Chapter 97: A World Never Experienced Before (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 97: A World Never Experienced Before (1)
When they first heard the plan, Kevin, who had been quietly observing the situation, waited until the decision was made to follow Roman's strategy before asking a single question.
"What should we do?"
This war was not a burden for Roman to shoulder alone.
While utilizing the mountain terrain and the cover of darkness to deal with the enemy was a brilliant strategy, their force of two hundred men couldn't simply stand by and twiddle their thumbs. Kevin wanted a role to play for his Lord's sake. Chris felt the exact same way, and as soon as Kevin brought up this crucial point, Chris immediately chimed in.
"He is right. I agree with the decision for my Lord to conduct a guerrilla operation alone. You possess the capability, and we, who cannot keep up with your abilities, would only be a hindrance. However, we do not wish to leave everything entirely to you. You may use us as bait. Please, make good use of us."
Their worries were needless.
From the very beginning, Roman had intended to utilize his available forces to their absolute limit.
"I will briefly explain the operation now."
Rustle.
He unrolled a map.
It was McBurney's map. Though it seemed like a minor detail, Roman had intentionally brought it out. He pointed to the area corresponding to the entrance of the mountain.
"This operation is divided into three stages. The first stage: I will utilize my mobility to eliminate Hector's remnants. Since the Hector Kingdom is currently preoccupied with attacking the frontline defense post, I can wipe out a significant number of their men in the meantime. The second stage: If the Hector Kingdom views my existence as a thorn in their side and sends a pursuit squad, I will lure them into the mountain. Hector will likely try to finish me off at once by leveraging their numerical superiority. I will drag the battle out. Once the sun sets and darkness falls, I can use my abilities to drive them into a corner."
Finally, the crowning stroke.
The Hector Kingdom, provoked to their absolute limit, would undoubtedly push themselves to pursue him.
"From that moment, we enter the third stage. A surprise attack utilizing the terrain. That is your role."
* * *
The third stage was a simple plan.
Digging traps, lying in wait, and launching a surprise attack on the enemies once their ranks fell into disarray. Because it was a fundamental tactic, everyone understood the inherent risks without needing further explanation.
‘A surprise attack in the mountains will certainly yield results. But the moment we reveal ourselves, we won't be free from the Hector Kingdom's pursuit. The difference in power between Hector and us is overwhelming. Successfully executing the attack and escaping safely is practically impossible. Even so, if it is our Lord's command, we will obey.’
Not a single person mentioned the danger of the operation.
Everyone shared the same sentiment. Roman Dmitry was willing to face hundreds, even thousands of enemies alone; they had no right to whine about the danger of launching an ambush from a pre-established position. Even if this choice meant their deaths, Roman's soldiers possessed the resolve to follow him to the bitter end. This determination spread like a contagion, and the soldiers following McBurney and Steven kept their mouths shut in silent agreement.
It was a fierce, impressive resolve.
While he appreciated the devotion of soldiers willing to sacrifice themselves for him, Roman was not a man who sought meaningless deaths.
"It seems you are misunderstanding something. The key point of this surprise attack is to reduce the enemy's numbers while minimizing our own casualties."
"...That is impossible. The Hector Kingdom will surely form ranks and conduct a search. The moment our location is discovered, unless we kill every single one of them, our tails will inevitably be caught. You do not need to give us false hope. We are already prepared to lay down our lives for you, Lord."
It was Chris. Even if he had originally followed Roman with his own goals in mind, his loyalty was now absolute.
Roman spoke.
"No, there is a way to avoid having our tails caught. An ancient book I happened to find contained this teaching: the applications of mana are infinite, and depending on how it is used, Mother Nature can be brought to humanity's side. During my stay in Dmitry, after countless trials and errors, I discovered a new branch of nature."
It was incomprehensible.
A branch of nature?
Roman walked over and began gathering pebbles and twigs scattered across the dirt.
"Though invisible to your eyes, these pebbles and twigs are endowed with more mana than other objects. In truth, by human standards, it is a minuscule amount. However, if they are systematically positioned according to precise criteria, the power of mana will defy the flow of nature and distort space itself."
Clack.
He placed a pebble on the ground. He took a few steps forward and planted a twig in the dirt.
What on earth was he doing?
As he repeated the same action for a while, the eyes of those watching him filled with doubt.
‘What does he plan to do with this?’
The skepticism swelled. Then, the moment Roman laid down the final pebble, he spoke.
"I have decided to call this technique 'Formation.'"
Whoosh.
A gentle breeze blew. Roman's figure vanished like a mirage.
Shock washed over the group. Everyone was utterly astonished. It felt as if all of their Five Senses were being denied. He had clearly been right before their eyes just a moment ago, yet like a trick of the gods, Roman had vanished without a trace.
Only then did they become certain. If they followed Roman Dmitry's method, they might truly be able to attack the enemy in complete safety.
And now, in the present.
The plan worked perfectly.
"Attack!"
"Fire the arrows!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
The arrows were fired from point-blank range. Even without being a marksman, hitting the target was effortless. Hector's soldiers screamed and fell as arrows pierced their flesh. Caught completely off guard, they didn't even think to raise their shields. The soldiers, who had trained so hard for this war, crumbled like a disorganized rabble.
Chris, having just severed the windpipe of an Aura Swordsman in a single blow, did not miss this opening and lunged forward.
Dash.
His sword flashed.
Moving at a speed hard to follow with the naked eye, the heads of the vanguard soldiers flew off, their faces frozen in shock. Blood sprayed like a fountain.
Chris did not stop. A surprise attack was a battle of momentum. To completely tear apart the opening the enemy had exposed, Chris pushed forward aggressively.
"Get a grip, everyone!"
"Counterattack!"
Hector's knights finally reacted. Among them were Aura Swordsmen. Aura flared from all directions as they attacked Chris simultaneously, but he evaded their strikes a step ahead.
And then—
Slash!
Thud!
He precisely targeted their vital points, ending their lives in a flash.
The Great Warrior Battle. Ever since defeating a 3-Star Swordsman, Chris had been reborn as an entirely different being. He had realized that the power of Aura was not everything, and he had strived to grow stronger through his training with Roman. The sweat he shed could have formed a river. Knowing that even a moment's distraction would prevent him from properly absorbing Roman's teachings, he clung desperately to his martial path, staying up all night for a week straight even if it meant collapsing from exhaustion.
As a result, he achieved his desired strength.
Like a flash of lightning, he unleashed the swordsmanship of one of the Ten Great Masters of the World who had once ruled the Murim, unilaterally slaughtering Hector's knights.
"What the hell..."
"Where did a monster like this come from?!"
The enemies were horrified. Their opponent was not Roman Dmitry, yet they could not handle him at all. Under Chris's brutal onslaught, agonized screams echoed endlessly into the night.
That was not all. Roman's soldiers possessed extraordinary martial prowess as well. Having mastered the Asura Mind Method and the Asura Sword Technique, they displayed a combat capability where each man was a match for a hundred, despite being ordinary soldiers.
It was an overwhelming slaughter.
Having butchered countless enemies in a short span, Chris suddenly stepped back and shouted, his voice infused with mana:
"Retreat!"
"Retreat!"
This was far enough.
Though initially thrown into disarray, the Hector Kingdom forces eventually came to their senses and blew their horns to signal the enemy's appearance. It was a sign that the tide was turning. Hearing the sound of reinforcements rushing in from nearby, Chris ordered a retreat without a moment's hesitation.
They had already achieved their objective. From the beginning, this operation was not about killing as many enemies as possible, but rather about safely harassing them and whittling them down.
‘Moving to the next point.’
Across this vast mountain, they had established several hiding spots utilizing Formations. Roman was a realist. Knowing that they could not ultimately win a war of attrition, he strictly engaged in battle only under the conditions he desired.
The Cairo soldiers slipped away like eels.
With that, the engagement ended. Hector's soldiers pursued them in a frenzy of rage, but before they knew it, Chris and his men had vanished without a trace.
* * *
At that same time, battles were taking place in other sectors as well.
"Enemy!"
"Block them!"
Thwack!
Kevin led the vanguard of Cairo. After decapitating an enemy who was screaming in horror, he swiftly slaughtered the rest of the disoriented foes. The pattern of the battle here was not much different. Just as Roman had intended, the Hector Kingdom pushed themselves to form a defensive perimeter, and in the chaos, their ranks inevitably fell into disarray.
In truth, common sense dictated that Hector held the advantage. In a war of attrition, numerical superiority was absolute. Yet, Cairo's surprise attacks defied all common sense.
"Die!"
An Aura Swordsman of Hector roared. His exploding Aura carried Hector's hopes. However, the Aura Swordsman who attempted to take Kevin's head lost his own life first to Kevin's lightning-fast counter-thrust.
Roman's soldiers often said that Kevin was a monster growing at the most explosive rate. While it could not be said that he was stronger than Chris just yet, his speed in slaughtering the enemy was actually faster.
This operation had been accompanied by many doubts. People worried about Roman Dmitry facing the Hector Kingdom alone, believing a guerrilla operation in the mountains carried far too much risk. However, unlike Chris, who questioned things to find solid reasoning, Kevin never raised a single doubt.
He simply believed in Roman Dmitry.
If it was Roman—the man who had elevated someone like him, a boy who had once merely scraped by in the slums, to such heights in such a short span of time—Kevin believed that anything was possible, even if it defied common sense.
Blind trust. Kevin's driving force lay in the very existence of Roman.
His results in the battle were the same as Chris's. However, though he killed just as many enemies in a short time, there was a distinct difference in his method.
Grab!
Stab! Stab! Stab!
He grabbed a fleeing enemy by the hair. Dragging the man in front of him, Kevin stabbed him in the abdomen repeatedly. It was not a strike meant to end his life instantly. He inflicted merciless pain, ensuring the man screamed as loudly as possible. Witnessing this brutality, Hector's soldiers turned pale and didn't dare entertain the thought of attacking Kevin.
Hector was the enemy.
Standing by Roman's side, Kevin had watched closely how his Lord treated his enemies. During the battle with Barco, Roman had shown the cruelty of utterly annihilating the opposing family. Inspired by that infinite ruthlessness toward enemies, Kevin personally showed his foes the true meaning of terror.
‘I follow the values my Lord pursues.’
He did not chase down the fleeing enemies. Survivors were necessary to spread fear. Intentionally leaving a moderate number of survivors, Kevin immediately signaled a retreat at the sound of approaching reinforcements.
Chris.
Kevin.
Puki.
Volkan.
The surprise attacks were carried out simultaneously. Volkan, who had been the very first applicant during the private soldier recruitment, and Puki, who had successfully manifested Aura, each led a unit. Thus, the forces had split into four directions and launched their attacks at the exact same time.
The operation was a resounding success. Just like Chris and Kevin, who had unilaterally slaughtered the enemy and escaped, the other two units also succeeded in their missions.
And, before long, the news threw the Hector camp into utter shock.