Two hours later, the Kaldris 5th Corps marched south along the ridge of the Satilan mountains.
They also faced a similar fate to the 11th Corps.
Soldiers screamed at the flying silver-maned Wyvern.
âArgh!â
âTheyâre here again!â
âItâs a pitch-black nightmare!â
Effirâs performance was so great that her Wyvern form earned a different title.
As a human, she was called Mana swordswoman of thunderstorms. As a Wyvern, people called her a pitch-black nightmare.
Of course, very few knew theyâre the same person.
As she adjusted the altitude, Effir spewed Breath.
Boom!
The sea of fire blanketed the battlefield.
However, the damage wasnât significant.
Soldiers werenât scarecrows. They saw the Breath flying in and avoided it in advance.
Well, it didnât matter.
It wasnât meant to hit anyway.
âFight back!â
âWhatâs the point? It doesnât get hit!â
If an arrow or magic was blown while their ranks were collapsed, the fire web couldnât form properly.
The haze caused by incinerating flames, heavy smoke, and heat also distracted the target.
It was hard to determine, but their view had to be blurred.
Digging easily through the offensive, Effir flew low.
Ryu Han-bin, Leon Hart, and Artis attacked while riding on her back.
-Aura Strike!
-Ectoplasmic Spear!
âStorm of Flames, Blaze Tempest!â
Aura bullets, milky spears, and a storm of red flames swept through the battlefield.
across the lands in return.
After sweeping the battlefield with such excitement, she increased her altitude and spread the distance once more.
She repeated that a few times.
âWhat a cheap trick!â
Blight, the commander of the 5th Corps, trembled with anger.
âDo you have no chivalry?!â
Ryu Han-bin snorted.
âNo, I donât.â
There was no âknightâ among Han-binâs group. Why the hell would they care about chivalry?
Of course, in the Valtara warriorâs standard, it was cheap, butâŚ
âWhat does it matter now?â
From the sky, Han-binâs group looked at the war situation.
Scanning down at the battlefield, Artis squinted.
âShould we beat them more?â
At first glance, the appearance of the 5th Corps looked horrendous.
The marching line was cut off from the middle, the camp was disorganized, and injuries were accumulating all over the place.
But the damage wasnât as substantial as it seemed.
If they were troops from the countryside, they wouldâve suffered near-annihilation.
But in the Three Continental Powers, a normal soldier outperformed a superior hunter from the countryside.
They were all professional combatants and powerful warriors. For as long as they avoided a direct blow, they might be injured, but they wouldnât die.
And if they survived, they could restore their fighting power through spiritual healing arts.
It didnât take long for the wounded to get back on their feet.
It wasnât easy for even the most powerful Mage to burn hundreds of soldiers at the same time in the middle of the continent.
There was no way that the opponent would stand still and get hit, after all.
It was hard to deal a sufficient blow through their hit-and-run tactic unless someone like the Archmage came forward or if Ryu Han-bin or Leon Hart fought directly on the ground.
Han-binâs group had bombed the 5th and 11th Corps for several days, but their loss of troops was only about 10%.
âI think we can do more damage if we land for a while and fight them head-on.â
Leon Hart shook his head at Artisâs opinion.
âThereâs no need to overdo it. Weâve already achieved our goal.â
The purpose of their aerial bombardment wasnât to defeat the Kaldris Army.
It was to slow them down.
Both Allendia and Kaldris Armies were rallying at Fort Fieldrocks, but the total power of the Kaldris Army was four times that of the Allendia Army.
Hence, the Kaldris troops were setting their course in line with the movement of Allendia troops.
If the 5th and 11th Corps continued to march at their own pace, they would block the path of the 3rd Allendia Corps and the 5th Templar Corps before they reached the fort.
Of course, there would be skirmishes, and in that case, Allendiaâs side would certainly lose.
The Allendia troops would be beaten up before they could rally.
Han-binâs party was deployed sequentially to each battlefield with its unique mobility. However, as a result, it would be the victory of the Kaldris troops.
The 3rd Allendia and the 5th Templar Corps would also be stranded while the 5th Corps and 11th Kaldris Corps were disposed of. The power difference between the two sides would be nearly six times wider in the battle of Fort Fieldrocks by then.
âWeâve slowed them down enough. Itâs even more damaging for us if someone gets injured when we land and are surrounded.â
Leon Hart beckoned west.
âGo back now. No matter how high Effirâs level is, sheâs bound to get tired.â
* * *
Abandoning lingering feelings, Han-binâs group turned westward.
Flying toward the sunset and leaving the 5th Corps behind, Effir asked a question as if she suddenly remembered something.
âItâs weird. Why hasnât this good trick ever been used by the Three Continental Powers?â
Of course, she knew that flying monsters werenât as efficient as Golem Steeds.
It wasnât possible to fly quickly with a lot of luggage, and it was difficult to travel long distances due to a lack of endurance.
âBut I think itâll be useful enough to move high levels from short distances quickly.â
No matter how unreliable flight-capable monsters were, flying in the air itself was certainly a tremendous advantage.
Just like Han-binâs party, moving only the high-level members of the Three Continental Powers using Wyverns or Griffins wouldâve given them a tremendous edge in terms of mobility.
Leon Hart smirked.
âThey didnât have to do that until now.â
Latnaâs greatest opponents in the present era were dungeon monsters and Aliens.
And the dungeons were always in the same place.
They didnât just move somewhere as time went by.
âGolem Steeds are enough to send troops to the dungeons, so they didnât have to raise flying monsters that were many times more expensive.â
Effir clicked her tongue.
âWas it just about cost-effectiveness?â
âThereâs also the fact that the people of the Three Continental Powers have become conservative.â
The last war between nations was in the center of the continent decades ago. After that, they had always fought against the invasion of the Devil, never amongst themselves.
The strategies and tactics they knew had also become outdated decades ago.
Looking back at Ryu Han-bin, Leon Hart grinned.
âI didnât even think of this idea until I heard it from him.â
Feeling awkward, Han-bin scratched his cheek.
âYeah, when playing games in Korea, it was common sense to take our allies on the dropship and drop them into the enemy line.â
Even at that moment, when Ryu Han-bin came up with something, he spoke about it executing it.
âLeon Hart is the judge! All I have to do is scream!â
Most of his ideas were bullshit.
However, one or two from those hundred words of bullshit were often found useful.
âItâs so simple that I wonder why I couldnât think of it, yet it still only ever crossed my mind when I heard it.â
It became a case of stereotyping because he was caught learning.
Artis, who was listening to the explanation, suddenly hardened his expression.
âWell, they might be doing the same thing any time soon.â
âThatâs going to be tough.â
Leon Hart shook his head, stroking Effirâs back.
âWe wouldnât do this if we didnât have this kid either.â
Their trick relied entirely on Effirâs overwhelming flight abilities and her ability to maneuver around danger.
Wasnât her skill so monstrous that she avoided all the attacks of Ryu Han-bin and Artis even when she was still in her 20s?
Recalling that time, Ryu Han-bin wondered.
âBut why was your level so low? You flew around so well.â
Artis replied.
âItâs because the level is an approximation of the energy state. Using her flying capabilities to attack will certainly help combat, but it doesnât make much difference in terms of energy evaluation.â
âWell, if thatâs the standard, passing sparrows should be at a higher level.â
âWell, itâs true that she was weak.â
At that time, Effir fainted against just a single shot of Artisâs Chain Lightning, causing her to fall from the sky.
âThatâs why Iâve told you so many times that you shouldnât have blind faith in levels alone.â
Effir intervened in the conversation.
âBut itâs good in many ways because it allowed me to level up faster.â
At that time, she couldnât carry many people or fly for prolonged hours.
Currently, however, she could maneuver in the skies easily even with all of them on board, didnât get tired even after flying for hours, and her speed even became much faster, so much so that it allowed her to continuously beat the 11th Corps and fly back to the 5th Corps.
Indeed, it was a great development.
Smiling, Effir joked, âHan-bin, I think trying to eat you was the best decision Iâve ever made in my life.â
âI also think it was a good thing that I didnât kill the murderous Wyvern at that time.â
The Human and Wyvern smiled at each other. It was such a lovely sight.
Not long after, Ryu Han-bin tilted his head.
âWait? Come to think of it, Effir, didnât you say you attacked me because you thought I was an Alien?â
âSo what?â
âBut then how would you eat me? Aliensâ bodies disappear.â
At that moment, her back scales opened up and down.
Whoosh!
âHey, you just tried to eat anyone after claiming theyâre Aliens, didnât you?â
âEh, heheâŚâ
Smiling awkwardly, Effir changed the topic.
âIt was a long time ago. It was hard for me to make ends meet. After I met Han-bin, I became a good WyvernâŚâ
âOh, youâve always been good with talking your way out of trouble.â
With a sigh, Ryu Han-bin tapped her scales.
âJust fly fast.â
âWill do!â
The silver-maned Wyvern accelerated and began to fly toward the sunset.
* * *
In a large barracks, an elderly man in his 40s wearing gray light armor was listening to a report.
He was the Supreme Commander of the Kaldris Army, the most powerful knight of the millennium kingdom. Lord Tonitrus, a level 106 Magic Swordsman.
âThe movement of the 5th and 11th Corps is getting slower.â
âAt this rate, itâll be impossible to arrive on time. The operation to defeat their armies before they could gather their forces is a failure.â
Tonitrus twisted his words.
âYouâre doing a good job, young Sword King.â
But it wasnât yet a complete failure.
âTheir idea is brilliant, but thatâs all there is to it.â
If they couldnât arrive on time due to the delay in their movements, why couldnât they just slow down the speed of their enemies in return?
âThe potential of the Kaldris Army is not weak. What they can do, we can do better.â
The staffâs expression changed after the Supreme Commanderâs remarks.
âAre you suggesting that the Knights of Hippogriff do the same?â
âI disagree with you!â
âThe Sword Kingâs Wyvern is a monster! Thatâs why itâs possible!â
âIf we approach using a normal Hippogriff, weâll be shot down in the air!â
Tonitrusâs face hardened against his staffâs aggressive response.
âDo you think of me as a fool? I know that much!â
It was too much to strike and fall out of the sky like the Sword Kingâs party. No ordinary monster could boast such perfect evasive maneuvers.
âBut isnât it possible to move as fast as they do?â
With a simple short-distance movement, up to two people could be picked up per monster.
If so, then 50 monsters would be enough to carry a hundred people.
âWeâll organize the detached unit using only high-level warriors above level 70. Weâll transport them through the air, blocking the course of the moving Allendia Army.â
It didnât mean that they would appear directly from the sky like the King Swordâs party. They didnât intend to fight in the air separately either.
They just had to fly to the nearest place, land on the ground, take out the Golem Steeds, and charge.
âA hundred knights in their 70s, wouldnât that be enough to tie up the enemies if they didnât have the Sword King?â
The staff nodded. It was a pretty plausible strategy.
But it had a problem.
âIs it possible to procure that many Hippogriff?â
âThe regular Hippogriff Knights have an existing missionâŚâ
âYou donât have to worry about that.â
With a smile of repentance, Tonitrus continued.
âIâve already done my trick.â
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