Chapter 67
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: The Final Test
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“Ugh!”
*Thud.*
I feel like I'm going to die.
My whole body felt like it was breaking, and just getting up made my legs tremble.
“Hey… you okay?”
“I can't move my arm.”
Holding a shield all day made even my arm feel shaky. But…
“Heheheheheheheh.”
“What's with this bastard? Why are you laughing? Heheheh.”
Seeing his comrade laugh along, the one who laughed first asked.
“Then why the hell are you laughing?”
“I don't know, I just started laughing too.”
“Kekek, funny, a guy who's gonna die in a few days is laughing his ass off.”
This training was already nearing its end.
Just how much had they trained, to the point of death?
An hour felt like a day.
They spent every day like that.
“Hey, how long have you been here?”
“About… a year, I think?”
At the man's answer, the questioner let out a small laugh.
“Heheh, damn. You've survived for a disgustingly long time.”
“Same goes for you. Hasn't it been about a year?”
“I got here before you.”
Then, the man glanced over at Demian.
Even while they were resting, he always seemed to be planning some new tactic.
The man watching Demian spoke in a low voice.
“I've never seen such a vicious bastard in my entire life.”
“…Me neither.”
He'd rarely ever thought of a person as frightening.
He'd only ever cowered, thinking people were dirty because of their rank and power.
But that guy was different.
Because when he looked into the man's murderous eyes, he felt genuinely afraid.
But…
“But… I don't think I've ever worked this hard at anything before either.”
“…That's true.”
The soldiers who came here always looked at them like they were insects.
Because everyone knew that most of them would be dead in a few days.
But Demian was a little different.
In a way, he was the most vicious and ill-tempered soldier to have come here.
Yet, while calling them trash, he was teaching them how to survive and showing them a path forward, no matter what.
It felt like if they really did as he said, they might actually be able to get out of this place alive.
The man looking at Demian said.
“To think I'd feel this way because of a guy who looks like he's only lived half as long as me.”
A bitter smile crossed the man's lips.
The man next to him nodded in agreement.
And just then.
“You pieces of trash! If you've rested enough, get your asses out here now!”
“Y-Yes, sir! Captain!”
“Understood!”
As if by reflex, the men shot up at Demian's words and began to gather.
But unlike the initial reign of terror, there was now a bit of ease and… a goal.
The goal of getting out of this place alive.
Soon, looking at all the unit members gathered on the training ground, Demian spoke.
“Tomorrow's the day.”
Through discussions with the regular army stationed on the outskirts, they had decided to launch the attack three days before the treaty ended.
This was to give the regular army enough time to move in and seize the base in case they failed.
Demian continued.
“Tomorrow, we will drive the Iren Kingdom's soldiers out of the gold mine base and take it for ourselves.”
If they failed to take the base, they would all die there.
Demian didn't bother saying that.
Because they would definitely win.
“Therefore, we will now conduct the final test. I will attack you as you advance, and you will maintain your formation and press forward until the end.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Mark my words. If you fail this test, then tomorrow… you will all die, just as fate has decreed.”
Demian's eyes glinted sharply.
They all gulped and stared at Demian.
“Any questions?”
“None, sir!”
Everyone just wore a grim expression. Demian nodded in response.
“Charge formation.”
*Dududududududu!*
The moment Demian gave the order, they began to move swiftly.
They had been repeating this same drill for over twenty days.
From Squad 1 to Squad 7, there were about one hundred and fifty men in total.
The bodies of those who had been nursing minor injuries had also fully recovered.
As a result, their existing combat strength had increased, albeit slightly.
Demian watched them skillfully form a rectangular charge formation, the corner of his mouth twitching.
‘This should be…’
It's a close call, but it's good enough to pass.
Demian looked at the long poles stacked beside him.
Grabbing one of the poles from the large pile, Demian immediately threw it at them.
*Swiiiiiiiiish!*
The pole shot out in a straight line and struck the man at the front.
*Kwang!*
The man at the front flinched at the incredibly loud crash, but.
*Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.*
After only a moment's hesitation, they began to advance again.
Their steps were quite synchronized, and their speed was considerable.
“Not bad.”
Demian's eyes flashed as he grabbed another pole.
Now, the real test begins.
*Swhoooosh! Kwang!*
*Swhooooooosh! Kwang!*
*Kwang! Kwang! Kwang! Kwang! Kwang!*
Demian increased the speed at which he threw the poles.
The men's bodies jolted and loud crashes erupted as the poles flew out relentlessly.
The sound pounded against their eardrums.
The sound of their comrades' breathing, packed tightly together.
Although the tension of the final test was draining their stamina.
“Advance!”
*Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!*
They stomped their feet even harder and charged forward.
And when they had finally reached a point right in front of Demian.
“…This is the last one.”
Demian gripped the last remaining pole in his hand. And…
*Woooooong!*
Demian drew mana from his Mana Hall.
Demian focused his mana into the pole and looked at the man in front of him.
He was so close he could clearly see the look in the front man's eyes.
Seeing the man's expression, Demian threw the pole with all his might.
*Swhoooooooooosh!*
The pole left Demian's hand and shot forward with a speed unlike any before.
*Kwaaaaaang!*
The impact was powerful enough to crumple the shield.
The man who took the hit felt a shock so intense that he momentarily lost consciousness.
And just as the man holding the crumpled shield was thrown backward.
*Thud!*
The comrades behind him reached out and supported his back.
“Snap out of it!”
“Hey!”
At his comrades' shouts, the man who had lost consciousness snapped his eyes open.
He had lost consciousness as if he had briefly fallen asleep, but.
“Huu… huu… huu…!”
The shock remaining in his body was very real.
He gasped for breath and began to advance again.
At that, Demian straightened his back and said to them.
“You pass.”
Demian turned and looked toward the mess hall.
“Bring out all the meat from the storeroom. For the rest of the day, rest well and eat your fill!”
Tomorrow is the decisive battle.
Hearing the unit members' responses, Demian walked toward the barracks.
* * *
*Whoooooosh!*
The wind seemed to be blowing exceptionally hard today.
An Iren Kingdom soldier guarding the gold mine base spoke amidst the chilly, gusting wind.
“The wind is especially strong today, isn't it?”
“Yeah. On a day like today, an arrow would probably get blown off course.”
After all, it was difficult to shoot arrows on such a windy day.
The Iren Kingdom soldiers stared out at the empty front.
“But have those Baroque Kingdom bastards really given up? We haven't seen a trace of them for weeks.”
“…Who knows.”
Only three days remained until the treaty.
Normally, this would be the time they'd send in all the criminals to die before the regular army moved in.
It was the same pattern they'd always followed, but…
“Still, it's a bit unsettling that there hasn't been an attack yet.”
But in the end, they were just a ragtag army of criminals.
No matter how much they struggled, it was impossible for them to break through unless the Baroque Kingdom's regular army came.
The Iren Kingdom soldiers continued their conversation with relaxed expressions.
But in that moment.
“…Huh?”
A large group suddenly came into view in the distance.
It was the Baroque Kingdom's army.
“They're here!”
“Is it the regular army?”
He checked, just in case.
But it wasn't the regular army.
At that, a soldier quickly rang the bell and shouted.
“It's the Baroque Kingdom's army! The Baroque Kingdom bastards have appeared!”
Hearing the shout, the waiting Iren Kingdom commander, Godwin, quickly stepped forward and looked down the hill.
“…So they've finally shown up.”
The good thing was that it wasn't the regular army.
But after these guys died, the regular army would appear again.
‘If I'm going down, I'm taking as many of them with me as I can.’
Godwin shouted.
“Archers, to your positions!”
The gold mine base was structured like a shelter carved into a hill, providing cover.
Because of this, there were no real castle walls, so the key was to reduce their numbers as much as possible before they got close.
At Godwin's shout, most of the soldiers on duty raised their bows and prepared to attack.
Archery was essential for defending the base here.
“Annihilate them before they get close! Wait for my signal!”
Godwin shouted as he watched the approaching Baroque Kingdom soldiers.
“…What is that?”
The men gradually came into full view.
But Godwin's eyes wavered at their unusual appearance.
“Huh?”
Normally, these guys were clad in nothing but shabby, tattered armor.
This time, however, it was different.
They were holding proper armor and shields, though it was unclear where they'd gotten them.
“Charge formation!”
“…?!”
At someone's shout, they used their shields to form a rectangular wall.
Godwin's expression contorted.
“A formation?”
Those criminals had formed a proper military formation?
But for a hastily assembled formation, the rectangular shape looked quite convincing.
They had covered themselves so tightly with their shields that there was no room for an arrow to slip through.
Godwin bit his lip.
‘It must just be for show.’
Formation tactics might look simple, but they required an incredible amount of coordination with one's comrades.
It was impossible to execute them properly with only a day or two of training.
No matter how much they had trained, it couldn't have been for more than a month.
‘If we press them, we'll surely find a weakness.’
Godwin's gaze turned cold.
Soon, Godwin drew his sword and shouted.
“Fire!”
*Fwwwiiip!*
At Godwin's shout, hundreds of arrows flew toward the advancing unit members.
And…
*Gulp.*
The advancing unit members gulped as they saw the hundreds of arrows covering the sky.
For a moment, their bodies stiffened, and their legs felt like they were about to stop.
But just then.
“Nothing to be afraid of! No matter how many of those arrows there are, they're not as strong as a single pole I threw! Trust in yourselves!”
At the shout from Demian at the very front, the unit members gripped their shields tightly.
And the moment the arrows fell.
*Ting-ting-ting-ting! Thunk!*
It made a racket like a sudden downpour. But unlike the sound, it wasn't very threatening.
“…What was that?”
“What the hell was that? Did somethin' pass by?”
“Hey, I didn't feel a thing! Uwahahahahahahaha!”
Someone laughed loudly.
Because even as the terrifying arrows rained down, they barely felt anything.
In that moment, the unit members' confidence soared.
They had just confirmed for themselves that the training they had practiced to death was the real deal.
At that, Demian said.
“Now, it's their turn to feel fear.”