NOVEL NEXT Chapter 302
Should I call it luck or something else? The two nobles were greatly frightened by Jeongjae’s stern words and explained the facts almost as they were, without passing the blame onto each other. Jeongjae, who had been quietly listening to their explanations, let out a deep sigh and spoke.
“It’s my fault. This is just my fate. I thought, no matter what, if I told them to stay still, they would remain still. It wasn’t anything difficult or complicated… If things got tough while guarding, I thought they would just send a rescue request; I assumed it would play out that way. But just putting the two of them together led to this mess. I was just foolish. I was wrong, right?”
“No, we…”
“Be quiet. It’s not because you two don’t realize you’ve made a mistake that you’re feeling guilty.”
Jeongjae rubbed his temples, feeling as if his head was about to explode.
“I thought, you know, that the Baron was a bit hasty and that the Duke would keep him in check. And since the Baron at least fought in battle, I thought he might get a handle on things. But seeing everything go in the worst possible direction is quite a feeling. Just… no, I won’t say more. Anyway, if the 2nd Army has been pushed back like this, the 3rd Army won’t be able to hold this position either. They will retreat entirely. It’s a very dangerous maneuver.”
“If that’s the case, then we…”
“What do you expect? I can at least untie the ropes. But you’ll still be transported along with the army while being detained. I would like to grant you amnesty, but the crimes you both committed are too serious to be handled loosely by the hero’s standards.”
With a sharp voice, Jeongjae snapped his fingers and untied the ropes that bound the two. After cleaning up even the traces of the ink bottle he had magically shattered, Jeongjae stepped outside the tent and directed the soldiers.
“We can no longer hold this position. All troops, retreat southward!”
The reason was simple. The route that the 2nd Army had been guarding was small but not without significance. It was too close to the route the 3rd Army was advancing on, and if the enemy penetrated this path, there was a high possibility that the 3rd Army’s escape route would be cut off.
On one hand, it was joyous but also worrisome that news had come that Alex’s 1st Army was rampaging, having defeated Helmut and was almost at the gates of the Demon King’s Castle.
“The Eramenia army is advancing without a hitch, so if that happens, the center will collapse and the wings will stretch out, looking like they’ve lost both arms…”
Jeongjae muttered, not doubting that the Eramenia army was advancing without problems on the right flank. The crux of all these issues was that without Jeongjae, it would be very difficult to conquer the Demon King’s Castle.
The Eramenia army was strong. If they approached the Demon King’s Castle alone, it might be difficult to break it, but they could exert quite a strong pressure on it.
However, unfortunately, Alex’s 1st Army couldn’t be formed at such a scale or level. While Alex’s victory was a relief, if he got too caught up in his victory and went too far, Jeongjae could face another dilemma.
“Rather, if he could self-realize the situation and come help us… No, how can I ask him to realize something when I can’t communicate anything…”
He didn’t have enough magical power right now to use either short-range transmission magic or a messenger bird. The Demon King was a formidable opponent, and deploying a defensive line against her while sporadically using the ‘Van Fleet’ magic to suppress the enemy was a sweaty battle happening right here between the 3rd Army and the Demon King’s army.
In the midst of this, the two nobles who had shamefully lost troops and fled sat stupidly, causing Jeongjae’s previously resolved anger to rise again, making him feel nauseous.
“No, I must endure. We can still win. The situation is still in our favor.”
Jeongjae muttered. Around the same time, Alex Harker was leading the 1st Army, advancing until he could see the Demon King’s Castle from the west.
A knight beside Alex, seeing the outline of the castle clearly, shouted.
“Over there! We’ve finally made it this far!”
Alex lightly nodded and then removed his helmet, squinting. Duke Harker asked.
“I don’t see any other armies.”
“It seems we might have arrived first. It looks like there isn’t even any guarding force. If all goes well, we might be able to raid an empty house and achieve great results!”
“No, is the knight an idiot? The Demon King wouldn’t leave her castle unguarded.”
Alex sighed and shook his head. Just by calculating roughly, it was highly likely that around 100,000 troops were left to defend that castle. The problem was, the flags of the Empire’s army or the Eramenia army were nowhere to be seen.
No matter how hard Alex had pushed, the lack of an ongoing battle near the castle meant that this offensive operation was not going as smoothly as it should.
“Check the nearest cluster of black flags.”
Alex instructed. Following his command, a knight ran far to check the 500,000 troops under the Demon King’s command, fluttering the emperor’s black flag. Alex nodded.
“Then the Demon King has mobilized a large force to stop the 3rd Army. Right. If the 3rd Army is blocked, it’s understandable that other armies can’t move up. We came too early. It’s impossible to charge into the Demon King’s Castle right now.”
“What should we do then? Should we maintain our position and wait?”
Alex pondered.
“No, let’s go back.”
“Go back? After coming all this way?”
“It’s meaningless if we don’t all come together. I’m not suggesting to just turn around. We’re going to help the 3rd Army. The fact that that army is still stuck over there means they are in trouble. We need to support them. Let’s move!”
Alex’s decision had already resulted in a significant achievement of disrupting a troop strength of 200,000 and even killing Jean Helmut. His subordinates no longer doubted him, and the disgrace from his previous defeat no longer carried weight.
Following Alex’s orders, a large force of 50,000 turned south. At the same time, in the east, Margaret was drawing similar conclusions and moving her army.
“The eastern skirmishers have been bothering us continuously, and it’s difficult for our Eramenia army to conquer the Demon King’s Castle alone. Phineas, the 4th and 5th armies will combine their forces and return south. We will regroup in the center and launch a surprise attack on the rear of the main Demon King army that is trying to crush the 3rd Army. I will lead the cavalry ahead; the general will follow with the artillery.”
As important as the battle was, the direction of the war was flickering.
The Empire’s initial attack had gained results, and the battle that had started with the coalition’s advantage seemed to tip in favor of the Demon King’s army as the 2nd Army was crushed.
However, thanks to the quick judgements made by the commanders of the 1st Army and the Eramenia army, the situation gradually turned where the retreating Jeongjae’s forces became a solid anvil, while Alex and Margaret’s armies were closing in from the sides, coming as powerful hammers to strike.
Seeing Jeongjae’s retreat, the Demon King, who had been encouraged to pursue, noticed this situation and had to split the army in half.
“We have no choice. We can’t ignore the threat from the rear. 300,000 soldiers, follow me and keep pursuing the Hero’s troops. We must prevent them from joining the surviving 2 formations. The remaining 200,000 troops must defend against the enemies approaching from the rear… The command will be…”
Only then did the Demon King feel the painful reality of her shattered country’s fate and screamed, ripping at her hair.
“There’s nobody! How can there be no one? No, isn’t it strange to have any? With Margaret personally leading an army to invade, isn’t it abnormal that there’s no one left who can directly contend with her? Damn it!”
The Demon King reluctantly had to change her plans.
“100,000 troops will continue to pursue the retreating 3rd Army, but do not chase too quickly; keep a reasonable distance to prevent any potential counterattacks from the enemy. After all, they will need some time to regroup the survivors of the 2nd army and consolidate their legion. The remaining 400,000 will be directly commanded by me to clean up the bugs trying to strike at my back. Follow me!”
She harbored deep resentment against Margaret. Yet at this very moment, the opponent she most wanted to chase was Jeongjae, the enemy of her mother.
She desperately wanted to lead the chase herself, but she had to endure. If she pierced the tail now, there would be no revenge or anything. First, survival came first.
The Eramenia army formed ranks and spread out in the northeast of the main Demon King army. The green flag representing the Elf Kingdom fluttered majestically in the sky, and its leader, Margaret, quietly surveyed her enemies, wearing a green leaf crown.
Alex’s army also arrived at the battlefield on time, spreading their formation. Alex noticed Margaret was nearby and waved his red flag to signal that he would respond from the northwest. The Eramenia army also waved the laurel crown flag, agreeing on tactics to attack from their respective positions.
Alex placed over 800 cavalrymen, including himself, at the forefront and center, ready to charge into enemy territory. This enemy wasn’t Helmut, so they couldn’t afford to wait for any luck with even the slightest mistake or carelessness.
The enemy numbered 400,000, while their combined forces of the Eramenia and Alex’s army didn’t even reach 100,000.
The unit that could perhaps reach 100,000 was crazily retreating south, and the enemy expected them to secretly attempt a rear ambush; they were already preparing accordingly.
Margaret, too, felt a cold sweat run down her as she saw countless Demon King’s troops raising their black flags in a ready stance. With trembling hands, she drew her bow and commanded.
“All cavalry. Arm the arrows for volley.”
Alex commanded his Ironclad Knight Order in a cold voice.
“Raise the cavalry spears. Focus on disrupting the enemy formation and widening the gaps and holes between their lines.”
The red cross and the green laurel flags simultaneously rose. Accepting each other’s signal, the two commanders yelled in unison.
“Charge!”