Epic Of The Demonic Sage

The Count was a more than decent orator and knew very well how to speak to subordinates. Gaining the willing support and loyalty of subordinates was a delicate task and needed certain soft skills that were often not found in many nobles these days.

But Count Gabriel was not one of them. His father had inculcated the proper values in him that had allowed him to gain a hold over his warriors which was unlike many other nobles.

"Today… we have fought… we have fought and we have WON! But this has come at a cost of course, a cost which I would have liked to have avoided." The Count said, saddening the expression of many a soldier.

"But this was a necessary fight. You have seen… how the enemy forces fought! They brought deceit into the battle and used forces that were certainly not their own. We have long been suspicious of this and had thus prepared on our own as well.

You have seen them as well." Count Gabriel said while gesturing to the Lost that were standing in the distance in three rows.

There were fifteen of them, five in each row. Their armors were maroon, but some were a deeper crimson now instead, due to the blood staining them.

Gabriel saw the questioning expression on the faces of the soldiers. He knew that they were wondering just who these warriors were. They looked far too organized and strong to be normal mercenaries according to the common thinking.

"I know you must be wondering who they are. Then let me tell you… these are the mercenaries of the MASKED LEGION!" The Count announced. "They are the ones who have managed to flip this battle in our favor, granting us the victory." He added.

Faint whispers could be heard amongst the soldiers, but it was to be expected. They had seen the power of the Lost and were now in awe. To them, the name meant that there were far more than just these fifteen mercenaries.

"My Count… may I ask where they came from? I mean… we've never heard of their name before." The commander Taylor questioned.

"Of course. They come from a land far from our Kingdom. They are a mysterious group of mercenaries who have agreed to offer their services to us. They are very strong as you can see, and have done their job exactly as was intended." Gabriel answered.

His answer was pretty much the same as not answering, since he had not addressed the main point of the question, anyway. Taylor was experienced enough that he could understand the underlying meaning behind Gabriel's words.

'So it's like that… at least they are on our side. If the Count trusts them, then it's fine… hopefully, the kingdom and churches don't find fault with them.' Taylor thought, remembering the brutality that the Lost used in the battle.

The other soldiers did not question anything either, as their commander had not done so.

It was now that Lucius decided to make his move.

"I'd like to say a few words," Lucius said, coming to the front.

"Please… feel free." Gabriel replied.

He had actually been intending to get Lucius to say something as well, but him coming on his own was even better. 

"You all must be thinking that we won this battle because of the Masked Legion… But it is not like that," Lucius said, contradicting the words of his father.

Surprise spread through the soldiers as they had not expected these words from Lucius at all. Even Gabriel was a bit surprised but did not interfere, wanting to know just what Lucius was intending to say.

Lucius looked at the soldiers and inwardly chuckled, having expected this reaction.

"No… the reason why we won this battle is because of all of you!" Lucius said out loud.

"Us?" The soldiers couldn't help but say in confusion.

They had already accepted the fact that they were barely able to do anything. According to them, if it were not for the Masked Legion, all of them would have died at this place today. 

"YES! You all!" Lucius continued. "If it were not for you all bravely fighting and holding your ground, even the Masked Legion would have been successful." 

Hearing this, the eyes of the soldiers lit up as some of their confusion was wiped away.

"So don't think that you were inadequate or useless in the battle. Rather, you were the most essential part of it! We learned that there were certain unexpected people among the enemy soldiers because of you and managed to overcome them as well." Lucius stated and took a pause.

"And that is exactly why… I thank you all from the bottom of my heart!" Lucius said, holding his fist against his chest.

Seeing this, the soldiers couldn't help but feel touched. 

"Young Lord Asher…" they muttered in emotion.

"And that's all I wanted to say for now." Lucius said, ending his little speech.

Gabriel nodded his head in approval. 

'Perfect! He'll be a great leader.' Gabriel thought to himself.

He took his position at the front again, and spoke, "now then… since the battle is finished and we have won it, there is the next set of things we need to do…"

Gabriel gave several orders, which mainly included the gathering of the corpses of the fallen soldiers that were on their side and also the mercenaries. All of them would be sent to their kin for the funeral proceedings.

As for the ones that were injured, they would be taken to the recuperation camp that was already set a kilometer away from the battlefield. Then there was the matter of the enemy soldiers.

Even if they knew that the enemy army had been wiped out, they still needed to check all of the corpses and figure out how many people died and what their identities were. The part about identities was especially important since there were several strong gifted among them and there were literally six hundred extra soldiers than they had expected!