190 - Withdrawal
Day three.
On the third day since the start of the defensive battle, the First Wall was in tatters.
Resistance eased at night, but that didn't mean they weren't attacked at all.
Three units of three thousand men each had been deployed in rotation to face the enemy, but they had reached their limit.
Many soldiers and knights had been sent to the rear.
By the time nearly half had been sent to the rear, the limit had been reached.
Furthermore, this number included support personnel. Not only combatants, but many of these support personnel had also been sent to the rear.
However, those sent to the rear were mostly the primary combat forces.
Neu-san, the commander of Zain's Holy Order of Knights, came to report to me, staggering.
His expression was grim, and Neu-san looked as if he might collapse at any moment.
"We've reached our limit. We should abandon this place."
Hearing the words of the staggering and disheartened Neu-san, I nodded with a tired expression.
Clara had been transporting soldiers and supplies using Damian's large porter, but I decided to have the artillery withdrawn now.
I instructed Clara that she didn't need to bring in any more supplies, and decided to carry out the withdrawal. However, if we did that, the enemy would break the wall and flood in while the withdrawal was in progress.
"I'll begin preparations for the withdrawal. Wake everyone up. Also, let the troublesome monsters through."
I had my own preparations to make, and after seeing off the staggering Neu-san, I called Mei.
"Mei, it'll be your turn soon."
Mei, who had been lying down in human form, seemed quite exhausted.
"...Understood."
Rubbing her eyes and standing up sluggishly, Mei leaned against the wall to push herself up. Even Mei, a Divine Beast, was considerably worn out.
The voice of the Fifth Head came from the Orb. For some reason, he was moved.
'Mei, to think you've worked this hard...'
While wishing he'd evaluate me just as much, I looked at the sky where the morning sun was about to rise.
We had been defending in a small, understated way, but from here on, it would get a bit more difficult.
Looking back at the Second Wall—
"It's too early, more than I thought,"
—I grumbled.
—Early morning.
Clara came to the Second Fort to report that the First Wall would be abandoned on the third day.
Clara, who had been moving frequently between the fortress and the front line, had dark circles under her eyes.
Aria woke up in a room at the Second Wall and confirmed Liel's orders from Clara.
"Didn't he say we'd hold out for at least five days?"
Clara looked at the sleepy Aria with envy.
"The plan has changed. Besides, they say the numbers are greater than expected. Eva has also become unable to move."
Eva had already retreated to the fortress.
With Miranda and Liel holding the line, more than half of the First Fort had been sent back to the fortress, and it could no longer be maintained.
Aria got up and began her preparations.
"I just have to go out, right? I'm ready on this end."
Clara relayed the information she had seen at the front to Aria.
"Large monsters are starting to gather. Please be careful."
She said that powerful monsters, which had been in the rear until now, had stepped over the army that wasn't making any progress and come to the front line.
Giant monsters such as Land Dragons, Trolls, and Ogres.
Sand Golems had also been confirmed, and the plan had proceeded by intentionally letting such monsters through.
Aria changed and stepped out of the room.
"Now, it's our turn."
Stretching, Aria began her preparations. Watching her back, Clara also wanted to return to the fortress quickly, deliver Liel's orders, and rest.
(It's a problem that Liel-san's Connection will be cut the moment I rest. I'm the only messenger, after all.)
Clara wasn't the only one who could operate golems, but neither Liel nor Damian had a hobby of kissing other men.
Their opinions were in agreement, and since Damian also had work, the messenger had inevitably become only Clara.
(Sigh, if the First Wall is breached, next I'll just be moving between the Second Wall and the fortress... but the frequency will probably increase. I wish anyone would just learn golem magic.)
Clara wanted to return to the fortress immediately and lie down in bed. However, there was a problem.
(The fortress is a hell of its own in a way, so I wonder if I can actually rest peacefully... As I thought, we need to secure more personnel urgently.)
It was fine to have work, but Clara wanted to do something about the situation where there were no other people—.
There was a wide space between the walls—.
This was also to deal with monsters that broke through. It was built with a slope so that the attacking side would be at a disadvantage.
Earthen walls had also been constructed, and preparations to meet the enemy were complete.
With Aria at the lead, Alette and her vice-commander from Rolfis's side took command of the unit.
From Zain's side, the vice-commander duo of Crate and Albano participated.
None of them used horses, they stood in formation, awaiting the monsters.
Valkyries guarded around Aria, and Alette spoke to her.
"Now then, I'm looking forward to the young lady's command. You're the commander here."
Alette said to Aria as if joking. However, Aria only said,
"Once we defeat the enemies in front of us, it's over, right?"
Upon hearing that, Albano burst out laughing.
"Ain't that the truth! With a ragtag army like this, there's no such thing as coordination!"
Then, Crate pressed in on Albano.
"You, at such a critical time!"
"Huh? You want a piece of me, blockhead!"
Seeing the two of them in a confrontational mood, Alette and his adjutant shook their heads.
"You two haven't changed at all. You've become vice-commanders. Why don't you settle down a bit?"
Then, colored smoke rose from the First Wall. A signal fire.
"It's time."
Alette looked at Aria.
When Aria nodded, Alette gave orders to the unit. Seeing that, Albano and Crate also gave orders to their own units.
A force of five thousand was about to fight under Aria.
Aria tightened her grip.
Looking ahead, the gates of the First Wall were slowly rising in the distance.
From there, monsters charged, as if a wave were crashing in.
None of them were swarms of Goblins or monsters considered weak, they were large monsters. Land Dragons could also be seen.
Then, a Valkyrie spoke to Aria.
"Preparations are complete."
Aria nodded and pointed her spear toward the surging wave of monsters.
"The enemy is coming. Roll them!"
At Aria's voice, the soldiers laid barrels on their sides and lit the fuses. Using the slope to roll them, many barrels rolled toward the great army of monsters.
At the First Wall, allies had used magic to blow the monsters away and then closed the gates.
The Valkyries beside Aria said,
"The number is around three thousand. The opponent has splendidly sent their elites."
"Master is amazing."
"It's time for us to stand out and have our appeal time."
Aria, resisting the urge to hold her head in her hands, looked ahead.
Three thousand was not even one percent of the total. However, in terms of quality alone, they were likely among the strongest class of monsters.
If these monsters had charged the wall, the First Wall might not have been able to withstand it.
As many of the rolling barrels were swallowed by the wave of monsters, they exploded midway, reducing the number of those monsters.
The Valkyries said,
"The second wave is ready."
"They're falling for it perfectly."
"It's a victory for gunpowder. But the dragons won't stop. How unreasonable."
Even when the gunpowder-filled barrels exploded, the dragons and large Trolls did not stop. Even Ogres were blown away, but they were still trying to stand up.
As the second wave of barrels rolled, a large lizard opened its mouth and attempted an attack.
Aria and the others hid in a nearby depression to avoid the attack.
A large mass of flame slammed into the Second Wall, but—
A twin-tailed Valkyrie said one thing.
"Too bad. It's already been reinforced."
The flames dissipated. Unlike the First Wall, the Second Wall had increased strength.
As the explosions blew the monsters away once more, Aria stepped out of the depression with her weapon. The Valkyries also stepped out, each taking up their weapons.
The allies also emerged from the depression and began attacking with bows and crossbows.
The Land Dragons that climbed the slope advanced while blocking the arrows with their hard skin, so—
"The road is closed here."
Aria dove directly under the head of a Land Dragon and swung her spear, sending out a slashing attack.
As the Land Dragon's head fell, the Valkyries also charged at Trolls with weapons in hand. They slashed, cut them down, and searched for the next prey, they launched their arms to catch a Troll, and unlike with the Hippogriffs, they pulled the wires back to move themselves toward the opponent.
Using that momentum, they cut down more monsters.
Their movements, which didn't even let a drop of blood splatter on them, were like a dance.
Aria avoided a log swung down by a Troll, then leaped onto it, ran up, and pierced the Troll's head with her spear.
Leaping down from the falling Troll, Aria, who had been wearing red armor, was now more stained with the blood of monsters.
Alette, who was cutting down surrounding Orcs and Ogres in an instant with a greatsword, saw this.
"Truly valiant. A talent I'd like to have."
Then, while the adjutant gave orders to subordinates to clear the monsters gathering around Alette,
"We are short-handed, after all. I miss the days when we were barely scraping by. But now—"
Alette readied his greatsword and formed a faint smile.
"I know... [Multi Air Blade]."
As Alette swung the greatsword, several invisible blades of wind were generated, slicing through the monsters in front of him one after another.
It was a skill particularly effective against densely packed groups, and Alette and the others processed many monsters.
Then, there was a monster preparing large-scale magic.
"Troublesome. Hide in the depressions immediately."
When Alette said that, one knight dashed out and used a skill.
It was Crate.
"Leave this to me! [All Shield]!"
As Crate raised the spear he held, several large shields appeared and blocked the opponent's attack. They blocked both attacks and magic, and even held back the monsters' charge.
Alette looked at Crate.
"Use that sooner! Or rather, tell me first if you can use it!"
He complained.
After all, he hadn't heard that Crate possessed such a useful skill. Alette had thought he could only produce a shield to protect his party.
Crate, laughing loudly,
"I am growing every day!"
He wasn't discouraged even when scolded—.
After dealing with the elites the opponent had sent in, we decided to withdraw from the First Wall.
Many soldiers and knights were dragging their bodies, and due to fatigue, the movement speed was slow.
My withdrawal was last since Mei was with me, and I also needed to confirm the destruction of the fort.
I had a skill to check if anyone had been left behind, and above all, as the person in charge, I wanted to project the image of being the last one to cover the retreat.
An image strategy.
Actually, this isn't something to be underestimated.
On the battlefield, a commander should be positioned in the rear. I am actually that type, but doing that from the start presented a problem.
Because I had no track record, the soldiers would feel anxious.
No matter how capable I am as a commander, many of the soldiers are commoners. Even among knights, there are those who look down on commanders who don't step forward, so what would happen if a youngster like me did that?
The one who taught me that was the Seventh Head.
It would be understandable for the Third Head, but it seems that tendency was strong even during the Seventh Head's time.
'Hmm, a truly fine display of commanding. At the front when fighting, and the last to leave when fleeing. This alone encourages the soldiers.'
The Fourth Head looked displeased.
'If we prioritize efficiency, Liel should be placed in the center. But there's the image strategy, so let's have him work hard this time.'
While wishing they'd worry about me more, the soldiers withdrew with the help of Aria's unit.
"I might just make it in time."
Monsters were attacking the shaking First Wall. Since magic was flying toward me, I thrust out my left hand and blocked it with a Magic Shield.
The First Fort, battered and looking as if it would collapse at any moment.
"You fulfilled your role. Thank you."
Saying that, I mounted Mei in her kirin form and soared into the sky. My magical power was at its limit, and there was little I could do.
Due to lack of sleep, my physical condition wasn't perfect.
It was truly painful, but I needed to buy time for my allies to withdraw.
Soaring in the sky, after confirming that my allies had moved sufficiently far away, I readied the silver bow and arrow. The tip of the arrow was on fire.
"Sorry about this."
When I fired the arrow of light into the interior of the wall, it ignited the place where the gunpowder was stored, and the wall exploded.
It didn't blow away flashily, but rather felt like it was slowly collapsing.
As it collapsed, the monsters clinging to the wall were caught and crushed.
Up in the sky, I watched the scene while feeling lightheaded.
Mei said,
"The allies have entered the wall."
When she said that, I collapsed onto Mei's back.
"Then, I'm counting on you... carry me. If possible, don't drop me."
Mireia-san reacted to my words and actions.
'I wanted him to stay composed until the end... well, this is Liel, after all.'
She was exasperated, but I think I worked hard.
(Couldn't they evaluate me a bit more?)