Chapter 53: The Astonished Elves: The Land Battle, Part 1
The Fortress City Wolfvania.
It is a city located near the border of the Black Elven Empire and the Beastvania Beastkin Kingdom. A defensive stronghold was created by the Beastkin to protect the land of Beastvania.
However, currently Wolfvania… Was engulfed in flames.
There are only a few beastkin left in the city.
There lay the dismembered and burned bodies of the wolf tribe and the dark elf soldiers, drunk on the sweet wine of victory.
“Well, as expected, Your Excellency Governor Chyornyj. Please look, Your Excellency’s troops have splendidly burned that despicable city to the ground.”
“Hohoho, you flatter me too much. With something of this level, it’s only natural that we Elves can do it.”
Governor Chyornyj parades around the city in a portable shrine, looking satisfied as he rules the city.
Satisfied, he said, “Hey, soldiers, take all the gold, silver, and treasure you can find. Also, don’t leave any food behind,” calling out to the soldiers who were busy looting the nearby buildings.
“Your Excellency Governor Chyornyj, look at this. It’s a female of the surviving beast.”
A soldier, who captured a wolf beastkin, appears in front of him.
“Eek, eek… P-please, help me… ”
A beast-person who is tied up with a rope, kneeling, and begging for their life. In a feminine voice.
Just like it is difficult to discern the difference between male and female dogs at a glance, it is also hard to distinguish between male and female beastkins.
Chyornyj took a glance at the prisoner.
“Do not bring that filthy beast before me. Why don’t you just kill her already?”
Then, he unveiled his dissatisfaction and issued an execution order.
The elf who had brought the beastkin wore a cruel smile as he followed the order and replied, “Understood, Your Excellency.” Then, without hesitation, he cast the wind blade magic and tears the beastkin to shreds.
“With this, all the beastkin in this city completely annihilated.”
“Indeed, very good. Well then, let’s burn down the next city.”
Chyornyj smiles in satisfaction.
Killing everyone without even sparing civilians. And they feel no guilt for doing so.
Destruction and slaughter, these are the essence of war in this world.
And the battle is not over yet.
This conflict, which is based on ethnic cleansing, won’t end until one side is going extinct.
After taking over and destroying the city, the dark elves start searching for their next target and resume their march.
Now, let’s attack the next city. Take everything and kill off the beastkin. With light footsteps and high spirits, they move forward.
However, that march doesn’t last long.
They will ultimately come to a stop before they reach the city.
The young king led his army and stood before them.
“Damn it, I didn’t make it in time to Wolfvania…”
“Do not regret it, Your Highness. Please repay this debt in this decisive battle.”
Beastvania Beastkin Army commanded by King Leon.
The military strength is 30,000.
In response to the Dark Elf invasion, the Wolfvania reinforcements were hastily assembled.
The Wolfvania, the place they had hoped to save, had unfortunately fallen, however, their forces had managed to arrive just a few kilometers away from Wolfvania, where they set up camp on a nearby hill and waited.
“What on earth, those beasts are surprisingly fast at assembling their troops. However, I can’t imagine them being able to win against my elves.”
“Yes, just as your excellency says. This is the perfect plain for a decisive battle… Let’s crush the enemy’s main force in the field.”
The elf army noticed the beastkin army that had taken a position on top of the hill.
Their number is 15,000. Their original strength of 20,000 troops which they started with when they began their invasion of Beastvania, but their number was somewhat reduced in the fierce battle of Wolfvania.
The difference in the number of military troops is about twice as much.
However, the elves had no intention of losing. The elf thinks it’s impossible to lose to beasts who cannot use magic.
They immediately changed their formation from marching formation to battle formation. They are now ready for a decisive battle.
Thus, the two forces faced each other, and the decisive battle was fought.
“…Don’t worry, I can win. ――Alright, charge!”
Leon gives commands, raising his sword.
Following that order, an army of 30,000 beastkins begins their assault all at once. The fuse for the decisive battle has been ignited.
“Your excellency, the enemy is recklessly charged at us. Most of them are makeshift peasant soldiers, not even wearing armor.”
“Hohou, then let’s tear them apart with magic, fire.”
The elf army, holding their staffs ready, prepares for a simultaneous magical attack. By launching a preemptive magic attack, they dealt a heavy blow to the beastkin army.
It’s the elf army’s usual tactic, their formula for victory.
……However, for them, there was one miscalculation.
The ones who noticed the anomaly were the nameless dark elf soldiers who were fighting on the front lines.
“Hey, isn’t the equipment of these beastkin strange?”
“Ah, right. Everyone is using a long spear. It’s not like the usual beast.”
“They are not even wearing armor, are they? Have they finally forgotten about their armor as well?”
They sense something is different when they see the equipment of the beastkin who are charging toward them.
Usually, each beastkin participates in the battle with different weapons.
Swords, spears, axes, and hammers, each tribe typically fights using whatever weapons they have at hand. That was the fighting style of the Beastkin.
Miscellaneous, non-uniform assortment of gear, like what bandits or thieves might have.
That was the characteristic of the Beastkin army.
But this time it was different.
“Heh, isn’t that a good spear? Even the handle is made of steel.”
“Moreover, there’s enough for everyone, right? It’s impressive for a young king to prepare so many good weapons in such a short time.”
Yes, the entire army was all together and was equipped with Homeguard Pike.
The reason for this was the devastating losses in the Battle of Tigervania between the Yamato Empire and the Beastvania Army, in which significant damage was done and most of the equipment was lost.
Anyway, the beastkin army had become one unified force with ‘long spears’.
“Ready the weapons. The rest is tactics that I learned from Führer Eryutheia… Will it really go well?”
“I have no choice but to believe it.”
And, it’s not just that.
The Beastvania army was tactically one step ahead than before.
At the same time he receives the ‘Homeguard Pike’ he was taught a little secret to win.
Leon glances down at the note in his hand.
A note from Eryutheia. It says:
“――A method for winning battles.
What you need.
Soldiers… More than the enemy.
Homeguard Pike… As many soldiers as possible.
The spirit of Yamato… If there is none, it can be substituted with guts or willpower.”
It’s pretty rough. However, the subsequent sentences are very simple and clear.
“Armor is not necessary because it will slow down movement speed. Keep charging forward with full commitment to die with the spear. Don’t stop even when the one before you dies. Forward, forward, keep pushing forward until you have the enemy in range.”
Is something like this can even be called a strategy?
Leon wondered, but the one who wrote this is the Führer of the Yamato Empire who crushed his army in the last war.
Besides, we don’t have enough equipment in the first place, so we don’t have a choice but to charge anyway.
Perhaps…
Believing so, he decides to give the charge command without hesitation.
The Beastbania army, letting out a war cry and advanced fiercely.
Facing the charging beastkin, the elf army responds with magic. Once they are within 100 meters of the magic’s effective range, the mages line up their wands and begin to cast their spells in unison.
Fire magic.
Windblade Magic.
Ice Bullet Magic.
Various magic spells burst out from the elf army’s formation, attacking the beastkin’s army line.
“Grraaah! I’m burning, help me!”
“My eyes! My eyes!”
The Beastkin army, which did not wear armor, suffered heavy damage from the volley of magic. Some are burnt by the flames, others have their limbs torn off, and some continue to advance with ice bullets lodged in their stomachs.
Leon grits his teeth on the horrific battlefield.
But we can’t stop.
Advance, advance, keep advancing, until we reach the enemy. Because that’s what this tactic is all about.
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