Chapter 38: The Beginning of the Second Year (*)

Late August. Even though summer was nearing its end, the scorching days kept coming. The clash over the Kabachi Plains burned hotter than the late-summer heat itself. The Imperial Army under Austro Tolmakia had taken up positions along both the north and south banks of the Arus River that cut through the central plains. They were already hammering together real fortresses. Dry season or not, the Arus was over three hundred meters wide and ran thick with water. Austro meant to plant forts on both shores, throw up a rock-solid bridge wide enough for cavalry, and turn the whole thing into a bridgehead for conquering the southern plains and the massive Valihart Grand Fortress.

Naturally the Kingdom Army wasn’t about to sit and watch. Belgarad Phalanx’s Northern Army marched at once and slammed straight into the Imperial troops on the south bank. The Empire had expected exactly that, and brutal fighting exploded across the southern Kabachi Plains.

“Nnffuffufu… Enemy’s got guts, huh? Never figured they’d copy my formation this perfectly.”

Phalanx let the admiring chuckle slip from horseback. The enemy lines spreading before him looked painfully familiar. It was the very “Phalanx’s Shield” that had tormented the Imperial Army for a decade. Attacker and defender had swapped places, and now the Kingdom soldiers stared at the famous general’s own tactics staring right back.

Feints, skirmishes, charges—Phalanx showed the flexibility worthy of his name and smashed the Imperials several times in the southern local fights. But the main enemy camp, back against the Arus south bank, refused to budge an inch.

“That big cannon of theirs works even in defense. Moving targets are hard to hit, but the range is long, so we have to start the charge from even farther out. Means the men and horses run themselves ragged.”

Phalanx stayed silent at his staff officer’s words. The cannon could smash a stationary target, but hitting moving troops and mounts was a nightmare. If they charged from outside range they barely needed to worry about it… except they’d have to cover over a kilometer on foot. The exhaustion would hit that much sooner.

“Can’t be helped. No point forcing it now. We dig in here and wait for rain.”

Contrary to Phalanx’s hopes, the sky stayed a cloudless, mocking blue.

“Even Phalanx never thought his own formation would be thrown back at him, huh?”

Inside the Imperial main camp, Austro Tolmakia and his staff officers stared at the map on the table. Phalanx’s defensive line was basically a dense horizontal formation, but each squad was grouped into small box-like units. They had strong frontal resistance while still coordinating instantly via fast horses, flags, and gongs.

Normally such tight packs were weak on the flanks and lacked mobility, but Phalanx treated his squads like building blocks—he could rearrange them on the fly. Easy to say. In practice it meant reading the battlefield in a heartbeat, issuing perfect signals, and having troops trained to the bone to shift inside a packed mass. Pulling it off with ten thousand men took leadership most generals could never dream of.

“Copying it is one thing. Actually doing it? That’s Phalanx’s formation for you. Only His Highness could pull it off in our army.”

Chief of Staff Partina Sircury flattered, but the other officers meant every word. Austro, however, shook his head.

“Nah, it’s not just me. It’s because you guys are here. And Schwaik joining us is huge too.”

The young general with sand-colored hair gave a silent bow. Leopold Schwaik had kept the Imperial Army from collapsing in the last battle. Austro had named him rear guard for this campaign in recognition. Schwaik had rushed five thousand men the moment the Arus was taken. Total Imperial strength now sat at thirty-three thousand.

“…We’re walking a tightrope.”

Austro muttered it. Even after beating Phalanx’s army, the Kingdom still had far more troops. The Imperials had thrust out into the center of the Kabachi Plains like a sore thumb. If they didn’t turn the spot into a real base fast, they risked being cut off and surrounded. They’d already lost nearly ten thousand men in the June defeat, so fresh reinforcements from home were impossible. And above all…

“How are the food stores?”

“General Schwaik brought supplies, so we caught a breath, but we’re still looking at two weeks max. We’ve already sent word to the capital. After that it’s up to Marshal Grizzler.”

Marshal Caldas Grizzler was an upright soldier through and through, but no grand strategist. Worst of all, he had the typical military man’s blind spot for logistics. Whether he truly understood the gravity here… Austro couldn’t lie and say he wasn’t worried. If anyone could grasp the big picture, it was Chancellor Hermann Zeppel. But Zeppel was the head of the Noias faction, and Austro still didn’t have a full read on the man.

“Orders, sir? Should we cut rations starting today?”

“No. Absolutely not.”

Austro shut the staff officer down instantly.

“The enemy is Phalanx. He’ll spot reduced cooking smoke and know we’re starving in a heartbeat. Send another fast horse to the capital. If the food runs out we’ll be forced to retreat.”

Austro fought the urge to bite his nails. He’d been calculating this cannon-heavy war long before his brother’s defeat in June. Almost everything had gone exactly as planned. They’d smashed Phalanx’s army and seized the Arus. Killing Phalanx himself would’ve been perfect, but even without it he’d calculated he could cripple the man’s direct units. Phalanx the defender would grow cautious against the unknown weapon, giving the Empire time to finish supply lines and fortifications.

(One single man… and he’s wrecking every calculation.)

Austro wasn’t stupid enough to bet everything on desk math. He’d placed rear guards and stockpiled supplies for the worst case. But now that worst case was breathing down their necks.

“…Have you seen that guy named Kaito?”

“No reports, sir.”

Austro nodded silently. The urge to have killed the boy warred with the urge to recruit him.

“Imperial victory!”

The news sent Caldas Grizzler into ecstasy. First Prince Austro’s path to the throne was now set in stone. They had backed Prince Austro from the very beginning. This report guaranteed their bright future.

But the next message made Grizzler frown.

“Food and supplies uncertain. Request resupply.”

“What happened to the stockpiles in Grantberg Fortress?”

“Most have already been issued. Only the winter stores for the garrison remain. When you add the engineers building the forts… it’s nowhere near enough.”

“Understood. I’ll arrange it. But it will take time. Winter is three months away. We need reserves for that too.”

Exactly as Austro feared, Caldas Grizzler failed to grasp how serious it was. After ten years of bitter humiliation, finally beating Phalanx felt so glorious that boring things like forts and supply lines looked trivial. If Grizzler had moved quickly right then, his own future would have been very different.

“Empty every grain store and emergency fund in the capital! Contact every merchant guild, commandeer every cart you can find, and get the supplies to the front at all costs! Move!”

The one barking the orders was Imperial Chancellor Hermann Zeppel. He had been the leader of the Noias faction, but the instant he heard of the victory he switched to the Austro faction. Austro was a meritocrat. Prove your worth and he’d treat you right—that calculation was real.

At the same time, Zeppel felt the weight of his duty as Chancellor. He had worried that the military had turned war into an end in itself. He had wanted to make the scholarly Noias emperor and focus on internal affairs. But if the northern Kabachi Plains fell into their hands, everything changed.

“This is our proving ground as civil officials! Work through the night if you have to. Get the supplies ready and delivered yesterday. This is how we end the war!”

Under Zeppel’s command, enough supplies to feed ten thousand men were assembled in just two days. Three days later a massive wagon train rolled toward the Kabachi Plains.

August 25th. After roughly a month away, Kaito and the others finally returned to the Royal Knight Academy. They dropped their things at their dorms and agreed to meet up later. Kaito stepped into the hero-candidate building and stopped at the corner room at the far end of the first floor. Only a year had passed, but it already felt like coming home.

(Gonna drop my stuff, grab some food… Been craving some ripe meat. Wonder if Claire’s back?)

Cock already heating up, he opened the door—and froze. His luggage slipped from his fingers. The desk and bed were still there, but every last one of his personal belongings had vanished. Even the dirty pictures he’d hidden under the bed were gone. The room was completely empty.

“So that’s why you’re still carrying all your stuff?”

In the lounge where the four of them were supposed to meet, Elfina grinned in amusement. For Kaito it was no laughing matter.

“Is this, like… ‘you fucked around up north, now get out’? Am I expelled?”

“No way. Obviously not. Let’s just go see the headmistress.”

“Yeah. Expelling Kaito is unthinkable. There has to be a reason.”

“Well, if you do get kicked out, come to Papa’s place. I’ll work you to the bone~”

“No. Kaito works for us…”

Elsa and Sasha were slightly off target, but Kaito himself didn’t think he’d been expelled either. So only one answer remained.

“You welcomed four Saint Knight Paladins at once as the Hero Chevalier. There’s no way you can stay in the regular candidate dorms. Your belongings have already been moved to the new residence. Including those… interesting pictures of yours.”

Headmistress Lilia smiled gracefully. Kaito’s face burned scarlet. It felt exactly like his mother had caught him jerking off. Lilia chuckled, stood, and beckoned.

“All five of you, follow me. I’ll show you to your new home.”

Elfina and the others exchanged glances. They had already dropped their luggage in the normal dorms. Why were they included?

A covered wagon rattled through the vast forest behind the main school building. Scattered houses dotted the woods. Inside rode Headmistress Lilia, Kaito, and the four Saint Knights.

“Is this… the third-year grounds? The forest where paired Saint Knights and Heroes live together after finishing all courses…”

“Correct. This is where third-years reside. Once a Saint Knight and Hero form a pair at the end of second year, they live together, deepen their bond, and train so the Saint Knight can master the goddess’s blessing that awakens in her. The houses are spaced far apart so they don’t disturb each other. Each pair receives a stipend from the kingdom and lives on it. …We’re almost there.”

The wagon stopped. Before the group stood a single-story house of wood and stone. Small for a mansion, but far grander than Kaito’s family home. Inside, furniture was already arranged. Two spacious bedrooms, a study-like room, living room, dining room, kitchen, toilet, and even a proper—if small—bath.

“This size was always enough before. Normally a Hero and Saint Knight are just one pair… but you’re different. Four Saint Knights at once? Never happened in history. So for now, live here through second year. We’ll figure out the rest later.”

“Um… so I live here alone?”

When Kaito asked, Lilia shrugged.

“Can’t be helped. There’s no house big enough for five, and these girls are still second-years. They haven’t finished the curriculum yet. They’ll stay in the dorms, study properly, and come visit.”

“Wait, wait—what about me?”

The words slipped out in his normal tone. Lilia smirked, strode right up, and pinched his cheek hard.

“After all the naughty fun you had up north, you really think there’s anything left for you to learn here? Maybe just a little self-restraint?”

“I-it hurts! Ow ow ow!”

She twisted until it felt like the skin would tear, then finally let go and sighed in exasperation.

“General Phalanx sent me a handwritten letter. ‘Graduate him early and ship him north.’ Is that what you want?”

(Nffufu… Welcome back. Time for the blood-boiling, flesh-dancing war curtain to rise…)

The image flashed in his mind and he shook his head violently.

“Looks like the subjects for second year are mostly electives except PE and camp skills. Hero Chevalier second-years are basically allowed to slack, right?”

Kaito sat on the bed, looking down. A golden-haired mature beauty knelt between his legs, enveloping his throbbing cock between her massive, overflowing tits. She drooled into her cleavage to slick the valley, then slid her breasts up and down with perfect rhythm.

“Kuh~”

“Master… does it feel good?”

The beautiful milf smiled up at him. Ever since he stole her right in front of her husband, Claire had become his personal bitch slave. His cock throbbed happily between her fat, juicy, well-aged breasts.

After Lilia and the four Saint Knights left, Kaito had been left all alone in the huge empty house. Cock burning from the trip, he headed straight to the faculty housing where Claire lived. She’d returned from her family home, welcomed him with open arms, and now here they were.

“Kuh… I’m cumming!”

“Go ahead… don’t hold back…”

Kaito let loose without restraint. Thick ropes of white lava painted her elegant face. Claire only looked ecstatic. She opened her mouth wide to catch every drop, then scooped the cum clinging to her cheeks with her fingers and licked it clean. Slurp slurp. She swallowed it all like a bitch in heat, hips already grinding.

“Claire. Stand in front of me. I want to look at you properly.”

He made his bitch slave stand. From her toes upward he drank in every inch. Slim ankles flowed into flawless white legs. Yet her thighs were thick and womanly, proof of a fully ripened female body. Her wide, child-bearing hips curved elegantly, ass thrust out firm and round without a hint of sag. The modest golden bush on her mound was neatly trimmed exactly as he ordered. The scent of needy cunt drifted from it. Her inner thighs already glistened with honey—she was soaked.

Her waist was tight, no useless fat, yet soft with just the right layer of mature padding. One bite and juices would flood his mouth. Her tits were the masterpiece—huge, heavy, and still defying gravity, jutting forward proudly. Her areolas were small and pale pink against snow-white skin. Nipples stood rock hard, begging to be abused.

Her wavy, near-platinum blonde hair felt like silk and framed a breathtakingly beautiful face. Soft, gentle eyes full of motherly warmth that promised to forgive any selfishness—yet they also stirred every sadistic urge a man could have.

The idiot ex-husband who threw away a body and face this perfect had gone far beyond stupid. It was practically a crime.

(Making a bitch slave whose only purpose is to feed my appetite… I really am the luckiest bastard alive. I’ll even thank the goddess for that much.)

“Master… please…”

She rubbed her thighs together, practically begging to be eaten. Kaito sat on the low bed, turned Claire around, ordered her to lower her hips, then pulled her onto his lap. He spread her legs wide with his own knees and slowly sank into her dripping cunt from behind.

“Ahh~”

Claire arched as his thick cock invaded from the wrong angle, her soaked pussy swallowing every inch. Her magnificent, fertile body shook with pleasure.

“Fuck… so good. Elfiina and the girls’ fresh meat is nice, but Claire’s ripe, juicy body is on another level. It molds perfectly around my shape and sucks me in tight, no gaps at all.”

He gripped her waist, lifted and dropped her while thrusting up hard. Claire threw her head back and moaned in broken gasps. “Ah… ahh… ahh!” She used her own knees to ride his cock, savoring every vein. From behind he reached around and filled his hands with her bouncing tits, squeezing the soft, heavy flesh.

“I’ll make you feel so good. I’ll stack the goddess’s blessing on you again and again. So feed this body to me.”

He whispered it hot against her ear. Claire wasn’t one of his Saint Knights and never could be. Normally the goddess’s blessing only came from sex with the man who took your virginity. Kaito was the freak who made the impossible possible, and he knew exactly how dangerous it would be if anyone found out. That was why he refused to make Claire his Saint Knight.

“Eat me… eat me as much as you want, Master…”

The pleasure only this man could give her—pure female ecstasy—and the eternal youth and beauty every woman craved. In return she became nothing but a tool to drain his endless lust. Claire had accepted the “give and take” completely. To the world she was the chaste head nurse. In bed she was the most depraved whore imaginable.

(When I graduate as a full Hero I’ll take Claire with me. She’s not a Saint Knight so she won’t go to the battlefield. I’ll just make sure the healing magic stays with me and Elfina’s group.)

Claire twisted, seeking his mouth. Their lips met, tongues tangled. At that exact moment his swollen cock slammed deep and erupted.

“Fuuuunnnnn~!!”

Her whole body bowed backward. Her pussy clamped down harder than ever, rippling and sucking like it wanted to milk out every last drop. She shook again and again, eyes fluttering in sweet afterglow.

“Phew… that was delicious. But I’m still hungry. Next I’m gonna enjoy Claire’s tight little asshole.”

The sweet, filthy night was only getting started. Claire nodded obediently and climbed onto the bed.