All Quiet on the Northern Front (3)
All Quiet on the Northern Front (3)
Kieeek! Kurrrrruk!
A grotesque appearance, as if an elf and a tree were fused together.
As time passed, the elf's face gradually faded, and the characteristics of a living, moving tree monster became more distinct.
Their number was only five at most.
This was a number we could subjugate without casualties.
But there was one last thing I wanted to test.
"Please douse them with this."
"Understood."
Instead of wielding their machetes, the knights hoisted drums of aviation fuel and ran about, drenching the Ancient Tree Monsters in the liquid.
'JP-8 is difficult to ignite, but once ignition is successful, it's over.'
We could also use a special ignition trigger device by tossing it in to start the fire.
But I decided to give the mages a chance.
To manage their morale, and to let them practice so that they could use aviation fuel ignition as a tactic even in my absence.
"Lord Rodiel, please."
"Understood, Major Piel."
Mage unit commander Lord Rodiel (Brigadier General) stepped forward with a solemn expression.
I probably shouldn't be thinking of him as a former head cook at such a serious moment.
"The power doesn't need to be great. A very small flame will suffice. However, its temperature must be extremely high."
"A small flame that is merely high in temperature. The mana consumption will be minimal."
Lord Rodiel raised his magic staff and focused his mind.
A red flame flickered in the air, soon turning white, and then blue.
'At least over 1,400 degrees.'
The small blue flame fluttered towards the Ancient Tree Monsters.
Perhaps because they had just been born, they were unable to move properly.
The moment the blue flame touched the aviation fuel.
Hwarururuk!
The fuel ignited in an instant.
No explosion occurred since fuel vapor hadn't formed, but it caught fire rapidly and blazed up.
Kkieeeek! Kkieeeek!
The Ancient Tree Monsters screamed ear-splittingly, wailing within the massive flames.
The fire coldly consumed everything of their wooden bodies, growing larger.
"What a waste. To use such a huge amount of oil in this manner...."
"But the effect is truly undeniable."
"Who doesn't know that fire attacks using oil are effective against tree monsters? It's just that obtaining that much oil is impossible, making the tactic unfeasible in the first place."
"Where in the world does Major Piel get such a staggering amount of oil from.... Doesn't he find it wasteful?"
"You're asking that even after seeing the oil drums distributed to the entire 3rd and 4th Armies just for cooking rice? To the Major-nim, this much is nothing."
Even the mage commander Lord Rodiel looked dumbfounded by the result his ignition had produced.
"Ancient Tree Monsters, so easily...."
"This oil is difficult to ignite, but once it catches fire, it won't go out easily. Water can't extinguish it."
That's why we had conducted extensive safety training when we distributed the cooking oil drums.
I stared blankly at the Ancient Tree Monsters, now completely motionless and reduced to mere massive piles of firewood.
Ancient Tree Monster corpses are very hard and extremely difficult to set on fire.
They emit toxic gases when burned and decompose rapidly, making long-term storage impossible.
So we long ago gave up on using the corpses as fuel and simply discard them in fields.
'When an elf dies, it becomes an Ancient Tree Monster, but when an Ancient Tree Monster dies, it simply returns to nature.'
A tree monster with strong resistance to fire?
That's just because it hadn't yet tasted a bigger and hotter fire.
"In any case, the essence of those things is still wood."
Suddenly, I thought of Agent Orange.
If we were to spray Agent Orange from the sky over the Forest of Life and Death, it would probably expose its raw inner flesh.
But Agent Orange also causes horrific damage to friendly soldiers.
The US military no longer uses herbicides for combat purposes. They only use general agricultural herbicides for environmental management purposes.
Therefore, items like Agent Orange did not exist in the supply cheat.
I also try not to walk a path that could easily label me a black mage.
'Today, I miss napalm bombs with an aching heart.'
But for now, napalm was completely out of reach with the rank of (temporary) Major.
***
Hildea's forces rapidly dispatched reinforcements to the Baltics River defensive line.
The reinforcements included Hildea, Piel, Vice-commander Basel, and Colonel Dvil.
Rebecca decided to remain with the 3rd Army and cover for Hildea's absence. She wasn't particularly fond of this arrangement.
The closer they got to the Baltics River defensive line, the louder the sound of the Ancient Tree Monster Legion shaking the earth became.
And then they encountered a soldier sent from the 2nd Army's observation unit.
"Commander-nim! The Ancient Tree Monster Legion has suddenly appeared en masse near the barracks! At least several thousand! We definitely saw no infiltration through the open area!"
"I am aware. Those are the transformed corpses of the buried elf soldiers."
"Huh! Then you're saying the Ancient Tree Monsters were an undead legion!"
"Exactly. Soldier, return to the observation post immediately and relay the order to check the elf soldier burial sites. There's no need to take unnecessary risks."
"Yes! Understood!"
The soldier swiftly ran back the way he had come.
Hildea's forces continued moving towards the direction from which the sound of the Ancient Tree Monster Legion emanated.
The forest ended and the river came into view, and finally, the Ancient Tree Monster Legion appeared.
The creatures were across the river, dipping their roots into the water.
The defensive line observation commander reported.
"They appear to be absorbing moisture. Their bodies are growing larger."
"Damn it. They wouldn't dare cross the river, would they?"
"But we have never seen those things cross a river before now."
"That's because we've never fought with a river between us. We can't be sure of anything."
The Ancient Tree Monster Legion was rapidly growing in size as it absorbed water and sunlight.
It was an eerie sight, as if time was fast-forwarding.
Just then, Piel, who had been observing through binoculars, spoke up.
"Weren't there at least over 5,000 elf soldiers buried outside the 2nd Army barracks?"
"There were. What's the matter, Major Piel?"
"But I only count 2,213 entities across the river right now."
"You counted all of them?"
Everyone, including Hildea, was startled and looked at Piel with awe.
He counted all of them in that short moment?
Unaware that the tactical PDA linked to the binoculars had automatically counted the number, they mistakenly thought Piel's calculation speed was incredibly fast.
"The remaining legion of over 2,800 entities has moved elsewhere."
"...."
Hildea bit her lip.
With no blocking force present, the Ancient Tree Legion would be advancing unhindered towards the kingdom's interior.
"...We do not pursue. We only defend this position. We will not move."
As a Frontier Count, she had to prioritize her own territory and army above all else.
Anything beyond that was beyond her capacity.
"The creatures! They've stopped growing!"
"...They've become the appearance we know."
Enormous walking trees, with no trace of the elves left to be found.
'They couldn't possibly be able to cross the river, could they?'
While everyone was on edge, something absurd happened.
The Ancient Tree Monsters began stretching out their branches and intertwining them in a complex manner.
It looked as if countless people were tightly holding hands.
The Ancient Tree Monsters formed a massive circle, tangled their branches intricately, and clumped together into a single mass.
"Why are they doing that?"
As everyone wondered, Piel cried out in alarm.
"They're trying to cross the river!"
"Cross the river?"
"Among fire ants, when a flood comes, the colony intertwines like that to form a lump and floats on the water for hundreds of kilometers!"
"That's absurd. How is such a thing possible?"
Everyone looked across the river in shock.
They were inching forward towards the water, truly looking as if they intended to attempt a river crossing.
Piel spoke up with a grave face.
"We have no choice. We'll leave a large amount of oil drums here and retreat. Then, once they finish crossing, we'll attack with fire all at once...."
"Major Piel! There are many residents nearby who make their living by catching fish from this river! Can't you catch them before they cross with that mortar magic tool? With that small sun you showed us that day!"
Hildea asked urgently.
Regardless of rank, whether officer or soldier, everyone only stared at Piel's face.
Piel looked across the river, thinking for a moment before opening his mouth.
"There is a projectile focused on destructive power rather than illuminating the night. That is actually the primary ammunition for that magic tool."
"As expected!"
Hildea's face brightened.
But Piel shook his head.
"However, a single magic tool—no, just one unit—cannot stop their river crossing. Rather than alerting them prematurely, it would be better to wait until they finish crossing, then use oil as before to burn them...."
Dvil asked urgently.
"Major Piel! Are there any spares of that magic tool?"
"There are spares, but the only one who can properly aim and hit is Lord Dvil."
"Don't worry! Every single knight here can hit the target! I guarantee it!"
"Did I mishear?"
Piel's eyes wavered.
Dvil, judging this as a reprimand of 'Why did you share precious ammunition with others during practice?', quickly added an explanation.
"Don't misunderstand! No other knight has ever laid a finger on the tube! They simply watched closely from the side as I fired and hit the target!"
"...To say you can hit it just from watching a few times, no, wait a moment. Now that I think about it, Lord Dvil, last time...."
"We all saw with our own eyes how far each charge flies! It only requires adjusting the angle slightly; hitting the target is not difficult!"
For a knight who fights by maximizing physical senses using mana, such a thing is extremely easy.
"So, you're saying that while none of you have ever even touched one, you're confident you can roughly turn the tube and hit the target? Just from watching the training from the side?"
"That's right!"
"I'm confident!"
"Leave it to me!"
"Even if the first shot misses, I'm confident I can immediately correct it and hit with every shot after that!"
The knights pounded their chests, one after another, expressing their confidence.
Piel did not hesitate any longer.
"From now on, I will keep my words short and quick. As this is a combat situation, I ask for your understanding."
Hildea drew her machete with a Chack! and shouted.
"From this moment on, Piel's orders are my orders."
"Yes!"
"All knights who wish to be entrusted with a mortar magic tool, raise your hands!"
Piel shouted, and all 80 knights raised their hands.
The moment Piel touched his subspace bracelet, 79 mortars were summoned from the air with a mysterious misty light.
The eyes of the knights looking at the mortars were engulfed in fervent ecstasy.
"Everyone, take a mortar. Execute!"
"Execute!"
The knights received the mortars in perfect unison.
Everyone gazed at them with affectionate eyes, as if looking at a lover, stroking the steel alloy tube.
"To your gunner positions! Spacing is 6 meters!"
"To positions! Spacing is 6 meters!"
The 80 knights quickly scattered and took their places in a long single line.
It took less than 10 seconds to form up and drive the baseplates into the ground.
Piel summoned cases of shells from his subspace bracelet, one after another.
"Soldiers! Deliver 20 of these cases to each gunner!"
"Yes!"
Twenty cases, each containing 8 rounds, were delivered to each knight.
The mass of Ancient Tree Monsters, clumped together, was already more than halfway submerged in the river.
Piel shouted again.
"Range approximately 250. Use 1 charge increment for range!"
"Range 250! Increment is 1 charge!"
This kind of command was an unfamiliar experience for the knights.
But with the mortar tube firmly gripped in both hands, a sense of familiarity settled in, as if it fit their bodies perfectly.
"Any gunner not ready? If so, call out!"
No one opened their mouth.
Piel shouted again.
"Fire without rest until you're out of ammo!"
As if by agreement, everyone assumed the exact same posture.
Resting the tube against their thigh and steadying it with the other hand.
As soon as they pushed a shell into the muzzle with their free hand, all 80 mortars belched fire simultaneously.
The knights had closely observed Dvil's firing drills from the side and had been forced to listen to his boasts disguised as explanations all this time.
Their beast-like senses found the exact aiming angle without any aiming aids.
Their mighty mana-reinforced bodies held the barrels precisely and stably without needing bipods.
Kwaaaaang!
Eighty mortars unleashed their reports simultaneously.
A moment later.
Kugwagwagwagwang! Kuuung! Kugwagwagwang!
An explosive roar, incomparable to the sound of the firing, erupted from across the river, as if the world itself was collapsing.
The clumped-together Ancient Tree Monsters were torn apart by a single coordinated volley.
"Th-this is...."
"Is this truly the arrow of a god?"
The knights stared at the unbelievable scene created by their own hands, utterly entranced.
Piel's scolding snapped them back to their senses.
"Who dares get distracted in front of the enemy! Just shoot everything you've got! I said fire everything!"