Altigand that would defend and Alrodena that would attack.
“…You are certain the enemy have no reinforcements?”
“Yes, as far as we can see, in any of the four directions, there are no signs of enemy reinforcement.”
The scouts led by Gi Ji Arsil did a remarkable job crushing the eyes of the enemy.
“Very well,” Pale said. “Your Majesty, please give us the command.”
Upon judging that the enemy would have reinforcements, Pale the Tactician asked the Goblin King to begin the war.
Though they were yet to find the wyvern knights, the enemy force before them was inferior. Having judged that, Pale knelt before the Goblin King and sought his approval to begin the war that would decide the course of the continent.
“…What else need be mentioned after coming this far? Attack. With the force of the entire army, let these people know who this continent belongs to!”
At the behest of the Goblin King, Pale gave the command.
“All forces, advance!”
With the shot of an arrow, Pale’s command instantly spread throughout the entire army.
“Onwards!”
At the behest of Gi Gu, Felduk advanced.
“Advance!”
Aransain kept a careful eye out for the enemy cavalry and quietly mobilized.
“…Go.”
Gi Gi Orudo gave just one word, and Zeilduk too began their march.
“Expel any and all that dare stand in the way of His Majesty!”
“Understood!”
Gi Be Slay led the king’s cavalry, a combat unit consisting of ‘the wounded ones’. With their cult-like adoration for the king, their morale remained ever high in the presence of the king.
“Don’t let them get ahead of you!”
Gi Do Buruga’s druids followed after the king’s cavalry.
“Advance!”
The chieftain of the Gaidga Tribe, Rashka, led the his tribe with an imposing presence.
“Don’t lose to those Gaidgas!”
Gi Zu Ruo, who took the Gaidga as his rival, raised his voice, while Gi Jii Yubu, who moved alongside him, maintained their formation as they advanced.
“Is it okay for us not to go in front?”
Situated in the rear was the king’s special unit made up of swordsmen and led by Gi Go Amatsuki. Gi Go had looked over the battlefield and made the decision to remain in the rear.
“It’s not necessary.”
“Okay.”
Yustia nodded, and her and the rest of the snow demons protected the rearmost of their forces.
“The enemies have begun to move.”
Altigand’s commander, Grendal, was astonished by the great army marching for them but nodded nonetheless when Judith called out to him, and then gave the order to fortify their formation and defend.
“Would not offense itself be the greatest form of defense?”
“It is not our duty to tip the scales. Unfortunately.”
Meeting Felduk’s fierce attack would be Gerald’s holy knights. Eleanor and Yuan’s forces would also be there to resist the ‘storm’ they were about to unleash.
Felduk’s general tactic was a flexible offensive carried out in the following order as the distance closed: stone throwers, spear throwers, spearmen, and finally, swordmen.
But Gerald would not permit them to do so.
“Magic Bullets, ready— fire!”
At Gerald’s command, magic bullets rained from the heavens, scorching the land, denting shields, and attacking Felduk’s vanguard. Gerald had also recognized the powerful offense that the goblins possessed in the last battle.
“Don’t let them near us! We’ll lose out in close combat!”
Though not as flexible as the enemy, Gerald was also a holy knight with excellent combat skills. He would keep Felduk from ever having the chance to take them up close by overwhelming them from afar.
“Hmm… As expected, they won’t just roll over and die. Increase the number of stones. Use everything, I don’t mind.”
The magic bullets that rained down on them was so dense they were basically a net of fire. Gi Gu had to halt their assault and change tactics to try and exhaust their mana instead.
The enemy shouldn’t be able to maintain this land-and-sky-scorching rain of magic bullets forever. Even the Holy Shushunu Kingdom’s Mana Guards, which were touted as the continent’s strongest in terms of both quality and quantity, struggled to deploy a fire net before Gi Gu for an entire battle.
“The battle will be decided when their attacks weaken!”
Gi Gu, with his many battles under his belt, judged that this stalemate was good and waited for an opportunity to attack.
Meanwhile, Gi Ga Rax’s Aransain quietly confronted the enemy. It takes a cavalry to stop another cavalry. And Alrodena, which prided itself superior in both quality and quantity, provided the same type of soldiers to those of the same branch.
“For now… We wait.”
Gi Ga Rax and Gi Gu made the same decision.
With Felduk stopped next to them, there was no reason to advance any further than this. Of course, they could exterminate the enemy cavalry if they were to attack recklessly, but the most efficient path was to wait for the enemy’s attack to wane, and then launch an assault with Felduk. They might even be able to bring chaos to the entire enemy army with a single attack.
The cavalry of the Holy Shushunu Kingdom, once touted as the strongest of the continent, agreed with Gi Ga’s decision. After putting their opinions together, they judged that it wasn’t time to attack just yet; however, that time was fast approaching, and Gi Ga could sense it.
“Gi Gu-dono has been entrusted with the vanguard. We must match our timing.”
With breaths abated, Aransain quietly confronted the enemy like a fierce beast hunting its prey.
Aransain and Felduk, one in the front, the other in the left flank, were both in a deadlock, but the right flank was already starting to move.
“Push, just push!”
That was none other than Zeilduk, which was made up of beast tamers that handled monster beasts.
They sent wave after wave of monster beasts as they single-mindedly sought to trample the enemy before them. That was how Zeilduk fought. Though the beast tamers might number only 1,500, the beasts under them approached 10,000.
They struggled with coordination, but their great number was a great threat in and of its own. They had the upper hand against the volunteer soldiers at first, but their momentum waned when reinforcements arrived.
Seven streaks of lightning shot out and burned the monster beasts dead.
Weaving through the ordered shields of the enemy, advancing and retreating, was a small group of enemy soldiers.
“I remember that one! That’s the adventurer that wrecked our hometown in the forest!”
His canine tooths bared, Gi Gi yelled in anger as the monster beasts before him were blown to the sky. When their horde of monster beasts attacked, the enemy’s small group would come out to deal with them, and when their attacks waned, that small group would retreat. Gi Gi could only grind his teeth and watch, but the way the enemy fought no doubt reeked of experience.
“Our strategy will not change. Push, just push!”
But Gi Gi has also conquered many castles. He has won many wars and suffered bitter losses as well; hence, his command would not waver merely because a powerful enemy was blocking his way.
Therefore, he would continue to fight with the power of number and force his way through.
Besides, a powerful enemy being here meant one less powerful enemy elsewhere. He would pin the enemy here and contribute to the victory of the entire army. Having decided his own role, Gi Gi did not weaken his offensive and instead continued to attack.
