Fun Territory Defense Chapter 240

[Another Viewpoint] Rescue is...

[Jalpa]

The worst. I thought that today must be the worst day of my life when just a few days ago, thanks to a bunch of idiots, I made a lousy blunder in the presence of His Majesty.

But apparently that was no big deal.

There was no doubt in my mind that right now was the worst moment of my life.

"Your Excellency...! I knew you were waiting for me!"

"Surprisingly, they enjoy playing by the rules, don't they, little bastards...!"

They charged in, dodging attacks from the left and right. Of course, we knew that our opponents would be waiting for us in the back.

In the strategy meeting held just before the attack, we had anticipated that they would be waiting for us at a narrow part of the road, or that they would collapse the road to stop us and rain arrows down on us from the left and right. Either way, artillery would be used to stop them.

From Shelbia's point of view, it would be difficult to predict the enemy's movements if they were allowed to advance to the fortress city. If possible, they would want to push the enemy into a cramped environment where they would not be able to choose a formation, and then blow them up with artillery.

If so, we should stop our progress just before the place where the enemy would be waiting for us and burn down the front and the left and right sides of the city. Since neither Targa nor I had any problem using magic on horseback, we could hopefully attack unilaterally.

That was what I thought, but then I was hit by an unexpected situation.

"...! Sir, what lies ahead is neither a human wall nor a fortress! It is a mature dragon! It is probably some kind of earth dragon!"

"Nonsense...! A second dragon after the one in Scudetto? Currently, there is a near all-out war going on at the border with the Kingdom of Jiernetta, and they bring a dragon here to Centenna!?"

Was the enemy commander out of his mind? Or have they so many trump cards in their hands that they could cut a number of trump cards, namely, mature dragons?

No, that was not the point now.

"...Dragon's breath in such a small place is no joke! Fall back once! Lure them out this way and surround them! Meanwhile, keep moving! The enemy's goal is to stop you! If we stop, the cannon will...?"

As I was yelling at them to give them instructions, I suddenly heard an unpleasant sound.

It was the sound of footsteps. It was the sound of many footsteps, similar to the rumbling of the earth. And It was the sound of a massive assault, not enough to reach 1,000 or 2,000, but 10,000.

"We're going to be trapped...! I didn't think the artillery was a decoy...!"

Seeing the infantry-centered army approaching from the left and right with a cloud of dust, he realizes that his own idea was a fatal blunder.

My fire magic was far superior to cannons. Cannons couldn't pose a threat unless they caught us surprised. I had thought so, but it appears that I was just being stubborn to hide my true feelings without realizing it.

The cause of this blunder was unmistakably due to my fear of the threat of the cannon.

In my head, I was convinced that the enemy would surely try to intercept us with artillery.

I had no idea that they would use such a classic pincer attack! 

"Sir! Our Knights are retreating to Centenna! Is that alright?"

My own tactics had been a fatal mistake. Stunned by this fact, Targa came in front of me and yelled at me. Seeing the frustration and irritation in Targa's eyes, I finally restarted thinking.

"...I know! We have no choice but to retreat! Those of you who can use magic, use all your strength to unleash it on the human walls approaching from the left and right! Just by crushing the first group, your legs will slow down considerably!"

"Ha!"

With these instructions, I turned my horse around while chanting magic myself, while Stradale passed on the orders.

To buy time for the retreat, many arrows were fired. A breath later, an intermediate level of magic was fired at the oncoming enemy forces. This was followed by magic by myself and Targa and the others. This was a wide range of magic, also known as "advanced magic" or "grand magic".

Not only was it more powerful than intermediate magic, but its range was unparalleled.

"Band of Fire, Flare."

With these words, the magic was executed.

The fire dragon skin on the right arm and the Mithril clasp on the right arm were enveloped in flames and wriggled like a living creature.

The flames roared and blazed, gaining momentum and heading toward the oncoming soldiers.

The Flare engulfed the living, consuming them all, creating a human-shaped ash heap that surrounded us.

On the other side, a massive tsunami of water and a line of spears created by earth magic. These were effective and succeeded in stopping the large army that was coming down the slope like an avalanche.

I almost let out a breath of relief unconsciously, and a chill runs down my spine. If Jiernetta's strategy had worked so far, there was no way this would be the end.

They would not have gone to the trouble of sending a rat back home for free after it had come out of its nest.

"Don't worry...! They've stopped moving! Run...!"

I looked up and raised my voice.

Immediately after, the sky darkens.

I heard nothing. But there was a sensation of pain all over my body. Strange. I was riding a horse, but I felt something pressing against my right shoulder, my waist, and both legs.

Slightly, my vision brightened. I have no idea what happened, but I understand that I wasn't moving at all right now. It was dangerous. At this rate, even if the cannon did not come, that pesky dragon would come.

My blurred vision gradually became clearer.

I saw a horse running toward us. It was a ridiculously large horse. It was so big that I couldn't even see the face of the rider.

And I felt strange. The horse was right in front of me, and a little dirt was on my face. And yet, I heard nothing. It was as if someone were reaching out and shouting from the top of the horse, but I couldn't hear anything. Without knowing why, I reached out my hand toward the owner on the horse. As I try to raise myself up, I feel a terrible vertigo. Oh, well. I was lying on the ground now.

I looked down and noticed that my hand, which should have been familiar to me, had changed shape.

Two fingers were missing from about halfway down. I thought to myself, as if it were someone else's problem I heard, "It looks like he has sustained some other major damage".

"...His Excellency the Marquis!"

The determined face of the knight who had dismounted his horse shouted right in front of me as I was still lying on the ground. My ears seem to have finally come back to life.

"I understand... wait a minute..."

I couldn't move my mouth. My voice sounded muffled. As soon as I heard the sound, I felt a strong numbness in my body and a headache. They pulled on my arms and forced me to stand up. He was pulled so hard that he was forced to rest his weight on the knight's shoulder.

Then I learned of the devastation.

The cavalry must have been hit by a cannon attack in the rear of the cavalry. In front of him were the corpses of more than a hundred knights and horses. No, perhaps they were still alive. But on the battlefield, they were as good as dead.

Should we consider it a blessing that the knights were divided into smaller groups? If you look in the distance, many knights were still in retreat.

But just by looking around, it seemed that a considerable number of them had fallen prey to the artillery.

The war had changed. It has changed. I was aware of this fact, even if I didn't like it.

A large knight on horseback was coming toward us from a short-distance away. The knight's physique was remarkable and well-endowed. There is no mistaking it, it was Targa.

"My lord...! Your Excellency...!"

Targa wondered what had happened to the knights he had led. Maybe the deputy knight general is leading it.

"A commander gathers in a place like this...!"

My voice was gravelly. Targa nodded with a serious face and looked at the knight.

"Can we get His Excellency on the horse?"

"With your help, Targa-sama... we can strap him to your body."

Hearing this conversation, I became extremely irritated.

"No, you idiot...I can't be of any assistance to anyone...!"

I said and tried to move away from the Knight, but was immediately stopped by the two men.

"No, don't force yourself!"

"Your Excellency, right now, your leg..."

At their words, I lower my gaze. My neck ached, but I didn't care.

Indeed, my right leg was missing from the knee down. I wondered when the treatment was done, and it seems to have been bound tightly around the thigh, but the bloodshed continues even now.

"...You're not taking me with you… Join up with Stradale and regroup in Centenna."

If I take myself back, there was a good chance that we would all die. If that happened, this defense would be out of control.

That was what I thought, but I soon realized that my own thinking was naive. Already, there was nothing that could be done.

In the distance, I heard explosions and earth tremors, and Targa and his men were preparing to retreat, holding back their rampaging horses.

I let out a deep breath. This is no time to be defending my self-respect. I am the Marquis Jalpa Bull Ati Fertio, the senior nobleman protecting this land. It would be a disgrace to the nobility if I did not do my best.

"...Targa."

"Ha!"

I called his name, and Targa turned around. I look into his eyes and tell him in a low voice.

"Call Van, call Baron Van Nay Fertio...there is no other way to win."