Chapter 55
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: The Coming Storm
-----------------------------------------------------------------
They may have been skilled fighters, but no one is a hero under torture.
At the hands of an expert, the men were ready to spill everything, down to the number of undergarments they owned back home.
And because of that, the situation turned grave.
After extracting information from the captured prisoners, an emergency executive meeting was convened.
Along with the border guard commander, Pereron, and his officers, Vincent and Demian from the Kaion Unit were also in attendance.
“...To think it was the work of the Spanian Kingdom.”
“Why would the Spanian Kingdom do this? We’ve never had any friction with them.”
Vincent asked Pereron.
But Pereron just shook his head.
He had no answer to this situation either.
But then.
“There was something strange.”
“...What might that be?”
Pereron asked, prompted by Demian’s sudden interjection.
Demian answered.
“The war between the Empire and the Spanian Kingdom. It clearly ended in the Spanian Kingdom’s defeat, yet there were hardly any territorial disputes afterward.”
A nation defeated in war is naturally expected to compensate the victor for most of its losses.
This usually meant ceding territory, paying a massive sum of money, or handing over its people.
But strangely.
“Even if monetary compensation was made, it’s unlikely to have fully covered the victor’s damages.”
The key was that the Spanian Kingdom had ceded very little territory to the Empire.
There was some, but it was almost as if...
“It felt like a mere pretext.”
That meant there could have been another deal between the two nations.
For example.
“Perhaps they offered to help by providing a path to strike the Baroque Kingdom.”
“...?!”
At those words, Pereron’s eyes widened in shock.
“Nonsense! No matter how defeated the Spanian Kingdom was, they wouldn’t take such a reckless gamble.”
“When you stand to lose everything, there’s nothing you won’t do.”
He knew it was speculation.
But knowing what the future held made such a prediction possible.
*‘The Spanian Kingdom is originally swallowed by the Empire. If that future is meant to be... then this is entirely possible.’*
On the brink of death, wouldn't they do anything?
Demian hypothesized.
What if the same thing had happened in his past life?
*‘But I never heard anything about the border being breached and the Empire invading.’*
Then it must have been stopped by someone.
And after it was stopped.
*‘The Spanian Kingdom, having failed its mission, is completely absorbed by the Empire.’*
If so, then a year at most.
Within that time, the Spanian Kingdom would be completely destroyed.
And the Empire, starting with that, would begin invading the smaller kingdoms around it.
It was then that the Baroque Kingdom and the distant Artian Kingdom would notice the Empire’s strange movements, but…
*‘By then, it’s already too late.’*
When the Empire, having consolidated its surroundings, finally drew its sword, they were utterly helpless.
After just one year, the Baroque Kingdom had already lost 30% of its territory.
And after five years...
*‘...Damn it.’*
An unpleasant memory surfaced.
Demian cursed internally and looked at Pereron.
“We have to consider all possibilities. If we prepare and it turns out to be nothing, it’s just a bit of extra work. But if we’re caught unprepared...”
Demian looked at the officers in the room.
“We might never get up again.”
Though the words came from a young boy.
*Gulp.*
The officers of the border guard swallowed hard.
They were all captivated by Demian’s presence.
Pereron let out a small sigh.
“Let’s end the meeting here. And Captain Vincent, a moment.”
Pereron quickly left the meeting room.
Looking at Vincent, who followed him out, Pereron asked.
“Who is that boy?”
“Demian? He’s the vice-commander of our unit.”
“That young boy is a vice-commander? He looks to be about fifteen at most.”
“He’s exactly fourteen.”
“F-fourteen?!”
Pereron exclaimed in shock.
A fourteen-year-old had predicted this situation?
It was unbelievable even after hearing it.
“...Hoo, he’s quite a desirable soldier.”
“As I said, he’s the vice-commander of my unit. Please refrain from making any strange approaches.”
Vincent preemptively shut down the intent behind Pereron’s words.
Pereron let out a hearty laugh.
“Haha, I know. I’m just saying he’s very coveted. I heard his performance in the skirmish was incredible.”
At Pereron’s words, Vincent nodded with a grim expression.
Thanks to Demian swiftly killing six men, they were able to secure two prisoners.
If not for that...
“It was a tense situation where we could have suffered casualties. Demian’s contribution was immense.”
“A remarkable soldier indeed.”
Pereron praised Demian with genuine sincerity.
Thanks to him, he felt he had a clearer picture of how to proceed.
And at that same moment.
“Something feels off.”
“Things seem to be moving fast. Vice-commander, do you know anything?”
Jerka asked, looking at Demian.
Demian looked at the squad members and spoke.
“Tonight might be the turning point. Everyone needs to be prepared.”
“...Are you saying there could be another battle?”
“Are they going to attack us?”
The squad members asked Demian.
To which Demian replied.
“There’s a very high probability.”
Then he took off his boots and lay down in the barracks.
“Rest while you can. Once the fighting starts, you won’t be able to rest even if you want to.”
If they were to attack, it would be after sunset at the earliest.
*‘Given their numbers, they won’t move so easily in broad daylight.’*
Besides, from their perspective, they couldn't afford to retreat.
If Demian’s prediction was correct.
*‘Tonight...’*
They are coming.
Demian did his best to get some sleep.
* * *
A cold tension filled the air.
The border guard was on higher alert than ever before.
“...Do you really think they’ll come?”
A border guard on watch duty asked his senior partner.
The senior replied with an annoyed expression.
“I don’t know, damn it... What a pain in the ass this is.”
In the afternoon, as soon as the officers’ meeting ended, the border guard had to sweat bullets setting up all the obstacles they had.
The possibility of a sudden enemy attack had arisen.
Most of the guards moved with urgency, but the more seasoned soldiers had different thoughts.
*‘What attack, for fuck’s sake. They’ll probably just make a show of it and leave.’*
The intelligence from the prisoners suggested the enemy numbered over three hundred.
But.
*‘Shit, does that make sense? We’ve been watching them every day, how could three hundred of them gather here?’*
That would be an admission of their own incompetence.
“Some false information... Shit, at most it’s probably a hundred.”
Besides, they had the geographical advantage here.
The senior spoke to his junior, as if to reassure himself.
“Don’t be so scared. Honestly, are they crazy enough to attack? They value their own lives too.”
“But... I heard we’re on Level 1 alert, and we’ve requested support from Sectors 1 and 2, as well as the rear units.”
“...It’s just a big fuss over nothing.”
The senior was just as anxious, but he didn’t want to admit it.
He had been serving here for five years.
There had been dangerous situations from time to time, but never had they made such a commotion.
*‘It’ll just pass, like it always does.’*
He muttered it like a mantra, staring ahead.
But then.
“...Huh?”
Seeing something shimmering in the distance, the senior leaned forward.
In that instant.
*Thwack!*
“Sergeant Ma-Malk!”
The junior screamed at the sight of the arrow embedded in Malk’s forehead.
And quickly.
*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*
He frantically rang the emergency bell at the watch post.
“Enemy! The enemy has appeared!”
Sergeant Malk was already dead.
After ringing the bell, the junior flattened himself inside the watchtower, his body trembling.
The metallic smell of the blood flowing from Malk stung his nostrils.
“Ugh!”
A wave of nausea washed over him.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
The war cries of the enemy below made his head spin.
This situation didn't feel real.
*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*
“...They’re here.”
“Holy shit! It’s the enemy?”
“They really came?!”
The members of the Kaion Unit, who had been resting in their barracks, hastily put on their gear at the sound of the bell.
Demian tightened the laces of his boots and stood up.
He looked at his squad mates.
“Everyone, fight in the same pairs as before. And if you get surrounded, stick back-to-back and face the enemy. Don’t get stabbed in the back by fighting carelessly spread out.”
Despite the chaotic atmosphere, Demian spoke calmly.
Perhaps because of that, the squad members, who had been panicking just a moment ago, nodded with somewhat calmer expressions.
“Understood.”
“Yes, sir.”
“We’re support, so don’t think about pushing too far forward. If it looks bad, fall back or run. That’s how you’ll survive.”
Demian left his collapsible spear and grabbed a solid one from the border guard’s armory.
Its durability was far superior.
“Jerka, Terka. Engage the enemy, but never get carried away and chase them.”
“Yes.”
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
Unlike Terka’s polite reply, Jerka always had to add a little something extra.
Demian looked at Dianal.
He might be the most skilled among them, but.
“Dianal, do not hesitate. Remember that the moment you hesitate, Kyle could die.”
“...Understood.”
“Heh heh, don’t you worry. I’ll be sure to cover him.”
Kyle let out a low chuckle beside him.
After offering a word of encouragement to the remaining squad members, Demian immediately went outside.
Vincent was already out, fully prepared for battle.
Demian reported.
“Commander. The Kaion Unit is ready for combat.”
“I’ve requested reinforcements. The nearest unit from Sector 2 should arrive within a few hours.”
Which meant.
“If we can just hold out, victory is ours. So don’t overdo it trying to kill every last one of them.”
“Understood!”
“Yes, sir!”
With that, Vincent immediately left the guard post and looked down at the enemies surging up from below.
“Kill them all! If we don’t kill them, we die!”
“For the Kingdom!”
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
There was nothing more fearsome than men with nothing to lose.
Vincent saw the number of enemy soldiers flooding in.
*‘Just as expected.’*
But expecting it didn't mean they could handle the numbers.
The number of guards in Sector 3 was roughly two hundred.
Even with a geographical advantage, they were outnumbered by a factor of 1.5.
“Fire! Shoot your arrows to stop them from climbing!”
The soldiers with bows fired arrows at the enemy, but their poorly trained volleys were hardly a threat.
Despite dozens of arrows flying, only three or four enemies fell.
“We just have to get past this point! We’ll erase this place today and go home!”
The soldiers of the Spanian Kingdom charged toward the Sector 3 border guard base, shouting.
*CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!*
A fierce battle ensued.
At the forefront, those barricading the gate fought desperately to defend it.
But in that moment.
“Aaargh!”
Enemies who had scaled the walls began to run rampant.
“Lower the ropes! Secure this position!”
The men who had climbed the wall lowered the ropes they carried.
If others climbed up those ropes...
*‘W-we’ll be breached!’*
Pereron shouted loudly.
“Stop them over there! We have to stop them from climbing the ropes!”
Once one spot was breached, others would fall in quick succession.
If the main gate were to be opened now, they could all be annihilated.
At Pereron’s cry, the guards rushed toward the enemy, but.
“Where do you think you’re going!”
“You think you can stop us!”
The enemies blocking the way resisted fiercely.
As they struggled to break through, the ropes were already lowered to the ground.
“We’re going up!”
“Go! Get up there!”
The enemy began to climb the ropes up to the top of the base.
The base was on the verge of being breached.
But then.
*Fwoosh!*
Suddenly, a black shadow descended upon the enemy like a hawk.
*Stab!*
“Keuk!”
A soldier from the Spanian Kingdom collapsed to the ground from the sudden attack.
*Drip... Drip...*
Blood dripped onto the ground.
The soldier who had been holding his ground looked at the figure before him with a bewildered expression.
“Who are you?!”
*Fwoosh!*
But the figure didn't even answer, charging straight at him.
The man swung his sword at the approaching figure.
“...!?”
As if he knew exactly where the sword would swing, the figure dodged in advance.
Faced with such ghost-like movements, the man raised his sword again with a panicked expression.
*Slice!*
“Kugh!”
A small wound.
As the spear grazed his calf, creating a small cut, the man’s body flinched.
But in the next moment, the spear in the figure’s hand began to glow with a blue light.
*Thrust-thrust-thrust-thrust-thwack!*
“...”
With his body riddled with holes in an instant, the man looked at him with an expression of disbelief.
*‘What in the...’*
What just happened?
But he could not continue his thoughts.
*Thud.*
As the man collapsed in a pool of red blood, the spear wielder above him let out a short breath.
“Hoo...”
Demian looked at the enemy soldiers climbing the ropes tied to the base wall.
“Go back down.”
“Aaaaaaaargh!”
“Aaaargh!”
Demian cut the ropes with his spear and looked at the nearby border guards.
“If this place is breached, we all die. So.”
His eyes grew cold.
“Fight with everything you’ve got to hold this line. I’ll help.”
At his words, the border guards found themselves nodding unconsciously.