novelraw Chapter 152
Chapter 152
Chapter 152
The Knights at the front began climbing up the Castle walls.
Far too easily, at that.
Knights who used Aura were on a completely different level from ordinary Soldiers. With just a few quick steps—tap, tap, tap—against the wall, they could climb straight up to the top.
‘At this rate… does defending even mean anything?’
Against monsters, relying on a Castle was extremely effective.
That was why I had thought defense was much easier than siege warfare.
But that only applied when facing Soldiers. With this many Knights, it barely meant anything.
Thanks to the Enhancement Magic Circles, the walls themselves wouldn’t be destroyed—but if things continued like this, it felt like the walls themselves were meaningless.
* A classic case of inexperience.
‘I’ve never defended against humans before. And I never expected this many Knights to come rushing in like this.’
It was common sense that defense was easier than offense.
But in reality, very few had experience fighting humans.
During the Great Cataclysm, defensive battles were naturally against monsters, and even the Crimson Comet, who had operated in the south, had never experienced defending against humans.
A lack of experience.
We were painfully inexperienced when it came to fighting humans.
“Knock them down!”
“The moment they’re climbing the wall is their only weakness! Everyone, attack!”
But we couldn’t just sit back and take it.
No matter how skilled Knights were, the moment they climbed the walls, they couldn’t fully defend themselves. If we struck at that moment and knocked them down, they would still take damage.
Not all Imperial Knights could climb at once, so at least for now, their numerical advantage wasn’t overwhelming.
* Graaah!!
The Cow Tribe and Black Lions were fighting fiercely.
The Cow Tribe warriors threw themselves at the Knights climbing up, clinging to them like madmen regardless of injuries.
The standard weapon of Imperial Knights was the longsword.
They couldn’t easily shake off fully armored Cow Tribe warriors in one go.
The Cow Tribe reserve warriors pressed the Knights in tight formations, while the Black Lions firmly supported them.
As the large Cow Tribe trainees held the line, the Black Lions slipped in from behind and split the enemy apart.
The sturdy Iron Armor we had provided created openings by blocking several of the Knights’ attacks.
Especially Leisha—her iron fists crushed even magic armor as if it were nothing.
Her martial prowess stood out even here.
“The Goddess watches over us! For Lord Bestia!”
Priest-Warrior Brito was also fighting fiercely.
As expected, bald men were strong.
Brito’s massive iron mace was sending Imperial Knights straight to the divine realm.
And true to being a priest of a goddess who accepted multiple faiths, he even prayed to Bestia along the way.
The other Priests also wielded weapons and fought the Imperial Army.
They fought incredibly well.
It made me think we should increase the number of Priest-Warriors no matter what.
“Die!”
* Crunch!
The Knights of the Johnson Territory were also showing great performance.
Against heavily armored Imperial Knights, large weapons like great axes and War Hammers were quite effective.
The steel armor and protection magic worn by Imperial Knights could absorb much of the damage—but once the impact exceeded a certain threshold, that damage was transferred directly to the wearer.
Though lacking in Aura, our Knights didn’t fall behind in physical ability.
Knights whose armor had been crushed were sent flying off the walls.
“Ugh…”
“As expected of Imperial bastards. They’re tough as hell.”
I also engaged the Knights climbing up the wall.
My Aura-infused greatsword smashed through their steel armor.
I had swung intending to split them in half in one strike, but their armor was incredibly durable.
As expected of the Empire.
I remembered how the Lord of Vines had been obsessed with Imperial-made weapons—their technology truly was on another level.
“Still, this should be enough—ugh!”
After dealing with several Knights, I glanced around—and suddenly felt a chill down my spine.
Instinctively, I swung my greatsword to counter.
* Clang!
“Tch.”
A sharp metallic sound rang out, followed by a click of the tongue.
A Knight who had tried to ambush me from behind was knocked back a couple of steps.
‘That guy…’
He looked familiar.
From the Lord’s Council, maybe.
He was one of the Masters who had entered alongside Regent Octosia.
It seemed a Master had personally come here to deal with me.
‘A decapitation operation, huh.’
That wasn’t bad for me either.
If someone like him ran wild, our casualties would skyrocket.
But dragging this out wasn’t ideal either—our numbers were far inferior.
He knew that too, which was why he had targeted me.
I needed to deal with him quickly and go help the others.
* Clang! Clang!
He was a technical Master wielding dual swords.
Completely different from that rookie Master, Sir Roman, whom I had faced in Haken.
His attacks came from all directions, sharp enough to slice me apart.
Strikes aimed simultaneously at my shoulders, arms, and neck.
His movements were flashy and precise.
“Not happening!”
I deflected his attacks with my greatsword, looking for an opening.
Only a few exchanges, but enough to assess him.
My first thought—this wouldn’t be easy.
The problem was speed.
He was too fast to easily create an opportunity.
‘And those twin swords… they’re not ordinary weapons.’
* I sense the power of another god. Perhaps relics of the War God.
‘War God… one of those evil gods the Empire worships?’
* Not exactly evil. But to kingdoms and Beastmen, they might as well be.
Relics from an ancient age.
My greatsword wasn’t ordinary either, so I couldn’t call it unfair—but it was troublesome.
“You’re quite good.”
“You have to be, if you want to live here.”
He also paused briefly, catching his breath while searching for an opening.
Maybe he was tense too.
One clean hit from either side could be fatal.
Thanks to him dragging things out while looking for an opening, I had time to observe the battlefield.
* Graaah!!
‘Leisha… is she fighting the Regent?’
A powerful shockwave erupted from the other side of the wall.
It was Leisha.
She was facing Regent Octosia—another Master.
The atmosphere there was the opposite of mine.
Leisha was attacking, while Octosia was purely on the defensive.
With a massive shield, she blocked all of Leisha’s attacks—it seemed she had come prepared from the start.
‘That’s seriously impressive.’
To defend against Leisha like that…
The massive shield blocking her savage black Aura didn’t seem ordinary either.
Of course, Octosia herself was no ordinary fighter.
Seeing how all these Masters wielded relics, I was once again reminded of what kind of nation the Empire was.
* Clang!
“You’re looking away!”
“Cut me some slack. This isn’t a one-on-one tournament.”
Seizing the moment my gaze shifted, he slid in smoothly.
But that was half intentional.
My beast-like instincts as ‘Iron’ had been tracking him the whole time.
If anything, this made it easier to create an opening.
* Clang!
I deflected his side attack with my greatsword—counterattack opportunity.
But it wasn’t that simple.
“Not happening!”
Another strike came from the opposite side.
Two weapons.
Alternating attacks from both sides, flowing seamlessly—it was hard to find a gap.
Amateur dual-wielding was just for show, but when mastered, it created a flawless chain of attacks like this.
On top of that, he was faster than me.
A speed-focused technical Knight.
Even his Aura technique and footwork were geared toward speed.
The difference in speed made it hard to find any opportunity.
* Clang! Clang!
We exchanged blows several more times, but no opening appeared.
This was a bad matchup.
He was faster, highly skilled with dual swords, and I couldn’t even claim superiority in weapon quality.
The only saving grace was that he couldn’t defeat me either.
‘But this is dragging on too long.’
With both me and Leisha tied up, we were at a disadvantage.
Enemies were still climbing the walls, and everyone was struggling to deal with them.
He was deliberately stalling because the overall situation favored them.
But then—
-Мать природа ~♪ дай нам силу~ ♬
A beautiful singing voice echoed from inside the Castle.
‘That voice… Yuria?’
* This is Shamanism.
‘Shamanism?’
* That fox woman is pushing herself. Such a powerful enhancement Shamanism…
Great Shamanism, Song of Nature.
If I explained it like a game—it granted increased attack, defense, and vitality to all Beastmen within range of the song.
The effect scaled with the singer’s skill.
‘Yuria sings insanely well. Well, she’s got an insanely beautiful voice too.’
There wasn’t a single part of her that wasn’t beautiful.
Her personality aside, her “beauty” was undeniable.
And the effect was just as dramatic.
An incomprehensible language—but my body responded to the song.
My exhausted stamina rapidly recovered, and my concentration sharpened.
Letting my body be guided by Shamanism felt unfamiliar—but not unpleasant.
‘Wait, this is a song, right? Doesn’t everyone who hears it get buffed?’
* Impossible. Only Beastmen blessed by Lord Bestia can receive its effects.
‘Then why am I getting it?’
* Well… you’re practically an honorary Beastman.
‘Not just me though…’
“Whoa! I’m overflowing with strength!”
“Tear those Imperial bastards apart!”
If it was just because I was the Guide, that would make sense—but even the Territory’s Knights were receiving the effects.
Shouts erupted everywhere as they began pushing back the Imperial Knights aggressively.
* Th-the Knights of Johnson Territory are all honorary Beastmen…
‘Sure. Let’s go with that.’
It wasn’t a bad thing anyway.
It seemed Yuria had overexerted herself to use Great Shamanism—so it was better if as many people as possible benefited from it.
Thankfully, the Imperial bastards didn’t seem to be affected.
“Damn it. A shaman? Where the hell is she singing from?”
Seeing the Imperial Knight’s expression worsen felt satisfying.
“Well then… dragging this out won’t help you anymore, will it?”
“Hmph. How long do you think that shaman can keep singing?”
“Quite a while. You don’t know? She’s the most famous singer in the Territory. One performance lasts hours.”
“…Damn it.”
* You lie every time you open your mouth.
So what?
What’s he going to do—verify it?
If it made him impatient, it was worth it.
* Clang clang clang!
Judging by how his movements grew more impatient, it was an effective “attack.”
‘Damn… even with the buff, I can’t deal with that speed.’
Still, I struggled to break through.
The buff didn’t close the speed gap.
Song of Nature didn’t increase agility.
And increased attack power only mattered if I could actually hit him.
‘Still… I think I’m starting to get something.’
As I desperately blocked his attacks, something clicked.
If I could move just a little faster, I might be able to create an opening.
Just a bit faster. Somehow, faster.
My muscles began absorbing something.
It felt like Aura.
And just as those Aura-infused muscles were about to explode with power—
* Bwoooooo!!!
A horn blast echoed from afar.
‘Damn it.’
The sudden disruption broke my concentration—and the fleeting realization vanished completely.
It was an incredibly frustrating moment.
‘Ha… guess it’s not time yet.’
* Thud thud thud.
As the ground began to tremble faintly, I instinctively realized—
The battle had entered its next phase.