Chapter 349 – 349. Struggle, and Life (3)

– One –

Piririk.

The short-range communication magic tool lights up and a notification sound is output.

– A report from the 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion! There are no traps laid by the rebels along that route!

“Receive. Stay alert just in case.”

– Chung!

Piririk.

The light on the short-range communication magic tool goes out.

Swoop.

As the communications officer turned his head back,

“I heard you.”

The warden answers first and nods his head.

Tick.

He activates the voice amplification magic tool,

Chuck.

He raises his right hand with a solemn expression.

It bends forward and shouts loudly.

“All troops, advance!”

Chuck, Chuck, Chuck, Chuck!
Chuck, Chuck, Chuck, Chuck!

The imperial army advances in unison.

Divided into three groups, they step forward.

In the meantime, I’ve been plagued by enemies who are presumed to be monsters for a considerable amount of time, but I can’t find even a trace of their numbers decreasing.

250,000 Imperial troops and 50,000 Priests departed, joining them from the northern unexplored lands.

Only eight people could not prevent the joining even if they tried to stop them, and reducing the number was only a small part.

The army, composed of a large number of foot soldiers, began to trample the northern land without hesitation.

– 2 –

Beat, beat, beat, beat.

The imperial army marches in line with fives.

A soldier finds the meaning of existence only when he is walking around.

In order to capture a base, fight enemies, and maintain peace, a soldier must walk toward his destination.

Therefore, shoveling and weeding are merely tasks that have nothing to do with the meaning of existence.

But inevitably, there are moments when you have to work on such worthless work.

It was such a moment, for example, when it was associated with marching.

“The bushes in front of it are overgrown! If someone trips and falls, the entire ranks may be disturbed, so hurry up and weed!”

“Yes!”

There was no big problem when a small group of people, such as a scout, passed by, but when a large group of people passed by, there were no choice but to get in the way of the bushes growing everywhere.

Clap, clap, clap!

Some soldiers rush to weed with huge scythes.

When they have finished their work, subsequent troops will be able to advance in a straight line.

“While weeding is in progress, bypass areas with bushes!”

“Yes!”

Jerk, jerk, jerk, jerk.

The ranks of soldiers who had been drawing a straight line, at some point bent into a circle.

As if proving that their level of training was not lacking, their movements moved flexibly as if they were living beings.

In the gaps in the forest where the Imperial Army took a detour,

Shir, shrrrr!
Shaaaaa!

Suddenly a snake flies up.

“It’s a snake!”

“Be careful!

Someone who was following shouted,

Whirliririk!

“Uh, uhhhhh…!”

The soldier could not avoid the snake’s attack.

The snake nimbly burrowed into the gap between the soldier’s leggings,

Kwajik!

“Quaaaaagh!”

It thrust fangs into the soldier’s shin.

Tatatatat!
Aaaaagh!
Awesome!

Someone rushes in and cuts off the body of the snake.

Kissy!
Parrrr!

But the snake was still biting the soldier’s shin.

Even though three-quarters of its body was cut off, its momentum did not diminish.

It boasts of tenacious vitality to those who see it by injecting poison into the soldier’s shin even though it is in that state.

“Turn it off, turn it off…”

The snake bites the soldier’s face and dies in an instant.

He couldn’t stand it any longer,

Dump.
Degururr.

Falls to the floor

Keyshot, Kyaaaaa
Tak, tat tat!

Only then does the snake open its mouth and wriggle on the floor.

Even though only part of its body was left, it was still raging.

Tatatatat!

“What’s going on?!”

The sergeant runs over and checks the situation.

I asked a question, but it didn’t seem like I needed to hear an answer in a situation so obvious.

“Medicine, no, priest! Detoxification!”

He immediately called a priest to heal the soldier, but

“Kkeuk, kkeukreukreuk…”

Dump.

The soldier can’t hold out and stops breathing.

“Damn it…! Get back! Get out of the bush!”

“Ancient!”

As if reflecting the sudden confusion, the ranks of the soldiers began to become disorganized.

– 3 –

Climb up, run up, run up, run up.
Kururureureung.

Commanders gathered inside the running wagon.

They were having a meeting there.

Piririk.

When the short-distance communication magic tool goes out,

“What? A snake?”

The warden rolls his eyes.

“Yes, General. As if the forest used to be a habitat for snakes, snakes are appearing everywhere. Even as they are a deadly species, casualties are occurring among our soldiers.”

“… Didn’t the reconnaissance unit say that?”

“That is…”

The brigadier general in charge of the scouts lowered his head.

“The reconnaissance unit didn’t go deep into the bush…”

“Kuhm…”

The warden frowned.

An officer dressed as a wizard opens his mouth.

“General.”

“Speak.”

“Snakes have very poor eyesight and hearing, but their senses of smell and touch are very sensitive, so they react sensitively to smells and vibrations. I think I noticed it because of the strange smell and extreme vibrations as it started to move.”

“That’s right…”

It was ambiguous to see it as the brigadier’s negligence, but the warden refused to appease the brigadier.

Not realizing that it was a place inhabited by snakes was clearly the fault of the brigadier general and the reconnaissance unit.

“It’s like taking a detour through this path, and going through the bushes one by one seems to take up a lot of time…”

The warden starts to worry.

As long as a large number of people had already started moving, reducing the damage in an engagement with the rebels was a matter of how much they could shorten the time to reach the rebels’ fortress.

It was natural to crush the rebels with more than 9 times more people, but if the rebels were given enough time to prepare, the damage to the imperial army could have increased.

“General. It is judged that there are two paths.”

The lieutenant opens his mouth.

As if trying to make up for his scouting blunder, he seemed to squeeze his brain as best he could in a short amount of time.

“Tell me.”

“The first is to ignore the damage and advance. The damage isn’t that great in the first place. Also, I heard that the snake’s scales are light blue, but in contrast, the nearby soil is strangely black. Snake Its scales do not have a protective coloration, so with a little care, you may be able to further reduce the damage.”

“Hmm. What are the other options?”

The warden didn’t seem to like the first option very much.

He was well aware of the fact that the damage suffered while advancing to this place had accumulated quite a bit, so it was because he wanted to reduce even minor casualties.

“The second is to temporarily stop the march, burn the bushes, and then resume the march after confirming safety. Fortunately, the wind is blowing towards the bushes and there are many vehicles in the area, so if you properly place the back fire to prevent the fire from spreading, , you will be able to safely burn snakes and bushes.”

“Huh…”

The warden seemed to like the second option.

The warden looks around the generals.

“How do you guys judge?”

“I think the second agenda is better.”

“That’s right.”

The warden nods his head.

Subtly, I turned my gaze to the officer dressed as a wizard.

“If you have a better agenda than the second one, tell me now without hesitation.”

“The warden’s judgment is the same, General. It’s clear that now is the time when the venom is in full swing ahead of hibernation, so it’s a very dangerous method to pass by while stimulating them. Besides, snakes are weak to heat and cold, so taking fire attacks is very dangerous. It’s an effective means of attack.”

“Right.”

The warden smiles with satisfaction.

He turns his head and looks at the communications officer.

“I tell the soldiers to stop marching right now and prepare fire attacks. Ask them to keep their distance from the bushes so that they don’t get caught in the way.”

“Yes, General!”

– 4 –

– Honey! The Imperial Army has stopped! Just like Honey said, we stopped our march near a bush!

Margarita’s voice echoes in Jose’s ears.

She must be very tired because she has been sensing non-stop for the past few days, and her fatigue is palpable even through whispers.

But at the same time, she couldn’t hide her deep excitement.

– Honey, did you learn astrology?! How exactly did you foresee stopping there? Did you learn witchcraft without me knowing?

“Haha. My love. It’s just a finely matched combination of numerous experiences and precise designs. Tactics, command, and warfare are my specialties. I have to pay for my name.”

– Still, it’s amazing! Great! Honey wasn’t just a handsome face, he had a good body and a good head!

Haha. Don’t be like that. It’s embarrassing.”

Jose touches the bridge of her nose.

Even as he said that, he didn’t feel bad, his face lightly flushed.

“Now, then, shall we go to Byeonggyeong?”

– Uh, um…

Margarita hesitates.

It seemed that he remembered the execution table that Monohorn had made against the first expeditionary force.

“Oops, my consideration wasn’t enough. If you think it’s hard to see, close your senses for a while right after the operation starts. If you’re anxious, just leave your voice open to me. My love can do that.”

– Yes I will. I’ll keep the sound open even then, should I let you know if anything happens?

“Yes, got it.”

Leaving those words behind,

Fault!
Woo woo woo woo!

Jose punches the air in the sky.

Feel the wind and find a suitable location.

Blame, blame, blame!

Spurring on the transparent platform one after another, turning around until the desired spot is reached.

‘I think this area would be appropriate…’

There must be an Imperial Army under his feet, but unless he uses distance magic or telescopic magic, he will be seen as just a strange bird.

Even if he used such a technique, it would not be easy to check his appearance.

Because he was hiding in a gap in the clouds.

‘Uh… This one is a bit ambiguous…’

While dealing with the wind, he researched countless ways to feel it.

I realized that it was impossible to feel with all five senses, as my senses were not as sensitive as the Honeywet couple.

However, he eventually found his own way, which is similar to how Aurors can sense all directions.

It was a method of reading the resistance that collided with the spherical membrane made of weak wind by spreading it widely and rotating it constantly.

It was a method he could come up with because he was a skilled warrior.

‘Here.’

Fault.

Jose puts himself in the right place.

Woo woo woo.

It gathers the wind around it at once.

Woo woo woo woo!

Start putting it on your body.

It turns

Compress strongly.

Collect and collect again

How long has it been?

Shiver.

Cold sweat broke out on Jose’s forehead.

– Honey. Now the Imperials are starting to light the fire from below.

Nod

Instead of answering, Jose only nodded.

He had been squeezing this ability from her while keeping her extremely focused, so he couldn’t afford to give her a nice answer.

– I think it will take another 10 minutes for the fire to spread. The Imperial Army is divided into three groups and scattered, one each to the east, southeast, and south of Honey’s feet. The distance is about 2 km away.

Jose also checks it through a gap in the clouds.

The distance, the location, the direction of the wind, the timing, everything seemed to be sufficient for the operation.

– I just set the fire back.

Nod

Jose’s eyes light up.

Woo woo woo woo woo!
Whoo oh oh oh oh!

Around him, a rough wind begins to blow.

– 5 –

“Keukkeuheum. It’s hot.”

“They didn’t turn off the light. So, of course, it must be hot.”

Gurgling, gurgling.

The Imperial Army soldiers are sweating.

The cotton clothes they wore to overcome the somewhat chilly weather were soaked with sweat.

It was damp and disgusting.

It exudes a musty smell.

“Kuh… I haven’t washed properly in a while, so the smell is just…”

“Woo-wook, sir… This smells like bad cheese, doesn’t it?”

“Hey, hey. Get off. I can’t smell it.”

“Don’t you think I’m attached because I like it too?”

The soldiers grumble.

Added to the unpleasant environment right after the snake attack, all of them were extremely sensitive.

“But isn’t that strange?”

“What?”

“Here is the land.”

A soldier crouches on the ground and points to one of the grasses that make up the bush.

It was one of the common grasses in the northern outback that they saw throughout their march.

“Why is that?”

“Am I from a slash-and-burn people?”

“However?”

“I mean, after we set fire to the mountain, the ground turned black like this…”

“Huh…?”

The soldiers who were listening tilted their heads.

Listening to the soldier’s words, it seems as if the floor was scorched all over.

Zuzie, Zuzie.
Sarah La La Rock.

“Look at these too. It’s not dirt, it’s charcoal powder, isn’t it? It’s too fine to be dirt.”

“Is that so…?”

Soldiers panic.

But I couldn’t figure out what it meant.

It was because their education was not very deep.

“Has anyone planted a slash here?”

“There are no traces of the slash-and-burn people? If it’s a slash-and-burn, it’s a field. They didn’t plow the field, just set fire to it? Wouldn’t it be better if the fire just caught fire by itself…”

A soldier from a slash-and-burn fight tilts his head.

It seemed to be an unknown trace.

“Besides, here’s another weird thing.”

“What is it? What else is strange?”

“This pool.”

He beckons

The eyes of the soldiers are directed there.

“Where did you see this…”

“Why? What kind of grass does that live in?”

“No, well that’s not the point. Anyway, this looks like I’ve definitely seen flowers bloom in the spring, right?”

The grass he pointed to had five white petals growing here and there.

“That, but…?”

“By the way, what’s the matter? It’s autumn now.”

“Is that so…?”

Goosebumps begin to form on the soldiers’ bodies.

If there is one oddity, it can be dismissed as mere coincidence.

But when more and more oddities start to be discovered, it becomes difficult to dismiss as mere coincidence.

Like right now

“Isn’t this supposed to be reported to the upper level? There are some smart people up there. Who knows if you can find something out there and get a reward?”

“Is that so?”

Greed stains the face of a soldier from slash-and-run people.

It would be insignificant to say that it was a material reward to receive here, but the story is different if you take a vacation after the war is over or give a special promotion.

Uzijik.

He breaks the grass

He called it a grass, but judging from the lignified stems, it would have been more correct to call it a shrub.

Poof!

He jumps up

He smiles and turns around.

“Okay then go,”

That moment,

Gurgling.

“Uh, uh…?”

The stem of the shrub he broke is set on fire.