Yuri was certain he had struck the unidentified monster that had been digging the tunnel.
The ground in the area trembled, then completely collapsed below.
Among the pile of dirt, Yuri could see chunks of flesh and splashes of blood from the monster.
Thin, tentacle-like protrusions writhed, severed.
This monster would no longer be able to dig tunnels for the orcs.
"Grrk..."
His body staggered.
Releasing mana outward was a technique rarely used. It was powerful, but it consumed too much mana and stamina to continue fighting.
He gritted his teeth and looked around while holding Guilty.
He had thrown himself into the middle of the orcs and caused chaos, so they would swarm again.
It was just like before.
"Where are you, Master..."
But this time, Moyong Chan didn't show up.
Yuri lifted his eyes.
The first to appear was Orcbal, wielding his curved blade.
His face was twisted beyond recognition. It was satisfying to see that he wasn't keeping his usual composure anymore.
"Oku-doku-da."
Yuri flipped him off. Orcbal let out a shriek and charged.
Orcs began appearing from all directions, swarming toward Yuri.
He was like a man trapped in an anthill.
"Wow..."
Yuri gave a hollow laugh and raised Guilty.
He readied his sword, but he had no strength left to fight.
Maybe he could take down one or two with him.
Then, it happened.
Someone dropped from the sky.
"Your Highness."
The one who leapt just like Yuri had earlier was someone unexpected.
"Sir Graham."
Graham gave Yuri a slight nod, then assumed his stance.
"Well done. I'll protect you from here."
"I appreciate it, but don't you think there are a bit too many enemies?"
"One more will be joining us."
"Even two doesn't seem enough. I can't fight anymore."
"You may rest."
Just as he finished speaking, another knight landed in front of Yuri.
He couldn't walk through the air like Moyong Chan, but to leap that far was proof of considerable skill.
A knight of the Empire clad in black armor.
Something about his aura felt familiar.
There was no way he could forget someone with such overwhelming pressure.
"Knight commander?"
He was the commander leading one of the Imperial knight divisions.
"I am the commander of the 3rd Knight Order."
He answered in a deep voice.
He seemed like the type to draw clear lines.
Yuri grumbled.
"Does the Empire name everything with numbers? So boring..."
Either way, he had survived again.
Yuri let out a sigh of relief.
Two of the Empire's finest warriors, perhaps the strongest within the current Allied Army, were guarding him.
This was a luxury only someone like Ragna might be granted.
"I've got no strength left now..."
Saying that, Yuri slumped down and began to spectate the battle.
"Oh wow..."
Just like Graham said, the two of them were more than enough.
Their martial prowess left Yuri in awe.
Graham used a practical, clean sword style. He coated just enough mana over his blade, striking only with enough force to fatally wound his enemies.
At this rate, he could probably fight all day.
Just watching from the side was educational.
Then he turned to the 3rd Knight Order commander.
He was a completely different type from Graham.
"Doesn't seem like the Lion Heart Method..."
Most Imperial knights trained in the Lion Heart Method. Refined over generations, it was a war-specialized mana method with virtually no flaws.
But the 3rd Knight Order commander was rougher and more intense.
If Graham struck with only the force required, this man simply crushed his enemies. Every time his sword swung, the orcs' bodies were torn apart gruesomely.
The orc troops, shocked by the sheer power, didn't even dare to approach.
He was, quite literally, slaughtering an army on his own.
Yuri hadn't seen the 3rd Knight Order commander in his previous life. Had he died back then? Or was he on a different front?
The thought of such a powerhouse becoming an enemy wasn't exactly pleasant.
"I'd better get on his good side..."
He didn't seem like a sentimental person who would be swayed by feelings, but maybe building a connection would leave room for negotiation if they ever faced off.
Yuri cheered him on.
"The 3rd Knight Order commander is strong. So cool."
Graham gave him a bewildered look, but the 3rd Knight Order commander showed no reaction.
Still, he might have been smirking behind his helmet.
"The 3rd Knight Order commander is the best. I want him. The Empire's most eligible bachelor."
Yuri raised his voice even more.
"The 3rd Knight Order commander is handsome! If he takes off that helmet, he's got looks rivaling Yuri Briol...!"
At last, the 3rd Knight Order commander lowered his blade and looked at Yuri. His eyes beyond the visor were fierce.
"You're distracting me."
"Okay!"
Yuri immediately shut his mouth.
Before they knew it, the battle was nearing its end.
No more orcs appeared.
Thanks to Yuri killing that monster, no new tunnels had opened, and the existing holes were surrounded by the Allied Army.
Thanks to the two knights guarding him, Yuri had time to recover.
As he soothed the meridian damage from Heart-Soul Slash, his strength slowly returned.
"Phew..."
Yuri slung Guilty over his shoulder and took a deep breath.
The air of the grasslands washed through his lungs.
It still smelled of blood, but that was a fitting stimulation.
He stepped out from behind the two.
Then, Orcbal—who had been waiting further back—approached. He was the curved blade wielder Yuri hadn't finished off earlier.
"Your Highness, it's dangerous."
"It's fine."
Yuri waved Guilty.
"That one's mine."
No matter how exhausted he was, he couldn't just let an enemy he locked eyes with walk away.
Yuri grinned as he faced him.
Orcbal scrunched his nose, then swung his curved blade wide.
"Akuakkai! Summa kum rauku! Babeku!"
"I don't speak Orcish, why do you keep trying to talk?"
"Aku bakuma uluriaku olorometum!"
"Oku-doku-da."
Yuri gripped Guilty in both hands and lowered his stance, leaning back on his neck.
He wasn't in good shape. If he wanted to kill him, it had to be over quickly.
The same went for the enemy.
The tide had turned. He'd want to kill his target and escape.
Since their intentions aligned, only the clash remained.
Their brief breaths ended, and they both leapt forward simultaneously.
Right before colliding, both twisted to the side, their paths crossing.
Yuri burst out laughing.
"Cowardly bastard!"
He'd pretended to clash and aimed for the side, but Orcbal had intended the same.
They closed the distance again, measuring each other.
He wasn't using his blade like a typical orc. His fighting style was cautious too.
Meanwhile, Graham and the 3rd Knight Order commander continued butchering the orcs.
As Briol's representative, it would be shameful if Yuri was held up by just one Orcbal.
Yuri tightened his core and forcefully drew on Heart-Soul Slash's energy.
His body strained, but he didn't care and forced his mana into overdrive.
"Phew..."
It was something he used to do often as a mercenary.
Having no attachment to life, he'd used plenty of self-destructive techniques.
"What the hell?"
But it felt completely different from what he had expected.
Though his mana overflowed through his meridians, it didn't pierce him from within. Once the reins were loosened, it actually flowed more solemnly and slowly.
It was a phenomenon only possible because his mana method was Heart-Soul Slash.
Yuri raised Guilty.
Though the result was unexpected and momentarily threw him off, it was all the better.
Perhaps sensing the shift, Orcbal rushed in desperately. Yuri could feel his intent to not give him any room.
But it was already too late.
Yuri channeled mana onto his blade.
The blade extended.
It wasn't just lightly coating it with mana — the edge itself had expanded.
Even Yuri couldn't believe the form of the sword he now saw.
It was a realm he had yet to reach.
But this was undoubtedly Sword Aura.
Since it wasn't achieved consciously, he didn't know how long it would last.
Facing the charging Orcbal, Yuri swung without hesitation.
There was no technique, no finesse.
The moment their weapons clashed, the curved blade was sliced in half.
Guilty continued forward and split Orcbal.
Orcbal staggered back.
But he couldn't dodge completely — his face was sliced down the middle.
"Graaaaagh!"
Orcbal's face was drenched in blood.
A massive gash ran from his eyes down to his jaw.
As Orcbal clutched his face in agony, Yuri grinned at him.
"Weak."
But Yuri's condition was not much better. After using Sword Aura, even the rampaging mana quickly dried up.
"Akuakkai! Akumma!"
Orcbal let out a torn-throat scream, his face twisted in rage.
He looked ready to charge in barehanded.
Yuri feigned composure, flicking his fingers.
"Come at me."
And then—
The ground trembled.
With his strength gone, Yuri's knees buckled and he collapsed.
It was just like before.
The earth was opening again.
From the ground, a mound of dirt rose, and a grotesque monster appeared.
The portion of its body above ground resembled a giant earthworm, with deeply sunken, pitch-black eyes.
Tentacles spread out radially around its mouth, writhing.
The tentacles around its mouth wrapped around Orcbal.
Orcbal did not panic.
Wiping the blood from his face, he screamed fiercely at Yuri.
Then, the monster collected several more orcs and crawled back underground.
The ground rumbled with an enormous noise.
That was the true identity of the monster.
"Goddamn it..."
Yuri spat.
He had never heard of orcs controlling such a creature. Not even in his past life.
In any case, his job was done. The remaining orcs would be handled by the Allied Army.
Yuri slumped down on the ground.
As the tension left him, the mana flowing through his meridians instantly shriveled up and gathered back into his core.
"Ah..."
Yuri was overcome by an immense sense of exhaustion.
Now he truly didn't even have the strength to sit.
He collapsed completely.
He vaguely heard the sounds of Graham and the 3rd Knight Order commander still fighting.
If an orc were to sneak up and swing an axe, he wouldn't even be able to resist.
At times like this, the best move was to play dead.
There was nothing he could do anyway.
Yuri closed his eyes.
***
Ragna furrowed his brow.
"What did you say?"
His adjutant was crouched beside the collapsed Yuri, examining him.
After checking him a few more times, he spoke.
"He appears to be sleeping, sir..."
"Never seen anyone sleep in the middle of a war."
"Looks like he's completely depleted his mana. Though even so, his nerves must be made of steel."
"He's insane."
Ragna had been watching Yuri's battle.
At first, he killed the shaman and got surrounded, barely surviving thanks to the help of the Outsider.
Then he rallied the knights and dashed off somewhere, suddenly leapt into the air, plunged his sword into the ground, and caused an explosion.
Ragna thought he'd lost his mind.
He had leapt into the enemy's heart and burned away all of his mana.
Moyong Chan hadn't shown up this time.
So Ragna had sent Graham and the commander of the 3rd Knight Order. The two had successfully protected Yuri.
He thought the madness would stop there.
But the guy, who should've been lying low, suddenly got up all wobbly and started fighting Orcbal again.
What followed was even more ridiculous.
The guy who had already drained all his mana suddenly unleashed Sword Aura, a monster appeared and dragged Orcbal away, and then he collapsed and started sleeping in the middle of the battlefield.
Not a single thing about him was predictable.
"This bastard, seriously..."
Ragna chuckled in disbelief.
"Still, thanks to him, the damage was reduced. We also learned about the orcs' methods."
"What the hell is that monster?"
"Aizen sent word to the Imperial Palace. If they have any information, they'll send it."
"A monster that digs tunnels... unbelievable. And the orcs travel through those?"
"Yes. It looked like a swarm of ants."
"It's surprising, but it doesn't matter."
Ragna raised his telescope and looked out over the distant horizon.
Occasionally, orc banners could be seen fluttering.
"If we strike their main camp, they won't be able to pull this kind of crap anymore."
They were advancing slowly but steadily.
At this rate, it wouldn't be long before they reached Okua.
"Your Highness."
A knight of the Empire knelt before him.
"Orc cavalry are circling the area."
"Again?"
"What are your orders?"
The orcs had continued harassing the Allied Army. Even after such a major battle, they came again without hesitation.
At this point, their numbers were almost suspicious.
It felt like they had far more than anticipated.
"At this point, it's one of two things. Either the orcs are more numerous than we thought, or once we reach their base, Okua's the only one left."
"I hope it's the latter."
"Wipe them out."
He ordered annihilation.
"This time, we'll handle it. Send the Imperial Knight Order."
"Are you saying...?"
"It's about time we got serious."
"Understood."
Ragna smiled coolly.
"Let them know — we were hiding monsters too."