Season 3: Chapter 183: Bow vs. Bow (3)
Ping! Ping!
Persia’s commander-in-chief, Elepher, continuously pinged a certain spot.
[Move]
[Reinforce]
Even though he knew better than anyone that pinging multiple times wouldn’t speed up the players' movement.
‘What the hell. It’s completely open here!’
Ping!
Ping!
In this situation, that was all he could do. The rest would have to be resolved with time.
[Archers ×7]
Currently, seven Persian archers were stationed at the base and more were needed. Even though they would defend, the enemy had at least fifteen archers. If all the enemies came in, the damage would be severe.
Until then, the barbarian soldiers' formation couldn’t collapse.
‘As long as we hold out... if we just hold out, we win.’
Since Joseon had made a risky move, Persia would gain a lot if they just defended well. The barbarian soldiers needed to stick to the enemy archers and buy as much time as possible. They could wipe them out with proper surrounding maneuvers, known as an m-strategy.
However—
‘!?’
Elepher’s eyes widened.
‘It’s finally...!’
The part he kept pinging had finally broken through.
‘By just one guy!?’
One side of the formation had completely opened. This made it impossible to surround the enemies perfectly. Not only that, but their existing formation began to crumble. It would have been better if it ended there.
‘Dammit.’
Yes, Elepher just remembered that the enemy was really betting everything on this rush.
Rumble...!
Joseon’s barbarian soldiers, who had been waiting behind the archers, began charging in. They had been waiting for this opportunity outside of sight.
‘Damn.’
The enemy would inevitably break through.
‘Should I send the archers forward?’
Would sending the ace Persian archers to the front line help? No. He needed to preserve the archers. Losing them would be irreparable.
‘Rather...’
Elepher decided to reposition the archers, assuming the enemy would break through. He placed them where they could fight best and defend most desperately.
***
Screech!
From on top of her horse, Bread drew her sword and shouted, “Charge!”
The one hundred Joseon barbarian soldiers lined up behind her began to charge.
“Waaaahhhh!”
They didn’t forget to shout and the battlefield resounded with their cries. This would stress the already chaotic enemy and make Joseon’s forces seem even larger.
Ping!
[Charge Point]
While riding, Bread marked the exact point in the dense enemy formation that opened where Almond had broken through.
“There! Break through there!!”
Rumble...!
Numerous Joseon barbarian soldiers instantly poured into the gap and the two armies collided head-on.
Boom!
A heavy crash rang out along with countless screams as blood splattered everywhere.
“Ugh, Almond Ham!!”
“Where is it!?”
The Persian archers were caught between the Joseon barbarian soldiers and couldn’t do anything. The chaos prevented them from coordinating.
“Die!”
“Haah!”
Thud!
Thwack!
The barbarian clubs were stained with blood.
A bloody battle took place. On the minimap, the red dots of Joseon’s soldiers began to push through the blue dots of Persia. Not just the Joseon barbarian soldiers, but the Joseon archers also fought.
“Over here, Almond Ham!”
Spam, somehow caught between the barbarian soldiers, waved at him.
“Shoot! Shoot as you go!”
Pang yelled at Spam, signaling him to shoot while moving. Spam started shooting at close range, securing a path for the archers. The scattered archers regrouped at the opening created by the collision.
“Break through here! It’s open here!”
“Block them!”
Those trying to close the gap and those trying to widen it clashed. It was a tense push and pull, but eventually, the gap widened.
“It’s open!”
“Go in! Go in!!”
The archers, seeing enough space, rushed in.
“Catch them! Don’t let them through!”
Some Joseon archers broke through the barbarian soldiers' line and entered the enemy base.
“They're in!”
Only seven of them managed to infiltrate.
“Is it you guys again? Ugh.”
Latte shrugged and shook his head.
Only five familiar faces managed to enter the base: Latte, Spam, Pang, Carrot, and Almond. Two additional soldiers joined them.
Even with just the seven of them, they could cause significant damage in the early second era if they encountered the enemy workers.
“With seven of us in, we have a good chance. Let’s go.”
Ping.
[Disrupt Woodcutting]
The commander marked a spot.
“Of course, it’s the woodcutters.”
For the French, gold was the most important resource. For Persia, wood was crucial as an archery civilization.
“Let’s follow the forest path.”
Following the forest path around the base was the easiest way to disrupt woodcutting. They could hide in the forest and pick off the workers coming to cut wood.
***
The seven archers slipped into the forest near the Persian base.
“We’ll run into workers if we keep walking.”
They hadn’t encountered much resistance so far. Persia had completely missed this side.
‘Hmm?’
Almond suddenly felt something strange. A faint noise turned that feeling into certainty.
Rustle—
“Get down.”
Almond pulled Pang down by the shoulder.
Whoosh!
With a sound like a snake hissing, something flew over Pang’s head.
“Ugh!?”
Thud!
Instead of Pang’s head, something deeply pierced a tree. If his head had been there, he’d be almost dead.
“What the hell!?”
Before Pang could finish speaking—
Thud!
Another Joseon archer fell after an arrow pierced his head. To be precise, two arrows struck his head.
Someone shouted immediately, “It’s an ambush! The enemy archers were waiting!”
That shout seemed like a signal as arrows began flying from all directions.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The Joseon archers dove in separate directions to avoid them.
“Damn! Where are they!?”
“What is this?”
The arrows didn’t match the locations where they were being shot from. Without knowing the enemy’s positions, the Joseon archers began to panic. Arrows kept flying in the forest with plenty of cover, yet the enemies couldn’t be seen.
‘Curved shots?’
Almond had no choice but to conclude that.
Thud!
An arrow pierced the torso of a nearby archer. It didn’t kill him outright, but his health dropped by twenty percent.
“Damn… they saw me here too?”
As the archer tried to move from his cover…
Thud! Thud!
“!?”
A volley of six arrows struck him in succession, turning him into a pincushion.
Thud…!
Almond silently watched him fall.
‘…’
He had never been on the receiving end before. Invisible enemies shooting arrows at them continuously felt helpless. For the person getting attacked, it was hard to tell whether it was a curved shot.
‘So this is what it’s like.’
“Gulp,” Almond swallowed dryly and observed his surroundings.
‘How many of them can shoot curved shots?’
It didn’t seem like just one. How many, where, and could they shoot curved shots freely… He needed to find out.
“Bro, can we manage like this?”
Latte anxiously looked around.
“We don’t even know where they are!?”
“Yeah…”
Almond still couldn’t pinpoint the enemies’ positions.
“No, this isn’t working. I’ll go out! I’ll be the bait to find their positions—”
“Hey! Stay still! For now!”
Carrot tried to stop Latte, but it was too late. That was the last they saw of him.
Whoosh!
“!?”
Unfortunately, the enemy’s curved shot didn’t even give Latte the chance to act as bait.
Thud!
“Ugh!?”
Latte, who tried to run out, was struck in the chest and fell.
“!”
Carrot covered her mouth and moved back. Although Latte was still alive, she couldn’t approach him.
Persian second era arrows weren’t very powerful, but could be rapidly fired. Once they knew Latte's location, the enemies would rain arrows down on him. And they did.
Thud…!
Latte turned into a pincushion under a shower of arrows.
***
Wood resources could be found in the forest around Persia’s base. This forest, encircling Persia’s town center, acted as a natural fortress.
The Persian archers boasted incredible accuracy in the forest.
It felt utterly demoralizing for those rooting for Joseon. This fear and helplessness quickly spread online.
[What’s with the Persian archers' skills???]
[Can’t win in the forest;]
[We should just be thankful we made it to the round of 16]
[Is this the National Championship…?]
[??? This has been Korea until now!]
Mixed with jokes, many users felt genuine despair.
— Is this really happening?
— Honestly, I thought it was over when only seven of them entered the forest. An archer rush should end when archers enter the base.
└ True LOL
└ Why did they enter the forest? Should’ve just gone through the plains
└ Disrupting woodcutting is usually the easiest
└ Bow civilizations need wood, so disrupting woodcutting is effective. But now it’s a mess.
— The skill difference is huge.
— Just frogs in a well…
Some users even said this:
[Frog in a Well]
[Almond being the best archer was just being the best in a well. That impressive curved shot seems like a passive for the Persians who shoot faster… It was just a playground fight. This is the real ring.]
— It’s over.
— For real.
— Damn… was it like this all along!?
— Let’s keep watching.
— Almond hasn’t even shot properly yet, idiot LOL
└ Isn’t that the problem? He’s completely taken aback.
— They’re legendary.
— Vikings???
— Just frogs stuck in a well
***
The power of the Persian archers waiting in the forest felt overwhelming. Even Almond had to hide quietly for a while. At this rate, it would be impossible to advance further.
‘We need to run.’
Almond observed the enemies for a while and suddenly said, “Don’t hide behind trees. Move up and down.”
Pang asked what he meant in confusion, “What!?”
“We can’t afford to waste more time. Try dodging as much as you can by moving up and down. Don’t hide behind trees.”
“Are you telling us to die!?”
“It’s curved shots. They’ll find it easier to target you if you hide. Remember?”
“!”
Pang felt stunned after hearing about curved shots.
“This, this…”
No wonder their allied soldiers fell so easily. He understood why they had been so easily defeated.
“It was curved shots.”
“Yeah.”
To avoid curved shots, they needed to abandon cover.
“Alright. Let’s run. I’ll give the signal, got it?”
Everyone nodded and exchanged glances.
Thunk!
Pang signaled them and stood up.
“Alright. Just run... Duck!”
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Arrows came flying from multiple directions.
“Ugh…!”
“Run!!!”
“Aaaah!”
The wind drew paths over their heads.
Thunk!
A small tree fell and a large tree bore severe marks.
“Damn, how many are there!?”
“Just from the number of arrows, it seems like almost ten!?”
“Persians shoot faster…”
Carrot tried to calculate, but gave up and shook her head.
“Forget it. Just run.”
“Alright! Everyone run! Just rush into the enemy base! Stay strong! We have no other choice!”
“Okay!”
Thud, thud, thud!
The archers all stood and began running.
Almond had suggested for them to move, but he surprisingly walked slowly and didn’t run.
‘Where are they?’
Almond scanned with his eyes and listened with intent focus.
Second era bows had a short range that would be even shorter when shooting curved shots. The enemies would definitely follow them and shoot if they ran to prevent them from entering the base.
‘They’ll move.’
Almond cautiously drew his bow.
Creeeak.
[Focus]
The enemies would reveal their positions when they moved. They didn’t know Almond’s location either and probably thought all the Joseon archers ran away.
Rustle—
Almond heard a sound.
“!”
His eyes gleamed as he looked at a certain spot and he released his arrow.
‘Got one.’
Whoosh!
The arrow blazed with a white light as it flew. It curved around a tree and—
“!?”
Thunk!
It hit a surprised enemy in the eye. A Joseon archer finally killed a Persian archer for the first time.
“Waaaahhhhhhh!”
The crowd cheered loudly as if celebrating the beginning of a counterattack.