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At Damian’s command, the Makstri soldiers quickly spread out to both sides.

As Goodwin prepared his archers to attack, his eyes widened.

“What… is that?”

The Makstri soldiers, who had swiftly spread out, formed something unexpected.

“A small shield formation?”

It was a series of smaller shield formations, each consisting of just a few soldiers.

The archers were positioned atop the hill within the base, shooting arrows from above. The arrows were descending from the sky.

To counter this, the Makstri soldiers moved through the obstacles in small groups, holding their shields forward and overhead, effectively protecting themselves from both direct and aerial attacks.

Moreover…

“Goodwin, sir! They’re…!”

By splitting into smaller units, their mobility had drastically improved.

The Makstri soldiers, nearly sprinting, closed in on the base with incredible speed.

Goodwin scowled and shouted, “Archers, fire!”

Fwoosh!

The arrows arced into the sky and rained down on the charging Makstri soldiers.

At the very moment the arrows began to descend…

“Hold!”

Thud!

Damian’s voice, amplified by his magic, boomed across the battlefield.

The Makstri soldiers dropped to one knee, lowering their bodies as they braced their shields tightly together, creating an impenetrable barrier.

Ping! Ting! Ping!

Hundreds of arrows bounced off their shields, unable to penetrate.

The soldiers of the Iren Kingdom grimaced in disbelief.

“What the…?”

“Are those really the same rabble from before?”

The Makstri soldiers were displaying teamwork on par with, if not superior to, regular forces.

No ordinary practice could allow such precise, synchronized movements from a single command.

‘What kind of training did they undergo…?’

‘Have they been replaced by someone else…?’

Goodwin briefly entertained the thought that they might have been swapped with regular soldiers or even elite troops, given how unrecognizable they were in their helmets.

Goodwin clenched his teeth.

But he still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

“Fire the catapult!”

“They’re too close! Using the catapult now could destroy our own lines.”

“I’m aware, but slowing them down is more important. Fire now!”

“Yes, sir!”

To target the soldiers approaching the front of the base, the catapult was adjusted to fire with less tension.

Crank! Crank!

Instead of a single large rock, the catapult was loaded with dozens of smaller rocks, each about the size of a human head—far more menacing when launched together.

Following Goodwin’s orders, the soldiers quickly filled the catapult.

“Fire!”

Thump!

The catapult hurled thirty to forty head-sized rocks high into the air.

“…Damn.”

As the catapult launched, Damian’s eyes narrowed.

These weren’t arrows that could easily be blocked.

Damian shouted, “Raise your shields and charge! Get into the enemy base!”

If they could breach the base, the catapult would be rendered useless.

While the impact of the falling rocks was severe, a shield could prevent immediate death.

Damian kicked off the ground, sprinting forward.

“Follow the commander! Charge!”

“Urrraaaaaa!”

The soldiers raised their shields diagonally overhead and ran with all their might.

Crash!

“Ugh!”

*Thud! Bang! Crash!*

“Aagh!”

“Oof!”

The rocks launched by the catapult struck with far more force than expected.

Though blocked by shields…

Crack!

The impact crumpled the shields, sending soldiers tumbling to the ground.

Damian grimaced at the sight of his fallen men.

And the Iren Kingdom’s forces weren’t done yet.

“Roll the boulders! Then send down the logs to keep them from climbing up!”

“Yes, sir!”

The Iren soldiers shouted as they rolled boulders and logs down the hill.

Rumble! Thud! Rumble, thud!

The boulders rolled down with deafening noise.

Damian widened his eyes and shouted, “Assault team!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Gather quickly! Hurry!”

At Damian’s command, the strongest and most robust soldiers, including the first squad leader, grouped together.

These were the best of the Makstri soldiers, known as the Assault Team.

“Raaahhhh!”

The Assault Team came together, forming a massive hammer-like unit as they used their shields to deflect the rolling boulders.

Bam!

Though slightly uncoordinated in their first real battle, the team managed to smash the boulders aside.

“We did it!”

“We made a path!”

The Assault Team cleared the way, creating a path for their allies to pass.

Damian shouted, “Follow the Assault Team! Don’t slow down, keep moving!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Raaah! Keep up! Fall behind, and you die!”

The Assault Team’s maneuver deflected the rocks to the sides, clearing a safe path.

The place they aimed to breach was the heart of the gold mine base, the safe zone.

The Makstri soldiers formed a line, following closely behind the Assault Team.

“These lunatics!”

Goodwin shouted as the Makstri soldiers advanced, overcoming every obstacle he had set.

This was the last of his prepared defenses.

All that remained was a full-scale battle.

‘Who the hell is leading these soldiers…?’

How had they changed so drastically in such a short time?

Grit!

“We won’t give up this time! Everyone, prepare for battle!”

Retreat was not an option.

No matter what happened next, even if the regular forces joined in, it didn’t matter.

At this moment…

‘I’ll crush you!’

Goodwin was determined to destroy the Makstri soldiers once and for all.

Goodwin drew his sword.

“Attack!”

“Uraaah!”

Seeing the Makstri soldiers right at their doorstep, Goodwin shouted.

And at that moment—

Fwip!

Someone broke away from the enemy ranks and charged up the base at an incredible speed.

Goodwin’s eyes locked onto him.

It was clear at a glance that he was the commander.

“Capture that man! He’s the commander!”

His movements were extraordinary.

Was he the one who had transformed this ragtag bunch into such a formidable unit?

Many thoughts flashed through Goodwin’s mind, but his focus now was solely on capturing the enemy commander.

However…

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

“…!”

Damian swiftly neutralized the soldiers of the Iren Kingdom as he charged straight at Goodwin.

‘Engaging in a full-scale battle is premature.’

Though they had drilled extensively in tactical maneuvers, going head-to-head with the regular forces of the Iren Kingdom would quickly expose their weaknesses.

Their soldiers weren’t yet experienced in direct combat against seasoned troops.

“Defend with your shields and focus on holding the line!”

“Don’t rush in recklessly!”

The squad leaders’ shouts echoed from behind.

Their strategy was simple: fight while maintaining defensive positions to minimize risk.

This approach was vital because this battle was far from the last one.

Even after retaking the base, they had to hold it for another three months.

With no additional reinforcements, every soldier in the Makstri unit was invaluable.

The objective was to fight with minimal casualties.

Thus, Damian had devised a single strategy:

—Once we breach the base, I will take down the enemy commander. Maintain your three-man squads, fend off their attacks, and push them back.

Of course, some had expressed concerns.

What if the commander got hurt? But Damian had merely smirked.

And now—

‘Who was it that asked such a foolish question?’

‘He really doesn’t seem human.’

Watching Damian’s unstoppable advance, the soldiers shook their heads in disbelief.

The enemy troops were struck down before they could even swing their swords properly, stabbed in the side or the leg.

In the blink of an eye, Damian had taken down over twenty soldiers of the Iren Kingdom.

“Checkmate.”

“You… you bastard!”

Goodwin roared and swung his sword furiously at Damian.

The strike was fluid, aimed directly at Damian, but—

Swish.

To Damian, everything unfolded in slow motion; he saw every move from start to finish.

Or rather, he already knew where the attack would come from, allowing him to react instantly.

Whoosh!

“…!”

Goodwin’s eyes widened in shock as his sword slashed through empty air.

It wasn’t just that his strike had missed.

‘He dodged before I even swung?’

It was as if the enemy had read his movements in advance.

Stunned by the uncanny precision, Goodwin turned and swung again at Damian.

Slash!

“…!”

Goodwin quickly raised his shield as Damian’s spear thrust forward right in front of him.

But—

Crash!

“Ugh!”

The impact was far greater than expected, sending Goodwin sprawling backward.

He nearly lost consciousness from the sheer force of the blow.

‘Damn it…!’

The situation was too dire for him to even curse properly.

Goodwin scrambled to his feet, but—

Stab!

“Guh!”

Damian’s spear pierced beneath his throat, causing Goodwin to shudder.

He gazed up with great effort at the man standing over him.

“Your… name…”

At the very least, he wanted to know the name of the man who had killed him.

“Grrkk.”

But his last words were nothing more than a gurgle before Goodwin collapsed to the ground.

Damian shouted at the top of his lungs.

“The commander of the Iren Kingdom is dead! Their commander is dead!”

The soldiers of the Iren Kingdom fighting nearby flinched.

Goodwin was dead?

The lieutenant’s eyes widened as he saw Goodwin lying lifeless on the ground.

“Damn it…! Fall back! Retreat!”

The lieutenant quickly led his men, rushing down the hill to regroup.

As the enemy began to flee, the Makstri soldiers looked back at Damian.

A nod.

It was permission to let them go.

While pursuing them could result in more enemy casualties, it would also lead to losses on their side.

And unlike the enemy, who could replenish their forces, the Makstri unit would have to defend with fewer men.

“…Phew.”

Damian slowly walked up to the top of the base, pulled down the Iren Kingdom’s flag, and replaced it with the banner of the Baroque Kingdom.

“The second time…”

The base was retaken.

But now came the true test.

“We have to hold it.”

If they could defend this place for the next three months, everything here would be resolved.

And for his soldiers—

‘This could lay the foundation for a new beginning.’

Watching his troops embrace in celebration, Damian allowed a small smile.

But he knew the truth.

Retaking this place had been possible only because the enemy had chosen to retreat.

Had they fought to the last man, both sides would have suffered heavy casualties.

‘…It won’t be easy.’

Next time, there would be no retreat, only a direct confrontation.

Therefore, the path forward was clear.

He needed to teach his men how to wield spears effectively, to threaten the enemy before they could get too close.

And then—

“Hemus.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Take a few men and bring the cart from the base.”

“You mean the one that Miss Diel brought over?”

“Yes.”

At Damian’s command, Hemus nodded.

“But sir, I’ve been curious… What’s in that cart?”

Hemus asked cautiously.

Damian’s lips curved into a faint smile.

“It’s our secret weapon to defend this place.”

For the next three months—

They would hold this ground, no matter what.

Damian silently watched as the soldiers of the Iren Kingdom retreated into the distance.