Chapter 299
Chapter 299
Iron Emperor — Chapter 299
When Go Jin-cheon saw the crystal orb sent by the wizard showing Palaka Fortress collapsing, he realized part of his plan had gone awry.
His concept of siege warfare and the Public Marquis's concept were fundamentally different.
Go Jin-cheon's siege warfare meant achieving maximum effect with minimum sacrifice. But the Public Marquis's siege warfare was the outcome itself.
"Damn it."
Go Jin-cheon's face only hardened further.
Thud-thud-thud, thud-thud-thud!
The horses laden with heavy barding could not help but be strained. Even Gangsoe, who boasted steel-like stamina belying his age, was running while blowing out white plumes of breath.
When Go Jin-cheon tugged his right hand, an empty horse without a rider came alongside. As the ridden and unridden horses ran side by side, Go Jin-cheon's body shifted sideways.
Go Jin-cheon shifted fluidly onto the horse running beside him, then loosened Gangsoe's reins.
Almost simultaneously, those riding horses just like Go Jin-cheon switched to empty horses while galloping.
And they continued their charge.
"Uru! Signal arrow!"
When Go Jin-cheon shouted, Eulji Uru released the reins, simultaneously grabbed the bow fixed to his saddle, and pulled a whistling arrow from his waist. Then he drew the string toward the sky and released.
Piiii-yoooooo!
"Shit! What the hell are they doing!"
When no answer came, Uru cursed gruffly. That was when it happened.
Piiii-yoooooo!
"They've come!"
Piiii-yoo!
Two whistling arrows with slightly different sounds rang out almost simultaneously.
As they cleared the hill, a force including a group of cavalry could be seen far to the right. And slightly ahead of them, infantry were running in formation.
"Kairos!"
When Go Jin-cheon called Kairos, he, who had been riding a wagon, flew up into the air, raised his crystal orb, and attempted communication magic.
"Issue the command as stated!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Kairos answered while flying through the air.
"Marquess Gaun of the Haian Kingdom and Duke Ken of the Marlon Kingdom are to strike the enemy's remaining main camp."
"Understood."
"We shall break directly into Pharus Castle!"
Kairos's crystal orb glowed brightly as it carried out Go Jin-cheon's orders.
* * *
A Holy Empire soldier who had been listening to distant screams and clashing metal spoke to his comrade with a horrified face.
"Looks like they're still fighting. They deployed after noon yesterday..."
"Yeah. I figure it's divine help that I got hurt in the last battle and was left out this time."
"But what's that sound?"
"Huh?"
Completely different sounds reached the ears of the two chatting soldiers. And vibrations.
"C-could it be?"
"B-but it's more than one direction!"
Three groups began entering the vision of the soldiers who had sprung up in shock. No matter how favorably you looked, they seemed utterly unrelated to friendly forces.
"Th-that's!"
"We have to report it!"
"Madness, even if we report it we can't stop that!"
The allied forces were charging straight toward the panicking sentries.
* * *
"The Haian Kingdom army takes the left flank! Once the cavalry breaks through the camp, the infantry will rush in. Understood!"
"Understood!"
Marquess Gaun issued operational orders alternately to the knight order and the infantry. Then he exchanged signals with the Marlon Kingdom army and mounted his horse.
"You must be tired and weary, but you have to strike now. The enemy is nothing but shells, most of them wounded. And on top of that, they're just scrawny, half-starved things. Nothing to worry about!"
"Understood!"
"We strike the main camp. Advance!"
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!
The drumbeats mixed with hoofbeats as they spread outward.
As soon as they rounded the ridge, the Marlon Kingdom army was charging in right beside them.
A total force of thirty thousand soldiers bore down upon the Holy Empire's main camp.
* * *
Pharus Castle, built atop a slightly elevated hill.
The Gauri cavalry was arriving at the previous day's gruesome site.
"We aren't too late, are we?"
Eulji Uru spoke anxiously.
Everything densely filling the earth was corpses. The horrors of a battlefield without a single twitching soldier greeted Go Jin-cheon.
And beyond that... the fortress walls illuminated by the morning sun were painted entirely red. As if they had always been that way.
"Do you hear it?"
One corner of Go Jin-cheon's mouth lifted slightly.
"I hear it."
Yeon Hwi-garam smiled brightly.
"I definitely heard it!"
Uru gripped his bow tightly and nodded his head.
Shring.
The Hwandudaedo was drawn from Go Jin-cheon's waist. It soon pointed to the sky, then lowered toward Pharus Castle.
"Cut down everything that gets in the way. Prioritize our soldiers' safety over prisoners."
Go Jin-cheon's brief order reached the cavalry and infantry as they caught their breath. With countless corpses making wagon movement difficult, all the soldiers dismounted.
"The cavalry breaks in first! Infantry advance to the fortress at double time while maintaining formation!"
"Yes!"
"March!"
Hee-hee-hee-hee-hiiiing!
Gangsoe's cry announced Gauri's arrival.
* * *
Crunch!
"Grraaagh!"
An axe whose blade had turned saw-like split the enemy before it. Even though it had struck the neck, the man rolled around screaming.
But a spear with a blunted tip finally put him out of his misery. Even then, he had to be stabbed three or four more times before he died.
"Huff, huff, huff!"
The defensive formation led by Hailon was still holding firm, though exhaustion worse than death weighed on every face and body.
"M-monsters."
One gaunt Holy Empire soldier sat down where he stood, not even thinking of approaching.
'Damn it, that's what I want to say. You devils!'
Hailon couldn't bring himself to say it aloud and steadied his breathing while glaring forward. Their surroundings were already filled with close to several thousand corpses.
From when they had formed the defensive formation at dawn, just as expected, the Holy Empire soldiers had simply pushed in blindly.
Back then, he had only thought they were consumed by madness, but looking now, that wasn't it either.
Looking closely at the Holy Empire soldiers' faces, their cheekbones were all jutting out prominently.
They were nothing but the weak, pushed powerlessly between starvation and death. Their desperate, dying strength had simply transformed into frenzy.
As a result, the defensive formation remained intact until the sun began to rise. Even so, this was only a temporary advantage gained from favorable terrain.
There was no knowing when the enemy might hurl fire or seize stone buildings to loose arrows.
"Th-they've come!"
"Huh?"
A joyful smile spread on the lips of the soldier standing beside Hailon.
"Snap out of it!"
Seeing the soldier's dazed, unfocused eyes, Hailon struck his side and barked at him. But it wasn't just that soldier.
"I-it's real!"
"They've come!"
As everything around became noisy, Hailon, thinking he might be the strange one, touched his ear.
"Huh, well now..."
One ear had been torn off at some point without his knowing. Scabs had formed and he hadn't heard well.
He dug at the other ear. Dried, dark-red earwax crumbled away. And then he heard.
'Exterminate the Holy Empire's dogs!'
'Find our allies! They must be alive!'
'Hailon, you son of a bitch, if you're alive say you're alive, and if you're dead get up quick, ask permission, then die!'
It sounded like buzzing, but it was a voice he could clearly hear.
While the soldiers on this side were cheering, despair spread across the faces of the opposing Holy Empire soldiers.
"We're... finished!"
Clang.
Hailon raised both hands in delight.
"I report proudly to Your Majesty, the Supreme One of All Heavens! Your servant Hailon has completed the mission you commanded to the end!"
"Waaaaahhh!"
Cheers of survival shook Pharus Castle from the central clearing.
* * *
Waaaaahhh!
"Shit! Hailon, that bastard was alive after all!"
The group didn't fail to recognize Hailon's voice coming from far away.
But to reach them, there was a mountain to cross. A silver wall lined up right before their eyes.
"Gauri... is it?"
Public Marquis, drenched in blood, stepped forward and muttered.
The grating voice from his throat made Go Jin-cheon frown, and the sneering smile on his face left no room for mercy.
"Purification with the blood of heathens, heh-heh-heh."
"To martyrdom!"
As befitted Holy Knights who followed only the Public Marquis, they showed blind devotion regardless of his condition.
"Hmm."
The Gauri soldiers who had surged in behind the Black Armored Ghost Cavalry were already pairing up and sweeping through the fortress, engaging in combat. Screams and the sound of clashing swords already filled the interior.
Pfrrrrrt!
Gangsoe blew out his breath and stomped as if about to trample at any moment.
"Black Armored Ghost Cavalry."
"Give us your command."
When Go Jin-cheon called the Black Armored Ghost Cavalry, Hwi-garam bowed his head. Go Jin-cheon then slowly dismounted from Gangsoe and gave a single command.
"Dismount."
Thud.
Go Jin-cheon's feet touched the ground. Then Hwi-garam's command rang out loudly.
"All dismount."
"Yes!"
At the order, everyone jumped down to the ground in unison.
The long line of silver armor.
But that armor was already stained red with blood.
Facing it across from them stood black armor.
That armor absorbed even blood into darkness. Like primordial darkness.
Shring. Thock.
Go Jin-cheon's Hwandudaedo was drawn and settled on his shoulder.
Go Jin-cheon clearly knew the Public Marquis sneering before him well. The magic footage secretly taken by the wizard when Palaka Fortress fell had also captured Geolmurang's final moments.