Chapter 33
"……Damn."
The edge of the minimap was turning blood-red again. Their movements were different from those of the orc stragglers who had retreated earlier. They weren't withdrawing—they were reorganizing their battle lines and pushing forward again.
The battle had merely entered a lull; it wasn't over yet. I quickened my pace. When I reached the area where 3rd Platoon was stationed, I saw soldiers whose tension had eased sitting in small groups, drinking from canteens or pulling out cigarettes.
"Hey, did you see that earlier? The orcs were blown apart by a single mana bullet from the company commander."
"I did. But I thought our platoon commander was even more impressive. The way everything was timed perfectly amid that chaos…."
The soldiers had relaxed, intoxicated by victory. I charged into their midst and shouted at the top of my lungs.
"Everyone, on your feet! Maintain combat readiness!"
At my shout, the soldiers jumped in surprise and scrambled to their feet.
"P-Platoon Commander…?"
"Didn't all the orcs run away?"
I shouted again without pause.
"Enemy reinforcements! They're coming back! There's no time to rest! Get behind cover immediately!"
Gunther quickly understood my intentions and began urging the soldiers on.
"Everyone, get to your positions! Check your magazines and watch the front!"
Kurt and Hanna immediately sprang into action as well, beginning to establish a defensive line with their squads. The members of 3rd Platoon hurriedly hid behind makeshift trenches and rocks. The metallic clicks of weapons being loaded once again filled the forest.
I searched for Hanna with a grim expression. She was already staring toward the southern part of the forest with a pale face.
"Hanna, can you sense them?"
"…Yes, Lieutenant. …From the south. A much larger and more sinister mana signature than before is rapidly approaching this way!"
"What…?"
That meant it wasn't an ordinary enemy.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
At that moment, the ground began to tremble faintly. They were footsteps—not the heavy tread of hundreds or thousands of military boots, but a deep vibration as though a single enormous beast were stomping on the earth.
From the darkness of the forest came a roar that shook heaven and earth.
"Graaaghhhhhh!"
At the overwhelming roar, the soldiers' faces went deathly white in an instant. On my minimap, I could see blood-red dots rapidly approaching from the south. They were clearly coming for us.
Before long, a gigantic figure emerged from the forest. It was easily over three meters tall. Its entire body was covered in scars, and it wielded a pair of massive, blood-soaked axes. Every time it roared, the air around it trembled.
I immediately activated my skill.
'Status Analysis.'
[Name: Kardor Ironskin]
[Race: Orc]
[Affiliation: Ashen Claw Tribe]
[Rank: Chieftain's Right Hand, War Maniac]
[Hidden Trait: Steel Skin]
'Damn, this isn't an ordinary enemy.'
The moment I checked the information, my mind went cold. This wasn't going to be an easy opponent.
"Captain!"
I shouted toward Seraphina. She was looking at the creature as well.
"It's an enemy commander-class target!"
"I know!"
She immediately began directing the troops.
"All units, concentrate your fire on the center! Don't let that monster reach the main force!"
At Seraphina's sharp command, every gun in 2nd Company opened fire at once. Hundreds of rounds rained down. But the creature's skin was far tougher than I had imagined.
'So that's what Steel Skin meant…!'
The bullets failed to pierce its green muscles and ricocheted off with metallic clangs. As though annoyed, Kardor swung his enormous axes like windmills to knock away the hail of bullets, then charged straight toward the defensive line.
Crack!
The makeshift palisade shattered like a toothpick beneath the blow he brought down, and soldiers were flung into the air amid the flying splinters, screaming.
"W-what the hell is that monster…?!"
"Rifle rounds aren't working! They're bouncing off!"
"S-save me!"
Just as panic was about to spread like an epidemic, Seraphina stepped forward and prepared a mana bullet. Cold air condensed over her palm. Unlike earlier, it didn't stop after forming once; it repeatedly gathered and compressed. The silver-white mana bullet resting on her hand continued absorbing mana and began emitting a vivid light. Meanwhile, Seraphina's complexion was growing noticeably paler.
'Status Analysis.'
[Name: Seraphina von Reinhardt]
[Status: On the verge of a mana reflux attack. Severe disruption in mana control!]
'She's overexerting herself….'
I had only just suppressed the mana reflux attack with [Touch of Tuning]. Yet she was already on the verge of another one. She was forcing her mana to repeatedly strengthen the mana bullet. Given her [Mana Reflux], it must have been agonizing.
Whoosh-!
The bullet Seraphina fired flew along a silver-white trajectory. Its power was clearly much greater than before. But it still wasn't enough. The mana bullet struck Kardor in the chest, but rather than leaving a deep wound, it merely made the giant stagger briefly. His charge did not stop.
"The defensive line is going to break!"
Sergeant Gunther shouted desperately. Just then,
'Captivating Speech.'
"Don't panic!"
My voice, carried by the power of the skill, echoed across the battlefield.
[The skill 'Captivating Speech (Lv.3)' is activated.]
[The skill affects multiple targets (2nd Company members) simultaneously.]
"That monster isn't alone! Deal with the guards around him first! Machine guns, rake down the ones spread out to either side of him! Isolate him!"
[The targets' resistance to negative emotions (fear, despair) temporarily increases, while positive emotions (courage, fighting spirit) are invigorated.]
The eyes of the soldiers who had been gripped by fear changed. They began moving in perfect unison according to my orders. The barrage shifted away from Kardor himself and focused on the orcs accompanying him.
"Graaagh!"
As the guards fell one after another, Kardor's charge faltered for a moment. I didn't miss the opening.
"Klaus!"
"Yes, Lieutenant!"
"Load the new mana bullet you've been saving right now! Then aim for his weak points! His eyes or his knees! Hurry!"
"Understood!"
Bang!
Klaus's muzzle flashed. The blue trajectory struck precisely into Kardor's right eye socket. With a horrible splat, the condensed mana exploded inside the head, blowing half of its hideous head away like a rag.
"Graaaargh!"
The steel-hard giant let out a pained groan for the first time and staggered. I pulled the safety pin from one of the grenades I had been saving.
"Now!"
I threw myself out from behind cover and hurled the grenade. It flew in a parabola and exploded precisely at Kardor's feet as the giant staggered.
Boom!
The explosion sent the giant's enormous body toppling as it lost its balance.
"Concentrated fire! Finish him before he gets up!"
At Seraphina's shout, all of 2nd Company's firepower poured into Kardor. Rifles, machine guns, grenades, and even Seraphina's mana bullets all joined in.
Rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat! Boom! Bang-!
Even a monster with [Steel Skin] couldn't withstand a deluge of bullets with its eyes blown out and its insides mangled. In particular, when bullets burrowed into the places where the explosions had torn through its hide, it let out a horrifying scream.
"Gh… urgh…! L-Lord Gromnar…!"
Kardor spat out a death rattle mixed with bloody foam. He reached a hand toward the sky, then let it fall limply. With a heavy thud, his enormous body went slack.
"H-he's dead!"
"We… We took down that monster!"
Silence briefly descended over the battlefield, and then the soldiers' cheers erupted.
Meanwhile, the orcs who had lost their rallying point fell into a panic. When their commander—the war maniac—died so pointlessly, the remaining orcs lost their will to fight, threw down their weapons, and began fleeing deep into the forest.
After that, the battle gradually came to an end. By the time the pursuit and mopping-up operations were over, sunset was approaching. The orcs had withdrawn completely into the forest.
Silence returned once more. But the atmosphere among the members of 2nd Company was strangely excited.
"Did… did we really take him down?"
Private Hans of 3rd Platoon lightly nudged Kardor's fallen corpse with his foot. The orc war maniac who had looked like a massive mountain of stone was now nothing more than a horribly mangled lump of meat.
"Yeah, kid. We took him down. One of the bullets you fired is probably buried in there somewhere too."
Sergeant Gunther chuckled and pulled out a cigarette. His hands were trembling faintly, but his face was filled with irrepressible pride.
"This is insane… There's no way. We took down that monster without losing a single soldier?"
A soldier from 1st Platoon nearby muttered as though he couldn't believe it.
That was exactly what had happened. Against Kardor Ironskin, the second-in-command of the Ashen Claw Tribe, whose very name was enough to make one's knees buckle, our 2nd Company had achieved a victory approaching a miracle. A few soldiers in 2nd Platoon had suffered minor injuries, but there had been zero fatalities. It was a flawless victory worthy of being included in a tactical manual.
"Hoorayyyyy!!"
The cheer started by someone spread throughout the company in an instant. The soldiers hugged one another and jumped for joy or thrust their fists into the air.
"Long live 2nd Company!"
"We did it! We wiped out those monsters!"
I watched the scene with my arms crossed. The soldiers intoxicated by victory were a pleasant sight, but my mind had already moved on to the next stage.
'I need to hurry the preparations for the encampment.'
Our previous operations had focused on striking the enemy and returning, but this time was different. We had driven the enemy's main force deep into the forest, so now we had to secure the captured territory and push the front line forward.
In other words, tonight we would be sleeping on damp earth instead of in a warm barracks bed. And this life in the field wouldn't end after just a day or two.
It was all because the regimental commander had staked everything on this operation. One victory would not end it. The battle would be over only after we drove the orcs completely out of the Ashen Forest and put a bullet between Great Chieftain Gromnar's brows.
And I wouldn't level up until then, either. I had already confirmed that the system window did not appear while I was staying in a tent.
"Sergeant Gunther!"
"Sir! Platoon Commander!"
Gunther quickly stubbed out his cigarette and ran over.
"Enjoy the festivities later and start organizing the encampment. 3rd Platoon, cover the nine-o'clock position. The orcs may be enraged enough tonight to launch a night raid. Keep a sharp watch."
"Understood! Hey, 3rd Platoon! Snap out of it and pitch the tents! Anyone who doesn't pitch in gets no dinner tonight!"
At Gunther's shout, the members of 3rd Platoon began scrambling around.
Just then, the other platoon commanders approached me.