A Tale Of A Scribe Who Retires To The Countryside [EN]: Chapter 362

362. The Great War

The night sky over Seojang was filled with stars.

Beneath those beautiful, overflowing stars, Son Bin’s military tent was lit late into the night.

“The Northern Army will arrive in three days.”

Hwang Bang-ju translated the messenger’s words. Covered in wounds and bloodstains, the messenger knelt before Son Bin, reporting on the Northern Army’s situation.

“How is the Northern Army now?”

Son Bin asked. He actually wanted to tell him to get treatment right away, but the messenger’s eyes were shining brighter than anyone else’s, so much so that Son Bin couldn’t dare interrupt him.

“Not good.”

Without a single groan, the messenger continued.

“The surroundings were filled with monsters. It was as if all the monsters in this land were attacking the Northern Army.”

The Northern Army’s situation was worse than the Western Army’s. Despite being only three days behind, several times more monsters had attacked the Northern Army.

“They are advancing, trampling the monsters, but the Northern Army’s losses are also significant. However, the Northern King of the North has ordered me to tell the Great General that the Northern Army will definitely arrive in three days.”

The messenger couldn’t accurately state the extent of the damage. The Northern King of the North hadn’t told him at all. But it was obvious that there were injured and dead.

Nevertheless, the Northern King of the North said he would arrive in three days as originally planned. The gaunt figure of the Northern King of the North seemed to be drawn before Son Bin’s eyes.

“What is the situation in Lhasa?”

“Until I left, there were no special reports.”

Son Bin nodded. The Demonic Sect was clearly targeting the Western and Northern Armies. Once these two armies were defeated, the rest would be easy.

“I understand. Now, go and get treatment.”

But the messenger shook his head.

“The wounds are not significant. Rather, if you give me a message, I will immediately deliver it to the Northern Army.”

Son Bin sighed inwardly after hearing Hwang Bang-ju’s translation.

To say that wounds that could cause him to collapse at any moment were not significant… Even though they were monks accustomed to asceticism, Son Bin couldn’t help but think it was too much.

“You have excellently completed your mission.”

Son Bin said in a deliberately solemn tone. The messenger immediately bowed his head after hearing Hwang Bang-ju’s translation.

“Get treatment right away and prepare for the upcoming battle. This is an order.”

The messenger couldn’t dare refuse the Great General’s order. As the messenger left the military tent, Son Bin turned to look at the King of Affection and Desire.

“What’s the situation?”

“The surroundings are strangely quiet, but the scouts we sent into the valley have gone silent.”

She spoke in a calm tone, but the King of Affection and Desire’s face was stiff because there was almost no chance that the scouts were still alive.

“And I found this in the remains of the burned city.”

The King of Affection and Desire took out a small metal tube. The metal tube, engraved with a unique pattern of the Seojang Esoteric Buddhism [a branch of Vajrayana Buddhism practiced in Tibet and surrounding regions], shone under the light.

“It was left by the exploration team we sent here. It was hidden in a pre-arranged stone tower. Of course, that tower has collapsed.”

They couldn’t even find the bodies of the exploration team, and the same was true for the city’s residents. All that the greedy monsters had left behind were blood-stained clothes and belongings.

The Western Army’s monks lit incense and chanted mantras [sacred utterances] for the dead residents and exploration team. That was all they could do.

Click.

The tube opened with a small sound. Inside was a rolled-up piece of paper. It contained unique characters and a rough map of the valley.

“This is where the Demonic Sect’s base is presumed to be.”

The King of Affection and Desire pointed to a spot in the valley. Marked with small Seojang characters, it was also the deepest part of the valley.

“It’s not well known to people, but in fact, this place is…”

Ach.

A painful sound escaped from the King of Affection and Desire’s mouth.

“It’s also where the forgotten old kingdom’s winter palace used to be.”

In other words, the Demonic Sect had established its base in a historical site.

Son Bin could understand the King of Affection and Desire’s anger. This was nothing less than an insult to this land.

Nogun, who was listening, clicked his tongue and turned his head. Son Bin was silent for a moment, then looked at the King of Affection and Desire and asked.

“Shall we wait for the Northern Army?”

The King of Affection and Desire wore a bitter smile.

“You already know we can’t do that.”

“That’s right.”

Son Bin nodded and continued.

“They are clearly buying time. If we wait for the Northern Army to arrive, the Valley of the Moon’s Castle will be completely covered in monsters.”

Son Bin reached out his hand over the paper depicting the valley’s terrain. His finger stopped at the location of the forgotten old kingdom’s winter palace, the presumed base of the Demonic Sect.

“We don’t actually know what’s here. We don’t know what enemies there are, or how many.”

Son Bin tapped the paper with his finger and looked up. His eyes were shining with clear conviction.

“But it’s clear that there’s something very important here, something important enough to risk a battle with the twenty thousand strong army of Potala monks.”

The monsters’ seemingly incomprehensible movements were telling them only one thing: that they were preparing for a decisive battle.

Instead of cutting their tails and running away as before, they were trying to fight the Potala monks in this Valley of the Moon’s Castle.

If they wanted to buy time, it would be better to move their base and hide, especially considering that the monsters were getting stronger over time.

Therefore, their actions meant only one thing: inside the Valley of the Moon’s Castle, there was something they could never give up.

“I completely agree.”

A smile hung on the King of Affection and Desire’s red lips, but the heat flickering in her eyes told that the smile was by no means light.

“So, what is the Great General’s command?”

“Tomorrow morning.”

Son Bin looked straight at the King of Affection and Desire and said.

“The Western Army will advance to the southern entrance of the Valley of the Moon’s Castle, with shield-bearing heavy infantry and armored cavalry at the forefront, 压迫 [yā pò – oppress] the enemy without retreating a single step.”

Rustle.

The King of Affection and Desire knelt on one knee, and she put her hands together to pay her respects. It was completely different from the usual way of doing things here.

“Understood.”

The King of Affection and Desire said in a slightly excited voice. The word that didn’t even need Hwang Bang-ju’s translation was the language of the Central Plains [historical region of China centered on the Yellow River valley].

Son Bin thought that the light in her eyes seemed more seductive than usual because of the lamps in the military tent.

* * *

The Valley of the Moon’s Castle was a vast area with barren mountains lined up like a forest, without a single blade of grass.

The mountains, weathered over a long period of time, had clear traces of strata as if someone had drawn lines, and the gentle hills created by collapsed soil and stones continued endlessly like waves between the mountains.

A desolate and barren valley that seemed to swallow even ten thousand troops without a trace.

The Valley of the Moon’s Castle was just such a place.

“Advance!”

Boo-oooo.

With the King of Affection and Desire’s command, horns sounded from all directions. At the same time, the ten thousand strong army of Potala monks slowly began to move.

The armor of the armored cavalry and heavy infantry made noise from all directions, and the dust rising from under the feet of horses and people covered the sky.

The fully armed King of Affection and Desire also led the Western Army at the forefront. The sight of ten thousand troops beginning to advance was truly a spectacle.

Leaving behind the remains of the small city that was still smoking, the Western Army soon entered the Valley of the Moon’s Castle, and they saw that the valley was full of monsters they had never seen before.

—Krrr.

The monsters, with their huge bodies, gleaming green skin, bloodshot eyes, and strangely torn mouths, were no longer similar to any beast in this world.

The monsters, like the mythical beasts from the Classic of Mountains and Seas [ancient Chinese text describing mythical creatures and geography], did not back down even in the face of the advancing ten thousand Potala monks.

No, far from retreating, the monsters’ red eyes were flickering with blatant hostility and greed.

It was the eyes of a predator who had found prey.

“Cursed monsters…”

The King of Affection and Desire gnashed her teeth as she glared at the bizarrely shaped monsters. She, too, had no fear.

The armored cavalry and heavy infantry were the same. The Potala monks glared at the monsters, burning with fighting spirit. Their long spears gleamed sharply in the sunlight.

Thump, thump.

The ten thousand Western Army did not stop advancing. The green monsters screamed from here and there, but that was only for a moment. As if they had made a promise, the monsters rushed towards the Western Army all at once.

Krrrr.

Thousands of monsters, whose numbers could not even be counted, were rushing towards the Western Army like a tide.

The wave of green monsters, rushing in without a unified form or order, was a terrible horror in itself.

“Prepare!”

The King of Affection and Desire shouted, raising her spear. Then the cavalry behind the armored cavalry and heavy infantry immediately took up their bows.

The bowstrings were drawn taut, and the moment they confirmed that the monsters were within range, the King of Affection and Desire commanded.

“Fire!”

Tutu-toong.

Numerous arrows flew through the sky. Thousands of arrows, seemingly blocking even the morning sunlight, soon became a rain of death and poured down on the monsters’ heads.

Whack.

Numerous arrows instantly turned the monsters into hedgehogs, but not many monsters were lying on the dirt floor. Most of the monsters were rushing towards the Western Army with arrows stuck all over their bodies.

“Fire!”

The King of Affection and Desire shouted. Immediately, a second rain of arrows poured down on the monsters.

Whack.

A larger number of monsters than before were lying on the dirt floor, but most of the monsters were still rushing towards the Western Army.

“Armored Cavalry!”

The King of Affection and Desire shouted, grabbing her spear. They could fire arrows once more before the monsters made contact with the vanguard, but that would cause the cavalry to lose the distance to exert their power.

“Follow me!”

The large warhorse immediately followed her command and began to run forward. A thousand armored cavalry followed behind her.

Doo-doo-doo-doo.

The Valley of the Moon’s Castle was a difficult terrain for the cavalry to exert their original destructive power, but the trained armored cavalry of the Potala monks raised dust and rushed towards the monsters without hesitation.

—Kuaaa!

The monsters kicked off the ground and jumped towards the cavalry. It was an amazing jumping power that seemed to swallow the heads of the monks on horseback in an instant.

But the sharp spears of the Potala monks pierced through the monsters’ wide-open mouths in an instant.

Whack.

Blood and screams burst out from all directions. The armored warhorses trampled on the monsters torn by spears and lying on the ground, and the fallen monks or fallen warhorses were torn apart by the monsters’ mouths in an instant.

“Haa!”

The King of Affection and Desire swung her spear like crazy. The sharp energy contained in her spear dismembered the bizarre monsters in an instant.

Her armor and horse were all stained with the monsters’ blood, but she didn’t even care.

She was just cutting through the monsters like crazy and moving forward, but she wasn’t just rushing forward recklessly because that would eventually lead to being isolated among the monsters.

Doo-doo-doo-doo.

The King of Affection and Desire and the armored cavalry she led were slowly drawing a semicircle and returning to the main force. Thanks to this, the cavalry’s destructive power was not properly exerted, but the number of monsters dying from the swinging spears was by no means small.

“Prepare!”

The vice-captain shouted, confirming that the armored cavalry was returning.

“Fire!”

The moment the King of Affection and Desire and the cavalry entered a safe distance, thousands of arrows flew into the sky again.

The monsters cried out in pain in the pouring rain of death arrows, but what awaited them was another armored cavalry charge.

Whack.

While the second armored cavalry stirred up the monsters, the returning King of Affection and Desire encouraged the heavy infantry fighting against the monsters.

“Don’t back down! Push harder!”

The monsters did not stop rushing in. Apart from the armored cavalry stirring up the monsters, the heavy infantry at the forefront were fighting fiercely with the rushing monster horde.

“Haa!”

The King of Affection and Desire scattered her spear with energy. Her spear, flying with a terrifying sound, smashed the head of a monster trying to attack a heavy infantryman who had just fallen.

Thud.

But at that moment, another monster opened its mouth and pounced. As if waiting for it, another monk’s spear tore through the monster’s side, and crimson blood poured out in all directions. In the meantime, the heavy infantryman who had fallen got up and firmly gripped his shield.

He had saved his life, but there was no room to feel relieved because other monsters were rushing towards them.

“Don’t back down!”

“Push the monsters!”

The vice-captains shouted from various places, encouraging the monks. They had only just entered the entrance to the Valley of the Moon’s Castle, but the monsters’ offensive was extremely fierce.

But the ten thousand troops of the Western Army did not back down either. The Western Army was slowly, but steadily, advancing into the Valley of the Moon’s Castle, ravaging the monsters.

“Heh heh.”

The King of Affection and Desire laughed. Her eyes, looking at the endlessly rushing monsters, were filled with joy instead of despair or fear.

“Take care of me, Great General.”

The King of Affection and Desire muttered quietly, recalling the Great General Son Bin and his party.

“If you fail, I’ll be reincarnated a thousand times and follow you around to get my debt back.”

The King of Affection and Desire said, flashing her eyes as if she wasn’t joking, but the person who would listen to her words was not here.

Because the Great General Son Bin had left here last night with his party and headed to the northeast entrance of the Valley of the Moon’s Castle.

“Haaa!”

The King of Affection and Desire scattered her spear towards another monster rushing in. The spear, filled with energy, pierced a large hole in the green monster’s chest.

Thud.

The monster fell, spewing crimson blood like a fountain. It was a terrible sight, but the King of Affection and Desire didn’t even blink.

“Well, then, after a long time.”

Clang.

The King of Affection and Desire took out two rings hanging on the warhorse. The silver wheels, large enough to be embraced with both arms, sparkled sharply in the sunlight.

“Shall we dance the dance of blood?”

Woo-oong.

As if answering her words, the silver rings made a subtle sound. With her arms wide open, the King of Affection and Desire’s red lips smiled seductively under her helmet.

* * *

The green monsters were gathered on the road and hills below the valley where the Potala monks could enter.

Therefore, they did not notice the shadows running like flying over the barren earthen mountains.

Tat, ta-ak.

The five shadows were running, hiding between the mountain shadows and the dark terrain. They crossed distances that were impossible for humans in an instant and made almost no sound or sign.

Tak.

Nogun landed on the top of an earthen mountain. It was a place where the inside was hollowed out and not visible to the monsters below the valley.

When Nogun raised his hand to signal, Dang Ah-wol lightly landed, and Sa Su-yeon, holding Son Bin in her arms, appeared silently. And finally, Seo Rin landed.

‘Shh.’

Nogun, covering his mouth with his finger, slyly poked his head out and looked down the valley.

‘They’re swarming.’

Nogun frowned. The valley below was full of green monsters.

‘Those guys are very different from the ones we’ve seen so far?’

The monsters in this valley were definitely different from the previous monsters. The size and shape seemed like a combination of a bear and a wolf, but the skin and four feet looked like huge lizards.

At that time, Son Bin, who had escaped from Sa Su-yeon’s arms, carefully approached Nogun. Son Bin, who still had a red face, whether he was ashamed of being held or because of Sa Su-yeon’s scent, glanced at the monsters below the valley and soon raised his head to look at the unusually high peak of the loess mountain.

Nogun also raised his head and turned his eyes in the direction Son Bin was looking.

Whoo-oong.

The ruins of the abandoned ancient city were revealing their gaunt appearance on the barren hill. The place where the noble and wealthy once lived was now full of monsters.

But what caught the eyes of Son Bin and Nogun was neither the ruins nor the monsters.

On the high peak towering as if looking down on the ruins, the peak where the ruins of the forgotten palace should have been, only black mist was wriggling ominously.

(Author’s words)

Son Bin: (Thump, thump, mentally confused)

Sa Su-yeon: (Shy, shy. Oh my, did I eat too much dinner yesterday?)