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Volume 9, Chapter 224: The Military Boots that Don’t Stop

「What a terrible thing. Is it a sorcerer from the Bolvath dynasty or an elf curse heard in folklore?」

Richard hid his old bones in a gray armor and frowned upon hearing his adjutant Neymar’s words. His eyes distorted as he gazed at the battlefield.

The point of their sight was, as Neymar said, terrible. There were soldiers who had their bodies twisted in an impossible manner, and although the Heraldic soldiers were only amateurs, the forefront looked like it belonged to them. Richard saw that the advance of the left and right wings got delayed, but it unexpectedly approached the central part.

Both that delay and chaos were due to that great magic. It was something out of the ordinary, such as causing a large whirlwind and a muddy stream onto the battlefield. Now that Richard saw this scene, it was no wonder that many of his soldiers would perish immediately.

After interacting with Lugis, Richard knew there were some humans who dealt with magic in the Heraldic religion. So, although he expected the devil would mislead his soldiers to some extent, this was more than he anticipated.

“I don’t remember hearing anyone who uses magic that shakes the battlefield on such a large scale. Or is it just me? Am I not aware that humans from the Bolvath dynasty are roaming freely?” With that imagination in mind, Richard laughed as he distorted his lips.

“What a silly story. If that were possible, the Gharast Kingdom would’ve already been destroyed by the Bolvath dynasty. Magic alone cannot surpass the pure national power and the number of soldiers, but the Bolvath dynasty is said to be an exception among exceptions.”

“After all, that great magic depends on the enormous ability of the individual. If someone from that dynasty is alive it will be two people at most, or maybe only one.” Richard put some effort on his dry toes.

「Don’t talk about the soldiers too much, Neymar. The abomination of a soldier is an abomination of a general…Yeah, it’s about time. Let the soldiers in the center retreat in order. It may sound ungodly, but don’t let your hips turn and run away as much as possible.」

Richard narrowed his eyes while trying to decipher that great magic. It may be invoked once or twice at best, or it may not be released anymore.

It didn’t matter how threatening it could be, because, after all, it was handled by humans. Then, it was not too scary. If you attacked while changing soldiers, even the bitten vanguard would be able to counterattack.

“But alas. It is too much to ask recruits to operate to that extent. Replacing some soldiers and continuing to fight while retreating is a dream-like operation for recruits. Therefore, there are two measures that we can take, such as whether to move forward or backward.”

“If I move the small but crumbled soldiers forward, we will be swallowed by the enemy in earnest. It is not uncommon for the entire army to collapse from some unraveling.”

“If so, then it is much better to let them «destroy» us in a way that will make them believe in their victory, a false victory so to speak.”

「But, who knew it would turn out like this. Lugis, that bastard, seems to have done greater things than I thought he would do.」

“In the old days, he was just a small kid who couldn’t even lift a finger much less kill another people. However, he’s now killing soldiers and transforming the whole place into a high spectacle, how ironic.” Richard put some of his liquor into his lips before riding the horse.

Richard felt like squeezing his throat from this point on. All he had to do was endure it until the end, so that he could moisten his throat a little bit more.

「Captain…Will the enemy come? 」

Neymar, who had previously pulled the reins of the horse, was not worried, but rather anxious. Neymar’s teeth did not overlap well. It seemed that Richard could even hear the sound of her teeth creaking.

Richard pondered before responding to Neymar.

She, Neymar Gloria, had a tendency to be too serious, as Richard thought. She was afraid of failure and took things way too seriously. Indeed, the nature of a local aristocrat was exactly like that. She would be totally unsuitable for politics. It could be too demanding.

However, she was also tenacious, depending on the situation. She didn’t break easily upon encountering a foreign body, and even if she did break, she had the tenacity to keep her pride alive. Richard thought that if she mixed her experience with her good traits, she would’ve achieved a remarkable growth as a commander. She was a strong soldier after all, yet she was a human that became upset too often. The human being named Neymar Gloria had enough of a background to achieve great things, if only guided properly.

“How much can she learn from me? I do wonder. Well, she’s also unhappy because her supposed teacher is kinda on the devilish side, ah.” Richard sat down on his horse with a humorous smile across his face.

「The enemy will definitely come. Maybe, right from the frontline, that’s right, I can feel that Lugis bastard nearby.」

Even though the frontlines had collapsed due to magic, the number was more than double than that of the Heraldic soldiers. The soldiers gained mental stability only by the difference in numbers. Even if you didn’t know the identity of the enemy, the psychology that made you believe that allies stood behind you would inspire your heart.

Even so, if the soldiers retreated one after another, it would not be that unnatural. It would be strange to pull down only the central part while the left and right wings endured the clash.

Would that work well on the battlefield? Richard thought deeply about it while looking at all sides, searching for his former student. His sensibility was sharper as ever.

Richard said, showing his teeth.

「Still, we can’t stop now. Listen to the sound of those barbaric voices. Look at that crowded mass of soldiers.」

The Heraldic religion was most afraid of being defeated because of the inferiority in number. It would be dangerous if soldiers were scattered, because as a result, many enemy soldiers would kill them all. That was the normal thinking. That’s why they laid out a dense formation.

Their tactic was to harden the soldiers as much as possible, and then collide with the enemy. As long as the number dominance lied in the Great Holy Church, it would eventually collapse when solidified, but it would save them some time. At least, their formation wouldn’t collapse immediately. In that earned time, a prominent vanguard unit pierced through the enemy’s main unit. That was the idea. It was a tactic that made sense in a way.

However, there were of course disadvantages in that tactic.

The more crowded their formation was, the more the soldiers’ sights were blocked and their ears crushed by barbarism. Moreover they could only move forward at a time, even more so if their enemy’s vanguard unit was retreating.

“Maybe Lugis is in that frontline’s prominent unit. If I notice that guy’s intentions, will I force his soldiers to retreat?”

There was no way that he’d let such thing happen, Richard thought.

The situation was completely different from that of the Great Holy Church, which was lightly dressed and established a team with the assumption that it would retreat to some extent from the beginning.

「Listen, Neymar. Kneading the battlefield with your hands is all about making the enemy think that we are acting as if we don’t have any other choices, but at the end of the day, we will move it according to our wishes. It will be enough to change the tide of the battle.」

Richard spoke with a look Neymar had never seen before. Neymar instinctively looked back at her superior’s face and took a deep breath. Neymar remembered seeing that expression somewhere, but she couldn’t remember when and where.

The soldiers in the center formation of the Great Holy Church army continued to retreat slowly and slowly, sometimes collapsing. As if fascinated by the retreating action, the soldiers of the Heraldry religion repeatedly charged forward.

The barbaric voices echoed, and the footsteps of the soldiers shook the hollow. No one stopped it. The sun, which was supposed to have been at the top of the sky, tilted its shape slightly.