Knight: Becoming King of the World

Henry was a little embarrassed but went straight to the point. "Ratifa, I need your consent for something.

An army of mine, nearly a thousand strong, is currently outside the city. I plan to let them enter to rest and merge with my main force."

Ratifa’s eyebrows rose slightly. She clearly hadn’t anticipated such a request from Henry.

"Are you worried they can’t withstand the cold at night?"

Henry nodded. Ratifa thought for a moment, then changed the subject. "As it happens, I was just about to send someone to find you. We won’t have time to watch the matches tonight."

Henry: ???

’Huh? That was a quick turnaround, wasn’t it?’

Observing Henry’s expression, Ratifa gave a satisfied smile and explained, "We’re taking the army and departing tonight. The Prince has sent a letter. Something major has happened; it’s extremely urgent."

Henry’s expression immediately turned serious. There was no time to waste on pleasantries. "I understand. I’ll return to camp immediately and prepare to move out."

"Meet at the North City gate in one hour."

Henry swiftly departed from Ratifa’s castle and rushed back to camp. The moment he arrived, he gave the order to assemble.

The soldiers were somewhat disappointed, as many of them had been looking forward to an evening of relaxation and entertainment, but they carried out their duties without a moment’s hesitation.

They could have their fun and games, but no one treated Henry’s orders like a joke.

Outside the city, Carlos also received the new orders. He had been hoping to change into clean clothes, enjoy a hot bath, and freshen up, but it looked like those plans were now down the drain.

He quickly directed the Mercenary troops, shifting them from a state of rest to combat readiness.

Henry assembled his army and waited outside the city for about an hour before Ratifa appeared with a force of eight hundred men and a train of wagons.

The soldiers of this unit were absurdly tall, their powerful bodies looking as though they had stuffed sandbags inside their clothes.

The sound of the wagon wheels was faintly familiar to Henry. Combined with the soldiers’ builds, he guessed the wagons were likely loaded with heavy iron armor, greatshields, battle-axes, warhammers, and razors.

This must be a unit composed almost entirely of Heavy Armor Infantry, likely Ratifa’s Imperial Guard—her Personal Guard.

When Ratifa saw Henry’s army, she was once again struck by their discipline and preparedness.

This was especially true of the newly joined troops, who looked no less formidable than the army Henry had previously led. The soldiers stood ramrod straight and had High Morale.

Ratifa hid her shock and said little.

She knew this wasn’t the time for such discussions. After confirming the route and plans with Henry, their two armies merged and set out immediately.

Henry’s mind was filled with questions as their column advanced swiftly through the night, the torchlight flickering in the wind.

More than once, he approached Ratifa, trying to get some answers out of her.

"Ratifa, I have a right to know what’s going on," Henry said, his voice low and firm, his gaze fixed on her.

Ratifa’s face looked somewhat pale under the firelight, her eyes revealing an inexpressible emotion.

She didn’t answer his question directly. Instead, she took a deep breath and said slowly, "Henry, I know you’re worried, but now isn’t the time for discussion. You’ll understand once we reach the border and you see the situation for yourself."

Henry frowned. He could sense her evasiveness and pressed again, "At least tell me what the Prince’s letter said. Has the fighting on the border escalated?"

Ratifa hesitated before shaking her head. "Henry, I don’t know how to explain it to you, but I can confirm one thing: the situation is far more serious than I imagined."

Henry’s gaze was sharp as a knife, and he found the answer in her eyes.

He saw fear!

’Something that could frighten a countess with immense wealth and a powerful army would be anything but simple.’

"Did the Prince’s army collapse?"

Ratifa didn’t answer. Henry asked again, "Did the enemy’s numbers suddenly increase?"

Ratifa still didn’t answer. Henry let out a long breath and stopped asking questions.

He would just have to see for himself what could render Ratifa so tight-lipped.

They force-marched for three days with hardly a stop. Along the way, Henry could feel the oppressive, deadly atmosphere in the air growing ever thicker.

They repeatedly encountered Cavalry patrols from the Imperial Legion. The patrols frequently questioned their identity and destination, but Ratifa dealt with these minor issues each time.

’Why so many patrols?’ Henry mulled over the question.

’More patrols were to be expected, but...’

Henry’s gaze involuntarily swept over their surroundings as an ominous premonition rose in his heart.

’Why is the patrol area inside imperial territory? Could the enemy have already broken through the front lines? That’s impossible.’

He immediately dismissed the thought, but another possibility occurred to him. ’They can’t be trying to stop frontline soldiers from deserting, can they?’

’Are they trying to enforce a blackout on information?’

Finally, when they arrived at the main command camp on the border of the Northern Lands, the scene made Henry’s heart sink.

Throngs of soldiers patrolled nervously, and a thick stench of blood hung in the air over the sprawling camp.

Ratifa found two high-ranking officers and said to Henry, "Have your army follow these two officers to make camp. For now, your task is to come with me to see His Highness the Prince."

"Understood."

Claude, Bain, and the others left with the two officers to lead the army away. Only Vasco and a few members of Henry’s Personal Guard, clad in Legion infantry armor, remained by his side.

Henry followed Ratifa through the winding paths of the camp. Just as he was starting to feel dizzy from all the turns, Ratifa stopped and pointed to an enormous tent ahead. "This is where His Highness the Prince normally works and rests," she told Henry.

Henry rubbed his eyes and said, "Mm, I can tell."

The military banner of the Caladia Empire and the flag of the royal family hung directly above the tent.

"Countess Ratifa!"

The two guards naturally recognized Ratifa. After all, she was one of the Prince’s favorites and came and went from here often.

At Ratifa’s command, one of the soldiers entered the tent to announce Henry’s arrival. Only five or six seconds passed before the soldier came out and told Henry that His Highness the Prince would see him now.

Henry straightened his clothes. The moment he stepped into the tent, he was met with a hearty laugh. Looking up, Henry saw a devastatingly handsome and rather refined young man.

"Baron Henry, hello. I am the eldest son of the great Emperor. Your fame has spread across nearly the entire Empire. I’ve been wanting to meet you for some time."

"Your servant, Henry Bro, greets Your Highness the Prince."

Henry mentally rolled his eyes. ’That old coot the Emperor has some ridiculously good genes. It’s one thing for him to be handsome, but how are all of his sons this good-looking too?’

The Prince also took this opportunity to size up Henry. ’Hmm, tall and strong, and handsome to boot. A perfect example of the younger generation of nobility.’

"By the way, Henry, I recently discovered something... very strange. Or perhaps I should say, very terrifying. Would you like to see?"

Henry’s eyes lit up. "What is Your Highness referring to?" he asked.

"Ah, I heard from Countess Ratifa that you know some of the rumors about the church, and have your own theories about the enemy beyond the border. Because of that, I think you’ll be very interested in this peculiar matter."

Henry subconsciously glanced at Ratifa before turning back to the Prince. "Then, what is it Your Highness wishes to show me?"

The Prince pointed to a corner of the tent and said, "Him."

Henry turned to look and saw there was another person... huh? ’Wait, why does this person have horns? And he’s... really hideous, isn’t he?’

Curious, Henry took two steps forward, his eyes widening as if he’d just encountered a new species.

Suddenly, the person opened its mouth and said a great deal, but Henry couldn’t understand a word.

"That’s the Stegian language."

Hearing Ratifa’s explanation, Henry didn’t reply, but instead continued to approach the figure.

He wasn’t curious about what language the person was speaking, or what he was trying to say.

He just wanted to know how a man whose head was only attached to his neck by a single layer of skin was able to speak.