Chapter 93: Ghost Shadow (3)

Leaving the battlefield behind,

Edwin Hector headed for the tent.

In the makeshift tent designated as the command center, the high-ranking officers who had received Edwin Hector's orders were already present.

"Jackson, report the situation."

"Understood."

The leader of the Ranger unit,

Jackson stepped forward.

"Immediately after breaking the first line of defense, I followed your orders and commanded the 3rd Battalion to deal with the remaining forces. However, starting from an hour ago, communication with the companies of the 3rd Battalion has been cut off one by one. At first, I thought it was just a communication issue, but with three companies losing contact in sequence, it seems they have fallen to the enemy."

"Estimated casualties?"

"About 300 men."

His expression hardened.

This war.

It had been carried out under a perfect plan for victory.

The fact that Hector's soldiers died due to a single variable disturbed Edwin Hector.

"The southern front's forces have mostly barricaded themselves behind the city gates and chosen to defend. In such a situation, the occurrence of our casualties is likely due to Roman Dmitri's actions, who killed Viscount McClarely at the 5th line of defense. My fears have become reality. Roman Dmitri did not choose to flee over the mountains but to remain on the southern front and oppose us."

His voice grew low.

The name Roman Dmitri.

It had never sat well with him.

The moment the gears of his plan began to misalign, Edwin Hector stored that name in his mind.

"A variable has appeared in the plan. If we leave Roman Dmitri alone, he will certainly cause another problem."

"Commander."

One of the high-ranking officers.

The man with a square face spoke with a resolute voice.

"As you said, Commander, a variable has occurred that deviates from the initial plan. Viscount McClarely is dead, and Roman Dmitri has gathered the remnants to disrupt our plans. However, that is not a significant issue. The southern front consists of five front-line defense positions and one rear position. Now that the most important rear position and the first line of defense are in our hands, if we capture the remaining defense positions, the southern front will naturally lose its strength. Look at the forest. It is more important to collapse the defense positions in front of us rather than deal with a small rat like Roman Dmitri."

"Greedy for small gains, but losing big."

Roman Dmitri is a small variable.

If we get distracted by him and fail to capture the city, we cannot be confident in the success of the plan.

Three days.

It is not time for Cairo.

Even if they have other thoughts, I plan to completely collapse the defense positions and strangle them within three days.

Therefore,

Edwin Hector tried to dissuade them.

Hector's star.

From past experiences, he knew that whenever he showed discomfort, he always took actions beyond common sense.

However,

Edwin Hector had already made his decision.

"No. What is important now is not to focus on the second line of defense, which, as I predicted, cannot mount any counterattack, but to eliminate the variable that has disrupted the plan in an area I did not anticipate. Retreat the troops immediately. From now on, we will completely annihilate the rats on the southern front."

At these words,

The high-ranking officers' expressions showed confusion.

* * *

The second line of defense.

It won't hold for long.

With the high ground in sight, it was difficult to immediately follow Edwin Hector's judgment to retreat the troops.

One of the high-ranking officers said,

"It is a reckless judgment. The remnants are few in number. We can capture all the defense lines first and then deal with them. Moreover, it is not possible to reverse the tide with such a small force, is it?"

It is a valid point.

Edwin Hector also knew this, but from the moment he received the first report, he had a persistent bad feeling.

An instinctive sense.

People say that instinct and common sense are different.

But ultimately, instinct also stems from common sense.

Having reviewed countless plans over the past year, his instinct classified Roman Dmitri as a dangerous element.

Edwin Hector said,

"I understand your concerns. As a commander, I must always prepare for the worst. The worst I fear is not failing to collapse the five defense lines within three days, but the existence of Roman Dmitri, who might create an unforeseen variable on the southern front. We have no time. If Roman Dmitri creates an unforeseen variable, we will face a worse situation than failing to capture the defense lines."

It was a simple problem.

Problems that can be resolved and those that cannot.

Edwin Hector emphasized the latter.

The defense positions can be collapsed somehow, but Roman Dmitri's movements cannot be perfectly predicted.

"I am choosing the lesser evil. If, after hearing my explanation, the majority still believe that collapsing the second line of defense is the priority, I will bend my will and follow your opinion."

In fact,

The high-ranking officers knew.

When Edwin Hector made a judgment, there was always a good reason.

However, they asked a common-sense question because even once, a human could make a mistake.

They all nodded.

It meant they understood.

Jackson spoke on behalf of the group.

"I will follow the Commander's orders."

Do they know?

By this judgment,

The Kingdom of Hector will arrive at the southern mountains, where Roman Dmitri is waiting, earlier than expected.

* * *

The sun was setting.

As the farmers returned home to eat dinner with their families, bright flames rose from all directions, piercing the darkness.

Whoosh.

Whoosh.

Hector's soldiers lit the torches.

"If you spot the enemy, do not attack rashly. Blow the horn immediately. The remnants of Cairo include Ora knights. If we slowly corner the enemy and attack together, we can eliminate them without significant casualties!"

"Understood!"

2nd Battalion, 3rd Company.

The company commander, responsible for searching a part of the area, raised his voice.

The southern mountains are vast.

If they searched haphazardly, they might miss the enemy, so they chose to spread out from the bottom and slowly move up.

If the enemy appears, there is a risk of losing lives, but once the enemy's position is revealed, it is possible to completely surround them from all sides.

This was Edwin Hector's thinking.

Rather than wasting time on ambiguous searches, he aimed to completely eliminate the remnants in one move.

Whoosh.

The darkness was pushed back by the flames.

The soldiers slowly climbed the mountain.

They were so cautious that they even jumped at the sound of dry leaves underfoot.

"Huff, huff."

The company commander led the way.

Exhaling white breath, the company commander scanned the surroundings with a stern face.

According to the survivors who followed Viscount McClarely, Roman Dmitri was a ghost on the battlefield.

Even a moment of carelessness could mean death.

No matter how much they prepared for battle and pledged to risk their lives for the country, no one, including the company commander, wanted to be the first to die.

Step by step.

As the flames illuminated the darkness, the areas not reached by the flames turned dark.

"Right side?"

"No issues."

A soldier followed closely beside him.

The company commander, seeing the soldier probe the ground with a stick, judged it safe and turned his head.

Suddenly.

Thud.

"…!"

The darkness enveloped the soldier.

He could neither blow the horn nor call for help from the company commander.

In an instant.

His neck was twisted.

The soldier, who did not even get a chance to resist, fell face-first to the ground with a dull thud.

However, the company commander did not hear the sound.

Not only the company commander but also the other soldiers continued to move forward without looking back, even though their comrade had just died beside them.

"Left side?"

"No issues."

It was a death signal.

Once the company commander confirmed there were no issues, the darkness that followed took the soldier's life.

One by one.

At first, they did not notice anything was wrong.

However,

As the surrounding flames gradually dimmed, the company commander realized something was amiss.

"What, what is this?!"

His face turned pale.

The soldiers were disappearing.

When they set out, there were many people around him, but now, the number of torches illuminating the darkness had noticeably decreased.

His heart sank.

Despite maintaining a proper distance while walking, this situation had occurred, and he hastily blew the horn.

Or rather,

He tried to blow it.

Snap.

The company commander's neck was twisted.

With the horn in his mouth, he collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.

That was the beginning.

Throughout the mountains,

Hector's soldiers began to die one by one.

* * *

The secret did not last long.

The deaths of the soldiers.

They were soon discovered, and the quiet darkness was pierced by the loud sound of horns.

Beep—

Beep, beep—

"The enemy has appeared!"

"Check your surroundings! Block the retreat and corner the enemy in one place!"

Everyone was in chaos.

Soldiers, with fire in their eyes, checked their surroundings.

Among them were Ora knights who used magical artifacts to illuminate the darkness, but no matter how they looked, they could not see the enemy.

"Where are they?!"

It made no sense.

A comrade had just died right beside them.

Logically, the enemy should have been nearby, but they could not understand how the enemy had disappeared without making a sound.

In a distant place.

A man stood in a space shrouded in darkness.

'Hector's judgment is bolder than I expected. I planned to use guerrilla tactics to gain maximum advantage while they attacked other defense positions, but Hector has decided to cut off this variable by abandoning the second line of defense. Who is their commander? From the surprise attack to the decision to assault the warp gate, they are not an ordinary person.'

A smile appeared on his face.

Instead of being surprised by the extreme reaction to a slight provocation, Roman's competitive spirit was ignited.

Flames appeared throughout the mountains.

It seemed that they did not just send one battalion for a half-hearted search but brought all the troops to the mountains, leaving only the minimum force to pressure the defense positions.

The southern mountains have a very rugged terrain, limiting the areas where one can hide.

Hector's commander had a perfect understanding of this and, by boldly abandoning certain areas, accurately targeted the regions where Cairo's remnants might hide.

The judgment was correct.

Roman's forces were indeed in those areas, but Hector's side had not anticipated one variable.

Roman Dmitri.

They did not know what kind of existence he was.

It is not about the level of military strength.

The rugged terrain and the darkness that made it impossible to see ahead.

These were factors that limited both sides, but Roman could move freely in the darkness.

'It's a sensation I haven't felt in a long time.'

Fighting using the darkness.

People think that Cheonma Baek Jung-hyuk always prefers to fight head-on.

The truth is different.

In the past, when his strength was still lacking,

Baek Jung-hyuk had to adapt to living in the dull darkness to meet his father's expectations.

At that time,

People called him this.

'Ghost Shadow (鬼影).'

The shadow of a ghost.

Roman was waiting for Hector's decision.

When the darkness descended.

When they entered the mountains.

From now on, it would be the stage of Cheonma Baek Jung-hyuk, or rather, Ghost Shadow Baek Jung-hyuk.