Chapter 404: Last Battle (1) |
I saw a sight to behold. I even felt like I had to march with the soldiers when I saw how they started charging while yelling.
“Charge!”
“Chaaarge!”
“Aaaahhh!”
“For the Goddess of Benigoa!”
Holy power poured on the cavalry as they rode on their horses. The ground shook, and a strange zeal started blooming from the allied forces. It was such a sight that I stared dumbly at it and forgot about how I should be heading over to the command center.
After a few moments, the enemy base started hurling spells at the allied forces. Our forces used shield magic to protect the troops. The amount of mana both sides were using was roughly the same. I had no idea if the enemy was moving their forces, but our troops managed to reach the enemy smoothly.
Our mages failed to protect each and every troop because I saw a few soldiers falling after being injured, but I knew this was bound to happen. Still, when I saw how the enemy forces were prepared to take on our allied forces with their shields up made it clear that they had been waiting for us.
They even set up traps against our cavalry in the form of spikes on the ground. A few cavalrymen fell, and our priests reacted quickly by sending over a wave of holy power to heal them. Unfortunately, there was no way we could guarantee their survival.
I looked around, and it didn’t take me long to realize what was going on. I wasn’t ignoring Lee Ji-Hye’s decision, but I had to know the overall situation.
The enemy used Castle Rock to bait us out because they wanted a large-scale battle. It was a stage Jin Cheong had created. It was designed in a way that would let him obtain the information he wanted as well as fight us whenever he wanted.
It was well-made, and I couldn’t even tell which of us had the upper hand when it came to the quality and quantity of soldiers. When I saw how the enemy hadn’t been going all out on the Siege of Castle Rock, it was safe to assume that I had made the right choice.
If the enemy had gone all-out to bring Castle Rock down, then we could have had more time to set up camp and revise our formation. We could have even established a front line while waiting for more reinforcements.
Of course, I was relieved that they hadn’t been able to take over Castle Rock, but I couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable by the fact that the situation was designed by that masked scum.
It was safe for us to assume that they had a hidden card up their sleeves or insurance. If I wanted this war to last longer, then I had to focus on blocking their path. As such, it was only right for me to orchestrate a plan that would drag this out. After all, I was sure the demon summoner’s camp didn’t want this war to last for too long.
Therefore, our interests were the same in some ways, and the only difference—which could become a problem was the difference between our information.
“Aren’t you going in, hyung-nim? It’ll be dangerous to stay out here,” Park Deok-Gu asked.
“Yeah, I’m going in,” I replied.
I nodded and headed inside the portable command center. I saw Lee Ji-Hye busily controlling the troops while monitoring the magic holograms. When she saw me, she spoke in a slightly annoyed tone.
“Took you long enough. Why are you just standing there? Come here and help me.”
“I thought you’d be fine without me. By the way, how is it looking out there?” I asked.
“So-so. We succeeded in pushing our troops into the enemy forces, but—Ah! I like the fact that we haven’t received a lot of damage,” she replied.
“Then, what’s the problem?” I asked.
“The problem is that we aren’t having any problems. I’m anxious because they prepared a lot as well. Can you see the named players on the screen?” she asked.
Naturally, I looked at the goddess’ mirror and saw the named players she was talking about. I couldn’t see the Russian Park Deok-Gu, Xiaolin, or Jin Cheong, but players who were just as strong as them were on the battlefield.
“Some people I saw in Laios are here, and there are some unfamiliar faces…” I commented.
“We haven’t figured it all out yet. Seeing that they brought them over here from the many fronts of the Republic, it’s safe to say that they’re risking everything here. Thanks to that, those fronts have definitely gotten weakener. Unfortunately, it’s not the time to celebrate that… Anyway, it’s a good thing we captured the guy who had been throwing those spears in the previous battle. It would have been a bit uncomfortable if he was still out there,” she explained.
“We can’t expect support from Castle Rock, right?” I asked.
“Castle Rock is currently isolated. They’re not in battle. They’re like a princess who has been captured by the demon king. Despite knowing that this operation is dangerous, we have no choice but to do it because we can’t abandon the princess,” she answered.
“That’s a good example,” I commented.
“And this time…”
“Our tactical Kim Hyun-Sung,” I said.
“I won’t send him out just yet, and you should be on standby as well. If a path opens up or the situation becomes worse, you’ll be dispatched, but until then, you can take care of the sixth and seventh detachments. I’ll send over the coordinates,” she requested.
“Okay, noona.”
The battle had just started, and the soldiers being depicted in the goddess’ mirror showed that they were currently trying to push each other back using swords and spears. From afar, it looked like the formation of each detachment was being maintained, but up close, the soldiers were mixing together.
‘This is fine.’
- You servants of the dirty demon! God will not forgive you!
- Crazy bastards. You guys are the demons!
- Stop the midgets from entering! Stop them!
- Who are you calling a midget?! You humans who sold your souls to demons!
The enemy forces were staying in line, but our goal was to break that line. I couldn’t help but nod in acknowledgment when I saw how the dwarves broke through their line. Their small but strong frame and high-quality armor made them extremely strong in a battle like this. My jaw even dropped when I saw how they were swinging their huge axes while breaking through the enemy line. There were battles a small-framed individual would be the best at because of their small frame, and those battles were usually humans against large monsters. They would either attack the monster from below to try and stagger it, or they would run around the slow-moving, enormous monster to exhaust it. The dwarves were experts in that kind of fight.
A path was slowly being opened, and I could see allied soldiers squeezing into the gap.
‘Nice!’
Meanwhile, large spirits were attacking with spirit magic. They weren’t dealing that much damage, but they were annoying, so they were good enough. Our force was like popcorn. A summoner maintained at least two to three summons, so it was enough to make up for the lack of power on the battlefield. Of course, we were lacking in some parts, but it was better to focus on the area we managed to prick a hole in rather than spread our forces thin.
I connected to Kim Hyun-Sung’s screen, and I felt like a driver who had just gotten inside a Lamborghini. I saw that he had been waiting for my voice.
- Can I head out?
“Yes. I’ll send you the coordinates,” I replied.
- Okay.
“Don’t overdo it. Just provide support to the soldiers who are among—”
- Affirmative.
I had already done it once, so the task became a bit easier the second time around. Placing Kim Hyun-Sung at a strategic point where the allies were located was my goal, and since he had to clear the path with the other soldiers, it wasn’t as chaotic as before. Perhaps it was because of that, but for some reason, I kept feeling disappointed. Unfortunately, there wasn’t really anything I could do about it. I could still remember Kim Hyun-Sung’s movement, and I was frustrated when I thought about it.
‘Still...’
He was Kim Hyun-Sung.
Kim Ye-Ri, Jo Hye-Jin, and the other members who went with him had great synergy. The detachment was formed with high-quality soldiers, so I knew they were capable of a great performance, but I was still shocked by what they were displaying.
- Support requested! Request reinforcements! As soon as possible… Reinforcements!
- Request for a priest!
- Support is—Cough!
I knew better than anyone that we couldn’t allow ourselves to get held back in situations like this, so I continued moving the troops and had them take care of the enemy troops in the middle of the battlefield. When I saw how they were pushing the enemy troops back with Kim Hyun-Sung among them, I couldn’t help but think that they were like soldiers of god.
‘It should be fine to send him out now, right?’
Kim Hyun-Sung was kind of far from the enemy mage and priest detachments, so I couldn’t decide if it was okay to send him there on his own.
‘He could probably escape even if there are more of them, right?’
I was sure it was possible as long as I continued giving him accurate coordinates. I knew that it was dangerous to lust after profits in this kind of situation, but I trusted Kim Hyun-Sung’s abilities, so after leaving the troops to the nearby dwarf detachment, I delivered another order to our lovely regressor. Dozens of magic holograms appeared before me, and although my head started hurting even before I could start, my fingers started moving. It seemed that I was craving the thrill and the same emotions I felt last time. Blood started rolling down my nose again, but I didn’t have the luxury to worry about that.
“I’ll send you the coordinates. You’ll be doing this by yourself, but you won’t be too far, Mr. Hyun-Sung.”
- Affirmative.
Perhaps it was just me, but Kim Hyun-Sung sounded kind of excited. After seeing him jump into the enemy forces, I focused on the hologram, and it felt like I was getting sucked into it. This wasn’t my first rodeo, but it was still a really interesting experience.
“Goal set. Take care of the mage detachment,” I ordered.
- Affirmative.
The enemy troops kept restoring the line, so it was a bit difficult to find a path to the target. Fortunately, our soldiers were nearby, so I started seeing a path and pushed Kim Hyun-Sung toward it.
I was stupefied to see him bringing in results. I couldn’t understand how he was able to move forward while swinging, stabbing, and turning around. I was sure even among the named players, no one could move like him.
The only reason between this battle and the previous one was that he had no time to think.
‘He doesn’t have the luxury to do that.’
I wasn’t really happy because magic, swords, and spears were flying everywhere. He was moving forward, but I was sure he was concentrating a lot more than usual. Weapons and limbs continued flying into the air as I heard screams, but the talented swordsman didn’t stop heading to his destination. He seemed a bit far from the main base, so when I quickly dispatched a detachment in the middle of the battlefield, I started waiting for results.
However, just as Kim Hyun-Sung appeared in front of the enemy mage detachment…
‘Huh?’
Craaaaaack!
There was a loud sound, and an unknown wave of magic passed through the command center.
“Noona, just now…” I started.
“S-Shit! Oppa, is your goddess’ mirror working?” Lee Ji-Hye asked.
‘Shit.’
The magic holograms in front of Lee Ji-Hye were shutting down one by one, and my mouth moved faster than my brain, which was still trying to understand what was going on.
“Mr. Hyun-Sung! Retreat!"
Fwoosh!
The magic hologram in front of me lost its light.
“That bastard…!” I cursed.
I finally discovered the demon summoner’s goal.
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