Chapter 383 (2/2)

From what I saw of their fighting, the Starving Dog army will be more than an enc.u.mbrance and actually be fairly reliable .

Furthermore, taking away 500 soldiers shouldn’t be a problem for the overall numbers in the struggle between us and the enemy .

「The problem is the lack of leaders.h.i.+p from the feudal lords . 」

Sekrit is correct .

500 may be a small number, but a sudden change of course might startle those in the area .

If they see that, it would prompt 1000 to fall back, then the next 2000 people would fall back as a chain reaction, and then soon enough, order would be disrupted .

Those armies are not like proper armies with an established chain of command .

「I will go by myself . Sekrit, you stay here too . 」

「Huh? Hey . 」

I spur Schwartz to gallop off before she could reply . I’m not going to carry an injured person around .

d.a.m.n Erich, this isn’t going to be proportionate unless I spend more time with your lover .

「Full speed ahead . Run until your heart bursts . 」

Schwartz neighs and begrudgingly accelerates .

He’s fast . We’re going as fast as the wind .

It’s worlds apart compared to normal travelling speed . So he was holding back all the time .

The enemy hasn’t noticed me at all…… I guess it’s because I’m alone .

I might as well launch an attack first and take out a commander cla.s.s .

「Go for that fancy-looking guy . 」

I run towards the gaudily-dressed cavalry at full speed .

Some soldiers start realizing my presence, except they can’t warn their commander in time due to Schwartz’s speed .

「Commander! An enemy from the right!」

「Wha――?」

The battalion commander turns around just in time to get his body sliced in half .

「Wahahaha! Come if you want to die! Wahahahaha!」

I shout loudly regardless of how stupid it is .

Some pressure needs to be drawn away from my troubled allies .

……that’s why I won’t tolerate Schwartz snickering .

「Look, that guy came!」

「By himself……so he’s actually of a demon tribe!」

It really isn’t something I want to do, but my highest priority right now is to stand out .

After breaking through to the center of enemy lines with a ‘surprise’ attack, I cut down any other enemies who dares to stand in my way .

「Get him! Block his route and kill him!」

「He’s moving too fast……」

They try to catch up, but none of their horses could hope to match Schwartz in speed .

「Hmp!」

I slice off the part above the chest of an enemy who gets close to me, then stab the torso with the point of my sword, running around waving the lower half like a flag while spraying blood everywhere .

「How dare this demon…… does he not understand human logic?」

I’m not doing this because I like it either .

I lop off the head of another enemy with my Dual Crater, then knock the severed head toward a group of enemies with my longsword before it hits the ground . Those who were near the landing point of the head were shaken up and turned in my direction .

Good, the more they look at me, the less they focus on my other allies .

The Royal army was also lagging behind, but they aren’t incompetent .

I can see them desperately trying to reorganize, though I’m not sure whether my insignificant reinforcement played a part .

「That’s good enough for now, I guess . 」

I can see a few hundred soldiers running toward me .

Even I can’t take on all of them at once .

I jump into the ally camp and run up to the corps commander giving out orders with a ghastly face .

「Ooh, I received reports that a demon was rampaging for us, so it was you, Lord Hardlett!?」

I want to complain about that, but time is more precious than gold at the moment .

「Can you recover?」

「Yes, if I have some time now . However, the enemy cavalry that split us in half are coming this way . 」

The enemy isn’t going to wait for us to rebuild our formation .

3000 cavalry are kicking up a dust cloud and charging at us .

「Can you do it if I stop them?」

「I can . 」

Alright, good .

「Have 1000 infantry attack the enemy cavalry . 」

「Huh? But-」

I turn to the enemy cavalry and repeat myself .

「Do it . I’ll take responsibility later . 」

「Understood…… First Battalion head toward the enemy cavalry and support Lord Hardlett . 」

I run off without listening to the commander’s last few words .

The enemy cavalry tries to separate us again by taking a triangular charging formation .

I charge head-on towards the tip of that triangle .

「Enemy cavalry in front……」

「A single rider? Only a single rider?」

I could hear the bewildered enemy .

Staring down 3000 cavalry is truly terrifying .

Well, I should have 1000 infantry behind me . I’d hate it if I turned around and they weren’t there, so I don’t turn around .

「What intense pressure . 」

I’m running straight at the cavalry formation by myself .

I know how reckless of an act it may seem, but I believe I can win .

When I intersect with the enemy, I cut down one cavalry in the vanguard .

After completing my swing, I reverse the blade to slash a second cavalry to my left, then immediately bring my sword in the opposite direction for a third cavalry .

A cavalry charging formation’s purpose is to tear a hole in the opponent’s ranks .

It wasn’t made to stop a single rider charging straight at them .

Bow cavalry aside, other cavalry can’t use projectiles as they are riding .

Moreover, with the speed built up, they can’t deal with enemies other than the ones in front of them .

If any of them stop carelessly, it would cause a series of collisions among themselves .

Even if an ally of theirs stops beside them, it’s not like any of them can stop and provide help .

「It doesn’t matter how many troops the enemy has, you just have to face them upfront . 」

I lightly tap the leg of an enemy’s horse with my longsword .

The strike wasn’t filled with much power, but with both of us travelling fast, it was strong enough to send the enemy flying like he was. .h.i.t by a cannon .

That was when I felt a large impact to my body .

I felt my breath escape me and the food I ate before battle start to rise up from my stomach .

Obviously, the might of the enemy is also doubled .

Brus.h.i.+ng against them a tiny bit results in such force .

Falling from your horse is practically a forgone conclusion when colliding with a defeated enemy, and losing one’s legs would guarantee death .

「Be careful not to b.u.mp into anyone . 」

Schwartz wiggles his ears like he doesn’t like what I asked of him .

「I have to get serious too . 」

I exhale and widen my eyes .

When I concentrate like this, the enemy’s movements appear to slow down .

I easily deflect an incoming spear and then slice the unguarded body of the enemy soldier in half .

I intercept an enemy’s sword with my longsword and knock the weapon out of the enemy’s hand .

I grab the tip of the spear which was thrust from my right side and pull the soldier off his horse .

My fist greets the left enemy’s face .

I take care of enemies one after the other, meanwhile Schwartz does his best to make fine adjustments to the route he is taking so he doesn’t run into anything .

Of course, he doesn’t slow down .

The cavalry charging formation is meant to penetrate the ranks of the opponent they are charging towards .

However, the soldiers are ultimately still human . When a foreign substance disrupts the formation by diving in from the front and rampaging, it’s natural for those on the side or the back to be curious .

That means……

「They’re slowing down . The formation also looks messier compared to how it was in the beginning . 」

「Now we can hold them back . Defend with your life!」

A trained group of infantry is more than enough to stop cavalry that have lost their speed .

「What are you doing!? You could have simply ignored the single rider!! Don’t slow down and run into the enemy……」

If possible, I want to take out the commander of this cavalry unit .

I give Schwartz’s belly a strong kick .

There’s a man who is scolding his subordinates .

He is wearing fancier clothes and has knights more heavily equipped lined up around him…… he must be the one .

「Commander!」

Realizing my aim, a cavalry hastily gets in front of his commander to protect him . Schwartz simply rams his body into the smaller horse and sends him flying .

「Get him! Stop that guy!」

Two more try to attack me .

I brandish my sword and let Schwartz take care of the rest .

Although I feel an impact on my left arm and right side, the dragon armor I’m wearing does not allow blades to penetrate it that easily .

Coughing out a bit of gastric juice is unavoidable .

「Commander, please stay back!」

「Y-yeah!」

The superior changes direction and runs away, while the final cavalry gallops toward me .

I’m surrounded by enemies . If I’m delayed enough, I’ll fail to catch him .

「Hmp!」

I swing my sword at full force at the enemy in front of me .

This time, I don’t use the blade side, I use the blunt side .

「Gyah!」

The man is blown into the air instead of cut in half .

Coincidentally, the man flies perfectly in line with my desired target and crashes into the commander running away while still wearing his heavy armor .

「Dowah!」

The impact breaks the horse’s hind legs, causing the animal to trip and flinging the commander to the ground .

No further instruction is needed after that .

Schwartz chases down the commander and crushes his skull with his hooves .

「Oooooooooooooh!!!」

I raise my sword in the air and roar out .

Hmm, compared to how I yelled in Zan Dora, this one is lacking ferocity .

Dammit Schwartz, don’t fold your ears like I’m annoying .

「He got the commander……?」

「A single cavalry rode in and did it……?」

「Halt the attack! Halt!」

The enemy cavalry stop moving .

With their supreme commander dead, they have no other choice except to abandon their charge .

It looks like the infantry stood their ground until the end .

With that, my role is done and I can let commander so-and-so do his best with everything else .

「I must avenge the commander . 」

「For the honor of our cavalry regiment . 」

All the heads of the stopped cavalry turn toward me .

This is not good .

「Schwartz, run!」

I break through the thinnest part in the enemy lines and exit the cavalry formation .

「Don’t let him get away, after him!」

「Kill him no matter what!」

My only choice is to run in the opposite direction of my allies .

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like I can join up with them with 3000 cavalry on my tail .

「Don’t you guys feel embarra.s.sed chasing one person with all your forces!?」

「Shut up, you were the one who attacked first! Just let yourself be captured and die, you demon . 」

Even after changing my course, the enemy still has me as their only target .

With the horses following me, it almost feels like I’m the one leading them in a charge .

Normally, Schwartz could accelerate and shake them off .

「You’re tired?」

Schwartz is breathing hard .

It seems I made him run too much . The distance between me and the enemy is shrinking rather than increasing .

When I tug on his ear, he looks at me with foam coming out of his mouth like he can’t run anymore .

「Idiot, if we get caught, you’ll be turned to horse meat . 」

I feel Schwartz go a tiny bit faster .

「Your favorite mares will get impregnated by other stallions . Young ones especially, one after the other . 」

Good, his speed has returned .

As I was thinking of heading back towards my allies, an enemy squad appears in front of me .

I was initially surprised that I may have mistakenly stumbled into the enemy camp, however I realize that this was just a small raid unit . Or maybe it’s a scouting unit .

「Hey, isn’t that the cavalry regiment? They’re coming this way?」

「What’s going on!?」

The scouting unit couldn’t imagine that the cavalry with me leading the way was their enemy .

Neither arrows nor bolts were fired at me . It’s probably wise if I don’t do anything unnecessary here .

「Schwartz, pretend to be a horse from South Yuguria . 」

Schwartz stares at me, telling me not to ask ridiculous things of him when he’s tired .

I enter the enemy lines while slowly dropping my pace .

Sure enough, the enemy doesn’t form a spear wall, still puzzled by the current situation . They must think I’m an ally .

I should have some room to breathe until the cavalry catches up to me and transmits the information .

If a high-level commander is here, I might as well finish him off .

「Maestus, Your Excellency, state of war is becoming uncertain . Please retreat back to the headquarters for now . 」

「The warfront will eventually reach a stalemate . There is no need for the commander to personally observe the situation . 」

「I thought I lured them out too, but it doesn’t look like the plan worked out that well . So it all depends on Acevedo . 」

Two splendidly decorated knights are speaking to someone using honorifics .

If what they said is true, then that guy is the commander overlooking the battle . If I take him out, the tide of battle may change .

I didn’t think he would come to watch . This is a golden opportunity .

「An enemy soldier has invaded――! It’s that guy!!」

「Tch . 」

c.r.a.p, looks like the cavalry informed this unit about me .

Everyone around me is looking this way now .

I don’t have a second to spare .

Silently, I jump off my horse and run toward the man named Maestus .

「Your Excellency!」

Before the knight could unsheathe his sword, I slice him in half from the top of his shoulder .

「I won’t let you!」

I decapitate the other knight who stands in the way .

Now, n.o.body is left between me and Maestus .

The situation is the same as before with the cavalry commander, although the risk of him escaping is slim because he isn’t on horseback .

「Demon……is that you?」

The man draws his sword in one smooth motion and makes a bitter expression .

Maybe he knows his own strength doesn’t reach mine . I can do this .

「I won’t let you kill His Excellency!」

One more person interferes .

Obviously, I’m going to cut him down quickly……

Except, the soldier is female and clings onto Maestus to protect him .

I stop my sword short .

「Save His Excellency!」

「Shoot your crossbow!」

I feel the sensation of a bolt hitting my back .

The moment I turned around, more than ten enemy soldiers jumped between me and Maestus .

「Che . 」

Going further than this is impossible .

I give a parting look to Maestus, hop on Schwartz and leave .

The enemy soldiers prioritized protecting him so they don’t chase after me .

That works out for me, since Schwartz seems to be at his limit .

「Your Excellency, are you injured!?」

「No, my life is saved because you protected me . So the demon referred to that man? Goursat, Argus…… both were killed in an instant . 」

I was one step away, what a waste .

Perhaps shaken from their general being in danger, the enemy stopped their attack and retreated .

Our side has suffered its share of casualties and we retreat as well, not wanting to fight anymore .

The gazes of respect from the corps commander and his subordinates feels pleasant .

I find a female staff officer around 40 years old who is staring affectionately at me and when I tempted her for a night visit, she silently handed me the key .

When I return to Sekrit and the poor trio and company, they have already settled things on this side .

With that said, it wasn’t a one-sided victory . Left with no options and unwilling to let the battle become a stalemate, the enemy soldiers withdrew .

After all of that, it seems the one who achieved the most in this battle is the Starving Dog squad .

「The valiant efforts of everyone in the Starving Dog army is beyond comparison . It can be described as the incarnation of a fierce G.o.d . 」

The commander of the Royal army heaps words of praise .

「……did you see what the Starving Dog unit accomplished?」

「Yeah, I never expected them to do this much . 」

The other feudal lords also commends . It would have been nice if I could see how much of a role they played .

「Still, they may be enemies, but that is too……」

「Granting death to invaders is the natural thing to do…… however showing humanity on the battlefield is……」

Something doesn’t seem right .

「Did you see it? That woman hunted enemies with an expressionless face and didn’t show any mercy to anybody regardless of whether they surrendered or were fleeing . 」

「When I asked about her, I found out she was Lord Hardlett’s lover . 」

「Shhh! His lover can do that much! Think about what would happen if you upset Lord Hardlett himself……」

Sekrit, what on earth did you do?

「Who knows . 」

Viscount Binbo and Baron Gokhin were huddled around Count Monas.h.i.+ and all of them were trembling .

「You didn’t see anything, right?」

「「「Of course, absolutely nothing . 」」」

Sekrit’s question was answered in sync by the three n.o.bles .

You guys are lords of a military faction, aren’t you?

「I find myself mysteriously unable to resist her . 」

「She has the aura of a very important person . 」

「She even took command of the army . 」

I won’t ask anymore .

「I’ll listen to the rest from you in bed . 」

「That’s exactly what I want . You owe me a favor too…… I’ll have you repay that in bed . 」

The consecutive mortal combats was tiring today .

I’m ent.i.tled to my time of embracing a woman at night .

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