As the lizardmen scattered into the forest, we didn't pursue them.
We didn't have the riders for it.
Of the more than one hundred Northern Knights who had arrived earlier, only around fifty were still standing. Most of them were injured.
Our own riders and infantry had also suffered heavy losses.
Right now, chasing the remaining lizardmen would only create more casualties.
They had already lost their King and their formation.
The survivors were scattered throughout the forest.
We could deal with them later.
I had the same thought as Rany.
Then Azpen gave the order.
"Fall back."
As the sun slowly descended toward the horizon, we returned to the old lizardman nest.
The place that had once been filled with enemies was now under our control.
Rany asked did you see the several lizardman heads had been displayed.
Among them were the heads of several high-ranking lizardmen.
I looked at Rany.
"What about the King's head?"
Rany looked directly into my eyes.
"Azpen needs to present it to his lord. It's not something they would simply leave here."
That made sense.
But another question immediately came to my mind.
"Who were those arrows from?"
Rany looked at me with a slightly confused expression.
"The arrows?"
"Yes. Someone kept shooting the lizardmen during the battle."
Rany thought for a moment.
"From what I've heard, there are scouts with us."
"Scouts?"
"Yes. It seems the knights brought scouts with them as well."
I was slightly surprised.
"So the scouts were fighting alongside the knights too?"
"Apparently."
"How many?"
"I don't know exactly. But I heard there were around thirty scouts deployed for this operation."
"Thirty?"
I couldn't hide my surprise.
So the scout force was much larger than I thought.
I had only encountered a small part of them.
It seemed there was much more happening on this battlefield than I had known.
So I only met one part of them.
Apparently, even during the planning, nobody had told me about the other groups.
Even when we were fighting for our lives.
I couldn't help but smile.
Rany noticed.
"You seem pretty happy about that."
I shook my head.
"It's nothing."
Then I looked at him.
"I told you my part. Now tell me yours."
I smiled.
"You look worse than I do."
Rany laughed.
I told him everything.
I explained how I had become separated from the others, how I met the scouts, how I ended up fighting alongside them, and everything that happened afterward.
When I finished, Rany let out a quiet laugh.
"Yeah. That's how a mercenary should live."
He looked at me.
"Always standing one step away from death."
Then he smiled.
"And it seems you've already reached the rank of squire."
I smiled back.
"Maybe."
The pain in my body was still very real.
Before we could continue talking, a healer entered the tent.
He looked at me carefully.
"I'll start with you."
He glanced at the other wounded soldiers.
"Compared to them, you need the most attention."
Then he looked directly at my face.
"Can you remain conscious during the treatment?"
I nodded.
"I can."
"Are you sure?"
"I'll manage."
The healer gave me a doubtful look.
Then he called for two soldiers.
"Help him."
The soldiers came over and supported me.
I couldn't even walk properly.
I was practically dragging my feet behind them just to keep up with their pace.
They took me to another tent.
It was smaller than the main medical tent, but there was a proper bed inside.
"Lie down."
I followed his instructions.
The healer examined me carefully.
His expression became more serious as he checked my injuries.
He placed his hand near my left ribs.
Then he examined my legs.
He looked at my hands.
He carefully moved each injured area.
I clenched my teeth.
"Your left ribs are badly damaged."
He paused.
"Some are broken. Fortunately, they haven't completely pierced through anything."
He continued examining me.
"Your legs have taken severe impacts as well. And your right hand..."
He shook his head.
"It's close to being fractured."
I remained silent.
He looked at me.
"What exactly did you do in that battle?"
I gave him a tired smile.
"Nothing special."
He stared at me.
"Don't lie."
I looked away.
"I fell."
He sighed.
"Falling from a cliff would be more believable."
I didn't answer.
He continued examining my injuries.
"The ribs are the biggest concern."
He looked at my legs again.
"For the legs and right hand, the potion should be enough. They'll heal with time."
He pointed toward my ribs.
"But these will be much more painful."
He handed me a piece of cloth.
"Put this between your teeth."
I took the cloth and placed it between my teeth.
"Don't remove it."
I nodded.
The healer placed his hand near my ribs.
"Try not to move."
Then he began chanting.
I immediately felt something flowing through my body.
It wasn't like the healing potion.
This was different.
The magic was entering my injured ribs directly.
The moment it reached them—
Pain exploded through my body.
My hands tightened around the bed.
I bit down hard on the cloth.
The healer continued chanting.
The pain became worse.
My eyes began watering.
Damn it...
I had experienced plenty of pain before.
But this was different.
It felt as though someone was trying to repair my broken ribs from the inside.
I could barely keep my body still.
The healer continued his chant without stopping.
From what I understood, basic healing magic could only accelerate the body's natural recovery.
Medium-level healing magic could repair much more serious injuries.
High-level healing magic could even regenerate severely damaged tissue and restore badly injured limbs.
But the stronger the healing magic, the greater the pain.
Judging by what I was experiencing, the healer was probably using medium-level healing magic.
I clenched the cloth harder between my teeth.
Tears began flowing from my eyes.
I didn't want to scream.
I didn't want to lose consciousness either.
The healer noticed my condition.
"Stay awake."
I forced my eyes open.
"If you lose consciousness, you'll lose control of your body. Keep yourself awake."
I didn't answer.
I couldn't.
All I could do was bite down on the cloth and endure.
Five minutes passed.
Then another five.
The pain didn't disappear.
It only changed.
At times, it became sharper.
At other times, it felt like something was pressing deep inside my ribs.
My entire body was exhausted.
But I kept my eyes open.
After around ten minutes, the healer finally stopped chanting.
I slowly released the cloth from my teeth.
My face was wet with tears.
I breathed heavily.
The healer looked at me.
I looked back at him.
Neither of us said anything.
I had experienced pain before.
But this was something else.
I looked around the tent.
Outside, the sounds of battle had finally disappeared.
For the first time in a long while, there was silence.
The battle was over.
At least for now.
I closed my eyes.
So this is what remains after a battle.
Not victory.
Not glory.
Just pain, wounds, and the people who survived.