The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations - Chapter 291
Chapter 291: The End is Near (1)
A knight wielding mana exhibits power on an entirely different level than an ordinary cavalryman. Especially if that knight belongs to the elite guards serving a great lord.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The approaching fifty of Desmond’s Personal Guards exuded a storm-like aura as they galloped forward.
Desmond’s soldiers quickly cleared the way at the sight of Guards charging toward them. It seemed they had already been trained to handle such scenarios.
“My lord!”
“Captain!”
Even the knights of Fenris were startled by the overwhelming force and attempted to advance. However, Ghislain lowered his lance and shouted.
“Don’t mind them, keep pressing forward!”
The battlefield, apart from the area around Ghislain, was still packed with Desmond’s soldiers. Killing even one more would make advancing easier.
At his resolute tone, Fenris’ troops stopped paying attention to Ghislain’s direction and focused solely on the enemies before them.
Rumble-rumble-rumble!
Fenris’ knights, too, felt the strain on their bodies grow heavier as the fight dragged on. There was no room to divide their focus while battling.
In such moments, trusting their lord and concentrating on their fight was the only option.
But this composure irritated Desmond’s Personal Guards. Roness, their captain, shouted with a face full of displeasure.
“Arrogant fool!”
They were Desmond’s most elite knights. No matter how skilled Baron Fenris might be, facing fifty of them alone was unthinkable.
Yet he dared to fight them by himself? It was the pinnacle of arrogance.
Whoooosh!
Thel Guards fiercely drew upon their mana. They clearly intended to crush Ghislain underfoot.
Ghislain, too, spurred the Black King forward and charged.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
To charge alone toward fifty elite knights was an act that seemed reckless, even suicidal. Desmond’s soldiers were convinced Ghislain wouldn’t last long.
But their conviction shattered with the first clash.
Boom!
Roness, leading the charge, swung his halberd with immense force. Without losing speed, Ghislain ducked to avoid it and galloped onward.
Two other knights following Roness immediately swung their halberds at Ghislain.
Crash!
Their halberds struck empty air, deflected with a jarring clang. Ghislain ignored them and continued to advance.
Crash! Boom!
The Guards trailing Roness swung their weapons one after another, but none managed to land a hit on Ghislain.
He was too busy parrying their halberds and moving forward.
‘Just a little further.’
In cavalry combat, missing the first strike made a follow-up attack difficult. Turning one’s horse took time, especially when trailing riders crowded the rear.
By the time Desmond’s Personal Guards turned their mounts, Ghislain had already broken through and advanced far ahead.
Seeing this, Roness turned pale and shouted.
“Stop him! Block him!”
To clear the Guards’ path, thousands of infantry had split left and right.
The central line, which had been reinforced several layers deep, now stood exposed as the soldiers repositioned to attack Fenris’ forces.
But with the Guards failing to neutralize Ghislain, Desmond’s army had effectively opened a path for him.
Realizing this, the soldiers hastily attempted to reform their ranks. Yet Ghislain moved faster than they could regroup.
Boom!
“Aaargh!”
With crimson eyes glinting fiercely, Ghislain unleashed a monstrous force once more.
Even when their lines were fortified, they couldn’t stop him; now, with their formation scattered, it was impossible.
Desmond’s Personal Guards turned their horses and chased after Ghislain, but they became entangled with reinforcements rushing in from both sides.
“Move! Get out of the way!”
At Roness’s shout, the soldiers tried to make space, but the incoming reinforcements collided with those retreating. The confusion further disarrayed the formation.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Aaaah!”
While the soldiers panicked, Ghislain continued advancing, sending enemies flying in every direction.
‘Just a little more.’
Crash! Boom!
Rumble-rumble!
Ghislain felt his bones twist and strain. The Third Core was nearing its limit.
He swallowed the blood rising from his throat and clenched his teeth.
‘Just a little more.’
The defensive lines had thinned, and Desmond’s Personal Guards were busy trailing him. There wouldn’t be another opportunity like this.
Ignoring anyone who wasn’t directly attacking him, he methodically pushed forward.
Boom!
When he pierced through the final layer of the central formation—
Ghislain finally laid eyes on his target.
“Found you.”
In the near distance, an unusual formation surrounded by infantry and knights stood out.
Willow was gazing at the sky, sensing the emanating mana in the air.
Red and blue shimmering auras, like mirages, floated heavily and dissipated repeatedly. The energy seemed as though it was tearing through space, a presence that felt alien to this world.
Willow traced this unnatural sensation, ignoring the rules of the world, and waved his hand. This was the nature of magic and the world as seen by mages.
Although each mage had a slightly different approach, they all perceived mana by objectifying it.
By identifying each distortion in mana and restoring the twisted rules to their original state, the world regains stability. Left unchecked, these alien energies would take form.
Vanessa and Willow were thus focused, keeping each other in check.
‘Vanessa seems to be holding her ground well,’ thought Ghislain.
Seeing Willow too preoccupied with countering magic to notice him, Ghislain smirked devilishly.
Drawing upon the last of his mana, he infused his lance, which ignited in a blazing crimson glow.
Boom!
The soldiers protecting Willow raised their shields as one, forming an impenetrable wall.
Ghislain, dispatching the enemies charging at him, surged forward.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
As the Black King approached the formation, the shields parted slightly, and dozens of spears thrust out from within.
In that instant, Ghislain sharply pulled the reins and twisted his body to the side. The Black King followed his movement, pivoting deftly.
Screeeech!
The Black King’s hooves scraped deep marks into the ground as it halted, and at the same moment, Ghislain leapt from the saddle.
Whoosh!
The soldiers instinctively followed him with their eyes, tilting their heads upward. Before they could react, Ghislain had already infused his spear with mana and hurled it toward Willow without hesitation.
Swish!
The spear tore through the air with a deafening sound as if ripping apart the atmosphere.
Willow, startled as someone suddenly appeared in his view, froze momentarily.
‘Damn it!’
Willow had been aware of an enemy targeting him for some time but trusted his allies to hold the line and focused solely on countering the opposing mage.
But the enemy appearing this close meant he could no longer rely on his allies.
He couldn’t afford to divert his mana elsewhere. The opposing mage, whoever they were, wielded mana control far superior to his. He had been barely holding on, only managing to maintain balance thanks to occasional disruptions in the enemy’s mana flow.
If he broke concentration now, the opposing mage would strike immediately.
But the same would happen if Willow died.
“Shield!”
In the end, Willow redirected his mana to protect himself.
A solid sphere of mana formed around him, encasing his body.
Buzz!
BOOOM!
An ear-shattering explosion rocked the ground, sending up a massive cloud of dust that obscured everyone’s vision.
Shhhh…
When the dust settled, the scene left everyone speechless in shock.
“W-Willow….”
“How could a 6th-circle mage… be taken out in one strike?”
“This is impossible….”
Thud.
Willow’s headless body trembled a few times before collapsing completely.
Landing on the ground, Ghislain slowly straightened his back and spat out the blood pooling in his mouth.
The surrounding soldiers remained frozen, too stunned to act. They couldn’t comprehend what had just happened.
Neigh!
Whoosh!
The Black King took advantage of their hesitation, leaping over them to stand before Ghislain.
Ghislain mounted the Black King without delay, grasped the reins, and used a thread of mana to retrieve his spear from the ground.
“Phew….”
He lowered his core’s release level to Stage 2. Fighting in Stage 3 any longer would have been fatal to him.
Though the mana that had once filled his body quickly dwindled, Ghislain’s confident grin remained.
“It’s about to end.”
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
By then, Desmond’s Personal Guards had closed the distance and were bearing down on Ghislain again. At the forefront, Roness roared in fury.
“You coward! Do you dare call yourself a noble?”
“Can’t say I do.”
“You honorless scoundrel!”
“And you think fifty men ganging up on one is honorable?”
“You bastard!”
Unable to contain his rage, Roness swung his halberd with all his might.
Clang!
Ghislain deflected Roness’s halberd and thrust his spear into the body of another Guard who had approached from the side.
Squish!
“Urgh!”
Swish!
Without hesitation, Ghislain swung his spear again, severing the neck of another guard on the opposite side.
Moving in tandem with the Black King, his spear danced with precision as he smiled.
“You wanted to play with me so badly? Fine, I’ll oblige. I’ll kill you all and make my way to Harold.”
Boom! Boom! Boom!
As Ghislain clashed with Desmond’s Personal Guards, Vanessa, who had been focused on countering Willow, noticed the shift in mana and her eyes gleamed.
“My lord has succeeded.”
Though dozens of mages still surrounded Desmond’s main forces to hold her in check, Willow’s death rendered their efforts meaningless.
Vanessa had been preparing a large-scale area spell but immediately changed her plan. While such magic could devastate Desmond’s forces, it might also harm her allies.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Instead, she targeted Emerson’s cavalry, which was pursuing Fenris’s mounted archers.
“Fire Lance.”
Vanessa softly chanted as she waved her hand, conjuring dozens of flaming spears in the air.
The fiery lances shot straight into Emerson’s cavalry.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Argh!”
The cavalry, which had just turned to change direction after scattering the mounted archers, couldn’t avoid the sudden attack and fell into disarray. Horses and riders became entangled, and their once-orderly formation fell apart.
Thanks to Vanessa’s spell, Fenris’ mounted archers broke free of Emerson’s forces and regrouped to support the Ferdium forces and the kingdom’s army.
Vanessa immediately turned to Kaor and shouted.
“My lord has succeeded! It’s time for us to move as well!”
“Got it, let’s go! Hey, but are you okay?”
Her face was smeared with blood from her nose, but Vanessa yelled back as if it didn’t matter.
“Hurry!”
“Alright, alright, no need to yell. You’ve got quite the temper for someone who doesn’t look like it.”
Kaor mounted his horse and hoisted Vanessa behind him. A few hunters helped the remaining mages onto horses, while others moved to deal with Emerson’s cavalry.
The rest stayed back to secure the fallen mages and move them to the rear. Until now, the mages had been positioned too far from the battlefield, focusing on countering each other. To protect their allies more effectively, they needed to get closer.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Kaor and Vanessa rode toward Desmond’s main forces. As Vanessa moved, the tide of battle began to shift dramatically.
When the distance closed, she cast a spell targeting the cluster of Desmond’s mages.
“Explosion.”
BOOM!
Flaming magic from a 6th-circle spell erupted across Desmond’s ranks. Mages and soldiers caught in the explosions didn’t even have time to scream before being obliterated.
Some mages attempted to retaliate and shifted their aim toward Vanessa, but it was futile. Disorganized, with some targeting Fenris’s troops and others targeting Vanessa, their coordination fell apart.
Those of lower circles couldn’t dispel her spells, especially not alone.
Boom! Boom!
“Argh!”
“Help us!”
“The enemy mage is advancing!”
Vanessa continued to bombard them relentlessly. Even as she coughed up blood from mana exhaustion, she drew on her companions’ mana reserves to sustain her magic.
Thanks to her unyielding assault, the rear ranks of Desmond’s forces—where the mages were stationed—crumbled rapidly.
The elite knights were tied up with Ghislain, and Willow was dead. No one remained capable of withstanding the attacks of a 6th-circle mage.
Boom! Boom!
The explosions and flames disrupted Desmond’s forces further. Soldiers scrambled to evade the attacks, and discipline faltered.
This allowed Fenris’ troops to push their enemies back with far less resistance.
* * *
Meanwhile, Roness, still locked in battle with Ghislain, grew increasingly desperate as he guessed what was happening to their forces.
“You bastard! Die already!”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
No matter how fierce his attacks, Ghislain wouldn’t fall. He was covered in blood from numerous wounds, yet he refused to die.
Every time Roness thought he’d created an opening to deliver a fatal blow, Ghislain would take another life instead. Of the fifty Personal Guards who started the fight, only about thirty remained.
Whizz!
“Tsk!”
Whenever they seemed close to landing a decisive strike, Ghislain’s spear would dart in from an odd angle, forcing them to lose focus. Though the attacks themselves weren’t particularly powerful, they were enough to disrupt their rhythm.
Roness had no idea how many of their attempts had been thwarted by this strange tactic.
Clang!
As Ghislain deflected another incoming halberd, he acknowledged the skill of Desmond’s Personal Guards. They weren’t opponents he could easily defeat, even with his Second Core fully activated.
Moreover, his reckless charge had drained much of his mana, leaving him fatigued. Blocking critical strikes and dodging to survive was the best he could manage now.
His body was covered in cuts and bruises. Without the incredible agility of the Black King, he would have sustained far more injuries.
Though he was killing them one by one, Desmond’s Personal Guards’ coordinated techniques were formidable.
If this continued, he might die before he could finish them all.
Even so, Ghislain never lost his smile.
“I’m not alone, after all.”
Clang!
Just as Ghislain deflected another attack—
Squish!
“Urgh!”
Desmond’s Personal Guards, who had been taking turns attacking him, suddenly began to falter. One by one, their rear ranks were collapsing.
It was Fenris’ knights, bloodied and battered, who had finally arrived.
“My lord! Are you alright?”
“We’ll take care of the rest!”
“Kill them all!”
They swiftly mounted the horses of the fallen Personal Guards and swung their swords. Distracted by their focus on Ghislain, the guards were quickly decapitated or run through.
With Fenris’ knights joining the fray, Desmond’s Personal Guards had no choice but to divert their attention to them.
The numerical advantage had shifted. Although Fenris’ knights were exhausted, they outnumbered Desmond’s Personal Guards by far.
Roness clenched his teeth as he surveyed the battlefield. Soldiers were being pushed back and killed across the field, and now even Desmond’s Personal Guards were pinned down.
“You’re all alone now,” Ghislain sneered, lowering his spear. Roness didn’t reply but spurred his horse forward.
“Hiyah!”
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Roness raised his halberd high. He poured every last bit of his mana into his weapon and even burned his life force to fuel it.
This strike would have to kill his opponent. While his enemy was undoubtedly stronger, Ghislain was heavily injured and fatigued. Under normal circumstances, this attack wouldn’t land, but now it just might.
If he could kill this man here, everything would be over. With that belief, Roness bet his life and unleashed all his strength.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Ghislain, too, spurred the Black King forward. The warhorse snorted fiercely as it charged.
As soon as Ghislain entered his attack range, Roness roared and swung his halberd.
“Die!”
Whooosh!
A powerful strike cleaved through the air, aimed directly at Ghislain. In an instant, Ghislain activated his Third Core.
Crack!
Mana surged explosively, twisting his bones and muscles. Ghislain gritted his teeth to endure the pain.
Lowering his stance, he thrust his spear forward.
Thwack!
Roness’s halberd narrowly missed Ghislain’s head, while Ghislain’s spear pierced Roness’s throat.
“Grrrk…”
The two warriors passed each other, riding in opposite directions.
Roness coughed up blood, slowly turning his head. His eyes, filled with regret, locked onto Ghislain.
If only he had a little more time.
If only Fenris’ mage had arrived a little later.
He could have killed this man and ended the war.
Those were his final regrets.
Thud.
Roness’s lifeless body fell from his horse. Ghislain turned his mount around and stared at the fallen figure for a moment before raising his gaze.
In the distant rear, Harold sat in the command post. Desmond’s remaining forces were being held back by the Ferdium and kingdom armies.
No one stood in Ghislain’s way anymore.
Just as in his past life.
The time to kill Harold had come once again.
“Harold―!”
Ghislain’s roar thundered across the battlefield.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The Black King charged forward, galloping straight toward Harold Desmond.