Chapter 56: To the Front Lines

Chapter 56: To the Front Lines

“Head, you mean the counterattack plan that the spiritualist talked about? That’s the one that’s been circulating as a rumor, right?”

“That’s probably it. It’s the one where they launch a simultaneous attack on all of the enemy forts. It’s unlikely to succeed though.”

As I sat inside the cage, I eavesdropped on the conversation between Tigar and Gora. Tigar was a rough-looking leader called “head,” and was the father of the young furu male who spoke to me before.

The other person, Gora, was a bald, muscular man with a fierce scar on his forehead. Among the demons here..... He was the tallest member of the former Lugall squad atonement soldiers, even taller than Alexander.

They were discussing the counterattack plan that the Imperial Army was preparing. As atonement soldiers, they held a special position that didn’t afford them much access to information. However, they occasionally heard rumors from soldiers who talked too much.

Among these rumors, the counterattack plan must have been frequently mentioned. And to my surprise, Tigar and Gora seemed to have more information than I expected.

The general outline of the plan was for the imperial forces to launch an attack on all the forts on the front line against the invading army at once. Personally, I thought it would be better to use their forces to systematically take down each fortress instead of spreading themselves thin. But apparently, there was a reason why that wouldn’t work.

“Why is that? Even if we have to fight in harsh conditions, would it be possible to win if they receive reinforcements from their rear while we are spread out?”

The reason behind the inability to capture the fortress was due to the invading army’s superior supply capacity. According to reports, they had a unique mechanism to swiftly transport personnel and supplies from their rear. This was the reason why, even if we attempted to attack any fortress, reinforcements would arrive before we could seize control of it. Although Tigar and the others were unaware of how the invaders were capable of achieving this feat, the information still seemed to be widely known.

From my past experience of attacking that fortress in the central front, I had an inkling of how the invading army managed to pull it off. It was all thanks to that metal carriage with wheels, which didn’t require horses and sped away from the gate. It was incredibly quick and could transport a variety of items. I still couldn’t fathom how it managed to infiltrate the fortress, but there must be a way...

“Do you even know how many fortresses there are? There are five of them. The imperial army may have a large number of soldiers, but it takes a lot of effort to capture just one fortress. How do they plan to divide their forces and attack five fortresses without any reinforcements?”

“Isn’t it rumored that the Empire is sending all of their rear troops?”

“Well, for anyone who didn’t participate in this war, he’s just a common soldier. If they can’t even prevent that baaaam-like object from blasting their soldiers to pieces, then they’re nothing but cannon fodder. No matter how many soldiers they bring, they won’t even be able to form a human meat shield.”

Tigar chuckled at Gora’s comment. He was right; if they couldn’t even defend against the metal fragments, they wouldn’t stand a chance in a battle against the invading army.

Without some secret strategy that Tigar was unaware of, the likelihood of the Empire failing in this large-scale counterattack was high.

We arrived at the front lines when the summer had ended and the weather had cooled down, listening to worrisome stories even before the battle began. The battlefield we arrived at, pulled by an ox and a horse, was filled with the strong scent of blood.

The smell of blood was so thick that even those without heightened senses, like myself and the demons, could smell it outside of the camp. I, who was good at maintaining a poker face, remained unfazed, but the demon members of the Lugall squad all had twisted expressions on their faces. Even the battle-hardened soldiers of them, who were accustomed to the smell of blood, had unpleasant expressions.

Our carriage came to a stop for a moment. The guards outside quickly completed the necessary procedures to enter the camp and then resumed movement towards the interior of the camp. The smell of blood grew stronger, and the moans of agony became audible. There was no mistake about it. There were many wounded in this camp.

Since there were only small iron bars on the back of the carriage, it was difficult to see the condition inside the camp. However, the imperial soldiers, who were usually full of confidence, were talking in a hushed voice, clearly uneasy. They seemed like poor-quality soldiers who shrank at the first sign of danger.

The captain of the escort soldiers and Orvo, who were in another carriage, were urged to go to the central tent in the camp. Concentrating intently, I strained to listen to their conversation, eventually gaining insights into the current situation within the camp.

“Yes, we’ll do our best,”

“I’ll support you with my spiritual art. And Linaldo and the others will be right behind you to protect you,” Sharl added.

“We’ll handle it, sis,”

“The archers will support you too!”

“The way that damn spiritualist put it, then we would probably coordinate with the Kadaha squad. We need to be in sync with them. Also...” Tigar continued, outlining the rest of the plan.

The Lugall squad went about planning the operation in a swift manner. They anticipated what it would be like inside the fortress and came up with several strategies for what to do once they entered.

However, there was no mention of me whatsoever. Tigar and the others didn’t know my abilities and didn’t seem to consider me a reliable ally. Plus, since I couldn’t use telepathy and couldn’t speak any proper language, I might just end up disrupting their coordination.

“Hey, dad. What about this guy?”

Leo, who had always expressed a keen interest in me, pointed in my direction. Tigar and the others looked conflicted before finally speaking up.

“That damn spiritualist said he’s strong, so he probably has some skills. But we can’t trust our backs to someone we don’t even know how to fight with or what kind of person he is.”

“Well then, why don’t we get to know him now?”

“That’s...”

Leo’s suggestion was reasonable, but Tigar and the others had always survived by not trusting strangers, making it difficult for them to accept me as a comrade. I understood their perspective and didn’t plan on saying anything.

Despite this, Leo attempted to persuade his parents, but they remained unresponsive. Even though they were no longer unnecessarily guarded, they still couldn’t bring themselves to trust me.

Late that night, when all the members of the Lugall squad had fallen asleep, I sensed someone approaching my cage quietly. I knew it was Leo, as he was the only one who would bother coming near me.

“Hey, you awake? Open your eyelids if you are,” Leo whispered in a low voice, careful not to wake his parents.

I wasn’t so cold as to ignore someone who wanted to interact with me, so I slowly opened my three eyelids.

When Leo saw the compound eyes underneath my eyelids, his eyes widened even further. I thought he might be scared, but he leaned in and stared directly into my eyes. With determination, he made up his mind: to help his comrades.

“The next battle will be tough, right? I really want to be there for everyone, but I’m not ready yet... That’s why I want you to help them in my place. Please! That’s my request!”

Leo pleaded desperately in a low voice, his serious expression unwavering as he gazed into my eyes. I couldn’t ignore such a sincere request, and I nodded in agreement. Leo then flashed a brilliant smile and whispered his thanks to me.