Chapter 39: Fortress Siege (1)

Chapter 39: Fortress Siege (1)

I had been dozing lightly when the sound of approaching footsteps jolted me awake. The door creaked open, and before I knew it, I was being whisked away in a cage once more. As I was transported, I realized I was inside a carriage again.

I didn’t mind traveling by carriage, but being transported continuously like this was getting tiresome. And thinking that I was being taken to the battlefield now made me feel melancholic. Oh, I didn’t want to die.

(Countless footsteps walking around... it seems like we’re on a march now. I don’t know how far ahead the fortress in question is, but I’ll just stay quiet until I’m told to come out.)

As we continued our march, the footsteps became sparser and eventually stopped. It seemed like we had arrived at our destination. I was also taken down from the carriage, and the cage was placed on the ground with the cloth removed.

The soldiers who saw me sitting restrained in the chair inside the cage were taken aback. It was not just because I was tightly bound, but my appearance was also shocking.

“Alright, come out.”

Orvo tapped the cage with his staff, and the lock clicked open. Not only that, but the shackles that restrained my hands and feet on the chair also came off with a clank. Following the command, my body moved on its own, trying to get out of the cage.

As I stood up, contrary to my expectations, I was able to stand naturally on my two legs. It must have been an instinctive response on my human side. And despite not moving for a long time, my body didn’t feel stiff. Yeah, I can fight.

“Gu...?” I muttered.

However, I swayed a little as I walked. It was because of my tail. The thick tail that extended from my waist was appropriately heavy, and its different center of gravity for a human made it difficult to maintain balance. I quickly adjusted and moved forward.

After figuring out the knack of walking in two or three steps, I stood firmly in front of Orvo. Due to Yaro’s tall stature, I ended up looking down at Orvo.

But in reality, I was the one below in terms of authority. I remained silent, waiting for Orvo’s command. The latter smirked and placed his hands on my shoulders before whispering in my ear to go as wild as I pleased.

“I won’t tell you what to do or how to do it, okay? Even if you charge in alone, you won’t lose. If you think you can do it, go ahead and capture the fortress on your own. But if it seems impossible, just come back once the sabotage is done,” said Orvo with a lax attitude.

...Pretty lenient, huh? Well, as long as it aligns with the mission, there shouldn’t be any issues. No one told me to fight until I died or not to retreat until the fortress was captured. I can just fight as I see fit and return quickly. With that thought, I felt relieved.

Whether Orvo was aware or not of the change in my mindset, he smiled, satisfied. He then ordered me to follow him and started walking. I simply obeyed without a word.

“Hello, Commander. Where should we launch the diversionary attack?” Orvo greeted as we entered the tent, where some people were already gathered.

“Oh, Lord Orvo.”

As Orvo led me, I was instructed to stay outside the tent, so I patiently waited and eavesdropped on the conversation inside.

According to their conversation, the main force was planning to attack the fortress from the south. The diversionary unit was supposed to flank the opposite side of the main force. It seemed that I should initiate the diversionary attack from the southeast, closer to the main force.

“Godogodo, giguga”

Even though I intended to mutter “Shall we go soon?”, my voice still sounded like a grating noise. I’ve just started practicing, so I’ll do my best to communicate at least the minimum.

Feeling a little down about my voice, I dashed towards the fortress. Lowering my body and running made it easier to maintain balance. I approached the fortress at a speed similar to when I was a scorpion.

Running alone across the grassland, I stood out quite a bit. As expected, I was quickly spotted. Despite being the only one in the southeast, the invading army wasted no time launching merciless attacks from the fortress’s defense weapons aimed at me. My mission was to draw the enemy’s attention, so it was actually convenient for them to focus on me.

Gaga, gaga, gaga!

The invading army forces that spotted me used smaller cylindrical weapons than those aimed at the main force of the coalition army. From these weapons, small metal fragments flew towards me at a considerable speed in a continuous barrage. So, that’s how they intended to use these weapons.

I quickly hardened my exoskeleton in one breath, protecting myself from the raining metal fragments. They seemed to have a certain amount of firepower, but not enough to cause significant pain through the exoskeleton. It was not even necessary to strengthen it with my fighting spirit. Ignoring the debris, I charged forward.

Perhaps realizing that the fortress weapons were ineffective against me, they increased the number of small cylindrical weapons from one to four, raining down a hail of metal fragments. However, even with the increased number, they couldn’t stop me. The small weapons were unable to even slow down my progress.

Refusing to give up, the enemy appeared to panic as they activated the same large cylindrical weapons that were used against the main force. The inside of the cylinder emitted a pale blue light, presumably indicating their intention to unleash the same explosive attack that was still troubling the main force.

“Gogu! Gogogi!” (Ga-gahaha! Too late to stop me now!)

However, their decision was already too late. I heightened my fighting spirit and strengthened my legs, then leapt forward with all my might. Passing beneath the pale blue light, I braced myself against the explosion as I stuck to the metallic outer wall.

The wall was almost vertical and slick, making it difficult for any human to climb without a ladder. But my hands and feet were encased in my exoskeleton. The tips of my claws were sharp enough to pierce the surface of the wall and latch on.

I moved my limbs quickly, scaling the wall with a scraping sound. The cylindrical weapons couldn’t aim straight down, whether they were the larger or smaller ones. However, the tower that was one level higher than the outer wall was a different story. Metal shrapnel flew at me again from both sides. The impact was stronger than the ones on the outer wall, and I had to reinforce my exoskeleton to endure the pain.

Nevertheless, it was difficult for them to hit me, as I moved swiftly. Even when a few shots connected, it was manageable with the reinforcement of my fighting spirit. They couldn’t stop my advance.

“■■■■■!”

“■■, ■■■■!”

“Gugoouu!?” (Whoa!)

As I finally grabbed onto the edge of the outer wall, two soldiers from the invading army who were on top of the wall lunged at me with spears. I grabbed one of them with one hand and threw him off the outer wall, while I stabbed the other one with my poisonous stinger through his armor.

The one I threw let out a pitiful scream as he fell, and the one I stabbed convulsed before collapsing. With no one left to obstruct me, I had made it to the top of the outer wall.Follow the latest novels at novelhall.com