Ch.102Devil’s War (2)

In the dim dawn.

A time so dark that one could barely make out the soldiers ahead.

The demons began to move.

“Everyone, move quickly. Strike and withdraw before they can pursue us.”

Five thousand elite beast cavalry stood in formation with Chaphir at the vanguard. The northern beasts, several times larger than the most unruly war horses, growled menacingly. These monsters, which could only be faced with ranks of undead guards, were spread everywhere—creating a pressure no human could withstand.

“Ugh…”

“Y-yes, I think I made the right choice following a different god.”

The order knights who had followed Yoannina trembled. Though they were the finest soldiers who could rival the Holy Papal Knights in the human realm, they were no match for these creatures. Yoannina, who had been quietly observing them, grumbled to Durin.

“They seem weaker than I expected.”

“Didn’t you say that if you could handle lizardmen, you could handle humans too?”

“At least those fellows could cross swords with angels. Not like these ones who soil themselves at the mere sight of beasts.”

As she said, humans were too insignificant. It was no wonder the heavens regarded them merely as fields for faith. Their abilities were insufficient to intervene in wars between transcendent beings.

“That weakness will make our movements easier. The heavens’ gaze will be on the demons rampaging at the vanguard, not on the human group.”

“Chaphir needs to make this work for anything to be possible.”

“I don’t doubt the abilities of the North’s greatest warrior. He was defeated once, but only because his opponent was a legion led by a saint. The cavalry supported by the Demon Lord will never break—trust in that and advance.”

“Of course. This opportunity was hard-won; I can’t throw it away over mere doubt.”

Yoannina closed her eyes, recalling the past years.

The Beast Queen of the West who had lived a thousand years. The first child born of the generation that fled to the demon realm.

Like a fleeting vision, she pictured the scene of standing against the angels who had come to extinguish them, with the unified demon realm’s combined strength.

“I’ll be back, Durin. I’ll open the path to the holy relic you desire.”

Yoannina turned her mount toward the army. Thousands of troops moved toward their respective objectives.

One for a great battle, the other for the regent’s desires.

“Let’s go!”

Buuuuuuu—

As the long trumpet blast of departure echoed, the cavalry first pounded the earth. The bizarre cries of the beasts shook the world in all directions. They aimed their spearheads toward the crusaders whose morale had been boosted by the angels’ appearance.

Under the thick, looming dark clouds.

The demons began their advance.

#

The brief peace that had continued while reorganizing the order was broken.

News transmitted through scout beasts from the southern blockade line reported chaotic battle conditions. The power of the northern beast cavalry was truly destructive. The encirclement forces, composed mainly of human knights, were torn apart in an instant.

Whenever Chaphir led his forces in a charge, the humans scattered like insects. They knew they had to join with the crusader forces reorganizing in the papal territory at the center to survive, making the situation even more urgent.

The rampaging nomads would shock the heavens’ movements. Just as stability was being restored, the demons’ appearance would once again plunge the world into chaos—truly becoming a headache.

“Vanguard has broken through the border.”

“The human forces seem to have chosen retreat over resistance.”

They were literally shattered, but not completely disintegrated. Looking at the battlefield map transmitted by the scout beasts, the crusaders were slowly retreating. They were spilling blood to buy time for their main force.

Tracking their path with red eyes, a simplified mountain range came into view.

“Rugged terrain.”

“A region the southern forces would appreciate.”

“Unfortunate for Chaphir. As a great warrior, he’ll judge well, but just in case, send a messenger to Berdia. If the vanguard shows signs of advancing further, they must be stopped by force.”

The breakthrough power of thousands of cavalry was strong enough to draw astonishment from the heavens. The problem was that they might be unable to control that power and be drawn into terrain favorable to the enemy.

During the Cold Wind War, there was a precedent when he had leaped into the heart of enemy territory to target Serphin, only to be struck by Durin, so caution was not unnecessary.

“Where are the eastern forces?”

“They should reach the border in a week.”

“That’s all the time Chaphir has. I’ll deliver further orders separately.”

He moved with utmost caution against the crusaders. He sought stability to avoid wasting their only chance.

“Opportunity will come eventually. Commanders should keep this in mind.”

This wasn’t limited to Chaphir. Durin looked around. Everyone seemed desperate to rush to the battlefield. With the heavyweights leading the forces first, they thought their turn would come next.

“Your Excellency, then we shall continue to build the defense line.”

Anyone else might have expressed dissatisfaction, but the other party was Durin.

The only being to lead the demon realm to the heavens. A beacon of hope. Even if he gave orders that seemed unreasonable to demons, they followed willingly. They suppressed their fighting spirit and tried to gauge the regent’s vision.

“I shall use you all preciously. That much I promise.”

War in mythology was inevitable.

The moment Durin faced the heavenly commander, they would become a single line in the records. Even if their names weren’t engraved, the exhilaration of participating in that battle would never be forgotten until they closed their eyes somewhere on the battlefield.

Patience for victory was always welcome.

#

“The crusaders have arrived!”

“If we go to the mountains, they won’t be able to follow! There’s a defense line there!”

The crusaders, half-destroyed by the nomad vanguard, retreated in a hurry. They were forces barely saved at the cost of much bloodshed. High-value resources like holy knights and priests had to be saved and sent to the papal territory at all costs.

Even if they lost the war.

“Is their offensive still strong?”

“We’ve set up shields with regular conscripts for now, but it won’t last long.”

“Still, we’ve managed to recover, so our primary objective has been achieved.”

Through sacrifice, they had preserved the papal territory’s strength for the future. Once they reported the existence of those hellish beast cavalry to headquarters, the crusaders would step in to block them.

“The archangel will quickly stabilize the central chaos, so until then, we endure. In mountainous terrain, even they won’t be able to use beast cavalry recklessly.”

The crusader commander gritted his teeth. He could still hear the cries of the beasts that had suddenly appeared at dawn and shattered their formation. Humans dared not resist.

They had formed defensive formations with spear walls, but it was a shock no human could withstand. When house-sized beasts raised their claws, the formations were simply crushed. Human war doctrine could not counter them.

Only heroes or angels of comparable status could fight against transcendent beings.

Looking back, with both gone, what could humans do? But he didn’t want to let go of hope.

As a holy knight carrying out God’s will, he couldn’t entertain such blasphemous thoughts.

“Even without a hero, we can succeed. Are we not knights who serve God’s will!”

The commander shouted until the end. While building the defense line, he tried to ensure that a psychological wall was erected for the soldiers.

It was all humans could do, but unfortunately, they could not contain the fear that had already spread.

“B-but how can we face those beasts…?”

“Pray! So that God may save us.”

Even clergy who followed only God could understand. To capture those beasts, they needed forces specialized in handling monsters. Since the crusaders were composed entirely of humans, they could never win.

Endure?

Yes. If they sacrificed their lives, they could at least buy time.

If that was the purpose of the war, they would gladly throw themselves in.

But what had they achieved?

They had set out to crush the dark order that had risen as crusaders, but gained nothing. The early victories were all. After the demons appeared, the tide had completely turned.

Even with full preparations to capture the dark order’s saint, it had become useless, and they lost their driving force. Their fate was to have their necks severed while quietly holding their swords. This gave a strong sense of powerlessness to the holy knights whose faith was everything.

“Hurry, what are you doing! Pray so that the heavens may look upon us!”

As the crusader commander, he eagerly encouraged his knights. Shouting toward the impossible, he desperately prayed to God.

Thud-thud-thud-thud—

But there was no answer.

Only the hoof beats of the beast cavalry approaching like clouds in the distance reverberated throughout the land. The sky, covered by dark clouds, still ignored them.

“Is the center everything?”

A knight’s murmur passed by.

The ripples that started at the border would soon sweep through the center.

The order they believed in had become uncertain.

Death approached.