Chapter 105 – EPISODE 105 – DEPARTURE FOR THE FRONT (1)
Terms used in this chapter:
Pitched battle – a battle in which both sides choose the fighting location and time.
The corrupted wild G.o.d’s appearance while Karaval was going on brought about a huge shock to the eastern tribes.
Although the number of witnesses were only a few people from the east, its impact was extraordinary because most of the witnesses were leaders of a tribe.
“We have to attack the west as soon as possible.”
When even Gentle Snow Breeze, who had a gentle personality among the wild G.o.ds, strongly insisted on attacking, the opinions of the eastern tribes easily became one.
“To begin with, this fight is not a defensive fight. We must strike the west and drive out the demon followers from the wild lands.”
And if it was a war that would happen anyway, it was better to fight in the west than in the east.
“After all, fights in the wild lands are all about pitched battles. So we don’t have to use our land as a battlefield.”
Naturally, there were supply problems, and it was common for the defending side to be in an advantageous position than the attacking side because they had the geographical advantage even if the pitched battle is held in a place without walls.
But the east had one more reason to attack the west.
“We must wake up the Golden Dragon King from his deep sleep by blowing up the contaminated dragon veins.”
It was an order directly entrusted by the Golden Dragon King to Jude and Cordelia, the guardians of the wild lands.
No one in the east doubted the words of the two since the wild G.o.ds, Gentle Snow Breeze and Violent Avalanche, affirmed that the two were guardians.
“We gather the powers of the east to strike the west.”
They made a decision.
The tribal chieftains who gathered to watch the Karaval hurriedly returned to their tribal lands, and full-scale preparations for the military expedition began.
And three days later.
Four days after the Karaval, the Great Storm tribe and Blade Song tribe gathered again in the land of Gentle Snow Breeze.
***
Meetings in the wild lands basically proceeded in the form of sitting in a circle on the floor as the partic.i.p.ants exchanged opinions.
Therefore, the meeting hall organized by Gentle Snow Breeze was prepared in the form of everyone sitting in a circle with a large map placed on the center, and one special arrangement.
‘Four seats of honor.’
There were four large chairs behind the people seated in a circle.
It was none other than the seats of the wild G.o.ds.
“It’s been a long time.”
“It’s been a long time, brother.”
Gentle Snow Breeze warmly greeted Great Storm who sat in the seat of honor in the south. She was seated in the east, and Violent Avalanche was seated in the west.
And on the seat of honor in the north.
“I don’t know how long it’s been since the four of us gathered in one place.”
A handsome young man with a short black beard said with a bitter smile.
The wild G.o.d Blade Song.
He was in human form, but his large body and intense eyes seemed to reveal that he was a wolf.
“You still like colorful things.”
“Because I’m splendid.”
Great Storm frowned at the reply of Blade Song who chuckled and shrugged his shoulders as he showed off the colored tattoos on his naked upper body.
“Okay, sit down first. We have to begin our meeting. The children can’t talk if we’re talking amongst ourselves.”
“Oooh… Violent Avalanche. How did you become so cute? No, were you originally cute?”
“Yes, yes. I was originally cute, so sit down first.”
“Haha, as expected of a mature and experienced one.”
When his provocation did not work on Violent Avalanche, Blade Song chuckled again and sat at the seat of honor in the north.
“Let’s begin now.”
Violent Avalanche gestured with his eyes and spoke, and Gentle Snow Breezed lightly clapped her hands, prompting those who were waiting outside to enter the meeting hall.
“Red Gale of the Great Storm tribe greets the wild G.o.ds.”
“Nine Blades of the Blade Song tribe greets the wild G.o.ds.”
“Fine Snow of the Gentle Snow Breeze tribe greets the wild G.o.ds.”
As the chieftains courteously greeted them in turns and sat on their a.s.signed places, the leading figures of each tribe also sat down.
And in the meantime, Jude and Cordelia also joined them.
‘Jude, Jude. That b*stard keeps looking at us.’
‘You do know that you shouldn’t be looking at him too, right?’
‘I know, but I want to look at him.’
‘…If you don’t look at him, I’ll do something amazing.’
‘You’ll be doing something amazing anyway.’
‘We’re on the same page, right?’
‘Uh…perhaps?’
After having a conversation with their eyes, Jude and Cordelia looked at the front again.
The gaze that Cordelia was talking about.
Jude could also feel it. Blade Song who sat on the opposite side was openly staring at Cordelia and him.
‘He must have found us interesting.’
Because the Golden Dragon King granted the status of guardians not to someone from the wild lands, but to a boy and girl from the Sälen Kingdom, which had been in conflict with the wild lands for many years.
Unlike the Great Storm tribe which was located in the south and had little direct confrontation with the Sälen Kingdom, the Blade Song tribe was always at the forefront of the fight against the kingdom.
Since their basic customs and way of life were different, it would had been stranger if Blade Song gazed at them nicely.
“Then, let’s begin the meeting.”
Clear Snow declared the opening of the meeting, and they began talking about the fundamental stuff.
“The allied forces will be gathered first in the east seven days from now. I’m thinking of departing for the front eight days later.”
If all the troops in the east were gathered, the numbers would exceed 50,000 and even reach 100,000, but that was if a total mobilization order was issued.
If they considered the troops for defense, the troops to maintain the supply line, and the movement speed of the tribes located in geographically distant locations, the number of troops that could gather at the first gathering was between 20,000 to 30,000.
“The 1st unit will advance to the west first, followed by the 2nd unit to support them.”
The basic strategy itself had few difficulties.
Because the existence of the great mountain range, which separated the east and west sides, limited the routes where they could be attacked in the first place.
‘The problem then, is the corrupted wild G.o.ds.’
Basically, the wild G.o.ds were supposed to stay in their sanctuary, but the chances of the Devil’s Eye leaving the corrupted wild G.o.ds with nothing to do was close to zero.
They would be actively deployed in the battlefield.
“We will stop the wild G.o.ds of the west.”
As Blade Song spoke with a frown, Great Storm also frowned and nodded his head.
Although it was uncomfortable for them to leave their sanctuaries, it was also a painful reality for them to fight their fellow wild G.o.ds.
‘Those are the basic points of the plan.’
The large army from the east would advance to the west, and the wild G.o.ds would join the main army and fight against the wild G.o.ds of the west.
Jude and Cordelia would have normally been a.s.signed roles, but Jude had a bit of a different idea.
“Cordelia and I are going to move separately.”
Unlike the Great Storm tribe whom they had already exchanged their ideas, the Blade Song tribe c.o.c.ked their heads and found it odd.
They questioned why the two would move separately and what they would do in the fight between two large armies.
“Explain.”
Cordelia frowned when Blade Song ordered them to talk as if he was their superior, but Jude got up from his seat and stepped forward before politely bowing as if it wasn’t a big deal.
“As you can see, there’s a large mountain range that’s lined up like a wall between the east and west.”
Therefore, the eastern army was planning to march their troops into the southern plains between two mountains.
“Instead of joining the main army, Cordelia and I will attempt to strike the defenseless tribes in the northwest beyond the Sky Roof mountain range.”
The west would also be watching the movement of the east, so they would also be dispatching not only troops, but also the wild G.o.ds to the southern plains.
Thus, their rear would naturally be empty, so Jude was saying that they would cross the mountain range and attack their rear.
“The goal of Cordelia and I is to blow up the contaminated dragon veins, so we do not need to confront the tribes in the rear. We just need to infiltrate and make the dragon vein runaway.”
The enemies would naturally strengthen their defenses if one dragon vein exploded, so it would be difficult to repeat, but if they could really infiltrate the rear beyond the Sky Roof mountain range, they could at least blow up two dragon veins.
“This would have a huge strategic effect. The enemies would have to pay attention not only to the front, but also to the rear, and they would be anxious about their hometowns taking a huge blow.”
The dragon veins were sacred for those who lived in the wild lands, but it was also a target for contamination by the Devil’s Eye, a group of demon followers.
In other words, it was the fact that Jude and Cordelia were the only ones in the wild lands who saw the dragon veins as targets for explosion.
‘An attack that destroys common sense is always useful.’
It was something unimaginable, so they wouldn’t be able to properly defend.
At Jude’s explanation, the Blade Song tribe blinked their eyes, and Blade Song who was quietly listening burst into laughter.
“Crazy people. But I like it.”
Blow up the dragon vein and destroy the sanctuary.
It sounded simple, but for him, a wild G.o.d, it meant something special.
The destruction of the sanctuary was tantamount to destroying the base of a wild G.o.d, and it also meant blowing away the homes of those who lived in the wild lands.
‘But the Golden Dragon King allowed it.’
It was actually the most efficient way.
It was a better way to protect the east and defeat the enemy than razing to ground the entire west of the wild lands.
“The ruggedness of the Sky Roof mountain range is beyond imagination. Will you two be able to cross the mountain range safely and on time?”
When Blade Song provocatively asked, Jude smiled and said.
“It will be hard and difficult. That’s why we need Blade Song’s a.s.sistance.”
“My a.s.sistance?”
“Yes, it would be possible with your a.s.sistance.”
Jude still kept the smile on his face, and Blade Song narrowed his eyes.
‘How impudent.’
Rather than be discouraged by the question of whether they could do it, he asked for help instead.
‘Interesting.’
It was a question that he asked with the thought of pressing Jude down a bit, but instead, he was trapped.
He couldn’t say that he couldn’t help because Gentle Snow Breeze and Great Storm were watching him in this place.
‘It was also me who asked him if he could do it.’
What would they say about Blade Song if he tried to escape from here? It was also a place where the wild land’s children were watching.
“You have some guts.”
“Thank you.”
Jude gently responded, and Blade Song had no choice but to sincerely smile in the end.
‘Now that we’re here, let’s give him something big.’
He actually liked Jude.
Like his belligerent personality, Blade Song liked the brave ones without fear.
“Tell me, what kind of help do you need?”
“Is it all right to tell you about it?”
“Yes, feel free to tell me. What do you need? I’m not a stingy man like Great Storm.”
When Blade Song said and snickered, Great Storm frowned but did not open his mouth.
Because he had already talked about it with Jude.
And one more person.
Cordelia quickly glanced at Great Storm.
‘Will he give it to us to match yours?’
‘Yes, he’ll match it to some extent.’
Great Storm knew Blade Song’s personality well.
And Jude had expected Blade Song to say the same thing now after he had heard about Blade Song from Great Storm.
Blade Song was not a stingy man like Great Storm.
In other words, he would help them more than Great Storm.
So what would happen if he exaggerated the extent to which Great Storm helped?
And what if Great Storm also admitted to helping him?
‘Thank you very much.’
‘Thank you!’
What does the fierce, vigorous, and handsome Blade Song have in common with the benevolent and beautiful Wild Fairy Queen?
Cordelia had a nice smile, and Jude gently opened his mouth and began talking.
***
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Re-really?”
“Really, really.”
Having received Blade Song’s desperate gaze, Great Storm pretended that it was the truth as he bit his lips. He tried his best to control the corners of his mouth from rising.
‘Kekeke, you’ve been completely robbed.’
Divine protection was just the beginning.
Blade Song had to bring out the items he treasured, and at the end, he had to take out and offer the ancient medicine he had hidden for a long time.
‘Ugh…ah, how long had I been saving that?’
It was a hundred-year-old medicinal wine.
It was something that he had saved for a long time.
Blade Song’s psychological resistance was naturally immense since he had to bring out such items, but he was eventually forced to bring out what he had one by one.
‘As planned.’
Even if Blade Song was a prideful wild G.o.d who had honor, what he did was strange if not for the words Jude had said in advance.
Because Jude had arranged for this strange event to become reality.
“Ooh! As expected of Blade Song!”
“How magnanimous!”
“As expected of brother Blade Song. You’re really amazing.”
“I have no choice but to admit it…you’re the best, Blade Song.”
“Hahaha, he’s amazing. It’s not an exaggeration to say that he’s the best in the east.”
The Gentle Snow Breeze and Great Storm tribes made a fuss about it, and even Gentle Snow Breeze, Great Storm, and Violent Avalanche also helped one-by-one.
As Blade Song took honor very seriously, he was caught in a checkmate and couldn’t escape.
“What the heck, here! Take it!”
“Thank you!”
Jude received the items and ancient medicine with immense grat.i.tude.
It seemed like he could hear Cordelia’s voice as she widely smiled behind his back.
‘My Jude is the best! The best man to marry!’
Of course, Jude didn’t just randomly rip him off.
Blade Song was an important being who would help in leading the fight against the west, so taking his supplies for the war would be a huge loss to all their allies.
Therefore, Jude intensively ripped off items that were difficult to use in a war but would be useful to Cordelia and himself.
‘Great Storm, Gentle Snow Breeze, Violent Avalanche… Thanks to all of you.’
The three wild G.o.ds not only provided information about the various items of Blade Song, but also agreed to help him with asking for the items.
The new items they got from Blade Song would be useful for crossing the Sky Roof mountain range, and the ancient medicine with a huge amount of life energy would be helpful in opening a new door of Ninth Heaven’s Nine Doors.
‘I did a good job, right?’
‘Yes, you did a great job. So good. I want to praise you.’
Cordelia complimented Jude with her eyes as she brightly smiled. Jude then sat next to Cordelia and gestured to Red Gale.
It meant that they should proceed with the meeting again.
About half an hour later…
The first meeting for the military campaign for the west was concluded, leaving a bitter wound on the chest of a wild G.o.d.