Burken had considered many scenarios, even imagining that the opponent would shoot arrows to suppress them.
It should be noted that in this era, archers were still difficult to train. Initially, when the opponent didn’t shoot, Burken suspected it was because they couldn’t possibly all be trained archers; they must have been a mix of inexperienced fighters, so they would wait until they were closer to shoot.
However, Burken did not expect the opponent to throw something strange—a stone? Or something else entirely.
Before he could think further, the scout on the side was unfortunate enough to take a hand grenade to the face.
Boom!
Suddenly, a piercing explosion roared in Burken’s ears, followed by a suffocating whirlwind of dust and debris. The cavalry jerked their reins, and their steeds whinnied in terror. To the side, the scout’s figure was instantly engulfed by a flash of fire and debris.
The grenade exploded in mid-air, releasing countless lethal metal shards, like a storm of metal sweeping in.
The shockwave of the explosion tore through the scout’s armor, and nearby cavalry were instantly stained with the scout’s blood.
The soldiers splattered with blood felt their hearts tighten as if grasped firmly by an invisible hand; their faces showed pain and terror that they could not disguise, completely incomprehending what had happened.
Although more grenades were thrown around the cavalry, causing no greater harm, the series of explosions and the sight of their comrade’s lifeless body made it nearly impossible for these demon soldiers to retain their sanity.
Having not fought a battle against the wind for a long time, the demon cavalry quickly fell into chaos, frantically tugging at their reins. Given that the warhorses were already startled, the entire cavalry squad was beginning to spiral out of control.
Leader Burken was no better off; he suspected they had fallen into an ambush where the opponent had deployed powerful professionals using undetectable spells to attack.
Burken thought he would wait until the opponent’s magic power was exhausted before rallying his forces, but the terrifying explosions showed no sign of stopping. It was only then that Burken realized the horror of the explosions was due to that strange object resembling a magical artifact the opponent had used.
Lauri even resorted to a triple-throw method for the grenades to ensure maximum pressure, and since the demon cavalry surged forward, most of these grenades landed behind the cavalry.
“Charge! Forward! Go!”
Burken was somewhat deranged; did these magical artifacts cost nothing? How could the opponent throw them without feeling any pain? He quickly recalled which lords he had offended since entering the Shattered Snow territory, wondering who would wish him dead.
But it was too late for such thoughts. A soldier’s innate training reminded Burken that the only option now was to charge forward. The explosions from the opponent’s magical artifacts were too terrifying for close combat, retreat was definitely not an option. The only solution now was to rush up to the enemy’s face for hand-to-hand combat.
Although some demon soldiers were halted by grenade shrapnel wounding their steeds, the cavalry around Burken still surged forward with him.
Lauri drew his sword without hesitation and shouted, “To the front! Brothers, kill one and it’s even; kill two and we’ll profit! Kill them!”
Saying that, they charged forward along with the secretary leading the way.
Although the horses were startled, the renewed charge, although at an insufficient speed, still carried an overwhelming pressure; the demon cavalry thus stepped into the battle formation.
Under the adrenaline rush, the fully armed soldiers transformed into terrifying berserkers, with some responsible for hacking at horse legs and others wielding hammers to break armor, quickly plunging the scene into chaos.
Burken quickly realized the difference in equipment between the two sides.
In close combat, he was basically no match for these inferior humans.
The only significant blows he dealt were during the initial charge of the steeds; the remaining humans seemed like frenzied warriors, surrounding the cavalry and initiating an attack.
The most frightening aspect was that these attacks were coordinated, with groups of three working together.
In the chaos of battle, the numerical advantage immediately became evident, as Burken’s squad, reduced to just a handful of members, quickly felt as though they were sinking into a quagmire.
What left Burken feeling most despairing was not only their inferior equipment; he even saw someone casually using healing potions in battle.
With such a cost, they appeared to be willing to go to any lengths just to kill his squad of cavalry, which was truly outrageous.
“I surrender! I surrender!”
Immediately, a demon soldier, realizing the disparity, raised his hands, but the bloodied soldiers cared not for such pleas; a hammer came crashing down on that demon soldier’s head, cursing, “You greenskin aren’t needed for mining!”
Generally, refusing to surrender can ignite the fighting spirit of a routed force, leading them to make a desperate last stand.
However, the demon soldiers did not expect that these humans were fighting with the very mindset of a last-ditch struggle.
Some of the soldiers from the Cathedral of the Blessed Mother of Relief were even killing while crying, driving the demon soldiers into a deeper fear.
Though the number of these human soldiers was not enough to crush completely, Burken managed to escape on his only horse that was adorned with armor, along with two loyal attendants.
After all, these humans were all infantry, and the horses pulling the wagons were merely dull beasts for transport; as long as he fled the chaos, Burken would be able to leave unharmed.
“You inferior humans can suck my ass!”
As Burken fled, he couldn’t help but taunt, but inside he resolved never to set foot in human territory again.
Once back in demon territory, he had to report to the Demon King, as these inferior humans had clearly broken their promises.
Wasn’t he conducting human experiments to infect them with a plethora of plagues and curses, then driving them back to continue spreading those plagues and curses? Yet these humans had betrayed their signed agreements and launched an attack on him; it was truly outrageous!
“Hmph, inferior humans are just that!”
Burken seemed to be trying to reclaim some sense of demon superiority as he rode, saying to his two attendants, “If I were the commander of this army, I would set up an ambush right here, and then…”
Before Burken could finish, the two attendants suddenly spotted a fluttering banner ahead; a fully armed cavalry awaited them.
If Burken found the gear of the previous soldiers exaggerated, the cavalry before him was utterly despairing.
Even without scouts, he could sense that all these cavalry were professionals, no exceptions.
These knights wore pure white armor, with the banner and capes emblazoned with the Lars Family’s Northern Wind Bear crest, each one calming their eager steeds beneath them.
Burken could even feel that, despite being in full armor, the horses underneath these knights still moved with a quickness on the battlefield.
This was no ambush; their combat strength was more exaggerated than regular soldiers, and even the human main force he had seen on the battlefield paled in comparison.
As the leading female knight waved her hand, the knights at the forefront galloped forward, charging towards Burken.
He and his two attendants attempted to resist with bloodline magic, but those magical wind blades dissipated against the knights like raindrops.
Before he could even utter a word of surrender, Burken felt the world spinning, only to see his own body; it dawned on him that it was not the world that was spinning, but his own head.
