Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 268

Requiem

“The main force has begun the first siege on Count Klausen’s territory.”

“Our fate will depend on the outcome.”

“The main force consists of tens of thousands, not just a few thousand like before.

They’ll probably fall soon enough.

They have more siege weapons and mages, don’t they?”

“That’s true, but too much destruction isn’t good, so they might not be as effective as you think.

We’re only here under the pretense of attacking Hispania for protecting the Demon Followers.”

“So, it would be a disadvantage for us to appear interested in looting or occupying the territory.”

The 1st Army, having entered Hispania, won every battle and went around nearby cities, declaring that they were not an invading force but had come to crush the conspiracy of the Demon Followers.

As proof, they didn’t recklessly attack the cities, mainly because they could be surrounded and annihilated if they engaged in a siege.

Of course, forces drafted from nearby nobles constantly patrolled around to prevent the 1st Army from focusing on anything, but that was all they could do.

The 1st Army was so large that the small forces of a few hundred couldn’t even engage in battle.

“It’s about time Hispania’s regular army showed up.”

“Indeed.”

As the command of the 1st Army was talking, an unidentified group was spotted approaching from afar.

They wondered if Hispania’s regular army had finally appeared, and a full-scale battle was about to begin, but they were left speechless by the horrific sight that unfolded before their eyes.

“…”

“Am I seeing things?”

“I think you’re seeing it right.”

Whether they are knights or cavalry, they shine when charging at the enemy.

To intimidate the enemy during a charge and cause their formation to collapse on its own, both the horse and rider must always leave a strong impression.

Therefore, not only the riders but also the horses are decorated to be somewhat extravagant, and especially for horses, a sturdy build was considered important because the impact force increases in proportion to their size.

But what the Nudia command was seeing now was a scene that directly contradicted not only Nudia’s standards but also Hispania’s.

It was a situation that was impossible to endure without laughing.

“What is that?

Are those supposed to be cavalry?”

“Even a low-ranking administrative soldier in the cavalry wouldn’t dress like that! What on earth is that?”

The cavalry was rushing towards the 1st Army of Nudia.

It felt like they were about to charge and engage in battle, but the commanders were more dumbfounded by the sight of the approaching group than tense.

The shabbiness and smallness were evident even from a distance.

They were all wearing old fur clothes of various colors, making them look even more pathetic.

Not a single one of them seemed to have proper armor or even a helmet, and nothing sparkled among them even though the sun was out.

They were definitely riding horses, but instead of intimidation, it felt more like child’s play.

The reason was the size of the horses, which were too small and pathetic compared to Nudia’s warhorses.

“Yoreley yoreley!”

“Yoreley yoreley yoreley!”

“Yoreley yoreley yoreley yoreley!”

A group of cavalrymen charged forward, shouting words that were impossible to understand.

The command had the anti-cavalry formation ready and prepared for an attack, but the riders suddenly slowed down in front and took out bows instead of lances.

“Huh?”

Then, without even stopping their horses, they drew their bows and nocked arrows.

It was difficult to aim or even draw the bow properly while being shaken around by the horse.

Thump!

Thwoong!

Tick!

Tuk!

Naturally, the arrows they shot flew weakly, hitting the shields, spears, and even armor of the Nudia infantry before falling to the ground.

“Hiya!”

“Hiya, hiya!”

Then, as if provoking the Nudia side, they circled around, making more strange noises before turning their horses and disappearing somewhere before the Nudia side could react.

“…What was that?”

“What are those guys?”

The soldiers of Nudia, who had been expecting a battle, were naturally bewildered and muttered to themselves.

They had thought of cavalry as the worst enemy of infantry, a fearsome force that could break through their formation at any time, but these guys just shot some arrows like children playing around and then ran away.

“What on earth was that?”

“Were there any casualties on our side?”

“Blind arrows, shot from a place where they couldn’t even draw the bow properly on a running horse. It was impossible to get hurt even if you wanted to.”

The Nudia command glared at the ones who seemed to be running away but were slowing down again and loitering not far away, making strange noises as if daring them to catch them.

“It’s really obvious.”

“Indeed. It’s impossible to pull off such crazy behavior unless it’s a feint [a deceptive or distracting maneuver].”

Ibe, who was standing far away, nodded at their words.

Who would be foolish enough to fall for such an obvious lure and chase after them?

It would have been much more feasible to dress them in shiny armor and fancy helmets, use excellent horses to disguise them as knights, and lure the 1st Army to a suitable location.

The Nudia 1st Army ignored their feint as if it was not even worth considering and resumed their march.

But soon, they had to stop marching again and form a formation because another group of cavalry was charging fiercely from the side.

“Iei!”

“Iei iei!”

“Iei iei iei iei!”

Again, the unidentified shouts began, and the shabby cavalry charged towards the 1st Army.

The Nudia side clicked their tongues and ordered them to form a formation once again.

No matter how ragged they looked, if cavalry swept through the marching ranks even once, it could have the effect of breaking their back.

Therefore, the command took appropriate measures, and as soon as solid barriers were erected, those who were rushing towards the 1st Army circled around as if not knowing what to do, with some shooting arrows and others throwing the spears they were holding.

But they couldn’t inflict any significant damage, and in the end, they started running away somewhere, making strange noises like the previous attackers.

Of course, they didn’t forget to lure Nudia to chase after them, as if daring them to catch them.

“…Damn it.”

“They’re disgracing all the riders.”

The first to complain was, of course, the cavalry of the 1st Army.

They considered riding horses onto the battlefield a kind of privilege, and they seemed to think it was a disgrace to be called the same cavalry as those who provoked them in such shabby attire with even shabbier weapons and horses.

The knights were watching silently for now, but they also seemed ashamed that those who handled horses were in such shabby attire and riding even shabbier horses, as much as the cavalry was.

“Those are cavalry?

What the hell.”

“Did you see the horses running just now?

How small they were.”

“I thought I was looking at donkeys.”

Among the infantry, the initial fear of the horses’ charge had disappeared, and instead, they were making fun of the strange appearance of the first opponents.

There was nothing particularly wrong with mocking the enemy, but those who were caught up in a kind of privilege consciousness of handling horses were worried that they might be ridiculed as well.

But as the sun began to set, the situation changed again.

They couldn’t move all night, so they had to set up camp in a suitable place, but every time they started building the camp, the unidentified cavalry would appear like ghosts and shoot arrows as if playing a prank or circle around the Nudia 1st Army so that they couldn’t concentrate on their work.

“This won’t do.

Cavalry, prepare to sortie [to rush out suddenly from a defensive position]. Repel the enemies so they can’t approach the camp, but don’t chase after the ones who run away!”

As soon as the order was given, the Nudia 1st Army’s cavalry was determined to wipe out all those pathetic guys.

They also had the will to sweep away the enemies, who were a disgrace even to be called cavalry, in one blow and to once again imprint on their allies that riders, the power they can exert, is exactly this.

“Hyatt!

Haa!”

Doo-doo-doo-doo!—.

A group of cavalrymen rushed out of the Nudia camp and quickly formed a formation.

And to wipe out the enemies in one fell swoop, they launched a simultaneous charge, and the panicked Hispania cavalry hurriedly turned their horses and flew away without even forming a proper line.

“Catch them!”

“We have to eliminate those guys to make it easier for our allies in the future!”

Saying that, the Nudia cavalry increased their speed even more.

Of course, in preparation for any possible ambushes, the wings on both sides were made to watch the surroundings, and they were also ready to reverse at any time and return to a place where they could receive support from their allies.

But there was no sign of an ambush, and the distance, which had been quite far, narrowed due to the enemy’s shabby horses, and they came within a distance where they could reach them just by extending their spears.

“Kkyah-ah!”

The enemies screamed, whether it was a scream or a strange cry, and ran away like crazy.

The Nudia cavalry couldn’t believe that they were regular soldiers, no matter how pitiful and ridiculous they looked.

No, they wondered if they were even organized to fight in the first place.

“Captain!

The distance from our allies has widened considerably!”

“Stop!

Stop!”

As soon as the commander gave the stop order at his subordinate’s words, the cavalry stopped right there.

They were enemies they had almost caught, but if they chased them any further, the distance from their allies would widen, and there was a risk that they would be defeated individually, so they turned back with regret.

They wanted to catch and kill all those who were ashamed to even be called cavalry, but they had no choice but to give up because they should never reveal their allies’ weaknesses in war.

“Still, we showed them the fear of the cavalry, so they won’t be able to approach us recklessly.”

“Judging from what we saw earlier, we almost caught them, but we were satisfied with chasing them away because we were worried about an ambush, but there will be no such thing next time.”

As the command said, no more enemies rushed at their allies.

It was only natural that they didn’t rush in anymore, as they had almost been caught and suffered enormous damage.

The Nudia 1st Army, who had entered the camp, was able to face the Hispania cavalry who appeared in front of them again the next morning, as if they had completely forgotten what had happened yesterday.

“Yoho!”

“Yohohyoohu!”

“Hyoohuyohohyoohu!”

Thanks to this, most of the soldiers had to start the day without getting enough rest, as they had to maintain a state of tension again from early in the morning.

The reason was that even though they were a shabby army the day before, another army might come and sweep away the camp overnight, so they always had to be on their guard.

“Sortie!

Sortie!”

In the end, the 1st Army’s cavalry had to step up and chase them again this time.

It would be good to chase them away like yesterday, but the best thing to do was to catch them and kill them all.

Doo-doo-doo-doo!—.

The sound of horseshoes shook the heavens and the earth, and the dignified Nudia cavalry began to run madly to catch the shabby Hispania cavalry.

They were running away as if they were about to be caught, and the 1st Army stopped chasing them again, fearing an ambush.

“Damn it!”

“You son of a bitch!”

They wouldn’t have been so angry if they couldn’t catch them.

They wouldn’t have been so disappointed if they thought that there would be great damage if they faced the enemies.

Following yesterday, they missed them again by a hair’s breadth today, and even the opponents were shabby, pathetic, and their appearance was truly miserable.

If they could just get close, they could easily subdue them like twisting a child’s wrist and knock them all down, but they couldn’t do it, so their reactions were bound to become more and more edgy.

“Tsk.

It seems impossible with those guys.”

“Aren’t they a little different from us, who have been preparing for mounted combat since we were very young?”

In the meantime, the knights were secretly laughing, saying that the cavalry’s skills seemed to be lacking.

The infantry complained, expressing their disappointment and glaring at the allied cavalry who kept missing the enemies.

They said that the enemies looked really shabby even to them, so why couldn’t they catch them and keep making the whole army tired, and whether they were deliberately not fighting.

In the end, when the ragged cavalry rushed in again in the morning, the knights were determined and entered the chase.

This time, the cavalry was to sortie together to watch the sides and rear of the knights in preparation for an ambush, so they could now chase the enemies without worry.

“Chase them!”

“Charge!

Charge!”

The battle between cavalry always comes from speed.

The best synergy effect is achieved when the rider and the horse move as one and charge as one, wiping out the enemies.

And if you are pushed back by that momentum, you will eventually be pushed back even if the opponent is the same knight.

“Kkyah-ah!”

“Kkyah-ah-ah-ah-ah!”

In the end, the Hispania cavalry who were rushing in turned their horses and ran away again.

But this time, the Nudia side increased their speed with tremendous momentum as if it was impossible.

They were less worried about ambushes, and even if there were any, they could just crush them, so they ran with their eyes on fire, thinking of catching and killing all those annoying guys at once.

They almost caught them, just a little more, just a little more and they could kill all those annoying guys!

It was at that very moment that everyone in Nudia thought so.

“Huh?”

At that time, when they were so close that they could see each other’s faces clearly.

Suddenly, the enemy cavalry turned their bodies on the running horses and drew their bows all at once.

They could have just ignored it, but now the distance was so close that they could get hurt if an arrow entered through the gap in the armor.

Everyone hesitated for a moment, and the pursuit speed decreased for a moment, and at the same time, the ragged cavalry released the drawn bows and sent arrows.

“…You son of a bitch!”

The knights who were in the lead and slowed down in surprise cursed.

Of course, they thought there would be damage, but all the arrows that flew were so weak that they just hit the armor or helmet with a thud!

The knights finally realized that the reason they drew their bows was not to surprise them, but to deceive them like this, and to use that moment to escape when their speed decreased.

“You scoundrel bastards!”

“Damn it, damn it!”

They almost caught them, they were really right in front of them.

Since horses are also living things, it was very difficult to reduce speed and then increase it again.

In the end, the pursuit and annihilation, which even involved the knights, ended in a complete failure without catching a single enemy.

Not only the cavalry but also the knights were completely disgraced.

“Bastards!”

After returning to the main force, the knights and cavalry alike cursed and their faces turned red with anger and humiliation, not knowing what to do.

It would have been stranger if they didn’t feel that way, as they had been disgraced in front of their own army by such shabby guys.

The command tried to appease the excited people, but everyone in the world knew that it was the most difficult thing in the middle of a war.

A few days later, something fortunate happened for the 1st Army.

Reinforcements drawn from the rear force arrived on the road that Ibe had prepared with all his might.

The 1st Army, which had been somewhat shrinking due to the damage caused by several engagements and the burden of operating in perfect enemy territory, regained its vitality when support arrived.

And the reinforcements gave the 1st Army a rather interesting fact.