Episode 21

Eindolph, sitting on a flat rock, stared coldly at the grass field for a long time.

The unexpected defeat made his chest feel not just sore, but as if it was being torn apart.

‘…To think they hired a top-notch mercenary group.’

Such people couldn’t be gathered simply by spreading a recruitment notice. No doubt, it must have taken every effort, begging and pleading, to barely pull them together.

But the effect was clear. It wasn’t for nothing that a superior mercenary group could turn the tide of battle. He had seen and confirmed that scene with his own eyes this time.

His pride had been shattered to pieces. The defeat in this battle left a bitter taste in his mouth as he could never accept that Wirgang was inferior to Herera…

‘…How desperately did father wish for victory…!’

- We must win. This time, for sure. We must. The fifty-year-long resentment of our Wirgang group depends on you.

He couldn’t back down. He had to do something. To win.

Eindolph, craving victory, gathered the surviving group leaders.

With a cool gaze, Eindolph scanned the group leaders gathered around and asked. His voice seemed to boil from his base.

“What should we do now?”

The group leaders subtly avoided his gaze. They, too, couldn’t think of a way which would appease Eindolph’s anger.

“Didn’t I ask what we should do?!”

Although Eindolph raised his voice, what returned was a cold silence. He pointed his finger towards where Herera was, and the veins in his neck bulged with his anger.

“We barely managed to stop one. Our entire force, I mean—! It was a battle we could have won—! If you all had just pushed a bit harder—! No matter how tough they are, if we kept pushing, we would have broken through—!”

His words were certainly true. However, no leader in this world would willingly sacrifice their mercenary group like kindling. And it’s not like Eindolph had sacrificed his own group either.

“…We faced an unexpected opponent. We never imagined they would counter us with such tactics… We were too ignorant.”

“Can’t you do something like that? …I’m not accusing, I’m genuinely asking. Isn’t there a leader who can? Someone with the knowledge?”

However, all the leaders here were of mercenary origin, and it was unlikely for such mercenaries to possess advanced knowledge. Most of them hadn’t even read a single book….

“Really, there’s nothing? …Then what are we supposed to do? Just get beaten like this again? Is there really no way to break throughㅡ?!”

At that moment, a man with somewhat graying hair and beard quietly stepped forward. He was considered the wisest among them.

“Ralph…. Yes, I thought you might have a solution.”

“I’m sorry to say, but I also don’t know anything about that tactic. I’ve only seen something similar from a distance a few times.”

‘…Ah….’

If even the experienced Ralph didn’t know, then there really was no solution. They had no choice but to push forward, sacrificing until they were breached.

However, unless the enemies are fools, they wouldn’t just stand by and watch. Moreover, the opponent has already gained morale from a victory. It was hard to guarantee a win if they clashed head-on.

“…However, there is another way.”

“Another way?”

All the leaders turned their gaze to Ralph, wondering if he had some ingenious plan.

“Tonight, we launch a surprise attack.”

“…Tonight?”

The mercenaries were already too exhausted to move. Engaging in another battle in less than a day was dangerous.

“We’re too exhausted. We’re not in a condition to fight now.”

“But the same goes for the enemy. Rather, because of that, they will be sleeping more deeply and will find it hard to respond to a surprise attack. Surely, the enemy won’t expect us to launch a surprise attack.”

The leaders nodded in agreement. Upon hearing it, it seemed to make sense. From there, Ralph’s voice gained strength.

“I’ve learned it over the shoulder, a tactic often used by the northern nobles. Pretending to lose on purpose to let the opponent lower their guard, then launching a surprise attack to break them.”

“If it’s a tactic of the northern nobles, it’s bound to be effectiveㅡ!”

“It seems worth trying, young masterㅡ!”

The group leaders were in favor. However, Eindolph could not easily join in.

He too felt that this surprise attack would be effective. However, he was a proud eastern noble. Attacking someone while they were asleep, wasn’t that the behavior of thieves or robbersㅡ!

Moreover, on the opposing side was Elena, the third daughter of Count Herera, whom he ardently admired. He did not want to engage in such cowardly acts against her.

“…Certainly, it would be effective…”

As Eindolph hesitated, the group leaders also roughly guessed his intentions and urged him even more.

“There is no other way, young master.”

“This will surely allow us to take our revengeㅡ!”

However, he too needed victory at this moment.

• Our Wirgang’s fifty years of resentment depend on you.

His father’s shout once again spread through Eindolph’s heart,

“…Alright, let’s do it.”

He made his decision.

After finishing up, Elena returned to her personal tent and laid her tired body down on the soft mat. She was exhausted not just physically, but mentally as well.

Since becoming sensible, she had grown quite accustomed to corpses through her life in a mercenary group, but today, she saw far too many. And at that, they were corpses of those who were brutally killed… So, mental exhaustion was inevitable.

Although they won, their side suffered significant losses too. Roughly sixty died, and even more were injured. Of course, the enemy’s losses were much greater than theirs.

‘…I expected it. I knew it wouldn’t be easy.’

Yet, Elena had already braced herself for this much. The Wirgang family, like the Herera, boasted a prestigious lineage with a rich history. She had anticipated that their forces would not be easily overcome, even before the battle began.

There were only two things that surprised her.

The number of enemies, which was more than expected, and the Allen-Mercenary Group that defeated them.

It was hard to believe, but the Allen-Mercenary Group didn’t have a single casualty. That would have been no easy feat even if they had cowardly avoided the fight and only thought about running away from the back.

Yet, they managed to do it while being in the middle of the battlefield. She even witnessed part of that scene from the side.

Although she wasn’t deeply connected to tactics and strategies, she knew right away that it was a miraculous skill.

The Allen-Mercenary Group had firmly held their ground and completely shattered every opponent that came at them. …Honestly, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that this victory was largely due to their efforts.

After seeing that, Elena began to doubt the work she had been doing up until now. She wondered if she truly was a leader who could be of help to her mercenary group….

She judged herself coldly, as a sorceress would… And the conclusion was, her undeniable lack of ability.

To lead her father’s vast mercenary group, she was clearly unqualified. Her leadership, tactics, even magic were still immature.

She had hoped to prove her worth in this battle, but instead, she only exposed her shallow depths.

Honestly, she was too embarrassed. Of course, she didn’t show it outwardly because of her pride, but she was dying of shame in front of her subordinates.

How much they must be criticizing her internally. A woman with no ability, just giving orders from above….

“Ahㅡ.”

Elena writhed in agony on the carpet, her large breasts swaying from side to side.

Then someone came looking for her. “Ahㅡ.” She hurriedly sat up and straightened her clothes.

The person outside the tent revealed their name.

• I’m Group Leader Allen. I urgently have something to discuss, so I came here.

‘Group Leader Allen? …He says he has something urgent to discuss?’

“Come in.”

As the tent was swept aside, Group Leader Allen stepped in and gave a light bow. She asked if it would be alright for her to remain seated as it was a bit difficult for her to stand. After all, Group Leader Allen was of noble birth just like herself. Especially since she had heard that nobles from the south were particularly meticulous about even the smallest details….

“It’s alright.”

“Please, speak.”

His eyes, seemingly gentle yet carrying a sharpness, intensely gazed at the wizard of Mahvana. As if trying to read her inner thoughts.

“I have a suggestion.”

“A suggestion? Yes, go ahead.”

“Tonight, there’s a high possibility of a surprise attack from the enemies. It’s best to be thoroughly prepared.”

Elena’s brows furrowed.

“…What, that, again…, what did you say?”

“A surprise attack, I mean. There’s a very high chance that the enemies will launch a night raid. So, we must prepare right now.”

The tone was too strong to be considered a suggestion. Almost like an order.

Jumbo Jugs was momentarily taken aback. A surprise attack. Honestly, this was something she never anticipated.

“How could that be? The battle has just ended not long ago. Both the enemies and we are all exhausted. How could they launch a surprise attack in such a situation?”

“That’s exactly why they will come. The opponent has just experienced an unexpected defeat. So, they will be looking for a way to overcome this situation. …That’s why they will try to turn the tide with an unexpected surprise attack.”

Allen said it with near certainty.

He too had been ambushed by enemies after a battle victory more than once in [Guild Master]. It wasn’t just a matter of setting a night watch. If they were suddenly ambushed, the morale and reasoning of the combatants would plummet to the ground, making it impossible to even follow orders properly. It was kind of like a debuff.

Of course, if they were well-trained, they could flexibly respond to such night raids, but it was too much to expect such greatness from such a lowly group. At least the Roakin-Mercenary Group who is directly under the count, might be able to fight back decently, but the other mercenary groups would surely be busy running away.

“Eindolph, he… still knows honor.”

It was a ridiculous statement. Allen almost burst out laughing.

“An ambush isn’t cowardly. It’s just one of many tactics….”

Allen took a brief breath before continuing.

“And, there’s nothing more foolish in war than trusting the enemy.”

“It’s not about trust. I meant, surely they wouldn’t resort to a surprise attack.”

“As I just said, they’ve already found it difficult to win by obvious means. So, they’ll try an unconventional method to circumvent us. …It would be fortunate if that’s not the case, but there’s no harm in being prepared.”

Elena had nothing more to say. …In fact, she had already internally agreed with him. She was just clinging to her last shred of pride.

“Alright. We’ll do as you say. Let’s prepare for a surprise attack.”

“A wise decision. …Then.”

Allen gave a light bow and swiftly turned to leave.

…Elena somehow felt as if the roles of commander and subordinate had been reversed.