Episode 12 : The Battle of Nosferus (1) - Part 2

"Look, Shem and the others--Lak, Glo, Tubai, Rasa!"

 Shortly before that, Guin's harsh orders had been given repeatedly to Shem and his men, who were not used to fighting in unison.

"Don't let them tear you apart. You're a trained elite. The last thing they need is to find out we're so much smaller. If you get so caught up in the fight you forget what I said, then it's Shem's last day!"

"Aye!"

 All at once, the heroes of Shem brandish stone axes and stone spears.

"Liard, Liard!"

"Good--you'll do what I tell you!"

 Istvan was nowhere to be seen among the clans of Shem that filled the area.

 Not even the holy twins of Linda and Remus are visible. Not only that, but the number of all the Shemites, including the women and the boys, not counting Caloy's 2,000, was much less than the original 5,000. The number of all the Shem, including the women and the boys, was much less than the original number of five thousand.

 This is far less than the estimate of 10,000, or even half of it, made by Mongol's scouts based on the size of the dust.

"Look. This is not an all-out war to settle scores. Don't forget that. Don't let them know how many you really have. Keep your feet up and walk with dust in your eyes."

 Guin, astride a large black horse that he had procured from somewhere, appeared to be a giant demon king leading a group of earth spirit dwarfs, or a depiction of the half-beast, half-god Sasaydon, accompanied by small demons.

 As soon as his right hand is raised high and blown wide--Shem and the others run out at once.

 Guin had divided the Semites into four groups of about a thousand men each. The mixed army, led by Roto, Iracheli, Tubai, and Kart, respectively, advanced in the shape of four elongated triangles with their apexes gathered in the center. As soon as the army of Mongol came into view, it began to move in a strange way.

 As soon as they had reached the limit of the range of the poisoned arrows, they began to circle to the right like a windmill, with each triangle as an arrow vane.

 As they do so, they fire their poisoned arrows at the Mongols. As soon as they have fired a volley, they immediately move off to the right and give their places to the next group.

 It was an axle to axle strategy that Guin adopted in order to keep his overwhelming inferiority in numbers from being perceived by his 15,000 enemies.

 Unlike the case of Longcheng, both the crossbow and the blowgun are not very effective weapons in such pitched battles on the plains.

 The blowgun, on the other hand, is not necessarily more useful than a scare, because once it is fired, it takes a long time to get another shot.

 So, after a brief outpost battle of flying tools,

"Crossbowmen, cease fire!"

"Infantry, forward!

 Under orders, the crossbow troops fell back, and in their turn, the soldiers, dressed in various colors of body armor and wielding short spears, came forward at once to dislodge the shields.

 Seeing this, Shem and the others also put down their blowguns, brandished their axes, and pushed forward toward Mongol's vanguard, shouting strangely.

"Aye, eeer!"

"Liard, Liard!"

"Aaayyy!"

 Shem's strange voice, like a bird's song,

"For the sake of Mongol!"

"Mongol, Mongol!"

"Forward, brave men, forward!"

 The voices of the Mongols and the voices of the soldiers are intermingled.

 The direct vanguard was the two thousand black knights led by Ilm.

 Ilm is the deputy director of Talos Castle, one of the five castles on the frontier that is renowned for its bravery. The troops under his command are also the best of the best, and as a guardian of the frontier, he has had many battles with the Semites.

 They were somewhat disconcerted by the strange and controlled movements of Nosferus' ape-men, which was unusual in their fighting style. Usually, Shem and his men would just spray them with poisoned arrows and then rush at them with strange noises, so we learned to deal with them accordingly.

 But the army of Shem which they have now struck, and which is greater in number than ever before - and in their eyes the Shemites have come one after the other - came in from the right hand. And when a party of them came in from the right, they would run away to the left, and they would be replaced by another, and so on, inflicting damage again and again.

"You're a monkey, you've learned how to be a monkey. ..."

 Ilm bit his lips, struck his saddle jar and stepped forward, and shouted loudly to rouse his men.

"Don't be swayed by the enemy. It's a shame for the lord of Talos to ask for help from his friends! Fight, fight!"

"Aye!"

"EEAH!"

 The high-pitched screams, the fierce clashing of swords and stone axes, and the screams and exclamations of the wounded drowned out his cries.

 That's when.

"Oh--ah,..., what's that!"

 Irum exclaimed, forgetting even the secret suspicion he felt about Shem's strategic move.

 It's--

 In the midst of the clash, which was about to turn into a crowded battle, a knight of great stature came in with a new band of Shem.

 I don't know if I can call it a person. --Ilm leaped into the saddle, his eyes wide with astonishment, and he made no sound.

 Oh-- leopard-headed warrior!

 His majestic figure astride a black horse looks even more majestic, heroic and awesome because he is followed by the monkeys of Shem, who are also called Confucians.

 To the eyes that were accustomed to seeing small, hairy, screaming enemies with red and blue pigment on their faces and limbs, the monster, naked from the neck up, wearing only a leather belt on its chest, wielding a greatsword in all directions, in the shape of a Leopard, caused astonishment beyond measure.

"Oh--what--what the--who the hell is that?"

"It's Silenus. It must be the legendary Silenus."

"Oh--what a fight, that was!"

 The Black Knights of Ilum and Talos Castle were among the numbers who later joined the Long March across the River Keth.

 So the story of the leopard-headed monster that had caused so much astonishment at Staphorus and Alvon had not yet reached their ears.

 In the midst of his astonishment and panic, the rugged leopard-headed warrior wielded the long sword in his right hand, and with agile movements that belied his huge body, he cut down the soldiers of Mongol in all directions.

 Wherever he went, there was no one who could stand against him, and whenever his sword flashed, one of them would fall with a fatal wound.

 Now, the area is beginning to show the appearance of a great battle.

 More than that, the leopard-headed warrior's action dazzled the eyes of friend and foe.

 He alone was able to fight like an asura, rivaling ten of Shem's men, or even a whole squad. Although he wore no armour, Mongol's elite could not wound him even with ten men, while the blood of Mongol flowed surely with each swing of the sword in his right hand.

"Yes! What are you doing, you're the only one, the enemy!"

 At first, Ilm, who was stunned and fascinated by the fighting spirit of this demon god, finally came back to himself, and began to shout with clenched teeth.

"Surround them with a large number and kill them! Except for that one monster, they're all barbarians who are no match for us! I'll go!

 Then Ilm struck his saddle and his horse's belly, and tried to run to the place where the fiercest battle was being fought, and was desperately held back by his panicked followers.

 The two young captains guarding the two wings could see the struggles of Irum's troops.

 Especially when you look at that leopard-headed hero who ran into the whirlpool of battle without a cloak,

"Ah!"

 The one who jumped up in the saddle and screamed was Asturias, who had just suffered an ignominious defeat at the hands of Raq's troops, led by Guin and Istvan, and lost his face.

"Oh--that's him!"

Tell the rebellious Lady of Mongol to stay away from Nosferus!

"Polack--!"

"That's him. You can't go wrong with those bastards!"

 Pollack's voice is also slightly shaky.

"Oh--"

 Instantly, Asturias ranted.

"You monster!"

"Captain!"

 Polack rushes to stop him. However, Astorias's position as captain of a thousand men, and even his self-control to wait for command and move, had been blown away by the sight of Guin.

"I'm the one who's gonna stop him."

 As soon as he screamed, Asturias kicked the horse in the belly with all the force he could muster.

 horse was startled and ran full speed into the middle of the battle between Shem and the Blue Knight of Ilm.

"No!"

 Pollack turns blue and screams.

"Save the captain. Astrias Squadron, forward!"

"Oh!"

 The right flank had left the line of defence on the right and entered the line of battle, much to the surprise of Little Count Regan, who was covering the left flank.

"Hey, did you get the message to bring in both wings?"

 He turned around and yelled. The deputy chief, Ren, panicked.

"No, no, I don't--I don't think so."

"That's strange . Astorias' squad is going into Ilum's squad."

"You're welcome, sir.

"There's no way Astrius was the only one who got the message, but... Hey, Ren, send out some troops and ask Her Highness. Until then, I'm going to go around that way for now - there's no way I'm letting Astrius take the credit alone."

 Astrius, the son of a prominent Torus family, and Regan, the eldest son of the Earl of Rickard, Lord of Alvon Castle, are of the same age and rank, and have been friends since childhood. When Asturias entered the war, Regan also became anxious. From the start, he had been on both sides of the fence, pretending to be a warrior in spite of his spleen.

"Would it be better if I didn't ask Your Highness for forgiveness?"

"Never mind. Hurry up and get the men to your highness. I'm going."

 Regan's hand goes up and he whips the horse. The thousand Red Knights of Alvon Castle, led by Regan, also begin to move bravely.

 Asturias was already in the thick of the fight.

"Guin! Guin, fight me! Fight me, Guin, or you're dead!"

 While ranting loudly, he earnestly cuts a bloody path in search of the leopard-headed warrior who is connected to several blue knights of Mongol.

"No, I have no use for monkeys."

 Whip off the Semites that are swarming left and right,

"Did you not see me? But you're a coward, Guin! Captain Astorius is here!"

 I ranted and raved, and just kept aiming at Guin.

 What surprised me was the ILM.

"What, little Astorius - did you get a message to the Red Knight to cover him? Ilum squad! Ilmu! The Blue Knight of Talos will be ruined for all time if he takes help from a young kid like Astrius. Hurry up and get rid of the monkeys and their monsters. What are you doing?

 You're swinging your sword in anger,

"Message! Dispatch!"

 From the shoulder of his white armour flashed the sign of his command, and a messenger came with a blue banner tied to his spear.

"Ilm is here!"

"A messenger. The leopard-headed warrior who leads the Semites is the key to a great secret. Tell your men not to kill him... but to take him alive. I repeat. Do not kill the Leopard-headed warrior. Take him alive. These are the orders of His Highness Amneris."

"Yes, sir. --but!"

 Ilm yelled in his midsection as he waited for the messenger to drive away.

"Capture him alive"? Oh, my God, you think you can take Silenos alive, without the legendary Kaurinos' web, without a scratch on him-- Hey, Lukas! Send a message!"

"I understand."

 The XO rushes into the fray with the horse.

 Asturias had no time to be distracted by such a message.

 Suppose Lucas's cry is, "Do not kill the Leopard. Keep him alive. This is the order of the lady!" there's no way the humiliated man would obey it.

"Guin--I found it!"

 The corpses of the blue knights were piled up everywhere Guin went.

 He himself has already been drenched in blood, from his round beastly head to his incomparably strong upper body, which is stained red.

 The great sword in his hand, from hilt to tip, was smeared with Mongol's blood, dripping with blood and sticky.

 For a moment, as if frightened by his unimaginable bravery, only his surroundings were blank - it was there that Astorias ran to.

"Guin--! How dare you humiliate Asturias by defeating him and running back? Now you can make up for it. Stand and fight me!"

 Asturias screamed. But when Guin turned to look at him, he suddenly felt a chill that made the hair on his body stand on end.

 Guin's twin eyes blazed with a yellow light that could only be described as tremendous. Suddenly, Asturias realized that what was there was not a man, but a huge bloody beast, a horrible demon Leopard covered all over with the blood of the people it had devoured.

 Unwillingly, he flinched back - and became even more angry about it.

"Fight me, Guin!"

 He shouted encouragingly and tried to rush forward with his sword. But then Guin laughed.

 No - the leopard head remained expressionless. But to Asturias, it seemed as if Guin was smiling at him. In fact, the light in the eyes of the man-eating Leopard, which could have shocked the faint-hearted to death at the mere sight of it, may have softened just a little.

"Not good enough for you, kid. Come back in another 20 years. I'll be there when you do."

 A grave and peculiar voice escaped from Guin's mouth. And suddenly, Guin seemed to have completely returned from the frenzy of battle to the calm of sanity.

"Oh, no... as I suspected, Shem's lost his mind in the heat of battle."

 A low murmur escaped from his mouth that no one could hear. He kicks the hippopotamus in the belly, paying no more attention to Asturias, who stands there gasping for breath.

"Shiva--Shiva!"

"Yes, Liard!"

"Fall back. Blow the whistle."

"Yes, Liard."

 Sheba took the bamboo flute from around his neck and blew with all his might. Guin took a horse and looked for Iratelli and Roto,

"Move. Fall back-- don't forget the plan."

 I urged him.

 One by one, the high-pitched whistles of Shem's drum and fife players increased. They seemed to have lost their minds in the battle, but Guin's message had sunk into their heads.

"Aieeeeee!"

"Eeeaaaaahhh."

"Aye-ah, aye-ah."

 The Semites seemed to have begun to run away at once, shouting a hauling cry similar to the howl of a mountain wolf.

"Don't let him get away. Go after him!

 Ilm rasps. But the Blue Knights stopped in their tracks.

 And Guin, the madman who had frightened them so much, came rushing back with a few Shem in tow.

 In front of the breathtaking Mongol soldiers,

"Rebellious Lady of Mongol, you will meet Shem's challenge!"

 The spear flew out with tremendous force, and as soon as Vron had pushed Amneris aside in his panic, he stood at the very spot where Amneris had been before, shaking and shaking.

"Caw!"

 A scream involuntarily escaped from Amneris' mouth. Then the face of the duchess, who was so frightened that she clasped her own mouth, was stained with the color of blood, as if it were the evening glow of Nosferus.

I never thought the soldiers would hear me scream like a little girl.

 Amneris, who had turned red and then pale, heard a fearful laugh and then a loud voice again.

"You'd do well to pull down the hem of your dress and take the man's head off at the palace ball. You'd look better that way, tomboy!"

"Oh ..."

 For a moment, it seemed as if the whole army had caught its breath.

 But by that time, the bloody demon god had already run away like a gale, following the main force of Shem who had already run away.

"Follow me."

 Amneris gasped.

 He was so incensed that he could not utter a single word. He licked his lips repeatedly, rubbed his chest, and finally shouted.

"After them! Don't leave a single man alive! Go, go, go!

"All troops, commence pursuit!

 A message was sent out immediately.

 The Mongol troops quickly regrouped and started to pursue in the northwest direction from where the Semitic troops had fled.

 Ilm's troops had suffered a great deal of damage. The wounded were thrown out, and the bodies of the dead and the corpse of Shem were left untouched as they hurriedly gathered their troops. A messenger came and told the Ilm Corps to go into the inner camp and change places with the Tanguard Corps.

 The army of Mongols, having formed a half-moon formation, continued to pursue in a U-shape, both wings coming out first. Asturias also led his troops and continued to whip the horses at the head of the line. He had a very pale face.

(whoa-- whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! )

 If someone had been able to look into his young face beneath his cheeks and hear the curse in his mouth, that person might have been astonished to find that this young hero of only twenty years of age was crying. They were hot tears of indignation and regret that he would never forget.

 And if there was one more person who wept bitterly, it could not have been anyone other than Amneris.

 At any rate, Mongol's army continued to pursue. They had even forgotten to pay attention to the front and rear.