58. Chapter 58
Justus, a Company Commander of an infantry unit of Highserk Army. After graduating from military school, he led a platoon on the Kanoa Front and in the First battle on the Myard Border, and was promoted to Company Commander.
But Justus’ combat history, which had gone well up to that point, faded around this time. In a continuous battle with Myard, then with Ferrius, Justus’ Company was almost always forced to fight at the front. He had never been in such a situation before, as everything turned out well until he became Company Commander.
Over the past year, the march was delayed because he had to deal with dead soldiers during the invasion of Myard, and his company was attacked by a cavalry unit in the battle against Ferrius.
The battle continued at Sarajevo Fortress, but the defense layer he was in charge of fell under the onslaught of the army of the Craist Kingdom. He retreated with his troops while surviving the 《Holy Slash》 of one of the “Three Heroes” by hiding in the trenches and behind ridges. He managed to stay alive, but lost half of his troops.
Then, an outbreak happened and he went to Dandurg castle. After his company was replenished by former Myard soldiers, he worked to reduce the monsters on the outer edge of Dandurg Castle, but since most of the soldiers worked alone to get rid of as many monsters as possible, he was isolated and left behind in this deadly place.
When the siege of Dandurg Castle began and the retreat was announced, Justus was ordered to fulfill his duty as a soldier, to serve himself to his homeland.
Speaking of responsibility, it was certainly a heavy one, but in the current situation, with the plan to rebuild the defensive line from the battle with Kanoa still in the works, he couldn’t resist the order he had been given. But since he had received the order, he realized that he was only a human resource that could be replaced even if he was dead.
What he had taken with him from that crisis was the position of Wartime Battalion Commander, which enabled him to command half of Myard’s people.
How valuable was the position of Temporary Battalion Commander in this battle? Even Justus wasn’t so happy about it.
Confidentiality was emphasized, and most of the Company Commanders and those above that rank were assembled at headquarters, if only for a short time before the change of shift.
Remaining in the ramparts were those who, like Justus, were chosen to be among the last to retreat. A consumable item that had a certain level of command ability and didn’t affect the survival of the Highserk Empire even if it was lost.
Justus, who also had control of the soldiers and was in close contact with the Myard soldiers and militia, had gained a certain level of trust of the people and was forced to take command of a retreating battle in which the Myard people themselves were treated as a sacrifice for the greater good. Kind of ironic, if one must say.
Not many people were willing to abandon, even for a short time, their comrades who had fought with them. But as a soldier, one had to do it when it was necessary. That was the way it should be.
“This is a joke, right?”
How happy he would be if it were a hallucination, the castle tower burned down by Dragon Breath was packed with the brains and limbs of the brigade. In a siege, the loss of the chain of command meant that defeat was inevitable.
The problem was that the enemy wasn’t of the human race. He had no choice but to break the siege with his company, because the enemies were monsters that didn’t know how to surrender.
Fortunately, or not, the Flame Emperor Dragon continued to advance, invading his homeland, ignoring Dandurg Castle, and half of the surrounding monsters followed behind.
The collapsed walls were flooded with monsters, and the siege got into an uneven situation. It was the last chance to run away.
“Relay the―― “
Upon issuing a command, Justus’ eyes fell on a group of people who continued to reinforce the collapsed walls. The group was a mix of militia and prisoners of war who could only be described as miscellaneous.
“What? Are you guys stupid?”
Justus couldn’t believe it. The half-destroyed wall needed a battalion-sized unit to support it. That was common sense. Considering the reserve, it would take twice that many.
And, the groups collided with the monsters. The group, which was about to be overrun by monsters and collapse at any moment, continued to hold out.
Seeing the scene, Justus wondered why they could fight at all in this situation. He saw no battalion commanders either.
While Justus was fascinated, the walls were once again engulfed in fire. Unlike the devastating fiery flames of the Flame Emperor, it was a blue flame. He heard talk of the blue flame appearing occasionally and thought that the purpose of such a story was to improve morale during the war.
And now the blue flame was in front of him, it was real. Justus searched for the source and found a soldier, a “Knight”, who freely manipulated the “Fire of Hell Gate”.
The monsters were driven back by the blue flame.
“《Demon Fire》, huh?”
Invited by the heat and blue flame, the monsters were struck by the fire and burned like a bug. In a siege where there was no safe retreat or support coming, this was nothing short of a suicide attempt.
Nevertheless, Justus thought that if they had the blue flame, they could survive the attack.
“Send a messenger to the guards of the ramparts in each direction!! Bring some soldiers from the garrison and protect the eastern wall!!”
Noticing this, it was as if he had found hope to break through the dire situation.
“While holding the eastern side, gather the reserve unit in the castle. Gather the remaining Platoon Commanders and those with higher ranks. Move now! Don’t waste a second if you don’t want to die!!”
At Justus’ command, the messengers dispersed.
Justus understood that this was an act of overstepping his authority. But the confusion didn’t abate. If no one moved, the group would remain like a wild crowd. If a general, higher than Justus in rank, survived, he would give away the command. And if he was to be punished, so be it. His only wish was to stay alive.
At the moment, he had been driven to the extent as if there was no tomorrow.
Strangely enough, Justus, who was judged by his superiors to be someone with a lack of courage, found himself smiling at this moment.
“Hah, why am I laughing? Especially in this situation…”
As if the blood, fire, and iron blessed Justus, the muddy world felt more alive than ever.
◆
Every time Fleck swung the large shield reinforced with 《Iron Wall》, bits of the flesh of some kind flew off. The orc that was about to be hit from the front was crushed with a shield bash, and the goblin’s heart was pierced by a sharp point of the shield. The bone was crushed in Fleck’s hand, and the feeling of crushing the organs was transmitted. Then, with his boots, he crushed the skeleton that had climbed into the wall.
Blunt weapons had excellent follow-up properties. They couldn’t lose their sharpness, they wouldn’t become blunt, only the fear of breaking in rare cases.
On the mission with his party, the vanguard was usually formed by Al, Fleck, and Lefty. Lefty was the scout of the party because of his wide field of vision and nimble movements.
Now, Lefty was out of the party with Leethia. And, Fleck had lost one eye in a battle with the Highserk soldier with the skill 《Strike》.
The reaction on one side was delayed by all means. A “Bicorn” with two twisted horns deftly trampled the corpse and charged from the side.
Fleck lowered his body and prepared for the shock.
The large shield and twisted horns rubbed against each other, making a shrill sound. The impact of the Bicorn’s body weakened the grip strength, the stance gave way, and the boots were scuffed.
“Nnnnnn, uuUUUUGGHH!!”
Had Fleck not lost one of his eyeballs, the Bicorn would have been slain by his great shield before it could jump at him. Unfortunately, there was no deciding factor that could be made when he got into this situation.
He could hold the shield with one hand to draw the short sword at his waist, but he wasn’t sure if he could hold the Bicorn. He would certainly be pushed out.
The snarling Bicorn tried to push Fleck down, but suddenly the monster relaxed its body.
A halberd extending from the side was digging off the front leg of the bicorn. Fleck pulled out the short sword on his waist, and thrust the sword tip through its lower jaw.
Saliva and blood were sprinkled in the air, and the bicorn collapsed on the ground. Fleck lifted his shield slightly, knocked it down on its head, and stabbed the sword once more.
At the time, a werewolf was approaching from the front, but an arrow pierced the temporal region and it collapsed from the knee. The familiar arrow belonged to Amy.
“Sorry and thanks.”
Fleck thanked Amy and the halberd-wielder.
Fleck, who was slightly free, followed the point where the halberd extended, and there was a Highserk soldier called Walm.
He was a strong enemy even in skirmishes in the forest, but his skill was different compared to that time. Now, he could use magic and had a skill called 《Demon Fire》.
Fleck never imagined that there would be a time for him to thank his former enemies again, including questions and answers at the gates. Life was really strange, he thought.
He didn’t get a reply from the “Knight”, as the man hooked the lizardmen’s arm with the halberd, which he still stretched, and helped the other comrades.
One of the man’s eyes was muddy. He should have lost half of his sight, just like Fleck. But it felt as if he has a wide field of view that no one would believe he had a handicap.
Fleck didn’t know if it was because of the difference in the number of deadly battles or the difference in talent.
But, one thing for sure, he was ashamed to use “one eye” as an excuse. Sure, he couldn’t do the same right now. Still, he believed if he could gather more experience, step by step he would surely catch up with the halberd-wielder.
There was no problem with the training partner. He could train as much as he wanted, after all in front of him was the sea of monsters.
Thus, Fleck raised his voice and welcomed the monster.
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Yey chapter!! Yoohooo
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