CH 22

22. Chapter 22

After the battle in one of the tiger dens, Walm left the frontline and spent three weeks in the requisitioned church at the foot of the mountain until the wound on his shoulder healed. Even the radical Highserk Empire army wouldn’t harm the humans of the church.

The wound on the shoulder reached deep into the bone and the clavicle was broken. Walm had the surface and bones connected by recovery magic, but he had to rest for a while, and that was why he could live a life free of war for a while.

The Ferrius soldiers standing in the mine were cut off at the outer edge and slowly self-destructed.

The Ferrius soldiers could endure if only looking at the number of troops, but in addition to the endless battle, once the gate was shaken, they finally fell to the army of Highserk.

A messenger was sent and told the Ferrius soldiers that the Highserk army would kill all the soldiers and civilians inside if they didn’t surrender immediately. The Ferrius soldiers who gave in to the ultimatum went out from the mine one after another.

Everyone wasn’t thin, but they all had dark circles under their eyes and had a bad complexion. Some had their whole body quivering and others continued to talk to themselves endlessly like a mentally ill person.

There was no entertainment in the city, and Walm continued to watch prisoners of war, soldiers, and other passers-by until his wounds healed, but that was the end of the day.

“You look well”

It was Jose who greeted Walm who had finally returned to the squad.

“Recovery magic is amazing. The wounds that would take several months to heal could be healed in a week.”

Walm moved his shoulders to brag about the connected collarbones.

“Oh, welcome back. You’re finally back.”

The owner of the voice was Noor. Her armor was scratched and she looked more confident than before.

“It’s been hard since then. Some of the layers were brought to our control, and the squads were going in deeper, but Barito…”

Noor cut her words and turned her gaze to one of the shades of the tree. Walm caught it and turned his gaze, and there, was Barito, but the height of the splendid cockscomb hair was halved.

“Hahaha, what happened to the cockscomb? Did you change your hairstyle!!?”

Barito told me to protest.

“I didn’t change it. It was because of the enemy magic-user!!”

“The guy aimed at the Barito when he was running up the slope, but his swaying cockscomb probably distracted him and the fire lance he shot missed his body. So, yeah, the body was safe. But the hair got roasted….”

Perhaps Jose remembered the scene, he laughed at the end.

“Well, at least the cockscomb wasn’t just a burden. Anyway, everyone seems safe, but what happened to Commander Duwei?”

Willart was sitting a little further away, but Walm couldn’t see Squad Commander Duwei.

“He was urgently called by Commander Kozuru.”

“We’ve cleaned up here too, and are we finally invading the inner area?”

At first, the Highserk army was devoted to reducing the national power of Ferrius, but the enemy might have been exhausted more than expected. Perhaps the war would end early. Walm expected it.

There was optimistic air in the Liguria battalion as they had brought the mine to fall.

◆

“But, they ain’t fun at all.”

In the stalemate, a soldier belonging to the Sarria Battalion of Highserk army, muttered so. It was at the edge of the village where Ferrius soldiers and villagers resisted the occupation of the village. 

On the other hand, the corpses of Highserk soldiers were extremely small.

The prisoners of wars, who were beaten to the point where they couldn’t keep their faces, were occasionally stabbed in the flanks and forced to continue working without rest.

“Because decent soldiers were dead in the battle with Myard. The remaining good soldiers must be in the major cities and the border with the other country.”

Soldiers entered the Ferrius Kingdom, and the Sarria battalion experienced five battles, large and small, but it was a series of victories, and it was said that the death toll in the entire battalion didn’t reach 100.

Now the battalion was split into company units, systematically plundering the surrounding villages and shaving off Ferrius’ national power. Naturally, the order was accepted by the Sarria soldiers.

“Not bad, we can take as many as we want here. I couldn’t get anything or even a woman in Myard. Now, in Ferrius, it’s a free loot and woman to taste.”

The man said, stroking the surface of the plundered ring. Since the soldiers flooded into Ferrius, the food diet of Sarria soldiers had become better, and many soldiers were now wearing luxury goods, which were unsuited for them.

“By the way, the guys who couldn’t hold their urges in Myard were whipped up. They’re really stupid guys.”

The soldier said so with a nasty smile.

“But I wonder if the women in here are eating good food, I mean, they are all comfortable to hold.”

In Myard and Highserk, there were many thin women, even the skin and hair were rough. The women that the soldiers got at Ferrius were way better than them.

“Right. It makes you want to do more. Too bad, if you do too much, it’ll hurt you instead.”

The man rubbed his pubic area when he proclaimed. Then his friend cursed him all at once.

“Yours is too weak. Look at mine.”

“Huh? Where? It’s too small.”

“Put that dirty thing back in, now.”

Said a soldier who was a little off of the conversation.

“It’s about time we move on to the next village, because we’ve stolen all we can.”

“I was wondering what would happen when Kanoa was destroyed, but a winning battle was sure great. I’m glad I joined the Highserk army.”

The soldier was taken prisoner of the Highserk Empire during the Kanoa campaign, but was released after four months of manual labor without being killed and joined the Highserk army.

The soldiers around him have similar circumstances. The soldiers, who knew only the losing battle, were intoxicated with the victorious liquor for the first time.

The soldier continued to chat, but was forcibly silenced. When a dazzling flash ran, a big explosion occurred in a corner of the village.

The dust cleared up in the collapsed lookout and the storage shed where the soldiers were staying.

“What is it? What is that light!?”

“The turret and the Tarus’s squad have blown away.”

No matter how relaxed they were, the soldiers fighting on the front line responded quickly. Wore reasonably high-defense armor and explored the true nature of the explosion.

“It’s an attack!! There are magic users who use large-scale magic.”

A voice informing the situation echoed from a corner of the village.

“Tch, they’re already in the village――”

The soldiers who were chatting while doing their job also caught the enemy’s shadow.

“Did a decent soldier remain?”

From the hazy shadows, the soldiers realized that the enemy’s equipment was of good quality. Wearing armor from the feet to head, they felt like a well-trained regular soldier, not a bunch of crude militias that were called by the country in an emergency.

“Watch out for friendly fire.”

“What are these guys? They look different from the soldiers up until now?”

The soldiers who entered the battle earlier had already sunk to the ground. Although it was the first move, it was an unusual situation for the Highserk soldiers, who had many experienced soldiers.

“Damn, Tarkin’s squad was eaten.”

“These guys――ain’t Ferius soldiers, but Craist soldiers.”

“What’s going on? It’s too one-sided even if they’re from Craist.”

Craist was one of the mid-sized countries far away from Highserk. Highserk soldiers never faced Craist soldiers in the border battle, so they were unknown opponents, who might have no battle experience. But the Highserk soldiers kept spouting curses while being buried one after another.

“Don’t joke with me. It’s the Order of Rehazen of Craist. They’ve joined hands.”

There were two armies in Craist. An army consisted of people who were half-farmers and half-soldiers. And the knights who have been in military service for generations. Even now, the existence of what was called a knight still existed around Highserk, but the Knights of Craist Kingdom were by far the most powerful and feared by neighboring countries.

“Even though I’ve defeated one knight, more than 10 people have been killed.”

A slashing soldier was chopped his upper body with a shield, and another soldier was slashed with a war hammer.

“The physical ability and the amount of mana are too different. Besides, I’m afraid they have skills.”

When it came to the Knights, no matter how strong Highserk soldiers were, if they were to fight head-on with the same number, the soldiers would be inferior. Moreover, in addition to the surprise attack, the formation and the chain of command were disrupted by a series of large-scale magic.

“Abandon the village. Give up except for the luggage you can carry.”

The veteran Platoon Commander decided to retreat at his own discretion. He wasn’t instructed by the company commander, and he decided that they had been defeated after seeing the first strike.

“Damn it, even though I’ve collected it with trouble.”

“It’s better than dying. It’s better to have Jaff Cavalry Battalion or Liguria Battalion to take on them.”

The two units mentioned were the ones with the best combat power in the Highserk army. In the battle against Myard, two units defeated Winston Myard and decided on the victory.

The platoon, with its direction, flooded into a corner of the siege to break the siege. The number of knights wasn’t large, and except for the knights, they weren’t so different from the regular soldiers of Ferrius.

The Highserk soldier, who stabbed two Craist soldiers with a spear, was convinced that they could escape the siege. 

There, a man blocked them.

“Resistance is useless. Surrender now.”

“Move from there, brat”

The opponent was a soldier with black hair and black eyes that still had its vigor. He felt like someone who had never gone to any battle, and the armor with flashy decorations felt odd. With the threats, the soldier thrust his spear at the enemy soldier’s throat.

“Wait, that guy is―― “

A fellow Highserk soldier who saw the mana that increased to the point it could be seen by eyes, tried to stop the man. 

Light shone from the sword that was swung down.

“Wha, is this light!!”

When the soldier’s field of vision was shrouded in light, he was swallowed by the explosion, and his consciousness was momentarily cut, but it never returned.

In the Sarria battalion, three companies that had been separated to secure provisions were annihilated, and 700 soldiers didn’t return to the meeting point. It was great damage to Highserk Army.