The Melancholy of the Demon Army Officer
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Lilia
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Chapter 050 – Battle of the Great Forest [B]
The invasion began with a one-sided assault.
Stocky warriors in white uniforms rushed through the Great Forest. Despite the thick trees in the way, the army maintained formation. They kept the same distance from each other, trying to half-encircle the Kalar’s Settlement without letting a gap show in their defense.
The number of men — was 500, 000 strong.
They left a few thousand soldiers distributed along their warpath to serve as a chain of supply, but used the rest of the units to push toward the forest from all directions with all their power.
The captain who led them at the front raised their hand and shouted.
“Forward—!!”
The soldiers moved forward according to the voice.
However, there were those who would not be allowed to advance.
“Aguh—”
Suddenly, one of the soldiers at the front let out a cut-off groan and fell to the ground. He had been shot through his head by an arrow and died instantly.
As if it was a signal, a hail of arrows and magic attacks began raining down from above and struck the soldiers.
In the depths of the forest, there were humanoid figures standing on top of the branches and concealed in the shadows of the trees. It was impossible to tell how many were hidden and aiming at the humans.
“Shoot them down! Don’t let humans invade the forest any further than this!”
“Yes—!!”
It was a group of people with long ears and hair the color of the sky.
It was the kalar warrior corps.
Most carried their bows to shoot down humans, and those who didn’t chanted magic spells to prevent the humans from escaping. With each release of the bowstrings, dozens of arrows found their mark, but as one human soldier fell, it seemed like 5 more moved up to take his place. The survivors among the leading group of humans fell in line with the soldiers behind them, and they fought as a single unit. The captain in front shouted,
“Don’t mind it and keep moving forward!! They can’t release both arrows and magic in quick succession!”
He commanded them to advance without slowing down.
However, contrary to the captain’s words, there was no opening in the timing between the bow and magic attacks. In fact, both arrows and bolts of magic were shooting out together, at the same time.
Naturally, there was a reason for this.
Just barely out of visible distance for the soldiers, there was another group of kalar fighters lined up. There were both magic users and bow users among the group, and as the first group stopped to reload, this group had immediately stepped up to unleash the second wave of attacks.
However, once they were done with their attack, they were commanded to withdraw.
And at the same time, another group came forward. A woman, who seemed to be their captain, called out orders.
“Second unit, back down! Next, third unit, forward!”
“-Yes!!”
It was the voice of the kalar defense captain. Obeying that voice, the group in front and back switched places without missing a beat in their attacks. As the arrows and magic attacks from the second group were still in mid-air, this formation shift was already happening, keeping the enemy in control and preventing any counterattack.
The third group raised their bows and started chanting. As the group finished their preparation, the kalar captain raised her voice again.
“Shoot—!!”
“—!!”
Along with the voice, arrows and magic flew toward humans through the gaps of the woods. Despite the many trees in the way, dozens of arrows and magic bolts found their fatal marks. The soldiers who managed to survive the wave of attacks did not escape unscathed. Many of the arrows had successfully targeted the gaps in their armor.
“Kuh…! To think they could aim that accurately…!”
The humans were astonished at how the kalar warriors were able to aim so accurately despite the low visibility and the trees. As they fought, the soldiers were constantly moving around, so a soldier hidden behind a tree trunk in one moment could be fully visible the next. The kalar warriors were somehow able to slip all their arrows and magic through the gaps between the trees.
However, for the kalar warriors, that was an obvious strategy. For the kalar race, who had lived all their lives in the forest since their birth, this kind of aiming was second nature to them. In fact, they wouldn’t even consider these trees as obstacles to dodge when shooting.
“—Gah?!”
Suddenly, in addition to the steady wave of arrows and magic, another hailstorm of arrows rained down from above from all directions.
It was the handiwork of the kalar raid unit, who lurked above the soldiers.
They used tree branches as footholds and lightly sprung from tree to tree as if they were walking on the ground. As the reality of the situation dawned on the human army, the captains and the soldiers raised their voices in frustration and agony.
“Tch, there’s too many of them…!”
The captain could only observe with a bitter expression.
There were obviously more of them today than within the last few days of engagement. This time, there were enough warriors to smoothly switch out groups to keep the barrage of arrows and magic almost nonstop. In addition to that, there was a guerilla unit in the trees to cause distraction and chaos. This was clearly different from past battles, when the soldiers could take advantage of momentary pauses in the attacks, when enough kalar warriors were reloading or resting, to press the counterattack..
“Perhaps the other party thought it was time to make a decisive stand, so they used all their numbers in an all-out attack…!”
The captain’s words were correct, but the endless assault did not stop. This is bad, thought the captain. At this rate, we’ll…
Their original strategy was to essentially overwhelm the kalar with sheer numbers. It sounded very primitive, but this was usually effective against the kalar units.
After all, the main attack strength of the kalar came from using bows and magic as their main offensive, both of which were supposedly hard to unleash consecutively.
The key difficulty that needed to be addressed was the accuracy of the kalar’s attacks. They were masters with the bow and arrow, and considered that it wasn’t possible to avoid magic attacks to begin with, the humans had to accept that most enemy attacks would likely hit them. Usually, the human side just used their number to forcefully pass through it, so they thought they could always solve the problem with just that.
Against magic users, the most effective tactic was to attack them right after they finished their attack. Most magic spells could only kill one person per cast, and the caster was usually channeling most of their focus on the spell. They couldn’t dodge very well while the spell was still being cast. Therefore, all that was needed was for two people to run towards the magic user at the same time. At least, that was the rationale of the humans.
Therefore, the men believed that as long as they outnumbered the kalar, it was only a matter of time before they would overwhelm them. The only concern the captains had was the morale drop on the front line, since this strategy would definitely result in the death of many. Fortunately, the front line was still holding.
Even after the captain considered all these factors in his head, his mission didn’t change. The army couldn’t afford to retreat now. Therefore, the captain opened his mouth again to command the army to advance forward—
“—Gah?!”
Suddenly, he felt a shockwave blast through his body, and he, along with dozens of people, were blown away.
He lay stunned on the ground. He could tell that the blast that had taken him out was probably magic. On top of that, it wasn’t basic, like the other kalar attacks were, but something on an intermediate level or more.
If he strained his eyes in the direction of where the blast had come from, he could just barely make out the shape of a kalar. This kalar was wearing a hat and seemed to be wielding a long staff.
Just as he made that conclusion, that kalar unleashed another magic blast toward the humans.
“—Li-Light Beam!”
The person who casted the magic was someone that the humans had never encountered in battle before.
It was the current chief of the Kalar’s Settlement, Pale Kalar.
…Kyaaah?! E-everyone is definitely staring at me-?! Nooo…I knew the humans would definitely look, b-but everyone-
Pale panicked inside as she suddenly became the center of attention.
She had come to the frontlines, determined to help, but immediately got nervous when she arrived. She didn’t want to distract anyone, or worse, end up having to be saved. Seeing the raid units in the trees and the assault groups smoothly switching positions, she felt more and more useless. She desperately activated her magic and shot it at the human army. The powerful blast was more than enough to draw everyone’s attention.
It wasn’t just the enemies who stared at her either. The allied kalar warrior corps around her were also observing her out of the corner of their eyes.
Pale shuddered at the sensation of all those gazes directed at her every time she raised her staff to cast another spell.
…Thi-this is a battlefield…! Focus! Just i-ignore them…!
It was the place where all the warriors who protected the village and her respected predecessor chief Kesselring always stood upon with no hesitation.
And now she also stood there. She was still her miserable, timid, good-for-nothing self, but she stood there, ready to protect her home.
She was worried that she was standing where she was not supposed to. If one of the kalar captains came up to her now and told her to go back inside the walls, she felt like she would burst into tears. But it didn’t seem like anyone was going to tell her no.
Even now, the emotions that her comrades directed toward her were those of either surprise, approval, or excitement. Pale couldn’t be so sure about it, since it was the first time she experienced such a welcome from so many people. Yet she understood what they meant. It was,
…I-I guess I was being expected, right…? They…were expecting me to come out here myself and fight with them.
The feeling of being depended upon. It was something Pale thought was never relevant to herself.
Pale went to the battlefield to help everyone. As chief, this was the very least she was supposed to do. In that case, her current thought was,
…Did I, properly do my duty as the chief…?
She finished her chant and shot her magic at the enemies. If she was really able to fight like this all of a sudden, then it must be because of Kesselring’s words from yesterday.
Pale knew all too well that she was too dependent on Kesselring. Pale was also aware that everyone in the settlement also respected and depended on Kesselring more.
However, Pale had no self-confidence. Even if she was aware of everyone believing in Kesselring more than her, she couldn’t go about and tell everyone about her determination to be as good as, or better than Kesselring. She was too insecure to assure everyone that she would be a good chief, despite Kesselring’s faith in her. She also doubted she was capable of leading everyone in the settlement together and repelling the humans without Kesselring’s help.
Therefore, she had been spoiled by the previous situation. She chose to put off the problem. She thought they would be alright as long as Kesselring was still there. It wouldn’t be too late to begin once she was gone, thought Pale.
However, that was a mistake. She also understood that.
…It’ll be too late once that happens…
She was the worst. After all, despite already understanding everything beforehand, she only began to move once Kesselring told her she wouldn’t participate in the battle anymore. In short, she only moved because she was forced to move forwards.
Nobody would help them anymore. Only the moment when she had no choice but to accept that did she begin to do her duty. It was due to nothing but her negligence as a chief.
…As expected, I wasn’t a great person…
It made her think so.
But exactly because of that, she had another thought.
It was something she came to learn now that she stood on the battlefield.
…Even a person like me, who messed up so much, can still help others…
It was such a simple fact. Pale was more capable of magic compared to most kalar.
As an offensive power, it was a great asset to the battlefield. The only thing that stopped her was her initiative. She used to be too meek to show up fighting.
Therefore, when Pale finally showed up and wielded her magic with such determination, everyone’s expectations of her solidified. They weren’t dependent on Kesselring anymore, but on Pale Kalar.
So it was this simple, thought Pale. She finally understood Kesselring’s words.
Kesselring had told Pale that she believed Pale could do it. Of course, the trust and expectation that Kesselring had toward Pale from the start wasn’t a lie. However, Pale had always thought Kesselring was a little too optimistic in Pale’s abilities. While Pale was skilled in magic, it was never what she would consider chief-levels of power. But Kesselring should have known it would turn out like this. That was why Kesselring spoke like that yesterday.
In that case, the words “be confident in yourself” meant that,
…It was all a matter of my mentality. I was always capable of doing this, it was just that I didn’t think I was…
If only she acted this way earlier, perhaps she might be more respected as the chief by everyone, and the current situation might have turned out differently.
“Aah…”
As expected, I am a fool, thought Pale, as she kept shooting her magic toward incoming enemies.
She could have just begun from trivial matters. Little tasks in the settlement, to prove her commitment to her duty as Chief Kalar. Those actions would have given her the confidence she needed and helped everyone recognize and accept her as the chief. There was no need to prove herself as strong as Kesselring. She only realized that now.
…I wonder if I can still make it by now…
She wished she could still make it.
To make it happen, Pale raised her quivering voice toward the people around her.
“…E-everyone.”
The warriors of the kalar race continued to fire their arrows and maintain their formation, but everyone was listening closely to her words.
“…I will shoot a much more powerful spell for the next one. It might be hard for everyone to follow up on, but please…please follow my lead.”
She said it.
“—Please.”
Pale spoke out her plea to them.
This wasn’t a command. For her, who was still an inexperienced person, having to command others was something presumptuous. At least, she thought so.
But it seemed like the determination in her voice relayed her request properly. All these powerful warriors, who had been fighting on the battlefield for so long, nodded together,
“—Roger that.”
And gave a short reply.
The captain took a breath and gave her order in answer to Pale’s feelings.
“—Everyone! Follow the chief’s command! We’ll go all at once!!”
“Yes!!”
“…!”
Pale’s body trembled as she heard their reply. Although she trembled a lot usually, it wasn’t out of fear this time.
Pale followed her heart, chanted her magic,
“—White Laser!!”
And unleashed it. The blinding ray of light shimmered toward the center of the enemy.
“—Shoot!!”
At the same time, other kalar shot their arrows and rained their magic on their enemies.
Humans were blown away as the massive wave of magic roared through the air. The casualties were at least a few hundred. It was a small number overall, but it was definitely a blow that could become the signal of the kalar’s counterattack.
But it was at that moment,
“…?!”
Suddenly, a violent earthquake shook the ground.
At the same time, the trees in a certain direction collapsed with a groan, sending dust up to mix with the smoke.
The kalar’s gazes immediately turned in that direction. A thick, manly voice echoed out,
“—Aah?! What’s with this bombardment right after I entered the frontline?!”
A shadow appeared along with a ridiculously loud voice. The large shadow was well over two meters tall, and well-built.
And he also wielded a similarly large weapon,
“I mean, this hurts so much!! Damn, you’re messing with me!!”
The weapon was a battle axe, with blades on both side, and as the man swung it around,
“I sure hope you’re all ready?! Because I’m going to kill you all!!”
He swung the weapon straight into the tree right in front of him.
—Around that time.
“…”
“…”
Leonhart was facing the treasure chest dango once again.
The scenery was the same. The distance between them didn’t change. No matter what strategies he had tried to use to circle around it, it was as if he and the treasure chest dango were connected by a rigid metal rod.
…Aah, I guess this is that.
Leonhart finally admitted what happened to him after coming this far.
Just as he was about to calmly accept it,
“…”
The treasure chest dango smiled at him smugly, making a “heh” expression. It was much shorter than him, but Leonhart felt like it was looking down on him.
“—”
—Leonhart felt his head boil.
A/N:
Ssulal: “…Hey, by the way, how long will it take until Leonhart talks to that thieving cat?”
Galtia: “…I think it’ll be another few chapters.”
Ssulal: “How much exactly is this ‘few?’ How many days will it take? What should I do until then?”
Galtia: “You sounded so desperate that it scares me…”
T/N:
3rd Convergence to the Main Plot: Demon Army is less hostile to kalar race
Then, another commentary(?)
As Leonhart said, it’s likely the “King of the Nights” before Kesselring is Hunty. Why? Well, she recently “converted” into a humanoid body due to what happened by the end of dragon age, so she sought any survivor similar to her, only to find normal, I mean, human kalars instead. Things likely led from one to another, and she saved them from danger, thus the human kalar came to worship her, who clearly older, stronger, and look similar yet different than them as Kalar Ancestor (This title stick to her even during Rance era, though the origin of title wasn’t clearly depicted.) This title made Hunty feel awkward, thus she chose to live nearby yet away from them, all while searching for any possible survivor of her brethren as she travelled. Since she could always return via Instant Movement to Kalar’s Settlement regardless of the distance, she could just return whenever she heard the danger there. How to maximize her own survival? Ambush at night! Thus the moniker which likely hers prior Kesselring had it on this generation.
Also, the magic used on this chapter:
Light Beam: Blast of light magic flew out and hit enemy
White Laser: A magical laser of light. The greatest magic of light element if one excludes white destruction beam, which is entirely a level on its own.
Both of them were advanced magic of light element, implying Pale’s skill in magic is at least LV 1, but most likely LV2, since she inexperienced in combat(as in, LV 1 could achieve advanced magic through sheer effort, but seeing Pale not active in combat before this, such thing could hardly apply to her. Though it could also mean the time she spent as a shut-in is invested in learning magic, so it could go either way. But i’m more into my initial opinion, personally)
Want early access to Cannon Fodder, Melancholy of the Demon Army Officer, and I Was a Man Before Reincarnating, So I Refuse a Reverse Harem? Support the translator on Patreon!
