Chapter 45: Two Weapon Merchants
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 45: Two Weapon Merchants
[ Please read the author’s notes! ]
*
“Krrrrrrk. How many times has it been?”
“This is the fourth,” Jung Hayeon answered my casual question.
I’d told her not to waste her mana, but it seemed she still wanted to see some blood. I clicked my tongue when I saw her properly swallow the last human woman, but since it was all part of the process of gradually changing the terrain, I decided not to say anything.
Four ambushes and the subsequent changes had turned the forest into a maze.
If we hadn't been the ones actively changing the terrain, even Mev would have lost her way. The surprise attacks, effective only because we knew both the original layout of the forest and the changes we'd made, were still yielding good results.
“Can you sense the ones that are left?”
“Yes.”
Whenever the enemies entered the range of her roots, Jung Hayeon could get a rough idea of the humans' numbers, making her the clear MVP of the day. Combined with the information gathered by Mev's rangers, who were spread out across the area, we were starting to form some pretty useful intelligence.
“The ones we just caught were small fry, Chieftain. The really big ones are somewhere else.”
“Krrrk.”
I already knew that much, of course. Their forces may have been split up, but the group with Lee Youngdon was bound to be large. I didn't know the exact scale, but I figured their main force was larger than our Blood Dagger Clan.
“First, we'll clean up the ones on the periphery.”
That's why we couldn't skip clearing out the surrounding area. No matter how ‘difficult’ Jung Hayeon and Mev were making it to navigate, if reinforcements showed up while we were fighting the main force, our situation would become very tricky.
We kept moving.
Sometimes we hid and used only arrows; other times we intentionally sent out a few goblins to lure them in before killing them.
“Aaaaargh!”
“Aaaaargh!”
Sporadic screams echoed from all over. I split our forces at times, then had them regroup, making it impossible for the enemy to gauge our numbers or location.
Of course, it wasn't as if I was naturally well-versed in tactics and strategy. Everything I knew, I'd only read in books. If they had a competent commander, they might have been able to counter our moves, but the key figures of the Red Cross Clan were all empty shells.
He had stuffed his harem with the clan's key personnel, so I figured there was no way it could function properly.
And most importantly…
They thought of us as nothing more than stupid monsters.
Of course, being a somewhat well-known clan, it wasn't like they wouldn't respond at all.
As expected, they must have decided it was better to group up, as signal flares shot up from all over, confirming each other's positions. But that also meant we could now grasp their numbers. About five flares went up. Including the large main force, there were still four squads left.
We slowly began to set up an ambush.
It wasn't in any special location, of course.
We completely concealed ourselves on the path between the locations of two signal flares. With our green skin, hiding among Jung Hayeon's roots made for a better hiding spot than I'd expected.
After a short wait, their archers began scouting in our direction, just as I'd thought. At this rate, the chances of being discovered were high. I slowly raised my hand, and in response, Mev and the Hobgoblin archers began to draw their bowstrings.
As soon as I judged them to be in range, I thrust my hand forward, and a volley of arrows rained down.
“It's the Weapon Merchant!”
“The Weapon Merchant!”
As arrows pierced the archers, several more flares shot up in an instant. The dark night sky was momentarily illuminated as if by fireworks.
We once again dove into the vast forest, hiding ourselves in the darkness. The one thing we knew for certain that they didn't was the ‘map.’
The first rule of warfare is to understand the terrain.
The dazed archers, wondering what the hell was going on, were probably trying to piece together a map of the area in their heads, but it was woefully inadequate compared to the information we possessed.
We began to climb ‘upward.’ It was terrain that shouldn't have existed in this area. Jung Hayeon replenishes her mana in battle. I couldn't help but feel once again what a precious asset she was to this clan. A true godsend. I made a mental note to take better care of her after this was all over.
But that was for later.
Just as the Blood Dagger Clan reached the high ground of the forest, we spotted a squad running below at the perfect moment. They were likely the ones who had seen the recent flare and were rushing to regroup.
“Fire.”
“Kkirit! Kkirit!”
“For Blood Dagger!”
Even the archers were firing for my sake; it would have been strange not to feel a surge of strength. The arrows rained down, embedding themselves in their eyes, between their brows, in their noses, and even in their mouths—sparing nothing.
“Uwaaaaaargh!”
“Aaaaargh!”
“Priest!! Priest!!”
The first target was the priests, and the second was the archers.
We also took out any warriors who were unlucky enough to get caught in the volley. Since our goal was their complete annihilation anyway, we were picking them off one by one. We left the mages alone. The signals they kept firing would only sow more confusion among their ranks at this point.
“Krrrrrrk.”
I glanced at the sky and saw flares rising from another direction. The loyal Five Siblings, whom I had sent out earlier, were attacking another group.
Avoid fights you can't win.
Engage only when you can win.
Fight with superior numbers.
Retreat before taking any casualties.
They are astonishingly loyal and carry out their tasks with astonishing perfection.
“For... Blood Dagger!”
Their cheers, mixed with screams, began to reach us. It seemed they wanted to announce their presence even from that distance. They would probably pull back before the other enemy squads arrived.
In any case, drawing strength from the eldest sibling's voice, I raised my greatsword and charged forward. It was only natural that an invigorated cry escaped my lips.
“Victory! For victory alone!”
“For victory alone! For Blood Dagger!”
Even the archers advanced, firing arrows as they moved. The Hobgoblin warriors raised their shields, and I charged between them, my greatsword held forward.
A spearman thrust his spear at me, but I was sick and tired of spears. As if reading my mind, arrows rained down among the spearmen, and as they screamed, their weapons lost their aim and began to fall.
And what met my greatsword were their bodies.
“CRUNCH!”
With the sound of a shattering shield, the man's body was pierced right through it. I knew it for sure when I saw the crimson blood burst through the shield and drip from the hilt of my greatsword.
“Kuaaaaaaaah!”
Without the ever-loyal Five Siblings here, I had to move more myself, but their absence didn't mean we couldn't devour this squad.
“Priest...!! Priest!”
They desperately called for a priest, but the priests were long dead, taken out in the first ambush. I stomped on the fallen man's face, crushing it, and pulled my sword free. The crunching sound and the pleasant sensation lingered on the sole of my foot. Once again, Jung Hayeon changed the terrain, and we moved.
It might have been a short time, but everything we had learned from the Green Goblin Clan—how to walk, how to hide, how to use our weapons—was now paying off.
If we had clashed head-on, we might not have been able to defeat the Red Cross Clan. No, if it had been a true pitched battle, we would have been pushed back in an instant.
But this was a forest.
Their squads were separated, unable to pinpoint each other's locations. Their main force was bulky and slow.
Even after finishing them off, we moved relentlessly. The loyal Five Siblings and their group, breathing heavily, rejoined us—it seemed they hadn't been able to kill all of their targets. Through continuous guerrilla warfare, we steadily whittled down the number of their archers and priests.
“Krrrrrrk.”
Only a few of the enemy managed to regroup with their main force. It wasn't the perfect result we had hoped for.
But I smiled.
Because the ‘main force’ led by Lee Youngdon was continuing to press deeper into the forest.
“Krrrrk.”
I held my breath. The others did the same. In the sudden silence that fell over the forest, only the voices of their main force echoed.
“Dammit... What the hell is going on? Hey, you! Still haven't pinpointed all their locations?”
“S-Sorry.”
“Fucking useless bastards... I feed you, I house you, and you do fuck all. Dammit...”
That bastard Lee Youngdon spewed complaints, clad in his heavy armor. It'd be strange if he wasn't frustrated. To put it nicely, he's a warrior to the bone. To put it bluntly, he's got nothing in his head. For someone who loves women and fighting, he's ridiculously protective of his own skin. If he sought honor, he certainly had the body for it—more Green Skin than a Green Skin.
I continued to watch them. I was waiting for them to approach the ‘antlion pit’ we had dug.
“Dammit... Dammit! Still no contact with the other squads? Fuck... Tell those bastards who pushed for this expedition that when we get back to the city, I'm rounding them all up and killing them... Useless pricks...”
“We’re sorry.”
“How can the clan have so little talent... Blinded by results, dammit. We should have asked the other clans for help...”
Their numbers were certainly not small. That was likely the source of his confidence, the reason he was pushing so boldly into the forest.
However…
We were also ready. We had continuously altered the terrain not just to confuse them, but for the greater purpose of moving the roots to weaken the ground in a specific area.
Everything had been preparation for this one single blow.
“Krrrrrrrrrrk.”
I glanced at Jung Hayeon. She raised her staff, and the ground they were standing on began to crumble—slowly at first, then all at once.
“Rumble...”
“CRAAAAAASH!!!!”
The ground collapsed in an instant. I raised my greatsword.
“Victory! For victory alone!”
My warriors shouted.
“For Blood Dagger!!”
The ground we stood on gave us a perfect tactical advantage over the terrain where they were trapped.
“Wh-What the fuck is this!”
“These fucking Orc bastards!”
“Aaaaargh!”
“Aaaaargh!”
Trees tilted and fell, causing numerous casualties and injuries. But there was no time to stop. The task of grinding down their forces while preserving our own was still far from over.
The goblins charged from a distance, continuously firing arrows into the pit. Of course, they couldn't see their targets. Mev also began firing three arrows at a time. A rain of arrows poured down. They were somehow holding on with shields and barriers, but there was a limit, and casualties were inevitable. Jung Hayeon, with no reason to conserve her mana any longer, also sent her roots churning through the inside of the pit, still out of our sight.
“Uwaaaaaargh!”
The sound of something bursting was followed by screams from the distance.
We were watching from the very edge of our arrow range, so we couldn't accurately assess the damage, but we kept running. It was a necessary choice, as ambushing them from too close would have gotten us discovered. Still, the screams allowed us to infer the extent of their losses.
“For Blood Dagger!”
I charged forward. And there I saw him: Lee Youngdon, struggling to climb out of the pit. I instinctively clenched my jaw. I ran like a brute, greatsword in hand. I lunged at him with enough force to split his head in one blow.
“Kuaaaaaaaah!”
“You filthy Orc bastard! How dare you!!”
Lee Youngdon, who had just managed to regain his footing along with the few others who had barely escaped the pit, met my charge. His large bastard sword and my greatsword clashed right there, in the middle of the western forest.
“Kuaaaaaah!”
“KRAANG!”