Lord of the Truth

1059  Tactical failure

A Few Minutes Ago—

”One, two— advance!!”

”Hsss!!”

Bang Bang

Once again, the flanks of the Great Serpent Empireʼs army advanced with ferocity. Anyone in their path was pushed toward the center, and those who resisted were trampled underfoot and stabbed.

”Damn it!” One of Amonʼs aides finally realized what was happening. The enemy battle formation had taken on the shape of a U. It was only a matter of time before the soldiers of the Great Serpent Empire closed the final gap and completed the encirclement.

The aide looked toward his general, Amon, who was still stuck in the rear, fighting five generals and another ten martial emperors of their closest aids. Battling 15 of the enemy elites, He had no time to breathe, let alone issue orders!

Then Amonʼs aide quickly came up with a simple plan:

”Jump over them! Donʼt let them complete the encirclement!!”

As long as they wanted to trap us in the middle, we would turn the tables on them—break out and surround them instead!

Baa Baa Baa

Without a momentʼs hesitation, the demons began leaping over their enemies, desperate to escape.

But the response was swift:

”launch!!”

A barrage of arrows, energy weapon attacks, and even attacks from some epic weapons were launched into the sky simultaneously.

The demons, who were merely trying to jump without any defense, seemed like nothing more than a swarm of locusts being hunted.

Bang Bang

The bodies of the demons attempting to leap began falling like locusts amid the Great Serpent Empireʼs army. For every ten who tried to jump, one managed to get past their foes and reach the other side.

Even those few who succeeded were not spared; As soon as they landed, they were hunted down and killed on the spot.

”You... youʼre trying to humiliate us, the demon race, to force us to retreat!” Amonʼs aide shouted in frustration as he watched his disastrous plan fail miserably.

”No matter, weʼll retreat this time only... but weʼll return to make you suffer! Full back!! Fall back quickly! Donʼt let them complete the encirclement, and then weʼll show them!!”

”Gyahhh!!”

”Retreat! Retreat! Retreat!!”

The shouts of Amonʼs aide triggered a disastrous withdrawal. Whether on the frontlines or those fighting on the flanks, all of them turned their backs on the city and simply ran.

In war, there is no greater mistake than turning your back on your enemy, and that is exactly what happened.

The demons, accustomed to acting individually and unconcerned with the life or death of their peers, had no training in anything like withdrawal tactics. The result was predictable:

”Get over here!!” Slash

With swords, spears, arrows, and even some violet clouds, demon corpses began piling up on the ground. Those who werenʼt killed by attacks were trampled by the entire army until they were flattened into the dirt. In that single onslaught, over ten thousand demons fell.

There was one more thing Amonʼs aide hadnʼt accounted for:

”Quick march, donʼt look behind!”

If they could run backward, couldnʼt their enemies do the same?

March March March

In their same U-shaped formation, the Great Serpent Empireʼs army began advancing quickly after the fleeing demons.

”Dammit, dammit, dammit!” Amonʼs aide clutched his horns tightly, panicking at what he saw before him. He had ordered the retreat, yet the demon army was still trapped in the center, losing countless soldiers. He looked toward Amon and shouted desperately: ”My King, what should we do?!”

”I donʼt know! Do something! Even if everyone dies, we must keep them occupied outside the city!” Amon replied hastily before taking a heavy blow that sent him flying backward. Bang!

If Amon had eyes, he would have cried. He had no Underworld daisies or Walls of Deathly Flames to frighten his enemies and turn the tide. What was he supposed to do?!

”The Seventy-Seven Prince, we need some assistance here!” One of the fifteen generals tasked with dealing with the demon army shouted loudly.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The one being called was among the participants in the battles against the Warlords. Hearing the plea, he glanced toward the main battlefield.

”Hmm?” He immediately understood the situation.

”Five from each team, follow me!” The prince shot forward, pulling four others who were fighting alongside him against a Warlord. Twenty others disengaged from their battles and flew quickly behind him.

Now, each Warlord was left fighting just 15 Imperial Guards, but their situation didnʼt improve much.

Boom!

”Watch out from above!!”

As soon as the reinforcement of 25 Imperial Guards arrived, they struck the demon army from the open area, blocking their path with several purple clouds.

”Complete the encirclement!” Seizing the moment, the generals shouted commands, and their soldiers swiftly advanced from the demonsʼ flanks, exploiting their hesitation. The encirclement was tightened from above and all sides, compressing the demons further inward.

”Dammit, dammit!” Amonʼs aide took a few steps back. ”Why is this army moving like that? Why donʼt our tactics work on them?!”

”No, you come here and die!” Amonʼs aide didnʼt flee. He had found the perfect opportunity to feign engagement in the battle and leave the responsibility of the surrounded army to someone else.

”Encirclement formation number 4, begin!” The 15 generals in the rear issued their orders in unison.

Clank! Clank!

Instead of the three lines of soldiers surrounding the goblins completely, with about 20 Imperial Guards raining attacks from above, the rest of the soldiers began withdrawing and forming square battalions, each containing 10,000 soldiers.

Boom!

After rapid reorganization, a horn was blown, and the battalions began advancing.

”Haah!” ”Haah!”

Boom!

The massive walls of Hope City collapsed.

Bam! Bam! Bam!

The battalions started pouring in one after another.

When Amon caught sight of what was happening, a scream emerged from the depths of his soul, erupting into the open air:

”Nooooooo!!!”