The Cavalry's Grave
Cavalry were notoriously difficult enemies in warfare. Even during the siege of Las Vegas, the punitive force's mounted units had been a real pain to deal with; if we hadn't anticipated them coming down the river, we would have been trampled by hooves in the city streets. 'They’d be the worst kind of enemy to face in an open field. Pale Riders.' However, cavalry were only suitable for wide, open plains. In a place like a dungeon, where the corridors were narrow and space was limited, they were awkward at best. 'Entering this dungeon was your undoing.' In that sense, while the Pale Riders might have had great mobility, they were the worst possible force for a dungeon skirmish. Their individual combat power might have been high, but as long as their essence was that of cavalry, their tactical limitations were clear. 'They probably brute-forced those limitations with their physical stats and levels, but that won't work on me.'
To deal with cavalry, you had to strip away their mobility. And the best way to tie down an enemy's feet was, as always, traps. 'Thank goodness the Big Slimes are still around.' Lime’s slime squad, which hadn't been synthesized into Slime Dragons and remained as Big Slimes. They had been providing me, the dungeon master, with vision from the ceiling of the first floor, but they were still legitimate combatants that had reached level 35. So, I scraped together all the slimes and dug out some makeshift traps. 'I dug pits and hid them in the ceiling.' I thought their amorphous nature would be perfect for dealing with the Pale Riders, but the Pale Riders' scythes could easily slice slimes in two. If even Harsus couldn't withstand them, what chance did a slime have? 'I never considered the slimes as frontline combatants to begin with.' Therefore, I poured all my effort into having the slimes dig traps. It was like slapping traps all over the second interception room, but since it was just a matter of digging straight down, no complex instructions were needed.
Shhh-shhh-shhh! Slime pits were bored into the ground here and there like a sponge. And the adventurers put their heads together, trying to think of a way to cover the holes. "We could gather tree branches to cover them, but do we have the time?" "No. We have to use clothes." "Where are we supposed to get clothes? To cover them with dirt, they need to be as tough as a thicket. They also need to be able to drop the corpse-horses into the pit when they step on them." "It shouldn't just be a pit that drops them at the entrance, but one that drops them in the middle. We need to use some kind of mechanism, like a bird trap, to trigger it." "And where are we supposed to find such a convenient item right now?"
There were stockings. "Shaitan! Go up and bring all the stockings! Even the Andras feathers that were meant to be sent to Las Vegas!" "Yes!" If we covered the pits with stockings, which were dark enough that they wouldn't be visible once covered with dirt, wouldn't that work? The crotch area tore easily, but it wasn't like the whole thing was flimsy. Its toughness and durability were up to par, and the surface area was more than enough to cover the slime pits. 'What about the quantity?' That wasn't a problem either. Fortunately, there was an overflow of stockings in the human world, to the point where they had to sell off bad inventory at a discount. Plus, we didn't have to go far to procure them immediately.
"Everyone, take off your stockings! Execute!!" The orcs, and the adventurers. Everyone took off the stockings they had been wearing like armor and layered them one or two deep over the pits. Since they would sag and fall into the pit if left alone, we used the bones of the Pale Riders to poke holes in the stockings and stake them into the sides of the pits.
According to Ryun, we had 30 minutes until the Pale Riders made their second charge. The traps made in those 30 minutes were surprisingly not shoddy. "If you don't want to die, install as many traps as possible!" "You, take off your stockings! You're going to get sliced up even if you're wearing them anyway!" "Spread out the crotch area! If a hoof steps there, they'll fall straight into the pit!" The adventurers, having witnessed the cutting power of the scythes wielded by the Pale Riders, actively participated in setting the traps, and with the help of the hunter-turned-adventurers including Lily, we managed to create quite a plausible pit trap.
'As expected of Homo sapiens sapiens.' Truly, when it came to handling tools and devising wisdom to win against strong enemies, humans were the pinnacle, no other species compared. In reality, the humans of Earth and the humans here were probably different species, but regardless, their use of tools and wisdom was impressive. And so, the pit trap was born. All that remained was to implement a gimmick where the stockings would tear the moment the enemy stepped on them at the right time, and the answer was simple. "Slimes, listen up." They were the ones who had watched and learned under Lime, the master of 'fake construction.' As they had all reached a decent level, their ability to think on their feet was top-notch. "When the enemy comes, spit on their heads. Do you understand?" The slimes understood my meaning immediately. The slimes that had hidden in the ceiling made another hole in the ceiling, and I, along with some of the adventurers, hid in the ceiling holes and waited for the timing. And the result was perfect.
Ssssss! The slime sprayed everywhere began to melt the stockings, and the Pale Riders, who had their feet even slightly resting on the stocking covers that were weakening and starting to burn, began to stumble one by one.
"Go!!" I broke through the ceiling hole and jumped down toward the one who looked like the leader among the Pale Riders who had fallen into the pit. "So you're the leader!"
Kreeeeeeee!! The one with the pointed helmet—Furcas—looked up at me, let out a shriek, and hurriedly tried to swing his scythe. I didn't like how he had been squawking and seemingly exchanging words with Ryun since earlier. "I'll peel that helmet off and give it to Harsus!" The distance between me and Furcas wasn't that far, but I couldn't land directly on top of him. So, I had to close the distance as much as possible to prevent him from swinging his scythe.
Hiiiii-ing!! The corpse-horse kicked its hind legs back and swung its front hooves. It was an attempt to hinder my approach, and I activated my tattoos and swung my axe with all my might. "Haaah!" Clang!! The corpse-horse's hoof and the iron blade of my axe collided. Sparks flew, illuminating the surroundings, and I could see the face under the helmet of the Furcas bastard riding on the corpse-horse's back. "Whoa!" Blue light erupted from the white skull under the black helmet. And distracted by that light, I was a split second late in retracting my axe.
Whoosh!! Furcas gripped the handle short and swung the scythe at close range. I hurriedly raised the axe blade against the horizontal slash aimed precisely at severing my neck. "Ugh?!" It was faster than I thought. A chill, as if death itself had been materialized, spread out, threatening to blow my head off. The trajectory of the scythe, curving like moonlight, was flying straight for my neck. If it touched, it was over. But it wouldn't touch my neck. "Hmph!" I stepped forward instead, closing the distance. Furcas wouldn't be able to see it, but Furcas's corpse-horse was currently stepping its hind legs into a pit where we had layered two stockings.
"Where do you think you're going!" I spread my legs slightly. And something flew rapidly under my crotch. Whoosh—! The wind arrow Ryun fired created a hole in the stockings precisely. With a hole punched in the center, the corpse-horse Furcas was riding lost its footing, and the trajectory of the scythe wavered as well.
Kreeeee!! Furcas forced his strength into his hand to cut me down. The trajectory of the blade missed my neck, but he adjusted it somehow, as if trying to bury the scythe in my shoulder. Thanks to that, I was able to change my stance, even if just for a split second. I lowered my stance and twisted my waist, angling my fist to strike the scythe upward. "Uoooooh!" Clang—! My fist, erupting with red light, struck the underside of the scythe. I couldn't break the scythe like I had shattered the blade earlier, but the scythe grazed just over my head thanks to my punch. "Hahaha!" When the attack missed, a look of bewilderment flashed in Furcas's blue eyes. I squeezed the remaining power into the axe in one hand and swung it high. "There is no mercy!"
Slash! My axe bit into the underside of the corpse-horse's neck. The axe blade dug in a good 10cm, and blue, cold blood erupted toward my entire body. Pshhhhhhh—!! "Ugh!" A foul stench vibrated through my body. I wouldn't have minded if it were the scent of beast blood, but only the rotten stench of a corpse pierced my nose. I felt nauseous and hurriedly stepped back. Kreeeee! Even though his corpse-horse had been injured, Furcas clutched his own neck and writhed in agony as if he had been the one struck. Even then, he showed signs of trying to reverse his grip on the scythe, so I threw my axe forward and scrambled back.
Clang—! The thrown axe collided with the scythe and embedded itself in the ceiling. I rolled on the floor and threw off my robe, which was drenched in rotten blood. "You disgusting piece of shit!!" Unlike the other Pale Riders, the scent of Furcas's blood was beyond repulsive. I spat out the bile rising in my throat along with saliva. "Ptooey!" My mouth tasted bitter and my stomach ached, but it felt better to have thrown the robe on the floor. I had been covered in the blood of countless bastards since my 4-star evolution, but being soaked in Furcas's blood made me not want to wear a robe at all. "I'm definitely going to charge you for the dry cleaning, or rather, the cost of new clothes!"
Bleeeaaagh!! Suddenly, Furcas's corpse-horse began to vomit blood. It seemed the blood flowing through its veins had refluxed into its esophagus, and Furcas was covering the eyes of his helmet and aiming his scythe at me. Kigabubajagiragara!! "What is that crazy bastard babbling about?" "Master, he says you're so filthy that he wants to pluck your eyeballs out." Ryun, who had run over while aiming her bow at Furcas, assisted me and translated Furcas's shrieks. I was dumbfounded by Furcas's reaction. "What was that?" Kigigigishitkancagagagak! "What the?!"
Ryun fired wind arrows in a fit of rage. Just as she had sniped between my legs to hit the center of the stocking cover, Ryun sniped exactly two arrows each into the hind hooves of the corpse-horse. Hiiiii-ing!! Furcas's corpse-horse vomited blood again, and its lower body sank deep into the pit. Even though it was quite deep, the corpse-horse was large, so even as its two legs slipped in, it got stuck at the thighs. Ryun lowered her bow and pointed at Furcas, losing her temper. "He says, 'How dare you fight with your belly exposed?' This makes me angry too! Master's belly is so plump and cute!" "Ryun, I think I definitely heard that last part." "Master, let's kill that thing!" "Of course, obviously. ...Wait."
Clatter, clatter. Furcas jumped off the corpse-horse. And then, holding his scythe, he stood on two feet as if to protect the corpse-horse. "I see. So you're one body and soul, is that it?" The foul stench of burning corpses pierced my nose. I scanned the entire battlefield. The other eight Pale Riders, excluding Furcas, all had their corpse-horses stuck in the pits, unable to move, and the riders were all swinging their scythes from atop their horses' backs, threatening the adventurer subordinates. "Heh heh, Ryun! And my subordinates, listen up!" I clenched my fist and shouted powerfully. "It seems that if these bastards' horses die, the riders die too! Aim for the horses from a distance! Don't approach recklessly, throw that into the pits!"
"Throwing squad, move out!!" As soon as Eila's order fell, the adventurers who had been waiting in the final interception room appeared, each holding two wooden cups. They moved along the cave walls, surrounding the Pale Riders in a circle. "Vanguard, retreat! Archers, start warning shots until they crawl out of the 'Hell Pit'!" "Archers, focus on the horses! If you do that, these bastards won't be able to move!" With my additional instructions added to Eila's command, the adventurers moved quickly and accurately to carry out their mission. Harsus and the melee fighters quickly withdrew from the front line, and because the archers were shooting at the corpse-horses, the Pale Riders couldn't escape their positions.
Whoosh. The throwers tossed embers into the wooden cups. Heat began to fill the battlefield in an instant, and I lifted Ryun up and raised my middle finger at Furcas. "Filth is meant to be incinerated. Heh heh heh." Pabapak! Even while held in my arms, Ryun kept Furcas in check and fired wind arrows. Ryun's wind arrows pierced the back of Furcas, who was trying to pull his corpse-horse out of the pit. Thud, thud-thud! Wind holes were punched through his pitch-black robe. But Furcas pulled the corpse-horse out and climbed onto its back. The other Pale Riders couldn't escape in time. Clop, clop! Furcas turned his mount and ran toward the first interception room—the direction of the portal they had invaded from. "Master! That one is trying to run away!" "Tsk!" Furcas, determined to flee, was faster than the speed at which I could run at full power with my tattoos activated. Ryun fired a sniping shot, but it just bounced off Furcas's scythe. "It can't be helped! It's a shame to let one go, but we can't stop now!" "Everyone except the throwing squad, move to the final interception room!!!"
Eila retreated with the adventurers. And the throwers tossed the burning wooden cups—Molotov cocktails—into the pits. "Return to hell, Turn Undead!" Countless pillars of fire erupted through the pits connected to the floor.