Chronicle Legion:Volume 2 Chapter 6
Chapter 6 - Battle between Lion and Hound
Part 1
Legions were normally described as "winged giant soldiers."
However, they did not have true wings. Instead, they simply had "wing-like decorations" on their backs. Some Legions even lacked such decorations.
Consequently, their ability to fly had nothing to do with wings.
They simply hovered in the air, producing thrust from their bodies. Furthermore, there was a secret hidden under their feet. Their soles were capable of producing buoyancy, allowing them to use the atmosphere as a foothold, stepping on air as though it were mother earth herself.
This was why Legions were able to use swordsmanship, unarmed combat, and other martial arts in the air.
After all, these were all skills that were designed and trained with the ground in mind.
(Well, carrying out a melee battle in the air does have the drawback of having "a huge consumption of ectoplasmic fluid.")
And currently—
The two armies were in the sky over Mount Satsuta, exhibiting their respective martial arts.
Charging into the chaotic battle, Tachibana Masatsugu finally arrived before than man. Masatsugu was riding a blue wyvern of Imperial Japan while the other party was on a white wyvern of Britain.
"Wow!"
The man widened his eyes in surprise on this first encounter.
King Richard I, the Lionheart. He was the general leading a thousand Escalibors.
"I see—so this is your objective?"
"What do you mean?"
"Please, do not play dumb. You wish to have a duel with me, because winning would instantly overturn the disparity in numbers... You are an admirable samurai, good sir."
With burning eyes of fervor, Richard spoke with ecstasy in his voice.
"I am quite moved. Never did I expect in this Far East island nation to encounter a knight well-versed in the aesthetics of the duel."
"Not at all. I'm not worthy of your praise."
A somewhat crude term occurred to Masatsugu. The so-called "game brain."
Applied to Richard I, it would be the chivalry romanticism brain, perhaps? His thoughts were simplistic and he liked to interpret everything through the lens of dramatic chivalry, just as Masatsugu suspected.
'The vast majority of his behavior undoubtedly consisted of unruly whims—'
Shiori had told Masatsugu that a certain historian had made such a comment on the Lionheart.
Were someone like him not a "war genius," it would have been trivially easy for Masatsugu to win.
Meanwhile, unaware of Masatsugu's thoughts, the Lionheart said, "You must recognize my name, don't you? Samurai, introduce yourself."
"Tachibana Masatsugu."
"Acknowledged. Tachibana, huh? In that case, let us begin."
Richard raised the sword he had been using like a marshal's baton and pointed its tip at Masatsugu.
Masatsugu quietly nodded and likewise drew Izumi-no-Kami Kanesada. The two of them prepared to duel quickly and efficiently.
Indeed, a duel did not need words.
Disregarding the differences between a Japanese sword and a one-handed western sword, they were both using swords as weapons.
Both weapons were comparable in length, neither projectiles nor lances, meaning that they had fight in close quarters...
The two of them gently kicked their wyvern's belly at the same time.
The two wyverns flapped their wings and slowly flew forward.
Their distance gradually shrank. Initially five meters... four meters, three, two, one... Finally, the blue and white wyverns were about to brush past each other.
Incidentally, both Masatsugu and Richard were wielding their swords right-handed.
Swinging their right arms at close range, their deadly blades were about to strike their opponent—In the next instant...
"Hah!"
"!"
Richard gave a mighty shout while Masatsugu remained silent.
An exchange of blows. Both riders were holding the reins in their left hand, thus leaving only their right hand available for battle. The renowned katana and the western sword collided with a mighty clang, producing a shower of sparks.
"Lionheart, you have a fine sword there."
"Hohohoho, the samurai's katana is not the only celebrated sword."
Masatsugu offered concise praise and Richard responded proudly.
When ordinary swords clashed with Izumi-no-Kami Kanesada, their blades would end up severed as easily as bean curd. However, King Richard's sword had managed to block the Japanese blade.
He was probably using some kind of heirloom sword treasured by the English royal family.
The two of them exchanged another four or five blows at once.
A battle of offense and defense where both sides blocked with their sword while trying to slash the opponent using their prided blades.
The sound of blades clashing was as rhythmic as musical instruments.
Only first-rate swordsmen were capable of producing such a melody of the battlefield.
Furthermore, their wyverns were no slouches either. They glared at each other with savage demeanors, striking violently with their flapping wings. The wyverns were also pushing tightly against each other in a contest of strength like a sumo wrestling match.
...Suddenly, Richard's wyvern kicked with its right leg.
This kick fell near the waist area and Masatsugu's wyvern backed away.
The two wyverns became separated by four or five meters, interrupting the sword match. There was no way to slash each other no matter how far they stretched their arms.
"Another go?" Just as Masatsugu muttered to himself, a palm-size retainer beast appeared on his shoulder.
The messenger pipe fox had teleported here. Preparations were evidently in order. There was no more need to stall for time.
The next step was to see how much of blaze he could light up in Richard's heart. Seeing the pipe fox scurry into his chest pocket, Masatsugu nodded to himself.
In contrast, due to the separation interrupting the fight, the Lionheart said with exasperation, "Hmph. If only I could fly on my own."
Richard grinned fearlessly while expressing his dissatisfaction.
This could not be helped. Unlike Legions, Resurrectees like Masatsugu and Richard did not have the ability to fly and could only fight by riding wyverns—Logically, that should be the case.
"What the hell!?"
However, Richard's next step surprised Masatsugu.
Noesis suddenly gathered around Richard's left arm, shimmering like a mirage, and turned into a gigantic left arm. It was clearly an Escalibor's arm.
Raising his left arm, which had turned into a Legion's gigantic arm just like that, the Lionheart made a fist and attacked—
A left straight. A crimson fist of steel was heading straight for Masatsugu!
"You are wide open, Tachibana!"
"...Kanesada!"
Masatsugu hastily called the name of his Legion.
He subconsciously raised his left hand, believing that his palm would be able to stop a winged giant soldier's left straight.
Next—A giant arm also flew out from Masatsugu's palm.
It was a red-purple Legion's, a Kanesada's left arm. This arm opened its palm and firmly caught the Escalibor's deadly punch.
"I see now."
Seeing the amazing feat his left arm had accomplished, Masatsugu understood.
The first time when he saved Princess Shiori at the Suruga tutelary fort, he had stopped a falling Kamuy using his body of flesh directly, even pushing the Kamuy's heavy body away. Just as he was doing now, he had summoned a Legion into his body and used its strength to achieve that superhuman feat.
"This is a move... that virtually all modern Chevaliers are incapable of," Richard grinned.
Upon closer examination, one could see "phantoms" of Legions behind the two knights and their wyvern mounts.
The hazy outlines of two winged giant soldiers were shimmering unsteadily like mirages. The red British knight Escalibor attacked with a thrust of its fist while the red-purple samurai Kanesada raised a palm to block—
These figures had manifested after Richard and Masatsugu had merged themselves with their own Legion.
"Tachibana, sure enough... you are the same as I?"
"Sorry, I can't answer you."
"Then I shall ask you again after I seize victory, assuming you survive!"
Then the "phantom giants" disappeared.
The reckless skill of summoning a Legion within oneself was a heavy burden on one's body. It was not supposed to be used for long periods unnecessarily.
The two wyverns came close together again to put on another show of sword against katana.
However... This was not Masatsugu's ultimate goal.
As expected, Richard was an excellent fighter.
At this rate, the smaller Kanesada army would be wiped out before the duel finished.
Hence, Masatsugu allowed Richard's sweeping blow to strike him on purpose.
Richard's sword sliced open Masatsugu's right flank with a splatter of blood. The wound was not shallow either.
"Guh—!"
"Kukukuku. So this is the extent of the renowned swordsmanship of the samurai!?"
"...Retreat. Move up as much as possible to avoid getting caught."
In contrast to Richard's gloating triumph, Masatsugu quietly issued orders.
The blue wyvern flapped its wings and backed away before rising rapidly, speeding up to flee the scene.
Masatsugu gently touched the chest pocket of his school uniform.
"Discard your notions of fleeing. Fight me to the bitter end!"
Richard yelled in delight.
He was utterly consumed by the desire to pursue Masatsugu. In the next second, it was the Lionheart's turn to be alarmed.
"What!?"
Gunfire from the ground was attacking the Escalibors and the Kanesadas that were locked in an aerial battle.
In fact, Masatsugu's army was not the only Legions that had sortied from the Suruga tutelary fort.
The three Chevaliers, Habuna, Maike, and Tabi, had also headed out to the suburbs.
Each of their Chevalier Strength was around fifty and they had summoned 150 Kamuys... Moving their forces extremely stealthily.
They did not fly in the sky over Suruga like Tachibana Masatsugu had done to draw the enemy's attention.
The trio had secretly summoned Legions at the military zone facing Suruga Bay. Under the night sky, all hundred and fifty Legions marched underwater without emerging from the sea surface. The army lurked in the shallows by the coast near the spot where Masatsugu's Kanesadas had intercepted the British army.
Naturally, they had avoided flying in the air to prevent Richard from discovering them.
This tactic was decided right from the start. They were going to head out separately from the Kanesadas, moving either through the sea or at extremely low altitudes. Then while Masatsugu was stalling for time, they would get into formation as quickly as possible...
The battlefield where two Resurrectees clashed was the sky over Mount Satsuta.
The three Chevalier's 150 Kamuys were set up in the hills of Mount Satsuta.
The goal was to deliver the first devastating blow to King Richard's army of one thousand, while helping Tachibana Masatsugu to escape as well.
"Gather together, my knights! Enter formation again!"
While Richard yelled, a number of crimson Legions were shot down again.
While Masatsugu was playing the part of a duel between generals, a volley of rifle fire emerged from the ridgeline of Mount Satsuta below.
The three Chevaliers rescued from Fuji City had entered the battle with the 150 Kamuys under their command.
Their entire army was firing from the ground at the Escalibors and Kanesadas that were locked in an aerial battle, killing them one after another. Protective barriers were having virtually no effect.
"It was worth it for me to act as bait," Masatsugu muttered while enduring the sharp pain from his flank.
The Kanesadas and the Escalibors had broken out of their packed formations to engage in a chaotic skirmish. Protective barriers were ineffective unless Legions were clustered together with friendly forces.
Under such circumstances, the thousand Legions on the British side suffered heavier losses.
There were only 360 Kamuys while the Escalibors were roughly thrice as numerous. The chances of indiscriminate gunfire hitting an Escalibor was naturally higher.
"Not quite the same as planned... But it's a good result."
Until now, Masatsugu had been doing everything he could to draw Richard's attention, thus buying plenty of time.
Playing to Richard's preferences, Masatsugu had ordered his army to draw their swords and charge the enemy, and he even played the part for a duel between generals. Naturally, the romanticism of chivalry was not his goal.
Everything was done in order to set up an ambush on the ground and lure the fierce lion into a trap.
Originally, he wanted to charge into melee when the back or the side of Richard's army presented an opening. However, that would be too much of a luxury.
Confronted with unexpected anti-air fire, the Escalibors entered a packed formation again.
The sphere finally took form. The white particles of the protective barrier glowed brightly, blocking the flashing rain of light being fired from the ground.
Seeing the British army regrouped in their defensive formation, the Legions on Mount Satsuta stopped firing en masse.
Currently, the red British Legions were down to 812 in number.
"Roughly two hundred eliminated..."
This was achieved only through the Kanesadas drawing their swords to engage the Escalibors, followed by the barrage of anti-air fire just now.
Conversely, the Kanesadas led by Masatsugu were down to 203. Of the original 360, almost half had been killed in the fighting earlier. This was the limit to what could be achieved through direct confrontational tactics.
"All units retreat. Defend me with everything you've got."
Masatsugu issued his command quietly and glanced at his wound.
The slice was not deep enough to reach internal organs, but the blood loss persisted. There were also intermittent pangs of pain. He needed first aid as quickly as possible.
The problem was that he had no time to be treated, so all he could do was ignore the wound.
In front of the injured commander, the remaining 203 Kanesadas withdrew from the sky over Mount Satsuta. Riding his wyvern, Masatsugu followed them.
In any case, they needed to do everything they could to escape to the sea—In other words, towards Suruga Bay.
The second phase of the hunt was about to begin.
Part 2
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Part 3
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Part 4
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