Chapter 189 - Episode 183: Psychological Warfare
"...I see. So that is all the combat power remaining."
Night.
Viscount Tajinette, who had been placed in the position of consolidating the remaining forces of the expeditionary unit after receiving reports from the officers, let out a sigh.
Roughly 2,200 men had managed to survive the attacks by the enemy army—presumably the Arqvist territorial forces—and swarms of monsters to return to the camp. This meant nearly 30 percent of their strength had been lost. The elite guards under Viscount Tajinette's direct command had finally failed to return.
Even among the 2,200 survivors, not all were unscathed. Excluding the wounded for whom returning to combat would be difficult, there were just over 1,500 left. Approximately half of the original force.
Not only had their numbers dwindled, but the soldiers' morale had also plummeted. Originally, they were supposed to have unilaterally ravaged the villages of the enemy's Arqvist territory; by now, they should have been celebrating with stolen food and liquor, enjoying themselves by killing captured civilians or raping women. Instead, they had returned to the camp in tatters as a defeated army. There was no way they could be in high spirits.
The Kingdom's soldiers were still barely maintaining military discipline, but the drop in morale among the mercenaries had reached a desperate level. Scattered haphazardly everywhere, resting sloppily on the ground without even holding their weapons, they looked exactly like refugees.
No matter how much they were the King's favorite unit, they are mercenaries after all, Viscount Tajinette thought.
The Kingdom had exhausted its strength in the battles at the southern border, and even now, many officers and soldiers were stationed there to maintain the border line. Because of that, the current state of the Lancel Kingdom was such that they had to mix mercenaries into the main force of the expedition.
"...I shall have an audience with His Majesty. I must report."
After informing his aides, Viscount Tajinette tidied his disheveled military uniform and headed toward the King's tent. Once granted permission to enter and passing through the tent entrance, he found Cadne lying on a camping bed.
"Your Majesty, I report. There are approximately 2,200 survivors from the previous battle. Of those, just over 1,500 are capable of continuing combat."
"...I see. Half can still fight. But it is meaningless if I am in this state."
Cadne laughed self-deprecatingly with a powerless voice. Having taken an enemy arrow to the shoulder, his upper body had been stripped of clothing and wrapped in bandages. While the wound had been closed by a healing mage, the treatment had been delayed because the retreat had been cumbersome. He was beginning to show symptoms of the fever common among those who suffer severe injuries.
Furthermore, the enemy had despicably applied poison or something similar to the arrows. Immediately after being hit, Cadne had been struck by a paralysis so severe he could not move a single finger. While it wasn't that bad now, it was fair to say both his legs had become completely immobile.
"Like this, far from mounting a horse, I cannot even walk on my own. I am finished. I cannot be the figurehead for you all..."
"Your Majesty, please keep your spirits high. Surely Your Majesty will be able to stand on your own feet once again."
As he spoke, Viscount Tajinette knew his words were nothing more than a platitude.
Since they did not know what had been applied to the arrow, there was no way they could know how to treat it. Initial response is crucial for treating poison, but now that the symptoms had solidified, it was doubtful whether a proper treatment would work even if they discovered one. Moreover, the enemy likely had not used a mild poison that could be easily cured.
"Viscount Tajinette. I leave the command entirely to you. Whether you retreat, or tie my immobile body to a horse to make me a palanquin to attack the enemy once more, do as you wish."
"...As you wish."
While responding, Viscount Tajinette thought that a re-invasion would be impossible.
Many soldiers had witnessed the sight of Cadne being carried while his shoulder was pierced by an arrow and his entire body remained rigid. The rumor that "King Cadne is already finished" had spread through the unit. The current policy of the Kingdom, which focused on war at the expense of society, existed only because of Cadne's ambition. With the essential Cadne in this state, the expedition could not continue.
Besides, the moment the surprise attack was discovered, the enemy would likely concentrate their forces along this invasion route to counter them. He wondered if the current Lancel Kingdom still possessed the strength to conduct a two-front operation at the southern border and this invasion route.
Just then, a soldier's voice rang out.
"Enemy attack—! Enemy attack—!"
"E-Enemy! The enemy has pursued us!"
The area outside the tent suddenly became noisy.
"Ah, the enemy again... it's all over... I'm finished..."
Cadne held his head with a despairing expression, uttering words of weakness. Watching him from the corner of his eye and feeling his passion as a military noble cooling, Viscount Tajinette spoke nonetheless.
"Please be at ease. We shall protect Your Majesty even at the cost of our lives... I shall go to take command of the troops."
Leaving the still flustered Cadne behind, Tajinette exited the tent and sighed upon seeing the situation at the camp.
Most of the soldiers were merely running around in confusion; the only ones capable of proper unit maneuvers were a few elites, such as the Guard. Those elites were shouting, attempting to organize the soldiers, but the formation to prepare for the enemy was progressing at a snail's pace.
"What are you fools doing! All you have to do is form lines toward the forest on the flank and the invasion route in front, and ready your weapons! Move quickly! Anyone who does not move will be skewered from behind by my magic!"
Since he had become the commander-in-chief, albeit by default, he had no choice but to organize the situation himself. Viscount Tajinette shouted with as much intensity as he could muster, and having received the commander-in-chief's order, the soldiers managed to pull themselves together.
Even after they finally created something resembling a formation, the soldiers' faces were filled with anxiety.
They could not see. The surroundings.
The night in the forest was dark. One step out from the camp illuminated by bonfires, and a darkness spread where one could not even tell where the trees were.
The Albaran faith decreed that only Ordinary Humans were legitimate humans, and the treatment of demi-humans and beastmen soldiers was poor. The few who had been in the expeditionary unit had been used as pawns to save Ordinary Human soldiers during the daytime battle and were wiped out. There was no one left who could use night vision to keep watch on the surroundings.
And looking toward the invasion route, bonfires believed to be the enemy army were approaching from the end of the road melted into the darkness. Judging by the number, the enemy was a large army approaching 1,000.
The enemy's fires gradually drew closer... and eventually, the figures at the front became clear.
"T-That's..."
"Uwaaa... horrible... how could they..."
"No way, to go that far..."
What stood there were golems holding up long spears, with the corpses of the Lancel Kingdom army's officers and soldiers skewered upon them.
.....
"With this, the enemy's invasion force will surely be completely crushed."
"Well, that is certainly likely... Even Frederick-dono was put off, let alone the enemy."
"He was put off by various things during the war the year before last, so it's too late for that now."
At the very rear of the night attack unit, Noein exchanged these words with Yuri.
Though called a night attack, they were not directly attacking the enemy with military force. What they were going to wear down now was not the enemy's combat power, but their mental strength.
A total of just over 200 men—consisting of those who still had strength among the Arqvist territorial army and soldiers borrowed from the Koenitz territorial army—were given torches split into four branches, advancing along the invasion route while deceiving the enemy into thinking they were a large force of about 1,000.
Additionally, they had the Claymore golems carry enemy soldiers' corpses skewered on long spears and placed them at the front.
Furthermore, they had organized another separate unit led by Radley, hiding them in the forest surrounding the enemy camp for a certain operation.
They would be moving through the Bezel Great Forest at night, but since the enemy had wiped out almost all the monsters around the invasion route during the day, there was almost no danger.
"...The enemy camp has come into view."
"Then it's time for the magic tools carried by the golems."
Noein gave the order, and the magic tools attached to the backs of the Claymore golems were activated.
These, called "Voice Mimicking Magic Tools," were simple devices that recorded a human voice for a very short time and played it back. They were mainly used to soothe babies or lure prey during hunts.
Noein had the magic tool craftsman Daphne make several of these and had them carried by the golems.
Voices were emitted from those magic tools.
''Judgment of God upon the foolish invaders.''
''Judgment of God upon the foolish invaders.''
What was recorded in the magic tools were the voices of ten men with particularly deep and powerful voices among the Arqvist territorial army. These voices, emitted from multiple magic tools, overlapped and echoed.
.....
"Ah, aaaa..."
"I don't want this, I can't take this anymore..."
"Oh God, please forgive me... please forgive my sins..."
The soldiers of the Lancel Kingdom army's expeditionary unit had their will to fight completely broken. Although they barely maintained their formation, they no longer had the spirit to fight. Their faces were pale, their legs trembled, they chanted words of prayer, and some had even collapsed in fear.
Before their eyes, golems were ostentatiously holding up the skewered corpses of comrades who had been alive until the daytime. There were corpses where the spear penetrated from the buttocks to the mouth, and others where only severed heads were skewered on spears like dumplings.
''Judgment of God upon the foolish invaders.''
''Judgment of God upon the foolish invaders.''
And furthermore, the echoing voices instilled terror in the soldiers.
In the deep darkness, terrifying low voices overlapped and echoed in layers. The voices, reflecting off the forest trees, rang out not only from the front but also as if enveloping the camp from the flanks.
An eerie sensation, as if they were isolated in a world of darkness and surrounded by beings beyond human understanding. They could escape nowhere, and could do nothing but be enveloped in terror.
''Judgment of God upon the foolish invaders.''
''Judgment of God upon the foolish invaders.''
What expedition? What justice-driven war watched over by the gods? The gods were now condemning them as the foolish ones.
Some of the devout soldiers were even enveloped in such feelings. King Cadne must have surely incurred the wrath of God.
"Hie, what is that!"
Then, something was thrown from the forests to the left and right, rolling at the soldiers' feet. It wasn't just one or two. There were dozens.
"T-This is!"
"Heads! Our comrades' heads!"
"Aaaa I can't take it! I want to go back! Let me go home!"
Realizing that what had been thrown were heads, the soldiers fell into a semi-frenzy. Faces enveloped in the agony of death. Faces likely intentionally damaged to be gruesome to behold. The soldiers who locked eyes with various faces were enveloped in further terror.
The number of soldiers collapsing increased, and some lost consciousness or wet themselves. A few elite soldiers with grit tried desperately to encourage their allies around them, but the efforts of a few were now like throwing water on a hot stone.
"...Honestly, pathetic."
Watching such a scene, Viscount Tajinette let out a sigh for the nth time today.
This was nothing more than a bluff. It was certainly an eerie production, but there was no physical damage. The enemy likely had no intention of attacking them.
However, for once, the enemy's bluff was extremely effective; he could not fight with soldiers whose hearts had been broken to this extent.
"It's impossible now. We retreat at dawn."
Viscount Tajinette realized that this battle was their defeat.