81
Chapter 81. Black Epidemic (4)
What was he saying? After putting all the stone projectiles meant to be used as ammunition into baskets? What on earth was he planning to shoot?
Dong Bong-su's words were difficult to understand.
However, some noticed where Dong Bong-su's gaze was directed and realized what he was trying to do.
It was chilling, but...
This was a battlefield.
A place where anything was acceptable in order to win.
And.
The fact that the commander was Dong Bong-su was nothing short of a disaster for the opposing side.
"If they won't come out, I'll make them come out."
Dong Bong-su's low voice mixed with the foul smell and flowed all the way to Guisui.
The real war was only beginning now. Because Dong Bong-su had come here.
***
Thud.
Timur Khan, who had been ravenously tearing into the hindquarters of horse meat, placed the meat noisily on the table.
Then he raised his head. Before him stood a giant of inhuman height. The one who had come during Timur Khan's mealtime, which no one in the Northern Plains could interrupt, was none other than Mamorota.
Timur Khan looked at him and said,
"What did you just say?"
"I said the Central Plains bastards who set up camp in front of the fortress are dismantling their artillery and making something strange."
He hadn't misheard. The enemy was truly dismantling the Whirlwind Artillery. Timur Khan's Wren Eyes opened slightly and then closed again. In that brief moment, one of his azure eyes glowed intensely.
"Right now, immediately mobilize all the catapults and crossbows installed on the ramparts and fire at the enemy in unison."
He didn't know what they were making, but the very fact that the enemy was attempting something new displeased Timur Khan. The reason he had left them alone while they fired the Whirlwind Artillery until now was because he knew well that it posed no threat to Guisui.
The Whirlwind Artillery was already known to him, and new things were literally new things. When something new appeared on the battlefield from the enemy's side rather than ours, it was always a precursor to something bad. According to military strategy, such things should be eliminated before they became a threat.
However...
"Brother. But the place where they're dismantling the artillery is three hundred meters away from the fortress. Our catapults can't reach where they are. Crossbows and arrows did reach them, but there are shield bearers, so it wasn't very effective."
"...!"
Upon hearing Mamorota's words, Timur Khan's face instantly hardened.
Three hundred meters? They were dismantling and building something new from that far away?
He stopped moving his mouth. His instincts sensed danger.
Whoosh!
A strong wind suddenly blew in the windless inner chamber. It occurred as Timur Khan used his supreme Lightness Arts to leave the office.
"...!"
Mamorota also sensed something ominous and quickly followed behind Timur Khan.
***
"Huihui Cannon...!?"
Having climbed the ramparts, Timur Khan saw the 'new catapult' that the Whirlwind Artillery Gunners were assembling. He didn't know much about that thing, but he knew something about it.
A device that threw stones using the power of a falling counterweight. He also knew that its range and power far exceeded the Whirlwind Artillery and Tiger Preparation Cannon used in the Central Plains.
"If it's a Huihui Cannon, isn't that what those hook-nosed bastards from the Western Regions use? But what good will it do them to make that now? These Guisui ramparts are not only incredibly sturdy, but the fortress gate is made of solid metal. I don't know what you're worried about, Brother, but from what I can see, there doesn't seem to be much need for concern."
However, despite Mamorota's words, Timur Khan's expression remained tense. His eyes were so narrow that it was impossible to tell exactly where he was looking, but judging roughly by the angle of his face, he was looking not at the catapult the enemy was making, but much further back.
When Mamorota frowned and enhanced his vision, there was definitely something where Timur Khan was watching.
A small hill formed by something piled up in large quantities. Mamorota could easily identify what they were.
"Hmm!? A pile of corpses? Why did those bastards pile them up there?"
"Mamorota."
"What is it?"
"Right now, take the Gray wolves and go out to destroy all of those things."
Mamorota's expression didn't change at all despite the sudden sortie order. Rather, judging by the strange smile forming across his entire face, he was clearly pleased.
"Can I take them all out?"
Timur Khan nodded while still looking at the pile of corpses.
"Hahaha! My body was getting itchy from just being stuck in the fortress anyway, so this works out well! I'll smash all of those to pieces and return..."
Mamorota's last words were barely audible. He had already gone to gather the 'Gray Wolves.'
At that moment, Timur Khan's eyes saw some of the Whirlwind Artillery Gunners approaching the pile of corpses.
"Brother. Didn't I tell you? There's nowhere on this grassland where you can avoid that monster anymore, and they have no eyes. The moment you head to the grassland, you can never return. If you do come back..."
I'll close my eyes and swing my sword at you.
***
Rrrrrrumble.
An earthquake? Suddenly, white dust rose from the foundation directly beneath the Guisui ramparts.
The dry ground split roughly, revealing the hidden innards of the grassland. The sight of small round sand grains to large angular pebbles shooting up into the air was both bizarre and magnificent.
It wasn't ground trembling from an earthquake.
It was a phenomenon caused by several straight legs falling from atop the ramparts and pressing down on the ground.
Ladders. Moreover, iron ladders made of steel like the Guisui fortress gate. Dozens of those heavy things fell at once onto the dried and twisted earth, so naturally the ground cracked open.
Normally, the attacking side places ladders against the ramparts. Of course, the defending side tries to push over or remove those ladders to block the enemy from inside the fortress, and they must do so.
The defending side lowering ladders down from the ramparts? That's something that normally couldn't happen.
But it happened. Timur Khan's Northern Nomad army, the defending side, set up ladders on the Guisui ramparts.
But why?
Clang! Clang-clang!
This was the answer.
The sound of dogs barking? No. Similar, but with a clear difference.
Wildness, their inescapable nature, and the clear killing intent bubbling up from their very core.
It was revealed without reservation in the sounds emitted by hundreds of canine beasts.
Aooouuuu—!
A terribly long howl followed. It put a period on the identity of the sound's owners.
They were none other than wolves.
They appeared one by one atop the Guisui ramparts. The creatures were much larger than ordinary wolves—easily twice the size—and their fur was completely gray, as if they had been covered in the ashes of thoroughly burned wood.
On their backs also rode armored soldiers carrying long weapons like spears and halberds. The aura emanating from each of them was extraordinary, undoubtedly elite troops.
Especially the wolf standing at their very front was much larger than the other creatures, its bulk appearing twice the size of a tiger, and the force it emitted easily overwhelmed what all the other wolves were pouring out combined. The creature had a cross-shaped scar on its left eye, making its appearance even more terrifying.
The man riding atop it was also a head or two taller than the other armored soldiers.
War Giant Mamorota.
He had led the Gray Wolf War Squad, on a mission by Timur Khan's order.
Nightmare of the Grasslands.
That was the Gray Wolf War Squad's nickname. The worst existences that no one on the grassland wanted to encounter. That was the Gray Wolf War Squad.
"Let's go! Kaiji! Go and pour out your ferocity to your heart's content! Hyah!"
When Mamorota lightly tapped the nape of Silver Fang Kaiji, the creature raced down the ladder like an arrow.
Although now tamed by Timur Khan and Mamorota, becoming like their loyal hounds, the creature had once been the hegemon of this great grassland. As such, it demonstrated incredibly fast movements unbefitting its bulk. If Timur Khan was the supreme being of the Northern Nomads, this creature was the emperor of the Northern Plains.
Clang, clang! Clang...
The iron ladder shook as metallic sounds befitting Kaiji's weight spread toward the grassland. Hundreds of Gray Wolves followed in its wake. All were so agile that they had no hesitation in descending the tall, steep ladder even with people on their backs.
Mamorota descended in front of the ramparts and waited for a moment for all the other wolves to come down. Meanwhile, he turned his eyes toward the target, which was now somewhat closer than before.
Due to the distance effect, people looked like ants. Not just in appearance, but the people were actually moving diligently like worker ants. Those ants were, of course, the Whirlwind Artillery Gunners.
There appeared to be a few hundred more than Mamorota had thought, but it wasn't a major problem. After all, a few more ants didn't mean they weren't ants, right? Ants were ants whether there was one, a hundred, or a thousand.
"Let's go, Kaiji."
Mamorota lightly pulled the reins wrapped around Kaiji's neck. The direction was where the ants were.
An attack order.
However,
Strangely, Kaiji didn't move.
The creature showed absolute obedience to Timur Khan and Mamorota.
After being subdued by them, something like this had never happened before.
Grrrrrrr...
Kaiji was growling lowly. The creature's mouth contorted, revealing its teeth viciously.
What on earth was this creature seeing to act like this? Its head was clearly facing the Whirlwind Artillery Gunners.
"Whoa, whoa."
Mamorota stroked the nape of its neck to soothe it.
'Hmm?'
The fur...?
It was strange. Every single hair on Kaiji's body was standing completely erect. Like when a hedgehog meets a natural predator?
Mamorota had only seen Kaiji's fur stand up like this once before.
'Does this mean there's a master as strong as Brother over there? Or...'
Was there something that terrifying?