Chapter 122
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 122
Chapter Title: All-Out War
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"Ugh, ughh...?"
When he opened his eyes, the first things he felt were overwhelming confusion and pain.
His ears were ringing.
His head was spinning.
Every inch of his body ached.
A searing heat burned inside him, as if his organs were torn.
It was a confusion a hundred times worse than the hangover from drinking himself into a stupor for days.
He wondered what kind of alcohol he'd drunk to end up in this state.
As he dazedly pondered this.
*CRASH!*
"Ugh...!"
A thunderous roar.
A vibration that shook his entire body.
The shock churned his already queasy stomach, and only after he violently coughed up blood.
Did he realize.
This pain wasn't from a hangover, but from his organs actually being torn.
He hadn't passed out from drinking...
"Hold on! Hold on even if you die! Reinforcements will be here soon. So if we just hold out until then... Keok!"
*Thwack!*
...he had collapsed in the middle of a war.
It was only after seeing a comrade, who had been commanding the bandits, fall with an arrow in his chest that it all came back to him.
Clutching his abdomen where his intestines were spilling out, he retraced his memories.
How had things ended up like this?
'The situation on the battlefield wasn't bad, I'm sure of it...'
It wasn't the fiercely contested central front.
Being assigned to the left flank, where both sides were just pushing and pulling, was a stroke of luck.
Compared to the anti-bandit coalition's two territories, their side had three, and more troops. It had been a pleasant surprise for a change.
In fact, they were winning until the midway point.
And yet.
There was only one reason they'd ended up in this state.
An unexpected variable.
A variable so terrifying that he wished he could erase it from his memory just by having fainted for a moment.
And that was...
"The, the White-Masked..."
*Thwack!*
"Gurgle."
The man's head dropped, his eyes wide open before he could even finish his words.
Despite such an anticlimactic end for a bandit noble, the one who finished him showed no surprise.
As if it were routine, they calmly confirmed the kill and continued fighting.
Wearing white masks.
Appearing suddenly like ghosts.
The nightmare of the Bandit-Demon Alliance that overturned the tide of battle.
—And so, the thirty-odd members of the White Ghost Corps fought on, breathing as one.
That is, until a single voice was heard.
"That should be enough. Everyone, retreat now."
"Chik. Retreat, retreat."
"Gero, fighters stay at the rear. Rangers provide cover."
It was perfect discipline.
Just as when they had advanced.
The retreat was executed with utter calm.
Normally, this was a level of coordination that even a genius could only achieve through years of training and discipline.
However, it was made possible because they received the experience and judgment of the dark elf chieftain, who had lived for hundreds of years, through spiritual power.
Of course, retreating is the most dangerous moment in a battle.
The bewildered bandit nobles belatedly commanded their bandits to give chase, but...
Their efforts were in vain.
The hundreds of familiars that had been supporting the slave soldiers from behind now acted as a shield at the very front.
And the rain of arrows fired by the dark elves—fast and accurate, if not overwhelmingly powerful—hindered their pursuit.
"Sandstorm, Seeds of Darkness,"
And above all else.
The White Ghost Corps had.
A master more reliable than anyone.
The grim reaper who had turned them into a nightmare.
"—Corpse Explosion."
*KABOOM!!!*
"Kuaaagh!"
The countless corpses from the recent battle all exploded at once, sending the pursuing bandits flying.
Moreover, the pitch-black seeds mixed in with the blast rotted flesh and blood on mere contact.
The bandits, whose vision was already obscured by the sudden sandstorm, fell into chaos and could no longer continue the chase.
As the White Ghost Corps withdrew.
Geumgojigi, who had been gnawing away at the drawbridge set up by the pirates with her shadow sawblades, finished the demolition at the perfect moment.
"Break, if you please!"
*Creeak, thud!*
"Uwaaaah!"
"The, the bridge..."
"Dammit, fire arrows or something!"
In the end, with the drawbridge down, the bandit nobles couldn't find a way to charge forward and were forced to fire arrows and magic from a distance.
But, as expected.
They had no time to rest.
While they were attacking one territory.
The remaining two territories, plus one more that had been hastily dispatched as support, were approaching.
Even they couldn't handle the combined forces of four territories, which included over a hundred high-ranking Awakened Ones and more than a thousand soldiers.
In the end, while Dion launched a volley of spells to keep them at bay.
They had no choice but to retreat while covering their two tattered allied territories.
Still, having put some distance between themselves and the enemy, Dion found a moment to catch his breath and spoke to Arsha, who was reorganizing the slave soldiers.
"Good work, Arsha."
"It is all thanks to you, my lord."
"Oh, come on. All I did was cast a few spells."
*Those spells were incredible, though.*
The elegant dark elf didn't bother to add this.
Dion, who concealed his presence with chakra and masterfully wielded three types of magic, was the number one caster in the anti-bandit coalition.
Adding a word or two of praise to Dion, who was already renowned in the Deformed City as a quadruple Awakened One.
Would be nothing but empty flattery, a fact she knew better than anyone, both as Dion's concubine and as the commander of the White Ghost Corps.
"Hmm, but still, we didn't gain much today."
"Now they send reinforcements in a panic the moment you appear on the front lines, my lord."
"This is why I'm not fond of playing the firefighter."
"But you're being compensated accordingly, so please bear with it, even if it's disappointing."
"Well, I suppose I have to."
The fact that they'd been able to gobble up territories so easily until now was the exception.
Now that the war had begun in earnest, opportunities to capture territories on a battlefield where numerous families clashed were rare.
And even if they did, they would have to fight over the spoils with other nobles claiming credit.
The reason Dion was acting as a cavalry unit supporting losing fronts was to avoid unnecessary conflict and secure his rewards.
However...
"But they're still following us, aren't they?"
"Perhaps they've suffered so much at your hands that they've decided to fight to the death, my lord?"
"Hmm, I guess I have been pestering them quite a bit."
The left flank.
Or the right flank.
Sometimes the rear.
Or even the central front.
From providing support, rescuing ambushed allies, intercepting detached units, to defensive sieges.
Dion scratched his cheek, recalling how he had participated in every important battle since the all-out war began.
He had accomplished a great deal through his efforts, but as a result, he was now known as the Nightmare of the Bandit-Demon Alliance, burdened with immense resentment and a massive bounty on his head.
It was no wonder they were seeing red.
Especially right after their territory had been half-destroyed.
"How foolish, if you please. Coming this deep is only good for us, you know."
"They probably think they can just catch me and run."
"That's why I said they're foolish, if you please."
The bandit nobles with their four territories.
Dion and his allies, with only three.
Considering the difference in their forces, the enemy was objectively superior.
The sheer volume of arrows and magic being fired at them was formidable.
If they didn't retreat and continued to fight, their own territories would suffer great damage, regardless of the outcome.
"—As if that old monster would let prey that's walked right into his jaws escape, if you please."
But neither Dion, Geumgojigi, nor anyone else among them felt threatened by the situation.
Whether they were too far to receive support.
Or in a situation where shaking off their pursuers was difficult.
Because on this front, there was an incredibly reliable reinforcement.
An individual faster than Dion and the White Ghost Corps, who could single-handedly shatter the enemy line.
*KABOOOM!!!*
"Keoheok?!"
And so...
Along with a deafening roar.
A throwing axe, flying like a thunderbolt, demolished several buildings and tore dozens of bandits to shreds.
The bandits who narrowly avoided the disaster were horrified to see a massive orc appear from the far side of the Labyrinth.
"It's, it's the Lord of Nakrang! The Lord of Nakrang is here!"
"Karrr, how did that bastard from the central front get here...!"
"Dammit, what are the knights doing?!"
"This is no time to be assigning blame! All units, retreat! Retreat!"
The four bandit territories, which had been chasing them like mad dogs just moments ago, abruptly reversed course.
But they had already advanced too deep into enemy lines to turn tail and run.
Slashing through the hail of arrows and magic with his halberd, riding a giant wolf like a storm across the Labyrinth.
Urk finally caught up to the Divine Beast and leaped into the territory that had fallen farthest behind.
And then.
The slaughter began.
*CRASH, RUMBLE!*
"Khahaha, today's hunt is bountiful!"
"Kuaaaagh!"
"Karrr, don't be afraid! He's alone. If we all work together and respond calmly, we can stop him!"
"Krrk! You son of a bitch, if you want to say that, send your own men first! What good is cheering us on with words while your whole territory is fleeing!"
"The caster is supporting you with magic, you big oaf!"
With every swing of the halberd, bandits were torn to pieces, and buildings crumbled like toys.
The high-ranking Awakened bandit nobles managed to withstand a blow or two, but...
That was all.
Whether by throwing an axe.
Using a live bandit as a shield.
Or smashing a corpse with his halberd to spray blood and obscure their vision.
Against the cunning old warrior who, despite his overwhelming power, didn't hesitate to use any trick in the book, their heads were bound to fly off after just a few exchanges.
In the meantime, their comrades were too busy trying to save their own skins.
That was the difference between knights and nobles.
The difference between a war machine trained to throw away even their own life, and a soft-hearted fool with no resolve to fight a transcendent Awakened One.
As a result, Urk began to slaughter the bandit nobles one-sidedly, like a wolf let loose among sheep.
But unfortunately for him.
And fortunately for the Bandit-Demon Alliance.
The slaughter did not last long.
"AiON aRIdRA!"
"kuAkuAKuuA!"
*Fwip-fwip-fwip!*
"Krh?"
Vine Snare.
Curse of Slowness.
Hand of Earth, and so on.
His movements restricted by a series of familiar spells, Urk turned his head.
And on the other side of the Labyrinth.
He clicked his tongue upon seeing a group rapidly approaching from the direction he had just come from.
"Tsk, they've caught up already."
And a beat later, the bandit nobles spotted them and cheered.
"That's... the knights! The Crag Knights are here!"
"Karrr, now's our chance! We have to kill him while the Lord of Nakrang is tied down!"
"To the one who brings me that old man's head, I'll give my daughter and a billion Crutal!"
"Uwaaaaaah!"
Just as you'd expect from bandit nobles.
The moment they realized the situation was in their favor.
As if their desperate flight until now had been a lie, the bandit nobles' eyes lit up as they issued commands.
If they cooperated with the Crag Knights, they might be able to capture Urk.
The fact that doing so would earn them one of the greatest merits in this war made them charge forward, their desires burning.
However...
"Khahaha, you fools."
"...?"
"Curse Reflection, Sands of Liberation, Miasma of Decay."
"...!?!?"
Far from being anxious.
Urk wore a smirk.
Only after seeing most of the spells binding Urk dissipate, accompanied by a clear voice.
Did the bandit nobles realize.
That in their obsession with Urk.
They had forgotten an opponent they should never have overlooked.
...the boy who had returned unnoticed and cast the spells.
"Everyone."
*Creeak, thud.*
And so, the drawbridge was lowered.
As the white-masked slave soldiers lined up before it drew their weapons.
Dion gave the order with a smile.
"Wipe them out."
***
In the end, like a lizard shedding its tail.
The bandit nobles abandoned the single territory where Urk was rampaging and fled...
Urk, who had been pleased with the long-awaited spoils, returned to the main camp and promptly shattered a pillar of Nakrang Castle.
"...While I was gone for a moment, you did... what?"