Chapter 362: Chapter 359: So Much for Being Noble and Righteous
The sun hung dimly over the wasteland, its pale light too weak to warm the soldiers. A bitter wind howled from north to south, sweeping across the land.
The square formation where "Ninja Xia" was stationed centered around a mobile great bell. The inner circle consisted of the banner-holding Defender Army and their servants, while the outer circle was filled with unlucky, sinful souls like them. Rorschach guessed the great bell must be a Holy Artifact.
Led by the "Master," the leader of the Holy Knights, the Knight Order completed their pre-battle mass and formed up in squadrons on the infantry’s left and right flanks. Their commanders raised two Cross Greatswords, striking the blades against each other.
The crisp clang of metal was the signal to begin battle. The drumbeats and horns abandoned the melody of the Holy Song, growing faster and louder. The infantry, led by the Servant Army and Penitent Army, began to move!
"The Lord of Order’s light shines upon you! Fear not the enemy’s blades and guns, for your bodies will be as walls of bronze! Heed not the enemy’s armor, for your swords will be unstoppable!" the Priest roared hoarsely from within the formation, driving it to smash into the enemy’s front line.
The army Rorschach was in seemed to be stuck in the age of melee weapons. The infantry formation advanced on the enemy’s front line at a steady pace, and the opposing side seemed to be cooperating by not having constructed any fortifications.
But this stood to reason. Nominally, the battlefield was on the Holy Kingdom’s side. If the Empire Army spent too much time preparing their position, they would be vulnerable to harassment from small, advance parties of Holy Knights. It was better for the main army to move together and deploy directly.
Some of the men around Rorschach were still hesitating. They could already see the dark enemy line. In all likelihood, the enemy’s gun muzzles were pointed right at them. The weapons were loaded, fingers on triggers, just waiting for the commander’s order.
"Fire!" The Empire’s bullets flew! Rorschach saw gunpowder smoke rise from the front of the enemy ranks, and the rabble around him all shuddered at the sound of the gunshots.
DONG!
However, the heavy toll of a bell followed immediately after the gunshots. Rorschach couldn’t help but look back. The mounted bronze bell pulsed with golden patterns. Although the sound wave was deafening to everyone, they were all somehow unharmed by the hail of bullets rushing toward them.
The bullets struck their bodies as if hitting iron armor. Rorschach could feel the immense kinetic energy transferred from the projectiles, but his body suffered no damage.
It seemed that in the instant the bell was struck, everyone received a Protection akin to Heavy Armor. Rorschach tested it and found the Protection’s duration was very short, basically disappearing once the bell’s echo faded. However, this was surprisingly effective against the Empire Army, which primarily used firearms and shotguns as anti-infantry weapons. All firearms have a reloading time, so as long as it wasn’t free fire, they only needed to ring the bell during a volley.
Once it was proven that the Priest’s words weren’t false advertising—that they were truly invulnerable—the spirits of all the infantrymen lifted, and their marching speed quickened. They cheered as they closed in on the enemy.
Another contest between a volley and the "Guardian Bell" ensued. The Empire Army commander realized the enemy’s countermeasure and switched to free fire after reloading the firearms.
Not to be outdone, the Priest began furiously striking the bell with all his might. Everyone’s head was ringing—except for Rorschach’s, which was made of humus.
(A thousand miles away, the main body’s head, connected to the clone via synesthesia, was also ringing. Tinnitus had even set in.)
Although the Divine Art’s effectiveness seemed to weaken after the continuous striking, the density of bullets from free fire was lower than from a volley. Offense and defense once again reached a delicate balance, allowing the attackers to close to within a hundred paces of the enemy line. Everyone could see the nervous faces of the Empireists.
Seeing that the time was right, the formation’s commander gave the order: "Charge!"
The bell did not stop ringing. The criminals and bandits excitedly broke into a run, charging forward with a howl. If they could take the head of a regular soldier, they’d have bragging rights for life.
Seventy paces, fifty paces, thirty paces...
The enemy finished their next reload, but the charging Penitent Army faced their muzzles fearlessly. In fact, it was the enemy who was nervous; both sides believed the "Holy Army" was invulnerable.
Rorschach silently charged at a slightly slower pace, keeping his body low and letting the other members of the Penitent Army shield him from the front.
BANG! BANG BANG!
With the new round of gunfire, Rorschach’s temporary comrades all fell, their sinful lives coming to an end. The Absolution Certificates, made from scraps of parchment, were stained red with Blood.
Rorschach, intent on not sticking out, dove among the fallen soldiers and cast a [Spirit Armor Skill] on himself. ’Even an earth-made body needs to be protected. If an arm or something gets shot off and soil spills everywhere, won’t my cover be blown?’
He had guessed when he realized the Divine Art used the bell’s toll as a medium that the Protection likely decayed significantly with distance. Otherwise, there would have been no need to put the Penitent Army on the outside. As they moved away from the mobile bell tower, the subtle changes in the ambient Magic Power confirmed Rorschach’s theory.
When only a scattered few of the charging Penitent Army were left standing, the Church’s Defender Army and Servant Army closed in on the line, suffering no casualties. They were not at all surprised by the deaths of the penitents; many probably even believed it was a blessing for such scum to die gloriously for their Lord.
The first two ranks of the formation raised extra-long firearms and fired a volley at the Empire Army from a distance of fifty paces. At such close range, the more accurate shots instantly inflicted heavy losses on the Empire Army.
’So much for being great, glorious, and righteous! How can they be so ruthless?!’ Lying prone to watch the battle, Rorschach twisted his neck up at an angle impossible for a normal person to get a better view. He clutched the "pre-battle Absolution Certificate." ’Good heavens. This thing is a Life-terminating Talisman!’
But what struck him even more was: The Empire was actually at a disadvantage! Rorschach was somewhat surprised. After all, the whole reason he had sent a clone here was to investigate the Empire’s methods for suppressing the Divine Arts of the Church of Light and Order. But so far, the Empire had only been taking a beating.
Also surprised was Richard, back at the command post. He watched from a high vantage point, witnessing the Empire Army’s losses. "I should be on the battlefield. The enemy has the Protection of a Divine Art; our normal weapons are ineffective."
"No. Follow your orders." Major General Carl, Richard’s mentor in the army, lowered his Telescope. There was a higher-ranking commander on the battlefield now, and Carl was only responsible for his own division. "Relay my orders: Artillerymen, to your positions. Have the infantry reserves form two columns to fill in the flanks."
’Deploying the cavalry?’ Richard knew that only a cavalry charge would create gaps on the left and right flanks that needed to be filled.
’But if the enemy still has their Divine Art, the cavalry will just be sacrificed in vain. And the Holy Knights haven’t even been deployed yet! Over fifteen hundred of their cavalry against the Empire’s three hundred—they have an overwhelming advantage in both quality and quantity.’ Richard wanted to ask Major General Carl for the reason behind this order.
But before he could speak, Major General Carl, who had been watching the time, dispatched Richard back to Andorrella. "Captain, please board the docked Airship. Your teacher is waiting for you there."
Richard’s teacher. In this context, that could only mean one person—the Empire Army’s Chief Military Mage!
