The Mad Spearman of the Northern Front - Chapter 355

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Mad Spearman of the Northern Front (355)
“Have the warriors not yet returned from Belikezel?”
“They are still engaged in combat, as far as we can determine.”
At the warrior’s report, Berkal’s eyes narrowed to slits.
A palpable tension hung low within the Barracks.
Outside, cold wind carried sand and dust across the desolate expanse, while the distant, muffled sound of war drums echoed the Battlefield’s relentless resonance.
One of the three Front Lines remained unresolved—a detail that gnawed at him.
‘Yet… this could prove advantageous.’
Berkal’s gaze grew sharper, more penetrating.
Belkain Kaeron, the Empire’s Supreme Commander, was stationed at Belikezel.
Avoiding him during the Operation about to commence would constitute half the victory itself.
The flow of the Battlefield crystallized swiftly in his mind.
‘Then only one variable remains.’
Arteon Wolfheim, the Empire’s God of War.
The moment that name surfaced in his thoughts, Berkal’s eyes deepened with intensity.
That single man possessed the power to overturn the entire Battlefield’s balance.
Precisely why every calculation had to be flawless.
Currently, he had fragmented his warriors across multiple Units, maximizing disruption of the Empire’s surveillance.
Small-scale skirmishes were being provoked; false traces deliberately left behind.
Some warriors were even deliberately exposed as if by accident, scattering their attention.
Even the Empire’s God of War could not possibly discern their true objective now.
Berkal spoke.
“Where are the Advanced Warriors positioned?”
“All gathered in one location. Upon your Command, I shall relay it immediately.”
“…No, I shall go myself. And the other warriors?”
“Approximately one thousand Advanced Warriors. Over ten thousand Junior Warriors are prepared.”
The air within the Barracks trembled subtly at those numbers.
This was no mere Surprise Attack.
It was an Operation of sufficient scale to establish an entirely new Front Line.
“The Imperial Army’s Reconnaissance Unit must have their attention diverted elsewhere.”
Berkal’s voice was low, yet resolute.
“We shall execute this flawlessly, without fail.”
“I trust you.”
With that terse affirmation, Berkal rose from his seat.
His Cloak swept across the Ground as he stood, his stride betraying no hesitation.
Berkal nodded and stepped beyond the Barracks threshold.
As he emerged, the frigid night air brushed against his face.
The moment Berkal appeared, the Advanced Warriors waiting outside turned their gaze toward him.
Standing beside the flickering Torches, their figures were uniformly overwhelming in presence.
“Is the preparation complete?”
“How much longer must we wait?”
It had been three days since we gathered here.
With nothing to do but wait, everyone seemed restless, their bodies itching for action.
Some were already kicking at the ground, their impatience evident.
Others gripped their Weapons in silence, steadying their breath.
Berkal’s gaze swept across them until it settled on Rakjen.
“Rakjen, Advanced Warrior. How is your condition?”
Rakjen lifted his head briefly to regard him.
“…There are no issues with movement.”
A terse response.
Yet beneath those words lingered the weight of exhaustion that still clung to him.
Wounds that should have been impossible to survive had healed in merely three days.
It was thanks to potions more precious than gold itself, poured into him without restraint.
Moreover, the remaining supply was enough to bring back several Warriors who had crossed the River Crossing, should the need arise.
Berkal shifted his gaze.
“From this moment forward, we shall divide our forces into five Units and advance.”
The instant his words fell, the very air around us transformed.
As Berkal began his operational briefing, the expressions of the Advanced Warriors grew grave and focused.
Every eye sharpened with intensity.
One of the waiting Warriors unrolled a Map across the Ground and raised a Torch.
The flickering light cast dancing shadows across the Terrain depicted on the Map.
Berkal then pointed his Command Baton at the Map.
“At this junction, two Units shall execute a wide Flanking maneuver to the left and right. The remaining three Units will proceed through this route.”
His Command Baton moved with precision.
The movement paths of each Unit.
The convergence points.
Everything had already been calculated.
And…
Berkal gazed at the Map and slowly raised his Command Baton.
“Now, while the Empire’s attention is concentrated on three Strategic Points…”
The moment his words ceased, even the breathing around us fell silent.
A single move that would overturn the entire Battlefield.
He tapped one location decisively and spoke.
“We shall cross Elvarfiel Lake and immediately breach the Empire’s Northern Border.”
At those words, the eyes of the Advanced Warriors widened with shock.
“…That’s madness.”
Truly, across the Border?
“Do you believe that is possible?”
“Of course. However… there remains one matter we must resolve before we can accomplish this.”
“…?”
“What is that?”
“That is….”
At Berkal’s response, the expressions of the Great Hall Warriors grew grave.
“We must remove Arteon Wolfheim from the Northern Region.”
That single statement from Berkal’s lips was enough to silence every Great Hall Warrior present.
Crossing the border itself was possible.
Beyond Elvarfiel Lake, the Empire’s defenses were relatively lax, and they had rarely sent troops deep into the Northern Region.
But there was one problem.
The moment Arteon moved.
If they divided their forces into five groups and left false traces as they were doing now, ordinary Imperial Soldiers could certainly be deceived.
Belkain was currently at Belikezel, which was far from the direction they were heading.
Even if that bastard noticed and moved, they would already be crossing the border and advancing.
But Arteon was different.
He possessed the authority to move independently within the Empire, and….
‘Yet he is the only one who possesses absolute destructive power.’
Moreover, despite his youth, his insight resembled that of a seasoned warrior who had rolled across battlefields for over fifty years.
An existence that read the flow of battle and struck at the most dangerous points first.
To inflict certain damage upon the Empire in this war, this condition had to be met first.
“Before we cross the border, we must absolutely bind Arteon elsewhere.”
The Great Hall Warriors fell silent at Berkal’s words.
They understood what needed to be done.
But they did not know how to do it.
Then Berkal spoke.
“Right now, I will dispatch an additional ten thousand warriors to Belikezel.”
“To Belikezel?”
“Draktun and Erka should already be there.”
Moreover, ten thousand warriors were already stationed there.
Yet he was saying he would dispatch an additional ten thousand warriors to that place?
They thought it was an excessive decision.
But….
“The fact that we have received no contact from Belikezel until now means something has certainly gone wrong.”
Even if it were not a problem, it was certain that some unexpected variable had occurred.
Moreover….
“Belkain Kaeron, the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Army at Belikezel, is one of the factors the Empire’s God of War considers most important.”
If the battle at Belikezel were to drag on.
“By committing troops and prolonging it into a protracted war, I intend to bind the God of War’s feet to that place.”
“In the meantime, we advance toward the Empire’s border.”
Five Great Warriors, each bearing seven Feather Tattoos, moving simultaneously.
With this level of military strength, it would require at least two kingdoms of the Continent to match it.
‘Despite possessing such absurd military power, to have spent all this time in this Northern Region….’
It wasn’t a lack of strength, but ignorance that had confined me to those oppressive years.
But now, everything would change.
‘I….’
I would transform the Northern Region.
Now it would be not merely the North, but the entire Continent that we would dominate.
‘We would.’
Berkal’s gaze, fixed upon the South, grew sharper and colder than ever before.
* * *
As the Gorge’s wall collapsed, the Battlefield was forcibly brought to a close.
Enormous boulders and earthen debris blocked the passage, and small stones continued to tumble down between the fractured wall surfaces.
The Kar Tribe had already retreated, while the remaining Imperial Soldiers maintained their vigilance and simultaneously undertook repair work to reopen the blocked Gorge passage.
As the Soldiers cleared away the rubble of the collapsed wall and erected temporary fortifications.
“….”
Arteon stood atop the Aikuled Fortress wall, gazing toward the collapsed Gorge wall.
A cold wind whipped his Cloak violently.
This defeat would likely prevent them from attempting any offensive operations for some time.
Yet this did not mean one could afford to lower their guard.
The Kar Tribe possessed a far more aggressive and belligerent nature than any foe I had ever faced.
If not here.
‘Surely….’
The possibility that they might redirect their forces elsewhere could not be dismissed.
Thus, Arteon could only release a quiet sigh.
‘Until an answer comes from the Imperial Family… there is nothing I can do.’
In wartime, not during emergencies, one could not move troops independently.
Arteon had already requested an expedited reporting system from the Imperial Family to respond swiftly to the wartime situation unfolding in the Northern Region.
Simultaneously, he had included information summarizing the current movements throughout the North and the Kar Tribe’s military situation.
That subtle sense of discord being felt across the entire Northern Region.
He sought to convey such things—perceptible only in the field—as comprehensively as possible.
But it was then.
“Marquis Arteon, a grave situation has arisen!”
With an urgent cry, Roen Garbion, the Commander of Aikuled, leaped onto the Castle Wall.
Dust clung thickly to his Armor, and his ragged breathing alone revealed how desperately he had rushed here.
Arteon regarded him and asked.
“What is the matter?”
“The Kar Tribe Warriors… have been confirmed to be rapidly moving toward Belikezel.”
“…?”
In that instant, Arteon’s gaze sharpened with keen intensity.
Until now, those bastards had concealed their movements as much as possible.
They merely repeated small skirmishes, dispersing their forces, leaving traces, and sowing confusion.
Yet now they suddenly revealed a massive force and moved openly?
Arteon’s brow furrowed deeply.
“What is the scale of their force?”
“Based on confirmed sightings alone, approximately ten thousand troops. Including unconfirmed units, we estimate a minimum of twelve to thirteen thousand or more.”
“….”
Too many to dismiss as mere harassment. Yet something felt wrong about confirming this as a genuine offensive.
‘Too….’
Wasn’t it far too blatant?
Until now, those bastards had moved with meticulous information control.
But now they suddenly reveal a force of that magnitude and march toward Belikezel?
Something was amiss.
Yet I couldn’t afford to remain idle either.
Belikezel was currently the most critical front line among all active battlefields.
It was where the Supreme Commander Belkain himself stood, and one of the few remaining strategic points.
If Belikezel fell and the Kar Tribe pushed through to Helikel Gorge, the entire Northern Region’s military situation could collapse in an instant.
Roen spoke carefully.
“Perhaps because this position failed… their options have narrowed as well. They’ve already achieved some success around Elvarfiel Lake, and Aikuled is blocked… so Belikezel must be their only remaining choice.”
“….”
Arteon did not respond.
A subtle sense of foreboding emanating from somewhere unseen.
‘No.’
This isn’t simply a movement born from narrowed options.
Those bastards are currently….
Concealing something.
I couldn’t be certain what it was.
Yet because of this suspicion, the enemy forces heading toward Belikezel were far too numerous to ignore.
Arteon turned his body and spoke.
“Colonel, continue the repairs on the collapsed wall. We cannot rule out the possibility of the Kar Tribe moving again.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I will go to Belikezel myself.”
Relief washed across Roen’s face at those words.
If Arteon moved personally, any battlefield could be held.
Roen bowed his head.
“Understood, sir.”
Arteon descended immediately beneath the castle wall.
Isaac approached him first.
“What is it, Unit Commander?”
“A massive Kar Tribe force is moving toward Belikezel.”
“…!”
“At minimum, ten thousand. Possibly more.”
The faces of the nearby Squad Members hardened.
“Belikezel?”
“Isn’t Supreme Commander Belkain stationed there?”
“Then we need to move faster.”
Arteon spoke in a low voice.
“We depart immediately.”
A terse command.
Yet with those few words alone, everyone sprang into motion.
Isaac spun around at once, his voice cutting through the air.
“All units prepare for deployment! Reduce Supplies to the absolute minimum, and check the horses first! Move as fast as possible!”
“Yes, sir!”
The Silent Spear Unit Members scattered in unison.
Arteon, watching their departure, lifted his gaze briefly toward the North.
Belikezel.
Even now, countless Troops were converging upon that place.
And strangely enough.
An unease gnawed at the corner of my chest.
What was the true purpose the Kar Tribe was concealing….
It felt as though a dizzying tempest was sweeping across the Northern Region.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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