Oukoku e Tsuzuku Michi Chapter 354

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 pass 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 squishing sounds beneath his hooves echo loudly .
I also recklessly swing my sword and shield .
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!」
「Damn demon…… shoot! Shoot him full of holes!」
Multiple arrows and bolts soar at me .
The one that stopped was the enemy .
My shield protects me as I’m charging and allows me to maintain speed .
I feel numerous blows hitting my shield 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 pushing 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 shields 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 .
It’s been so long since I’ve had this feeling .
About twenty enemies stand before me, all with the same swords and metal shields, plus the man at the far back with the red shield is the commander .
「Prepare yourself!」
The very first man shouts as he approaches me and swings down his sword, which I block with my shield, 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 shifted to the right, instead I use the momentum to bash the next enemy with my shield .
The sensation of his facial bones getting crushed is transmitted through my shield .
Using the foe’s body to stop my initial slashing 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 shield is lifted to defend my head, I twist my body to dodge the thrust at my torso, then I shift 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 shield at one enemy while slicing in half another through his shield .
Noticing that the enemy let go of his sword, I leave my shield 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 headbutt, bashing 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!」
Crap, I let go of my shield .
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 shield!」
「Gununu……」
It’s Celia and Mack .
Mack’s entire body is dripping with sweat as he picks up my shield .
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 coarse-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 shield .
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 shield 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 shield, the large man flies backwards .
「Uooooh!!」
Mack is also forcibly pushing 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 finishing off the executioner’s with spears and crossbows .
With Leopolt and Myla also in command, our forces are slowly pushing 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 .
The owner of the spear is a knight wearing red armor unlike the small fry around .
「Woah . 」
That thrust was dangerously close to hitting me .
The spear is also a nice silver color .
「I’m not done yet!」
The knight retracts the spear so a follow up attack can be performed, a feat which takes considerable skill .
Although not as heavy as a strike from Irijina, it is comparable in speed .
「This is the finisher!」
I falter when dodging the spun spear, allowing an opening for a full-powered thrust .
Failing to evade the sharp thrust―― it gets caught in my left hand instead .
「Yes, your attack is quick, but has no weight behind it . 」
Unless such an attack was a surprise, it won’t finish me off .
A prompt yank pulls the spear out of the knight’s hand .
「A…… ah……」
「Sorry . 」
I position my Dual Crater above the blankly staring knight’s head .
Right before my sword reached the downward looking head of the knight resigned to the inevitable outcome, I see long hair spilling out from beneath the helmet and catch a whiff of a sweet scent .
「Guh!」
My Dual Crater barely stopped in time .
The blade actually split open the helmet and cut off a few strands of hair .
With a dry clang, the two parts of the helmet fall to the ground .
「You were a woman!? You should have said so in the beginning, I almost cut you!」
The woman was taken aback when I yelled at her, then her face becomes dyed with anger .
「So what if I’m a woman!? I’m a soldier of South Yuguria, whose allegiance is sworn to Her Majesty Wilhelmina, and I’m your enemy!」
Pulling out the knife at her waist, the female soldier assaults me .
「Careful! Let me take care of it!」
I hold out a hand to stop Celia from jumping in and stand in front of the woman myself .
「Die, enemy of the Empire!」
Her knife easily gets deflected by the arm guard on my left hand while my right hand dives into her crotch .
「Ah!?」
Finding a gap in her armor, my hand squirms into her pants and I insert three fingers in her hole all at once .
Messing around with Sekrit paid off .
「Owwーーーthat hurts!!」
I see blood trickling when I pull my fingers out .
「Oops, you were a virgin? Treat this as lesson of war then . 」
「What lesson……」
She drops the dagger and squats down .
「Uuuuu…… my virginity…… I had the resolve…… even so……」
At least I made her lose the will to fight safely .
If she continued to resist, she might have been killed by her own allies .
「How dare you do that to big sis!」
Woah, a sword this time?
It’s a pretty silver sword too .
When I bend my body backwards to avoid the slash, I discover the attacker is another female knight . This one looks to be one size smaller than the first .
「I’m coming to save you now!」
She shouts as she charges again .
Unfortunately, her attack is much lighter and much slower than the first woman’s attack .
「I’ll take that . 」
I steal her sword, lift her up and roll her pants down enough to fully expose her ass .
「What are you doing!? Stop thaaat!」
I thought I could demoralize her in the same way, but I guess she’s a little too young .
「How about this?」
「Ah!?」
I shove two fingers into her ass .
Now she’ll lose her will to fight and will obediently become my prisoner .
「Nhiiih! Don’t…… I was nervous this whole time because this is my first battle…… ah, ah, ah, aaaahーーーーーー!!」
「She peed herself . 」
「Oh my . 」
Celia calmly states .
This is a wonderful mess I created .
The small knight slumps to the ground in tears .
No shred of defiance remains in her .
My goal is achieved for now…… I guess .
「I’ll make amends later . 」
Let’s leave these two to our allies .
Mack, Celia, and I found the place where the fighting will revolve around .
「If we can take that hill by dawn, the bow cavalry can overlook the enemy and shoot as they please . The enemy won’t be able to remain here!」
Looking closer, I see Myla has taken command of a battle around the hill too .
She must have also figured out the importance of this point .
Reinforcements from the enemy are coming out in droves .
The enemy commander has been properly identified as well .
「Let’s assist Myla and secure that hill . 」
I want to get to her as soon as possible, but I can’t relax when the night limits visibility so much that enemies can be hiding anywhere .
「Hmph!」
I cut down one of them .
「Eei!」
Celia slashes at the feet of another, then stabs the fallen soldier to finish him off .
「Mmngh!」
Mack crushes the head of yet another with his warhammer .
「Hup . 」
Sekrit severs the arms of an enemy soldier with her swords, then severs the man’s legs while she’s at it, and leaves him to die .
「When did she……」
She found her way behind us in this chaos .
Oh well, she’s good with swords so I’m sure she’ll be a good help .
「Myla, I’m here to assist . 」
「Lord Hardlett!」
Myla smiles happily .
The commanding officers around her also cheer .
「Ooh, Lord Hardlett has arrived . 」
「Our victory is practically assured!」
I don’t know if she unconsciously let her guard down when we get praised but Celia doesn’t realize the enemy behind her .
「Take that!」
「Auu!」
The enemy’s sword grazes Celia’s shoulder .
It was a shallow wound which the enemy intends to add on to .
「Kuh . 」
Celia hastily holds her sword up in defense .
It ends up being unnecessary as my body automatically takes action, jumping in from the side and slicing off the enemy soldier’s dominant arm .
「I’m fine! It’s a minor scratch!」
Celia pleads her case that she’s still in good shape, except I can only focus on the blood staining her clothes .
My vision instantly turns red .
「You hurt my cute Celia…… unforgivable…… absolutely unforgivable . 」
「Hiiih……」
I grab the legs of the fallen soldier who lost his arm .
This guy seems to be the lead so a few others are following behind .
They’re all equally guilty .
「Ugaaah!!」
「Gyaaaa!!」
I swing the man’s body at the other incoming soldiers .
He’s being treated like an abnormal warhammer .
「Gueh!」
「Guaa!」
My swings come from above to crush my enemies and then from the side to knock them away .
「This is absurd…… Lord Hardlett goes crazy when a woman gets injured?」
「How frightening…… it’s not any different to the rumors . 」
You guys, be quiet .
I hear Sekrit’s laughter as well, although it doesn’t matter to me now .
「Gaah!」
When I smash the final enemy, my human warhammer seems to have gotten lighter .
I look over and see that the soldier’s body has torn apart, leaving only his legs in my grip .
「Fumu……」
Celia’s not too badly injured so I guess I can let them off .
That guy’s head and body flew off somewhere .
If I rely on my anger to fight, I tend to make more careless mistakes .
Taking a deep breath, my eyes happen to find Sekrit facing off against an enemy .
The enemy is attacking her and she’s merely blocking .
Don’t tell me she’s struggling .
「Kuh, I got hit . 」
To my surprise, the enemy’s sword cuts Sekrit in the thigh .
Thankfully it was a small nick, however it’s the stream of blood on her dark-skinned thigh that sets me off .
Once again, my vision turns red .
「She did it on purpose! That’s definitely done on purpose!」
Celia’s voice seems far off in the distance .
I let out another animalistic roar and lift up the enemy over my head .
「You hurt my Sekrit!」
「Ugyaaa!」
I snap the enemy in half by bending him too far in the opposite direction .
Blood leaks out from the deceased man’s mouth, anus, and the crack in his body .
「Sekrit, are you okay?」
「It’s only a scratch . ……pfft, that wasn’t bad . 」
I’m relieved they’re both okay, but they have to be more careful .
If you girls got hurt, I wouldn’t be happy even if we won .
「Guoh!」
Mack was the next to grunt .
An arrow apparently struck him in the shoulder .
「You alive? You’re a pretty big guy so you’re an easy target . Be careful . 」
「…… okay . 」
Let’s get back to fighting .
We help out Myla’s squad by rampaging wildly .
We defeat a tenacious enemy unit and take out the commander at the head of the army .
When the morale of our soldiers start darkening, we pick a big fight to encourage them, and push the enemy back again .
Myla commanding well at the head of her army and then Leopolt mobilizing the reinforcements at the optimal timing gradually tilts the battle in our favor .
A crack of light appears on the horizon to start brightening the sky and by that time most of the hill is in our hands .
Our bow cavalry is on standby and ready to rain down arrows on the enemy when the sun clears up the field of vision .
The end is near .
「Infantry, go rout the enemy left wing! Just one more push . If we fend off this counterattack, we can drive off the enemy!」
Myla wipes the sweat off her forehead as she yells her order .
Her dignified voice rouses me to fight harder on the frontlines .
I find a chance to take a breath and our eyes happen to meet .
Myla, while her face is dirty and stained with blood, nods and gives me her best smile, feeling that our victory is all but guaranteed .
At that time, I feel my face tense up .
「――――!」
I shout as loud as I can, but my voice gets drowned out by the background noise .
Myla notices my mouth move and smiles, her body acting on its own .
「No need to worry! I won’t be done in by something of this level!」
Myla deflects the spear aimed up at her on horseback with her shield, then finishes off the enemy with a nicely timed counterattack .
That’s not it .
I’m not worried about that guy .
I run to her while pushing aside enemy and ally alike .
There’s no way I make it in time though .
One enemy makes his way through to Myla’s side .
He was most likely remarkably desperate to get this far through all the jostling .
A sword is swung in passing .
Fresh blood gushes out from Myla’s neck .
More was spilled this time than when Celia and Sekrit got hurt .
Myla holds her hand to her neck, looking at my face as she slowly falls off her horse .
Protagonist: Aegir Hardlett . 24 years old . Winter . Wartime .
Libatis Reinforcement Army Supreme Commander
Subordinate Squad:
Goldonia Royal Army – Seventh Division Army Corps – In Battle
Infantry: 6800
Archers: 1100
Cavalry: 1500
Hardlett Army – In Battle
Bow Cavalry: 3700
Escort: 160
Chariots: 75
(including vacancies left by wounded)
Subordinates: Leopolt (staff officer), Celia (minor injury), Myla ( ), Irijina (charge), Luna (charge)
Gido (charge), Pipi (charge), Pochi (charge), Marta (standing by), Keith (corps commander), Sekrit (minor injury)
Current Location: Melisbark outskirts
Achievements: Defeated siege army, repelled Melisbark first and second attack