It seemed strange to Jorgen for a realist like Helblindi to speak the goddess’s name, but on the other hand, he found himself in agreement. Back when Jorgen had first joined the Wolf Clan, the outsider Helblindi had been the only Einherjar, and now there were five. In addition, an even greater threat had appeared to antagonize their sworn enemy with perfect timing. If that wasn’t the providence of the gods, then what was?
“Thus, I propose that now is the time to strike back at the Horn Clan, our sworn foes who have set their sights on our land and plagued us for years, and wipe them off the map once and for all! We will take their main base, Fort Horn, and secure peace and prosperity for the Wolf Clan at last! Sieg Ulfr!”
“Sieg Ulfr!” the crowd bellowed in unison. Helblindi’s spirited speech had certainly riled up the assembly hall. Jorgen stole a furtive glance in Farbauti’s direction. The patriarch was scowling bitterly. It seemed he was opposed to Helblindi’s plan, but did he have the strength to get someone like Helblindi to stand down?
Jorgen swallowed nervously. The skirmishes and scuffles the Wolf and Horn Clans had engaged in up until now were a thing of the past. This would be an all-out war that demanded the strength of the entire clan.
The Wolf Clan soldiers charged toward the enemy camp, their war cries echoing across the battlefield. The air quickly filled with the clinks of traded blows and cries of death.
The Wolf Clan was clearly advancing further than the Horn Clan. “Makes sense,” Jorgen thought. After all, Helblindi, Skavidr, and Loptr, the clan’s three strongest Einherjar, were all on the front lines. In addition, while the Horn Clan Army was technically more powerful than the Wolf Clan’s, the threats of the Hoof Clan to the west and the Snake Clan to the south had divided their forces. The Horn Clan had about three thousand soldiers currently at their disposal, while the Wolf Clan had around four thousand. The Wolf Clan’s victory was all but assured.
“That said, we still can’t afford to let our guard down,” Jorgen said with a wry grin, as though chiding his past self. He focused once more on the battle at hand. At this point in his life, he’d learned all too well that in war, nothing could be taken for granted. The moments in which victory seemed most clear were when one had to be the most careful.
“Hey, Father! We’ve basically already won, right? We’re going on ahead! If we’re too late to the party, we’ll miss out on all the glory! ” One of his sworn children, still wet behind the ears, seemed all too eager to rush into battle. It had only been a matter of days since he’d joined Jorgen’s family, so Jorgen understood why he was so keen to prove himself.
In response, Jorgen shook his head with a small smile. “Not yet. Wait a bit longer. For now, focus on resting up and saving your strength.” The best time to distinguish oneself wasn’t in the heat of the main battle; it was afterward, once things had begun to wind down and the pursuit had begun. It was entirely possible something could happen that would turn the battle on its head. If any of his men expended their strength now, they might not have the stamina to perform when it really counted. Being able to recognize when to act and when to rest on your laurels was one of the key skills needed to become a truly great warrior.
“But man, they sure are stubborn,” Jorgen muttered. It had already been two hours since the battle had begun, and despite the Wolf Clan’s strong offense throughout, the Horn Clan Army showed no sign of collapse. But it was probably only a matter of time—eventually, they’d fall. Even the legendary Horn Clan commander Hrungnir wouldn’t be able to turn the tide of this battle.
Suddenly, a gong rang out incessantly. At first, Jorgen thought it was the enemy retreating at last, but then he realized his mistake. The gong wasn’t ringing from the Horn Clan side—it was coming from the Wolf Clan.
“The Wolf Clan is retreating?! Right when we’re about to win?!” Jorgen couldn’t believe his ears. They had this victory in the bag—retreating here after they’d come this far would just be foolish.
“Helblindi is no fool. This surely serves a greater purpose.” Over the past ten years, Helblindi had been the Wolf Clan’s most valuable asset. He had taken the lead in this advance against the Horn Clan as well. For him to retreat meant something must’ve come up. Something big. At the same time, he heard a surge of victorious cheers rising from the Horn Clan ranks. There was no way that could be a coincidence.
“What the hell’s happening over there?!” Jorgen growled. He didn’t know, but he was sure of one thing, at least: the Wolf Clan had lost this battle.
That night, the commanders of the Wolf Clan Army gathered at a camp a short distance away from the battlefield, all wearing haggard, irritated expressions. Considering they’d suddenly been ordered to withdraw on the cusp of victory, hardly anyone could blame them. Invigorated by the Wolf Clan’s retreat, the Horn Clan Army had gained a second wind and chased the Wolf Clan Army away, causing them to suffer many more casualties.
“So, second-in-command, mind explaining to us what that order was all about?” Jorgen rounded on Helblindi the moment he approached. He knew full well he was being coarse toward a superior, but he couldn’t care less. He was so filled with rage that it was all the same to him right now. He’d lost several of his sworn children thanks to Helblindi’s sudden order, so Jorgen hoped the man had a damn good reason.
Helblindi let out a frustrated sigh. “The Claw Clan betrayed us,” he said simply.
The sudden revelation sent ripples of shock through the gathering of commanders. After all, the Claw Clan was supposed to be a branch family of the Wolf Clan. The current patriarch was said to have received the Chalice of Farbauti and become his sworn brother, so they should’ve been under the umbrella of the Wolf Clan.
“They probably saw now as a golden opportunity, since all of our forces are currently preoccupied here in the west. We received a declaration of war stating that they intend to take back everything that was stolen from them,” Helblindi stated grimly.
“What?! Preposterous! They mean to nullify the sacred and inviolable Oath of the Chalice?!” Jorgen shouted.
“Apparently, they pulled the old switcheroo on us. The current patriarch of the clan, Botvid, wasn’t the one that received Farbauti’s Chalice. Therefore, they didn’t actually nullify anything.”
“Sophistry!” In his rage, Jorgen kicked the trunk of a nearby tree. The most infuriating thing was that the trick the Claw Clan had pulled was logically sound. Even if it was exploiting a loophole, as long as it was logical, it was fair game—that was the Yggdrasilian way.
“We don’t know who served as Botvid’s stand-in either. Damn that sly fox! He fooled us completely!” Helblindi seemed to seethe with hatred. He had to be feeling just as mortified as Jorgen—his grand ambition to wipe the Horn Clan from existence had been completely upended at the moment of victory, after all.
“It’s very likely that the Claw Clan and Horn Clan are in cahoots.” Helblindi audibly ground his teeth. Jorgen agreed with the observation. That would definitely explain why the Horn Clan had been so tenacious despite having a long history of losing to the Wolf Clan, and why they’d been so unusually intent on going on the defensive. They knew that, in the end, the Wolf Clan would get stabbed in the back and have no choice but to retreat.
“We’ve lost this war already. All we can do now is focus on sending as many soldiers as we can back home to Iarnvidr safe and sound,” Helblindi said.
Jorgen agreed on that point as well. With all of the Wolf Clan’s forces gathered in the west, the clan’s eastern territory would be a free-for-all if they didn’t hurry back as soon as possible.
“Jorgen, I’m sorry, but would you mind bringing up the rear as we make our retreat?” Helblindi asked.
“...Me?” He hesitated to answer right away, swallowing hard. The rear guard was one of the most honorable positions a warrior could ever be offered, but at the same time, itwas the most dangerous and deadly. Jorgen had two wives and three kids at home. It wasn’t a decision he could make lightly.
“You are calm in the face of danger, and tough enough that you had the guts to stand up against me. No one’s better suited to the role,” Helblindi explained.
“In other words, a scapegoat,” Jorgen thought. Jorgen had joined Helblindi’s family because Bruno had retired from being second-in-command, but that didn’t mean he was loyal to Helblindi. In fact, Jorgen could even pose a latent threat to Helblindi’s position and become one of his worst enemies. In that case, when it came time to decide who was expendable, it only stood to reason that Helblindi would choose a potential future foe like Jorgen over an actual member of his Chalice family.
“I understand. In case the worst befalls me, please take care of my wives, children, and sworn children.” Steeling his resolve, Jorgen gave his answer. Truthfully, he couldn’t think of anything he’d like to do less, but it was an order from the commander of his clan’s army. It’d be hard to refuse, and they needed a strong rear guard to ensure that many more lives weren’t lost. If he was going to die, he at least wanted to make his death an honorable one.
Concealed in the shadows, Jorgen loosed several rapid-fire arrows in succession. As if matching his rhythm, several of his sworn children fired arrows of their own. Two enemy soldiers went down.
“Shit, an ambush?! Kill ’em!” one of them shouted.
“There aren’t that many. Surround them!” said another.
“That one in the middle’s mine. That’s a nice blade he’s got. Fine workmanship,” said yet another.
The enemy soldiers were all fired up as they charged forward. Even though two of their comrades had already been killed, they weren’t fazed in the slightest. But that made sense, considering that to the Horn Clan Army, the battle was already as good as won.
“Men! Swords at the ready! Whatever you do, do not let them pass any farther!” Jorgen barked.
“Yes, Father!” they shouted in unison. In no time at all, the air was filled with the frenzied clinks of metal against metal. The Jorgen faction was around three hundred in number. That was small compared to the enemy army, but they were currently on a narrow path sandwiched between a forest and a river. The most either side was able to deploy here was around a hundred total, so the difference really didn’t matter. Jorgen was also out swinging his sword on the front lines, cutting down enemy after enemy. His bravery motivated his sworn children, renewing their morale.
“Damn, these guys won’t quit!” one of Jorgen’s sworn children exclaimed. Two hours had passed, and the Horn Clan Army was beginning to get restless as their prey, the main forces of the Wolf Clan, slipped farther and farther away. They were probably getting real anxious right about now.
“Stand your ground, troops! Remember your daily training!” Jorgen barked, raising his sword high and boosting his allies’ morale. In truth, though, he knew that was a tough ask. As a faction, they’d split into three units and periodically swapped out soldiers on the front lines so that they could let each other rest, but it didn’t change the fact that they were fighting to the death. Anxiety threatened to sap the soldiers’ stamina. However, their battle spirit had not yet died out, so the Jorgen faction continued to put up a valiant fight.
Finally, sunset came, and the Horn Clan Army backed off at last. The Jorgen faction had somehow succeeded in holding out. But that had been the easy part.
“Haa...haa... All right guys, I know this’ll be tough, but now we need to get a move on and put as much distance between us and the enemy as possible,” Jorgen ordered.
Under the cover of darkness, the Jorgen faction began their retreat. They’d ended up buying a whole day’s worth of distance for the rest of the army, which was plenty. Now it was time to ensure their own safety as they made their way back home. However, that was easier said than done.
“Shit, my body feels like a sack full of stones,” a soldier complained. The Jorgen faction had been fighting all day, and they were all ready to collapse. But they had no choice but to press on. Tonight would be the only chance they had to flee.
“Looks like they’ve all been run ragged,” Jorgen remarked to himself. As the unit continued to put one foot in front of the other, one step at a time, the sun began to rise. In the dim glow of the sunlight, Jorgen looked back at his faction and grimaced. They had been traveling this path in the dead of night with no light whatsoever. Jorgen himself had lost count of how many times he’d lost his footing and tripped. Their clothes were completely ruined and riddled with holes, and they had scratches and cuts everywhere.
Even so, they were alive—alive! Two hundred and fifty of them had managed not to fall behind. Considering the fierceness of that battle and the strictness of the schedule they’d had to adhere to, that was nothing short of a miracle.
“Well, now that we’ve come this far, I think we can take a breather. Everyone, let’s rest for a bit and— Oh shit, you’ve got to be kidding me...” Jorgen’s knees almost buckled unconsciously when he saw something in the distance. The moment he thought they were safe, he was thrown back into the abyss of despair—because right before his eyes was the Horn Clan flag, flapping in the breeze as proudly as ever.
“They must’ve circled around the perimeter,” Jorgen said with a sigh. Perhaps after dealing with the Jorgen faction yesterday, they’d determined that breaking through the enemy lines normally would be too difficult and circled around in secret while Jorgen’s unit was still preoccupied with the task before them.
“It’s over,” Jorgen muttered glumly. The only way to get back home to Iarnvidr was to break through the Horn Clan Army blocking their path, but there were over five hundred Horn Clan soldiers in their way—double that of the Jorgen faction, not to mention they’d just spent an entire day yesterday fighting and had been on the move all night. They were utterly exhausted, and the enemy wouldn’t be kind enough to wait around and let them rest. Even if they did, it would only be long enough for the Horn Clan’s main army to approach from behind and catch the Jorgen faction in a pincer attack.
“Heh. If we’re gonna die either way, we may as well proceed onward.” Jorgen grinned fiercely. Waiting around would only make the situation worse, and besides, it was more fitting for a warrior to go out in a blaze of glory. Perhaps by taking out a few enemy soldiers, he could create a gap to where at least some of his children would be able to make it back to Iarnvidr safely. Then, if those survivors passed down the tale of how bravely he’d fought to his wives and children, they might be able to live with their heads held high and without shame.
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