CH 259

We took on the role of holding back the enemy forces that were coming up the mountain. The strength of Count Dalaim’s troops lies in their long-range attack with specially reinforced arrows. If we could keep them at bay, they would be able to maximize their power.

“Here they come! We can’t let them get past us!”

The Valkyria army was closing in on us in formation. Perhaps because of the painful experience with Count Dalaim’s troops, all of the magicrafts held large shields above them.

The troops at the front of the line seemed to have noticed us waiting for them and thrust their shields forward. The large shields lined up looked like a wall.

“Release them!”

Count Dalaim gives the order to unleash the arrows and countless projectiles descend on the enemy forces from the top of the mountain.

Even with the enhanced power of the arrows, they cannot penetrate large shields, but they can enter the gaps between shields and cause minor damage.

When Kiyone saw the shields bouncing back the reinforced arrows, she said.

“It seems those shields are no ordinary shields. Their strength is extraordinary.”

The effects of the arrows seem to be weak against the enemy forces that are closing in on us with their special shields lined up in formation. However, as a member of the same Valkyria army, Count Dalaim seems to be well versed in the enemy’s tactics.

“Flame arrows loaded!……get ready!……fire!”

The next arrows were burning. As the burning arrows hit the shields of the enemy army, the flames spread wide, enveloping the entire army in flames.

The spreading flames were blue in color. Kiyone looked at it and explained.

“It seems that the arrows were filled with a burning liquid. Flames that burn with combustion fluid are very hot. If you are exposed to those flames for a long time, it will melt the armor of the magicraft.”

The enemy forces were well aware of this, and hurriedly tried to extinguish the flames, this caused the formation to collapse.

Count Dalaim’s troops rained down reinforced arrows on the enemy who had broken ranks. Before they had time to put up their shields, the enemy magicrafts were pierced by the reinforced arrows.

Count Dailam is quite a leader. It’s no wonder that he was able to defend the main temple against a large army with only a few men.

The heavy armored magicraft unit that was ravaged by the arrows retreated. In their place, a squad of lightly armed, light-weighted magicrafts came moving upwards in rapid succession. This time, they seem to be trying to use their mobility to reach the top of the mountain at once.

The arrows of Count Dalaim’s troops poured down, and the magicrafts that were hit fell to the ground. However, the enemies came at us without caring about their fallen allies.

The enemies approaching were maneuverable magicrafts, but they were lousy opponents and were easily defeated by us.

Perhaps they underestimated the fact that only four magicrafts were guarding the path to the top. After double-digit numbers of them were cut down, they must have finally understood the difficulty of passing through here and started to retreat.

All the troops withdrew down the mountain. The fact that they didn’t repeat their inefficient attack might be proof that the enemy commander was not incompetent.

“This mountain seems to be a strong fortress.”

Kiyone commented after the battle.

“The only path that leads to the top is a precipice, which is difficult for people to climb, let alone magicrafts. The only way to get to it is narrow and steep, making it easy to defend and hard to attack. It is truly an impregnable fortress.”

Count Dalaim said with a hearty laugh.

“It would be nice if he would just give up and go back.”

“I hope so too, but the chances of that happening are probably zero. The Valkyria Empire desperately wants the forbidden book Rafishal Weapon.”

Maybe it’s because I know the person who supposedly wrote it, but I can’t quite appreciate it. So, I made this suggestion.

“Why don’t you just give it away?”

“What are you talking about, Yuta-dono! The weapon described in the forbidden book is very dangerous. Rumor has it that it has the power to destroy a castle in a single blow…….If the greedy Valkyria Empire were to acquire such a thing, it would cause a great deal of trouble.”

Since it’s that dangerous I wondered if it would be a good idea to burn it down, but I didn’t want to say anything because it might make them angry.