Chapter 50

Chapter 50: The Art of Ruling (10)

“Their forces are being dispersed. We still lack numbers, so there’s nothing we can do about it.”

The Queen deliberately divided her forces, even though her army was smaller than the Hobgoblin faction’s.

Naturally, there was a reason for this decision. The system message didn’t interfere in a way that would challenge this choice, as the justification was valid enough.

[However, this might lead to significant losses among the regular soldiers.]

“I don’t care. They’ve merely completed one cycle nearby.”

The current wave of enemies was produced by the Queen’s single sweep around a local nest. She judged it worthwhile that even if she lost them all, as long as they could stop the invasion, it would count as a profit.

Even though losses had been sustained, new troops had consistently been deployed to the frontlines without notice. The Hobgoblins, unaware of this fact, were preparing to fight with all their might.

“Hurry! Each unit must take your positions! Mobile turrets, position yourselves centrally to fire in any direction!”

During this time, the Hobgoblin Commander Sabak had divided the main force into three groups, instructing them to block the east, north, and west fronts.

In the center, where Sabak himself stood, he unveiled the secret weapons that the Hobgoblins trusted most—the very reason the Queen decided to divide her forces, despite expecting losses among the regular soldiers.

“Install the turrets!”

They were magic turrets with large structures, similar to siege weapons. Equipped with magical runes carved onto stone mounted on wooden frameworks, these turrets could be assembled and deployed easily at any time as a simplified defense weapon.

‘This isn’t a particularly efficient weapon. Is it just used to counter our Bombers?’

The Queen looked at the mobile turrets with a hint of disdain, knowing they were prepared to deal with the Bio-Bombs of the Bomb-Ears and the defensive Nephentes.

Even if the weapons were inefficient, in large numbers, their firepower was certainly impressive, something the Legion lacked the technology to match.

This was why she had to split her forces. If this firepower concentrated on one point, even the sturdiest “monsters” would fail to withstand it.

“Commander! They’re advancing!”

“Begin the battle!”

At the Queen’s command, the Legion forces charged into battle. As expected, the first attacks came from the long-ranged mobile turrets and the Bomb-Ears.

Magic projectiles and poisonous gas bombs crossed the skies, spewing flames and toxins towards each other.

“Hurry! Fire!”

“Look! They’re falling from our projectiles!”

Thanks to Ludras’s meticulous preparation, the mobile turrets brought by the Hobgoblins were clearly effective.

They unleashed fiery explosions, engulfing numerous Legion soldiers in flames. It was a sight that brought satisfaction to those on the Hobgoblin side.

Even as the magic users and armed soldiers suffered from the toxic bombs falling all around, they cheered upon seeing their enemies burning, lifting the army’s morale.

“Just hold on a little longer! With this, we might win before we even need to fight properly!”

With excitement in his voice, a Hobgoblin knight in the frontline encouraged his comrades and subordinates.

The spreading poison gas made it difficult to breathe, but compared to their enemies who were being burned alive from the artillery attacks, it seemed like a better option.

At this rate, only a few of the enemies would be able to break through the artillery and charge close.

‘What…’

But at that moment, something felt off. His sensitive senses detected a vague vibration.

The source of the vibration was the ground. He instinctively focused his awareness on the soles of his feet.

“What… what is this?”

It wasn’t just idle vibration; the rumbling was gradually getting closer.

As the confused knight looked up, he finally saw what the rumbling was caused by. Something enormous was rushing towards them.

“Ah, AAAAAAAH! Monsters!”

“Unbelievably huge!”

A murmur of panic spread through the Hobgoblin ranks.

The massive beasts hiding behind the hills in front had clearly been waiting for the right moment to strike. They resembled charging bison crossing a plain.

However, their size was alarming. Covered in hard shells like other Legion soldiers, but their massive bodies were larger than tanks, resembling dump trucks.

Wielding giant horns as weapons, sweeping debris and earth as they moved, they would surely crush multiple Hobgoblins with a single sweep.

“So, here they are.”

The Queen smiled lightly as she watched her carefully crafted masterpieces charge forward together.

Creating powerful, resilient giants to lead the charge was something she had envisioned ever since she first understood her abilities as the Legion Queen.

Moreover, this was not the end. She planned to summon even larger beasts once she gathered enough power.

“Fire, fire! The turrets!”

The commander Sabak, seeing the enemies rushing from the western flank blocked by the hill, went pale.

Instinctively, he realized that the only thing that could stop these monsters were the turrets with their firepower.

However, the firepower of the turrets was insufficient to take down the oncoming beasts. This was a result of the earlier decision to disperse the firepower.

“This can’t be happening.”

Sabak quickly ordered the turrets to be relocated to the west, but it was too late. By the time the turrets were dismantled and re-aligned, the monstrous beasts were already close.

“AAAAAAAAAAH!”

“Hold them back! Retreat… Retreat!”

Dozens of Hobgoblin infantry were swept away or trampled underfoot like powerless victims in an avalanche by these massive beasts with their sharp, broad horns, or crushed by their massive feet.

Even knights and shamans were no match.

Weights of tens of tons obliterated the knights with a single strike, while the shamans’ spells merely scratched the surface, like arrows hitting a troll.

“Destroy the turrets!”

The most effective counter, the direct hits from the turrets’ cannonballs, was countered by the Queen’s order to destroy the western defenses and charge the surviving giants towards the central turrets.

“Hold on! Retreat!”

Sabak, who definitely wasn’t a stupid commander, wisely ordered a retreat once he realized the massive beasts would soon reach the central turret and destroy them.

Of course, even with the retreat, the losses were already mounting.

Yet, failing to retreat now would mean total annihilation here.

“Run! There’s no way we can win!”

“Demons! They are demons!”

The morale that had been soaring just moments before collapsed in an instant.

Even the eastern and northern units, who had been fighting well, retreated in panic at the chaotic sight from the west and the center.

The commanders had to expend their full energy to control the panicking soldiers.

Some were trampled by their own troops in the chaos. Others were slaughtered by the Legion forces breaking into their disarrayed ranks.

“How could the strongest unit of this area collapse like this?”

Sabak gritted his teeth in anger at the sight, but at the same time, his body trembled with fear.

He had never imagined that a single clash could lead to this result.

“Their numbers grow, and they get stronger over time. If this continues and our territory falls into their hands, what will become of us?”

The overwhelming tide of countless monsters that filled the sky and the ground was a terrifying sight, chilling him to the bone even at the mere thought.

[Are you considering a full-scale war against Ludras now?]

“Once started, we cannot give them time. It’s fine though. Since I haven’t touched it until now, there should be plenty of resources accumulated there. Eating through Ludras’s territory will replenish the lost nutrients and troops. Then, we can naturally push the eastern front that has been maintaining the balance.”

The Queen ordered her soldiers who were caught in the trap and were retreating not to escape immediately but to chase and cause maximum damage.

Simultaneously, she set aside some newly produced troops for preparation to deploy an invasion towards the Hobgoblin territory.

Starting a full-scale war against Ludras now essentially meant engaging in war against all the local Lords.

But she was confident. She thought about the newly recruited soldiers and the countless nutrients that would be consumed in future conquests.

Naturally, the vanguard would consist of the new giant beasts she had created.

Just as the Hobgoblins brought mobile turrets to counter the Bombers, the Dukes of the Demon Realm wouldn’t sit idly.

She intended to make maximum use of these massive beasts before the enemy discovered methods to counter them.