Chapter 164

RMSBS – Episode 164 . Going to War (4)

*Rumble*

*Rumble*

The ground shook with the sound of the horses’ hooves .

The Kashuka Knights turned around after sweeping through the Imperial Army’s entire infantry .

“Aagh!”

“Help me!”

Any Imperial Army soldiers in their way would be swept to the side under the might of their charge . This was the tactic that they had employed to great effect .

“Stop them! Enter the tortoise formation to stop the cavalry!”

Following the commander’s orders, the Imperial Army moved in unison . A moment later, their shields and spears came together to form a solid wall around them .

But such a formation was useless when their opponents were heavily armed with magic weapons . Their formation would have been effective against regular cavalry, but this was anything but that .

“AAAAGH!”

They forcefully broke through once again .

In the face of such a reckless charge, the Imperial Army broke down .

The Imperial Army’s spears couldn’t pierce through the enemy’s armor, and the shields they wielded broke easily .

Their shield wall crumbled easily and many soldiers were trampled by the enemy horses’ hooves .

The Kashuka Knights soon broke through the center and began heading towards the artillery .

At this rate, the artillery troops were going to be left exposed and defenseless against the enemy’s attacks .

As a result of their efforts to sustain shelling magic on the Outsiders, they were starting to run low on mana . They didn’t have enough energy to deal with the cavalry’s approach .

Despite being plunged into crisis, Desir didn’t panic and slowly examined the enemy . His two eyes were looking for the Kashuka Knights’ planned route .

‘For cavalries that can’t make sharp turns, they’re dead the moment their planned movement is discovered . ’

Having finished organizing his thoughts, Desir gave Romantica an order .

“Romantica, aim for the one third from the front . ”

The enemy that Desir was pointing at was armed with particularly good weapons in comparison to the rest of the cavalry .

Romantica, too, had noticed the superiority of his gear through the difference in the flow of mana and soon went into sniping mode . And the moment the target entered her line of sight…

*BANG*

The bullet pierced straight through the head of the Kashuka Knights’ leader, and he tumbled off his horse like a rag doll .

Using a weapon called a rifle to concentrate a significant amount of her power into a single bullet, Romantica’s shot far surpassed her mana’s limit in terms of strength .

“Don’t stop!”

“Continue carrying out the leader’s orders!”

The Kashuka Knights turned a blind eye to their leader’s death and continued charging .

Desir’s orders continued .

“Adjest, freeze the enemy’s movements . ”

As soon as he finished talking, Adjest’s calculations appeared in the form of a multitude of magical arrays in front of herself .

[Forest of Crying White Crows]

Fourth Circle ice magic .

Hundreds of pillars of ice surfaced along the trajectory that the Kashuka Knights were following .

“… … !”

Their movements immediately slowed . The wall that had appeared out of nowhere forced them to quickly change their route .

But without a leader to make commands, there was no way they were going to make a quick and unified decision .

Desir raised his hand towards the hesitant Kashuka Knights .

[Flame Storm]

A spell that would normally be classified as being of the Third Circle surged towards the Kashuka Knights with the force of a Sixth Circle spell .

And as their silver armor dyed itself red…

*BAAAAANG*

A huge firestorm erupted with a deafening roar .

“Th… there’s no way… … ”

Regardless of which side they were on, everyone that was watching the scene had the same thought .

There was no one that could survive in such flames that still continued to burn fiercely .

The Kashuka Knights that had been at the center of the explosion, as well as assisting enemy troops surrounding them, were wiped out completely .

“We weren’t told about any of this! How could a magician of this level be mixed in amongst the infantry!”

Having witnessed overwhelming magical power, the Outsiders fell into a panic .

The Imperial Army didn’t miss the opportunity .

“HRAAAAGH!”

A multitude of battle cries sounded .

The momentary upper hand that the Outsiders had claimed swiftly returned to the Imperial Army .

“I think we’ve done enough . ”

It was like Pram said .

The Starling Party had neutralized the enemy’s attacks, and completely annihilated their main troops .

They had created the current situation .

The Outsiders resisted desperately . The situation had already turned against them, yet they remained persistent .

Desir spoke to the party members as he gasped for air .

“Like Pram said, we’ve done enough… so let’s leave the rest… to the infantry…”

At his orders, Romantica questioned him .

“We’re not seeing it through to the end?”

“This is enough for now . This won’t be the last battle anyway . ”

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A magician’s management of their mana was more important than a knight maintaining their fitness . A magician out of mana was no different than an ordinary person with no training .

But that wasn’t the only reason why Desir ordered a retreat .

‘Something isn’t right . ’

Despite his overwhelming victory, he didn’t look very happy .

Going to the rear where the command center was located, the Starling Party was able to join up with Radoria and Kelt who had been active within the artillery troops . They had retreated to the command center after the Blue Moon and Red Dragon parties finished aiding the artillery unit, as well as their personal mana stores being largely depleted .

Noticing the Starling Party, Radoria approached them .

“You guys are doing great . Thanks to you, the artillery battle was really easy . There’s a tent at the back so you should rest up a bit . ”

Adjest, Romantica, and Pram hurried to the tent that Radoria was pointing at .

But Desir was different . With a stiff expression, he continued examining the battlefield .

When Desir didn’t immediately join his party members to rest, Radoria spoke to him .

“What’s wrong, Desir?”

“Things seem to be going easier than I expected it to . Since our main forces were sent to the central front to provide support, I’d expected the situation to be difficult… … ”

Radoria spoke as if she didn’t understand .

“Well that’s obviously because you guys have done so well . ”

“No, that’s not what I mean . ”

The questions Desir had weren’t about the current situation . They were more about the fundamental situation itself .

The Outsiders, created by groups of criminals all over the continent, currently possessed enough power to be called the strongest on a battlefield .

It was enough to go head-to-head with the forces provided by the Western Kingdom Union .

And the current force of the Imperial Army that was mobilized for this war was only a fifth of the Allied Forces’ power .

Sensing the tense atmosphere flowing between Radoria and Desir, Kelt approached them .

“It’s strange . Even though the troops that were sent to the western and central fronts were considerably large, when thinking about how powerful a force they have, the number of troops they sent here is far too little . ”

Kelt seemed to have realized that something was off as well .

“… … That’s certainly the case . ”

“Is it because they don’t want to take the risk? If they go all-out and lose, then that’s it for them . ”

At Radoria’s guess, Desir shook his head .

The troops they’d mobilized this time were far too big for them to have been preparing for next time .

If the Outsiders lost this battle, they did have the homunculus as a wildcard, but it would be near impossible for them to overturn the situation .

‘The Outsiders aren’t in a position to save their power . ’

He could only assume that they had something else they were aiming for .

What could their goal be?

Desir quickly reached a conclusion .

“… … The supply routes . ”

“What?”

“If the homunculus at the central front was to tie down the Allied Forces’ main forces and the supply routes in the western and eastern fronts were their main goals… ”

Radoria and Kelt turned pale .

The Allied Forces that were composed of the continent’s greatest nations were truly enormous . If the supply routes were seized by the enemy, it would become impossible to maintain all those troops .

They would lose without even getting a chance to fight the enemy properly .

Radoria spoke urgently to Desir .

“We’d better send a scouting party . I’ll tell the command immediately . ”

“We have no time for that . Romantica!”

Surprised by Desir’s call, Romantica jumped out .

“What’s going on!?”

“Romantica, I need you to invoke detection magic around the port’s supply route . ”

Flustered, Radoria spoke .

“Desir, even if it’s Romantica, using detection magic at such a distance… … ”

“We’ve always practiced within that range so it’s okay . ”

Romantica cut off Radiora’s words and began invoking detection magic .

The wind blew around her, and soon it concentrated onto one point and stretched out .

As the wind searched every nook and cranny of the battlefield, Romantica’s eyebrows flinched .

“This is… ”

Desir hurriedly asked .

“Are you getting a response?”

“Around two thousand armored people are heading towards the supply route . ”

At Romantica’s response, the expressions of Hebrion Academy’s party leaders hardened .

Kelt murmured .

“This entire assault was a ruse… … ”

The once heated atmosphere turned cold in an instant .

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