Chapter 288
Chapter 288 – Breaking Through Like This (2)
Harold’s expression momentarily filled with confusion.
He never expected archer cavalry to suddenly emerge here. Clearly, there had been no sign of anyone equipped with a bow when he first saw the formations of Penris.
It was hard to imagine that they had developed a folding bow from new material in Penris.
The spearmen facing them were equally taken aback. All the heavy infantry holding shields had been positioned to defend the sides. There was no one to block the arrows.
Desmond’s commanders and soldiers could only stare blankly as the archer cavalry drew their bows.
Creeeak…
Levelling her bowstring toward Desmond’s army, Lumina held her breath for a moment.
“You can do this.”
In truth, she was just as disoriented. Although she had undergone intensive training since she first mounted a horse, it was her first actual participation in a war.
She wasn’t alone. The elves, who had partially learned to communicate with nature, all felt the heavy and dreadful aura of the battlefield.
The tingling sensation coursing through her body. Staying in such a place went against the elves’ instincts.
“Still, I have to do this.”
There was no retreat. Even though they had rediscovered their mission and nature as elves, those who had spent a long time in the human world were more accustomed to human ways of thinking.
They knew all too well how humans lived.
“If you don’t kill, you’ll be killed.”
Any moment of hesitation could lead to greater sacrifices.
Just like the elves who lived according to their nature, they also had the duty to protect their territory.
And now, their territory was the Territory of Penris.
Whether the lord would keep his promise in the future or not was uncertain, but for now, they had no choice but to stand with him.
“World Tree, grant Penris your blessing.”
Steeling her resolve, she let go of the bowstring.
Thwack.
That was the signal for all the elves and archer cavalry to release their arrows.
Whump!
Thousands of arrows poured down like rain upon Desmond’s army.
Whack! Whack! Whack!
“Uaaaaaah!”
The heavy infantry stationed at the sides raised their shields and blocked the arrows, but the soldiers in the center could not do the same.
The spearmen in the front line of Desmond’s formation fell helplessly. The soldiers behind them also collapsed under the hail of arrows.
The archer cavalry quickly turned their horse heads and began to maneuver to the sides after releasing their arrows. They were trying to loop back to their original positions.
It was exactly the movements Ghislaine had taught them.
Seeing this, Harold shouted in outrage.
“Chase them!”
There were no weaker beings in the army than the cavalry looking behind. And Desmond’s cavalry were already moving to strike at the enemy’s rear. Although they had suffered painful losses, it wouldn’t be a huge loss if they could wipe out all the archer cavalry.
Harold’s gaze quickly scanned the battlefield.
Thud thud thud thud!
The Penris cavalry that had moved ahead brushed past the Desmond cavalry chasing the archer cavalry. They clearly intended to circle around and target the sides and rear of Desmond’s formation.
“Shield! Block them!”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The heavy infantry deployed to the sides moved quickly to create a wall of shields.
The two thousand archer cavalry were returning to their original positions, so it wouldn’t be easy for the remaining cavalry to pierce through the tightly arranged shields.
Indeed, the Penris cavalry began to circle around without diving in.
Leaping at that opportunity, Desmond’s cavalry ran desperately to chase the archer cavalry.
They were trying to strike at them and sweep them away before they could change direction.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
The speed of the Penris cavalry was so fast that catching up was difficult. Still, as Desmond’s army gritted their teeth to close the distance somehow—
Suddenly, Lumina turned around and pulled her bowstring back toward the rear. At the same time, all the archer cavalry followed her lead and turned their bodies.
“What the…?”
The eyes of the pursuing Desmond knights wavered.
Shooting an arrow while letting go of the reins and stabilizing themselves only with their legs? While looking back? All two thousand of them?
What had just seemed like a desperate attempt to inflict any damage now felt entirely different.
“That’s impossible. It takes years of training to master horseback archery. How can they all have such skills…?”
They didn’t seem uncomfortable at all. It felt like the horses were adjusting to keep their riders from falling off.
His thoughts could not linger any longer. Before he could even lift his small shield, a swarm of arrows obscured his vision.
Whack! Whack! Whack!
“Kuuaaaak!”
Neighing!
With screams and horse whinnies resounding, Desmond’s cavalry began to fall.
They couldn’t evade or block the arrows while charging at full speed.
Except for the knights fully armored in plate and magical armor, the soldiers collapsed helplessly.
“Uaaaah! No!”
Boom! Crack! Boom!
With the sudden attack causing the front lines to collapse, the cavalry who were following behind tumbled over one another.
Even amidst that chaos, arrows kept flying. The cavalry chasing the archer cavalry easily crumbled.
Harold clenched his teeth as he witnessed the scene.
“How…how is that guy already displaying such power…?”
It was absurd for there to be so many archer cavalry to begin with. There was no way that the newly developing Territory of Penris could produce so many archer cavalry.
It took too much time and cost to train them, leading most lords to abandon this class of troops.
Aside from their use in small reconnaissance units, they had vanished for a while, which is why Harold hadn’t paid them any heed. If he had known there were this many archer cavalry in Penris, he would have prepared different tactics.
“What the hell…what has he been doing all this time…?”
Over a hundred knights, arms made from new materials, 6th Circle Mages, over two thousand archer cavalry.
Incredible power unfolded right before his eyes, one by one.
Thud thud thud thud!
The Penris cavalry circling around the heavy infantry began to change direction.
And the archer cavalry, who had been turning the other way, began to realign and approached Desmond’s army with the intent to encircle.
Seeing this, Harold shouted loudly.
“Shield! Protect our allies!”
The moment his words ended, the arrows from the archer cavalry struck the left and right flanks of Desmond’s army.
Whack!
“Uaaah!”
“Counterattack! Counterattack!”
“Block! Raise your shields!”
No matter how much the heavy infantry tried to defend, they could not block thousands of arrows descending from above.
The spearmen and archers inside were too busy collapsing to do anything.
“Shoot! We have to shoot too!”
While Desmond’s archers attempted to fire suppressive shots, it was of little use. The archer cavalry continued to move quickly, evading arrows, tormenting Desmond’s flanks.
From the receiving-end, it was an infuriatingly cowardly attack.
“Block! Block!”
Commanders’ shouts echoed everywhere, but the heavy infantry couldn’t regain their composure. They struggled to get a clear view of the battlefield due to the rain of arrows.
Though they felt safe behind their large shields, countless allies who couldn’t be protected continued to fall here and there.
Caught completely off guard by the archer cavalry, Desmond’s army became a ragtag bunch being dragged away.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
Seeing the archer cavalry spinning around without care, Harold shouted with bloodshot eyes.
“Bring in the left and right wing troops! Hurry!”
At this rate, they would all be knocked over eventually.
The forces dealing with the Kingdom Army and the Perdium Army needed to return to chase after the archer cavalry.
Buuuuuu!
A loud trumpet sounded, and Desmond’s army, which had been facing the Kingdom Army and the Perdium Army, heard that sound.
Emerson, the commanding officer of the cavalry facing the Kingdom Army, bit his lip.
“If we push just a little further…”
Emerson’s cavalry had already pushed the noble alliance’s army back by about half.
The noble alliance’s army mixed with the 3rd Legion displayed poor training and coordination. Thus, they were utterly helpless against Emerson’s strategy of attacking from weak points.
“Could it be because of the archer cavalry?”
Emerson quickly grasped the situation. If not prepared in advance, archer cavalry were hard to stop.
With the foot soldiers unable to keep up, he had to deal with it using archers and cavalry, but the opponent’s armor strength made that seem difficult.
While the armored heavy infantry held strong, if things continued like this, they would end up getting nibbled away gradually.
After all, most of the cavalry were under his command. He needed to find a way to cut into the flow by breaking the paths of the moving archer cavalry. Only then could the allied infantry start moving.
“Infantry, fall back slowly and engage the Kingdom Army! All cavalry, follow me!”
The forces led by Emerson began to pull back gradually and change direction.
Seeing this, Etherian, the leader of the noble alliance, sighed in relief.
“Whew! That was close. How could they fight so well? Since the enemy is falling back, let’s withdraw too!”
He had come to avoid losing his investment but almost lost his head. Etherian swore anew never to meddle in Count Penris’s affairs again.
On the other hand, the 3rd Legion was holding strong as befits an elite unit. Clifton, the commander of the 3rd Legion, made a different decision than Etherian.
Seeing Emerson retreating clearly indicated something was wrong in the center. At times like this, they needed to encircle Desmond’s army if they wanted to seize victory.
“This is our chance! This time, we charge in! Move, hurry!”
“Whoaahhhhh!”
As the 3rd Legion advanced bit by bit, Etherian could not afford to retreat completely.
Just retreating during a war would lead to extermination anyway. It was unlikely that the frightening Count Desmond would let them live.
Should they happen to win, staying back would mean they’d receive a massive scolding.
“Uh… Let’s go back as well!”
Desmond’s army, having lost cavalry, began to be increasingly pushed back by the Kingdom Army. Emerson could only move toward the central army, even as he sensed the situation.
Fortunately, Emerson, already engaging the Kingdom Army, was able to turn his troops around easily, but Gareth, facing Perdium, could not do the same.
“Damn it! Perdium fought this well?”
The knights and soldiers of Perdium pressed hard against Desmond’s army. Despite their greater numbers, Desmond’s army was merely focused on blocking attacks.
“Wooahhhhh!”
While their combat power was impressive, their morale was endearing. The Perdium army roared continuously without showing signs of tiring.
“Block! Hold your ground!”
Boom! Boom!
“Uaaah!”
Though they were outnumbered, each of Perdium’s knights displayed skills above mid-level knights.
These were the knights of Perdium who had learned a new mana circulation method from Ghislaine. When they unleashed their power with intent, deadly destructive power emerged.
Zvalter led the charge, swinging his sword and shouting.
“Don’t hold back! We must push forward to achieve encirclement!”
Always a worried one, he was feeling quite anxious now. Though Ghislaine’s army was doing well in the center, they were terribly outnumbered.
If they were surrounded by mistake, they could easily get annihilated, so they wanted to break through here quickly.
All the knights and soldiers responding to his orders swung their weapons with all their might.
On the side, Randolf, leading the soldiers, was ecstatic and wildly charged forward.
“Hahaha! We can fight this well! We’ve become this strong!”
When he actually fought, he realized they were overwhelmingly overpowering far more enemies than he had imagined. Having spent so long in the Northern Fortress, it seemed they had underestimated their own strength.
Thanks to Ghislaine, their recently strengthened forces were proving effective even against the infamous Desmond’s army.
The ever-persistent Skoban also mumbled as they cut down Desmond’s soldiers.
“Wow, this works? Why are we so strong?”
Desmond’s army, which had once struck fear in their hearts, no longer made them tremble. Instead, they were now pushing back in greater numbers.
Their training, pushed to the point of spitting blood, wasn’t betraying them. That strength was now being used not just against barbarian raids but also against Desmond’s army.
Since Perdium’s army was fighting better than expected, Gareth couldn’t withdraw his forces. He was barely holding up, even with a larger troop count.
If he pulled back even slightly, they would soon collapse under the enemy’s offensive.
“Ugh… Why is Perdium so…?”
Gareth grimaced in disbelief as he fought. Even if they claimed experience from northern skirmishes, he had considered the opponents to be easily dismissed barbarian raiders.
Yet here he was, struggling against the very people he had underestimated so much. Rage and humiliation flooded in as he battled.
Because Gareth couldn’t pull back his forces, only some of Emerson’s troops moved in to aid Harold’s main force.
Seeing this scene, Harold gritted his teeth and shouted.
“Just hold on a little longer! Our allies will come to help!”
Though it was regrettable Gareth couldn’t come, if Emerson could just cut off the archer cavalry’s movements, it would provide some breathing room.
Then, they could quickly reposition the soldiers, regroup, and counter-encircle.
Busy turning his head, he suddenly felt his heart drop as he looked forward.
“Oh no!”
The front was wide open. The spearmen’s formation had already collapsed, and everyone was too busy hiding behind the heavy infantry.
While everyone was absorbed in the archer cavalry on the side.
The Penris cavalry, which had moved off to the side, was now rushing back toward the front of Desmond’s army.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
Seeing the front lay so open, a cruel smile appeared on Ghislaine’s face.
“We’re breaking through like this.”
Ghislaine’s eyes turned red. His spear began to burn a crimson far beyond comparison.
Zzzing―!
Simultaneously, bright light spilled from the armors of the knights following him.
The Penris cavalry and the members of the Labor Assault Corps tightly gripped their spears between their shoulders.
Thud thud thud thud thud!
It was a speed incomparable to before. Especially the Black King Ghislaine was now galloping so fast that his allies couldn’t keep up.
Boom!
A stream of red light shot into the ranks of Desmond’s army.
