Chapter 354 (1/2)

Chapter 354

Translator: Nat

–Aegir POV–

I run towards the enemy in front of me .

If I break past this formation, will the headquarters be beyond them or will there be two more squads waiting behind?

Right now, I don’t know . I will leave that for Leopolt to think about .

I only know that I have to focus on defeating whoever is standing in my way .

「Let’s go . 」

Schwartz doesn’t slow down .

I notice an arrow is stuck near his face so I help pull it out for him .

Trailing us is my escort unit as well as the cavalry of the royal army .

As they did not have a role in the siege battle, they are pumped up and ready to contribute now that they have a chance .

We have already come far away from the dazzling flames which lit up the darkness .

Minutely maneuvering the cavalry to disturb the enemy while visibility is poor is out of the question .

「Our cavalry will be the drill . 」

Simple is best when it comes to cavalry . We can charge into the enemy lines, open a hole and create a foothold which allows the infantry in the rearguard to easily punch through .

I, as the lead cavalry, will act as the tip of the drill .

「Get into anti-cavalry formation! Defend……」

Schwartz accelerates further .

The enemy commander is giving out orders while overseeing the entire battle and he probably didn’t expect my horse to be this fast .

We reach the enemy before long spears could get lined up .

「S-so fast!」

「A black gale……」

Right before contact, one soldier turns his spear to me, but I throw my longsword at him .

「Gugh!」

My sword flies right into his stomach, the force of impact throwing him down on the ground on his back, which opens a hole in their lines big enough for a single horse to fit .

Schwartz quickly adjusts his path and heads straight for the hole .

He knocks away enemies coming from either side of him with his giant body and tramples through the reserve forces waiting behind .

「I let you borrow it and now I’m taking it back . 」

As I pa.s.s by, I pull out my sword sticking out of the enemy’s body, then bisect the upper half of the commanding officer .

「Crossbows, what are you doing!?」

「Idiot! How can we shoot in this situation, we will friendly fire!」

Schwartz travels like the wind through the enemy army .

The squis.h.i.+ng sounds beneath his hooves echo loudly .

I also recklessly swing my sword and s.h.i.+eld .

Being surrounded by enemies actually makes things easier .

On the contrary, the enemy has a difficult time .

The archers and crossbowmen especially have it the hardest as the darkness as well as how close they are together makes it extremely likely for them to shoot their allies .

In a short time, I was able to get through the second layer of defense .

「What are you doing, letting Lord Hardlett go alone like that!? Pulverize the enemy!」

「Aegir-sama, please slow down a little!」

It looks like my allies are colliding with the enemy behind me .

Having created a hole, the enemy is out of sorts and it should be a matter of time before they get run over .

「……that was pretty thin . 」

I mutter to myself and smile when I see what is waiting for me .

「No wonder…… it was all to buy time for the third layer . 」

The third line of defense has appeared in front of me .

Their soldiers are prepared and neatly arranged, and it looks hard to get through quickly .

「Loose!」

「Release!」

Countless flaming arrows and bolts fly from the new enemy .

While I cut down any arrows aimed directly at me, the ones which fall around me lights up the area and helps secure better vision for the enemy’s next shots .

Moreover, the bolts I could not defend end up hitting me and Schwartz .

Sure, most of them bounce off our armor, however a few bolts find their way into the gaps in Schwartz’s armor due to him being a larger target .

He exhaled slightly, pretending to be fine, but I know having him charge into this squad would leave him with more than a scratch .

「Your job is done here . 」

I dismount from Schwartz who continues to run .

He had a “oh, is that so?” face as he runs off to the side somewhere .

I let the momentum from jumping off Schwartz propel my dash toward the enemy .

「This guy’s whole body is black…… no, he’s just covered in blood!」

「d.a.m.n demon…… shoot! Shoot him full of holes!」

Multiple arrows and bolts soar at me .

The one that stopped was the enemy .

My s.h.i.+eld protects me as I’m charging and allows me to maintain speed .

I feel numerous blows. .h.i.tting my s.h.i.+eld and my armor .

Two projectiles dig into my flesh, although that is not nearly enough to affect my movement .

「Here he comes!」

「Light infantry forwar―― uwaaaah!!」

Almost like pus.h.i.+ng apart the sea of arrows, I lower my hips right as I reach the first soldier and then make a sweeping motion .

Four crossbowmen get sent flying all at once .

I saw blood squirt so my attack must have finished off a few of them, but I don’t have time to count how many .

Response time is fast on the opponent’s side, as infantry holding s.h.i.+elds and swords appear before I realized .

「Everyone dismount! Attack from the front!」

Catching up with me after enduring the harsh barrage of arrows, the escort squad get down from their horses and choose to fight .

It’s probably going to get messy from here on out .

「Look how this guy is dressed . He’s a commander . 」

「How brave of him to lead the charge . Now I’m going to finish him and turn him into one of my achievements!」

Oops, I better focus on the enemies in front of me .

When I take a deep breath, the world seems to move slowly .

<hr>It’s been so long since I’ve had this feeling .

About twenty enemies stand before me, all with the same swords and metal s.h.i.+elds, plus the man at the far back with the red s.h.i.+eld is the commander .

「Prepare yourself!」

The very first man shouts as he approaches me and swings down his sword, which I block with my s.h.i.+eld, and then I return a slash to his torso from the right .

My sword tears through his armor, rips through his soft innards and cuts through his solid spinal column .

He lets out a sluggish scream .

I don’t force my body back after it s.h.i.+fted to the right, instead I use the momentum to bash the next enemy with my s.h.i.+eld .

The sensation of his facial bones getting crushed is transmitted through my s.h.i.+eld .

Using the foe’s body to stop my initial slas.h.i.+ng motion, I focus my gaze at the sword being thrusted at me from the front .

My response is a powerful slash to the opponent’s legs .

I purposely aimed low because stabbing him in the stomach would restrict my movement .

In a forward-leaning position, I bring myself down barely touching the ground to avoid attacks from two enemies on either side of me, then bounce back up in a spinning manner to slash their backs .

Showing my own back to the enemy will naturally invite attacks .

From what I saw last, they were aiming at my head, side and thigh .

「Hup!」

My s.h.i.+eld is lifted to defend my head, I twist my body to dodge the thrust at my torso, then I s.h.i.+ft my leg to allow the armored portion to take the hit .

The enemy’s astonishment was also sluggish and hard to make out .

Now is when I hear the first guy I cut fall to the ground .

I return to my normal stance and then throw my s.h.i.+eld at one enemy while slicing in half another through his s.h.i.+eld .

Noticing that the enemy let go of his sword, I leave my s.h.i.+eld where it is, grab the spinning sword in midair and lop off the head of a third enemy with it .

「Fuuー」

Time moves at regular speed once again after I exhale .

「Mo…… monster……」

「Eight people in a single breath……」

Before the enemy could finish speaking, I inhale deeply and start moving again .

I draw the Dual Crater at my hip for the usual dual-wielding setup and swing at two enemies in front of me .

My attack was faster than their attempts to defend .

The Dual Crater went on to bisect one of them, meanwhile the blade of my longsword was deliberately tilted to the side to deliver a blunt hit to the other .

A dull edge makes slicing cleanly hard, although the man’s head is caved in so I guess the result is pretty much the same anyways .

Another man cries out sluggishly as I block the slash from my right with my longsword, then use the tilting center of gravity to launch a kick to my left .

I let my leg fall back down and lower my hips for another powerful sweep with my longsword .

The circular slash at shoulder level chopped off one head and four hands .

Positioning my Dual Crater lower at the same time I spun around sliced the faces of the two enemies who crouched .

That wasn’t the end .

I follow up the rotation by running forward .

A fierce slicing of wind can be heard as my Dual Crater and longsword cuts through a head and body respectively, strengthened by the energy of my dash .

Retaliating slashes from the enemy are so slow they seem to be stopped .

I dodge one sword, then the second, then the third, and then slaughter their owners with my Dual Crater .

I’m unable to evade the fourth slash to my waist, so I block with my longsword, proceed to tackle that soldier and finish him off after he falls by stomping on him .

The fifth sword which comes along with the shriek of the man I just took out gets grabbed with my bare hand and snapped in half after I toss my Dual Crater up in the air .

When I catch the Dual Crater, I behead the dumbfounded enemy .

Now the only one left is the commander .

「A-a dem――」

「Who’s a demon?」

I cut his words short with a headb.u.t.t, bas.h.i.+ng my helmet-wearing head against his skull and splitting it open .

With a chance to look back, I see the ground littered with twenty corpses, and none who looks remotely able to get up and attack me from behind .

「……hiiih!」

「This is impossible…… it’s not real……」

Bystanding enemies immediately take steps backward .

Those I determined to be commanders hide behind their subordinates when their eyes meet with mine .

「We can’t fight head-on against that kind of beast! Shoot him down! Kill him with crossbows!」

c.r.a.p, I let go of my s.h.i.+eld .

I have no other choice except to deflect with my sword .

Just when I thought I was in a little trouble, my escort unit rushes in .

They may be off their horses, but the heavily armed soldiers should be more than enough to defeat crossbowmen .

「Aegir-sama! I’ve finally caught up to you . Gosh, how could you leave your s.h.i.+eld!」

「Gununu……」

It’s Celia and Mack .

Mack’s entire body is dripping with sweat as he picks up my s.h.i.+eld .

Oh, thanks .

「I saw what you did earlier . It was so fast my eyes couldn’t follow . 」

Celia’s eyes are sparkling .

Hahaha, I’m glad she’s fallen for me all over .

During my escort unit’s fierce attack, the bow cavalry and royal army also catch up and the third army starts to collapse .

It’s not a rout . They are maintaining order and retreating to their headquarters .

In any case, the attack on the headquarters can finally begin .

「They’ve pushed through! Stop them at all costs, those who can move go to the front!」

A group of large men come forth amidst the melee .

「Warhammer…… no, it’s even bigger . They’re equipped with giant hammers and large axes!」

「Those are siege weapons used to destroy fences and gates . 」

In no way do they look like a squad meant for field battle, but I guess the enemy is desperate .

「「「Hrggooooh!!」」」

Over 2 m tall men wielding enormous weapons come at me .

They’re equipped with gigantic two-handed weapons, wrapped in coa.r.s.e-looking chains, and wearing a helmet that resembles a can covering their entire head except their eyes .

The pressure exuded by their sheer size and executioner-like appearance overwhelms our allies .

A boost to their morale is required .

「Mack, let’s do this . 」

「’Kay . 」

Mack and I stand in front, facing off against the executioner look-alikes .

「Hnngooh!」

The irregularly-sized hammer is swung down .

Since two hands are needed to use it, I can easily dodge and slash the man’s vulnerable stomach, but I purposely block with my s.h.i.+eld .

A loud clang rang out like the sound of the bell signaling the daytime, and then Celia and the others closed their eyes instinctively .

「……fumu, is that it?」

The impact only pushed my s.h.i.+eld back slightly .

Of course, the executioner’s eyes open wide like he can’t believe what happened .

「Hmmph!」

When I return the favor and bash the hammer with my s.h.i.+eld, the large man flies backwards .

「Uooooh!!」

Mack is also forcibly pus.h.i.+ng the executioner to the ground with his warhammer .

As expected, since in terms of strength Mack is even stronger than me .

「Hnggoh!」

Once again, the executioner challenges me .

I meet his downward attack with my longsword .

Sparks fly when our preferred weapons clash, and then the executioner’s hammer shatters .

「It’s over . 」

I grab the man by the chains around him with my right hand and lift him up .

「What…… the……」

He mumbles astoundedly in a low growl .

His weight should be around 150 kg .

「Off you go . 」

I throw the big man .

He didn’t fly far because he was so heavy, however he fell head-first and snapped his neck .

It would have been simple for Celia to land on her feet . I guess being heavy has its merits and demerits .

「Guaah!!」

At the same time, Mack also manages to get a hit on the other executioner’s head with his hammer .

「Incredible…… Lord Hardlett is strong . 」

「If you stay calm and think, those guys are full of openings . They’re nothing to fear . 」

Now the morale of our allies has recovered .

They are quickly finis.h.i.+ng off the executioner’s with spears and crossbows .

With Leopolt and Myla also in command, our forces are slowly pus.h.i.+ng the enemy back .

I take a step backwards so I can look at the bigger picture and determine where to attack next .

「Enemy general, prepare yourself!」

「Watch out!」

Celia’s warning alerts me to an incoming spear .