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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: selkie
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“It’s already been a week of continuous ambushes. The soldiers haven’t had any rest. Morale is at rock bottom, and two days ago, some of our supplies were also burned. Commander, we need to take action immediately.”
After receiving the report from his subordinate officer, the commander of the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division frowned, perhaps displeased with the frustrating situation.
“The mages have responded initially, so the damage hasn’t been severe, but the fatigue in the unit is accumulating rapidly.”
“What about the pursuit team?”
“Even if we send a pursuit team, there’s no result. The enemy is carrying out small-scale ambushes, and we simply can’t catch up. The constant rain from a week ago has slowed our movement, but they seem to be using some kind of special magic.”
The officer, just as frustrated as the commander, couldn’t ignore the need to send a pursuit team. With the worsening fatigue and the weather against them, it was becoming worrisome.
“When the hell will this damn rain stop… Have we confirmed the magic possibility?”
“The senior mage in the unit says there are only a few people in the Philios Empire capable of casting such widespread weather magic. So, we probably don’t need to consider the possibility of magic much.”
The officer’s confident tone made the commander nod slowly. While he didn’t know much about magic, he understood that high-ranking mages were rare.
The officer’s reassurance seemed to settle the commander, but they didn’t know the truth.
One of the few capable of such large-scale weather magic in the Philios Empire, the Blue Tower Master, Lysfield Dior, was currently in the Black Mountains.
The Ghost Unit and the High Assassins had learned about Lysfield being in the Black Mountains, but the Ghost Unit had been wiped out before they could relay the information.
The High Assassins of the Edryger Kingdom intentionally withheld the information, so it was never passed on to the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division of the Free Isiria Kingdom.
“Damn it!”
The commander swore. He wanted to attack another stronghold, but with no idea of the enemy’s strength in the ambush, he couldn’t afford to take the risk. His rear was too vulnerable.
Just as he tried to calm himself…
Boom!
With an explosion, the heavens shook. It was the signal that another ambush had started.
This time, the commander thought the enemy would use advanced magic to fire a few bursts and disappear, so he was preparing a small pursuit team.
But then…
“Enemy archers have appeared on the southern hill!”
The messenger rushed into the commander’s tent and reported.
“What?”
This was different from before. The archers hadn’t shown themselves until now.
“We can also see the banner of the Fifth Prince of the Philios Empire!”
“What did you say?”
The commander was taken aback. Until now, the enemy had never shown a clear presence, especially not with such a banner.
“Commander, are we only going to defend?”
The officer asked sharply. One of the reasons they hadn’t been able to pursue effectively was that the enemy had been operating in small, elite units.
Even if they were all on horseback, it wasn’t easy for a large force to catch up with a small, elite group.
But now, the enemy’s army had revealed itself. And with the Fifth Prince’s banner on display.
After being on the defensive for a week, should they still continue to endure?
The officer asked himself, but the answer was “No.” He hoped the commander of the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division thought the same.
“We will begin the pursuit and annihilation. Spread the orders to the captains!”
“Yes! Understood!”
There was enthusiasm in the officer’s voice. After taking so many losses, the thought of finally being able to retaliate excited him.
The commander felt the same, but he couldn’t show too much enthusiasm in front of his subordinates, so he hid his emotions.
The messenger left the command tent and relayed the orders to the captains. The soldiers, exhausted from the continued ambushes, welcomed the commander’s orders.
“Raise the vanguard flag!”
The cavalry raised the vanguard flag, a symbol of the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division of the Free Isiria Kingdom. Fully armored in plate armor, thick shields, and armed with spears and swords, the heavy cavalry mounted specially trained warhorses.
“Vanguard! Advance! Shatter their formation at once!”
“Waaaah!”
The Heavy Cavalry Division launched a heavy charge with a roar. A shower of arrows rained down, but most of them bounced off the special heavy armor they wore without penetrating.
“Retreat! Magic defense!”
At the moment they had narrowed the distance to a certain degree, a massive wall of flames rose in front of them.
While the mages from the Heavy Cavalry Division destroyed the wall of flames, the Philios Empire forces mounted their horses and retreated from the battlefield.
“What should we do?”
They had been tormented for a week. If there were no results again after moving their forces, the morale of the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division would definitely drop significantly.
This time, there had to be a result.
“What should we do? We immediately chase and annihilate them!”
“All forces, advance! Chase and annihilate them!”
The adjutants and officers repeated the command of the commander, and the Heavy Cavalry Division pursued the retreating archers.
They had been through enough suffering, so their eyes were filled with anger.
Since they weren’t cavalry, the archers didn’t shoot arrows while fleeing, but fire magic continued to block their way.
The mages of the Heavy Cavalry Division couldn’t even figure out where the attack magic was coming from. They were only able to deploy defensive magic to minimize the damage.
“Commander, further pursuit is…”
“I know! Damn it!”
They had gone too deep. It was frustrating, but they had to consider the existence of an ambush and the supply provisions at the camp, so they had no choice but to give up the pursuit.
It was pointless to return without having stained their swords with the enemy’s blood once again, but it couldn’t be helped.
“How should we retreat?”
“There may be an ambush, so it’s better to detour from the way we came.”
The commander of the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division was quite cautious. As they had deeply infiltrated, he was even considering changing their route, anticipating the possibility of an ambush along the way they had come.
“This area is a swamp. Aside from the way we came…”
“There is one place that isn’t a swamp. We’ll head there.”
While setting up the camp, he had already assessed the surrounding terrain. Since the swamp, the most vulnerable terrain for the Heavy Cavalry Division, was known to him, he intended to take another route that wasn’t the swamp.
“Understood.”
The Heavy Cavalry Division moved in perfect unison. However, there was an unforeseen “variable” that the commander of the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division hadn’t considered: the week-long unrelenting rain had turned the route he chose into a muddy quagmire, if not a full swamp.
“Commander, the ground conditions are bad.”
“We continue to advance.”
Other routes were swamps. The risk of an ambush along the way they had come was high. Their options were limited, and since they had already advanced so far down this path, they couldn’t afford to hesitate and turn around.
The camp had left only a minimal force behind, so they had to return immediately.
Although the ground was muddy, it wasn’t impossible to move, so the commander ordered them to push forward.
As the Heavy Cavalry Division trudged through the sticky mud, a man wearing a uniform with a mixture of gold and red appeared in front of them.
At a glance, he seemed to hold a high position, but his only attendants were a one-armed knight, a red-clad knight, and a female mage in a blue robe.
“How much do you know about magic?”
It was an unexpected question. The Heavy Cavalry Division had no time to entertain such a question.
Though few in number, seeing those wearing the red uniform of the Philios Empire in a place they had considered safe made their reason waver for a moment.
“Fire! Fire!”
Before the magic could be prepared, the soldiers at the front aimed their crossbows and pulled the triggers.
Dozens of arrows flew, but they were blocked by a blue shield. Seeing this, Raymond smiled and spoke.
“Magic, you see, varies in power depending on the environment.”
Raymond raised his hand. Mana gathered at his fingertips. The amount of mana responding to the call of a high-level mage was considerable.
“To give an example… If the terrain has already changed due to the heavy rain, this kind of thing is possible.”
With a slight wave of his hand in the air, the gathered mana spread out, completing the magic. At the same time, a cold smile spread across Raymond’s face.
“Everyone, get out of here immediately!”
“Retreat!”
The atmosphere was tense. The soldiers of the Heavy Cavalry Division desperately tried to retreat, but it was already too late.
The mud that ensnared their horses’ hooves, like shackles, had deepened, and when mana was infused into the transformed terrain, a natural trap was completed.
“Our feet are stuck in the mud!”
The muddy area, which had been only slightly inconvenient moments ago, had now become completely impassable.
The trained war horses struggled, but it was useless. The mud shackles that bound their feet couldn’t be easily freed, and they couldn’t escape a place like a swamp.
Unable to bear it, some soldiers of the Heavy Cavalry Division dismounted and tried to crawl out of the muddy terrain, but even that was not easy.
It was a sight to behold, seeing the elite Heavy Cavalry Division of the Free Isiria Kingdom floundering in the mud.
“What are the mages doing? I told you to do something with magic!”
The voice of the commander of the Heavy Cavalry Division could be heard, full of frustration.
If enough mages worked together, they might overcome this natural trap, but Raymond wasn’t about to just sit back and let that happen.
“Full attack!”
At first, it was just mud. The mud gathered by the soldiers was scattered by Desia using magic.
Though the mages deployed defensive magic, they soon realized the mud posed no harm, so they dropped their shields.
They thought there was no need to waste mana on something as harmless as mud when they didn’t know how much defensive magic they’d need.
But soon, a barrage of arrows and magic rained down on them, forcing them to raise their shields again. Fireballs rained from the sky like rain, and sharp gusts of wind carrying ice shards blew threateningly. The shields deployed around the Heavy Cavalry Division’s formation wavered dangerously.
“Keep shooting! Don’t give them a moment’s rest!”
Cassias shouted, waving the flag of the Imperial Army. The border army’s archers fired arrows relentlessly.
The mages of the Red and Blue Towers were no different. They used all their mana in this one battle, casting magic with all their strength.
The continued attack caused one of the shields to break. However, things didn’t progress entirely in Raymond’s favor.
This world was brutal for everyone except the protagonist. Some of the Heavy Cavalry Division had already managed to get out of the mud faster than expected.
“Wind Cutter!”
Raymond ran forward and completed the magic. A blade of wind flew, severing the arms and legs of a heavy cavalry soldier.
“Arrgh!”
As the fallen soldier’s neck was pierced with the Soul Sword, Raymond summoned magic spheres of all colors.
“Infantry, forward! Protect the archers!”
“The archers will intercept those trying to escape the mud!”
At Raymond’s command, Cassias also drew his sword and moved forward, ready to protect the archers along with the Imperial Army.
“You Free Isiria Kingdom dogs! The Philios Empire has not fallen yet!”
Cassias shouted boldly, swinging his mana sword. The head of an infantry soldier of the Heavy Cavalry Division, who had blocked the way, fell to the ground. After consecutive victories, the morale of the Imperial Army was through the roof.
The cavalry vigorously waved the golden flag of the Imperial Army, and the knights gathered around Raymond, as if on cue.
“Fifth Prince! We will protect you!”
Raymond, who had reached the level of a magic swordsman and mastered the swordsmanship practiced by thousands of knights, was strong enough that he didn’t need the protection of knights in this battle. However, he nodded with a faint smile.
He thought there was no need to refuse and lower the morale of the knights.
“The real battle is here! Focus!”
Raymond shouted, channeling mana into his voice.
At first, it was only a few, but now more than half of the Heavy Cavalry Division had escaped the muddy terrain.
The battle was far from over.
“Don’t let your guard down!”
Raymond shouted again. Although they were now covered in mud and moving sluggishly, the fact that they were the elite forces of the Free Isiria Kingdom hadn’t changed.
As expected, the heads of three Imperial Army soldiers who rashly broke ranks and approached were sent flying.
“Fifth Prince! You will regret this humiliation… Prepare yourselves!”
It seemed the 19th Heavy Cavalry Division was quite furious.
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