32. The Final Battle (1)
Yuri threw the sword that had impaled both the orc and the soldier. The orc group that had been struck collapsed in a heap.
Yuri gripped Guilty and leaped off the saddle.
“See you later.”
The black horse, seemingly understanding his words, turned and galloped away from the orcish formation.
Yuri knocked down a nearby orc and looked up.
Briol’s knights were piercing through the enemy’s formation, one after another, and breaking through.
“Crush them all!”
“Yes, Sir!”
They scattered left and right, targeting the orcs in the enemy lines.
The gap created by Briol widened.
Gradually, more troops broke through the orcs’ defenses.
The orcs began to retreat.
Yuri swung his sword wildly, holding Guilty. Orc flesh tore off at the tip of his blade.
Now, it took several Orkbals to stop him.
Suddenly, he felt a chilling gaze and looked up.
“Okuah.”
Okuah was standing in the distance.
Since they were closer than before, Okuah’s massive physique and long arms appeared even more imposing in Yuri’s vision.
His crimson eyes, unlike those of any living creature, seemed to emit a dark, hazy aura.
Meeting Okuah’s gaze, even Yuri momentarily froze, overwhelmed by an intense pressure.
Yuri clenched his teeth.
It was humiliating to be unable to move, paralyzed by the enemy’s killing intent.
He unleashed his mana to forcibly move his body.
“Get lost!”
Rather than a sword, Guilty struck like a hammer, enveloped in mana, smashing through the enemy.
He struck down the clinging Orkbal, only for another to take its place.
Yuri fended off their attacks, kicking one to the ground.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
He should have been exhausted, but instead, his energy surged.
It had been a long war, but now, victory felt within reach.
The prolonged battle had worn down the orc forces. Though the Allied Forces had suffered heavy losses as well, it was nothing compared to the orcs.
He plunged Guilty into the Orkbal’s head.
“Your Highness!”
As he retrieved his sword, Laurent followed closely behind.
“What is it?”
“There’s a shaman over there. What should we do?”
In the direction Laurent indicated, he saw a line of Orkbal standing in formation. At their center, an orc shaman glared at the battlefield.
He could sense the web of mana spread across the entire battlefield as the battle raged on.
The dispelling spells cast by the mages and shamans were locked in a stalemate.
But just as Yuri had done before, if they eliminated the shamans one by one, their mages could unleash their power.
“One won’t be enough.”
“Couldn’t we just kill them as we see them until it works?”
“By the time that happens, the battle could already be over.”
“Then there’s nothing we can do.”
“Yes, there’s nothing we can do.”
Laurent grinned. Yuri’s lips curled upward.
It was a sight he couldn’t have seen from the Laurent of his past life.
He still had a hint of arrogance, but his attitude was more straightforward. oreover, back then, Laurent hadn’t respected him like this.
It was actually the opposite.
“Ah, Laurent.”
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“Are you feeling confident?”
“Of course.”
“Then let’s go.”
“I’ll follow you wherever you lead, Your Highness.”
Yuri charged forward, with Laurent close behind.
Without needing orders, the knights of Briol cleared the orcs ahead and followed them.
Yuri became the spearhead, crashing into the wall of Orkbals.
Countless axes crashed down, aimed at him.
But he didn’t care.
At most, he only had to deal with those directly in front of him. The rest would be intercepted by his comrades.
“Get him!”
“Protect the Prince!”
“Dieee!”
The knights of Briol collided with the Orkbals.
Dozens of weapons clashed in deafening bursts.
With Jared guarding his left and Laurent on his right, Yuri pressed forward, overpowering the orc warriors with sheer strength.
In this deadly battlefield of kill or be killed, Guilty seemed almost alive, raging fiercely.
“Akuakkai!”
“Yeah, it’s me.”
Those were the Orkbal’s last words.
Guilty pierced through its jaw and emerged from the top of its skull. Blood and brain matter flowed down its face. As he pulled Guilty out, the body collapsed.
A small opening was made.
Yuri forced his way through it.
On either side, the orcs turned to grab him, while the orc shaman began fleeing.
Yuri swung Guilty in a wide arc, scattering the orcs, and caught the shaman from behind.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
Guilty pierced through the shaman’s spine.
The shaman’s body convulsed.
Yuri twisted the blade, finishing the shaman off completely. Then, he pulled his sword out.
The Orkbals, now without their shaman, went berserk.
But the knights of Briol remained calm, dealing with them efficiently.
Yuri was already searching for his next target.
And that was when…
“Ah…”
He looked up and saw a dark wave sweeping through the orc formation.
Someone spoke the name,
“The Empire.”
The Imperial Knights swept through the orcs like a tidal wave.
Their momentum was overwhelming, as if the power they had shown so far had been merely a facade.
Briol and the Empire.
Two spearheads pierced the shield formed by the orcs, creating a crack.
The orcs were crumbling.
“Let’s go!”
Their ultimate target was Okuah, standing firm beyond the chaos.
Yuri continued breaking through the orcish forces.
Okuah still hadn’t joined the battle, merely observing.
“Let’s see how long you can stay out of this.”
Before long, Yuri reached the final gate.
A group of elite Orkbals stood guard around Okuah.
They were clad in armor and wielded finely crafted weapons. Unlike the orcs who charged haphazardly, they were disciplined, guarding Okuah like a well-trained knight order.
They darted back and forth, guarding Okuah’s position with ease.
“Huh…”
Yuri paused for a moment. The atmosphere felt different.
“Don’t charge recklessly!”
Yuri warned, but a knight, caught up in the heat of the moment, charged ahead.
“Uraaahhh!”
His head struck the ground moments later.
“You idiot…”
There was no time to mourn his death.
uri glared at the Orkbal, gripping Guilty tightly. He could sense the refined flow of mana. They had mastered the Mana Method.
Moreover, a dark haze emanated from their bodies—a trace of the dark shaman’s sorcery Yuri had seen before.
This was no ordinary orc.
Could dark magic be immune to dispelling effects?
“Everyone, hold your positions.”
Fortunately, the Orkbals didn’t leave Okuah’s side.
Yuri made a decision.
“We’ll deal with those bastards slowly. For now, let’s change our target.”
If they weren’t going to come out, he could just kill all the other orcs and leave them for last. The tide of the battle had already turned, so there was no need to rush.
A decisive victory was now in sight.
Then, it happened.
The ground trembled.
“This is…”
It was a sign that the Ancient Worms were emerging.
Yuri pressed his hand to the ground, extending his senses. The tendrils of Heart and Soul Slash sensed the movements of the Ancient Worms.
“Everyone…”
Yuri shouted.
“Watch out for the ground!”
Nearly ten Ancient Worms burrowed through the earth like a swarm of locusts.
Screams filled the air.
Ancient Worms erupted from the ground, their massive maws open, swallowing the Allied Forces.
The sudden turn of events brought chaos back to the battlefield.
Yuri prepared to face the Ancient Worms.
Suddenly, a swarm of dark shadows swept across the sky.
“Look above!”
A flock of wyverns circled ominously overhead.
Unlike before, the wyverns weren’t ridden by orcs, but that made them even more threatening. The creatures spread their wings, ready to dive.
The Allied Forces had come to hunt orcs, not to battle monsters like these.
“Watch out above!”
Even as he shouted, Yuri couldn’t help but feel exasperated.
Below the ground and above their heads—how could they possibly defend against both?
Meanwhile, the orcs regained their momentum and pushed the Allied Forces back.
“Hey, there!”
A wyvern swooped down on a knight engaged in battle with an orc.
Before Yuri’s warning could reach him, the wyvern snatched the knight’s head and soared upward. Then, from a great height, it dropped him to his death.
“Damn it.”
The sudden appearance of the monsters instantly turned the tide.
Was this part of their plan too?
Yuri turned to look at Okuah.
He stood high above, gazing down at Yuri with glowing crimson eyes.
Suddenly, a foul stench wafted past him.
Yuri knew what it was—the aura of dark magic he had felt when he encountered the dark shaman.
Standing before Okuah, Yuri felt as though he finally understood something.
The reason Okuah could command such monstrous creatures.
“Dark magic…”
Yuri muttered to himself, and then, he heard a voice in his ear.
[You are correct.]
“What?”
Yuri’s eyes widened. It was Moyongchan’s voice.
[It’s a technique called ‘Secret Sound Transmission.’ It allows messages to be sent from afar.]
Moyongchan continued,
[That bastard is using sorcery. It’s tough holding him off.]
“What are we going to do?”
[Clear the orcs around you first.]
Moyongchan’s breaths were labored, as though he were locked in a struggle with Okuah.
“So we just need to get rid of those guys?”
[Yes.]
Moyongchan’s voice grew serious.
[After that, I’ll take care of him.]
* * *
Amid the chaos, Yuri glared at Okuah and the elite Orkbals guarding him.
Their numbers were few, but their individual strength was formidable.
Sending in ordinary forces would only result in meaningless deaths without inflicting any significant damage, just like the unfortunate knight who lost his head earlier.
“Yes, it’s a good opportunity.”
He had prepared for this moment .
Yuri sent a knight to Ragna.
Before long, a different horn sound echoed across the battlefield. Then, from Ragna’s position, a new banner was raised.
The banner-bearer moved swiftly and quickly rushed toward Yuri.
“Just hand over the banner and leave.”
“Yes!”
If they needed to eliminate the elite Orkbals, they simply needed to gather those who could handle it.
Before the battle began, Yuri had set up a signal to summon the most capable warriors from each nation.
Yuri raised the banner high and waved it.
Laurent, Jared, and Raymond soon approached Yuri.
“Your Highness, is it finally starting?”
“I’m not sure, though…”
“It’s been a while since I’ve had a good fight.”
Then, a loud voice rang out.
“Ha ha ha! Summoning the best, this will be exciting!”
It was Jose, the knight of Brusin. Proin and Jonathan arrived soon after. Then Sybilla and Fenec of the Holy Kingdom appeared, along with a few paladins. Wolf, the commander of Liberta, approached with his knights.
Renowned warriors from other nations also strode toward them.
Finally, the Empire appeared.
Led by Graham and the Third Knight Commander, over ten knights in black armor followed them. It was an overwhelming force.
Yuri declared,
“To end this war, we must kill Okuah. And to do that, we need to eliminate those guards first. It’s a request from my master, Moyongchan.”
The knights gathered around Yuri all looked at the Orkbals.
None showed any fear of the enemy.
Yuri lifted the corners of his mouth and drew Guilty.
“Let’s kill him before we suffer heavy losses.”
“He was the first to stride forward. The rest of the troops followed.
They advanced toward their target, with the backdrop of the battlefield filled with rampaging monsters from the grasslands.
The elite Orkbals, sensing something amiss, turned to look at Yuri, their faces hardening.
Killing intent radiated from them.
But instead of faltering, Yuri quickened his pace.
His whole body tingled from the sharp hostility of the enemy. But as the knights with him raised their mana, the killing intent emanating from the enemy was immediately pushed back.
It was as if that energy pushed Yuri forward.
Their ranges overlapped.
Yuri swung Guilty wide.
The Orkbals at the front met him, clashing their axes against Yuri’s blade.
Clang!
Starting with that first clash, the rest of the knights collided with the elite Orkbals.
The sound of weapons crashing against each other echoed like a perfectly timed symphony.
Yuri laughed loudly.
Until now, he had always taken the lead, but this time was different. He was surrounded by capable warriors who could hold their own.
Fighting alongside such skilled allies bolstered his confidence.
The core of the Allied Forces collided with the enemy, their combined strength shaking the battlefield.