by a wide skirt of armored plates, and one of the officers holds her similarly ornate helmet in his hands while they discuss the logistic side of the campaign. Her armored dainty hands rest on her sword's pommel, tip pointing downward into the earth. She notices Straf is looking at her and meets his gaze.

「You sure you want to do this, Lia? I could have handled it alone.」

He asks, shrugging his shoulders with a tight-lipped grimace on his face. She looks at the men below the hill, briefly glancing at the First Rat Hunters waiting for orders in their off-white armor while they sit on the grass. Hundreds of horse-drawn wagons wait nearby idle infantry, and dismounted knights are feeding their armored horses at the rear of the camp. Her emerald eyes return to Straf.

「It's my duty, Straf. The very citizens have been attacked. I have an obligation to respond to this myself.」

Cycelia replies, then watches the large group of light cavalry trot down the road below towards Telas Kingdom.

「You don't seem too happy about it…」

Straf remarks, watching the scouts depart with her.

「How could I be, Straf? King Telas made his choice when he ordered his troops mobilized, but that means bloodshed. I can only hope it will be kept to a minimum before they surrender.」

She lets out a sigh with a sullen expression on her face. She holds her hand out for her helmet, and the officer returns it with a light bow.

《…Am I the bad guy?》

Straf rubs his chin with brows furrowed, watching Cycelia slip the helmet onto her chestnut head. Her green eyes full of determination turn to his.

「…More importantly Straf, are we advancing? You said we will be when they take the main roads.」

She asks, briefly glancing at the mustached men with serious faces standing near her, who are likewise waiting for Straf's answer.

「Yeah, it'd be about time. Let's get to work. Tell the men to board up and establish the forward base. Like I told you before, rear elements guard the logistic lines…」

The men nod as Straf orders them around, but then he notices Cycelia shivering, rubbing her arms and keeping them close for warmth.

「…Are you cold, Lia?」

He asks, raising his brows. Her eyes snap to his in mild surprise, and she lets out a bashful, quiet giggle.

「…A little bit. I've never worn armor before, I didn't expect it to be this cold already.」

Cycelia shrugs her armored shoulders, smiling softly. Straf sighs and takes his trench coat off.

Fwap!

「Huh?…」

It flutters loudly as he throws the coat onto her shoulders, wrapping it around her.

「…Here. I suppose it works if you wear it too. Perhaps even better.」

He shrugs, and returns his attention to the officers.

「Board the men up. Move them up, forward base. Have the Rat Hunters at the ready to march out as soon as the scouts report the location of their main forces. Go on.」

Straf nods his head towards the army below. The officers nod and salute.

「Yes sir!」「Yes minister!」「At once!」

They exclaim in unison and run for their horses, mounting up. A few seconds later, they gallop down the hill towards the units' officers.

「Well… We should get going too, Lia. Come on.」

Straf shrugs and places his hands in his pockets as he turns towards the sole wagon waiting on top of the hill.

Thud.

The wagon bobs slightly when he hops up into its back.

「Here.」

He holds his hand out for Cycelia to climb onto with. She smiles and takes it.

「Wah?」

She barely manages to place a foot on the step when Straf effortlessly pulls her up to the wagon. He sits down, placing his elbows on the backrest of the bench seats, and stretches his legs out onto the seats in front of him. Cycelia sits down beside him. When the driver sees that they're both seated, he whips the horses with the reins and drives the wagon towards the gently inclining slope while the rest of the officers pack up the tents to their own wagons. Straf looks at Cycelia while she's further wrapping herself up in his coat.

「Better?」

He asks with a bored expression on his face.

「…Yes. A little.」

She nods, smiling while hiding her lightly blushing face in its collar. Straf nods, grimacing slightly as he looks at the gray, cloudy sky above while the carriage rolls.

《Straf's coat…》

Cycelia covertly pulls up the collar closer to her face and takes a deep breath.

《…Still smells like clothes.》

Her shoulders slump with a quiet, disappointed sigh. The wagon rolls down the hill and joins the troops in their march towards Telas Kingdom…

…

Roughly two hours later, under a bridge across the Nahr river in Telas Kingdom…

Dressed in all black, lying in the sparse grass below the stone bridge and watching the wide river flow past her, Stripe lets out a long, frustrated sigh with her arms crossed.

「I'm a spy for the Eastern Kingdoms… Why do I have to do this for my enemy?…」

She grumbles quietly under her breath, clenching her fist around the black cloth used to wrap her head. She looks at the two IEDs larger than usual lying beside her.

《…Is it really that bad, though? This is the exact type of job I'm good at. And it's not like I'm working against the Eastern Kingdoms by doing this.》

Her gaze drifts up to the stone bridge above. Her golden eyes stare pensively at nothing in particular while she thinks.

《「…It's less about trust in you, and more about trust in your abilities. But y'know, you can always prove me wrong and fuck this up…」》

Her mind wanders back to Straf's smug grin as he was tasking her, petting her head and rubbing her ears while at it. She grunts quietly in frustration.

「Stop touching my ears already, you bastard….」

She mutters to herself, turning her gaze down the river with her mouth heavily scrunched to the side. Her head suddenly perks up, and her ears swivel.

…Clank… …Clank… …Clank…

Stripe quickly wraps her head in the black cloth, leaving only a narrow horizontal slit for her eyes. She takes the two large IEDs under her arm and crawls to the crest of the riverbank.

A column of armored soldiers are marching down the road towards the bridge, flags of Telas Kingdom fluttering in the air above them. There is a long caravan of cargo-laden wagons rolling alongside them. Stripe's golden eyes narrow, and she slinks beneath the bridge again. She waits, listening for the armored footsteps and hooves to get closer. She unties the grappling hook from around her waist and prepares it in her hand. She flings it at one of the support beams she has access to, and the hook secures itself in place.

She pulls the pin on one of the IEDs and places it on her resting spot. Taking the other one in hand, she swings across the river on her grappling hook with ease and deftly drops to her feet on the grass. Stripe unpins the second IED and throws it beneath the foundation of the bridge on the other side. Her golden eyes briefly dart upwards to check if any of the crossing troops are peeking over the sides, but none seem to have noticed. She gives the grappling hook's rope a few skilled tugs, and the hook drops down into the water.

Stripe quickly pulls it back into her hand then runs alongside the riverbank and up into a nearby treeline. She leaps behind a bush and watches the oblivious troops.

When the bridge is fully loaded with troops and cargo wagons, the first IED glows white.

BOOOOOM!!…

A magic reaction much larger than the one she saw before rumbles the ground. A portion of the bridge collapses, sending the wagons, the soldiers, and their horses down into the river.

…BOOOOOOOM!!

The second IED beneath the bridge goes off. The troops on the bridge are still stunned and recoiling from the first one, screaming questions at each other in panic when a shockwave from below sends some of them flying into the air, spinning wildly before impacting the ground with a light, gruesome bounce. The rest tumble down the riverbank into the river, never to surface from the weight of their armor. Stripe backs away from the bush with slow, cautious steps, before dashing inward into the dim, orange-yellow autumn forest.

《That was way too easy… That's kind of frightening to think about…》

Her golden, vertically-slit eyes briefly glance over her shoulder in the general direction of the destroyed bridge.

《…I wish all of my missions were like this.》

Stripe thinks as she's making her way back to the after-mission meeting spot…