Chapter: 245
The horn of war resounded, and countless soldiers marched forward.
The goblins, too, emerged from their lairs and confronted the humans, but they did not charge in hastily.
Understanding the sheer number of humans and sensing their formidable spirit, it was no easy feat for the goblins to rush into battle.
In such a standoff, the elves readied their bows.
“Let us take the glory of the first attack. We shall engrave the terror of elf hunters into their minds!”
The distance between them and the goblins seemed far too great for a bow to reach. Nonetheless, the elves retrieved their arrows and placed them on their bowstrings.
But then…
“Wait a minute! Our new weapon will be far more effective than those flimsy elven arrows! Grant us the honor of the first attack!”
Standing in the way of those elves were the dwarves.
“Ha! Do you think the dwarves’ weapons can reach those goblins? That’s a rather dull joke. The range of dwarven weapons is as short as their stature!”
“Even so, shooting such pathetic arrows at goblins likely won’t deal any significant damage. Or are you planning to set your arrows on fire before shooting them? You lot who scream like your bones are cracking over a mere snapped twig?”
“Are you done with your nonsense? You little dwarven scoundrel!”
“And if I am done? What are you going to do, you cursed pointy-eared brat!”
As usual, the elves and dwarves began to bicker, even with the goblins as their common enemy in sight. Perhaps if the goblins weren’t around, they would’ve turned their weapons against each other.
It was the Knight King Lucius, who gathered everyone, trying to ease the escalating tension.
“Both of you, calm down! With war looming, now is not the time for us to squabble amongst ourselves.”
Despite the Knight King’s words, the elves and dwarves continued to glare at each other.
If I’d known this would happen, I should have just called one of them. The Knight King felt a pang of regret.
“For the first attack, I wish to start with the dwarves’ new weapon. I hope the elves can understand.”
“What? Those dwarves’ toys? Who knows if their toys will even work properly?”
“Haha! Unlike you softies, these guys acknowledge our inventions! Isn’t that amusing? We’ve already shown the king our new weapon! The judgment of someone who has seen its power firsthand!”
At the dwarf’s words, the elf turned his gaze to the Knight King, who then attempted to persuade the elf.
“I’ve heard enough about the prowess of elven archery. Their accuracy and power must be unparalleled.
But what we’re about to begin is war—facing a multitude of enemies.”
At the Knight King’s words, both the elves and dwarves paid close attention. They couldn’t afford to dismiss the King’s counsel, who had established a great kingdom.
“Are the elves’ arrows enough to slay all our enemies?
If not, it might be wise to conserve some elven arrows.”
“Conserve? What do you mean?”
“Literally. Elven arrows do not spring forth infinitely. I’d prefer to use them for sniping important foes.
Given their archery skills, isn’t it reasonable that they can select the most threatening of the numerous goblins and target them?”
The elf nodded at the Knight King’s reasoning. If it were within bow range, hitting the target accurately would be a walk in the park.
“The new weapon crafted by the dwarves… while quite potent, lacks the finesse for precise targeting.
Thus, I would like to ask the elves to focus on eliminating hobgoblins and orcs.”
“I see. So you want us to aim for their heads.”
“I’m pleased that the conversation is moving along swiftly.”
Instantly, the hint of displeasure on the elf’s face brightened a bit.
“I’m not thrilled about these dwarves stealing the first attack’s glory, but it can’t be helped.”
“Thank you very much.”
With one problem resolved, the Knight King glanced around.
The dwarf who had been squabbling with the elf had already exited the command tent and was in the process of preparing the new weaponry. The diminutive beastman who had brought Bistria’s army was staring intently at a rat beastman beside him, who was munching away on something resembling rice cakes.
The rat beastman, who had introduced himself as the commander of the Ratkinia Shield Corps, was devouring a pouch of rice cakes while still shouldering a shield larger than himself.
Seeing this, the Knight King felt a slight concern creep in over whether the provisions for the army were adequate.
And then…
“Oh… This flag… This flag is imbued with divine energy…”
“This is the renowned undefeated flag. Truly remarkable. It’s woven with so many complex magics that it’s practically incomprehensible… Surely, only a divine being could create such a treasure…”
The great warrior of the Lizardmen and the representative wizard from Procyon were completely entranced by the Knight King’s flag.
The flag, bestowed by the Goddess of Life, was intertwined with far too complex a magic for even wizards to grasp, which naturally piqued the interest of the spellcasters.
But what was driving the Lizardman to show such interest? He was even kneeling, clasping his hands in prayer!
A Lizardman warrior about to head into battle, ignoring everyone else’s gaze.
Perhaps the only fortunate aspect was that he finished his prayer promptly and rose.
“I’ll arrange each army as discussed beforehand. Then we’ll commence battle with the dwarves leading the charge, so please be ready.”
At those words, the rat, still munching on the last piece of rice cake, swallowed it with great gusto and shouted loudly.
“Yes! Just trust me! In the name of Graytail! I will definitely safeguard the front line!”
With a cute appearance belied by his enthusiastic spirit, the rat beastman inspired a silent nod of agreement from the nearby cow beastman.
Thus, the leadership of each army exited the tent to initiate the war. Only after sending away the wizard, who had been scrutinizing the flag until the end, did the Knight King pick up his helmet.
“Whew… May the divine guide us.”
While the threat of ogres still loomed, the Goddess of Life had sent a message via the priestess promising her assistance.
Placing the helmet upon his head, the Knight King grasped the flag tightly.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“Alright! Listen up, everyone! This is the moment our inventions shine! Execute perfectly!! If you shoot in the wrong direction again, I won’t let you off the hook!!!”
A vast number of dwarves sprang into action.
The sight of them piecing together oddly-shaped wooden devices and securing them was proof of their expertise, having practiced this task countless times.
The machine they assembled was optimized for hurling projectiles,
In other words, a primitive catapult.
“Alright! Ammo! Bring me the ammo! Don’t forget to generously coat it in oil before loading it!!! And make sure to ignite the fuse before firing!”
However, this ammo wasn’t just any ordinary rock.
It was a specially crafted piece of wood, ingeniously fastened together with rope.
Designed specifically to engulf all fire-sensitive goblins in flames.
“This time, the loading mechanism is iron, so it will weigh a bit more! Still, we’ve prevented the catapult from bursting into flames when lighting the ammo! From now on, make sure to echo all orders precisely! Check the oil!!”
“Oil check!!!”
The dwarves moved in unison, echoing their chants.
“Load!!”
“Load!!!!”
Once the ammo was loaded into the catapult, oil was sprayed liberally on it.
“Ignite!!”
“Ignite!!!!”
“Fire from the prepared catapults!”
“Number one! Fire!”
“Number two! Fire!”
“Number three! Fire!”
“Number four! Fire!”
“Number five! Fire! All catapults, fire now!”
Five ignited projectiles soared from the catapults, the oil instantly igniting the rope, causing the projectiles to shatter into countless pieces mid-air and scatter wide.
A rain of flames erupted above the goblins, raining down a myriad of debris. A divine retribution for the goblins weak to fire.
Despite this successful barrage, the dwarves didn’t cheer; they moved on to their next action.
“Now we will commence autonomous fire! Shoot everything until we run out of ammo! Burn every last enemy!!!”
In this way, the dwarves relentlessly bombarded the goblins with fire from their catapults.
Yet their new weapon suffered a critical setback; due to recklessly spilled oil igniting, three out of five catapults caught fire and were rendered useless, leading to the depletion of ammo.
Nonetheless, the fiery onslaught cascading upon the goblins sufficed to declare the onset of war.
“Epona Knights! Charge! Focus on splitting the enemy apart!”
The mounted knights and their beastmen surged forward, racing toward the clustered foe.
“Bistria, strike the enemy’s flank.”
The coalition force, comprising several beastmen, began to slightly shift to the side.
“Ratkin! Maintain your formation and advance! Press the front lines!”
The shield corps of the ratfolk at the very front pushed forward, forming a solid wall.
“O mighty dragon warriors! Surrender to your instincts and rampage!!”
The scaled warriors, the lizardfolk, let out unrestrained roars without a second thought, clutching their obsidian weapons as they barreled towards the goblins.
“Huh, it’s quite the racket up front, isn’t it? What say you, Elf?”
“We simply hunt those worthy of being hunted.”
The wizard chuckled bitterly at the elf’s stoic words and began casting fire magic, while the elves conjured wind spirits, infusing them into their arrows before nocking them onto their bows.
And thus, the war commenced.
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