BXBX NOVEL Chapter 747: Bait
"Quick! Hurry and escape into the woods!" General Kent waved his arms wildly, his voice hoarse from shouting. He yelled with all his might while he ran at the back of the troop.
The galloping of horseshoes was heard from behind them. Loud like untamed waves, the horses sounded like they were seconds away from dragging him under the surface; it was not an unfamiliar feeling for him, a person born in a city by the ocean.
As he turned back to look, he saw the silhouettes of the best soldiers of the Kingdom of Helius, charging forward on their horses a mere hundred meters away from him. They wore heavy suits of armor, and they waved their swords while growling under their breaths. These people had managed to defeat his army just hours before.
The priests flew in the sky, occasionally firing some Grenade of Holy Light at the ground. Thankfully, they were still quite far away, and the distance had greatly affected their aim.
As he looked forward, he could not ascertain anything from the land beyond - the woods were dark and quiet. Everyone rushed into it as if their lives depended on it, like starving disaster victims crowding towards relief trucks.
They knew that the mages were hidden within the shadows in the forest, and as long as they could bait the enemies into stepping inside it, they would be able to finally raise their blades and retaliate. However, none of them were entirely confident about it; after all, their opponent was too close to them. They could only rely on their survival instincts and sprint as fast as they could, leaving only the thought of ‘I want to live!’ in their hearts as they powered on. All thought of bait and ambush were on the back burner for now.
General Kent was probably the only one who had his senses under control.
Honestly, he still felt that this plan for an ambush was not a perfect one. A retreating army suddenly running into the woods? Anyone would feel suspicious of that, and there was no guarantee that the enemies would be tricked. Also, in order to make everything seem believable, the bait would need to maintain only a close distance with their pursuers.
A bunch of wounded soldiers, too afraid to choose their escape route, suddenly running into the woods. That might look more convincing to the enemies’ eyes.
Kent could not read the thoughts of the priests, but, he felt that it would be best if he were used as bait too, and slow down enough for the enemies to approach him. He made sure that he was the last in his troop as well.
The pursuers must have recognized him. What general would be willing to run at the back of the troop as bait? Thus, Kent felt that his actions might help increase the chances for this imperfect ambush to succeed, no matter how slight it might be.
After all, what else could they do?
His heart was filled with despair from the moment they started retreating from the borders. The heavy cavalry of the Kingdom shattered everything that he took pride in, and his army was helpless before the enemy. After a brief clash, they had no choice but to retreat, but unfortunately, retreating seemed to not be an option.
Kent knew, clear as day, that even if someone were to be tasked to clear the fields, the enemies could still afford to allocate some amount of military strength to clean them up once and for all. No matter what, they were wounded and terrified, and the fifty-thousand men would probably only have just a few thousand left by the time they manage to return to the city.
Kent had no idea how it was in the city; he did not dare to even think about it. He lost the border to the enemy, disappointed the expectations of the Acting Prime Minister. He broke the vow he swore in the Palace, and now, he was even hoping that he would not live until the day when he would be required to face the people in the Regina Palace.
However, for his men that is running right before his eyes, he had to live on.
As he was plagued by these dark thoughts, Benjamin’s appearance gave Kent a ray of hope.
The Director of the Academy of Magic, the strongest mage throughout the land. Kent did not know how great Benjamin actually was, but, he understood what a strong mage could do on the battlefield.
Most importantly, his presence has boosted the low morale of his men and allowed them to have hope once again. Thus, even if his plan to ambush was far from perfect, Kent did not hesitate to agree to it.
That was the only chance for a successful retreat.
"General! General! Save me!"
Cries for help were heard. The injured became a burden for the escaping army, one that they could not afford to bear. Even though the soldiers tried their best in shouldering the stretchers as they ran, some were still unavoidably left to the side.
Kent turned to search for the source of the cry. His eyes fell upon a familiar soldier, a man who most probably went through 3 days of solitary confinement after he talked back to his General. But for some reason, Kent could not recall his name no matter how hard he tried.
Kent steeled his heart, attempting to turn and run forward, but somehow, he still ended right beside the soldier.
"General.... Please, help me, save me, don’t leave me here...."
The soldier’s left leg was broken, and he could no longer move on his own. Kent could only carry the man on his back and continue running with all his might. At the same time, the pursuers were closing in on them quickly; a Grenade of Holy Light landed a few meters away from himself, nearly blowing him to bits.
If he insisted on carrying this soldier, then both of them would most probably die together.
Kent understood the risk, but he could not explain why he would shy away from the thought. The woods were right there, and most of the men were already in it; somehow, he felt that as long as he stayed determined and continued on, he would eventually join them in the woods as well.
Boom!
Another Grenade of Holy Light landed, and this time, luck was no longer on Kent’s side. The Holy Light exploded just 2 meters away from his right hand, and the intense shockwave had Kent collapsing to the ground almost immediately. He nearly flung the injured soldier away after the impact.
"General! Are you okay? General!"
The soldier that was on his back was already unconscious, and a number of people quickly approached Kent to support him as they collectively ran into the woods.
"We’re in! All of us are in!" The sudden commotion managed to snap Kent back into reality.
In the dark woods, even Kent could not see where the mages were hiding. Despite this, the people still marched on, heading towards the predetermined ambush location.
They were waiting for the horn of retaliation to echo throughout the night.
After a few seconds, the pursuers ran into the woods without any sign of hesitation. Relief flooded Kent’s heart when he saw this.
"Charge!"
However, the shouts for blood were deafening, and the nearest calvary was just fifty meters away from Kent. When he turned to look, he could even see the patterns carved on his armor and the bloodlust in his eyes.
Kent knew - the enemy was finally here.
Thus, he passed the injured soldier to the soldier before him and turned to withdraw his sword.
"Charge!" The blood in his body boiled as he sung in ecstasy.
He screamed in tandem with the wave of his sword, and he hacked at the man. The attack was too quick for the calvary to react, and before he could rein in his horse, Kent was already right before him.
With a dull thump, the sword pierced through the belly of the horse, the force of momentum tearing a hole right through the horse’s stomach. Blood splattered everywhere, and Kent’s arm was still inside the horse’s body as he was dragged to the ground.
"General!"
Kent turned to his men when he heard their call. "Run! You’re not allowed to stop! Run! Go!" Kent snapped.
Maybe it was his bloodied appearance that intimidated the soldiers, or maybe it was the obedience of a soldier to his general, but the soldiers only paused for a moment before running further into the woods again, carrying the injured ones with them.
Kent stared at his men, and he stared for a long time. His eyes never left their backs until they disappeared into the depth of the woods until he could no longer see them anymore.
At that moment, the thundering of hooves once again rang out from behind him. It sounded just like waves.
It was very familiar to him.