Chapter 23: [Another Perspective] A Fierce Battle, Part 2

Posted bytheredsargeantJuly 30, 2020Posted inFun Territory Defense

　With pitiful screams, the bandits dropped into the moat one by one.

　The villagers were on the verge of routing at the ferocious appearance of the armored lizard, but they didn’t leave the ballista unmanned.
Instead, they held their ground.
Well, I supposed the fact that the ballistas had massive shields influenced their decision.

　In any case, it is good that even undisciplined amateurs like the villagers stood their ground.

　As I muse over the usefulness of the ballista, the dragons had closed in upon the moat.

“Hiiee!”

　The rearmost bandit fell over and screamed.

　An armored dragon pulled the leg of one of the fallen bandits on the edge of the moat and shook it lightly.

　Another armored dragon took a bite and pulled at the upper body of the bandit, who was swung around like a child’s doll.

　Legs were torn to shreds and blood splattered in a vivid gore.

”Ah, ggh.”

　With a silent scream, the bandit’s body was eaten by the dragons.

　The villager’s terror reached an all-battle high.
The same is true of the bandits in the moat who were shown the tragedy directly above their heads.

　I suck in a breath and yell loudly.

“Stand your ground!”

　At my shout, the bodies of the villagers reflexively moved and set the ballistas’ aim.

　There are about forty dragons in front of me.
It’d be harder to miss them.

　I made a slight smile and issue a command.

”Loose!”

　As soon as I shouted, I aimed at the face of the armored lizard and pulled the trigger.

　A sharp sound rang out as the wind was ripped asunder, and the iron arrows flew at deadly speed.

　The iron arrow flew as if magnetically attracted into the brow of Armored Dragon, who had raised its head.
And then… it disappeared?

　Yes, it was gone.
Thinking that I was seen it wrongly, I involuntarily peeked out from beside the shield to check again.

　I saw a conspicuous black hole on the armored dragon’s head.
After stumbling forward a bit, it keeled over onto the ground.
An armored dragon behind it began to scream and writhe.

　An iron arrow was embedded deep within the armored lizard’s foot, causing it to scream in agony.

　Did I miss my shot?

　I thought so, but the armored lizard, which had fallen on its side, showed no sign of getting up, its limbs limp and twitching.

　Then, the other Armored Lizard pulled out the arrow stuck in its foot by lifting its leg.

　In other words, the arrow had pierced through the thick armor on its paw and into the ground, where it finally stopped.

　Looking to the left and right, the villagers were all astonished.

　The armored dragons in the front of the herd had been put down with a salvo of fifteen ballista bolts.

　It’s not incredibly big news since we concentrated our fire on a small number of targets.
But even so, it was an unexpected event.

”How did it go?”

　A slightly impatient voice rang out.

“Master Van! You’ve built one hell of a thing!”

“…What do you mean?”

“It’s amazing! Ten armored lizards were killed in one salvo!”

　At my words, cheers went up throughout the entire village.

”However, there’s only one more iron arrow per each ballista! We need to more iron arrows to defend the gate!”

　As I shouted that, some villagers rushed to gather arrows.

”If you have time, try the wooden arrows too! They are light but just as hard and sharp as steel!”

　”Wood as good as steel?”

　If anyone else said so I would have dismissed it as nonsense, but if Van-sama vouches for their quality, I must try them.

“The rest of you, hurry up and get your iron arrows ready to fire!

　I turn around and give instructions, nock a wooden arrow, wind the string of my ballista, and get ready to fire.

　Perhaps because the ballistas were well made, it didn’t take much time for the villagers to reload their arrows.
In fact, everyone seems to be almost ready to fire by moments after I had finished loading my arrow.

“Take aim!”

　I shout and they all get ready with calm movements.

　This is good.
After just one successful strike, everyone has gained the confidence to stand up to the dragons.
Confidence helps keep the mind positive and improves a person’s ability to act.

　Therefore, I can be confident that the second salvo will be more accurate and that the villagers will be more responsive to my commands.

“Loose!”

　Immediately after I issued the order, a total of twenty-five arrows were fired simultaneously.
Among them was my arrow as well as some from the observation tower and some from the villagers maning the corners of the defensive wall.

　Seeing all the arrows rapidly approaching their targets, I mused to myself that this was likely the most impressive show of force the village has ever made.

　One after another, the iron arrows fell upon many armored dragon’s heads and backs.

　The next moment, roars of despair echoed through the air, mixed with the thudding sound of arrows lodging deep in the ground.

　It was truly an impossible sight.

　But there was something even more incredible.

　The wooden arrow I fired had pierced an armored lizard’s forehead and killed one them.

　That’s right, the wooden arrow pierced the forehead of the armored lizard, which even was invulnerable even to iron blades.
It doesn’t have the same level of penetration as an iron arrow because it is almost weightless, but it managed to pierce deep enough bury of half of its length into the beast’s head.

　Although I was still reeling in shock, I, as a commander, opened my mouth through a conditioned reflex.

”All of you! Switch to the wooden arrows! Prepare your ballistas!”

　We don’t have to wait or rely on a tenuous supply of iron arrows.
All that is required is speed and accuracy when shooting.

　I reel the string and ready myself.

“Attention!”

　Some of the villagers are still loading their arrows, but the majority have finished the process.

”Take aim!”

　All of the ballistas have been loaded and are ready to fire.

“Loose!”

　I issued the order for the third time.

　There were only five armored dragons left.

　If the arrows hit the back or shoulders of a dragon, all it will do is cause them some pain.
However, if an arrow hits the head of one, they will die in one shot.

　A sharp sound rang out as twenty-five arrows flew in pursuit of their targets.

　Most of them stabbed into the backs of the dragons, but there were exactly five arrows, including mine, that hit their heads.

　It was both an anticlimactic and overwhelmingly successful battle.

　The enemy was devastated, and not one of ours was injured, let alone killed.
In addition, we consumed less than sixty arrows.

　If I had made such a report to the Knight Commander, I would have been punished for making a false report.
If I told that to Stradale, who doesn’t have a clue about jokes, there’s no doubt that he would scold me to no end.

“…Stradale.
Master Van is going to become something amazing.
Something none of us can even imagine.”

　I muttered and then turned around to look behind me to see Master Van’s face.

　The expectant eyes that were looking at me looked exactly like those of a child of his age.

　Laughing, I held up one hand high in the air.

“Victory! The Armored Lizard is wiped out! We have achieved a complete victory!”

　As I declared that, a loud cheer erupted from the village.
Even the villagers on top of the defensive wall were hugging each other and rejoicing.

Van-sama was also smiling happily as Till and Kamsin hugged him.

　In fact, Espada was wiping his tears with a handkerchief when he saw Van-sama rejoicing behind him, but if I pointed that out, he would get angry, so I’ll refrain from doing so.

[Orto’s Perspective]

　We were heading for the village in a good mood after mining a lot of ore, but Ksara, who was acting as the guide, suddenly stopped the carriage and ushered us to the front of the carriage in a hurry.

”What’s going on?”

　I called out to him, but Ksara’s eyes were fixed and unmoving as if sewn in the direction of the village.

　When I looked towards the same direction, I could see why.

“An armored lizard!”

　It’s a nasty opponent that swords can’t pierce.
And there are dozens of them.

“Damn, what in the world is going on…?”

　I was biting my teeth as I fiddled with my sword, until noticed something strange.

”Oh, hey … why are those armored lizards lying on their sides?”

“I think they are dead.”

　Ksara’s dialogue stunned Pluriel, who came up beside him.

“You’re lying, right? For a horde of that size, a group of two-hundred knights would be require just to even the odds.
Even then, victory would be uncertain.”

　Immediately after Pluriel muttered that, a loud cheer that sounded like a battle cry erupted from the direction of the village.

”Hey hey.
Van, you’ve given me a years worth of surprises in just a short week.”

　Those words popped out of my mouth.