Trench Warfare

No matter what had happened yesterday, the sun would rise as usual the next day.

The war continued, and Li Qi had to lead his squad back onto the battlefield.

It was just that Falor was a little different today.

Their offensive today was fiercer than yesterday's... fiercer even than usual!

So fierce that the enemy had already reached the trench where Li Qi and the others were stationed!

Which was why today's battle was a defensive one.

"Have the Falorians gone mad!?"

Holding a specially made shield and defending the corner, Generro watched the surging enemy forces and complained through gritted teeth.

Compared to yesterday, Falor's offensive was even crazier today, and they had sent far more men. It was as if they were making one last desperate gamble, charging this way with their lives on the line.

It was no wonder Generro complained.

Li Qi swung his short blade, severing the arm of an enemy who had entered the trench. He then slit the man's throat and turned to Generro.

"Less complaining. More work."

"Squad Leader!! The defenses on the left have been breached!!"

While fighting the enemy, Rick, his head protected by a helmet, suddenly shouted to Li Qi.

Li Qi froze slightly and turned to look toward the left defensive line.

Sure enough, enemies were pouring into the trench over there like dumplings dropping into a pot. The defenses had indeed been breached.

Li Qi remembered that, while the left side had no particularly formidable fighters, it should have had two Tactical Rank mages.

How had they been breached so quickly?

Had the enemy deployed a trump card, or... had there been a mistake in the defense?

Either way, Li Qi would not have found it surprising.

The offensive and defensive battles in this world were terribly crude. Whether attacking or defending, they relied on luck more often than tactics.

Many times, a single mistake or a sudden flash of inspiration from the enemy could cause a defensive line to collapse.

Even as these thoughts ran through his mind, Li Qi's hands never stopped moving.

After dealing with two more enemy soldiers who had charged him with bayonets, he turned to Rick and asked:

"What are the Battalion Commander's orders!?"

The enemy had already entered the trenches. Whether they should continue fighting or retreat backward required instructions.

Rick was the squad's Communications Soldier. He was responsible for relaying messages from above.

Li Qi asked Rick because he hoped to hear the answer he wanted from him.

Retreat.

But unfortunately, Rick gave an answer that did not match Li Qi's expectations.

"Hold... hold the line to the death!"

"..."

Hold the line to the death...

Li Qi stepped on an enemy corpse and cautiously poked his head over the trench, looking toward the rear trenches.

After seeing the personnel being mobilized in the rear and the enemy forces launching their offensive, Li Qi vaguely guessed something.

The enemy's inexplicably fierce assault, and their own side's decision to hold the Mien Defense Line even at the cost of sacrificing frontline soldiers, both suggested that some unexpected change might have occurred in the war between the two countries.

Li Qi's heart pounded violently.

He had a suspicion, but he could not be certain.

But regardless of what that suspicion was, the most important thing now was finding a way to survive.

Seeing more and more enemies approaching, Li Qi made his decision.

"Generro! Rick! Follow me!!"

As the enemy charged toward them, Li Qi shouted to his squadmates.

"Yes!!"

Neither man refused. One raised his shield, while the other carried his rifle and followed behind Li Qi.

They did not head toward the right defensive line, where defending would have been easier. Instead, they pushed toward the left defensive line, which had already fallen!

At the left defensive line, the soldiers of the Kingdom of Falor, having gained the advantage, continued pressing deeper into the trenches. They were trying to tear open a gap in the defenses and break through the trenches into the rear.

By the time Li Qi arrived, the soldiers occupying the left defensive line had changed from allies to enemies.

Occasionally, one or two allied soldiers fired a couple of shots, only to be forced back by enemy gunfire.

Then came close-quarters combat with blades.

Firearms in this world were still at the Primary stage. Although Bolt-Action Rifles had been developed, they were the old-fashioned kind, requiring a new round to be loaded after every shot.

Therefore, once fighting entered the trenches, the usefulness of Bolt-Action Rifles dropped sharply.

Especially when soldiers from both sides met face-to-face, it was better to draw a blade and fight head-on than to aim a gun.

By the time Li Qi arrived, the gunfire had become much less intense. Instead, the clash of blades rang out more frequently.

And amid those sounds, Li Qi heard a rough, wild laugh.

"Hahahaha!! Die, you dogs of Uno!!"

Looking toward the laughter, Li Qi saw a Strong Man nearly two meters tall, carrying a massive axe.

He wore sturdy armor and an old-fashioned knight's helmet.

The enormous axe in his hand was like a lifted boulder. Even if it did not strike with its blade, being smashed by its broad surface alone would shatter a person to pieces and kill them outright.

Li Qi did not know this knight-like Strong Man, but he recognized that axe.

Or rather, on this battlefield, there was only one person who could wield such an axe.

Mad Axe Olivie!

No wonder the left defensive line had fallen so quickly. Unlike Li Qi, whose Title Rank status was achieved through a trick, this man was a genuine Title Rank.

"Generro! Charge that way!"

Upon seeing Mad Axe, Li Qi hesitated for only a second before pointing in that direction and ordering Generro.

Generro, shield in hand, froze for a moment. He glanced at the enemy soldiers before him, clenched the shield's handle tightly in his right hand, and shouted in response:

"Yes!!!"

There were many enemies. Charging straight at them like this was practically suicide.

But Generro was a qualified soldier. He obeyed his superior's orders.

Wherever Li Qi told him to charge, he would charge!

Generro rushed forward with his shield raised, and enemy blades rained down upon it.

Clang, clang, clang—

Blades and bullets struck Generro's shield. The muscles in his arms tightened as he endured the blades and bullets, forcing his way forward without falling once.

Generro knew that he could not fall.

As long as he remained standing, he still had a chance to live. If he fell, then he would almost certainly die!

And Generro knew full well that the people attacking him would not live much longer.

Sure enough, beneath the shield, Rick reloaded his rifle and pulled the trigger. The bullet pierced precisely through the brow of the person closest to Generro.

Then came a flash of blade light.

Li Qi was like a venomous snake darting out from beneath the shield, and like a wolf that had crouched in wait for a long time, baring sharp fangs and viciously tearing into the prey before him!

His figure darted through the enemy like a ghost. With each flicker of his blade, three or four men had already fallen to the ground.

And whenever an enemy aimed a gun at him, he relied on his small stature to slip beneath the shield and evade the attack.

Generro's shield had been specially made at Li Qi's request, precisely so that it could provide him with a safe place to take cover on the battlefield.

Without Generro and his shield, Li Qi would never have dared to venture so deeply into enemy ranks.

Relying on Generro's sturdy shield and strength comparable to a Title Rank, Li Qi charged into the enemy army as though no one stood in his way. He rammed through the crowd, heading straight for his target—Mad Axe Olivie!

"Hm? Where did this little brat come from?"

Mad Axe was gripping someone's head, just about to crush it, when he turned and saw Li Qi charging straight at him.

Li Qi's small, slender frame was practically that of a child compared with Mad Axe's nearly two-meter-tall body.

Watching such a little brat charge at him without regard for his life, Mad Axe guessed what he was trying to do.

The other side wanted to launch a Decapitation Strike, taking out the greatest threat on the battlefield first.

The corner of Mad Axe's mouth curled upward, and his smile turned distinctly savage.

He spun the axe in his hand and raised it high.

"This isn't a place for you to play games, brat!!"

He roared as the blade of his axe came crashing down mercilessly at Li Qi's head!