Chapter 318: Siege Warfare Intensifies

“I wouldn’t call this a good situation, not even if I were just being polite.”

Elpidius replied calmly.

“After hearing about Rweche, we reinforced the defenses around the main array core, but it seems these demons are planning a frontal assault.”

After a few failed attempts at tunneling, they seem to have decided to just brute force their way through.”

This siege relies on pure brute force, devoid of any clever tactics. That’s what makes it so difficult to counter. He clenched his fist.

“They’ll likely breach the walls or climb over them soon enough. If contact is lost, please don’t be alarmed or think it’s unusual.”

The 1st Corps is just too powerful. It’s painfully clear now why they don’t move carelessly.

To make matters worse, in this already desperate situation, they’re acting on some insane orders. Their eyes gleam with what looks like madness as they scale the walls with their bare hands, like demons swarming out of hell. The sight is so unnerving that even our soldiers falter, losing their nerve. It’s a complete momentum shift.

– “With the 1st Corps involved… it must be incredibly difficult for you.”

“…If the 1st Corps were the only problem, we might still have a glimmer of hope.”

And then there’s the 7th Corps. Those dagger-wielding bastards are using the same fighting style Deon Hart and his knights used to employ, and it’s tearing down our morale. As if things weren’t bad enough, our soldiers’ spirits are plummeting. It’s becoming unbearable.

And it’s not just them. To fend off those climbing the walls, we have to lean out and thrust spears downwards, but the 12th Corps is constantly raining javelins to suppress our counterattacks.

“If Esperance had lent a hand, would things be even slightly better…?”

He couldn’t help but sigh in despair.

– “They refused, so it’s no use dwelling on it.”

The Empire—no, the three allied nations—failed to secure mercenary support from Esperance. Esperance didn’t just refuse; they even recalled the mercenaries they had previously provided to the Empire, even before the full-scale second war ignited. They rejected any request for contract extensions outright.

‘…It’s understandable, considering this battle is almost certainly a lost cause.’

Esperance always puts its own safety first, after all.

Logically, he understood. Yes, he understood, but…

“If we fall, do they really think they’ll be safe?”

A cynical scoff escaped his lips.

Despite his resolve, facing this hopeless situation stirred up unavoidable resentment. The true aggressor was out there, yet he found himself resenting the more convenient bystander. Disgusted with himself, Elpidius clamped his mouth shut.

As if to change the subject, a calm voice came through the communicator.

– “Speaking of which, we’ve lost contact with the Heroes on their front. Is everything alright on your end?”

His golden eyes flicked to the communicator on the side. It was still connected.

“…We’re fine here.”

– “So it seems only the Hero on our side who was carrying the communicator is dead. And of course, the communicator must have been destroyed at the same time… May I inquire about the Heroes’ situation?”

“It seems the situation is still deadlocked.”

– “I see… We should probably count ourselves lucky they haven’t been pushed back or defeated yet.”

“…Yes.”

The problem was that Aletea was at the forefront of that precarious stalemate.

One wrong move and she’s dead. In a situation where death could come at any moment, Elpidius lowered his gaze. His tightly clenched fist trembled slightly.

‘Aletea, please be safe.’

The unspoken plea tightened around his heart.

She could just stay back and contribute without anyone complaining. No, just the fact that a royal was even present in such a dangerous place would be enough to earn her accolades. So why insist on being at the very front of the attack?

Their opponent was a Hero. Just holding out this long was already a miracle.

‘You’ve done enough already.’

He whispered into the communicator, over and over. Enough is enough. Fall back. Let others handle it.

There was no way she hadn’t heard him, but Aletea remained silent. She stubbornly persisted in her course of action.

Fearing that further words would only distract her from the fight, Elpidius could only listen in silence as the situation unfolded.

– “We need news of Deon Hart’s death to arrive soon.”

“…Indeed.”

What meaning would this plan have, built on the foundation of his brother’s death?

His brother’s life was more precious to him than future generations who would quickly forget the sacrifices of the past and squander their present.

The young Emperor, knowing better than to voice these thoughts, simply gave a dry affirmation to the words of the foreign ruler, who had no connection to his brother at all.

***

Just as the humans gritted their teeth to withstand the demon onslaught, the demons themselves were seething with frustration at the seemingly impenetrable city.

Ranged attacks were constant, and Heroes would occasionally dart out from the city gates to wreak havoc in their ranks before retreating back inside. And every time some clever tactic was employed, the demons were thrown into disarray. It was infuriating.

– “Rweche broke through their arrays and used magic to get in, right? Why can’t we do the same?”

– “Exactly! Why can’t we? It’s not fair that they got to stroll in while we’re stuck out here!”

Finally, unable to contain their frustration, the Commanders of the 6th and 7th Corps barked into the communication stone.

The accumulated frustration from the ongoing battle, combined with the relentless, damp sleet, had finally pushed them over the edge. It was understandable. With the commander-in-chief, Deon Hart, now engaged in combat, Commander Jaykar of the 1st Corps, who had temporarily taken over command, calmly held up the communication stone.

“They just got lucky.”

– “And what makes you so sure we won’t get lucky too?!”

“First, let’s remember that the magic suppression array in this city doesn’t rely on just one core. To locate them all, we’d need a sorcerer’s help. And we’d also need someone who could scout the entire city from within, undetected.”

Sorcerers are human, obviously, and whoever scouts the city undetected would also have to be human.

“There’s no human in the Demon Realm who’d help us right now, especially in the middle of a war. And the city we’re attacking has undoubtedly heard about Rweche, so their defenses will be at their highest, especially around the array cores. It won’t be easy. Even if we somehow pinpoint their locations, we still wouldn’t have anyone capable of infiltrating, bypassing all defenses, and destroying them.”

Rweche succeeded because they had Develania, a ‘Legion Commander’ no less. If we had someone like that, we would have already stormed the city gates by now.

“Meeting all those conditions is practically impossible. And more importantly, we don’t have time to pursue that course of action now.”

He gripped the hilt of his sword, which he had tucked into his waist belt to use the communicator.

“Instead of wasting time on pointless thoughts, focus on attacking.”

– “Y-yes, sir.”

– “…Tch.”

Though clearly dissatisfied, the two legion commanders seemed to understand, grumbling as they backed down. Jaykar immediately pocketed the communicator, sprang off the ground, and charged forward.

Clang! His weapon clashed against that of a Hero who had emerged for a surprise attack.

“…What… power…!”

The Hero’s weapon was slowly pushed back, his voice trembling. Ignoring the words spat out through gritted teeth, Jaykar barked an order at Commander Sillua of the 7th Corps, who was fiddling with the communicator in the distance, still clearly disgruntled.

“The city gates are open! Get inside before they close!”

To send troops out to disrupt our lines, they inevitably have to open the city gates. They know this is a weakness, so they’ve resorted to surprise attacks, darting out to strike while avoiding the legion commanders, then retreating back inside. But as expected, you get used to anything after a while.

He’d been waiting for this moment. The instant the Hero emerged, Jaykar himself charged forward, locking the Hero in place, his eyes gleaming savagely.

“You’re playing with me now.”

“…Damn it, shut the gates! Now!”

Even though there are troops trying to hold the gates while we’re out here, it’s hard to hold them against a determined assault like this.

The Hero whipped his head around… then recoiled. He’d tried to dodge, but a searing pain shot through his neck—he’d been cut.

He pressed a hand to his neck, trying to stem the flow of blood—it was deeper than he’d thought. A mocking voice cut through the air.

“Daydreaming in the middle of a fight? Bold move.”

“…Guess so.”

Taking my eyes off the Commander of the 1st Corps? Yeah, stupid move on my part.

Still, he’d managed to check on the gates. Not a hopeful sight, but still.

With the swift 7th Corps leading the charge, demons were already squeezing through the closing city gates. The last thing he’d seen before turning back was another Hero desperately trying to block the gates, with the Commander of the 7th Corps bearing down on him.

…

The hand pressed against his wound felt damp and sticky with blood.

The Hero knew this desperate fight was a losing battle from the start. This was all just a delaying tactic, nothing more.

Even knowing that, a bitter taste rose in his mouth as the end drew near. Would his life make any difference here? His vision blurred, likely from blood loss. He focused his eyes and managed a faint, bitter smile.

“Maybe it’s because I’m a demon, but these wounds are healing awfully slow.”

…

Clang!

“Where do you think you’re going? I’m right here.”

Seeing him attempt to reinforce the 7th Corps, he swung his weapon at the figure who was trying to ignore him and push past.

The Commander of the 1st Corps casually raised his sword to block, turning to face him. The Hero pointedly tilted his weapon in response.

“Let’s finish this quickly before we both bleed out here.”

“…You, in your current state, are nothing…”

As if he’d never looked back, Jaykar turned away again and calmly continued on his path. Shadow fell over the Hero’s back as he charged forward, face contorted with rage at the blatant dismissal.

A low murmur followed.

“My adjutant alone will be enough to handle you.”

…Kuh!

“I should probably go reinforce the 7th Corps.”

Commander Sillua of the 7th Corps and a Hero were locked in combat, fighting in the narrow gap of the city gates. The gates were closing slowly, likely for fear of trapping even their own commander inside. Seeing another Hero join the fray, Jaykar strode towards them.

He heard the clash of weapons behind him, and moments later, warm blood splattered onto his heel. He didn’t need to look to know whose blood it was.

‘…What’s the point of such desperation?’

They fought for their nation, for the Human Realm, but it was a futile death, one that history wouldn’t record and no one would remember. In the end, they’d just be numbers, casualties tallied up after the war was over.

Even for Heroes, it was no different. In this era, countless Heroes existed, and just as many were dying like falling leaves.

He sprang off the ground. Jaykar twisted his lips into a sneer as he brutally shoved aside the Hero who was about to attack Sillua.

“Leave both of them to me. You, get inside and open those gates.”

“Y-yes, sir. Understood.”

Sillua threw herself into the city.

A Hero, who couldn’t just let her get away, immediately tried to pursue, but Jaykar swung his sword, stopping him short with a blow to the back of the head. Someone among the two Heroes let out a hollow laugh at this blatant declaration that they were his opponents.

“You think you can take on both of us? Alone?”

“Doesn’t seem impossible. Besides, who said I was alone?”

…?

Jaykar’s eyes flicked upwards, tracking someone’s movement. Instinctively sensing danger, the Hero twisted to the side just as a spear plunged into the ground beside him.

…Commander of the 12th Corps.

“Hmph.”

Commander Myers of the 12th Corps, arriving a moment late because he’d been busy reorganizing the lines disrupted by the Hero’s surprise attack and handing over command to the 1st Corps Commander’s adjutant, yanked his spear free from the ground.