Heavenly Swords of the Twin Stars: Volume 4 (eBook)

Riku Nanano (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2024
250 Seiten
J-Novel Club (Verlag)
978-1-7183-1566-2 (ISBN)

Infos

In the six months since Gen rejected Ei's attempt at bartering peace, Sekiei, Hakurei, and the others have sheltered themselves in the western regions, guided there by Oto. Though Oto is the strategist Ruri's attendant, her true identity is that of U Torahime, the daughter of the U family.

Within that same time period, the White Wraith Adai Dada and his armies have encroached further and further into Ei territory, and the nation is in dire straits. With nowhere else to turn, Kou Miu, the younger sister of the emperor who ordered Chou Tairan's death, comes pleading for the Chou and U families' help.

The decision they face is a tough one. Should they stay in the western regions where it's safe? Or should they risk their lives to defend the very nation and sovereign that have wronged their family for so long? The curtain rises on Ei's counterattack, and Miu may just be the key to victory.

Textauszug

Chapter One

“Lord Sekiei, I have eyes on the bandits in question. The intel we received was correct; they are around two hundred strong. Most of them are wielding swords and axes, with very few archers and cavalry. All are dressed in lightweight armor,” Oto reported from the branches of a tree as she stared down at the road below. The red cloth in her hair rippled in the wind.

Oto was the daughter and only child of U Jouko, the Tiger Fang, who’d fallen in battle. She was wearing lightweight armor over the traditional garb of the western tribes, and in her hand she held a bamboo stick with a metal cylinder attached at its end. It was a fire lance, a weapon that could shoot rocks and pieces of metal through the use of gunpowder. A sword hung from her belt, and she carried a well-polished shovel upon her back.

The U soldiers hiding nearby looked up at Oto before glaring at me. In their eyes, Oto was the orphaned daughter of their deceased master. Even if she weren’t using her birth name, U Torahime, that didn’t change her identity. That she was acting as my subordinate was the likely reason behind their hostility.

“Nice! I knew I could count on you, Oto!” I said. In spite of the soldiers’ disapproval, I—Sekiei, the adopted son of the Chou family—was genuine with my praise.

About half a year ago, the foolish emperor of Ei, along with his treacherous subject Rin Chuudou, executed National Shield Chou Tairan in Rinkei, the capital of the empire. We had been in such a state of shock that only Oto, despite being our junior, had been fit enough to lead us to Butoku, a major city in the western regions the U family ruled over. She was very reliable for her youthful age.

I patted off my black military uniform and looked at the road ahead. To the east dropped a steep cliff that few would dare go near. To the west lay a thick forest. Finally, to our south, a group of bandits was approaching a small stone bridge at a sedate pace. We’d heard that they’d been causing trouble around Butoku these past few months.

I stroked my chin as I assessed their strength. “They’re a lot more organized than the bandits we’ve been dealing with lately. The one in the middle of the group with the axe is...uh...”

“That’s Shigou, or the Tigerslayer as he likes to call himself. There are rumors that he drifted here from the central plains after he couldn’t cut it in the military. But not enough reliable sources can corroborate that story. He’s defeated all of the soldiers the U army sent to capture or kill him, and he’s been vandalizing many of the old shrines to the west as well,” Oto said, scaling down the tree with ease and returning to my side.

That explains why the small and friendly tribes around these parts asked for our help in getting rid of them. I was wondering about that, since we’re not exactly within Ei territory right now.

“Listen up, you guys,” I said, causing Oto and the U soldiers to straighten their postures.

The elite soldiers of the former Chou army weren’t with me right now. They were sneaking behind the bandits in order to ambush them. Their allegiance was to Hakurei (the eldest daughter of the Chou family), Ruri (an ascendant and our military strategist), and me. Yet despite their absence, I was, for some reason, the commander in charge here. I may have the foggy memories of my past life as Kou Eihou—the great general of the Tou Empire—but I’m not really cut out for this kind of stuff. Not that I could’ve turned down Oto when she asked me to do this though.

I tapped my hand against the scabbard hanging from my belt. Inside it was Black Star, one of the twin blades that made up the Heavenly Swords. “Relax. Everything’s going according to our scary little strategist’s plans. Our enemy may be the Tigerslayer, but he’s about as threatening as a newborn cub compared to the soldiers we’ve been up against lately. Besides, I think our little princess is much scarier than this bandit. Just don’t tell her I said that.”

The soldiers chuckled. They looked a lot less nervous than before.

Oto smiled as well before she grew serious once more. “As soon as they enter our range, we’ll bombard them with fire lances and arrows. Then, when their movement from the road is cut off, we’ll commence a pincer attack alongside Lady Hakurei and Lady Ruri’s team, and destroy them! We shall let that arrogant Tigerslayer witness the strength of those who’ve fought against Gen’s Wolves.”

“Yes, Lady Oto!” all of the soldiers said, moving to their stations as one to prepare their fire lances and bows.

The stench of gunpowder, long since familiar, hit my nose. These soldiers had eliminated dozens of bandits these past three months without even a single fatality. I doubted that I needed to micromanage—

“Oh?”

“Huh?”

Oto and I couldn’t contain our surprise. The line of bandits had stopped in the middle of the canyon. A large man wielding a poleaxe was yelling something from atop his horse, a panicked look on his face. In response, the bandits picked up the pace; apparently, they planned on forcing their way through the narrow road.

Oto’s eyes widened. “Why are they...?”

“They must’ve smelled the gunpowder. Man, he’s got a sharp nose.” With bow in hand, I jumped onto my black horse, Zetsuei, and ordered in a curt voice, “Oto, I’m going to slow down the bandits at the front. I want you to follow Ruri’s plan and shoot at them from the side to incite confusion. Hakurei and the others will come once they hear the sound of fighting.”

“L-Lord Sekiei?! You can’t—”

“I’ll leave it to you!”

Ignoring Oto’s surprised cry, I galloped out of the forest, my black hair flowing in the wind. My field of vision cleared as soon as I broke through the line of trees. I reached the road before the bandits could cross the stone bridge, nocked three arrows into my bow, and, turning to face the bandits, let them fly. The arrows landed in the enemies’ shoulders, one by one, as they scattered with faces twisted in desperation. After knocking about a dozen of them out of commission, I steered Zetsuei to stand at the end of the bridge.

The bandits stared at me, expressions slack with shock. They were completely frozen in place, so I called out to them. “I’d sure like to praise you all for catching on to our trap so quickly.” With slow and deliberate movements, I placed an arrow into my bow and looked up to meet the eyes of Shigou the Tigerslayer, who was in the middle of the group. He looked to be in his late twenties and had a piece of black cloth tied around his forehead. I smirked. “Sorry, but it’s the end of the line for all of you. If you put down your weapons, then we’ll spare your lives. Granted, I’ve no clue what will happen to you later. I mean, you guys did mess up some shrines.”

“Shut up!”

“You little brat!”

“Go to hell!”

Three of the bandits—the few on horses—rushed towards me with furious expressions, ignoring Shigou’s commands to stop. In their hands, they held poleaxes and metal clubs. But they were much too slow. I unleashed my arrows without mercy, shooting them in the shoulders, arms, and legs. None of them got anywhere close to me.

“Gah!” they cried as they fell off their horses and to the ground. The remaining bandits couldn’t hide their fear at the sight.

“Don’t bother trying to flee,” I warned. “None of you’d be able to escape at this distance. Besides...”

A thunderous rumbling echoed through the air. Oto and her soldiers had started their bombardment. Because fire lances’ range of effectiveness and accuracy were far inferior to a bow, very few of their shots actually hit the bandits. But on a battlefield, nothing spread fear better than noise.

“D-Dammit!”

“Wh-What’s this?! Just who are these people?!”

“It’s all over for us!”

“I didn’t know the U soldiers could use magic!”

“H-Hey, what should we do?!”

The bandits were at a complete loss. As Oto and her soldiers continued their assault from a distance, they wounded some bandits and destroyed many of the wooden boxes they were carrying, sowing even more chaos through the group. Oto and the elite U soldiers had survived multiple battles throughout the course of this war, so they were well aware of the power that the fire lances held. Right when I thought I could take a short break, Shigou slammed his fist against the official Ei armor he was wearing.

“Give me that shield!” he yelled, grabbing a giant one and holding it aloft. “I’ll lead the charge! Watch my back, you bastards!”

“Y-Yessir!” the bandits replied, their morale recovering somewhat after hearing their boss’s order.

They started shooting arrows at me as Shigou charged me on horseback, his teeth bared in a ferocious snarl. He knows that a commander’s main job when fighting on the front lines is to inspire their soldiers! The rumors about him being former military from the plains are probably true, then. I released even more arrows as quickly as I could, aiming them at Shigou and his archers, as well as the arrows flying my way. All of them hit their mark. They pierced shields, cut through bowstrings, and knocked arrows out of the air.

“H-He aimed at and shot down the arrows...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 27.11.2024
• Reihe/Serie: Heavenly Swords of the Twin Stars
• Illustrationen: Cura
• Übersetzer: Stephanie Liu
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Fantasy / Science Fiction ► Fantasy
• Schlagworte: action • Historical • lazy male protagonist • Light Novel • Military • past Life • snarky heroine
• ISBN-10: 1-7183-1566-X / 171831566X
• ISBN-13: 978-1-7183-1566-2 / 9781718315662