Reincarnated into a Game as the Hero’s Friend - Chapter 12
The screams and corpses hitting the ground caused me to barely hear my breath.
This world doesn’t have a precise clock, so who knows how long I’ve been fighting. It feels like it’s been 30 minutes, maybe actually longer. At this point, I started to feel disconnected from reality.
“Move three steps forward! Push the enemies!”
“PUSH!!”
Along with that shout, everyone stepped forward and turned many demons into corpses.
“Contact the main army. Tell them we will fall back a little!”
“Acknowledged!”
Little by little, my voice started to get hoarse. I’m impressed that I can keep shouting for this long. By tomorrow, I might not be able to speak.
Indifferent to my ordeal, my troop started to fall back while dodging occasional stones thrown by the enemies. After a sufficient distance, they began to reposition themselves.
Who the hell said that stones are useless weapons on a battlefield!? Even while wearing armor, it’s still terrifying to see those plastic bottle-sized objects thrown at me. I’m sure the injury won’t be light if it hits my face.
That’s why goblins, kobolds, and other demons that can throw those stones are quite dangerous. Once in a while, there will also be one that can use magic among the goblins. Though the goblins’ magic is weak, it’s still dangerous.
So this is how tiring a retreating battle is. I don’t know when it will end.
The plan to move to the center that I’ve talked about with Sir Wachtel went well.
The few archers and mages that the Crown Prince brought have been sent to the two flanks. He chooses to believe in the Royal Guard’s ability. It’s a good choice.
After all, the Royal Guards are all stronger than the demons.
In addition, unlike the flanks, the center didn’t suffer from the enemies’ spells and arrows. The Royal Guards had successfully pushed the enemies back even before I arrived here. After my troop’s successful surprise attack, we’ve gained even more distance.
At the vanguard, my troop continues to fight the enemies without rest.
If I didn’t prepare an abundance of potions beforehand, some of my men might have already fainted. Hufft… Even playing sports without rest must have been easier compared to wearing armor and fighting a war. At least, you don’t need to risk your life, not to mention the immense strain a war puts on the body and mind.
War is more advantageous for a larger army with enough spare soldiers to shift.
“Haha… So this is why the rear often collapses first.”
With one swing of the spear, an enemy’s legs were cut. That enemy soon became a corpse under the onslaught of weapons from other knights.
There were times when we didn’t manage to kill the enemies. In that case, we just let them be. Because even injured enemies can impede other enemies.
A scene in a war when the rear collapsed first is often depicted in history books and novels. After all, the rear is mostly non-combatants. It’s more common for them to run away in the middle of battle. That will cause a chain reaction, and the whole army will collapse.
There’s no need to worry about that now because our rear is none other than the Royal Guards. Even if I wanted to retreat, I can’t, so I’ve no choice but to keep holding up.
Having skilled troops in the rear may feel unfair. After all, they can fight, so why did they hide in the back?
But in reality, it‘s a relief. Because any time someone among us is tired or injured, we can switch with them.
Well, the second our back is diminished into a vacant lot, I will run.
“Give the signal to our slingers!”
“Understood!”
Now that the distance between the enemies and us has become close and it has become harder to push them, I decided to use ‘that’.
A worn-out flag is raised. Following that, countless jars fly into the air. They landed behind the enemy’s vanguard and caused a fire.
It’s the modification of the flame bottle: flame jar! Because this world has magic, this kind of thing usually won’t be needed on a battlefield. Plus, I don’t have the important gasoline that can cause an explosion.
That’s why I used a substitute, turpentine oil. I was surprised when I heard from Father that it existed in this world. Father said that people originally used the oil to make medicine, but nowadays, it’s more used to create scented oil.
The oil is not rare, but buying an enormous quantity of it is impossible under normal circumstances. I can do it, albeit a bit forcefully, because of the Zeavert household influence. As the oil is often used in diplomatic ceremonies, the Zeavert household knows its circulation in the market.
In other words, I just used my father’s name (without his permission) to buy the oil. I’m probably going to be scolded later, but it’s better than dying. The battle going around the capital also made it easier for me to gather the oils in a short amount of time. It’s the only thing I can be thankful for.
Since there were only ten slingers, they didn’t create something big like a flame war.
The reason I chose to bring the jars onto the battlefield despite the existence of magic was because of the difference in the kind of fire they created. Fire created by spells will die out not long after it hits the enemies, while fire created by flame jars last longer.
Why? I don’t know. The principle of magic is still a mystery to me.
Anyway, I don’t care as long as it works.
The demons that went on fire started to roll on the ground. So what’s hot is still hot, eh. They become obstacles for other demons, obstructing the enemies’ overall movement.
Because of them, a gap was created between the enemies in front of us and the enemies after them. If we defeated the enemies right in front, our retreat would become easier.
“Push them back!”
“Get them!”
“Die, you bastard!”
Several rounds of jar throws were enough for my troop to get used to it. Now they started to prepare to attack after a round of jar throws. Thanks to it, the reaction speed of my troop increased.
After we exterminated the enemy’s current vanguard, we stepped back again. It’s not that I don’t want to run, it’s just that the Royal Guards were behind me, so I had no choice but to keep fighting.
Well, this situation was on the better side. Because the Royal Guard has been taking care of and protecting injured personnel.
Additionally, human legs can’t match up to the beasts’ legs. The chance of being killed after running away from here was way higher.
“Welner-sama, the flame jars have almost run out.”
“Alright. Although we still have some potions left, tell the hunters and porters that they have my permission to retreat. Make sure they brought our horses back to the mansion.”
I replied in a hoarse voice. I didn’t have enough energy to keep shouting like before. The enemy didn’t relent even for a bit, so I’m mentally tired. Come to think of it, back when this world was still a game, didn’t a similar thing happen? No matter how many times I killed mobs, they would just keep coming unless I also killed the boss. Where the heck these guys keep coming from?
The capital walls have gotten closer, but I don’t think I can handle this anymore. Should I just give up? I can at least close the curtain with a dramatic end by throwing the remaining flame jars.
As I started to give up, the enemies’ movement suddenly became strange. Some beasts looked confused, and others looked flustered after they saw us. Some insect-type beasts even started to attack other demons.
I followed my instinct.
“This is our chance! Push them back!”
“Welner-sama!!??”
Ignoring the knights’ doubt, I swing my spear with all my power. A bit later, the Zeavert army that had been accustomed to following my order followed me.
The last to react were the people who just joined my troops. As a result, we created a spindle-like formation and succeeded in killing the enemies at an unprecedented speed. Currently, those demons were no longer a demon outbreak (Stampede) but just a ragtag of demons.
To tell you the truth, I don’t remember much after that. After the battle, I learned that I rushed to the enemy line and rampaged inside. Apparently, the sight of me mowing down terrified demons makes me look like I’m the devil myself.
No, I don’t enjoy slaughter! It must be the effect of my piled-up stress… probably.
Not long after, a second army comes to our rescue. It was probably thanks to the knights that returned with the Royal Grandson. We worked together with them to pulverize the ragtag group of demons and successfully drove back the demons in the truest sense.
“…We won…”
“WE WON!!!”
“IT’S OUR VICTORY!!”
Cheers of celebration followed soon after. I managed to stand by using my spear as a cane in its midst.
Huh? Is this a dream? We won!?
It took time for me to digest that fact, and the second a sense of relief came, everything turned black.