Canyon Battle (2)
Before the canyon leading to Karon Territory.
Margrave Kraus, having reached the mouth of the canyon flanked by towering cliffs on both sides, swept his gaze across the steep precipices with a serious expression.
"My lord. There is no sign of enemy ambush or traps atop the cliffs."
At his adjutant's report, Kraus snorted and spoke.
"I don't sense any mana either. I had some expectations when I heard Espada's brat had retaken Karon, but it seems they're fools after all. If they'd simply rolled boulders or logs from the cliff tops, they could have delayed our army's advance by several days."
"Indeed. They appear to be a rabble that doesn't even know how to utilize terrain tactics."
"However..."
Kraus narrowed his eyes, recalling the letter from the Imperial capital.
"Those metal rods that took down Kelrn's knights are a bit concerning."
Margrave Kraus was a veteran who had been through countless battles.
Though his mind judged the Espada Kingdom as nothing but a disorderly rabble,
his instincts, honed across numerous battlefields, were signaling something different.
"My lord. Surely you don't think the royal army is lying in ambush in the canyon with those unknown weapons?"
"I can't be certain. But if we're hit by ranged weapons of the power described in that letter in this narrow terrain, our losses won't be insignificant."
The knight order he commanded was a force built with the Empire's vast taxes and time.
To blindly push them into what might be a trap, even if he was confident, was not something a commander should do.
"Deploy the infantry first."
"My lord? Wasn't the knight order supposed to take the lead?"
"We need a shield. If those bastards are lying in ambush with those suspicious metal rods or whatever they are, the infantry will take the hit first."
At Kraus's words, the adjutant immediately bowed his head.
"Understood."
Not long after the adjutant left, several thousand infantry began marching into the canyon.
The sound of soldiers' footsteps filled the gorge.
How much time had passed as Kraus watched the infantry advance?
A messenger from the infantry, who had moved beyond the canyon, returned and delivered word.
"Report! The vanguard of the infantry has safely passed through the canyon and entered the forest! There was no sign of the enemy whatsoever!"
At the messenger's report, the adjutant beside him let out a relieved laugh.
"Haha! It seems it was indeed my lord's overcaution. The cowardly kingdom bastards are probably huddled together trembling on the plains outside the canyon."
"..."
Even at his words, Kraus's expression did not relax.
'Why didn't they attack at all?'
Conscripted infantry though they were, there were several thousand of them.
Several thousand.
It would have been more than enough numbers to inflict damage with a proper ambush.
'And they just let them through?'
Either they were fools who didn't even know the basics of tactics,
or they were waiting for the knight order to enter.
'Damn it.'
In his heart, he wanted to turn his horse around immediately and take a wide detour around the mountain range.
But doing so would waste another week reaching Karon Territory.
That would mean more time spent on recovery,
and worse, it would give the kingdom bastards time to prepare.
'The current Imperial situation doesn't allow for that.'
The Emperor was currently bedridden.
Moreover, the power struggle between the Imperial faction and the Noble faction could erupt into civil war at any moment.
And Crown Prince Kallian had issued a strict order to retake Karon and annihilate the Espada bastards as quickly as possible.
If he delayed here for a week with excuses,
he might be branded incompetent and lose his head first.
'The Crown Prince is exactly the type to do that. In the end, I have to break through this path.'
Their intentions were obvious anyway.
Ignore the regular soldiers who could be easily dealt with by knights alone,
and when the knight order entered the canyon, pour down those metal rods or whatever from all sides.
Kraus clicked his tongue and spoke.
"Tch. Knight order! All troops, raise your aura and advance with focus on defense! No matter what surprise attack comes, deflect everything and break through to the plains!"
"Waaaaah!!"
At Kraus's command, the knights simultaneously enveloped their armor in aura and began advancing.
He positioned himself slightly behind the center of the knight order, alert in all directions.
'Where is it?'
As they continued their march, alert on all sides, the entire knight order entered the narrowest and steepest section of the canyon.
"...Hm?"
'The air feels strange.'
Rumble...
A vibration began echoing from within the rocky mountains enclosing them on both sides.
"Everyone, spread your aura!!"
Just as Kraus, realizing the meaning of the vibration, was about to urgently shout a command with veins bulging in his neck.
BOOOOOOM!!
With an ear-splitting explosion, both sides of the canyon burst apart entirely.
@@@
BOOOOOOM!!
"Oh. It blew."
As the trap we had pre-set exploded,
an enormous tremor, shaking the very ground, reached even the safe zone where we were waiting.
"Elisa. Remove the barrier now. Let's move."
"Understood, Master."
Whoosh.
As her answer ended, the mana barrier that had been enveloping this place smoothly dissipated.
'Thanks to that, the enemy couldn't spot us.'
Elisa's magic had prevented the enemy from detecting our ambush.
What I'd been slightly worried about was that her mana was fundamentally witch's mana, so I thought our own knights might have noticed it too, but...
'It seems no one except Seria, who's an Expert, caught on.'
Of course, it's not like one encounters black wizards or witches often.
Unless you're someone who's frequently faced them or at least an Expert, it's hard to recognize.
Seria also seemed to act as if it wasn't important enough to question right now.
"All units. Advance."
At my command, Seria took the lead, guiding the knight order and the musket corps.
I ordered half the musket corps and twenty percent of the knights to head toward the plains to deal with the enemy infantry.
That much force should be sufficient to handle the enemy infantry.
'Spare those who surrender.'
Even though this was war,
I wanted to judge coldly but not become cruel.
We moved through the thick, rising dust toward the collapsed canyon.
The scene before the canyon upon arrival was truly devastating.
Rock walls dozens of meters high had crumbled, turning the canyon passage into a massive stone tomb.
"The mountain truly collapsed."
Seria marveled at the sight before her, but kept a firm grip on the gunlance in her hand, not letting down her guard.
"Don't let your guard down. It's not over yet."
"Yes. I don't believe knights who had wrapped themselves in aura would have been completely annihilated by mere falling rocks."
'I can sense mana.'
Just as I was thinking that.
CRUNCH!
A faint blue light of aura began seeping through the gaps in the rubble.
"Haaah...! Hah...!"
Soon, Imperial knights in dented armor and covered in blood pushed aside the rocks and crawled out.
Their wounds didn't seem severe, so it appeared most had blocked the rocks with their aura.
'Most of the blood on them is probably from their horses, not their own.'
But surviving doesn't mean they're fine.
They must have squeezed their aura to the limit to block the rocks falling from above.
Indeed, most of the knights who emerged from the rubble were gasping for breath, their legs trembling slightly.
Moreover, the aura enveloping them was noticeably thinner.
'Still, impressive.'
The fact that their eyes still held life meant the title of Imperial elite wasn't just for show.
Even without their commander, Margrave Kraus, visible among them, the escaped knights were trying to form a circular defensive formation, covering each other's backs.
Probably planning to recover their mana while defending.
'Can't let them recover their mana.'
"First rank! Fire!"
BANG!! BANG!! BANG!!
At my command, the troops lined up in the first rank pulled their triggers simultaneously.
Hundreds of bullets, spewing hazy white smoke, were fired at the Imperial knights.
"Kugh! Block them!"
"Wrap your shields in aura!"
The knights hastily raised their shields, deflecting the incoming bullets with their remaining aura.
CLANG! CRASH!
The sound of metal striking metal rang out noisily.
CRACK!
"Kugh...!"
"The aura's breaking!"
"Raise your shields and duck down!"
The knights' aura, already at its limit from enduring the rocks, shattered like glass, unable to withstand the bullets.
Shields were pierced, armor was pierced, and knights began spilling blood one after another.
"If we just defend like this, we'll all die! Close the distance and break their formation!"
Shouted the one who seemed to hold the highest rank among the surviving knights.
"Charge!"
"You cowardly kingdom bastards...!!"
"Cut them all down!"
Cornered, the knights charged in a desperate last stand.
They thrust their broken shields forward, squeezed out every last drop of their remaining mana, and began rushing toward us.
'A futile effort, but...'
"Second rank. Fire!"
At my command, the soldiers of the second rank, who had been waiting, pulled their triggers.
BANG!! BANG!! BANG!!