Season 2: Chapter 86. Rock Paper Scissors (2)
Commander Kimchi Warrior's ambush was a textbook strategy that took into account the terrain and situation. Therefore, the enemy easily anticipated it. The opposing commander not only predicted the ambush, but also accurately pinpointed the archers’ location and caught Almond's special unit off guard.
"What, is there a spy?!"
"Such a thing doesn’t exist man!"
"Ah, another weapon lost!"
The allied forces fell into chaos and suspected a spy among themselves. Arrows continued to whistle through the air as more of their comrades collapsed.
Swoosh! Swoosh!
The arrows made a haunting sound in the wind.
Thwack! Thwack!
The allies beside Almond fell one by one as more arrows rained down. Unsurprisingly, arrows also flew toward Almond.
However—
"No, don't!"
Whiskey surprisingly threw himself in front of Almond and took the arrow instead.
'Why?!'
Almond fell over in confusion and heard Whiskey shout, "You must survive! Without you, there's no hope!"
— ??
— You are the greatest Japanese
— Wow
His dramatic declaration left Almond even more bewildered.
'Why is he more dramatic than me?'
Almond was the one with everything riding on this game, yet Whiskey's heroics were unmatched. He even sacrificed himself to save Almond even though the arrow hadn’t been a real threat.
"I could have dodged that."
"... Really?"
Whiskey's face turned red with embarrassment.
"Thanks anyway. You're not dead, right?"
"Well... I'm still at 70% after the ranged defense upgrade from the commander..."
Thwack!
Another arrow struck Whiskey in the middle of their conversation.
"Ah, now it’s 40%."
Almond and his viewers burst into laughter at the situation.
— LOL
— Whiskey-san...
— Whisky makes the game interesting, LOL
"Let's hide for now."
It hurt their pride, but they crawled into a crevice between some rocks to catch their breath.
'What now?'
Almond assessed the situation. Their unit had suffered severe damage.
[Squad 17/28]
Only seventeen soldiers remained as arrows continued to bombard them. Hiding and waiting out the barrage wasn’t viable due to the game’s mechanics that gave archers virtually unlimited arrows.
[Commander]
[It’s an ambush on an ambush. Plus, the enemy spear unit is also approaching. Our cavalry will come to support.]
The commander gave an update on the situation.
"Spear units too?"
"Darn it. We’re trapped."
"Like a sandwich?"
Their intended ambush targets were now closing in on them.
"Why isn’t the commander telling us what to do?!"
"He must be unsure. Damn!"
The commander provided them with updates, but he didn’t give the archers any specific instructions because he was possibly unsure of how to proceed.
'Or has he abandoned us?'
If not, it meant their special unit had to fend for themselves.
'Do I have to make the call...?'
Almond had the authority to act independently as the special unit’s leader.
"Captain! Make a decision!" Whiskey pleaded with him.
'Decide?'
Almond hesitated because strategy wasn’t his strongest suit. He could only confidently maintain a win rate below 38% in card games with over five hundred matches.
Thud!
While he pondered, another ally fell across from them.
[Squad 15/28]
Their numbers had dwindled to fifteen. If they lost any more members, any chance of action could vanish.
'Survival first.'
Almond didn’t know how to win the war, but he decided to focus solely on their survival. The only viable strategy in this situation was clear to him.
[Command]
He pressed the command button and shouted, "Shoot the rear archers! Break through at one point!"
All members of the special unit heard his cry. The plan was to charge at the enemy archers, ambush them from the rear, and somehow break through. That was Almond’s strategy.
“...”
However, only silence followed. His unit didn't respond, paralyzed by fear and the constant enemy arrows.
Whiskey, crawling beside Almond, explained, "Everyone's scared.”
“Scared?”
“Many of us have already died once or twice. Another loss means a big risk."
That made sense. Repeated losses meant significant losses in equipment and money. Their earnings were low since they hadn't achieved much yet.
‘I’ve gotta kill the spearmen for bonus gold, but the enemy are archers...’
It didn’t help that all the soldiers on the other team were archers when his bonus only applied to spearmen.
"If it's not for money, then why?"
"It’s about being human. No one wants to die pointlessly even in a game. They'll join the fight if they think they can win, but they don’t see victory in your plan."
“They don’t think we can win...” Almond pondered for a moment and realized how his perspective differed from his troops.
‘They don’t think we can win...’
Almond shouted another command after realizing something.
"Shoot the rear archers! Break through at one point!" he repeated.
This time, he didn't just shout. He leaped from behind the rock and took the lead. As their leader, he had to show them the way.
'I just need to show them it's possible to win.'
He rolled out from his cover and instantly released three arrows.
Psheww!
His sudden action left both his allies and enemies stunned. At that moment, his three arrows pierced the throats of three enemy archers.
Swoosh!
“!”
The enemy archers were confused and slow to react due to the sheer speed of Almond's arrows.
Then, Almond fully stood up and made himself a clear target. He shone like a beacon to them, fearless and defiant.
As Almond pulled his bowstring, an enemy archer aimed at him. However, Almond's shot sliced through his bowstring before he could release his arrow.
Thwack!
— That’s nuts
— No way
— ???
The enemy fell almost instantly without being able to scream with their pierced neck.
“Uh, what?”
“What the...?!”
“Why’s the arrow so quick?!”
The enemies couldn't even react or understand the immense power and speed of Almond's shots.
‘I need to make myself more visible...!’
Almond stood up and made himself fully visible. He no longer had any cover from bushes or rocks as if he was showing off to everyone.
Creak...!
He drew his bowstring after making the situation perfect for the enemies to aim at him.
One enemy archer thought he had the advantage and drew his bowstring, but he hadn't considered one thing. Although Almond exposed himself to them, they were equally exposed to him.
‘There.’
Swoosh!
Almond's aim immediately shifted.
Whizz!
And he released his arrow at the same time.
Ting─
His arrow severed the enemy's bowstring like before.
"!?"
The arrow the enemy had prepared to shoot was deflected upward.
"An arrow... cut a bowstring?!" the enemy gasped as another arrow from Almond pierced his forehead.
Thwack!
“!”
A heavy silence fell. Almond's courageous stand and skillful shots rekindled the dying embers of hope in his team.
"Shoot the rear archers! Break through at one point!" Almond shouted again for the third time.
This time, his unit’s response was different. The bushes rustled as his soldiers began to move, inspired by his bravery.
Whiskey was also motivated by Almond's leadership and suddenly stood up with a flag instead of a weapon.
"Now's the time!" he yelled and rallied the troops.
"Follow the captain's orders! Break through!"
His cry ignited the troop’s morale. The faint embers of hope blazed into a fire of determination.
The bushes violently shook and the sound of many footsteps soon echoed.
"Let's go!"
"Charge!"
"Run!"
The special unit, filled with renewed vigor and courage, charged toward the enemy archers to break through their lines. Almond’s allies finally moved with a mighty war cry.
— Wow...
— Goosebumps!
— This is exhilarating
Almond, Whiskey, and everyone in the special unit felt the thrill tingling their skin.
Thump! Thump!
Their hearts pounded like drums as everyone rose and ran.
"Aaargh!"
They charged and shot their bows. Numerous arrows whistled across the battlefield.
Pshew! Pshew!
The special unit was primarily comprised of skilled archers. Despite running, they still shot accurately.
Thunk!
Thud!
"Ugh!"
"Urk!"
Enemy soldiers fell one by one as Almond’s allies gradually pushed the front line. Once again, a turnaround began.
***
An ambush upon an ambush. In Civil Empire, players referred to this strategy as being enveloped. The term was derived from being ensnared and devoured by the enemy's tactics.
"Ah, we've been enveloped. Sigh," Kimchi Warrior let out a sigh. "The top fifty ranks is a high wall to overcome..."
The enemy commander was a ranker. Not just any ranker, but 46th in the world. Defeating such an opponent was tough with Kimchi Warrior's capabilities.
"I finally had a chance, but got enveloped."
Getting enveloped was similar to losing a ban-pick phase in LIL, only much more devastating. There were no fancy skills like in LIL, so it was hard to recover from an enemy’s successful counterstrategy.
Commander Kimchi Warrior became dismayed.
"But... why is their morale rising?"
The soldiers' morale usually dropped when a strategy was countered in this game. This often led to a much greater defeat than initially anticipated.
However, the special unit he dispatched had unbelievably high morale. Their shouts, expressions, and actions clearly indicated that to any experienced commander.
"They're fighting as if they're going to win."
The situation was dire. Enemy spearmen were coming from behind and archers who ambushed them were at the front.
The allied forces initially boasted greater numbers, but their recent losses rendered that advantage meaningless now.
Pshew! Pshew!
Yet, the special unit continued to fiercely shoot their arrows. They burned with the will to fight, reminiscent of General Gye Baek's army. Leading them wasn’t Gye Baek, but a black-haired archer.
'Because of that person?'
A single outstanding hero could change the flow of an entire army. This was true historically and in the game.
'Not a single miss...'
The black-haired archer leading them never missed a shot even while running. Maybe only one would miss out of ten shots? The rest all struck vital points of the enemies.
'He’s no joke.'
Commander Kimchi Warrior thought he had assigned the leader role quite well, but that man was really no joke when he watched him again.
'I can't just idly sit by when they're fighting so hard.'
If the soldiers fought tooth and nail, Commander Kimchi Warrior couldn't just stand by. He had to do something as a third-person observer.
'I need to help them, but what are they trying to do?'
He tried to comprehend the special unit’s goal and nodded after observing them for a moment.
'I’ve got it. They're trying to break through at a single point.'
The special unit planned on surviving by breaking through the encircling archers at one point.
[Charge Point]
Ping!
Commander Kimchi Warrior gauged the enemy's situation and pointed out where it would be easiest to break through. He also marked spots with cover along the way.
Ping! Ping! Ping!
[Cover]
[Cover]
[Cover]
Passing through these points would make their breakthrough much easier.
'Can we really do this?'
It wasn’t just the enemy archers, but spearmen were also approaching. The allied cavalry was too far away and still struggling with the forest terrain.
'If only we could stall for time...'
The situation looked grim despite their high morale. At that moment, something astonishing happened.