Kraxal hadn’t fully grasped the situation unfolding before him, but he understood what needed to be done immediately.
“Get the Holy Grail Knight! Capture the Holy Grail Knight!”
He had no idea how many reinforcements had arrived or how powerful they were. However, judging by Isaac’s demeanor, it was clear that he had anticipated this situation and deliberately involved the Olkan Code.
Isaac needed to be captured and used as a hostage.
The Keshiks had already reached a similar conclusion and attacked Isaac before Kraxal even gave the order. Their attacks were more intent on tearing him apart than taking him hostage, but Isaac moved just a bit faster than they did.
*Thunk! Crack!*
Isaac deflected the Keshik’s curved blade and thrust his left hand into the beast’s horse’s torso. His hand, wrapped in sword energy, easily penetrated the chest, and Isaac released a tentacle inside, shredding the Keshik from within.
“Guh…!”
Although the wound seemed small compared to the Keshik’s massive body, the internal damage was devastating. It was as if a blender had been thrust inside him. The Keshik collapsed helplessly after a single blow, leaving the other Keshiks stunned in shock. Taking advantage of this, Isaac quickly withdrew.
“You scum!”The Keshik swiftly pursued Isaac.
With his back exposed, Isaac seemed like easy prey.
*Swish! Thunk! Rattle, rattle!*
But just then, arrows began to rain down from the monastery. The arrows showed no distinction between friend or foe.
Though both Isaac and the Keshiks had the skill to deflect blind arrows, it was enough to make them hesitate.
And that brief moment was all that was needed.
“Don’t chase him! Fall back!”
Kraxal’s frantic scream didn’t reach the Keshik, whose focus had narrowed. But even if it had, it was already too late.
If anyone in the world rode better than the Olkan Code’s light cavalry, it was the Knights of Elil.
Reyna Hilde, one of Elil’s knights, charged down the slope at an unbelievable speed, impaling a Keshik’s torso with her lance in a single thrust. *Boom.* The immense collision should have slowed her down, but Reyna showed an incredible feat. She lifted the Keshik, horse and all, and hurled him at another Keshik.
“Ha ha ha! Holy Grail Knight, here’s a gift for you!”
Reyna burst into a hearty laugh and charged again at the Keshiks. Behind her, the other Elil knights followed closely, shouting insults like “Are you mad?!” and “Have you lost it?!”
The Elil knights smoothly split into two groups around Isaac and surged toward the Keshiks.
*Crunch, snap.*
The stationary Keshiks couldn’t withstand the fierce momentum of the charging Elil knights. Like grains of sand swept away by a river, they were quickly slashed and trampled under the knights’ swords, lances, and hooves.
“Lord Isaac, it seems we’re not too late.”
The Swordmaster of Elil and Guardian of the Holy Land, Lianne Georg, appeared beside Isaac. Despite it having been a long time since they last met, Isaac hadn’t expected to be so relieved to see her face.
“No. You’ve arrived right on time.”
Isaac felt a sense of relief as their arrival matched the time he had anticipated.
Isaac had intentionally timed the arrival of Elil’s reinforcements at Norden Port and their advance to this location to coincide with the Olkan Code’s entry into the Issacrea estate. Whether Sahulan Khan intervened or not, Isaac had planned for them to arrive around this time.
However, the Olkan Code had arrived a bit earlier than expected, forcing Isaac to stall by deliberately walking slowly and pretending to negotiate with empty words.
Risking his life to buy time had somehow succeeded without a single cannonball striking him.
Once enemies, Lianne and Isaac now exchanged an awkward glance. Lianne chose the battlefield over staying by Isaac’s side.
“Emperor Edelred is approaching from the rear with the rest of the forces. I’ll take my leave.”
She immediately spurred her horse and charged toward the orc army.
As Isaac watched her join the ranks of Elil knights cutting through the retreating orcs, a chorus of cheers erupted.
“Holy Grail Knight! Holy Grail Knight! Holy Grail Knight!”
Soldiers and paladins, who had been waiting in the monastery, poured out. Hearing the trumpet of Elil and the drumming of the World’s Forge, they chanted the Holy Grail Knight’s name as if they couldn’t afford to lose in spirit.
Isaac locked eyes with Rottenhammer, who was leading the charge.
It seemed like Rottenhammer had rushed out in a fit of emotion, but it was actually under Isaac’s orders.
The vanguard that arrived with Lianne consisted of knights prioritizing offensive power and mobility. Their numbers weren’t large. The Issacrea forces needed to fill this gap.
“Exterminate the intruders!”
With Rottenhammer’s roar, the soldiers charged all at once.
Of course, besides the paladins, the other soldiers could only do cleanup work. But Isaac had intentionally pushed them into battle.
They must not feel like this victory was handed to them.
Isaac’s people had to spill blood and sweat on this land.
They needed to develop attachment and pride in this land. That was the only way to blend the sudden influx of foreigners and those of different religions.
And Isaac didn’t want them to see this battle as a miraculous victory.
He wanted them to accept it as a victory they had achieved.
***
Isaac’s first strategic goal was to *“hold out until the Knights of Elil arrive.”*
Since he roughly knew the marching speed of the Elil knights, enduring within the time limit wasn’t too difficult.
This meant that “they hadn’t waited for the arrival of the World’s Forge Sect.”
The reason was simple.
They had already arrived before the Olkan Code even set foot in the Geliphard Mountains.
Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud.
The deep drumming of the World’s Forge Sect echoed like a hammer striking an anvil. This heavy bass, expressed as music, filled the hearts of their warriors with vigor and life, while instilling discomfort and fear in their enemies. The drumming echoed through the mountain valleys, reverberating without end.
“They’re coming.”
At the Dwarf’s curt command, warriors wielding axes surged out from deep within the tunnel.
The World’s Forge Sect decided to move south almost simultaneously with the Olkan Code’s invasion. Originally, they had planned an independent assault separate from the Issacrea estate. However, Ulsten, a Forge artisan from Issacrea, proposed an appealing strategy.
He suggested they lie in ambush within the abandoned mines that wove through the Geliphard Mountains like an anthill, and then launch a surprise attack.
Ulsten was somewhat of a radical priest within the World’s Forge Sect, bordering on heretical, but everyone agreed that it was a plan capable of killing many orcs.
The harsh mountain terrain and the abandoned mines were environments that the World’s Forge favored. Moreover, having the cooperation of the local lord was a significant advantage.
As a result, the World’s Forge Sect had spent nearly two weeks lying in wait inside the mines.
They waited until the orcs passed over their heads.
The Olkan Code couldn’t bring their vast numbers into the Issacrea estate all at once, so the soldiers formed long columns, divided into multiple groups.
They noticed something strange happening at the front, but most of the commanders were concentrated there, making it difficult to discern exactly what was happening. The orcs began moving higher up or tried to bypass the congestion.
And then, warriors clad in wolf pelts charged at them.
*Crack! Split!* With a single axe strike, shoulders were cleaved, and another blow split skulls vertically. The warrior swiftly withdrew the axe and kicked the orc off the cliff. The orcs were horrified at the sight of the wolf pelts and the bizarre tattoos etched into the warriors’ faces.
“Lycanthropes! It’s the Lycanthrope Warband! The World’s Forge Sect bastards are here!”
“Awoooooo!”
The warrior, mimicking a wolf’s howl, hurled his axe into the face of the shouting orc. The orcs, belatedly drawing their bows, began shooting at the warriors. A few warriors staggered from the arrows, but they quickly threw their axes back, striking down the archers without mercy.
And then they began to howl.
“Awoooooo!”
“Awooooo!”
The real battle for the Lycanthrope Warband begins once they discard all their weapons.
Wolf howls echoed from all directions.
Simultaneously, the wolf pelts on the warriors’ heads began to fuse with their skin. Their skeletal structure swelled unnaturally, hair sprouting along the tattooed patterns on their skin, transforming them into beings half-wolf, half-human. Their hands grew claws like daggers, and their mouths filled with teeth like saw blades.
The values worshiped by the World’s Forge Sect are birth and transformation.
As the Holy Knights of the World’s Forge Sect, the Lycanthrope Warband could perform the miracle of transforming from human form into beast form.
In an instant, the Lycanthrope Warband turned into massive wolf-men, towering at 2.5 meters, and continued their fight anew. The orcs’ ranks quickly crumbled under the onslaught of these suddenly appeared berserkers.
This wasn’t an isolated incident; similar skirmishes erupted wherever orcs were found throughout the Geliphard Mountains.
As the orcs’ lines began to break in various places, their units splintered into groups led by Centurions and Decurions. Some were ordered to retreat, others to reinforce, and still others to advance, all while their command structure fell into disarray. But soon, a calamity struck, pushing countless orcs to decide on retreat.
*Rumble!*
Many orcs witnessed lightning bolts erupt from the ground, reaching up to the sky.
All that remained in the area were several trees, blackened and charred.
Seeing the scene, symbolic of a particular being, the orcs screamed in terror.
“Tuhalin! Lightning Hammer Tuhalin has appeared! It’s the Soul Crusher Tuhalin!”
***
“It’s a mess.”
Sahulan could feel everything happening around him through the Netherworld.
The Khan’s eyes were everywhere. He saw the orcs crushed by Elil’s knights at the front, the orcs slaughtered by Issacrea’s rabble, and the ones collapsing under the sudden attack of the World’s Forge Sect in the rear.
These were all threats Sahulan had considered.
But he hadn’t expected to face all these threats simultaneously, especially in such a remote place. This land held no value other than being a key point to cross the Geliford Mountains.
‘Wasn’t it said that the original lord of this place had intended to rebel? We tried to turn him to our side by providing him with weapons, but we failed.’
At the time, this land was known as Hendrak. To Sahulan, it held no more significance than that.
He couldn’t understand why these fanatics were willing to risk their lives for this land.
Then, suddenly, Sahulan raised his eyes and looked at a man in the distance.
Whether by chance or because he had been under watch from the beginning, that man also met Sahulan’s gaze.
[It’s because of that one.]
The Netherworld clearly pointed out that the root cause of what was happening now was Isaac Issacrea, the Holy Grail Knight.
While Sahulan was stalling the Manseungja, Isaac had been executing this cunning scheme.
Of course, the fact that the Olkan Code also needed time to regroup their forces was conveniently ignored.
What mattered was one thing: at the very least, the Holy Grail Knight needed to be eliminated here.
“Khan, you must retreat! Elil’s rear guard is on its way!”
General Teherma, the shaman, advised, sweat dripping from his brow.
He wasn’t sure if Elil’s knights were incredibly fast or if they had been holding onto their souls in some special way. But through the countless souls continuously pouring in, Teherma knew that the army flanking from the left had suffered near-total annihilation.
Not only were Elil’s forces unusual, but they were also incredibly powerful.
The vanguard that had just arrived was merely the literal vanguard.
“Pull the soldiers back.”
Teherma sighed in relief. But Sahulan showed no intention of retreating. Instead, he drew the Netherworld and notched an arrow.
Before Teherma could react, Sahulan aimed the arrow directly at Isaac.
‘I heard you were injured quite badly in your fight with Atlan.’
As long as the direction was right, pinpoint accuracy wasn’t necessary.
Sahulan loosed the arrow as soon as he raised the Netherworld.
The iron arrowhead tore through the air with a terrifying force.
The ripping gale pierced through two of Elil’s knights, skewering them completely. Even then, the arrow, imbued with the wrath of the Khans of the past, continued its descent like a lightning bolt toward Isaac.
*Boom.*
But at that moment, someone leaped forward and decisively deflected the arrow. A crystal barrier appeared for a brief moment, shining brilliantly before shattering and dispersing into the air.
[Who dares to threaten the Great Warrior sent by Elil?!]
It was Lianne. But the presence within her was not Lianne.
Her golden eyes glowed as she pointed her sword at Sahulan.
Isaac smiled lazily as he watched.
‘Good, if the angels get involved, it gives other faiths a reason to bring out their angels too.’
Isaac was pleased with the situation.
There was no reason to feel bad when others stepped in and fought the battle for him, allowing him to win for free.
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