novelraw Chapter 129 : Chapter 129
Chapter 129 : Chapter 129
Chapter 129
The Royal Army led by Garme was the most elite force that the Reime Kingdom boasted of.
The pride of the Royal family, who had hunted monster hordes all over the place and roamed battlefields across the regions, achieving numerous military merits.
‘My, my soldiers…….’
Those who were also Garme’s pride were dying before his eyes.
And by a mere Orc horde, no less.
“Aaaaah!”
“Move! Move!”
“Don’t come this way! Get lost!”
His army, which he thought wouldn’t retreat even facing an Ogre, was collapsing.
‘Just why…….’
Was the ambush the problem?
No. Didn’t he assign half of the soldiers to guard duty even while distributing meat after a long time?
Thanks to using half of the troops as guards, the Royal Army responded perfectly to the ambush.
They formed formations and started battle in the meantime.
“General! The left square formation is being breached!”
“What about the 3rd Knight Order?”
“They are still in battle!”
“…Deploy the spearmen of the 4th Army to the left. Pull the archers back and tighten the formation.”
“Yes!”
‘If it weren’t here, it might have been slightly different.’
A cursed land where one cannot see an inch ahead without relying on torches.
The trees of this forest covering the sun restricted the movement of cavalry and the Knight Order, as if they were natural enemies of humans.
They said it was a difficult environment for horses to run, but it’s an environment where running horses is impossible.
However, the real problem was something else.
“What are the archers doing! Shoot! Please just shoot!”
“Shut up! Arrows don’t even stick properly unless it’s a vital point!”
Although they were shooting arrows ceaselessly, arrows were powerless in this forest.
‘Is the problem us?’
Garme’s gaze turned to the Knight Order cutting down Orcs.
They were maintaining the front line with their performance, but that was all.
‘A Knight Order that should be slaughtering Orcs is barely maintaining the front line.’
If it’s the 3rd Knight Order, composed entirely of 4-star knights, they should have been able to slaughter even 3,000 Orcs without the Royal Army.
But even they couldn’t easily shake off the Orcs tainted with madness.
Because being unfamiliar with this battlefield was the same for them.
“General! Request for support from the outskirts!”
“The center is requesting support!”
“The right square formation is shaking!”
Garme, watching the battlefield, made a decision.
“All forces, retreat from now on.”
“Pardon?!”
“The enemy is too close! Retreat is impossible without abandoning the front line!”
“We can win if we hold out, General!”
At the commanders’ words, Garme closed his eyes.
“Aaaaah!”
“No, no! Don’t eat me!”
“Fuck, no one said we had to fight monsters like this!”
The reason the formation was shaking was simple.
The front line isn’t holding out.
If it were axes targeting them, maybe.
Soldiers seeing their comrades being ‘eaten’ right before their eyes were losing their will to fight.
Instead of raising their shields with the resolve to die, soldiers seized by fear thrust their swords and spears to kill the enemy in front of them.
Even in the moment seized by fear, the fact that the Royal Army was the elite among elites didn’t change just by picking up weapons.
Just that when the thrust swords and spears failed to pierce the enemy, the soldiers who became prey screamed all sorts of screams, conveying even greater fear.
‘The longer we maintain the battle, the more disadvantageous it is.’
We must retreat now while there is at least some will to fight left.
Before the fear already beginning to seep into the Royal Army swallows them whole.
“…Cut the bridges and release all the horses. Since they seem quite hungry, there will be a reaction if they see horses. Retreat in the meantime.”
“H-horses, you say?”
“They are warhorses the cavalry raised like children…….”
“Isn’t it better than dying together here?”
“Yes!”
Behind the hurriedly running commanders, the sound of the horn announcing retreat rang out ominously.
* * *
The Orc Legion was wandering the forest today as well.
“Damn forest.”
As the tyrant moved his hand at the mana that seemed to tickle his body, the fighting spirit bursting from his body wrapped around the legion.
“Oh King! The forest’s capriciousness has begun!”
“Grrk! King! The forest is moving!”
The Shaman and Legion Commander who sensed the anomaly shouted simultaneously, but he knew without being told.
Because the fighting spirit spread as if wrapping the entire legion was shaking aimlessly.
“Not hallucination, nor a curse…….”
It’s magic.
And top-tier spatial magic that was hard to see even in the game.
Unless a monster from the depths or a mother popped out, the witch moved.
‘No matter how much I think about it, I don’t know why she’s blocking me.’
Since she was an unpredictable existence even in the game, guessing the reason was also impossible.
After realizing the witch was the culprit, he didn’t particularly want to know the reason either.
‘Maybe she just didn’t like how I looked.’
Because even in the game, he had similar experiences several times for ridiculous reasons.
A witch is such an existence. An existence with whom understanding or conversation is impossible without sufficient power.
The moment he, wrapping the legion with fighting spirit, buried his body in the throne and closed his eyes.
“Oh King! The spell has succeeded!”
At the Shaman’s voice, the Dominant opened his closed eyes.
“How many?”
“Three thousand warriors left to prove their valor!”
The tyrant nodded with satisfaction.
“Kukuku, it must have become quite a decent gift.”
The chest, which felt heavy as if a stone were placed on it, subsided a little.
They have been wandering the forest for over a month already.
It’s absurd for a race born in the forest to wander the forest.
It was a method devised using Orc Shamans to find a path after confirming the witch’s ploy.
To strengthen the instincts of Orcs separated from the legion and make them move in search of enemies and live prey.
“Follow the traces of the spell and move.”
The traces left in their bodies will become guideposts leading the legion.
‘Kukuku, if there are humans nearby, there would be nothing more fun than that.’
Because Orcs transformed into berserkers by the power of the spell will thrust their axes and teeth until the last human falls.
Wouldn't that be a good appetizer for the humans of Moner eagerly waiting for him?
* * *
“Damn it! Damn it!”
Carlson, shouting nervously, moved his feet ceaselessly.
“Situation?”
“They are still chasing!”
Releasing the horses and drawing the Orcs’ attention was good.
According to plan, the guys smelling blood would scatter into the forest chasing the horses.
The Royal Army, targeting that moment, started retreating, but there was a problem.
“Why on earth are those bastards chasing us?!”
“I-I don’t know!”
Smelling the horses’ blood, the Orcs, now even crazier, rolled their eyes and started chasing the retreating Royal Army.
Screams heard from afar dug sharply into their ears.
“Mo-move faster!”
“Yes!”
Although the Knight Order’s role was to remain in the rear and secure time for allies to retreat.
- Grrrrrk!
- Human! Stop!
- Meat is running away!
- Hungry! Catch! Eat!
How could they buy time against enemies retreating from the Royal Army?
“Aaaaaah! My foot!”
A soldier, who fell as if he sprained his ankle, shouted wailing from the ground.
“Sir Carlson! Please, please save me!”
“Stupid bastard!”
Carlson, who ran quickly, carried the soldier on his shoulder.
“Thank you so much, Sir! I will definitely repay this debt! I-I am Hanson from the 4th Unit, 2nd Team!”
Although the soldier carried on his shoulder shouted loudly thanking him for saving his life, it didn’t have much meaning.
Carrying one soldier and running wasn’t that difficult for a knight trained with mana.
At that moment.
“Aaaaah!”
Was it bad luck? Another soldier fell.
“Sa-save me too……!”
This time there was no time to save him.
Dozens of Orcs who had their prey snatched right before their eyes threw axes at the fallen soldier.
“Gaaaaah!”
A scream filled with pain and the unpleasant sound of Orc teeth tearing bone and flesh rang out from behind.
Crunch! Crunch!
“Kuheok!”
Carlson, running with a crumpled face, looked ahead.
It was natural for soldiers trained through drills to fall.
Because the soldiers standing in the rear of the retreat column were soldiers who took the vanguard during the ambush.
Even where Carlson was, and where other knights were, soldiers reaching their limit were collapsing and becoming Orc prey.
‘How long can the rear run away?’
Can we really retreat?
Even if we leave the forest, it’s not the end.
Just the time it takes from the edge of the forest to the fortress requires running for a full day.
Even estimating conservatively, they have to run for a day and a half with enemies on their tail.
- Grrrk!
- More prey! More enemies!
- Now full! Let’s fight!
With monsters closer to hungry ghosts than Orcs.
‘Rather…….’
Scanning the surroundings, he threw the soldier carried on his shoulder backward.
“Wh-what! Aaaaaah!”
‘Don’t worry, I’ll send your comrades soon.’
Leaving behind the scream of the soldier being chewed alive, Carlson charged forward.
To give the last order to the 4th Unit where Hanson belonged.
* * *
“Fortress, the fortress is visible!”
Garme, leaving the forest, swayed as if to collapse.
“General!”
“I’m fine. You go first and deliver the sad news.”
Since hours had passed since the unpleasant breathing sounds of Orcs shaking the forest were last heard, there should be a moment of time.
Surrounding commanders tried to stop him with worried eyes saying he should run farther, but Garme shook his head.
“Didn’t I run away ahead of anyone to save this old body. Before going in, I want to check how much damage there was.”
“Then I will deliver the news to the fortress and return!”
Leaving behind the commanders running ahead, Garme turned his body.
“How many died…….”
Soldiers who died during battle would easily exceed a hundred.
Maybe over a thousand soldiers died…….
‘No. The timing of retreat was good, and after some time passed, screams weren’t heard either.’
Shaking his head to shake off ominous thoughts, he straightened his back and looked at the soldiers leaving the forest.
“It’s light! I can see the sky!”
“Aaaaaah!”
While shouting at the soldiers about to collapse after leaving the forest to hurry retreat to the fortress, he calculated the number of soldiers passing him.
‘There’s less damage than expected.’
Was it a needless worry as expected?
Even if there was a problem, Carlson and the 3rd Knight Order remaining in the rear would have solved it.
“Mm……?”
While thinking so, soldiers who should have been coming out for a while longer were nowhere to be seen.
Stomp, stomp, stomp.
And from the forest buried in darkness, the Knight Order walked out.
With appearances no different from defeated soldiers, covered in human and Orc blood all over their bodies.
“Don’t tell me…….”
He approached the Knight Order staggering towards him.
“Where, where are the other soldiers?”
“…….”
“Do you not hear my words! How can the Knight Order supposed to guard the rear come out already?!”
“…….”
“Enough! Where is the Commander? Where is Carlson?!”
“The Commander, who was fighting until the last moment, told us to evacuate first at least. Let’s go to the fortress for now.”
It was completely incomprehensible.
There was a battle during retreat?
But there was no signal from the rear?
“Just what does that mean?”
Garme shouted as if having a seizure, but no knight answered his question.
They just led Garme to the fortress.
* * *
“Sir Carlson! Please! Please save me! I won’t tell anyone what I saw here!”
Watching the loudly shouting soldier, Carlson crumpled his face.
“A guy who really won’t tell doesn’t say that.”
When Carlson sneered, the soldier shouted in frustration.
“You, damn bastard! Do you think you can hide that you used soldiers as bait?!”
“Mm… Yeah. You were fooled too.”
Wasn’t the unit commander in front of his eyes the one who stopped retreating as soon as he said it was the General’s order?
Besides, there were no lies in what he said.
He only said let’s sacrifice our lives with the Knight Order to buy time for the Royal Army to retreat.
“We bought time to retreat, and sacrificed lives too.”
Carlson, nodding calmly, pierced the unit commander’s neck with his sword.
“Our sacrifice was a sacrifice for the Royal family…….”
“Don’t worry, I will convey that part properly.”
Although the fact that 200 soldiers who luckily survived that hell died at the hands of the Knight Order will remain unknown forever.
The heroic sacrifice of the Knight Order and the 4th Unit will be widely known.