Chapter 364: A Single, Decisive Match
Chapter 364: A Single, Decisive Match
The gloomy atmosphere that had pervaded the 3rd Squad until yesterday began to lift, little by little, after a single day. The cause was the fresh, welcome news from the southern and northern fronts, announced just this morning.
The southern and northern forces had launched a simultaneous assault on a total of four cities and had already succeeded in recapturing three smaller ones. Although Halo, a regular city in the west, was still locked in combat due to fierce enemy resistance, our forces held the upper hand throughout the engagement. Its fall was only a matter of time.
Consequently, the main topic of interest among the surrounding Users was the eastern front’s next move. Some argued they should wait for support from the south and north, while others insisted they should ride this momentum and swiftly retake Barbara.
“…”
However.
There was one man who took no part in the conversation, as if he had no interest in such matters. No, it wasn’t that he was uninterested, but rather that his attention was fixed elsewhere. His face was blank, and his hands moved slowly as he packed his belongings, seemingly lost in thought.
This man was Shin Sangyong. And in truth, he was currently mulling over his recent conversation with Kim Soohyun.
‘There are many ways to break through one’s limits. I don’t think there’s any need to force a change in your Alignment.’
‘I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. User Shin Sangyong… I believe a non-combat role suits you far better than a combat one.’
‘A Rare Class? I don’t regret it at all. In fact, you’ve shown more than enough talent in that area.’
‘That’s also why I brought User Lee Manseong along. There’s no need for you to feel so ashamed.’
“Alignment, he said.”
Muttering the word, Shin Sangyong revealed a self-deprecating smile. How did he know about his Alignment? Could he have seen his information? Countless thoughts raced through his mind, but he soon shook his head, deciding it was impossible.
“Heh. I suppose I have nothing to say for myself.”
“Hm? What do you have nothing to say about?”
Just then, a gruff voice cut in from behind him. Startled, Shin Sangyong spun around to see a familiar face. It was another User who shared the same barracks.
“Wh-when did you…”
“You’ve been muttering strange things to yourself for a while now… Anyway, Mr. Shin Sangyong. What are you doing?”
“Ah. Th-this is…”
“This is?”
Seemingly at a loss for words, Shin Sangyong let his sentence trail off. But the man, noticing the packed bags, seemed to grasp the situation and his expression soured.
“Drafted?”
“…Y-yes.”
“Where are you going?”
“Th-they said there’s a squad for handling variables…”
So far, the battles had mostly been exchanges of firepower from a distance, so the ‘squad’ created to handle variables hadn’t seen much action.
Well, with one exception: the Mercenary Lord.
From uncovering the Vagabonds’ spy to blocking the Dragon Flame this time, Kim Soohyun was the only User in that squad who had shown any distinguished performance. Thus, the man instantly understood what Shin Sangyong packing his bags meant.
“Wow. Must be nice, Mr. Shin Sangyong. Having a capable Clan Lord look out for you like this.”
“…Yes.”
“I’m so jealous. Anyway, congratulations. I’ll get out of your way so you can finish packing. Do a good job over there.”
“…”
“I’ll be looking forward to hearing about your great deeds. Sheesh.”
Tossing out one last remark, the man stomped out of the barracks. Shin Sangyong stared blankly at the entrance he had just left through, then resumed packing without a word. But his hands were still slow, and they were gradually getting slower.
When his hands stopped moving completely, Shin Sangyong hung his head low.
“Hoo…”
A deep sigh escaped his thin lips.
*
With the activation of the ‘Protective Magic Power Nullification Formation,’ new information reached the eastern front. The resistance at Halo, which had been growing passive, had suddenly intensified again. The number of defenders on the walls had abruptly increased, forcing our troops to retreat just as they were about to breach the city gates.
The meaning was clear. Barbara had sent reinforcements to Halo. On top of that, the magic formation, which was beginning to glow with a faint blue light, suggested one additional fact.
And that was…
“So, in the end, they’ve decided to run.”
“They’ve probably received news from all the other cities by now. They must have thought this was their best option,” Jo Seongho replied in a cold voice to the Goryeo Lord’s remark. The Goryeo Lord nodded once or twice before turning to look at him.
“The clan in charge of the Halo assault was Blue Wolf, wasn’t it? Is there any other news from them?”
“Yes. They want the eastern front to resume the attack on Barbara as soon as possible.”
“Heh. They seem worried.”
“They have every reason to be. They said they’ve been fighting continuously, but the combined casualties on both sides probably haven’t even reached a thousand yet. If all the forces currently gathered in Barbara move to Halo, the Blue Wolf clan will find themselves in a very difficult situation.”
Jo Seongho’s assessment was certainly accurate. It might have been a different story if the Magic Power Nullification Formation hadn’t been activated, but the signs of its impending activation were clear.
However. Why did I have this nagging feeling that attacking Barbara now was a bad idea?
Strange… This easily?
“Then we must oblige them.”
But the Goryeo Lord seemed to think differently as he rose resolutely to his feet. He appeared to believe the enemy was still dispatching reinforcements even now.
Soon, the Goryeo Lord scanned the faces of everyone in the control room who had attended the meeting and continued in a solemn tone.
“Once the Magic Power Nullification Formation is fully active, it will buy them that much more time. The longer this drags on, the greater the burden on our allies attacking Halo. Therefore, relay the situation to every unit immediately, and have the squad commanders begin preparations. We will commence an all-out assault.”
“Understood. I will relay the orders to the other units at once.”
“Good. This meeting is adjourned. Everyone, prepare quickly. I will take my leave first.”
With those final words, the Goryeo Lord began to walk away with long strides. But just before leaving the control room, he stopped dead in front of me. I looked up, wondering why, and saw a gentle smile on his lips.
“Are you feeling better, Mercenary Lord?”
“Ah, yes. I’m perfectly fine. Hyung… No, the Haemil Lord and the Sword Empress sent me some good medicine.”
“Pardon? The Sword Empress did?”
My words must have been quite unexpected, as the Goryeo Lord’s eyes widened and he turned his head. The meeting room was so quiet that my voice had apparently carried to everyone. Where he looked, I could see my brother standing with his neck held stiffly and the Sword Empress fidgeting, not knowing what to do.
My brother… I get that. But why is the Sword Empress on pins and needles?
“Hahaha. Well… It’s about time she met a good man.”
“Pardon?”
“Ah! It’s nothing. In any case, I’m glad to hear you’ve recovered. I’ll be counting on you again this time. Hahaha!”
“?”
Leaving behind only a cryptic laugh, the Goryeo Lord concluded the meeting and immediately left the control room. A quiet silence began to fall. But it was brief. Soon, people started getting up one by one to leave… No. Why did I suddenly get this feeling?
Anyway, the remaining people began to leave the control room one by two. And on every one of their faces was a subtle smile.
What’s with everyone all of a sudden?
Just a moment ago, the air in the meeting room had been frigid, but now it felt as if something had changed completely. It felt warm, with a hint of pink in the air, perhaps?
At that moment, I happened to see Seon Yul giving me a V-sign with her fingers. Her face wore an expression of someone who had just realized something. She giggled softly and walked past me.
…
The Sword Empress, who was the last to leave, stopped in front of me. I tilted my head in confusion but decided to speak first out of courtesy.
“Thank you for the medicine you sent.”
“Yes… Your body…”
“I’m fine now.”
“I see…”
The Sword Empress, Nam Daeun, hesitated for a moment as if she had more to say. But then she suddenly bowed her head deeply, hugged Seol-ah tightly, and scurried away as if she were fleeing.
I just wanted to thank her…
I stared at the exit Nam Daeun had rushed through, then got up with a grumble. A warm hand came to rest on my shoulder from behind.
“Soohyun. You’re really clueless, you know that?”
It was my brother’s voice. Feeling incredulous, I turned around. Who was calling whom clueless?
I scoffed internally.
*
Although there had been a minor incident during the meeting, once we began preparations in earnest, I was able to return to my original train of thought.
Something had been bothering me like a thorn in my side, but it was something I couldn’t know for certain at present… To be precise, it stemmed from the difference between the future I knew and the present reality—namely, that ‘the eastern front suffers a major defeat in the first battle.’
After much deliberation, I had decided to follow the consensus for now. Many things had changed between the future I knew and the present. A good number of those changes directly affected this war, so I thought it was entirely possible for the future to have changed.
Besides that, it was also a fact that I couldn’t just stand by and watch the enemy cross over to Halo.
Still, I’ve always believed the major currents don’t change… For now, let’s just trust myself.
As I heard the shouts from each squad commander that preparations were complete, I was able to firmly organize my thoughts.
(Depart.)
A short but low voice echoed through the air. Immediately following it, the eastern front began its orderly advance.
It was quiet. Now that we had entered into battle, everyone advanced through the thick fog in a mutually agreed-upon silence. The fog was so dense that the city was only a hazy shape to the naked eye, but with magic, it posed no problem.
(2nd, 3rd, and 4th Squads, prepare for engagement.)
Soon, the army was within range to resume the siege. From this point on, it wouldn’t be strange for someone to die at any moment, and a palpable sense of caution filled the air.
The West Gate Unit, having learned its lesson from last time, advanced cautiously, wary of a potential surprise attack. The moment the magic formation, now glowing much more intensely than before, came into view, the unit halted its advance. It was then.
Shh-shk! Shh-shh-shk!
As if they had been waiting for the West Gate Unit to enter, the sound of countless arrows cut through the air the instant they were in range. However, the priests of the 4th Squad, already on standby, quickly deployed defensive magic. The fiercely shot arrows bounced harmlessly off dozens of layers of protective shields.
Although they had been struck first, the archers of the 2nd Squad didn’t remain idle. As soon as the initial attack was completely blocked, they immediately returned fire. However, the enemy deployed the same defensive magic, so the arrows fired from the West Gate Unit didn’t inflict much damage either. But that was fine. The exchange of arrows just now was nothing more than a preliminary probe before the real battle.
“───. ───. ───.”
“───. ───. ───.”
“───. ───. ───.”
“───. ───. ───.”
As if to prove my thoughts correct, the sound of hundreds of people chanting spells began to break the silence that had settled over the area.
The situation that followed instantly devolved into pandemonium.
The 2nd Squad focused on suppressing and covering for allies, busily firing arrows, while the 4th Squad desperately maintained its defensive magic against the pouring attacks. And between them, the mages of the 3rd Squad were concentrating on their spells for a spectacular strike.
…Something’s strange.
Even though I was watching the situation from the relatively safe rear, my heightened senses kept picking up on odd things. It was the sound of stones crumbling from the city walls. Perhaps because of the constant barrage of firepower in recent battles (or maybe because of the Dragon Flame from before), Barbara’s walls looked fragile at a glance. But normally, they would have been reinforced, or at the very least, had a protective shield cast on them.
But before I could ponder it further, I felt a searing heat on my face. The mages were beginning to complete their spells one by one. It seemed they had discussed it during the preparation time, as the air above the 3rd Squad was filled with fireballs, all spewing crimson flames.
Like boiling lava, the fireballs belched forth ferocious flames. Embers scattered on the whipping wind, striking the ground. Soon, the flames of various shapes and sizes began to rise slowly and simultaneously. Now, once Seon Yul cast her amplification magic, that massive wave of fire would violently flood the city walls.
It was at that moment.
Wooooong!
The magic formation, which had been glowing intensely, suddenly erupted with a deep, resonant sound as an intense blue light of magic flared up.
“Manifestation of the blocking formation confirmed!”
(The magic within will be frozen! Before it fully activates, commence an all-out assault now!)
And, in that instant.