Chapter 100
Chapter 100
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 100
Chapter Title: The Instinctual Onslaught
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The Crossing army of 20,000 charged in recklessly.
Hanneman, positioned at the rear of the army, furrowed his brow as if he couldn’t comprehend it.
“Are they trying to turn the army around and repel us now?”
It was foolish. If that was their plan, they should have done it earlier from better terrain. Attempting it now, with their forces concentrated in one place—no, in open plains, of all things.
“It’s probably to buy time for a retreat.”
It was the counsel of one of the strategists.
“Some units might be dragging things out to avoid getting their tails caught.”
“No, look closely. The rear forces are turning as well. They show no sign of heading into the mountains.”
“Then…”
“Yes, they intend to settle this here.”
The Crossing army’s movements made it seem like they believed they could annihilate them in a single day.
Hanneman bellowed in outrage.
“You’ve been underestimating us from the start, have you? Insolent fools! Men! Don’t let a single one escape alive!”
The Western army sprang into action at once. Hundreds of officers moved with perfect discipline, directing their troops to engage the infiltrating Crossing forces.
There was only one tactical miscalculation here.
In their aggressive pursuit of the enemy’s tail, they had gotten too close from the outset.
If they’d maintained sufficient distance, they could have struck the flanks of the charging cavalry with their own horsemen or pinned down their advance with archers. But the proximity prevented such maneuvers, allowing the engagement to happen.
Still, that was minor.
It wouldn’t significantly impact the overall battle.
The real problem was that the charging enemy’s power was ferociously beyond imagination.
“Raaagh!”
“Haat!”
Boom! Soldiers were swept away.
With Anton and Juras at the vanguard unleashing havoc, it was hard to hold them back. Their in-game Might stats were 99 and 98—top-tier warriors even Fischer Partin would struggle against.
And they weren’t alone.
Second General Creeper Nollak, Third General Patty Hurt, and Fifth General Kisler Ponte were with them.
All the core generals of Crossing’s military—save for the king’s direct subordinate, the Fourth General—were in the assault unit.
It was a Buster Call of sorts. No wonder the power was overwhelming. It punched a momentary hole in their tactics.
But even so, 20,000 against 130,000.
“Surround them! Grab their feet!”
“Encirlce them!”
The soldiers formed a tactical encirclement.
At that moment.
Juras turned his head, scanned his surroundings, and took a strange action.
“Sip… haaaaa…!”
He exhaled the breath he’d inhaled deeply, staggering as if drunk.
Then he spoke.
“That way…!”
Juras changed direction, plunging into what seemed an utterly bizarre path. The other officers followed him without a shred of doubt.
The spot Juras chose looked like a dead end at first glance. A bad move that appeared to be a tactical blunder.
Yet it came alive in an unbelievable form.
By striking there instead, the encirclement shattered, and the enemy forces fell into chaos.
As the confusion spread, Juras rampaged even more wildly. His movements weren’t by the book. Yet they produced absolute results, as if declaring that this was the hidden truth.
“Good grief…”
Als, watching from afar, muttered in disbelief.
“Who’d have thought that guy was an Instinct Type.”
Instinct Type. The term was misleading—it didn’t mean fighting wars purely on animal instinct, like some divine possession. Nothing like that was possible.
“Instinct” ultimately referred to personal creativity.
Some developed it through acquired experience, while others were born with it as innate talent.
Juras was a hybrid of both.
He possessed top-level acquired war experience and knowledge of tactics, combined with innate creativity.
That’s why he navigated any trap to find only the correct path. It wasn’t mere instinct—it was instinct and reason in perfect harmony.
That said, he wasn’t without weaknesses.
The fatal flaw of Instinct Type commanders.
They couldn’t lead large numbers of troops.
That’s why Juras only took 20,000. Even then, he was supported by other capable officers and aides to manage the forces.
Without them, the soldiers couldn’t keep up with his ever-changing maneuvers.
“So that’s why you left the troops to me.”
Als raised his command staff and shouted.
“Their response is obvious now… Everyone, move!”
Als began commanding the remaining 80,000 Crossing troops.
He exploited the gap Juras created with textbook precision, efficiently dispatching the enemy.
The combined assault of Instinct Type Juras and Textbook Type Als.
Juras stirred the pot, and Als coldly swept up the remnants.
The Western vanguard crumbled helplessly before this terrifying duo.
*
*
*
“Wh-what… what’s happening…!”
Hanneman couldn’t close his gaping mouth.
Such insane offensive power didn’t exist in the West.
He felt a pressure like facing a war god.
Invincible. That was the perfect word for the Juras-Als combination.
“The Lehila Infantry is annihilated! Their captain has fallen!”
“The enemy main force is devouring our vanguard! No breakthrough!”
“Vanguard units in chaos! Awaiting orders!”
In the chaotic situation, one strategist urgently advised.
“How about a temporary retreat? The enemy has no supplies. If we fall back and buy time, we can turn this around.”
“No! We’d get our tail caught and suffer heavy losses!”
This wasn’t a disposable force—it was their main army.
Damage to it would eliminate any chance of occupying Bekavia.
In other words, the expedition would fail.
“There must be some way! Think of something, quickly!”
“Th-then… R-right now, the priority isn’t the enemy unit rampaging in our vanguard, but the enemy main force supporting them from behind!”
That was Als’s command unit.
Als was covering Juras’s rear to prevent encirclement while continuously feeding in reinforcements to keep Juras’s unit from losing momentum.
That’s why Juras’s forces could rampage nonstop.
“According to the spy inside the enemy camp, Wade from the Bekavia lines has moved to Crossing’s main force. He’s surely the one commanding there.”
“That mercenary who killed Lexit…!”
Hanneman recalled Jemuto’s warning at that moment.
Beware of Juras, but also Wade.
The very scenario Jemuto feared was unfolding.
“If we take out Wade commanding the main force, the enemy will lose momentum. So, I suggest committing all Five Dragons to tie down the vanguard intruders, then strike Crossing’s main force first.”
“Very well.”
Hanneman threw all Five Dragons at Juras to pin him down. Fischer Partin was dead, but the other four remained.
While they held Juras, he targeted Als’s position with the rest of the troops.
“This isn’t enough! Messenger! Relay this to the Tunkai army at once!”
The battle situation unfolded with urgent intensity.
Landon Crowe, general of the Tunkai army facing off against Bekavia, stared at Juras’s forces as if he’d seen something unbelievable.
“What the hell is that…?”
As far as he knew, Juras was a strategist. This kind of combat style?
“They hid it perfectly.”
It was partly Crossing’s info control, but mainly because Juras’s vanguard engagements had all ended in quick routs, leaving the enemy clueless.
“Dangerous. That’s uncontrollable.”
Then, Hanneman’s messenger arrived.
“Lord Hanneman’s orders! Strike the flank of Crossing’s main force and target their commander!”
“Tch! What a brutal role…”
But he knew there was no other way.
Only Tunkai’s highly skilled cavalry could pull it off.
“Aide! Form a 4,000-man detachment immediately! All cavalry!”
“You’re going yourself, General?”
“I have to.”
“Please be careful. The opponent is that Wade.”
“Even so, no choice. Prepare at once!”
“Yes, sir!”
As Landon headed to the horses, a man blocked him.
“Leave it to me then, Landon.”
“Ash!”
“You can’t be in danger right now. With that damned Krause Faulkner gone, this is your chance to seize military command. Getting captured or killed here would ruin everything.”
“You dying is a big problem too. I can’t send you.”
“Don’t worry. I can protect my own life.”
Beside Ash stood a mysterious woman of indeterminate age, holding a cavalry lance.
“I’ll protect Ash. Leave it to us, Landon.”
“Lisitea, you too…! Do you know who the enemy is? It’s Wade. Even for you two…”
“What can we accomplish if we fear the enemy? No time to hesitate, Landon. Give the order!”
“…Fine. But remember one thing. If it gets dangerous, pull out immediately!”
“Got it. Let’s go, Ash!”
Ash and Lisitea led the 4,000 cavalry, stabbing into the side of Crossing’s main force.
The Crossing army responded as if waiting, using a tactic to narrow the entry path.
By constricting the route, the lead cavalry could press forward, but the followers slowed to a crawl.
Now, the vanguard horsemen had a choice.
Push through to Als’s main camp despite lacking follow-up, or detour to regroup.
“This suffocating counter… As expected of Wade…! But you see…”
Ash showcased brilliant countermeasures.
He split the mid-rank cavalry into two groups, sending them detouring on both flanks.
“Lisitea! That side’s yours!”
“Got it!”
They swiftly bypassed with their forces, infiltrating Als’s main camp from the sides. The vanguard cavalry was annihilated by Als’s tactics, but Ash and Lisitea had slipped in from both flanks during the delay.
The infiltrating cavalry numbered 300 in total.
‘This is enough!’
No matter how many guards Wade had, 300 cavalry could crush them.
Thus, Ash and Lisitea charged toward Als’s main camp.
But he wasn’t there.
“What…!?”
The camp was empty. Not a glimpse of Als.
“Impossible! The troop commands clearly originated from here…!”
Moreover, Crossing soldiers had defended it with their lives.
“Ash!”
Lisitea shouted, pointing around.
Crossing soldiers had turned and surrounded them before they knew it.
“It was a trap…!!”
Ash gritted his teeth.
At that point, Als was in a place he hadn’t imagined.