Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Extra Strategist's Royal Road
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The Toonka forces began swiftly ascending the rugged mountainside.
Once the trailing forces followed the path they had opened, the battle would be over.
Judging as much, Grandis watched the situation unfold leisurely, but Kraus was different.
He was trembling with a persistent sense of unease.
“Something’s off. There’s something there. Something else….”
It was the instinct of a bandit.
He could feel it.
They had already fallen into the enemy’s trap.
“Lord Grandis, shouldn’t we pull back the troops? Even if we just retreat and regroup, we won’t take any losses.”
“What nonsense is that, Kraus? Rexit is about to rip out the enemy’s throat any moment now. Once we clean up his prey, caught in those teeth, the battle ends. Don’t you get that?”
“I do! I get it, but…! Damn it, something’s wrong!”
“What exactly is wrong? Calm down and explain.”
“It’s…!”
He couldn’t explain it rationally.
It was just his bandit instincts urging him to run.
That was the moment. The movements of the Toonka detachment grew strange.
Rumble rumble! Rexit’s unit, charging straight up toward the high ground, suddenly veered left.
From their distant position, Kraus and Grandis could vaguely make out trees shaking and dust rising.
“What’s going on? Why change direction….”
Only then did Grandis narrow his eyes, sensing the unease.
The Toonka forces’ attack path was turning bizarre.
Some units split into two groups, others into three, while certain detachments halted in place to engage in combat.
The moment their formation loosened, boom! Eonia and Gaspar, leading Caliper’s guerrilla forces, severed their waist and blocked the entry route.
If the army split like this, it could spell disaster.
A cohesive force could at least hold out until reinforcements arrived, but scattered like this, they’d be picked off one by one, and the vanguard could be wiped out before the trailing forces even climbed.
Seeing the vanguard scattering wildly, Grandis’s eyes widened in shock.
“What the hell is happening up there!”
“Fuck, that’s why I said we should pull back!”
Kraus lost his composure and bellowed.
But now that they’d come this far, retreat wasn’t an option.
Kraus joined Grandis, leading the assembled trailing forces toward the site of the brewing battle in a hurry.
There, they witnessed it.
Eonia’s guerrilla unit, which had cut their waist and erected barricades to seal the path.
“Hurry and set up the fences to block the road! The enemy’s trailing forces will arrive here soon!”
Boom! Boom! Stakes driven into the ground, sealing off the terrain alongside fences.
Erected amid towering trees throughout the formation, they obstructed the unit’s advance.
The fortification stratagem.
Als hadn’t stopped at infiltrating the enemy formation; using the time Anton had bought, he’d turned their main camp into a fortress maze in an instant.
“N-No way…!”
Grandis couldn’t believe it.
Infiltrating the enemy lines and building such an advanced fortress in this short time!
“No way!?”
The bizarre act of felling trees in their own formation.
It wasn’t for arson.
It was simply to procure timber for fortress construction.
Then why bother lighting fires for arson?
Simple.
To mask their infiltration path with smoke, seize the high ground, and hide the wagons carrying timber.
“General! The advance route is blocked by barricades! To link up with the vanguard, we have to go around!”
“Shut your mouth! Don’t waste time talking—destroy those barricades!”
But while they spent time demolishing them, Eonia’s guerrillas sealed the rear path, and Gaspar’s struck the flanks to buy time, rendering breakthroughs pointless.
“Ahh…!”
Kraus was in a panic.
Caliper’s intent, using guerrillas to divide vanguard from trailing forces, was obvious.
Tie down the trailing forces as much as possible and annihilate the infiltrated vanguard in the meantime.
With the vanguard numbering 20,000 alone, their annihilation would deal irreparable damage to the Toonka forces.
Since the enemy had attacked, they’d have to cede this entire fractured mountain range.
In other words, a perfect defeat with no escape.
“W-We’re pulling back. Abandon the vanguard and retreat!”
Kraus judged coldly.
The vanguard, trapped in the enemy trap, command disrupted and in chaos, was beyond saving.
Pushing to rescue them risked losing the trailing forces too.
“Don’t talk nonsense, Kraus!”
It was the first time Grandis, always smug, showed raw anger.
Abandoning the vanguard meant abandoning one of the Three Great Generals, Rexit.
‘One of the Three Great Generals dying here? Impossible!’
Grandis shouted urgently.
“Kraus, from now on, I’ll command the soldiers!”
“Bullshit! I’m the overall commander!”
“Urgh…! You bastard, aren’t you afraid of the West’s wrath? As a traitor, you could die by our hands anytime, and you know it. Obey me this once, and I’ll convince the leaders to show you mercy. I stake my honor on it!”
“Ugh, fine…! Fine, so use that brilliant brain of yours and do something!”
Kraus grimaced.
Fleeing meant the Western tribes hunting him down, so better to hope Grandis turned the tide.
*
*
*
The Toonka trailing forces desperately breached barricades to link with the vanguard.
Als tilted his head, surprised.
“Was Kraus Faulkner this stupid? He must know there’s no way out beyond this.”
The moment the vanguard entered Caliper’s formation, the battle was decided.
The fortification stratagem.
It was called fortification, but if read, it was instant defeat—a gamble.
If the enemy saw through it and bypassed to cut supplies instead of engaging, Caliper would be done for.
He’d notified Albad in advance for that scenario, but now Plan B wasn’t needed.
“General! We’ve sealed the path as planned!”
“Good. Mobile Units 3, 4, and 5—move per the plan and annihilate the enemy! Engineering Units 2 and 3—follow their paths and erect fences to seal them!”
“Yes, sir!”
Crisp commands. Duke Helian beside him felt chills.
‘Astonishing strategy!’
A stratagem on another level. It wasn’t because Kraus, the bandit, was ignorant of tactics.
Even if the enemy commander were one of the Ten Heroes, reading this would be tough.
‘Feigning arson as bait, but using the smoke instead!’
If Toonka hadn’t considered arson from the start, it would’ve failed. A real fire would’ve prevented fortification.
‘This guy knew how the enemy would react.’
He’d exploited it perfectly, leaving them no choice.
“General! Enemy trailing forces approaching fast!”
“Prioritize annihilating the enemies inside our formation. Leave the trailing forces to the guerrillas for now.”
“Yes, sir!”
Eonia and Gaspar’s guerrillas moved intelligently.
Eonia, receiving detailed tactical orders from Als, used archers to snipe enemy scouts reconning the fortress, buying time effectively. Gaspar moved independently, stabbing the trailing forces’ flanks to sow chaos.
What Als rated highly was Gaspar’s guerrilla unit.
“Heh, not bad at all.”
Gaspar had tactical insight rivaling elite troops in small-scale guerrilla or ambush ops.
He knew exactly where to strike to hurt.
Perfect for tying down the enemy.
“That said…. The trailing forces climbing up has made time a bit tight.”
Als personally advanced, directing officers on the front lines to whittle down the enemy.
The infiltrated vanguard, lost in the mountain-fortress maze, dwindled rapidly.
“…Young master.”
Ymir, assigned to monitor Rexit, appeared and whispered to Als.
“He’s nearing the trap.”
“Looks like Anton’s doing well. Ymir, you… no, I should go too. Let’s head out.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
The monstrously powerful Three Great General, Rexit.
Als had no intention of letting him live.
Clang! Clash! Blades intertwined.
“Raaargh!”
“Hah!”
Clang! Anton and Rexit dueled while traversing the mountain.
“What’s wrong! Tired already!”
“Urgh!”
Clang! Slide! Anton blocked Rexit’s strike but was pushed back.
It wasn’t a skill gap.
Anton prioritized the plan, even at a disadvantage.
‘I lured him following Lady Ymir’s mark…. But where is she now?’
Infiltrating enemy lines, Anton had charged to engage the enemy leader, unaware of the trap’s exact location.
That was Als’s intent.
If even Anton didn’t know, Rexit couldn’t sense it.
“Enough—let’s end this!”
“Tch!”
No more room to retreat. Anton poured strength into his weapon, blocking Rexit’s descending halberd.
Boom! Monstrous power threatening to crush him. And then—the ground beneath them crumbled under the attack’s weight.
“Wha…!?”
“This is it! Hah!”
Anton reacted first in the sudden crisis, deeming it Als’s trap. He kicked Rexit—thud!—leapt, and grabbed a tree root.
Ymir appeared, offering her hand.
“Take my hand.”
“Thank you, Lady Ymir.”
Thud! Anton climbed out of the pit.
Rexit did not.
Trapped in the pit, Rexit panicked.
“Urgh! What is this…!”
Als appeared above, declaring coldly.
“Fire at will.”
Pew pew pew! Dozens of arrows rained on Rexit in the pit. Als fired his bow too.
“Guh!”
Sensing danger, Rexit guarded vitals and dodged, but couldn’t evade all.
One in the thigh, one in the arm, two in the back, one in the side, one in the shin. Blood flowed from arrow wounds.
“Jeez. How thick is your hide?”
None were fatal. Even the side arrow was stopped by muscle, sparing organs.
“You bastard…!”
Rexit glared at Als in fury.
Als sneered.
“Good thing you’re just a muscle-headed fool. If you knew strategy, catching you this easily would’ve been impossible.”
Toonka soldiers following Rexit had dwindled to under a hundred. Chasing Anton wildly, they’d been ensnared and peeled off in the fortress maze.
Those hundred were pinned by ambush units the moment the trap sprung.
“No one’s coming to save you…. Not for a while. Or ever.”
“You…. That greenhorn spearman from before…! The one using sword and spear…!”
“Hey, cut the nonsense. Fire again.”
Pew pew pew! This time, Rexit was ready.
Whoosh! He swung his weapon, knocking down most arrows.
Still, one hit his right arm, another his thigh.
“You think this catches me! Me, Rexit of the Three Great Generals!”
“….”
“I am the greatest power under heaven! You’ll regret standing before me!”
“…Three… Great… Generals?”
In that instant, something flashed through Als’s mind.
[The Three Great Generals──will──come.]
Als jolted like struck by lightning, recalling.
‘Dialogue from the main story…!’
He couldn’t recall who said it to whom or exactly what, but one thing was clear.
Three Great Generals. A term from the game.
“That weird outfit…. You’re from the Western barbarians.”
“Hraaaah!”
Als had questions, but Rexit charged wordlessly.
Stagger!
“Wha…!?”
He dropped to one knee.
Sensing anomaly, Rexit glared up at Als with bloodshot eyes.
“Y-You bastard…. What did you do…!”
“Palean poison. Instant paralysis toxin. Impressive you could even move that much. One drop paralyzes a grown man for hours, I hear.”
Als had found Palean grass by chance.
Unsure how much grew here, he’d vaguely asked Ymir to gather it. Gaspar and Ymir scoured the mountains, returning after half a day with heaps.
“The dose you took is roughly twenty drops or more. Even a poison-resistant body should feel it now.”
“Y-You…! Using poison…! Have you no warrior’s pride…!”
“Nope. If your martial prowess and warrior’s pride are so great, stop whining and break out of this alone.”
“You bastard──!!”
Veins bulged across Rexit’s body.
The faster it spread, the worse—soon blood poured from every orifice, veins bursting.
‘Useless as a prisoner.’
Als signaled Anton.
“Please finish him.”
“…Yes.”
Shing! Anton drew his sword, not his curved blade, and descended into the pit.
Unable to move a finger, Rexit twitched, eyes rolling up to Anton.
“You… chose… the wrong master. A lord who scorns… a warrior’s pride….”
“Unnecessary. Warrior’s pride is worthless compared to my oath of loyalty. If my lord wishes, I’ll gladly be a coward.”
“You scum…!”
Crunch! A head flew.
Als took the head and headed to meet the trailing forces.
*
*
*
“Break through! Push up!”
“Damn! Thought we were going up…! We’re going down!”
Kraus and Grandis’s trailing forces struggled to tail the vanguard but were stalled by Eonia and Gaspar’s masterful delays.
The half-elf Eonia, untrained yet intuitively mastering the terrain, moved nimbly.
Outnumbered, they soon yielded the mountainside midpoint.
“Finally made it up…!”
Grandis panted, scanning around.
Vanguard remnants should be here.
Silence.
Eerily quiet mountains.
“I-In this short time, they’re all gone…? Impossible! No way! Rexit was there…!”
“Rexit, you mean this?”
Thud! A rolling head. Grandis’s eyes bulged.
“Rexit!? No way!”
He looked up toward the voice that tossed it, eyes wide.
A man in ashen helmet and armor.
Kraus shouted instead.
“Mercenary Wade!!”
“You must be Kraus Faulkner. Looks just like the wanted poster. And next to you…. Western barbarian?”
Als grinned. Perfect. He could get from Grandis what Rexit wouldn’t give.
“So, what now? I won’t stop a last stand.”
“…”
Boom! Boom! Barricades rising everywhere, encircling them. Retreat paths sealing in real time.
Grandis sweated coldly.
‘Wade…. Scarier than thought. Damn, with Rexit dead, no path to victory. Use Kraus as bait to escape.’
If he fled now, he could make it.
Thwack! Kraus smashed Grandis’s head from behind with a club.
“Gah! You bastard, what…!?”
“What? Didn’t expect you’d climb up with no plan, you idiot! If we’d just fled, at least the trailing forces would’ve survived, you mad bastard!”
Kraus had already calculated.
‘Surrender? Caliper won’t let me live.’
Too many crimes.
He raised the club again—thwack! thwack!—smashing Grandis’s legs, then yelled.
“Lads! Run!”
Kraus fled swiftly with his close aides.
Bereft of their commander, Toonka soldiers turned to Grandis.
“You bastard, Kraus…!”
Legs crushed, immobile, Grandis had no choice but to fight. The armies clashed.
“Jeez. Falling apart like loose powder.”
Als chuckled wryly, commanding.
All measures were done.
Grandis’s trailing forces, in the tiger’s jaws, were surrounded and annihilated.
Als ordered Anton to hunt fleeing Kraus.
Seeing no hope, Toonka soldiers dropped weapons and surrendered. The battle ended anticlimactically.
“Phew!”
Als sighed in relief, raising his spear.
“This battle is Caliper’s victory! All troops, raise your cheers!”
“Raaargh──!!”
Caliper cheers rippled like dominoes, shaking the fractured mountains.