Episode 22

The sun finally settled over the mountain ridge. Twilight quickly spread over the plateau, and even the fluttering red flag of Herera lost its color in the fierce wind.

Inside the tent, settled in a quiet silence, all the members of the Allen-Mercenary Group could be seen gathered. While their postures alternated between lying and sitting, every single one was fully armed.

“…Will they really come?”

“I feel like I’m going to die of exhaustion….”

Having fought desperately all morning, they were still not fully recovered from their fatigue. Moreover, they hadn’t even been able to take a proper break in the morning because they had to deal with the aftermath.

Of course, the condition of the other side was probably the same. They found it hard to believe that with their bodies in such a state, an attack at night would come easily.

“They will come. Probably. …They have nowhere to retreat to now.”

However, contrary to the members’ doubts, Allen’s tone was firm.

No matter how much the Easterners are known as brutes who only know how to charge, not all of them would be such. Surely, there must be those who know tactics, even if vaguely. They would suggest a night raid to overcome this situation, and that guy, whatever his name was— Eindolph, or something, would eventually accept it.

Honor or whatever, in the end, is not more precious than victory.

…In fact, more than anything, the number of times that Ji-hoo had fallen for such tactics was too many to count during his time playing Guild Master. Whether it was intended by the system or not, crises often followed achievements. As if to say, ‘Never let your guard down until the end.’

“Group Leader, please get some rest. You might collapse at this rate.”

“Yes, please get some sleep. We’ll take care of it. If there’s a surprise attack, we’ll fight like hell.”

“…I’m fine, though.”

“Please catch some sleep. What will we do if you really collapse, Group Leader? We’re like baby birds, only looking at their mother.”

“Baby birds chew.”

“Why, is this a metaphor?”

Allen yawned so wide it seemed his mouth might split. Honestly, he had been too anxious and burdened to sleep much earlier. …He had confidently claimed they would come to attack at night, but it would be damn awkward if they didn’t.

“Then, I’ll just close my eyes for a moment. …If there’s even a slight hint of something, wake me up immediately.”

“Yes, Group Leader.”

Only then did Allen slowly lie down on the mat.

“Ah, shit…”

The moment he lay down, it felt so comfortable that curses involuntarily slipped out.

‘Is this why they say that even after completely reading the Four Books and Five Classics, the character for ‘lie down’ (臥) is the best…?’

He fell asleep mere moments after he laid down. Everyone quietly chuckled, watching their group leader snore softly. Seconds later, they began to talk about him as if they had been waiting for the chance.

“He’s really something. Extremely tough too. Who said southern nobles were cowards?”

“He’s a natural. A genius I say, a genius. In all my years as a mercenary, I’ve never seen a leader like this, damn.”

“He’s going to be someone important. You just get that feeling, you know?”

“I’d love to continue working together with him…, but it’s a shame my skills are so modest.”

The chatter eventually quieted down. Soon, they too fell in and out of sleep.

The night deepened further.

Jumbo Jugs Elena was abruptly awakened by the loud ringing of bells. “It’s the enemy—,” the tearing scream sharply pierced her ears.

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

In the end, Group Leader Allen’s prediction hit the mark. Of course, anyone could say that they might come to attack at night, but there was some kind of certainty in his tone. As if he could see right through the opponent’s thoughts.

She, too, was already fully equipped, so without anything more to prepare, she immediately dashed out of the tent.

As soon as she emerged, a loud cheer hit her ears. The moment proved her wrong about Eindolph, whom she thought to be a man of honor who would not resort to a surprise attack at night.

The enemies had already taken the high ground. The slope of the plateau wasn’t too severe, but it wasn’t negligible enough to ignore its impact either.

Having been approaching as stealthily as possible, the enemies observing the movements of the Herera group immediately ran down like mad, waving their weapons, as soon as they realized they had been spotted by the other side, as if they wouldn’t even give time to prepare for battle.

…However, the Herera group was already in a state of readiness, having not only donned their equipment but also prepared their minds to face the enemies.

Contrary to their expectation that the opponent would be surprised and flustered, it was the Wirgang group who came to attack in surprise that was taken aback. But it was too late for them to turn back now.

“Chargeeeeee—”

Eindolph shouted. Leading his mercenary group, he plunged into the midst of the enemies like a valiant warrior.

At first, the Wirgang group seemed to have a slight advantage. However, it wasn’t long before the tide of battle slowly began to tilt towards the Herera side.

It was a clear difference in stamina. After all, the side receiving the attack would inevitably be much more advantageous in terms of fatigue than the side launching the surprise attack. Of course, if the surprise attack had been successful, it would have been a different story, but the moment it failed, the side that attempted the surprise attack would inevitably be at a disadvantage both mentally and physically compared to their opponent.

Naturally, Eindolph also began to feel mentally shaken upon realizing that the surprise attack had failed.

He had thought it was a decisive move, aiming for the enemy’s complacency, but the opponent had seen through even that.

‘…Elena…!’

Eindolph mistook that the preparation against the surprise attack was Elena’s strategy and changed the objective of the battle.

To capture Elena as a prisonerㅡ.

Since it seemed difficult to win by fighting, the only option was to capture the leader. He had no other choice left.

“Follow meㅡ!”

Eindolph bravely led the charge himself. Following him, the Eindolph-Mercenary Group pressed on with a terrifying momentum.

Their desperate assault was tremendous. Even the Herera group, who had already seized the upper hand, flinched.

Elena, seeing the Eindolph-Mercenary Group fiercely pushing towards her side, discerned their intention. They were undoubtedly coming to capture her.

She could create a powerful barrier with a single spell, but the problem was the location. The enemy was descending from above, making it difficult for her to use her magic properly. A slight mistake could harm her own forces. They must have taken her magic into account and chosen their position accordingly.

In the end, she gave up on using magic. In a situation where friend and foe were entangled, magic was not a good choice. …She had no choice but to trust in the Roakin-Mercenary Group.

“Block themㅡ!”

Roakin, the leader of the mercenary group, lifted his iron-spiked mace and shouted. Soon, the two mercenary bands clashed fiercely.

However, it was not easy to stop the martial prowess of Eindolph, renowned as an outstanding swordsman. Moreover, the mercenaries were extremely exhausted at the moment. Eventually, the Roakin-Mercenary Group began to slowly retreat.

‘Ah.’

Elena felt a bit scared as the screams got closer. What she could occasionally see between the mercenaries was Eindolph, approaching with a terrifying momentum.

‘…What, what do I do? I, what, how should I…’

It wasn’t a situation where she could give orders. She was like a butterfly caught in a spider’s web, unable to move an inch, occasionally catching Eindolph’s fierce gaze.

At that moment, someone grabbed the front of her clothes tightly and started dragging her along. “Ahㅡ!” She looked up at the person dragging her. It was Group Leader Allen, his face splattered with blood here and there. With a stern expression, he glared at her and shouted.

“Where is your mind?! The enemy is comingㅡ!”

At the same time, the Allen-Mercenary Group took their positions in front of them. A thick human wall was quickly formed.

Allen, releasing the clothes he had grabbed, raised a finger and warned her.

“Get a hold of yourself! Do you not realize it’s over if you get caught? After all this hard work, are we going to lose in vain?!”

Elena, wide-eyed, swallowed dryly and reluctantly nodded her head. Seeing this, Allen thought to himself, ‘it’s still too early to entrust her with a big taskㅡ,’ and lightly shook his head.

On the other hand, Eindolph, who had lost Elena right before his eyes, screamed in frustration. How could this happen after coming so far—?!

However, what stood in his way was the very mercenary group that had shown tremendous might in the morning. Even so, it seemed they were not invincible, as a few of them were injured.

He saw a glimmer of possibility there, but the tide of battle had already turned too much. More than half of Eindolph’s mercenaries were either dead or injured. The captain pleaded with their leader, Eindolph, to retreat, saying it was too difficult to hold on any longer.

“Are you saying we should retreat again—?!”

“The losses are too severe. …We must pull back now. The surprise attack has failed—!”

Failure.

At that word, Eindolph’s rising anger cooled down as if it were a lie, and he regained his senses.

Looking around, there were too many members he could no longer see.

‘Ah.’

Pride was no longer something to uphold. Now, it was crucial to save as many of his precious subordinates as possible.

“…Retreat, we’re retreating. Fall back. Retreat—! Withdraw—!”

At Eindolph’s shout, the Wirgang group began to flee once again, leaving behind tremendous sacrifices.

The battle ended abruptly, as if it had hit a cliff. However, there were no victory cries on the battlefield that had seen the end of the fight.

Only the pained groans and sobs of those whose lives had not been cut short.

Group Leader Allen issued orders to the mercenaries, with Elena, who was still half out of her senses, behind him.

To treat everyone who was still alive, regardless of friend or foe. To somehow keep them alive.

He scanned the corpse-filled plateau once again. The terrible smell of blood meant his nose had long since stopped functioning properly.

Allen was a thorough atheist, but at this moment, he couldn’t help but pray for the dead.

‘May your next lives be peaceful—.’