Barbarian Quest

Carnius remembered his iron rule.

‘Be cautious.’

Objectively, the imperial army had the advantage. Even with similar numbers, the quality of the imperial army was far superior. Especially, among the twenty thousand imperial soldiers, there were over three thousand heavy cavalries. If they could secure a favorable terrain, those three thousand heavy cavalries alone could devastate the enemy.

‘They want to immobilize our heavy cavalry. That’s why they took a position on the hill.’

Without the breakthrough power of the heavy cavalry, even Carnius couldn’t guarantee victory. The western plunderers were strong in infantry combat and skirmishes. And now, with the barbarian warriors being armed with the imperial armory, were a formidable force.

“They don’t stubbornly cling to their ways like the northerners. They’re using our strategies, tactics, and even our armory. They’re not some ordinary barbarians draped in leather.”

Carnius gathered his adjutants for a strategy meeting.

“The traitors who joined the plunderers will desert quickly if the battle turns significantly unfavorable.”

There was no loyalty in mercenaries. They tended to be quick to desert when the situation became unfavorable, and the civilized mercenaries who joined the western plunderers were no different.

Carnius pointed to the expected retreat routes on the map.

The imperial army quickly analyzed the situation of the Porcana-Alliance army. An army was a monster that devoured money just by existing. Porcana did not stockpile enough provisions and surplus money during their peacetimes.

‘They probably thought they were waiting for us in a good spot, but they’ve actually isolated themselves. Without additional supplies, they’ll just self-destruct.’

Carnius waited for the enemy to come down. The twenty thousand imperial soldiers had supplies to last for a couple of months. If necessary, they could also operate a separate supply unit for additional provisions.

“The peace agreement seems to have been a misjudgment by His Imperial Majesty. He couldn’t see the situation from afar, so it couldn’t be helped.”

The knights were relaxed. Despite the negotiations for peace having fallen through, the actual battle favored the empire. Their effort to achieve peace seemed rather foolish now.

But Carnius, the one who actually declared the battle, thought differently.

‘We need to wrap up this front as quickly as possible and move up to the northern front. If the northern front collapses, the empire’s crisis won’t end even if we pull off a victory here.

Carnius wasn’t relaxed either. The reason why the emperor sought peace was also because there was a need to concentrate the empire’s military power in the north.

‘Please, come down to us.’

After the meeting, Carnius gazed at the distant hill. The Porcana-Alliance army still didn’t budge.

The imperial army’s encampment was perfect. The various facilities and barracks were positioned exactly according to the military textbook. Any educated imperial soldier could find all the facilities in the camp, even if it was their first time there.

Carnius headed to the prayer room. Confirming no one was there, he knelt before the sun relic.

“Oh, Sun God Lou, please prove that my decision is not wrong. I need your courage and wisdom.”

Carnius erased his anxiety through prayer. When he left the prayer room, there was no hesitation or confusion on his face.

‘The sword is already drawn. Looking back will only lead to my death.’

Carnius walked around the barracks, encouraging the soldiers in order to maintain their discipline.

* * *

Porcana-Alliance forces reduced their food rations. They had resorted to reducing the amount they ate in order to buy more time. No strategy had yet emerged to resolve the situation, and their morale was dropping while the army's discontent was growing.

It was a situation where the civilized mercenaries might desert the army at any moment.

"Georg, try to prevent desertions as much as possible. Put that silver tongue of yours to use."

Urich and Georg were walking side by side to attend a meeting.

"I can only bribe them so many times with the war spoils. You can always gather wealth again, but you only have one life. Hell, even I’m thinking about running away right now."

"I don’t care if you run away but you better not let me catch you. This time, I'll actually skin you alive. Anyway, if the civilized mercenaries desert, it will greatly affect the entire army. So do whatever it takes to keep them."

"To do that, we need hope, Urich. Hope that we can win."

Georg was persuading the civilized mercenaries every day. He visited their influential unit leaders, promised rewards, and cried for camaraderie. But if the situation worsened anymore, they were certainly going to leave the alliance army.

"Haha, should we just charge head-on?" Urich spoke as he whistled.

Georg shook his head and replied, "If that were possible, we wouldn't have come into Porcana in the first place."

The alliance knew the power of the imperial heavy cavalry well. The heavy cavalry was the core force of the imperial army. Even without horses, the imperial knights and heavy infantry were formidable combat troops. In the past, even the appearance of heavy infantry and dismounted knights caused significant damage to the tribal warriors.

‘But now, we can handle their heavy infantry. Everyone has gotten better at dealing with their armor.’

There were many warriors in the alliance army armed with iron armor. Walking around the alliance camp, one could frequently hear the clinking of chainmail. Some chiefs or head warriors even wore steel armor.

The tribal warriors of the west admired iron armor. The western warriors, who had little to no armor culture back home, considered iron armor acquired as loot a source of pride. They actively adopted and used the enemy's weapons and armor.

"We can't stay on this hill forever."

"How about securing a supply route?"

"Do you think the imperial army would just let us send out a supply unit?"

"If we go down the hill like this, we'll just become fodder for the cavalry."

The Porcana-Alliance army's meetings were noisy but yielded no specific strategies. Everyone was just stomping their feet. If they stayed on the hill, they would eventually all starve to death. If morale dropped due to hunger, the imperial army might push up. No matter how excellent a warrior, they couldn't fight while starving.

"U... rich."

Urich, who was spectating the meeting, turned his head at a familiar voice. Olga, who always looked depressed like a sick person, was standing behind him.

"Hmm?"

"I have... something… to say."

It didn't seem like a solution would come from the meeting at this rate. Urich left his seat and followed Olga outside.

"Great Chief Urich."

Urich's eyebrows twitched slightly. Following Olga, he found the Blue Mist warrior chief waiting for him.

‘A rebellion? At a time like this?’

Urich glanced around. The surroundings were calm. He could only see a few Blue Mist warriors.

‘Olga was a warrior whom Samikan favored. It makes sense he would be close to the Blue Mist Tribe. Are they trying to kill me here?’

Urich took a deep breath. He trusted Olga, but it seemed like he was about to be stabbed in the back.

"If you're after my neck, come at me now. I'll take you on."

Urich drew his sword without hesitation. If he could hold on for just a moment, the other warriors would hear the commotion and gather.

"What... are you talking… about?"

Olga widened his eyes and laughed. The Blue Mist warrior chief also chuckled and shook his head.

"We have no intention of starting a civil war when the battle that will decide the fate of the west is about to happen. The Blue Mist Tribe hasn't even appointed a new chief yet. Even if we were to become enemies, that is a concern of the future, Great Chief."

The internal situation of the Blue Mist Tribe was also complicated. Samikan's presence had been so significant that they couldn't easily choose the next chief. For now, their head warrior was acting as the interim chief.

"O-oh, really?"

Urich scratched the back of his head awkwardly. His face turned red, feeling he had caused a fuss for no reason.

"When Samikan was the Great Chief, the alliance aimed straight for the imperial capital."

"Right."

After Urich became the Great Chief, the policy of the alliance changed to avoiding the main imperial army.

Samikan, who was not in good health, had prepared for a decisive short-term battle. If he were still the Great Chief, the decisive battle between the empire and the west would have been over long ago.

"Samikan had prepared weapons and tactics to use against the heavy cavalry of the empire."

The head Blue Mist warrior gestured. Two warriors carrying spears demonstrated on the spot.

Snap.

The warriors broke a spear and connected it to another spear, securing it. The length of the connected spears exceeded the height of two tall men combined. It could even stab a target that was eight steps away.

“How are you going to use such a long spear?” Urich asked with skepticism, but his eyes sparkled with curiosity.

The spear was too long to be used in typical combat. Urich felt that if he faced soldiers wielding such spears, he could easily handle even ten of them.

“This spear is longer than the cavalry lances they use. Just holding and extending it will provide deterrence. Their attacks won’t reach us, but our spears will reach them.”

The warriors fixed the ends of the spear shafts to their feet or the ground.

Urich widened his eyes and imagined the sight of heavy cavalry charging. It seemed like it could be effective, but it was hard to confirm without testing the new tactic in actual combat.

“Did Samikan devise this?”

“Only the Blue Mist warriors have practiced it a few times. Samikan wasn’t entirely sure either. He went to the heavens before being able to fully test it.”

Hearing this, Urich stroked his chin.

‘Samikan wasn’t just spouting nonsense about fighting the empire because he was high on the herbs. He was trying to come up with ways to battle the imperial army.’

In the horse-less west, they couldn’t cultivate heavy cavalry. They needed another method to counter them. Samikan must have been contemplating how to do this for a long time.

“It’ll be difficult without considerable bravery.”

Urich practically snatched the long spear from the Blue Mist warrior.

‘To hold your ground against charging heavy cavalry with just a spear would require immense courage.’

When heavy cavalry charged, the instinct was to dodge to the side. If one were to overcome that fear and hold their position, they could catch the cavalry off guard.

“Samikan’s intention was to form a phalanx with Blue Mist warriors wielding these pikes. We’re the only tribe that’s well-trained in doing that.”

The end of the sentence carried pride. These were the men who conquered the west under Samikan’s command. Even the Stone Axe Tribe had been defeated by them.

‘The Blue Mist warriors have fought in phalanx ever since they began their western conquest. They are as disciplined as the empire’s professional soldiers.’

Urich saw a faint light. The alliance had the legacy that Samikan had left.

“Urich, gather the most… excellent warriors and have them… learn this,” Olga stammered.

To master such tactics in a short time, they needed the absolute best warriors within the alliance. They had to have the bravery to face heavy cavalry head-on with a grin on their faces and the skill to wield long spears freely.

“Leave the unit… to me… You trusted me… and treated me accordingly. I will… repay.”

Olga grinned, revealing his blackened teeth.

Urich immediately summoned all the chiefs and head warriors. In addition, he also selected the most skilled warriors.

About three thousand warriors, including the Blue Mist warriors, were separately gathered for training and education. They broke and connected spears, extracted blades, and assembled them to create long anti-cavalry spears. Weapons discarded in the process piled up in a corner of the camp.

Urich demonstrated the anti-cavalry tactics at the next meeting.

“Watch carefully. This is how we stop their heavy cavalry.”

The nobles and knights of Porcana watched Urich’s demonstration. He was holding an unusually long spear.

Urich extended the spear and fixed it in place. The heavy cavalry from Porcana who was charging at him flinched and stopped. It was only possible because the spear was much longer than their lances.

“Oooh, I see.”

The nobles and knights watching widened their eyes. Heavy cavalry had always been an absolute force. Countering them with another unit had always been nearly impossible.

“It looks plausible, but I doubt its practicality. If anyone steps back or gets scared when the cavalry charges, the formation will break, leading to a massacre. If the heavy cavalry of the empire could be stopped with just some longer spears, we would have done it long ago.”

Duke Lungell frowned as he spoke. His words were also valid.

“We’re different from you. We don’t flee out of fear. Even if corpses litter the ground around us or our guts spill out of our stomachs, we do our job. We’re warriors from birth.”

Urich practically mocked Duke Lungell. The duke’s face flushed slightly.

“What if that method fails? We’ll be annihilated.”

Duke Lungell opposed Urich’s tactics. He couldn’t fight relying solely on a tactic devised by a barbarian.

“...Do you have another way besides starving together? If my stomach starts growling, your tongue will be the first thing I cook and eat. Take good care of it.”

“You, you…!”

Duke Lungell’s mouth gaped open. He was about to shout but closed his mouth upon seeing Varca step forward.

Varca and Urich’s eyes met, and Varca nodded without a word.

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