Vihera showed an expression with a hint of surprise upon seeing the rear guard in formation.
It was hard to believe that they had been completely overrun by Rei and Set just earlier.
The way their formations were tightly organised seemed to indicate that they were determined to stop anyone from passing through. But……
「It seems only a small number of them managed to reform ranks.」
Tilleyle muttered out loud from his position to the side behind Vihera. Vihera looked further back behind the rear guard’s front line to confirm the truth of his words.
There, she could see that not all the rear guard had managed to reform ranks and that there was still noticeable confusion.
Gurgast seemed to see the same thing and snorted as he held his battle axes.
「The rear guard was originally a force intended to protect the rear and provide support for the front lines. Of course, they’re not as good as the soldiers on the front lines. Naturally, there are cases where the rear is actually an elite force waiting to deliver a fatal strike against the enemy……but that’s not the case here.」
As a battle maniac, Gurgast had a strong sense for battle. Vihera smiled at Gurgast’s words.
「It is quite unfortunate that there are no strong enemies left to fight, but……this battle has been going for some time now. Having been pushed this far back, I doubt the punitive force has any options left.」
Vihera didn’t say it out loud out of consideration for Gurgast, but Rei had already defeated Noiz, the punitive force’s strongest fighter, and she had taken Digma prisoner, their second strongest fighter.
Of course, the punitive force still had many more strong fighters, but they were spread across the battlefield, so with Set and Rei on the right and left wings respectively, it would be difficult for any of them to make it back any time soon.
(Gurgast would probably start sulking if he found out that Noiz had been on the battlefield.)
Gurgast’s desire for combat made Noiz, an S rank adventurer, a target to reach.
If Vihera told him that Noiz had been defeated by Rei, it would probably cause Gurgast to sulk, even if he didn’t show it.
Gurgast, with all his tough looks, sulking.
Those who knew him superficially might have found it hard to believe, but those who knew him well, like Vihera and Tilleyle, could tell.
……Although it was still hard to notice considering how rare of an expression it was for him.
「Now then……if we can just make it through the rear guard, victory will be ours. Are you ready? We’ve come this far, so don’t do anything stupid and get yourself killed, okay? If you do, I’ll laugh at you after the battle.」
Vihera’s teasing words made everyone smile.
They knew that they were still at a disadvantage in turns of numbers, so the fact that they were able to laugh at the joke spoke to their strength of will.
They were all absolutely determined not to die here.
On the other side, the punitive force’s rear guard also knew that the battle would be lost if the enemy made it to their main camp, so they desperately tried to muster all the fighting spirit they could.
But ultimately, the rear guard’s job was to support the vanguard.
In terms of strength, they were fundamentally weaker……
「We outnumber them! In battle, with greater numbers comes victory! We cannot lose here! We are the last shield of Prince Kabajid and Prince Shurus! As long as we can hold out here, reinforcements will arrive from both wings! I’m not ordering you to win. All we need to do is to hold out long enough!」
One noble leading part of the rear guard shouted out in an attempt to boost the morale of their soldiers.
However, a number of soldiers were unaffected, having no faith in the noble’s shouts.
It was a matter of course. They had only just been brutality beaten by someone who was the embodiment of quality over quantity.
Many of them had witnessed their fellow soldiers blasted away by Rei, limbs broken and bodies covered in horrific burns from his Fire Emperor’s Crimson Armour.
For those who had seen that, the truth was heavier than a hundred lies and the battle was now hopeless to them.
But, despite that, the noble continued to shout.
Even if no one believed his words, they couldn’t retreat here……and they couldn’t be broken through either.
(Damn it, if only the whole rear guard was able to fight, we might have been able to do something……)
The noble spat in disgust as he thought that.
Rei’s breach of the rear guard, along with his Griffon, had caused incalculable losses to the rear guard.
(Why can a Griffon breathe fire? Why can it use water, ice, and wind magic? What kind of Griffon is that!?)
The damage had already been great, but what made it worse was the confusion caused by Set using skills that an ordinary Griffon would never use.
As a result, word started to spread among the soldiers that Set was a rare species Griffon, with rare species of monsters typically placed one rank higher than their base species.
In other words, that would mean Set was an S rank monster, further increasing the confusion.
Considering this, the fact that the noble had been able to reorganise his own soldiers at all meant that he was already quite capable.
Even if his soldiers were barely functional as an army.
「UOOOOOOH-!」
The rear of the punitive for
「Hii- Hiiii-!」
Gurgast’s fierce expression as he charged forward with a fighting spirit filled roar was enough to crush the spirits of the punitive force’s soldiers.
His ferocious appearance even caused several soldiers to gasp in fear.
Seeing that, the noble realised that they would be overwhelmed if nothing changed.
This was just the start, they hadn’t even crossed swords with the enemy and they were already ready to run away.
Cowardice was also contagious.
(If I want to stop it……damn it!)
The battle lines would rapidly collapse if the soldiers started to fear their enemy.
The noble could only think of one thing to do to stop it.
「Don’t retreat! If we retreat here, we’ll be defeated! If you don’t want to be defeated, you have to hold out! Reinforcements will arrive soon!」
「Shut up! Why don’t you do something about it yourself!」
The soldier’s words were certainly not the kind of language one would usually use towards a noble.
It was something that would only happen on the battlefield, but the noble didn’t reprimand the soldier……rather, he shouted out as if they were waiting for someone to say that.
「Very well! Then I’ll go myself! I will defeat Count Obrisin!」
With a shout, the noble lightly kicked the sides of his horse, which started galloping at full speed.
That was the plan he had come up with, he would go to the front and fight Gurgast himself. Even if he couldn’t win, he could still fight on equal terms.
Just doing that would be enough to raise the morale of his soldiers.
He did this because he was the strongest fight present, although that was only relative to the soldiers around him.
Among nobles who had received specialised combat training, high ranking adventurers, or veteran mercenaries……he would have been average at best.
Still, to prevent his soldiers from falling apart completely, it was his only option.
「HAAAAAH-!」
With a rousing shout, the noble readied his spear as he charged towards Gurgast.
He was outmatched in skill, so he couldn’t win in a direct fight.
That was why, he would land the first strike with the help of his horse.
The noble rode forward with that plan in mind……
「Hmph.」
Gurgast gave a small smile as he watched the noble charging towards him on horseback.
Their spear was longer than what ordinary soldiers had and was clearly a high quality weapon.
A spear like that would easily be able to pierce his armour.
But……
「AAAAHHHH-!」
Gurgast let out a roar the moment their weapons clashed as he swung his battle axes.
His left battle axe was the first to be swung out.
It deflected the spear aimed as his body.
……If the noble’s spear had been a cheap weapon, its tip would have been shattered by his deflection.
But, as befitting a noble, his spear had been crafted by a renowned blacksmith. It neither broke nor bent even when it was struck by Gurgast’s battle axe and deflected.
As a result, Gurgast’s left battle axe was similarly deflected.
Normally, this would have resulted in a draw of sorts, putting some distance between the two of them before they crossed weapons again, maybe raising the morale of the punitive force soldiers at the sight of someone from their side matching Gurgast.
……Yes. That was what the noble’s plan had been.
But, while Gurgast’s battle axe had been deflected, that was only the battle axe in his left hand.
In other words, the battle axe in his right hand had been swung out the moment the spear had been deflected.
「Guh-!」
The noble groaned in pain as a searing pain hit his torso……and his upper body fell to the ground.
His lower body continued to stay on his horse for another 10m before eventually losing its balance and falling off as well.
「Not bad.」
Those were Gurgast’s only words.
However, the way he licked the blood that had splashed onto his lips after he had cut the noble in half made him look like a bloodthirsty warrior.
A berserker. That was what all the punitive force soldiers……and even the soldiers led by Vihera thought when they saw him.
And the effect was fatal for the soldiers in the punitive force.
「U-UWAAAAAAAAAAAH-!」
「Run, run, run, run-!」
「We’re going to die! If we stay here, we’re going to die! Retreat!」
The punitive force soldiers scattered, shocked by the sight they had just witnessed.
And they had never expected their commander to die so easily, amplifying their shock.
Of course, not all of them ran.
After all, running here meant that Mercurio’s army could reach their main camp, leading to their defeat in the war.
「Don’t run! If we run, it will be the end for Prince Kabajid and Prince Shurus!」
Some people shouted that out, trying to hold the others back, but even those shouting didn’t really believe they could turn the situation around at this point.
But, even so……
(If Their Highness’ and the others can evacuate the main camp while we buy more time……there’s still a chance of victory. If Prince Kabajid and Prince Shurus join forces, there surely must be a way!
Even as they screamed internally as they tried to convince themselves, they knew that it would be difficult given the current situation.
Retreating from here wasn’t difficult.
The territory from the Brissa Plain to the Imperial Capital was still under the control of the punitive force, so none of Mercurio’s army would be waiting behind them.
But, the punitive force had also deployed the limit of what they could for this battle.
The war was supposed to have been decided when they attacked Mercurio’s main camp, so they had sent as many soldiers as they could. When the attack failed, they had readied all the remaining soldiers they still could.
In other words, even if Kabajid and Shurus could escape from here, they no longer had any more reserves to rely on.
(To be exact, there are still soldiers left, such as the Imperial Army and the Royal Guard, but they are under His Majesty’s control and can’t be used in the war. If that’s the case……then defeat is all but certain. But, I will still fight to the end!)
With that determination, a commander led what few demoralised soldiers he could still control to intercept Vihera’s forces. However, having just witnessed another noble killed so easily by Gurgast, it as impossible for them to fight to their full capabilities……in a fight that could only be described as a one-sided massacre, the group of punitive force soldiers were quickly defeated.
「……That’s the main camp where my brothers and the others are.」
Vihera muttered to herself as she cut through the chaotic rear guard, arriving at the punitive force’s main camp.
She took a step forward, leading her subordinates, towards where her brothers were likely to be.