WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 572: An Uninvited Guest to the War (5)
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The Southern Forest Alliance did not concentrate its forces at Black Axe Stronghold.
They made every possible preparation for defense, but once the battle began, everyone who had been building walls and hauling stones withdrew.
Those who withdrew then moved to Yeoksan Stronghold and Jangho Stronghold. While the Northern Forest Alliance’s main force attacked Black Axe Stronghold, they seized both strongholds.
“Waaaaah!”
Cheers rang out from Yeoksan Stronghold.
Just two thousand people had held off a Northern Forest Alliance force of nearly five thousand, crushing them so thoroughly that they were close to annihilation.
Their malevolent qi was bound to soar.
They had accomplished it without Bang Duchil.
Pushing back an enemy vastly superior in both numbers and skill was something Green Forest bandits rarely experienced in their lives. It was more than enough to fill their hearts with ambition.
“Did you see that? How many did you take down? Four?”
“Hmph! Only four? I got eight, prisoners included!”
“If I’d been up front, I could’ve taken ten!”
The stronghold leaders gave no orders to disarm the enemy or deal with the prisoners.
“From this moment on, throw every prisoner into the Golden Prison!”
“Then are we holding a feast?”
“Who said the battle was over?”
“Pardon?”
“The battle isn’t over yet.”
There were no Northern Forest Alliance members left in Yeoksan Stronghold.
What battle could there still be?
Still, an order was an order.
The Southern Forest Alliance’s Green Forest bandits tightly bound every captured Northern Forest Alliance bandit and threw them into the Golden Prison.
“Stronghold Leader, it’s all done.”
I frowned at once.
“I told you not to call me that.”
The person making the report smiled knowingly.
“I heard you introduce yourself as the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader to the Pigol Stronghold Leader.”
That had been quite a distance away. They heard it?
Damn it.
“You may deny it outwardly, but deep down, you clearly know who you truly are.”
No, I don’t! I said I don’t!
“Me too! I’m here too!”
“Ah, of course, Black Phoenix Stronghold Leader. I saw your performance.”
“Ahem. Black Phoenix Stronghold is this capable.”
The sight of a person who looked five times larger than a candied fruit ghost bowing before Dang Seohui was exceedingly strange.
Considering her strength, it was only natural, but the scene before me was still enough to create a strong sense of dissonance.
“Separate the wounded and prepare to move out.”
“Are we really going to Bongho Stronghold?”
“If things go well at Jangho Stronghold.”
We had confirmed that Martial Alliance personnel were present at Black Axe Stronghold.
No Martial Alliance personnel had come to Yeoksan Stronghold. If none were at Jangho Stronghold either, the operation would proceed as planned.
“You truly are remarkable. They say you can read the heavens’ secrets and command the wind. Is that really true?”
“Who’s spreading that cra... no, who said that?”
“The Alliance Leader said he saw it personally.”
They must have been talking about when I burned the Twin-Curtain Strongholds to the ground.
“It was just military strategy. Please spread the word that it isn’t true.”
“Hahaha. Understood.”
Not once, even until Gu Nam-pyeong, the Pigol Stronghold Leader and Northern Forest Alliance Leader, died, did the Demonic Cult show itself.
“What are you really planning to do?”
I answered Hwa Jeongsan’s question with another question.
“What do you mean?”
“Are you really going to fight Martial Alliance personnel?”
“Are you planning to disobey orders?”
Hwa Jeongsan’s face hardened.
“In this case, aren’t you the one disobeying orders, Hall Master Jin?”
“Why?”
“What do you mean, why? The Martial Alliance is supporting the Northern Forest Alliance. Attacking them is no different from raising a rebellion against the Martial Alliance.”
“Are you sure about that?”
The Martial Alliance was supporting the Northern Forest Alliance.
But that support was limited to indirect aid, such as supplies and provisions.
“They appeared wearing masks to hide their identities. If they had been acting under the Martial Alliance’s orders, would they have needed to do that?”
“...”
“Besides, we faced them without masks. So why didn’t they reveal their identities and stop fighting?”
The Yuseong Hall members all wore martial uniforms marking their respective sects.
Yet the other side had neither revealed who they were nor stopped fighting.
They had been thrown into confusion and their actions restricted, but they fought to the end.
“There must have been some circumstances...”
“What circumstances?”
“...”
If that were the case, they should at least have shown some sign of contacting us after the battle ended. Yet there had been no response from them at all.
“...”
I could have told him what I expected had happened, but I did not bother saying it aloud.
No matter what I said, it would only sound like sophistry to them right now.
Hwa Jeongsan furrowed his brow deeply, as though the unresolved problem was making his head spin.
“...Even so, we can’t kill them indiscriminately.”
Hwa Jeongsan must have sensed it too. Most of those masked people were members of the Orthodox Society.
“If we can persuade them through conversation, we don’t need to fight.”
“Hm?”
Confusion appeared in Hwa Jeongsan’s eyes.
“I mean exactly that. If we can persuade them through conversation, there’s no need to shed blood in someone else’s war.”
“...”
“But if you hesitate when the time comes to draw your sword...”
I spoke firmly.
“Then I will hold you accountable for your actions.”
Hwa Jeongsan still could not hide his confusion.
Then,
Screeech!
A signal flare burst in the distant sky.
It was a yellow flare, announcing that Jangho Stronghold had fallen and that neither the Demonic Cult nor the Orthodox Society had been there.
I rose to my feet.
I walked toward the Green Forest bandits.
Dang Seohui turned to Hwa Jeongsan and added one more thing.
“As Black Phoenix Stronghold’s Deputy Stronghold Leader, you need to do more.”
“I’m not doing that!”
#
The two thousand troops rushed toward Bongho Stronghold without suffering a single loss.
Their movement arts were a mess, and they could not even maintain proper ranks, but their malevolent qi was high enough to pierce the heavens.
Though they were climbing a mountain to raid Bongho Stronghold, no one complained or tried to slack off.
Everyone was eager to climb a little faster and take the lead.
When they reached the summit and confirmed that the forces from Jangho Stronghold had joined them, they all drew their bows.
“Fire!”
At the command, nearly five thousand people loosed arrows toward Bongho Stronghold at once.
The Northern Forest Alliance’s Green Forest bandits, thrown into confusion by the Southern Forest Alliance’s sudden appearance, fell helplessly. Only a few raised wooden boards or hid inside buildings to avoid the rain of arrows.
That alone could not win the battle.
After unleashing a barrage of arrows, the Southern Forest Alliance charged straight into Bongho Stronghold. They dragged out those hiding in the buildings and attacked them with clubs and weapons.
Many of Bongho Stronghold’s forces had left to attack Black Axe Stronghold, Yeoksan Stronghold, and Jangho Stronghold, leaving its remaining defenders severely undermanned.
The time it took to finish them off was shorter than the time they had spent running there.
“Don’t lie around! We’re heading to Black Axe Stronghold now!”
“What?”
“Move, quickly! This is our chance to uproot the Northern Forest Alliance!”
After capturing Bongho Stronghold, the Southern Forest Alliance bandits immediately began racing toward Black Axe Stronghold.
So many people were heading there that they occasionally encountered Northern Forest Alliance Green Forest bandits who had fallen behind along the way.
“No, when did they get behind us?”
“It’s the Southern Forest Alliance!”
“Their numbers... their numbers...!”
The Northern Forest Alliance members heading toward Black Axe Stronghold could not even consider fighting. All they could do was cry out their surrender.
“We surrender, we surrender...”
“Don’t surrender. It’s a hassle to deal with you.”
At the very front of the Southern Forest Alliance, a person with an annoyed expression picked at an ear and spoke casually.
The Northern Forest Alliance members stood dumbfounded.
“W-What do you mean? Isn’t this a war to unite the Green Forest?”
“Look at that tongue rolling like it’s been oiled now that death’s at his doorstep.”
A person who looked somehow sinister, no, simply underhanded, sneered and tossed them several lengths of rope.
“Come on, tie each other up and stay here quietly. Then I’ll treat it as a surrender.”
“Pardon? What does that...?”
Before they could ask what that meant, the person started running forward.
Then the cute little girl in green standing beside them raised two fingers.
“I saw you.”
She pointed to her own eyes, then waggled her fingers at their faces as though she would stab them.
“This Black Phoenix Stronghold Leader saw your faces. If you meddle in this war again, I won’t forgive you.”
After growling with her gums bared, the girl in green ran forward with the Southern Forest Alliance’s Green Forest bandits.
“...Black Phoenix Stronghold? Was there a stronghold like that in the Green Forest?”
“How would I know? Forget it. Come tie me up with this.”
“You’re really going to do it?”
“Didn’t you see them? They came from behind us. That means...”
The person struggling with the rope lowered their voice to a whisper.
“It means Bongho Stronghold, Yeoksan Stronghold, and Jangho Stronghold have all fallen too.”
“...And you’re going to join the Southern Forest Alliance because of that?”
“You saw those fellows with the strange aura too, didn’t you?”
The other person’s face hardened. They understood immediately without needing to be told who was meant.
“I’m joining the Southern Forest Alliance while I have the chance. If I keep fighting under those Northern Forest Alliance idiots, I don’t think I’ll die a natural death. If you want to go, go on your own.”
“What are you doing?”
“...”
“If you tie me like that, it’ll look loose enough for me to escape.”
And so, the Northern Forest Alliance prisoners(?) began amicably tying one another’s hands and feet.
It was a truly beautiful sight.
#
Flap!
The command tent’s canvas was pulled back so violently it seemed ready to tear as the Noksan Stronghold Leader stormed inside.
“What is this nonsense? We lost the battle?”
The stronghold leaders who had arrived before the Noksan Stronghold Leader all clicked their tongues.
“You could have at least fixed yourself up before coming, tsk.”
The Noksan Stronghold Leader’s flushed face and loose waist tie made it obvious what they had been doing without anyone needing to ask.
“Pigol Stronghold Leader... Where is the Pigol Stronghold Leader?”
As the Noksan Stronghold Leader looked around as though searching for a mortal enemy, a low voice reached their ears.
“The Pigol Stronghold Leader is dead.”
“What?”
“I said the Pigol Stronghold Leader is dead.”
“...”
The Noksan Stronghold Leader shook their disheveled hair wildly, as though the alcohol had not yet left their system.
“Was Bang Duchil hiding in Yeoksan Stronghold?”
“No. If he had been, Black Axe Stronghold could have been captured.”
“Then what in the world...!”
“They say the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader appeared.”
Silence fell over the command tent.
“B-Black Dragon Stronghold Leader?”
When they had desperately searched for him, he had not shown his face at all. Yet he appeared now?
“The Pigol Stronghold Leader was killed by the Black Dragon Stronghold Leader?”
“That is correct.”
“What is this...?”
“That isn’t the issue right now.”
The Northern Forest Alliance had suffered tremendous damage in this battle.
Nearly twenty thousand people had been deployed, yet fewer than three thousand returned alive.
Their losses in battle were not the problem.
The problem was that most of the surviving Green Forest bandits had surrendered and gone over to the Southern Forest Alliance.
If they changed sides and fought for the Southern Forest Alliance, the war would become even more difficult.
“Then why... Why couldn’t they capture Black Axe Stronghold? The White Path lot was there with them too.”
They knew experts had joined the Southern Forest Alliance.
Still, they had not been worried because there were more experts assisting the Northern Forest Alliance.
‘So how...!’
Yet all those people had been of no help in this battle, resulting in enormous losses for the Northern Forest Alliance.
“Could those White Path bastards have betrayed us?”
“That’s possible. They all returned without a scratch.”
“Ha... And you just sat here doing nothing about it?!”
At the Noksan Stronghold Leader’s rebuke, one stronghold leader let out a mocking laugh.
“If you have a complaint, go tell them yourself.”
The Noksan Stronghold Leader’s face reddened.
“You bastard...!”
“That’s why I’m telling you to calm down. Do you think anyone here isn’t furious?”
“...”
The situation, which had been in their favor, had turned upside down in an instant.
On top of that, the Martial Alliance personnel who had volunteered to help the Northern Forest Alliance had been utterly useless, while Bicheon Castle’s troops and masters had not even shown their faces on the battlefield.
They were clearly the side issuing orders, yet they could not exercise the slightest coercive authority.
“Are we going to keep sitting here?”
“Do you have a solution?”
“At the very least, shouldn’t we punish Bicheon Castle? They were the ones moving alongside the Alliance Leader.”
Though he had been an alliance leader in name only, his death would undoubtedly lower the Northern Forest Alliance’s morale.
“Hmm... True. It’ll be difficult to let this pass.”
“That’s right. They’ve been far too arrogant.”
As several stronghold leaders voiced their agreement, the Noksan Stronghold Leader spoke more forcefully.
“They’re practitioners of dark arts anyway. They were never people we could stay allied with to the end.”
“But can Green Forest bandits really deal with them?”
“What’s there to worry about when Martial Alliance experts are here?”
At the Noksan Stronghold Leader’s words, the air in the tent suddenly stirred.
“You want Bicheon Castle and the White Path fighters to meet? Are you insane?”
The Noksan Stronghold Leader shrugged.
“We only have to say we didn’t know.”
“...”
“Besides, if the White Path fighters fail...”
A sinister smile spread across the Noksan Stronghold Leader’s lips.
“Couldn’t we use that as an excuse to borrow more experts from the Martial Alliance?”
The people present fell silent for a moment.
Each considered it carefully, then one by one, they began nodding.
No one had checked whether it was a realistic plan, but it suited the stronghold leaders’ tastes.
Restoring their wounded pride mattered more than anything else right now.
Then,
Riiip!
The tent canvas tore as a cold wind rushed inside.
“What?”
“Can’t you see we’re in a meeting?”
Two men entered the tent along with the cold wind.
They were people from Bicheon Castle.
The stronghold leaders, who had just been preparing to punish them, lashed out in humiliated anger.
“How dare you enter this place without permission!”
“We came in because a problem arose.”
When the huge man answered as though it were nothing, the stronghold leaders’ anger boiled over.
“Whose fault is that...! Where were you when Yeoksan Stronghold was being attacked?”
“Ah, then?”
The huge man clapped his hands once and said casually,
“I was hungry, so I was eating.”
“You bastards!”
“Come now, calm down.”
The Noksan Stronghold Leader raised their internal energy.
Blue light gathered around both fists, and they tensed as though they were about to send the huge man flying at any moment.
But then,
“I said calm down.”
Grab!
The huge man instantly seized the Noksan Stronghold Leader’s head.
Then,
“A-Aaaagh!”
He crushed the Noksan Stronghold Leader’s head as easily as an apple.
Thud!
“Gasp!”
“Urgh!”
“What...?”
The Noksan Stronghold Leader’s body, its head mangled in an instant, fell to the ground. The shocked stronghold leaders immediately drew their weapons.
The huge man bared his yellow teeth and smiled as though he found the sight amusing.
“What are you going to do with toys like that?”
He had not released killing intent or an imposing aura, yet the stronghold leaders could not move at the man’s casual words.
“We understand your capabilities well enough. From now on, we will command this war.”
They instinctively knew that if they moved, they would die like the Noksan Stronghold Leader.
“If anyone has a complaint, speak without holding back.”
“...”
“...”
“...”
Only then did they realize it.
They had tried to drive away a tiger.
“I’ll kill you right away.”
Only to summon a fiend.
Footnotes:
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