At the Gem Mine, the Lizardman mercenary leader Bosahe stormed out of the mine, looking furious. Inside, however, he was already celebrating. According to Olson's promise, if he could find an excuse to drive all the humans out of the mine, he would get twenty percent of the gemstones stored there.
Hainerton had really brought this on himself. All Bosahe had to do was tell Lord Olson that Hainerton was shirking the fight, and nearly three thousand Mana-Wielders across the Gem Mine and three or four nearby mines would all have to get out! Bosahe thought smugly.
All two hundred Lizardman soldiers had assembled at the camp outside the Gem Mine. They were waiting for their leader's order to march on Dog Forest City.
"Come on, lads! Follow me. When we get back, we'll be the masters of this Gem Mine!" Bosahe shouted, leading his two hundred soldiers east.
A stretch of road between the Gem Mine and Dog Forest City passed within a hundred meters of the forest. The dim woods made the Lizardmen uneasy by instinct, and they quickened their pace without thinking.
But they had gone less than five hundred meters when Bosahe saw a group of cavalry charging straight toward them.
The oncoming cavalry all wore black armor, blending almost seamlessly with their horses. They bore down on the Lizardmen like a black wall more than three meters tall.
"Spears! Bows!" Bosahe bellowed. The two hundred Lizardmen immediately formed four ranks. The first raised round shields, the second and third leveled their spears, and the last drew short bows.
Some Lizardmen were Magic Bow users, but the fifty archers among these mercenaries had only ordinary arrows. Their purpose was simply to disrupt the enemy.
"Woo-woo!" Two short whistles rang out. It was Bosahe's signal for adjusting