The River Runs Red
Daylight broke. The Baron organized a force consisting of 50 cavalry and 1,000 infantry, handing the baton of command to Knight Ramatio. It was humiliating enough that the city had been occupied by a mere 100 Orcs, but it was even more disgraceful that he had to mobilize almost every soldier available in his barony. However, now that the existence of a dungeon was confirmed, they had to be both an army to retake Jabyaba and a subjugation force to clear out the dungeon itself. Mobility was meaningless; most of the troops were infantry armed with iron shortswords and wooden shields. Since the territory was so far in the rear, most of their weapons were designed for territorial skirmishes, not for dealing with monsters emerging from a dungeon.
Knight Ramatio, having received the baton from the Baron, quickly led his troops toward Jabyaba.
"Adjutant. Have you ever faced Orcs before?"
"I have not, sir."
"It’s natural that you haven't. Orcs aren't exactly a common monster. But individually, they are strong. Usually, you need at least three soldiers to handle a single heavily armored Orc. Adjutant, according to the reports from the guards who survived, what is the state of the Orcs' equipment?"
"They said it was barbaric and embarrassing to look at, sir—only covering their groins."
Among the refugees were guards who had managed to escape, and they had immediately reported the enemy's composition. Judging by the quantity and quality of the Orcs, they were clearly the vanguard—expendable fodder.
"They are poorly equipped, and they aren't very bright, either. And our soldiers number a staggering one thousand. Adjutant, is this a fight we can lose?"
"No, sir..."
The adjutant trailed off. It was fine to be confident, but most of the troops were barely trained. They were people who had been mobilized straight from the fields, lacking even the most basic training.
"Don't worry. Our numbers are overwhelming. Why are you so anxious? Let's get moving."
Knight Ramatio pulled on his horse's reins, accelerating the march. Even though their numbers were overwhelming, the adjutant couldn't help but feel uneasy. 'I don't think they're just ordinary Orcs.' It was said that the Orcs hadn't killed the humans but had expelled them instead. That made him wonder if there was some ulterior motive, but as a junior knight, he wasn't in a position to voice his opinion.
'Please, let nothing happen.'
Perhaps the Goddess heard his desperate prayer. They arrived at Jabyaba without a single incident.
"Fuck."
Knight Ramatio spat out a curse the moment he saw the state of Jabyaba.
"They said these were just barbaric Orcs?"
The Orcs were currently standing on the watchtowers, aiming bows at the subjugation force. They were even wearing equipment almost identical to that of the soldiers.
"Are those really the Demon King's army?!"
The Orcs greeted the subjugation force fully armed with human weaponry.
"Heh heh heh, they're properly panicked now."
I couldn't see them directly, but through the simple hand signals sent by the Orcs on the watchtowers, I knew exactly how the enemy forces were moving.
"50 enemy cavalry. Troops... roughly a thousand? They don't look like elites."
"There are quite a lot more than I thought."
I had expected them to bring at most five hundred, so they had dispatched more soldiers than anticipated. But that was no problem at all. If those troops were destined to be enemies later, fighting them right now was perfectly fine.
"Watch closely."
I drew a map of the battlefield on a large mat spread out on the floor, using twigs and pebbles. My subordinates could easily recognize our Las Vegas at a glance.
■∬ ★ ■∬ ■∬□□□□□ ■∬□■■■■□ ■∬□■■■■■□ ■∬■■☆■■□ ■∬■■■■■■□ ■∬□■■■■□ ■∬□■■■□ ■∬□△□□ ■∬
Currently, the enemy's position (★) was to our north. We (☆) were keeping a close eye on the situation from the center of the city so we could respond to any direction. The structure had a river (∬) to the west and the main gate (△) to the south.
"Arthur, think about how many ways the enemy could conduct a siege."
"...Simply put, attacking the main gate in the south, using ladders to cross the wooden fence in the north if they have the equipment, and the third is coming up the river."
"Right. Either way, it's not an easy choice. And our forces to stop them are limited."
To keep the enemy in check, I had 30 on the watchtowers, 40 at the main gate, and 20 by the river. That left fewer than 10 in the park. Depending on what the enemy commander chose, my troop deployment had to change in real-time.
"But Arthur, do you think the enemy brought ladders just to climb over a wooden fence only a few meters high?"
"No, sir. They must have come lightly equipped to retake the city as quickly as possible."
"Exactly. Then, Arthur, would they really bother swimming across that deep river?"
"...Isn't there a possibility? If they float planks and land, the current is gentle enough. If they put arrow fodder in front and advance, it's not impossible."
As Arthur said, the river was calm. If I were the one laying siege, the current was perfect for taking to the water at night and landing near the waterwheel.
"True. But that's only if the siege is difficult. What if the difference in troop numbers is as overwhelming as it is now?"
"...A frontal assault, sir?"
"Usually, yes."
I could clearly hear the sound of cavalry scouting beyond the wooden fence. I had instructed the Orcs not to waste arrows, and thanks to that, the enemies easily confirmed the Orcs on the watchtowers and returned.
"Ryun, where are the enemy troops right now?"
"Beyond the wooden fence on the opposite side of the main gate, sir."
"If the commander is calm, he'll siege the main gate. If he's hot-headed, he'll take to the river. Heh heh, either way is fine. I can cover the disadvantage in quantity with quality and tactics."
That was why I had deliberately opened the portal leading to Las Village right in front of my dungeon. The residents were currently gathered at the government office, and I had finished all preparations for the defense. I held a drumstick wrapped in string at the end.
Boom-boom! Boom-boom! Boom-boom-boom!
The sound of the drum echoed in all directions. I didn't activate my tattoo while drumming, lest they pinpoint our location. It was merely to boost morale and heighten the excitement of battle.
Boom-boom! Boom-boom-boom!
"Waaaaaah!!"
As if responding to my drumming, the human mob let out a roar toward the wooden fence. Their throats must have been getting sore from all the shouting, so I drummed even harder.
Boom-boom-boom-boom! Boom-boom-boom!
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!"
The sound of my drum and the humans' shouting had turned into a battle of nerves. And then, I added the final beat.
"They're waiting for us!"
Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
"Done!"
I didn't hit the drum anymore after that. The desperate roars echoed throughout all of Las Vegas, and I clapped at the sheer volume of their shouting.
"Impressive."
"Master, didn't we lose the morale battle?"
"But I've already wounded the enemy's throat. Heh heh."
As a bonus, I had put them in a state of rage and excitement. As soon as the drumming stopped, I heard a murmuring sound. The humans seemed quite pumped up, having won the shouting match before the actual battle with the Orcs.
"Now, I've made them move first, but how will they move...?"
Flap!!
A flag began to flutter by the riverside. Since they lacked cloth, they were waving whatever blanket they had tied to a spear—a signal indicating the enemy's movement.
"Coming by the river? Heh heh, good."
They were definitely hot-headed. I grabbed one of the many socks I had tied to my waist. The socks I'd looted from empty houses were too worn out to wear, but they were the best items for 'use and discard' in this situation.
"The river is going to be stained with blood."
Corpses would be floating by soon. I led my subordinates toward the riverbank.
Gugugugu!!
The ground shook as the sound of the humans advancing reached us. The wooden fence didn't just end at the riverbank; it curved into an ∩ shape at the end, so they couldn't just walk in. Therefore, if they were coming by the river, it was actually easier to deal with them.
"I just need to crush them before they land!"
I arrived at the riverbank. And I met the enemy's vanguard sooner than expected. It was deep enough to reach a person's neck, but it was a different story if they were riding horses.
"Are these crazy bastards riding horses up the river?!"
Hee-hee-hee-hing—!!
The speed of the cavalry riding the water was almost comparable to running on land. They seemed to be using the force of the current to accelerate, and they were already so close that I could see their faces from where we stood.
"These guys think we're idiots!!"
There were 50 of them. It seemed they had brought all their cavalry, and at the lead stood a middle-aged knight with a mustache, holding a spear. The cavalry he led was poised to kick off the ground and land diagonally on the riverbank.
"Hahahaha! I've lived on this land for decades—!!"
The old knight, whose name I didn't even know, shouted boldly. I swung the leather strap tied to the ankle of the sock hanging from my belt. The knight flinched at my action.
"S-stop!!"
"Too late, you bastards!! Everyone, prepare to throw!"
The socks contained rocks as heavy as two human fists. Some were whole stones, and others were jagged fragments. Not just socks, but slings made of old rags or cloth with Andras's feathers tied like thread were attached to the belts of every Orc, not just mine.
"Even when David defeated Goliath, he used this to get the first hit in!"
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh—
The Orcs began swinging the straps simultaneously. A threatening sound rang out as the stones gained acceleration, and the Orcs waited for my signal.
"A-advance!! Full speed ahead—!!"
The knight's judgment was faster than I thought. Since they couldn't go against the current or charge head-on, his decision to drift downstream wasn't bad. But they were bound to take damage anyway.
I stepped forward and swung my hand back.
"Throw——!!"
I released the strap toward the front. Thanks to the knots I'd made the Las Vegas residents tie, the strap didn't slip, and the sock filled with stones flew accurately toward the knight's helmet.
"Ugh!!"
The knight hurriedly ducked his head, dodging the sling. But one of the lightly armored cavalrymen following him was struck by a rock in his leather breastplate.
"Argh!"
The cavalryman clutched his chest and tumbled forward. It was commendable that he hadn't dropped the reins despite being hit by my sling, but unfortunately, there wasn't just one rock flying.
Thwack-thwack-thwack!
Over twenty Orcs threw their slings indiscriminately. As soon as they threw one, they untied the second strap from their waists to attempt a second throw. Rather than clumsily using bows, throwing like this had a much higher hit rate.
Splash, splash! Thud! Hee-hee-hing!!
The sounds of falling into the water, hitting people, and hitting horses rang out in great variety. The leather armor would mitigate the impact, but it was impossible to completely dodge slingshots thrown with the intent to kill.
Whoosh—
However, the horses also followed their survival instincts, quickly crossing our defensive line along the current. The Orcs on the watchtowers threw stones along the riverbank, but the knight and his cavalry escaped like an arrow. Only about ten cavalrymen who had lagged behind were struck in the head or chest by stones and floated away down the river.
"Ah, damn."
To think they'd dodge that. I guess it was too easy to dodge because I'd deliberately pulled my punches for fear of snapping the straps. I reflected on my mistake and recovered the corpses of the cavalrymen flowing into the riverbank.
"Damn. Ryun, how many were drifting away?"
"Seven, sir. I don't know if they're dead or alive."
"Tch. Then let's assume they're alive for now; that's only ten people."
It was too few kills for a surprise attack. I thought I could kill at least half, but looking closely, half of them were the ones I'd hit in the vitals with my slingshot.
Stab!
I picked up a looted dagger and plunged it into the cavalrymen's hearts. The cavalrymen vomited blood into the river, and the other Orcs followed my lead, finishing them off.
"Tch, what a waste... huh?"
"Aaaaaaargh!!"
Screams of humans were heard from afar. Checking beyond the riverbank, it was the screams of humans trying to flee across the river in a panic after seeing the cavalry retreat.
"What, there were more behind them?"
We still had plenty of stones left. I shouted to my subordinates.
"Throw the stones right now—!! Don't leave a single one—!!"
Dozens of slingshots drew arcs and flew toward the river. The subjugation force's attempt to land on the riverbank had ended in failure. The Las forces had suffered zero casualties.