The Count’s Youngest Son is a Player

Chapter 60

As Emil shouted, the tattoos on the bodies of the Imperial Hound knights became activated.

Their muscles twitching as if they were about to burst, the knights began to rampage on top of the fortress, making it difficult to maintain formation.

This was because, although the fortress itself was strong, the space was far too cramped.

The width was barely 2 meters – honestly, not enough room to freely swing a sword.

With part of the wall given up, the battle was now no different than a test of strength, turning very much in favor of the Empire.

Philip, calmly surveying the battle situation, yelled, “Mercenaries, retreat inside the fortress! Knights, block the enemies’ entry!”

Already barely holding on behind their shields, the mercenaries quickly fell back, allowing the knights to take their place. And the battle intensified.

Now that the knights were fully deploying their swordsmanship, the outcome was…

“Damn it! How can we still be pushed back even after breaking the seal?”

Against Emil’s expectations, a stalemate continued.

This was due to the combination of Philip, Jake, and Pierce – the trio of knights and Dalton and Raul’s duo. Philip, having reached the pinnacle of expertise, was facing two of the Empire’s knights including Emil, cutting down demon beasts with ease in between.

Jake and Pierce also calmly faced off against the powered-up Imperial knights, and astonishingly, Dalton was holding his own against a knight. The expanded space also meant that the capable ones could cover more ground.

Consequently, while several mercenaries on Raul’s side were injured, they were quickly evacuated with no life-threatening injuries.

On the contrary, the Empire’s demonic cavalry numbers steadily decreased, now appearing to be less than fifty.

“Damn! Even if we win, it’s troublesome… Jack is going to be a pain again. But, it has to be dealt with after winning.”

Emil realized he had to play a trump card, which often came with high risks. In a battlefield where dozens of knights wage war, what was the most important thing?

Previously, many would have counted the number of knights or the presence of powerful individuals. But now, there was undoubtedly one thing to be highlighted: Power Armor.

A revolutionary development that transformed the essence of a knight from a mere chess piece to a strategic weapon.

Ever since the introduction of the Power Armor, the tide of battle depended on which side had the stronger Power Armor forces. This led to a keen contest of wits among commanders.

Most Power Armor units did not have unlimited energy. And once they were activated, a cooldown period was necessary for recharging.

In other words, the outcome of the battlefield could be determined by the timing and extent of power armor deployment.

Emil, therefore, concluded that he could no longer delay making a decision.

He meticulously calculated the timing, thinking to himself, “After all, it’s a nascent knight order. Even if it belongs to a count’s household, there are sure to be limits.”

The organization estimated that the First Knight Order possessed between three to five power armors.

These were typically operated by three knights from the Golden Bear Knight Order and one or two newly appointed knights.

This limitation was because operating power armor required reaching at least the expertise level, and practical use required considerable practice and adaptation time.

‘Compared to them, our side!’ Emil thought, realizing there was no need for further calculations.

Slightly increasing the distance from Philip, he shouted, “Activate all armors!”

Mana was then infused into the bracelet on his wrist. With a bright shimmer, black liquid metal stretched out from the bracelet, swiftly enveloping Emil’s body.

Moments later, Emil was encased in an angular, pitch-black armor engraved with the face of Cerberus, the hellhound.

Reveling in the bursting fierce energy, he bellowed, “Kill them all!”

* * *

Throughout the battle, Raul stayed by Dalton’s side, since Philip, Jake, and Pierce were guarding the other three walls.

It only made sense for Raul to take charge here. Yet, Raul found no need to be overly active.

The defense held by Raul’s side was more sturdy than expected, unshaken even by the assault of demonic cavalry.

Moreover, Dalton’s movements exceeded Raul’s expectations.

“He truly has the makings of a master. And that dual swordsmanship—though it appears to be a mere dance at a glance, hidden within are lethal claws. Indeed, it’s the swordsmanship of a Sword Master! That such a talent will only shine in the game’s later stages…”

According to the records, in his past life, Dalton was embroiled in a power struggle within a duke’s family and was unable to wield his sword for a time.

The Sword Master himself wasn’t involved in the family’s conflicts or disputes over rights and children, which may explain the fierce internal strife within the ducal family.

“Such pointless internal conflicts have gnawed away at the kingdom. The ducal family had its share of remarkable individuals.”

Indeed, the ducal family’s forces revealed in the war against the empire fell short of expectations.

While the Sword Master remained strong, the caliber of knights that backed him was not significantly different from other warrior families.

Had Dalton grown without interference, the kingdom might have had another master before the war with the empire began.

Of course, that might not have changed the war’s outcome…

Nonetheless, Raul kept a close eye on Dalton’s movements, coordinating the overall battle unfolding on all fronts.

As a psychokinetic, multitasking was fundamentally possible for him.

If one were to explain, it meant that depending on the method of ability manifestation, positions like attackers who maximize offense, defenders responsible for protection, and assistants who support combat were all viable.
Currently, Raul was firmly taking on the role of an assistant.

His psychokinetic range of manifestation was 15 meters, but his sensing range was at least twice as wide.

Given that the fortress walls were a mere 20 meters on one side, covering the entire fortress wasn’t impossible.

While engaging demonic cavalry with his greatsword, he was also sensing the entire battlefield situation in his head.

If someone were to fall into danger,

Whoosh.

The dagger thrown silently from his arms rescued an ally from crisis.

Additionally, he did not spare any invisible aid, such as lightly pressing down on a leaping demonic cavalry with unseen psychokinesis to prevent them from grasping their shield or enhancing the push of an ally’s spear to force the demon further back at the moment of contact.

And where balance was lost, he would run along the edge of the walls like an acrobat (actually creating invisible psychokinetic steps) to fill the gaps.

Thanks to Raul’s unseen assistance, the balance of power was maintained with the enemy’s casualties increasing.

The tide of the battlefield began to change with the arrival of a mage.

Regrettably, Raul’s First Knight Order didn’t have a proper combat mage. Nakia was available, but joining was difficult due to her sibling’s treatment.

In the short preparation period, Raul did his best to reinforce magical forces, but finding someone who met his criteria was difficult.

The reason was ‘Power Armor’.

Power Armor essentially had defensive magic inscribed that neutralized magic below the 3rd circle.

In other words, one needed to be at least a 4th circle mage to stand a chance against an Armor user (a knight wearing Power Armor).

Consequently, the usefulness of mages on the battlefield decreased, with lower-circle mages working in sectors related to Power Armor instead of combat.

Proper combat mages of the 5th circle and above were mostly active in the magical state of the Leslie Kingdom or the mercenary state of the Marcus Kingdom, leaving Raul with few options.

However, having guessed that the Imperial Hounds possessed considerable magical forces, Raul wouldn’t have been without a plan.

Sensing magic, Raul drew a specially made dagger from his bosom.

It was a weapon made exclusively for Raul, crafted from a single piece of mithril with excellent magical conductivity.

‘Four spells. Their target is the middle of each wall, and the form of magic is a transformation of fire attribute mana. Where’s the core!’

Raul’s eyes shone gold as he meticulously analyzed the incoming fireballs.

With a yell, Raul threw four mithril daggers after analysing the flow of mana composing the fireball and its core in an instant.

Whoosh!

Raul’s gold-imbued mana daggers became beams of light that pierced through the center of the fireballs.

Boom!!

The result was an explosion of magic. To be more precise, it was an interception by colliding with foreign magical forces.

‘Phew. It’s still not easy.’

Though his psychokinesis was at an intermediate 3rd level, infusing thrown weapons with intent and mana still posed a challenge. Had the distance been only slightly greater just now, the mana contained in the rain might have dispersed into the air.

In any case, the important thing was that the method he had thought of had worked.

Though a wizard’s magic was powerful, given enough time to prepare, intercepting it was not difficult for Raul.

“It’s a pity. If only I had been a little closer….”

He might have been able to snipe the wizard with an arrow as before.

They must have recognized such a danger, hence why they were casting magic from afar.

As the knights of the empire climbed the ramparts, Raul found himself increasingly busier.

Compared to the simple movements of the war mages, the knights’ attacks were much more complex and lethal.

Raul struggled to support the mercenaries, but his limits were apparent.

To keep the enemy knights in check, a greater concentration of power was necessary, invariably creating vulnerabilities.

Moreover, once they activated their tattoos for a power-up, minor harassments ceased to work altogether.

Be it psychokinesis or mana, it was a form of power at the end of the day.

For Raul’s psychokinesis to produce meaningful results, he had to invest power that surpassed the target’s resistance.

While it might be easier against instinct-driven war mages, projecting psychokinesis directly onto knights adept in mana manipulation was no simple task.

Casualties mounted everywhere, and Raul focused on evacuating them.

Finally, as the ramparts quieted down on Philip’s command, Raul felt a sense of relief.

There were fewer places to be concerned about.

Now, wielding a greatsword instead of relying on psychokinesis, he crossed swords directly with the knights, and the aura of the battlefield shifted.

“Power Armor!!”

The empire’s knights had activated their Power Armor.

Raul scanned the enemy lines with a cold eye.

For a brief moment, the enemies, donning their Power Armor, surged in momentum, pushing our forces back.

Their number.

“One, two, three, …nine!”

There were as many as nine of them.

And as the enemy’s amplified sword qi pushed our knights back, Raul didn’t show the slightest hint of panic.

Instead, he slightly raised the corner of his mouth and turned his head toward Philip, who nodded back as their
eyes met.

“First Knight Order! Activate Power Armor!”

With Raul’s resounding call, waves of mana began to burst out from various points on the ramparts.

The real battle was about to begin.

(To be continued)