Volume Five: Return from the Other Shore, Chapter 426: Counterattack (2)

"The enemy general probably thinks, 'You only have so few men, no matter how fiercely you advance, you're not a threat.'"

--These are the words Nid said to Xiao Wu before the attack.

Just an hour ago, they contacted the main force, held a brief operational meeting, and then sent Xiao Wu and the two thousand men on a surprise attack.

The decision was made so quickly that one can't help but wonder, "Are you serious?"

In fact, she did ask that question.

The answer received was--

"Individual strength is truly a remarkable thing. In war, the most direct and clear indicator of a unit's strength is its number of soldiers. As a whole, the movements of a large number of soldiers are not difficult to grasp..."

You mean...?

"What's truly difficult to assess is individual combat strength, which is extremely hard to discern before a battle. In such a sudden encounter, the enemy's most direct approach is to calculate combat strength based on troop numbers. This makes it easy for them to overlook some exceptionally strong individual fighters. So, Xiao Wu, you are a 'surprise' to them."

"So, they won't be too wary of me until they truly realize I'm a threat?"

"That's the meaning. Wishing you great success in your military endeavors..."

"Shall we set off then?"

"Ah, I almost forgot something very important. When you reach the deepest point possible later, could you please shout something for us?"

"Say something?"

"That's right, you must make sure the people from the Vatican hear you, so you shout—"

"You lackeys of the Vatican, hand over Nid Bradwich!!!"

Xiao Wu called it that.

In an extremely loud voice.

There was clearly some unrest among the Papal troops.

(Alright, the mission is basically complete now. As Nid said, it's time to fight and retreat, and it's best to keep them focused...)

Behind him, Wright listened to his subordinate's report with a look of surprise.

Are you sure you didn't hear wrong!?

"Yes, sir, that woman did indeed shout 'Hand over Nid Bradwich!'"

"But we didn't capture Bradwich at all..."

Wright propped his chin up, his furrowed brows relaxing slightly.

The woman's words contained valuable information.

It is certain, at least, that Nid Bradwich has not yet returned to the Rebel Army.

"They must not have seen Bradwich for a long time, so they assumed he had been captured by us and went so far as to send an elite commando team to storm our position... Hmph, simple-minded bastards."

He said that, but he felt much more relaxed and even quite happy inside.

The mission has not failed yet.

Since Bradwich has not yet made contact with the Rebel Army, there is still a chance for him to be captured.

I was almost mentally prepared to be thrown into the confessional by the Pope when I got back, but things turned around at the crucial moment.

"From now on, whoever finds Bradwich first wins! As long as we get there before these damned Rebel Army— "

"Lord Wright!!!!"

It was as if the supreme god had heard his wish—

A new messenger rushed in, bringing explosive news.

"News has come from the Eastern Divine Spellcaster Brigade: their enemy-finding magic has discovered Bradwich's whereabouts!"

Wright immediately jumped up.

Where!?

"Eastward, on the Is River!"

Is River?

Wright paused for a moment, then quickly came to his senses.

"I see... I see! Bradwich escaped by waterway the whole time. Waterways are difficult to navigate, so they were a lower priority in the search... No wonder we hadn't found him before!"

"Sir, now—"

"Fourth and fifth echelons, drive that assault team back! Mobilize two and a half echelons, a total of two hundred thousand men, from the second and seventh echelons to directly apprehend Bradwich! Also, send another two hundred thousand men from the third, sixth, and eighth echelons to completely surround that area! Don't let a single mouse escape!!!"

In the darkness, Haoyue was leading nearly 20,000 men on a rapid march.

"Miss Haoyue, is it now confirmed that Lord Nid is over there?"

"Yes, along the Is River, less than three kilometers from here. He had been traveling by water to avoid being caught by his pursuers."

"So that's how it is... Lord Nid is truly amazing!"

"Never yield, even in the face of danger!"

"Turning the tide in such a desperate situation!"

"So cool~~~"

The girls around Haoyue entered a blissful infatuation mode, while the guys entered an adoration mode, each with starry eyes like those in a shoujo manga, making Haoyue's eyebrows twitch.

As a 24k pure lesbian, I'm surrounded by straight women and gay men, and listening to them gushing over their crushes is pure torture.

Not to mention...

"That kid Nid, now he can lie without batting an eye..."

"Huh? Miss Haoyue, what did you say?"

"I said it would be great if we could bring him back before the Vatican does; it seems they've also located Nid's whereabouts."

"What!? Then hurry up and move faster!!!"

"Hmm... yes..."

At that moment, Haoyue suddenly heard a whirring sound in her mind; it was the divine communication device she and Nid were wearing.

The biggest advantage of this device is that users can communicate their thoughts directly without speaking, thus avoiding being overheard by others.

"Whoosh... Hello... Miss Haoyue? You should be arriving soon, right?"

"Right away."

"The Vatican's army is arriving soon; they've deployed at least 200,000 troops to blockade the surrounding area."

"Don't worry, we beat them to it and broke in before they could surround us."

"That's great. Just proceed at the original speed, making sure you arrive just a little bit before the Papal Army does."

"That's certainly not a problem, but..."

"But?"

Even during the call, Haoyue couldn't help but let out a mischievous smile.

"So many fervent soldiers who worship and trust you have been thrown into your desperate defenses? I wonder how many of them will be left after we finally withstand the Papacy's fierce attack?"

"If Miss Haoyue performs exceptionally well... surviving a quarter of the way shouldn't be a problem."

"Oh ho? What about the remaining three-quarters?"

"This is the least sacrifice I can make. I will remember each and every one of their names... Well, that's just a nice way of putting it; I can't actually remember any of their names."

"What did you say!?"

Wright, whose mood had just improved, was now seething with anger again.

"The Rebel Army have also discovered Bradwich's trail! Their rescue team rushed in before our encirclement was formed, and they're probably ahead of us now—" the messenger said breathlessly, before being interrupted.

How many of them are there?

"Based on the current figures, it won't exceed 20,000..."

"Then tighten the encirclement immediately and trap them like turtles in a jar! Since they risked their lives to enter our encirclement to rescue Bradwich, let's annihilate them all! Capture Bradwich alive if possible, and if that's not possible, bring back his corpse!!!"

"Yes, sir! But, my lord..."

"What is it now!"

"We just received new intelligence: a demon has appeared in the assault team sent out by the Revolutionary Army!"

"A... demon?"

Wright paused for a few seconds before realizing what he meant.

"You mean... a completely demonized Oni? Aren't Oni supposed to be almost extinct these days? There are still some in the Revolutionary Army!?"

"Yes! The monster is attacking relentlessly right now, and we've diverted a large number of troops to contain Bradwich, so it's unlikely that reinforcements will arrive in a short time..."

"Damn it! By the Highest God, that demon's sudden appearance was definitely to divert our attention from Bradwich!"

Wright rarely swore, thinking this was a sure thing, but he didn't expect it to cause so much trouble! The Rebel Army must have realized that Wright sent too many troops to hunt down Bradwich, and even if they managed to catch him first, they wouldn't be able to break out, so they simply had the Oni here forcefully draw fire!

The problem is... we can't just ignore the demons. Historically, every demon rampage has resulted in mountains of the Blood Sea and corpses. If we stand idly by, those beasts might slaughter 100,000 or 200,000 of his troops before they die! How can we explain such a massive loss when we return!?

"Draw more elite troops from the eighth and ninth echelons! The Divine Spellcaster Brigade should also be deployed! It would be best to deal with it from a distance! Note that you should try to avoid direct confrontation! As for the main force that went to besiege Bradwich, maintain the original deployment, wipe them out as soon as possible, and then return!"

"ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!"

Amidst the chaos, a humanoid monster radiating purple lightning roared and howled, leaving only mangled corpses in its wake of all paladins and Divine Spellcaster. Its speed and power were astonishing! This sudden attack threw the Papal army into disarray, but they quickly retreated and changed formation. The Divine Spellcaster prepared to bombard the enemy with ranged artillery, but against the monster's speed, they were unable to inflict any effective damage!

"Chieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!"

The demon slammed its fist into the ground again, and the fierce shockwave shattered the earth in an instant. Countless figures wearing armor or robes were thrown into the air and then fell heavily back down, powerless against this ferocious power!

As for this evil spirit—

(What the hell, having to make such a ferocious face and let out such a stupid roar... So annoying!)

Xiao Wu isn't good at acting, but fortunately, no one seems to notice anything amiss right now.

Just now, Nid's new instructions were transmitted into Xiao Wu's mind through the divine communication device.

"Excuse me, Ms. Xiao Wu, could you please transform into a full demon right now? I remember you can maintain your sanity while fully transformed. Anyway, once you become a demon, please act like you're crazy, fierce, and irrational, making them believe you're extremely dangerous. That way, their attention will truly be drawn to you. As for the rest of the assault team—since the enemy will be focused on you, they can take the opportunity to retreat, since they're no longer needed."

(So what's the point of doing this? I pretend to go crazy and cause trouble, while he stages his own 'finally rescued by the main force' act, and ends up getting himself surrounded... Huh?)

Xiao Wu suddenly understood.

(Oh, I see. It's a very simple plan, but it's quite effective in this situation, but there's a condition—)

She looked towards the direction of the Is River with some concern.

"The prerequisite is... before you succeed, you must personally endure the Papacy's siege there!"

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My first exam starts tomorrow and won't finish until the 14th. Thank you all for your Monthly Votes, but this period will be quite tough. I can only manage to update daily, and as for extra updates... I'm really sorry, I simply don't have the energy.