Volume 3, Chapter 232 - A Resolute Pursuit (1/2)
Although the goblins had only lost sight of the enemy for a moment, they sent the demihumans to scout and watch their surroundings while they made preparations to retreat. Being chased was exactly what they wanted, but it still put a considerable strain on their soldiers.
“Enemy attack!”
That scream-like report immediately woke Shumea from her shallow slumber.
“Where and how many!?”
The soldier called out to Shumea from outside of her tent. It would appear that out of consideration for her, he refrained from entering, but Shumea didn’t care about it one bit, as she exited her tent in her underwear and spoke to the soldier.
“T-The details are unclear, but the enemies are coming from the northeast. They number approximately 1,000.”
Shumea clicked her tongue as she listened to the report. She asked the kneeling messenger.
“The distance?”
“Roughly 5 kirols (kilometers)”
5km to the northeast. They were too close, Shumea thought, so she sent the messenger to Gilmi, while she closed her doors to wear her armor.
“They slipped through our patrols!?”
The patrolling demihumans were spread 10km around them. If the enemy were halfway through that, then that must mean they were able to slip through their patrols.
“Damn it. Why are ill forebodings the only guesses that are accurate!?”
He quickly wore his armor, took his spear, and left his tent. He called for all the commanding officers, starting with the assistant officers, and ordered them to immediately retreat. They were to leave the tents behind, taking only the bare necessities with them.
1,000 was too few.
It was likely there was a detached force elsewhere. The question now was where the holy knights were, Shumea thought.
“Still, I can’t believe they managed to slip through the patrols of the descendant of the crystals.”
Gilmi’s question made Shumea change her thoughts.
“I know it’s hard to accept. But the truth is that they’re headed here right now.”
“That’s true.”
“Gi Zu-dono, Bui-dono. I’m sorry about this, but please take care of the rear.”
“Of course. Just leave it to us.”
“Yes.”
Shumea put aside her usually joking self and gave out orders.
“Gilmi-dono, you are to give us cover just as we’ve planned.”
“Umu.”
“We’ll contact the centaurs and the fangs, then as soon as we meet up, we’ll move down south as fast as we can. Cover us until then.”
After confirming that everyone understood the plan, Shumea sent out a messenger. They had to meet up with the demihumans. The world was gradually moving from the hands of the Night God (Ya Jansu) to the body of the God of Fire (Rodo).
“Hmm?”
Shumea frowned when she felt like she’d heard a scream coming from the northeastern side of the camp, the direction from where the enemy was supposedly approaching.
“…A scream?”
Gi Zu, who had relatively good ears, turned with suspicion.
“I’ll take a look. Bui-dono, please go as well when you’re ready,” Gi Zu said.
”Yes,” Bui replied. Gi Zu left Bui and the others to lead his subordinates toward the direction of the scream.
As he pulled on the bowstring and the wind cried, he shot out an arrow. It was still dark when that arrow made a low-toned sound as it was sucked in by the unclear horizon toward an enemy.
“It hit.”
As the gentle winds of the plains comfortable caressed Jize the One- Eyed’s cheeks, he removed his hand from his bow.
“Shooting from a horse isn’t something a martial artist is meant to do, but… the demihumans - their friends - keep coming for them. Damned goblins making me shoot from a horse like this. Nothing could be more unpleasant!”
Although angry, the glint in his eyes did not lessen even a little as he glared at his surroundings. When his narrowed eyes spotted another moving, he drew his bow once more.
“So annoying!”
He shot an arrow to the yet dark sky. The arrow lodged itself into the back of the demihuman so naturally, it was almost as if it were being sucked in. After being penetrated, the demihuman keeled over.
“Tell the main force at the back to move faster!”
After getting rid of the scouts, Jize took his southern army and steadily approached the goblins. Because Jize the One-Eyed himself was acting as the scout, the forces of Germion Kingdom were able to take out the demihuman scouts while approaching the goblin forces.
Sending the demihumans out in pairs to scout was a bad idea.
The centaurs had greater physical abilities, but their eyes weren’t as effective in the night. Although their eyes weren’t any worse off than
humans, whenever they heard a large army approaching, they would try to get closer to ascertain their numbers. It was then that Jize would shoot them down.
If it were the fang tribe, things might have gone differently, but most of the area extending from the north to the south were covered by the centaurs. It can only be said that the two demihuman chiefs had no luck. Meanwhile, the Fang Tribe (Werewolf) were completely unable to find the enemy and were starting to consider going back to the goblins.
Germion Kingdom had broken through the area managed by the centaurs.
Fortunately, Gi Ji Arsil’s assassin unit were also in the area and one of them was able to spot the human forces, so they were still able to get wind of the situation.
“Hmm… They’re here.”
Jize saw the enemy hiding in the grass, but since they were preparing to move, he wasn’t sure what to do. Should he attack by himself and mess up the formation or should he wait for the main force to arrive.
Word has already been sent.
The rough location of this place has already been passed, and there are also scouts along the way, so the answer should have been clear.
But even someone like Jize needed courage to throw himself into an army that was probably about 3,000 men strong. Even if he might be a match for a thousand warriors (warrior) alone, he still needed the resolve to gamble with his life.
“…Is this fear? Me?”
Within the darkness, Jize asked himself that.
“No. That can’t be. I could not possibly lose to the likes of goblins.”
As those words that came from his heart answered his question, a fierce smile appeared on his face.
“This is exactly what I have been waiting for! A stage made just for me!”
Jize threw his bow and drew his curved sword from his back, then he plunged himself into the chaos.
With no one to stop Jize, the goblins fell into panic from a morning attack executed by one man and one man alone.
◆◇◆
The goblins were stupefied by that surprise attack.
Attacks during the night and in the morning each had their rules. But such rules only held true between humans. The goblins saw the holy knight, Jize, attacking by himself. But they assumed that it was only a foolish human scout getting too deep into their territory.
The rare class goblin thought of catching the human when he was near enough, then use him to find out where the humans were. By the time the goblin paled and saw that Jize was fiercely charging for their camp, it was already too late.
A swing of that curved sword easily lopped off the goblin’s head. In a flash, two goblins had already fallen. When a goblin saw the two goblins beside it beheaded just like that, before those corpses could even fall to the ground, the dumbfounded goblin received a kick to the pit of his stomach. Jize glanced at the goblin as the goblin was sent flying, then Jize held his curved sword horizontally in the now opened space.
Jize buried his sword into the neck of the goblin in front of him, and after instantly killing the four goblins around him, he raised up his voice and named himself.
“I am the holy knight, Jize, of Germion Kingdom! I’ve come for your heads, goblins!”
As brave as the goblins were, that overwhelming power was enough to strike fear into their hearts. The blade of the raging one-eyed demon mercilessly beheaded the goblins one after another. Those overawed fell prey to his blade, and Jize freely slaughtered the goblins that have been winning all this time.
That seemingly impossible penetrative power that allowed a lone man to suppress a thousand foes trampled over the goblins all the way to the middle. When Gi Zu Ruo saw that terrible sight, he raised his voice and went out to stop him, but already, 50 goblins had been sacrificed.
“Damned human!”
“Ohh, you’re the goblin from that time! What good luck!”
Jize laughed as he received Gi Zu’s spear. They did not bother to hide their fierceness in this tight battle.
“If you have a name, then name yourself, monster! I am Jize Yuwenti! The man who shall hunt you!”
“Naming myself is annoying, but as you wish! I am Gi Zu Ruo! The goblin who shall kill you!”
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