Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Final Struggle
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After everyone had left, the Count spoke.
"I'm sorry to you all."
The riders just grinned at his words.
"We swore an oath the moment we became knights."
"With the courage of gunpowder and the passion of a steam locomotive..."
"We pledged to become swords for the kingdom's protection and pioneering..."
"To lay down our lives."
It had been a long time since the riders had recited the knight's oath from their investiture ceremony.
The Count gave a bitter smile.
"Yes... It's shameless of me, but I ask you. Hold the enemy back as long as possible."
Jaxen Gold replied cheerfully.
"Of course. We have to let the talented juniors live, right?"
Rikein Gold chimed in agreement.
"They were cocky bastards, but they're the kingdom's future."
The other knights felt the same.
"We have to send the juniors back alive."
"That's the tradition."
Looking back, it had been a brutal fight.
Of the 158 Gigants, only 18 remained.
Including the riders who had abandoned damaged Gigants and escaped, 42 riders had survived.
In less than four months, a staggering 116 riders had lost their lives.
Even when the Destor Marquisate was wiped out ten years ago, the casualties hadn't been on this scale.
In that chaos, none of the new recruits had died because the seniors had quietly covered for them.
There were times they tried to give the rookies a hard time, but they never ordered reckless maneuvers that put lives at true risk.
The rookies had often gone rogue, risking their lives and achieving unexpected results...
But in any case, Linekar's Gigant riders had no complaints about prioritizing their juniors' survival.
Instead, they calmly
prepared for what would be their final battle in life.
They had steeled themselves with such resolve.
Thinking of the legend of Herpin Gallius, who had blocked 50 Gigants with a single one in the great canyon flanked by sheer cliffs on both sides, they readied themselves to meet the approaching enemy.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
They swallowed dryly at the ground-shaking vibrations.
And when the enemy finally triggered the SPU, the Count issued the order without hesitation.
"Javelin!"
They drew massive javelins over eight meters long from the main weapon bay, took a running start with heavy thuds and whooshes, and hurled them with all their might.
Kwaaaa!
Kwaaaang!
Steam exploded everywhere. The supersonic javelins targeted the approaching enemy Gigants.
Thud!
Boom!
Heavy explosions erupted near the horizon, sending up pillars of dust.
The Count boosted the SPU output to observe the enemy. He saw Gigants deploying massive shields.
The javelins had terrifying power, but the enemy blocked the attack with minimal damage.
The Count didn't care at all.
"Re-load!"
He issued the next order,
"Javelin!"
And simply did what needed to be done.
Thud! Boom!
They unleashed javelins without respite. By the time each had thrown ten, the enemy had closed to within 100 meters. A single leap or two away.
Everyone swallowed hard. They stowed the javelins and raised their large shields, bracing them against their shoulders. The goal was to buy as much time as possible. They planned to hold defensively.
But then,
only wind blew through the canyon.
Rogot's Gigants didn't move. Eleven against fifty-three. With such overwhelming numbers, they could have charged without issue, yet they raised their shields in a defensive stance instead.
Whiiiish-!
Sharp winds swirled between the iron walls of large shields on both flanks.
The Count furrowed his brow.
"What is it? What's their game?"
The enemy being so defensive was actually good for this side. It would buy Kang Geohan more time to retreat with the 20,000 citizens and soldiers.
But something felt off.
Did the Rogot barbarians, infamous for capturing enemies as slaves, really intend to just watch their forces retreat unharmed?
His insides burned with anxiety.
The enemy's inexplicable behavior made the Count uneasy.
But that didn't mean they could charge first.
That would be certain suicide.
As they remained locked in stalemate, unable to advance or retreat,
Kwaang!
An explosion suddenly rang out from the rear.
Thud! Boom! Along with the sounds of heavy Gigants clashing, small rocks trickled down from the canyon cliffs.
'You crazy bastards...!'
His heart felt like it dropped to the ground. The extreme stress made his lower abdomen ache faintly.
"Sir Count, this is...!"
Even the riders, who had been fully prepared to sacrifice their lives, wavered.
"How is this...?"
He didn't know how it was possible. The great canyon was blocked by cliffs on both sides. But somehow... enemy Gigants had flanked their rear.
Should they retreat now, somehow?
As the Count and riders wavered, scanning the rear situation,
Boom!
The Rogot Gigants they faced advanced another heavy step, shields forward.
Their intent was clear.
The moment attention shifted to the rear, they would charge.
It was a pincer attack.
The Count gritted his teeth.
The image of the junior he had entrusted the rear to flickered before his eyes.
"Kang Geohan...!"
* * *
Rumble rumble-
Sleipnir charged forward, rolling on its eight wheels.
The procession seemed endless.
Each Sleipnir could carry 50 people. Eight hundred Sleipnirs carried 20,000 people and supplies.
There were also four of Charon's Chariots, each able to transport eight Gigants. Kang Geohan and his group rode one with their Gigants, while the other three sped along packed with food and supplies.
The sound of wheels echoed noisily off the cliffs on both sides of the great canyon.
"Are... everyone... okay?"
Riding in Charon's Chariot, waiting in the Gigant cockpit, Loen suddenly sent a transmission in a choked voice.
Gerot scolded her.
"Is this the time to worry about that? Get your head straight, or you'll be next."
Loen ground her teeth at his words.
"Next? What do you mean next? What the hell does that mean, Gerot? Why are you always...!"
"Don't die! I'm saying let's at least survive! I don't want to see you die! Is that wrong?"
Emotions were running high for everyone. The war with Rogot had always been grueling, but this was the worst.
They had endured thinking 'it'll get better, it'll get better,' but now it felt like the result was death for everyone but themselves... Everyone was steeped in gloom.
Kang Geohan was no different.
'The Count dies? His Excellency the Count?'
The Count who slew an ogre barehanded. His spirited figure departing for the sea labyrinth. The感動 when he handed over the Balrog core and yielded Yotun...
All those moments flashed by like a panorama. It felt like an absurd joke.
The Count dies? Does that even make sense?
And all that... becomes nothing?
An absurd sense of loss clawed at his chest, like his muscles melting away in throbbing pain.
'What am I doing right now? Is it okay to just flee alone like this?'
But it was the Count's order.
And... the people. All those knights, soldiers, and citizens who cheered for Kang Geohan and came to train with him... They needed someone to protect them.
He wanted to fight alongside the Count.
But he had to protect these people.
The two conflicting urges warred within him. Smoke rose and flames blazed in his chest.
That was why he had been lost in thought.
And because he hadn't anticipated it at all.
Kang Geohan noticed the enemy's appearance a bit late.
A strange blip on the SPU. Focusing his senses, Kang Geohan nearly retched.
"Enemy attack! Enemy raid!"
"W-what?"
"What do you mean? Where are the enemies...?"
Kang Geohan shouted.
"The sky! From the sky... No, the cliffs!"
Huge silhouettes began appearing one by one atop the high, sheer cliffs. Giants seven meters tall.
"What the hell are those? Gigants? No, golems?"
Harkruks blurted out in shock.
It was understandable to be confused.
They were too small at seven meters to be Gigants.
Even with essential parts crammed in, there was doubt if there'd be proper space for the cockpit.
Helena provided the answer.
"Rogot's mountain Gigants... They look like that, but they're real Gigants. Made incorporating celestial techniques. Even that small, their combat power should be on par with Cyclops."
Her voice was soaked in cold fury.
Gerot spoke through clenched teeth.
"But... there are too many..."
His voice trembled with despair.
The number of mountain Gigants revealing themselves swelled to forty.
This side had seven. They had forty. A hopeless gap.
As everyone blinked in stunned despair, Kang Geohan yelled.
"Block them! Javelins!"
Kwaaaang!
Eight-meter javelins rained from the sky. Flying at invisible speeds, one pierced the lead Sleipnir.
Its eight wheels spun up into the air as the chassis shattered.
Sand dust billowed thickly.
Then beside it, and beside that, more javelins fell.
Boom boom boom boom!
People died.
No distinction between adults and children.
Eyes gazing up at death falling from the sky from within the vehicles sparkled with hollow despair, like shattered glass.
"Block them! Block, damn it!"
Kang Geohan bellowed from his diaphragm and leaped from Charon's Chariot.
Shield in hand, he used Lizard King's SPU to predict enemy intent and intercepted the javelins' paths.
Clang!
But even Kang Geohan alone could only block so many.
Vehicles kept shattering. Lives that had coughed and raced along together, burdened with anxiety, broke apart meaninglessly one after another.
Hot rage enveloped Kang Geohan's chest.
He hadn't even realized he could feel this furious.
"Come down here, you bastards!"
He hurled a javelin at the cliff with all his strength.
Kwaang!
One enemy Gigant that couldn't dodge in time was flung backward like it had been shot.
But that didn't kill them. It staggered back up.
"Come down, I said!"
He blocked another enemy javelin and threw one back. But the more he did, the more helplessness gripped him.
Rogot was viciously cunning.
Against stronger-than-expected forces like the Count or Kang Geohan, they avoided direct confrontation and targeted people and vehicles first.
Just a few days of this harassment, and Linekar's Gigant riders would weaken inevitably.
They'd have to scramble to block attacks, march on foot with Gigants after losing vehicles, and lose gear without maintenance.
Rogot planned to finish them off then.
"Arrrgh!"
As Kang Geohan couldn't contain his rage and thrashed, thud! A hand touched Diaphragm's back.
It was Helena.
She soothed him in a calm voice.
"Focus, Kang Geohan."
"Huh...?"
"Use chain action. It's faster than moving alone. Block their javelins and counter. Save as many as we can, one by one."
She was right. Kang Geohan calmed his excitement.
Helena smiled faintly and said.
"Let's go, like always."
Thud!
Pushed by Helena's hand, the accelerating Diaphragm swiftly batted away two javelins.
Before they hit the ground, it drew a javelin from the main weapon bay and launched it.
The feel as it left his fingertips was different.
Clang! A mountain Gigant atop the cliff plummeted with its chest smashed. This time, it didn't get up.
'It won't go your way that easily.'
And so,
the final struggle began.