Ambush in the Fog
Ssssk.
With Ulgraak at their head, the Kar tribe warriors melted into the darkness with movements like living shadows. Pushing low through the underbrush, they advanced with the fierce, predatory eyes of hunters stalking their prey.
And then—
Halt.
Ulgraak, leading from the front, suddenly stopped. Thick fog swallowed the world, blurring even a single step ahead. He sharpened every sense, reading the surroundings with care.
Fortunately, there was no trace of another presence.
Ulgraak swiftly ordered his warriors into motion and seized the area.
Pabat!
At his command the warriors fanned out with practiced speed, taking positions across the surrounding ground.
From here we can watch every move they make.
The Empire dogs’ momentum might have shifted of late, but they could never follow into terrain this harsh. Not at this hour of the morning. In fog this dense, the mere act of moving would already strain them.
And…
Ssssk.
Ulgraak turned his gaze toward a point some distance away. There, Makcrowdon had likewise settled in with his own warriors. They were not within sight of each other, yet their coordination was seamless, as if they shared a single mind.
“…Hah.”
From this moment it was a contest of patience. They might grow weary, but they would keep their vigilance razor-sharp and wait for the Imperial army to stir.
And…
When those men finally moved and began climbing this hill—
If we strike from both sides… we can wipe them out in a single blow.
Ulgraak’s eyes sank into cold focus. He knew the truth. One victory here—just one—and the Imperial army would advance no farther. The Empire dogs understood that fact just as clearly.
In the end…
This battle would decide the fate of both sides.
Perhaps that was why—
“…”
A face flickered through Ulgraak’s mind: a boy with dark brown hair and a youthful face. The image of the one who, despite his appearance, walked about scattering an ominous aura rose with vivid clarity.
“Hoo.”
Ulgraak quietly steadied his breath and clenched his axe with crushing force. If he met that one this time—
I will take full payment for the wound on my shoulder… and for Moldur’s arm.
Late dawn. The fog swallowed the silence, and the battlefield froze under a weight of tension. Within it, the hunter who held his breath waited with eyes gleaming like a beast’s for the prey to step into the trap.
The chill air of dawn wrapped the Imperial camp as final preparations finished in the main force.
“Special units, huh? This war feels different from the usual…”
“So we just sit here and do nothing?”
The soldiers remaining with the main body muttered quietly as they watched the small number of troops ready to advance. Small, of course, was relative—each unit still fielded a full fifty men. Three such units were being deployed.
One soldier eyed the special forces ahead and murmured, “Still… Seran himself is going out. This fight must really matter.”
The words scattered on the wind. Arteon stood among them, face calm, hand tight around his spear.
Fifty men per unit, three units.
They had limited each group to fifty after studying the terrain. The hills simply were not wide enough for larger numbers to move together. Yet the true surprise lay elsewhere.
Ssssk.
Arteon glanced at Hadel, who was making ready to advance beside him. Until now Hadel had always directed from the rear. For him to lead the vanguard himself was something else entirely—nothing like the usual movement of the main force.
If Commander Hadel is moving… there must have been some deal with the overall commander.
What that deal might be, Arteon could not know, but the odds were high it tied into the commander’s usual foolishness. What he had seen here on the northeastern Fourth Defense Line was that the line had held this long only because of capable mid-level officers. When this fight ended, he would report as much to the corps commander.
“Is everyone ready?”
Hadel approached Arteon and Seran. Both men nodded. Hadel pulled his gloves on firmly and looked toward the fog-shrouded hill ahead. Thick brush and scattered boulders made the ground rugged and unforgiving.
“Then let’s move quickly,” Hadel said. “Taking position and forming up fast will be what matters.”
They had set out at first light, yet unease still clung to him. Seran nodded in answer. Arteon, however, spoke quietly while meeting Hadel’s eyes.
“Commander, I will take a different route.”
“…Is there another path?”
Arteon pointed to a side approach completely different from the established trail.
“I believe sending every force along the open path carries too much risk. If they are waiting for us there… it would be better to circle around another way and hit them from behind.”
“But the ground is far too rough. Moving will not be easy.”
“I will accept that.”
“…I will respect your judgment.”
Hadel nodded. Arteon turned his gaze beyond the hill. Through the thick fog the rugged terrain showed only faintly. He had already ranged widely across it and knew exactly how brutal the climb would be.
Yet—
…If it is the Kar tribe, the chance they have prepared is high.
Especially in terrain this harsh, the advantage lay with them. They might already hold the best ground and be waiting. The possibility was slim, but not zero.
Ssssk.
Arteon turned to his men. Several soldiers of exceptional stamina and mobility from the original Third Platoon had been added, forming Arteon’s special unit.
“There will be no proper path,” he told them. “Even climbing the hill will be hard. But remember this.”
The soldiers watched him with set faces.
“This fight may be different from those before… It could be the one that ends this war.”
That was why it would be more dangerous, more savage.
“They will have prepared just as thoroughly. But if we win here… we save the lives of many soldiers, and we gain the foothold to push north past this lake.”
And those who claimed that victory—
“We will carve a place in history and receive the rewards we have long been denied.”
Ssssk.
Arteon turned toward the hill.
“So do not hesitate as we advance. Cast mercy from the blades and spears that cut the enemy, and plant only iron will.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Understood!”
The men answered in strong voices. Arteon set off toward the hill; his unit followed in silence.
Slash!
As expected, there was no path. Dense brush and sharp thorns blocked the way. Arteon drew the short sword he had brought and cut through without pause.
Slash!
Each swing of the mana-charged blade parted the undergrowth like soft tofu. The soldiers behind him used their own short swords to clear the flanks and open the way.
“Watch your footing,” Arteon said. “There are many rocks and thick thorns.”
“Watch the ground!”
“Eyes on the ground!”
Only the quiet, clear voices of command carried. Arteon and his men advanced step by step, clearing brush as they went. The path was punishing, yet no one complained. Hardship like this was nothing. Simply fighting at Arteon’s side was glory enough.
The last battle… two full days have already passed.
Men like them would almost certainly have seized this ground by now… but predicting exactly where was impossible. They excelled at fluid tactics and sudden shifts. Only Arteon, who had faced the Kar tribe across a long previous life, could even begin to anticipate them.
And then—
Clench.
Arteon suddenly closed his fist and dropped low. The soldiers behind him mirrored the motion at once, holding their breath.
“…What is it, sir?”
“Quiet.”
Arteon poured mana into his senses and spread his perception wide. At the four-star realm he could cover far more ground than before. Faint traces of presence reached him from a distance.
And…
“…This number.”
Far more than he had expected.
I thought fifty or sixty would be their limit.
To find so many gathered in one place—
Are they operating only a single main force?
Thoughts raced. Predicting Kar movements in terrain this broken was harder still, and he could not yet gauge their full strength with precision. That they registered at all from this range was only because their numbers were large.
I need to get closer.
If he looked for the bright side, there was one: if this was their entire force…
We are roughly even.
His side had three units of fifty climbing the hill. Fighting in one place would be difficult, but they would not be outnumbered.
Arteon sheathed the short sword at his waist and spoke to his men.
“From here we only push the brush aside. The enemy is not far.”
“…!”
Several soldiers could not hide their surprise.
“…Understood. Everyone, put the short swords away. The brush is tough, but open the path as quietly as you can by breaking it.”
Grein turned and relayed the order. The men stowed their blades and tightened their gloves.
But then—
“Gyaaaaah!”
“…!”
A scream tore through the air from a direction completely different from the one Arteon had been watching.
“E-Enemy! Kar attack!”
Piiiiiiiiii!
A distant whistle shrilled, and battle erupted. Arteon’s pupils tightened. From the very place he had been monitoring—
“…They’re moving.”
So the enemy, too, had more than one unit.
Then how many men do they have…?
Arteon’s expression hardened. It was now certain they had staked everything on this fight. Moreover—
To start the battle this quickly…
Barely more than an hour had passed since they left camp, yet combat had already begun. One thing was clear: the enemy’s movements were a full step faster than he had anticipated.
“Everyone, move toward the sound!”
First they had to save their own. At Arteon’s command the soldiers’ eyes lit with the gleam of beasts. Battle was near; fighting spirit surged hot through their veins.
And the very moment Arteon and his unit began to move—
Ssssssssssssh!
A sudden whistle of air from the side. Arteon cycled mana in an instant and swung Iglis.
Clang!
A heavy impact rang out as a flying axe rebounded into the air. Arteon snapped his gaze toward the direction it had come from. A voice followed.
“I thought I sensed an unusual presence… so it was you after all.”
A Kar warrior whose face was a map of scars.
“…Makcrowdon.”
Arteon’s expression turned to stone. Had the man known he was here and come looking?
Makcrowdon looked him over, then grinned and rested the axe on his shoulder. His muscles seemed to coil even tighter, denser than before. He spoke again.
“Looks like you were about to head that way…”
Thud.
Makcrowdon leveled the axe at Arteon. The smile vanished; only killing intent remained.
“You stay right here and enjoy the show while your comrades die.”
With those words the Kar warriors at his side charged toward Arteon and his unit.