Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 283



Only Krnovel

Episode 283. The Opponent (4)

Kraxal looked dumbfounded.

“No, is there such a miracle in the Code of Light?”

Accelerated corruption? In any faith, such a ‘seemingly’ evil miracle is likely to be criticized by the same believers. If it were a faith that worships skeletons like the Immortal Church, it would be worthwhile to try to intentionally expose the flesh, but the opponent is the Code of Light.

“Well, there are rumors that the Grail Knights are actually monsters, and since there are so many idiots gathered over there, there must be some with special talents. Anyway, if their plan is to buy time, then it’s working.”

“Can’t the shamans stop it by performing miracles?”

Since it was a question that could have been asked, Kima shook her head without getting angry.

“Corruption and worms are natural phenomena. They cannot be stopped by Olkan’s power. The enemy simply encourages them. The moment they are activated can be prevented, but they are so sporadic and it is difficult to focus attention on them when considering other threats. For the same reason, it is difficult to blame the enemy.”

Kima added some advice there.

“I have already ordered pest control measures. However, since we may have to throw away what was in the same container when it rots, it would be best to assume that the military rations will be consumed about 20% faster than usual.”

A huge army consumes a huge amount of food.

Normally, we would take into account some loss when supplying, but the additional consumption of 20% of military supplies was a dizzying number for the commander. At this point, there was no point in walking up the mountain to make supply easier.

“……All right.”

“Don’t feel sorry. We are also preparing rituals for a counterattack. However, winter will come soon, and food is not infinite. I would like to decline the 17th experience of advancing while eating dead orcs.”

“It seems like a lot. General Kima, Shaman.”

“I said the same thing the 16th time and got the same answer. If you really want to be cautious, you should probably teach your soldiers some orc recipes.”

Of course, since Crackers had a similar experience, there was no need to teach them the recipe.

Kima was right.

The food consumed by an army of tens or millions is enormous. Even if they conquer Isacre territory at this rate of advance, they will not be able to make up for the consumption. They were an army that constantly consumed and burned.

Even though it meant making some sacrifices, Kraxal had no choice but to drastically change his strategy.

***

“You changed your strategy.”

Isaac was keenly aware of the change in the movements of the orcs centered around Kraxal. Now, the orcs began to focus on nimbly breaking through the already-made path. Instead, Kraxal seemed to have changed his tactics to send a large number of scouts first and respond quickly when attacked.

“He’s a smart guy. He already knows I’m going to engage in guerrilla warfare.”

Isaac said as he watched the orcs moving from the high mountain peak. It was not difficult to discern their movements, as the number of orcs alone made the ground seem to change color.

But Hesabel smiled faintly at Isaac’s words and answered.

“What if you knew? What can you do?” I would say.

“Okay. Let’s get started.”

Isaac gave instructions to his followers.

Isaac’s power was not limited to the forces of the Isacre territory. He had the followers, relics, and rituals that he had worked hard to gather. These were things that could not be shown in the Isacre territory, so they had no choice but to shine in guerrilla warfare.

Finally, the battlefield environment that Isaac had wanted was created.

Isaac’s followers began to prepare to move from their respective positions.

***

That night, the army of the Olkan Discipline took the first ridge of the Gelifard Mountains. Under the orders of Kraxal, who judged that since they had changed to a speed war, they had to hurry, the army endured considerable forced marches and broke through. There were some resistance along the way, but casualties were low, not even in the double digits.

“If we continue like this for two more days, the Isacre territory will be right in front of us.”

It was a distance that could be covered in a day on a fast horse. However, Kraxal had not yet encountered the forces of the Isacrea army, let alone Isaac. Two days was a time that would certainly allow for collisions along the way. Even that would be a considerable forced march.

Kraxal discussed the new strategy with Kima. The map he had obtained from Soer made the conquest of Isacrea territory easier. Although it was a somewhat old map, he had no choice but to believe that it had not changed much and proceed with the conquest.

“The places where we can expect concentrated resistance are the Valley Bridge and the so-called Perth Valley. If just a few Paladins line up and block it, they can block the entire force. However, if General Deron Manho on the right wing attacks the upper Perth Valley at the right time, it won’t be difficult for us to get through.”

“How are your legs?”

“The bridge is the problem. It is a wide and sturdy stone bridge that can accommodate carriages, but there is a chance that they will destroy it. The valley is quite deep, so it will take time to repair.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to assume destruction?”

“Well, this bridge is practically the very value of the Isacre territory. Without this bridge, the Isacre territory would have fallen from being a strategic point connecting the east and the west to the outskirts of the empire. On the other hand, we only need to build a bridge, so it will only be delayed for a moment.”

Kima nodded.

“The enemy is desperate, so it would be better to assume destruction and have the carpenters prepare to build a bridge. The enemy is a fanatic of the Light Code. Look at the priest who was captured and brought to the barracks this time. I have lived for about 400 years in my previous life, but I have never seen such a fool… … .”

“I heard that too. You bit off the tormentor’s finger?”

“Not only that. He dug out the left eye to see if it was really glass, but it was hot enough to burn his hand. It contained a miracle. If all the priests of the Code of Light are like that, I’m going to advise Khan to just back out.”

Kraxal didn’t answer.

Because he knew that Kima’s lament was empty words. However, if the enemy’s morale was that terrifying, it was not impossible that the army of Olkan Discipline would be frustrated before achieving its goal.

At that moment, Kima suddenly raised his head and stood up. He stared into the air and quickly gestured to Kraxal.

“Manhojang. We’d better be on high alert. I can feel a miracle coming.”

Kraxal hurriedly grabbed his weapon and ran out of the barracks. What greeted him was a thick fog that he had never seen before setting up the barracks. It was not unusual for thick fog to suddenly appear on the mountain, but it was clearly unnatural since Kima had warned him.

“Get up! Get on alert and prepare for the enemy!”

The orcs, who had just finished their forced march and were preparing to go to sleep, grumbled, but prepared themselves like veterans.

Kima immediately sat down and began to prepare her own ritual, while Kraxal walked around with a murderous expression, watching beyond the fog.

The forest, where even beasts and insects had fled, was silent. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of branches rustling in the wind. If a single conscript could maintain this level of prayer, Kraxal was confident that he could recognize all the imperial troops as elite knights.

Hiss, jaw! The moment the sharp crack sound was heard, Kraxal barely managed to raise his hand to block the flying arrow. The arrow pierced his palm, but that was it.

Kraxal broke the arrow and pulled it out of his hand.

‘Red feather?’

The flagpole was pierced with a red feather. Kraxal recalled that most of the heads of the dead Cheonho and Baekho generals in Soer had red-feathered arrows embedded in them. That meant that there was a demon-possessed sniper over there.

A few more arrows flew in from beyond the fog.

Shh, shh, shh! This time, the arrows struck the faces and necks of orcs who were staring blankly into the fog, rather than those who were as powerful as Kraxal.

“Sniper! Return fire!”

Kraxal gave orders to the direction the arrows had come from. However, in this thick fog, even the sharpshooters of the orcs could not show their skills. The enemy was even flying over the trees, quickly changing positions to pierce the orcs’ heads. The orcs’ morale dropped exponentially in this absurd situation where they could see the enemy but could not see themselves.

“What the hell, what kind of demon is that… … 5, 6 thousand commanders! Prepare for enemy attack and conduct a search! Shamans, please trace the arrow’s location!”

Eventually, Kraxal took a risk and sent his troops out.

It was a search in the middle of the night, and in the thick fog. There was a possibility that they would be ambushed by the Isacrea Army. However, they couldn’t leave the sniper alone, and even if there was an ambush, they didn’t think they would lose.

When the search party was dispatched, the sniper stopped shooting, perhaps out of desperation.

Soon after, a gentle wave of greenish light radiated from the main camp, pushing away the fog. General Kima’s shaman had succeeded in the ritual. Kraxal counted the number of orcs who had been sniped in a depressed manner. A total of 27. Most of them were ordinary soldiers or at most, the rank of 10th Lieutenant, so the damage was not great.

However, 27 out of the 28 arrows, excluding the one aimed at the crax’s egg, pierced the neck and head, so morale hit rock bottom. Even the arrows shot by Keshik guided by the ancestral spirit could not guarantee such an accuracy rate.

“Call the search party back.”

Kraxal ordered his adjutant to return the search party that had been searching for the sniper. Fortunately, there was no sound of fighting, so it seemed there had been no ambush.

As strange as it was, when the search party returned, Kraxal could see what had happened.

Of the orcs who had gone out to search, there were about 100 who had not returned. Among them, there were 5,000 or 6,000 chieftains, as if it were a given.

Kraxal covered his face at the tragedy that occurred during the search that lasted less than 30 minutes.

What became of them became known the next day when the sun rose.

All over the forest, orc corpses were hanging like fruit. The orcs were impaled on branches, so exquisitely displayed that they could not reach their heads but were still visible. Some of them had been eaten, and their body parts were nowhere to be found, with rough sections.

Among them, the heads of 5 to 6 thousand people were also discovered.

They were found biting each other’s mouths, whether they were eating each other or kissing, and seeing this image made Kraxal question the fundamental question of what he was dealing with.

What kind of madness is this?

“General Kima Shaman. Are we dealing with the Code of Light?”

“… … I don’t know. But one thing is certain. All the items we have prepared to deal with the Code of Light will likely be useless on this battlefield.”

But Kraxal’s frustration had not even begun yet.

***

“Gasp, gasp… … !”

The orc ran along the mountain path, breathing heavily.

His breath was on his throat and the taste of iron was in his mouth, but he couldn’t stop running. Every time he looked back, he confirmed that no one was there, but he still wasn’t sure that he had shaken off his pursuer.

But the price for looking back so often was that he missed the tree roots under his feet.

“Ugh, gasp!”

The orc, who had been rolling around vigorously, turned around in a hurry and drew his sword. Fortunately, no one was following him. Only then, convinced that he had shaken off his pursuer, the orc let out a breath and caught his breath.

“Are you all rested? Then let’s get to work now.”

Suddenly, a face popped out from behind him, along with a creepy voice. The orc tried to scream, but his lungs were so empty that he could only spit out a rasping sound.

The man, who even the orc found beautiful, pressed down on him and brought his face close to his. However, a bundle of tentacles that did not match his beautiful appearance were crawling out of the man’s left eye.

“Tell me everything you know.”

Crunch, crunch. Before the orc could open his mouth, the tentacles dug between his eyes and dug deep into his skull. His brain filled with tentacles, shattered fragments and fluid seeping out through the punctured eyes.

A moment later, Isaac, who had retrieved the Eye of Chaos, wiped away the tears of blood that he could not tell were his or the orc’s. The orc had considerably advanced information.

‘The hard work of chasing it paid off.’

That morning, Kraxal received reports that the troops led by General Deron Manho on the right wing had been halted by a sudden landslide. There was also a report that General Deron Manho, who had been isolated, had somehow been found in the middle of the forest with his brain and eyes melted.

Without further ado, Kraxal sent a messenger to the main force.

Soon after, the Khan’s bodyguard, the Keshik, began to appear at the forefront.

That is, Sahul Khan, the great chieftain of the Olkan Discipline, was now on the battlefield and had begun to personally command the army.