Dungeon Defense (WN)

Chapter 292: Puppet War (9)

Chapter 292: Puppet War (9)

– Neeeigh!

Dozens of horses let out pitiful cries. Their stomachs had been sliced open by the swords that had shot out from the earth. Their tough skins were cut open with ease as their innards came pouring out.

“Kaaaagh!”

The warhorses were unable to control their speed as their bodies slammed into the dirt. It was the same for the cavalrymen. More than forty soldiers fell face-first into the dirt along with their horses. Clouds of dust were kicked up as soldiers in hefty armor rolled through the dirt. Their necks broke, killing them instantly.

Dozens of elite soldiers were killed after only a single assault.

However, it might be better to praise the knights. They were suddenly assaulted from all angles. Despite this, they only lost a few dozen soldiers. They had dodged the swords with almost superhuman horse maneuvering techniques. If this were a normal cavalry, then they would have probably lost half of their total manpower.

Regardless, Queen Henrietta didn’t give them any praise as she watched from a distance.

“Now then. Let us have a slow dance.”

“Shower them with arrows. Do not worry about the cost of the arrows. Keuncuska has given us the good news that they will be supporting our cause fully.”

“I hereby order the other commanders—Crush the enemy to death.”

Paimon, Marbas, and Laura de Farnese all ordered their troops at the same time.

A gruesome battle unfolded.

The knight order, which had yet to shake off the shock from the surprise assault, was swarmed. Arrows and magic spells rained down on them from their right, left, and front sides. The cavalrymen shouted as loudly as their throats allowed them.

“Dismount! Use the dead bodies of the horses as shields!”

“You fool, you will become pincushions if you stop here!”

The vice-captain shouted. She was right.

“Charge! Charge forward at all costs!”

There were more cavalrymen pouring through the opening the Green Rose Knights had made. If they tried to turn around and retreat now, then they would crash into their allies and create a huge mess.

They would be committing suicide if they deliberately made their allies panic in confusion after being surrounded on three sides. No matter if they lived or died, it was better for them to keep going forward.

“Charge!”

“Do not fear death!”

Their goal was the heart of the enemy’s base. If they can deal a blow there, then they would still be able to squeeze out a victory.

The vice-captain personally took the lead. The cavalry picked up their pace once again. They charged while swinging their glaives and curved swords.

“How splendid.”

Laura was in awe.

They were advancing forward despite the cascade of arrows and spells. Even death was probably not enough to scare them. As death was something that all humans had to accept, the way the knights welcomed it was practically superhuman.

However, what would happen if a wall that surpasses death were to show up?

“Fourth line of defense, intercept them.”

Laura flicked her baton. Once she did, a soldier started waving a flag.

The commander in charge of the fourth line of defense saw the flag move and smiled.

“Aah, Laura. You don’t have to even give the order.”

The commander of the fourth line of defense.

The Demon Lord of Immortality, Barbatos.

“I can very clearly see the meal that I will be giving my kids.”

Behind the small-framed Demon Lord—was a swarm of 4,500 zombies and ghouls.

Cold air flowed out from the mouths of these rotten, bloodthirsty corpses. The air around them was chilly as if this was the only place on these vast plains that was below freezing. The dirtiest and most hideous army was standing here.

Even if their flesh was rotting away and they had degraded to a state where you could no longer call them living, there was only one thing they wanted. To forever fight for their eternal ruler and that alone.

This was why they were referred to as the purest warriors.

A zombie growled.

– Here we stand, as an invincible and undying army.

The skeleton soldiers responded with a pulse of mana.

– Valkyries that march forever.

4,500 undead monsters sang their anthem together. It would probably be more appropriate to call this a funeral march. Ghouls that couldn’t utter proper words because of their rotten throats and zombies that leaked out sounds because of the holes in their mouths. Their singing turned into low-pitched groans as it settled over the earth like a layer of fog.

“All right, men. As your eternal employer, I, Barbatos, will be carrying out the contract.”

Barbatos took a step forward.

Once she did, the 4,500 undeads took a step forward as well.

“This one and only contract. This dreadful contract. This contract that was made with the souls of warriors.”

Barbatos took another step and was followed by the trembling of the earth as the undead army of 4,500 undead stepped forward as well. Before them, knights clad in sacred auras continued to approach.

“For more battle.”

Before long, the 4,500 undead monsters had begun sprinting.

There was a wave-like entity in front of them. It was pitch black. The black wave gradually grew bigger before they eventually took the forms of death knights. The death knights raised their swords as they rushed forward.

– Kyaaaaagh!

A raspy cry filled the air. The words that Barbatos was muttering could no longer be heard as they were buried under the shouting. Despite this, she continued to speak. Barbatos and her warriors didn’t need audible words to understand each other anyway.

“Did you say that you do not fear death, you pitiful humans? Very well, then.”

Barbatos smiled.

“Then let me show you life after death.”

The undying army and the knights collided.

The cavalrymen were outstanding. They swung their weapons with great precision while on their horses. Zombies were decapitated and warhorses crushed the bodies of ghouls under their hooves. However, this wasn’t a battle that would end because they managed to decapitate and crush a few zombies.

Even without their heads, the bodies would continue to swing their axes. Even with gaping holes in their chests, the undead would tear out the horses’ necks with their teeth.

“Damn it! Something keeps sticking to my horse!”

The Green Rose Knights were blessed by the saintess before they were dispatched. Thanks to this, they were able to deal with the undead effectively, but they couldn’t do much about how the undead would continue to latch on to them even after being torn apart.

“Vice-captain, we cannot continue the charge!”

The knight order that had been like a gale of wind had slowed down. The knights did whatever they could to push their horses forward, but the zombies and ghouls latched on to them like spiders and refused to fall off. The warhorses bled as they quickly fell one by one.

It wasn’t long before the knights had come to a complete stop.

“Dismount and fight on foot.”

The vice-captain readjusted her glaive and ordered her men. Her voice was filled with distress.

The Green Rose Knights had done their best. They got through a line of spearmen in the middle of the night and continued their charge into the enemy base. They dealt an almost devastating blow to the undead monsters that appeared in front of them. Despite all this, the vice-captain thought to herself as she looked around.

The monsters had them surrounded on three fronts. They were practically at arm’s length now.

Paimon and Marbas had finished their encirclement while Barbatos was busy stopping the cavalry’s charge.

They were surrounded by roughly ten thousand monsters.

At most, the cavalry had only a thousand soldiers. How long could they possibly endure after having come to a complete stop?

“We must endure until reinforcement arrives. No, we must cut down as many enemy soldiers as we can.”

“Understood!”

The knights responded fervently.

The vice-captain, however, knew that Her Highness the Queen probably wasn’t going to save them.

They were in too deep. Even if she tried to send reinforcements now, it was doubtful whether they would successfully be able to reach them or not. It would become a pointless waste of troops……. The vice-captain instinctively knew that death was near.

This was her final resting place.

The vice-captain gave a slight nod toward the general direction of her queen. With that, she had no more remorse. She swung her glaive and leaped at the monsters with no hesitation.

The Green Rose Knights slaughtered almost 4,000 monsters. All 700 of the knights including the vice-captain fell in battle. Later on, books on strategy will recount this grand and surprising end from a cold-hearted viewpoint.

The knights failed their charge and were wiped out.

Not only did this mean that Queen Henrietta’s sudden assault ended in a failure,

“……All forces, retreat.”

but it also meant that Laura de Farnese had successfully crossed the river.

The Demon Lord army safely crossed the river. Afterward, they destroyed the floating bridge and marched along the riverside. The Brittan army had no choice but to watch helplessly as the Demon Lord army marched since they had no way of crossing the river.

However, this didn’t mean that the victor of the war had been decided.

They did lose a fair number of knights including the Green Rose Knights, but the Demon Lord army had also lost a considerable number of troops. If you compared their military strength, then Brittany probably had a slight advantage in numbers.

On another note, the battle with Demon Lord Agares didn’t get wrapped up, but it ended in Agares’ favor due to the death of the Earth Spirit King.

Now the problem was whether Parisiorum was going to get captured or not.

The Emperor and Empress Dowager were both in Parisiorum still. They absolutely couldn’t let the Demon Lord army take them.

“We have to either besiege Parisiorum or at least get the Emperor and the Empress Dowager out of there…….”

Henrietta muttered, racked with exhaustion due to the recent battle. The generals were next to the queen with a stagnant atmosphere looming over them.

“The Emperor is one thing, but I don’t think that granny Empress Dowager will go with us willingly.”

“We will have to besiege Parisiorum, then.”

“What are you talking about? We’ll knock her out and kidnap her since she won’t follow us. We have no advantage if we try to siege the capital.”

Henrietta let out a sigh.

“We will kidnap the Emperor and the Empress Dowager and retreat west. The enemy has a thin supply line, so they wouldn’t dare to pursue us. They would lose their cause if they tried to start pillaging now, so they’ll be in a rather difficult situation.”

“Retreat, is it?”

The generals didn’t seem to agree with the plan. Didn’t this mean that they would be avoiding the final battle?

Henrietta shook her head.

“No, retreating is simply a means to an end. Their whole cause for this war is to subjugate Agares. As long as Agares is healthy and on our side, they won’t be able to leave whenever they please. They’ll remain in Parisiorum with an unstable supply line while being unable to leave.”

“I see. They will slowly die off without provisions.”

The generals nodded in understanding.

“That’s right. After a certain point, they will no longer be able to endure and come running out of Parisiorum……. We will force a pitched battle on them again at that moment.”

“Very well, then. Then we will dispatch a detached unit to first retrieve the Emperor and…….”

It happened right when they were able to finalize their plans.

The amber color of dawn gradually spread throughout the sky. Once the night sky had faded away to a degree, they noticed something completely unexpected coming from Parisiorum. It was a black cloud of smoke.

“Your Highness! There is smoke coming from Parisiorum!”

The generals shouted urgently.

Queen Henrietta bit her lip.

“……Those Frankian noble bastards. How dare they…….”

Henrietta now understood why the enemy had only blocked communication spells.

It wasn’t only for the sake of luring their knights in. They were also making sure that Henrietta’s army wouldn’t be able to know what was happening in Parisiorum.

Did the remnant nobles start an uproar while the battle was happening all throughout the night? Their goal was probably to let the Emperor or the Empress Dowager escape……or both of them.

“Damn it!”

Henrietta snapped her baton in half. If the enemy forces are able to join up with either the Emperor or the Empress Dowager, then they would end up in dire straits. They had to prevent that by any means necessary.

“Gather the rest of our troops and head to Parisiorum!”

The troops from Brittany had to march at full speed again before they could fully recover from the previous night’s battle.

***

TL Note: Thanks for reading the chapter. Poor knights. They did their best. Though I didn’t expect zombies to start a musical number. Uuh, nothing much else to say. My nights are still suffering trying to forget the interview… I pray I get edited out….

I’ll see you guys in the next chapter.