“One unit over there is sticking out! They intend to break through and circle around! Envelop and annihilate them!”
On the Mercurio Army’s Right Wing, the battle between the White Rose Knight Order and the Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls was gradually tilting in favor of the knights.
Until a short while ago, they had been evenly matched—no, the Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls had actually held the advantage due to their superior infantry numbers. However, the unit led by Gurgast had suddenly charged in and trampled those foot soldiers. Furthermore, with the Center—the main force of the Subjugation Army—falling into extreme chaos, the situation on the Right Wing shifted in favor of the White Rose Knight Order.
Of course, the Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls did not simply accept their disadvantage.
They acted with the skill expected of elites, trying desperately to break the White Rose Knight Order. However, the order was a unit directly under First Princess Frizion and stood among the most elite forces in the entire Bestia Empire.
Once the tide of war had turned, it was not easily reversed. The Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls was forced to push themselves beyond their limits to try and reclaim the initiative.
“To think they would try to break through my unit; we have certainly been underestimated. Everyone, do not permit such insolence!”
The Captain of the First Unit shouted, leading her subordinates to launch an attack while half-enveloping the unit that tried to break through their lines. The Second Unit also joined the encirclement, and the numbers of the breakthrough force dwindled before their eyes.
“No, that’s a decoy! They’re launching their true attack elsewhere!”
Videre, the captain of the Third Unit, saw through the enemy's feint and moved to intercept.
However, since both the First Unit and the Second Unit were already committed to the encirclement, there was far too little time to react. The Third Unit and Fourth Unit alone struggled to maintain enough combat power to halt the charge of the enemy cavalry, and the specialized support of the Fifth Unit and Sixth Unit wasn't enough to bridge the gap.
(Are they going to break through?!)
A momentary surge of apprehension crossed Videre’s mind, but then...
“Guruuuuuuuuuu!”
A roar echoed across the field. Almost simultaneously, Fire Breath rained down from the sky, incinerating the main body of the enemy cavalry.
“Waaaah! What is it?! What’s happening?!”
“Up! Look up! Eek, a G-Gryphon! There’s a Gryphon!”
“If it's here, then Crimson must be here too! Everyone, stay on guard! Reports say he can use the same skill as Lord Immovable! Do not carelessly engage in close combat! Use long-range— Gaaaah, damn it!”
One of the commanders of the cavalry unit shouted while swinging his spear. In an instant, the Ice Arrows raining down on him were repelled, their fragments glittering like autumn sunlight in mid-air.
(Did it target me because I’m the commander? What a troublesome beast!)
The Ice Arrows had been fired the exact moment he issued his orders, as if the creature had been waiting for that specific opening. It was common military sense to prioritize striking down the commander.
However, he never expected a Gryphon to employ such tactics. The commander directed a hateful gaze toward the sky... only to realize that a set of talons was already centimeters from his face.
“Kekyo!”
Letting out a strange scream, his head was crushed by a strike from a front leg. The talons growing from Seto's Front Leg easily destroyed the commander’s skull, shattering it like an egg.
“Guruuuuu!”
Seto, having buried one of the commanders with a diving strike, did not slow his offensive. He slammed the commander’s horse into the ground with the weight of his descent.
“Bruuu?!”
Without understanding what had occurred, the horse died instantly as its spine snapped. While treading upon the carcass, Seto cried out loudly once more.
“Guruuuuuuuuuu!”
Seto unleashed King's Intimidation.
Those who heard that voice were frozen in place; even those who managed to resist found their movements sluggish and dulled. If they were as strong as Noise, they might have countered the King's Intimidation, but unfortunately for the Subjugation Army—and fortunately for the White Rose Knight Order—no one of that caliber was present.
The knights of the White Rose Knight Order were also startled by Seto’s sudden appearance and roar, but they did not miss the decisive opening created by the enemy's paralysis.
“Now is the time!”
“Stop them here!”
“Strike them down!”
Shouting their battle cries, the knights of the White Rose Knight Order went on the offensive all at once. Furthermore...
“Guruuuuu!”
Seto exhaled Fire Breath from Seto's Beak toward the immobilized Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls. Released with precision to avoid harming the White Rose Knight Order, the Fire Breath was not powerful enough to turn everything to ash in a single strike, but it was far from negligible. Fired into a stationary crowd, the damage and psychological shock it dealt to the Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls were immense.
Seto’s onslaught continued.
“Guruuuuu!”
With that cry, five Ice Arrows materialized around Seto and were fired simultaneously. Though the Ice Arrows were only level one, their razor-sharp tips possessed enough power to easily pierce skin. These arrows did not target the knights, but rather the horses they rode.
“Guruuuuu!”
Next, Water Balls, Wind Arrows, and even Bubble Breath were unleashed, concentrating the assault on the cavalry's mounts. While the Bestia Empire utilized heavy cavalry with horses in Metal Armor, the Cavalry Unit directly under Schuls was intended for versatile missions. To maintain maximum mobility, they did not use armored horses.
As a result, Seto's multi-elemental barrage ignored the knights in their Metal Armor and focused entirely on their vulnerable steeds.
“Heeheeheeheein!”
“Burururu!”
“Heeheeheein!”
The horses screamed as their bodies were gouged, sliced, and rendered immobile by the Sticky Bubbles. As a finishing touch, the Fifth Unit and Sixth Unit released a volley of arrows and magic to finish off the cavalry members.
Naturally, none of the support fire hit Seto. While some within the army still held personal grievances against Rei, few disliked Seto. Above all, while they were stunned that a Gryphon could use skills it normally shouldn't possess, the knights put aside their confusion to seize this golden opportunity.
Five minutes after Seto joined the fray, Angela issued the order for an all-out charge against the devastated cavalry unit.
Seto’s participation had tilted the Right Wing decisively toward the Mercurio Army in an instant.
However, the situation on the Left Wing, where Rei had joined the battle, was also moving significantly.
“Gwaaaaaaaaaah!”
“What is it?! What’s happening?!”
The Subjugation Army, which had been holding its own through sheer numbers against the Beast Soldiers, froze at the sound of screams echoing from the distance. Several soldiers kept a Beast Soldier that is a mixture of a Lizardman and a Centaur at bay with their spears while glancing toward the source of the noise.
There, they saw a scene that looked like a cruel joke. Soldiers in heavy armor were flying through the air—not by choice, but because they were being blown away by some unseen force. Furthermore, the temperature was rising rapidly, filling the air with a sense of dread. Abruptly, Pillars of Flame would erupt from within groups of soldiers, dealing catastrophic damage.
“Damn it! Hey, what do you think is going on?!”
“How should I know?! Don’t get distracted! We’re fighting for our lives... Aaaaaaaah!”
The soldier tried to warn his colleague to focus, but the Beast Soldier seized the opening. Its upper Lizardman half opened its jaws, and its rows of sharp fangs tore away the man's right shoulder, Leather Armor and all.
Watching this, another soldier’s blood boiled. He thrust his spear at the creature, but...
“The two of you could barely stand against me together. Did you really think you could do something alone?”
The Beast Soldier muttered, spitting the soldier’s flesh from its mouth. It parried the spear tip with the scimitar in its right hand and let the blade slide across the soldier's neck in one fluid motion.
As it bathed in the blood gushing from the severed throat, squinting its eyes with relish, the Beast Soldier scanned the field for its next prey. In that moment, a sudden chill ran down its spine. It instinctively swung its scimitar to its side.
A violent metallic clang rang out, scattering sparks.
“Not bad.”
The Beast Soldier grunted in admiration. However, Pelfeel, the attacker, seemed unimpressed by the praise.
“I cannot allow you to kill any more of my subordinates. Besides, the Center is looking suspicious. I intend to settle this quickly and move there. Therefore... I shall take your life.”
“Hah! This is a life I only just reclaimed. I won't give it up so easi— ...ly...”
A shudder ran through the Beast Soldier.
It felt a chill similar to what it had sensed from Pelfeel just seconds ago, yet of an overwhelmingly different quality. Despite having a formidable opponent right in front of it, the Beast Soldier found its gaze drawn elsewhere.
Opposite the chill it had felt an instant ago was a wave of heat as intense as the midsummer sun. Pelfeel felt it as well. The Beast Soldier before her was undoubtedly dangerous, but she turned her head toward the drifting heat, guided by pure instinct.
“Beast Soldiers and... I see, that woman is from the Subjugation Army. I believe I saw your face in the Imperial Capital.”
A figure had appeared without either Pelfeel or the Beast Soldier noticing. He stood there, resting a Great Scythe on his shoulder.
“...Crimson...”
The word escaped Pelfeel’s mouth as a mutter filled with awe. As one of the most elite members of the First Prince Faction, she immediately understood the level of strength possessed by the person standing before her—Rei.
His presence was completely different from when they had fought at the Fighting Tournament. The shroud he wore was similar to the Overlord's Armor from the tournament, yet it was clearly something far more advanced. The sweat running down her back was caused by more than just the physical heat Rei emitted.
Soldiers around Rei were backing away to escape the heat, but there was a deeper power radiating from him that only the truly skilled, like Pelfeel, could perceive.
Ignoring the chaos around him, Rei turned his gaze toward the Beast Soldier Pelfeel had been fighting.
The creature twitched. The Beast Soldier, which had been arrogant and insolent until a moment ago, froze. Precisely because it was strong, it understood the vast chasm in ability between itself and Rei.
Even before Rei had mastered the Overlord's Armor—back in the war during the spring—this Beast Soldier had understood the difference in their power.
As a survivor of the Beast Soldiers from the Spring War, its ranking relative to Rei was already established. To see him now, having mastered the Overlord's Armor and then evolving it into something even more powerful, was overwhelming. Even knowing Rei was an ally, the creature could not help but feel terror.
“The Mercurio Army is being pushed back here on the Left Wing. That’s why I was sent... Mind if I run wild?”
“By all means, please do as you wish.”
The thought of defiance never even crossed the Beast Soldier's mind. It simply and solemnly obeyed.
Pelfeel couldn't fathom how the Beast Soldier—a creature that took immense pride in its strength and had been trading blows with her just seconds ago—could become so submissively obedient. It was absurd, yet looking at Rei, she understood. The difference in power was visible to the naked eye.
However, the situation developed faster than Pelfeel could process.
“I get it. Then make sure you don't get caught in my attacks. Unfortunately, I haven't completely mastered this skill yet. Just being near me might be dangerous.”
“Yes, immediately! ...Everyone, pull back from the enemy! You'll be caught in Lord Rei's battle!”
The Beast Soldier's voice boomed across the field. Hearing the command, the other Beast Soldiers immediately retreated. Not one of them thought to argue. Every Beast Soldier in the vicinity had felt the massive torrent of power the moment Rei appeared.
As chimeras of human and monster, they were far more sensitive to Rei’s lethality than ordinary soldiers. Most of the Beast Soldiers were former criminals, but their past meant nothing in the face of the overwhelming pressure Rei radiated.
This reaction wasn't limited to the Beast Soldiers on the surface.
The Beast Soldiers underground felt it too. Led by the Beast Soldier with the ability to manipulate tree roots, the Beast Soldiers with the ability to move freely underground like a mole quickly retreated to the rear.
The only ones still fighting were those in locations far from Rei's current position.
The Subjugation Army Soldiers were bewildered as their enemies suddenly vanished, but... a few seconds later, they would come to understand the reason with their own bodies.