Ch.292EP.63 – A Knight’s Valor Contains No Recklessness (3)

Click!

Boom!

Rumble.

Modred’s palisade stood firm.

Though they claimed to have only repaired what needed fixing, in reality, the palisade Modred built was taller and sturdier than most castle walls. The area surrounding it was filled with traps of every kind imaginable.

Artificial swamps and sinkholes, along with various poisons and mine-like traps were scattered everywhere.

The palisade itself appeared to be made of simple wood, but at regular intervals, it was reinforced with mud and monster bones to increase its durability, making it strong enough to easily withstand the weight of dozens of large monsters.

It was truly admirable that humans had built such a fortress, though perhaps it was only natural. After all, this was a fortress that had held back the flood of evil creatures for decades, spanning well over five years.

As they continued to develop ways to kill monsters, it was only logical that not only would the warriors’ individual strength improve, but the fortress’s might would evolve as well.

The Fortress of Wailing.

This fortress, containing decades of Modred’s history and blood, always gave the warriors unwavering confidence.

The belief that no matter what happened, this fortress would never fall.

“We’ll be fortunate if we can hold out for even an hour.”

…That’s why I declare: today, this fortress will fall.

After all…

[BOOOOM!]

…They couldn’t possibly hold out for more than an hour against that massive army.

[KEEEEEK!!!]

Goblins.

[Grrrr…!]

Kobolds and gnolls.

[HAAAK!!]

Hell hounds.

This was a first.

Seeing such a vast horde of monsters gathered in one place.

They were so densely packed it was disgusting to look at, and the sight immediately drained one’s fighting spirit. But the more terrifying fact was that this was merely the “beginning.”

“There are still plenty more behind them.”

The “real ones,” the so-called medium and large-class monsters, remained motionless in the back. Yet strangely, they weren’t moving, which meant…

“Ha, do these evil creatures dare to underestimate Modred?”

Either they believed these forces were sufficient, or they displayed the arrogance of only moving after these front-line troops were completely annihilated.

They say larger monsters tend to be either more intelligent or more arrogant. The medium and large-class monsters all seemed to prove this arrogance by choosing to remain spectators, moving only the small-class monsters forward.

Aren’t these filthy evil creatures acting just like arrogant nobles?

…Yet despite the rising anger, one had to acknowledge the truth.

Even with just the small monsters deployed, the outcome of this battle was already hopeless.

There were well over 100,000 small-class monsters alone, their numbers so overwhelming that they inspired not just disgust but genuine terror.

Even more frightening was the fact that behind those 100,000 waited another 100,000…

“……”

Some soldiers maintained their silence, but their lips and fingers trembled uncontrollably.

Though they thought they had forgotten the emotion of fear over the years, it was extremely difficult to maintain composure in the face of such an overwhelmingly large army.

The formidable killing intent and malice emanating from hundreds of thousands of monsters was incredibly dense, creating an immense sense of fear and pressure by its very existence.

In truth, it was only natural for humans to feel fear in such circumstances.

Nevertheless.

“Everyone, take aim!”

“Prepare to fire! I don’t care if the barrels melt! Keep firing until the very end, don’t stop!”

“The same goes for the [Flame Cannons]! Don’t think about the aftermath! It doesn’t matter if they break! Fire until the very end-!!”

Though they felt fear, they showed no sign of losing their fighting spirit as they entered combat positions, aiming their guns and cannons straight ahead.

In this tense situation…

[KAAAA━━!]

[HAAAK━!!]

[━!]

Whoosh!

The monsters roared in unison.

“!?”

“Ugh!”

“En-endure it…!”

This energy that made their entire bodies tingle.

Monster Fear.

The monsters’ unique fear was being released all at once. While they had experienced it from up to 10,000 monsters before, the Monster Fear emanating from 100,000 monsters was something even they had never experienced.

Even if 100,000 people shouted at once it would be overwhelming, but the roar of 100,000 evil creatures was an attack in itself.

Several people staggered as they felt their insides churning, while others began bleeding from their noses.

This was too much, even for them…

[SHUT UP──!]

BOOOOOM!!

“……?”

In an instant, an incomprehensible phenomenon—no, an unbelievable phenomenon—occurred.

An enormous voice, a roar that should be impossible for any human to produce, thundered like a cannon, somehow canceling out the Monster Fear…

Rumble…

[…….]

Even the monsters fell silent, with some of them twitching and convulsing.

And the man who had countered roar with roar moved first, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Lord Margrave. I know it’s presumptuous, but may I make the declaration of war first?”

“…What’s with the sudden formality?”

“Accept respect when it’s offered. You’re the commander-in-chief after all, and in wartime, you should receive proper respect.”

“……”

It was a surprisingly normal statement from someone who had just released such a powerful aura, and Kain felt both bewilderment and deflation.

What was that?

‘Come to think of it, he really is a specimen from who knows where.’

A human who could emit an aura matching 100,000 monsters…

‘Did humans like him become common outside during the five years we were gone?’

Though Kain entertained such absurd thoughts, what was clear was that this impossible human was on his side.

‘Reassuring!’

Though there were clearly 100,000 monsters before them, somehow it felt like they had a warrior worth 100,000 troops in their garrison.

Therefore…

“Do as you please.”

“I’ll take that as permission.”

Whoosh!

The moment permission was granted, he immediately raised his foot, as if about to kick something.

The soldiers thought he might be kicking a ball, but they only then noticed the huge boulder in front of him.

They had been so overwhelmed by his presence that they hadn’t even noticed the massive boulder, and just as they wondered what he was doing…

Whoosh-!

…The boulder was launched high into the sky like a bouncy ball, tracing a huge arc as it flew.

“…?”

Faced with another surreal scene, the soldiers stood with their mouths hanging open stupidly, and this reaction wasn’t limited to just the soldiers.

[………??]

Even the monsters blinked their eyes and gaped foolishly.

The object suddenly flying from the sky traced a remarkably “beautiful arc” as it slowly descended with powerful rotational force and…

Whoosh!

Crashed down upon them.

BOOOOOM!

The next moment, the boulder—not a cannon—unleashed a massive shockwave that swept through the surroundings.

“……”

“How was that? A pretty good declaration of war, wouldn’t you say?”

“……”

“Lord Margrave?”

“…Just speak casually.”

“Pardon?”

“Getting formal speech from you gives me the creeps.”

“?”

“…This is ridiculous.”

What the hell was that?

…Terrifying.

* * *

He kicks.

BOOM!

He kicks again.

BOOOOOM!

Ihan kept kicking boulders as if practicing mid-range shots.

Fortunately, there were plenty of balls—no, boulders—to kick.

‘This guy is more useful than most heavy equipment.’

As soon as he told the strong but simple-minded man that he needed boulders, an endless supply of them was delivered.

“I, Felix, will fulfill my duty!!”

At times like this, such straightforwardness was helpful.

After all, he was single-handedly continuing to move boulders weighing easily over 1 ton, or even 2-3 tons.

If nothing else, his diligence and sincerity had to be acknowledged.

So…

‘I should repay him for his hard work.’

BOOOOOM!!

Ihan kicked another boulder that soared into the air.

Just like a trebuchet…!

The trick to making this possible was simple.

The key wasn’t breaking the boulder, but kicking it with pure “force.”

Once you got the feel for it, it was easy, similar in principle to the Gwanilchang technique.

However, he couldn’t use his full strength like when striking with Gwanilchang.

Against a few opponents it might be different, but with so many enemies, conserving energy was essential.

In that sense, the power Ihan was currently putting into his Gwanilchang was only about 10% of his usual output.

Well, even so…

‘This is more than enough for such low-level creatures.’

BOOM!!

With each falling boulder, each stone projectile, monsters were swept away amid powerful reverberations.

Dozens of monsters were shattered into pieces upon impact, as if in a choreographed play.

The monsters seemed to be dying without even trying to defend themselves, making it look almost like a staged performance…

‘David didn’t defeat Goliath for nothing.’

To put what Ihan was doing in simpler terms, he wasn’t just throwing stones—he was essentially using a slingshot.

The full weight and velocity of the boulder, infused with Ihan’s ki, created a force comparable to a cannon, or even greater due to the maximized mass of the boulder.

And goblins thought they could block this?

Ridiculous. Even large-class monsters would have their heads explode if hit directly, so how could goblins possibly block it by any means…

However,

Crack!

As expected, monsters might be arrogant, but they weren’t fools.

[UOOO━.]

A large-class monster, the “Mountain King,” finally revealed itself, casually crushing the shattered goblins underfoot as it smashed the boulder to pieces.

The Mountain King was impressive, especially when not caught off guard.

Impressive enough to completely pulverize the incoming boulder slingshot.

Indeed, the tyrant of the mountains.

[Mountain King Ogre.]

Arrogant yet not arrogant, the king of the mountains rose first among the large-class monsters, displaying its formidable presence.

Its appearance felt like a king’s procession, stepping forward in place of its incompetent subjects, and the goblins and gnolls bowed like sycophantic ministers at the ogre’s appearance.

Pop!

The bowing goblins burst like balloons under the ogre’s feet, but still…

With its tremendous violence and strength, it was a high-ranking monster among monsters, and the most well-known monster among civilians.

However, this wasn’t because it was a common monster, but because it was strong enough to be well-known.

It was said that if you encountered one by chance, you should either run for your life or give up on living altogether.

And so the Mountain King…

[UOOO!!]

Revealed its presence with a massive roar and raised both hands high.

Now it would personally…

Crack!

[…Kruk?]

A goblin blinked in confusion.

…Why had the Mountain King’s head disappeared?

The answer to this question was simple.

“How can you shoot an arrow like that?”

“Well.”

“……”

“Monster intelligence is all about the same. No one declared I’d only be throwing boulders. They’re easy opponents to deal with, anyway.”

“……”

“What?”

“…Nothing, nothing at all.”

Felix found himself questioning common sense for the first time, wondering if shooting an arrow at 200 miles per hour (321.87 km/h) with bare hands wasn’t more a matter of physics than intelligence.