Chapter 80: Counterattack (5)

Arrows flew aimlessly amidst the disorganized and weak defensive formation. This was the result of the mixed infantry and archers losing control.

However, dozens of spells flew through the gaps. Despite the tangled formation, the attacks were quite sharp and threatening.

Even with the efforts of our mages, a few spells inevitably struck the charging cavalry.

Like bombs exploding, horses and men flew into the air, and dirt rained down.

This was a phenomenon due to the difference in the number of mages. There were so many mages? It was an unexpected situation.

‘Could they have extracted more for a quick siege?’

Considering the strategy of the Western Army, it was a plausible hypothesis. However, the speed of the cavalry did not decrease.

The firepower was insufficient to stop the cavalry in the chaotic formation.

There was a risk of attacking our own troops. The distance was closing, and the enemy's firepower was decreasing.

Instead, our mages cast powerful spells.

Boom! The fireball that flew caused an explosion. The bodies of the Western Army soldiers scattered into the sky.

I ran into the open space. The dirt that rose above my shoulder fell heavily.

“Death!”

The cavalry pierced through the ranks with their heavy weight. Crunch! The weight of the enemy soldiers hit by the hooves and the bodies of the horses was clearly felt.

I swung Yueling and advanced. Occasionally, the cavalry opened up areas where the enemy was densely packed.

I did not aim to kill. The purpose of the cavalry was to instill panic in the enemy. The rest was left to the following infantry.

“Gaaaah!”

The cavalry charged towards the center of the enemy without stopping, cutting through the screams and explosions.

The battlefield, observed from the wind, was extremely chaotic, making it impossible to grasp the details. I had to swing my sword while charging.

It didn't matter. The infantry had already reached the fallen enemies. Now, detailed strategy was meaningless.

It was also unnecessary. We continued to advance.

Not all of the Western Army was in chaos. Among the mentally broken soldiers, a knight threw a spear.

Directly at my horse.

I was noticeable as I charged at the forefront.

‘Damn.’

Blocking it with the wind was impossible. There were too many eyes watching. The spear couldn't change its trajectory.

The spear pierced the horse's chest. The impact was transmitted. The horse fell, and I was thrown forward by inertia.

“Sir!”

In the cry of the cavalry calling me, I turned my body in mid-air. A landing technique. I landed on my right shoulder.

I immediately rolled on the ground and used the remaining momentum to leap forward. The immense inertia caused strain in my thighs.

I charged at full speed. The knight who threw the spear was now drawing his sword.

As he drew his sword, I was already in front of him. Yueling pierced the knight's chest.

Thud, thud. The cavalry passed by on both sides. It was a close call.

It was a dangerous situation, as I could be trampled by the horse.

Unable to move left or right, I charged straight ahead. I could generate enough speed with my body.

I cut down all the soldiers blocking my path and glanced back. I met the eyes of a cavalryman.

“Sir Kal!”

The man approaching me extended his left hand. It was fortunate to have someone who understood.

I retreated and immediately grabbed his hand.

The cavalryman gripped my hand tightly. The force pulling me forward, combined with the momentum from pushing off the ground, allowed me to rotate and mount.

In an instant, I was behind the cavalryman.

“Sir! Are you alright?”

“Of course.”

“I didn’t expect you to dismount and capture a knight and the Western soldiers.”

I smiled at the voice filled with awe and asked.

“Your name?”

“Pasyang.”

“Good horsemanship. Thanks to you, I survived.”

“It’s an honor.”

Pasyang's shoulders tensed. After the last battle, the cavalry had become very fond of me.

Of course, most of the soldiers were already favorable towards me from the first encounter during the suppression, but their enthusiasm had intensified.

With a slight retreat from the front and two people on one horse, I couldn't swing my sword recklessly as before.

I focused on observing the battlefield.

The enemy commanders and knights were trying to reorganize the chaotic soldiers.

They were shouting loudly to the scattered soldiers. Of course, it was futile as the battle was already tilting.

I saw a brave knight fighting amidst the chaos.

He was struggling to protect the brave soldiers who were maintaining their formation.

“Sir Feorn! It’s dangerous!”

“Don’t worry! I’ll take care of the ones who slip through!”

Feorn Shade. A knight with a considerable reputation in the West. One of the candidates for Sword Master.

Well, he wouldn’t become a Sword Master. He was more famous than skilled.

That said, he wasn’t incompetent. The side where he was fighting had almost no momentum. He needed to be dealt with.

This momentum couldn’t be allowed to wane. I also wanted to see the effect of sparring with a Sword Master.

“Pasyang, that way!”

“Yes!”

The cavalryman turned his horse without a word. His horsemanship was exceptional.

As we advanced, the formation slightly spread out, but changing direction amidst the charging cavalry was a risky maneuver.

Thanks to this, it took only about ten seconds to close the distance.

“You charge again.”

“Sir…?”

“I’ll deal with that one and return.”

Pasyang nodded with a stiff body. I patted the cavalryman’s shoulder and leaped off the horse.

The young cavalryman looked at me with determined eyes and turned his horse.

20 meters. Feorn was already looking at me. Our eyes met. The atmosphere changed despite the distance.

A duel with a knight. No words were needed. I charged straight ahead. As I ran, I recalled my sparring with Luedern.

A thrust mimicking Luedern. The middle-aged knight deflected the sword with burning eyes.

The counterattack that followed was the same movement I used against Luedern. I remembered how Luedern had countered it.

I smoothly parried the sword slicing diagonally. I tilted my wrist.

The knight's sword slid along the blade.

I smoothly turned my body.

The knight's sword pierced the empty space where I had been, and the crescent moon-shaped Yueling cut through the air.

Yueling sliced across the open chest. It didn’t look like a moon appeared as it did with Luedern, but the moonlight seemed to flash for a moment.

Indeed, he was more famous than skilled. Still, it was a satisfactory result.

Feorn died with wide eyes. Thud—his body, losing strength, first knelt and then fell forward.

Behind the fallen knight, the Western soldiers looked as if they had lost hope, their eyes filled with disbelief.

* * *

“Waaaaah!”

“Sir.”

The path to the princess. The soldiers bowed and showed respect as they met Kallin.

Everyone knew whose strategy this was.

The soldiers' actions were so clear that the princess could sense Kallin's approach from a distance.

The princess sighed in relief, knowing he was alive.

“Shurtafen, I heard you fell off your horse. Are you alright?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The news had already spread? The cavalry had returned first, so it was possible.

“I’m relieved. I heard you were brave after that, but I was worried.”

“I’m fine. Thank you for your concern.”

Kallin smiled faintly in response. Even in a world where magic was used, falling off a horse was dangerous.

Especially since the horse had been hit by a spear. It was natural to be concerned.

“To think it would be this effective.”

Emmet stepped forward from behind and praised Kallin. Duke Ryurik nodded.

“A genius of war. It feels like seeing Temer.”

Temer was the advisor to the founding emperor. The highest praise a duke could give.

Kallin slightly bowed his head.

“You flatter me.”

“No, not at all. A difference of 10,000 troops. It could be overcome, but the overall situation was overwhelmingly in our favor. How did you choose this place? Just by looking at the map?”

“It’s the path I took to Archten. I noticed it then and recalled it when the attack came.”

The duke was impressed.

“You have a good eye. That’s why it’s even more remarkable. You made the enemy cavalry look foolish and disrupted their formation. It was a perfect strategy.”

“It was partly luck. There was no guarantee the enemy would act as we intended.”

“No. You created it. Even if I were the enemy, I would have acted similarly.”

Emmet’s addition. Kallin just smiled. Excessive modesty wasn’t good.

The princess also praised Kallin’s achievement.

“You’re right. It was remarkable. The opening battle’s results are highly satisfactory. We captured 63,000 with 25,000 troops.”

“Thank you.”

28,000 against 35,000. Though the battle was fought in two parts, we won against more than double the enemy.

With the enemy’s total force at 170,000, we had dealt with over 30% of them.

It was an unbelievable achievement. The princess, Emmet, Ryurik, the knights, and the soldiers all had overwhelmed expressions.

‘This war. The advantage has already shifted. The princes will find it hard to surpass Erendil’s achievements.’

Kallin was half-convinced. The 1st Prince had support from the main force, and the 3rd Prince had retreated.

The 2nd Prince likely had no chance to excel.

Now, the enemy in the north was about 110,000. Excluding the retreating 3rd Prince’s army, the imperial army had 150,000 troops.

Of course, it was unknown what had happened to the 1st Prince…

Even if the 1st Prince had lost all his troops, it would still be 100,000.

Given the experienced Luedern, there would be minimal losses, so with the princess joining, we would have numerical superiority.

“Now, we need to reorganize and join the main force.”

Duke Ryurik’s words.

“We need to discuss how to move, so send a messenger first. Our victory will change the situation above.”

The princess nodded confidently.

“Do so.”

* * *

“…What the hell is this?”

King Rohalak’s voice was like ice. It felt as if a cold wave had suddenly hit the tent.

The nobles, who were kings just a year ago, stiffened and looked around.

The atmosphere was tense, as if something disastrous was about to happen. The man standing before the king trembled and continued.

“Duke Pasa was defeated by the princess. It’s difficult to reorganize the surviving troops, as the commanders are mostly dead.”

“Explain.”

“According to the information from our spy, a knight named Kal Shurtafen used a false retreat strategy in the Epidere Plain…”

King Rohalak couldn’t hold back and slammed his fist on the table.

“28,000 and 35,000 to 25,000? These useless bastards! Wait, Kal Shurtafen? I think I heard that name in Archten.”

“Yes, he is the princess’s bodyguard.”

“That guy. How old is he?”

“He hasn’t even turned twenty…”

King Rohalak closed his eyes and tilted his head back. His neck ached from the high blood pressure.

He was barely holding back his anger.

“Feorn Shade was also killed by him.”

The man reporting this intended to calm the king by implying that Kallin was exceptional.

However, it only irritated the king. The king threw his wine glass. The glass shattered, and wine splattered everywhere.

“Damn it! Why did some unexpected bastard…”

The nobles bowed their heads, silent as mice. It was the first time they had seen King Rohalak so angry.

He was always calm.

The king’s clenched fist trembled. He was trying to regain his composure.

But it was difficult.

‘These useless bastards.’

The south. It was a battle we should have won. We expected the princess to go to Archten.

It was a small city where it was hard to achieve significant achievements.

That’s why we invested in Omi Mountain. To control the south.

We even assigned additional mages and equipment for a quick siege. It was a perfect plan.

Until the defeat in Archten. No, even then, it was still okay.

We thought it was possible. But the defeat of the troops sent to Omi Mountain was a disaster.

“Huh.”

In the silence, King Rohalak sighed. Victory was within reach.

We knew the empire couldn’t send all its troops and the princes were competing. We prepared thoroughly.

We successfully staged a fake siege in one city to defeat the 1st Prince’s army.

We eliminated 40,000.

Currently, the opposing forces in the upper Western front are about 110,000 each.

In this state, 60,000 more troops from the south were supposed to join.

Even if Archten was defeated, we expected at least 30,000 to arrive intact.

Now, the opposite is happening, and over 20,000 troops are joining the enemy.

‘Damn. What the hell is this crazy bastard doing?’

Just 30 minutes ago, we were toasting to the victory we had secured.

The king, regaining his composure, thought calmly.

The opponent is Luedern. The Western Army has one Sword Master, but there is a gap.

We need someone to contain Luedern in a favorable situation.

Attacking now would be suicide.

The empire will avoid the fight, and if we recklessly engage, we will suffer a crushing defeat.

Waiting would be even more insane. The king made a quick decision.

“We retreat.”

“Pardon?”

The noble, surprised by the sudden declaration, flinched and bowed.

The king’s eyes seemed like they could pierce his ears with a sword.

“There’s no hope now. We return to the West.”

The initial plan is in ruins. With the advantage lost, we need to draw the enemy into our territory.

Of course, when the Western Army was in a desperate situation, the main imperial force was filled with a mix of panic and joy.

“Princess Your Highness? How…?”