volume 2 - Chapter 71 (1/2)
TL: So I recently found a ReadNovelFull about chinese history.
Gravity tales is translating The Grandmaster Strategist, and I find that it’s translated really well. The story is about an alternate universe that talks about chinese history as a genre (no cheat skills or systems. It’s not a xianxia.). This novel isn’t a real historical novel, but it picks from famous chinese poets and combine their poems which the protagonist writes, which then invites drama that comes into play. This is like a ReadNovelFull that introduces you to chinese history written in an entertaining way. I kind of have to tip my hat off for the guts to even try and translate this novel.
Honestly, the original text picked off hardcore poems that needs a whole chapter devoted to explain the origin’s text and meaning, but the translator did a really fine job in making it sound great in english and retain its general essence.
Chapter 71 – The oncoming premonition
Brendel rubbed his forehead as he recalled a particular battle during the game, as he traveled into the Baern’s forest.
Before entering a war filled with bloodshed, the gamers who led a peaceful lifestyle could hardly imagine the fanatical eyes of every person that seemed to be swallowed in bloodl.u.s.t. The battles were as chilling as it appeared, the cold and merciless blades that went into each throat, causing crimson blood to spray everywhere, filling the air with iron rust, while each victim struggled on the ground as the night melted into the background. Their weary eyes saw their final moments before their vision became dim.
That did not mark the end of them, because their own blood would pool within their lungs and they would cough incessantly, in a painful bid to cling for life before they finally expire in sorrow.
Once upon a time, ‘Sophie’ thought ‘The Amber Sword’ was going to progress like a scene in a novel. He recalled the moments of how the battles unfolded in a bizarre manner.
There were no two armies deployed in an orderly fas.h.i.+on facing each other. His first true battle with large numbers occurred in the Delttal Forest. Tall trees with dense leaves lined across a precipice which led into a meandering sh.o.r.eline. The enemies that consisted of slavery merchants and their private armies hid within the cliffs’ large fissures.
The number of gamers and NPCs were more than three times the slavers’ private armies, but the true battle was decided by how proficient their scouts were in a place like this.
The initial battle started off with the gamers completely falling into chaos as they were flanked from an ambush in an unfavorable spot. Team members were separated from each other and the appointed leaders lost sight of their position, and the majority of the people had to form into small groups to fight for themselves.
The enemy employed multiple highly mobile ambushes that came for the flanks and back, and the thousand odd gamers were held back by a single unit of cavalry.
No one knew where the scouts were spying them from, and the chaos had made it impossible for the leaders to keep track of where their flanks were. In retrospect, Brendel felt that having the option to command a battleground from an isometric view like how other games were, was something of a blissful thought.
During the thick of the battle, countless swallow-tail flags were carried by a myriad number of guilds that served to obscure sight and contributed nothing but disorder. They were ushered to move in a direction that no one knew where they were going, occasionally encountering small groups of the slavery’s private army and defeating them easily. Everyone thought they had the greater numbers and thought they were going to win, but the longer the battle went on, the more splintered the groups became.
The slavers’ main private army moved in an organized manner with numbers that dwarfed the splintered groups, picking them off one by one, like how Brendel had done so earlier when he fought the undead army with the refugees.
By the time dusk came, the remaining gamers found themselves surrounded by the enemies’ flags—
[‘The Delttal’s ma.s.sacre’, aptly named in the forums. Seventeen hundred gamers gathered together by three large guilds to fight along the NPCs. There was no question to the gamers’ skill and courage. Even until the end they formed small parties to fight to their deaths, but the result was the gamers being utterly obliterated.]
The irony in the situation was how the smaller groups of gamers caused more damage to the slavers in the night, compared to the situation in the daytime where they had the advantage in numbers. Brendel gave a wry smile.
[This memory still chills me to my soul even though that battle happened just after Bucce’s battle with Madara. The gamers only learned how to employ tactics and memorized the guild flags and whether they belonged to the cavalries or foot soldiers. The commanders situated themselves onto higher grounds so they could observe the batleground and adjust their positions accordingly within a ten-mile radius.]
Brendel watched Makarov issued commands that the gamers had to learn themselves.
There were certainly differences to the battle Brendel had because of the scale, but the principles behind them were similar. Brendel held the horse’s reins closely and directed it to avoid shrubs so that they would not p.r.i.c.k it. He glanced around from time to time, and discovered figures wearing green robes and painted bows darting across. Normal people would not have noticed them.
[‘The Forest Spirits’? They are definitely the best hunters that appeared in this world as far I can see. Kirrlutz’s soldiers called them the ‘Forest Spirits’ when they invaded this land two hundred years ago, but it’s a name that the local citizens saw as praise. This meant they were the swiftest hunters, the most accurate archers and the best rangers.]
“I wonder where Makarov found them.” Brendel subconsciously mumbled as he tapped the gold plated bits on the reins. He had actually teamed up with them before, even though the time he had with them was not long, they left a deep impression on him.
“I wonder if they scouted this place for a long time.”
The mercenaries would have an easy time if they had excellent scouts. Makarov certainly handled things well. Brendel understood that mercenaries could only perform well if they were far more familiar with the lands compared to their enemies.
The members of Makarov’s mercenaries were definitely veterans. It was a common thing for mercenaries to be hired to clear bandits, and the more famous their name was, the more experienced they tend to be. Makarov himself was clearly someone who’s renowned.