48 – Mine
＜Chapter 48 – Mine＞
Frontier Lord’s Manor.
Anna checked the gift that had arrived from Brelida, as usual.
Perhaps because it was almost the New Year, there were unusually many gifts.
As Anna was writing the list of gifts, her hand stopped for a moment.
Then she slowly moved it again to write a name.
‘Elwin.’
She opened the box more cautiously than the other gifts.
Just in case.
And once again, Anna’s hand stopped.
Because there was her own gift inside.
[May blessings fill Anna’s future this year as well. – Elwin -]
She read the short note and inspected the item.
It was a beautiful hairpin.
It exuded elegance without being flashy.
She examined the hairpin closely.
Every detail of the craftsmanship was flawless.
She placed the hairpin in a small box in the room.
Knock. Knock.
“Miss Anna, Madam is looking for you.”
Anna took the document with the gift and left the room.
Frontier Mansion, 3rd floor.
Brylda’s room.
She handed the document to Brylda.
Brylda read the document with a contented expression.
When her gaze fell below,
“Elwin? Elwin sent the gift?”
“Yes.”
Tap. Tap.
Brylda’s fingers rapidly tapped on the table.
“Why? What’s their motive?”
Tap, tap.
Tap, tap.
“At least it means they don’t know about our plans, right? So they must have sent a gift.”
Lately, the focus has been on the Terra Lord contract.
Depending on whether the phrase “limited to monsters” is included in the contract, it can serve as a variable in the competition for the successor.
“I was worried when the Innocent Mercenary Corps suddenly left… But seeing that they sent a gift, Elwin must not know.”
It felt as refreshing as getting rid of an illness.
It was because of the hope that the half-given-up task might succeed.
Brilda hummed a tune and marked a few gifts.
“Bring the marked items to the room. Dispose of the rest on your own.”
“Yes, madam.”
As Anna was about to leave the room with the documents,
Another maid hurriedly entered.
“Madam, a letter from the leader of the Innocent Mercenary Corps has arrived.”
“Oh? Bring it to me.”
Anna left the room and closed the door.
As she took a few steps,
“Illan!! How dare you defy my orders!?”
Brilda’s angry voice echoed from outside the door.
Mining Search Unit.
Slave soldiers 2,000
Mercenaries 500
Hunters 300
Others 500
A force totaling 3,300 passed through Terra heading west, entering the monster territory.
Commander’s meeting.
Hans, senior mercenaries, and Uncle Miller gathered.
They unfolded a map prepared in front of them.
From Noble mtl dot com
It was a copy of the map that was in the duke’s report.
They drew a line on the map.
“Move west from Terra.”
The horizontal line reached a specific point,
then they drew a vertical line upward.
This way is longer than the crossing path.
Nevertheless, they set it up this way.
Because it’s easier to move through the goblin territory than the orc territory.
“Is there an iron mine there?”
“Yeah, that’s right. It’s information from the report to the Duke, so there’s no mistake.”
After the explanation of the situation, the command was handed over to Hans.
Managing actual troops was something he excelled at.
.
.
Entering the monster zone,
Routine tasks followed.
Walking west when the sun rose,
Entering the camp when the sun set.
The same actions were repeated the next day and the day after.
“The goblins aren’t attacking.”
“Since our numbers are larger, it seems they instinctively avoid us.”
As time passed, they reached the designated point.
From now on, they had to move north.
Seemingly aware of this, Hans addressed the soldiers.
“Stay alert, everyone! We’re about to traverse the orc territory!”
The orc territory was different from the goblin territory.
They actively launched attacks.
However, despite the increased numbers in battle, the outcome remained unchanged.
No matter how many orcs came, they couldn’t defeat the 3,300-strong unit.
The crossbow troops launched a preemptive attack,
Deploying a phalanx unit on the front line.
After inflicting sufficient damage, mercenaries tidied up the orcs.
In this way, they reached the mountainous area with iron ore without casualties.
“Uncle, please lead the search.”
“Don’t worry. I brought 300 for this purpose.”
“I appreciate it.”
As the hunter squad departed,
We set up a camp at the edge of the mountain.
After the hunter team returned, planning to rest for a day or so before continuing the journey.
After a few days,
The hunter team arrived.
“What!? There’s an entrance to the mine?”
The area marked on the map.
It seemed this wasn’t just a simple iron deposit; they had actually constructed a mine here.
“Are they cutting costs even in construction?”
In his mind, he silently thanked Allensia.
Thanks to her, things were resolved smoothly.
“But there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Is there a problem?”
Uncle Miller’s words were as follows.
While searching the mountains, many orcs were discovered.
The hunter concealed himself and observed the orcs.
“They seem to be all heading in one direction, straight towards the mine.”
The long-neglected mine was being utilized as an orc stronghold.
“If they’re not trolls and just orcs, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
“Troll remains have been found all over the mountains. It appears the orcs hunted them down.”
Normally, trolls devour orcs.
However, when the orc numbers grow, they, in turn, hunt trolls.
“It won’t be easy to deal with.”
“Moreover, it’s mountainous terrain.”
Turning his head, he looked at the mountain where the mine was.
Steep slopes.
Trees densely covering the area.
It would be challenging for the main force, consisting of phalanxes and crossbowmen, to operate effectively.
“Look there. Summon Captain Hans and the high-level mercenaries!”
After a while,
Hans and the high-level mercenaries arrived.
They briefed them on the current situation and asked for their opinions.
The first to speak was the high-level mercenary leading the medium-sized mercenary group.
“Lure them into the open field.”
“How?”
“That is…”
Another mercenary spoke up.
“We need to disperse them individually.”
“It’ll be revealed within a few hours. Eventually, a full-scale battle will break out.”
Despite a few mercenaries offering their opinions afterward, none were satisfactory.
“Hans, what do you think?”
“We should make the most of our allies’ strengths.”
“The strengths?”
“We have the Phalanx unit boasting the strongest defense, and Hunters specialized in stealth and reconnaissance among our allies. So…”
After hearing Hans’s entire strategic explanation,
The first thought that came to mind was this.
‘He has grown a lot.’
Hans is the most talented knight in the frontier.
That’s why he became the guardian knight at a young age.
Such Hans showed remarkable qualities even as a commander.
“Alright. We’ll adopt Hans’s strategy. Everyone, move accordingly!”
“Understood.”
“Understood.”
The next day,
Hans.
100 elite Palanx members.
And 30 elite hunters gathered.
“You can retreat depending on the situation. Don’t overexert yourselves.”
“We will hold out until Lady So Youngju arrives, no matter what.”
Hans and his soldiers set off with determined expressions.
After they left,
3 hours later,
They divided the mercenaries into 20 teams of 25.
They assigned a hunter to each team as a lookout.
“Count on us.”
“Don’t worry.”
“Taking care of orcs should be easy.”
Another 3 hours passed,
And they entered the mountains with the main force.
They placed the Palanx at the front and rear, and positioned the crossbowmen in the center.
Despite adapting their formation to the mountainous terrain, it was not easy to maintain.
“Reduce speed ahead!”
“Crossbowmen, be on guard! Check the surroundings!”
Not even 20 minutes after entering the mountains,
we discovered orc corpses.
30 minutes later, we found another orc corpse.
When the count of discovered corpses exceeded 100, we reached our destination.
The trees blocking our view disappeared,
revealing a large clearing.
In that clearing stood the elite phalanx unit forming a circular defense.
Their spears and armor were soaked in orc blood.
Along the circular defense, orc bodies surrounded them like a ring.
And there, in one place.
The entrance to the mine was completely blocked by orc corpses.
“Hans! I’ve come!”
“Lady Soyoung!”
“Waaah!”
“Waaah!”
The elite phalanx unit roared in excitement.
The main unit soldiers responded with cheers.
As we arrived,
The orcs, who had been eyeing the elite Paladin Corps from their surroundings, hurriedly fled into the forest.
No, they tried to flee.
Swoosh.
If the mercenaries hadn’t appeared in the forest.
This was Hans’s plan.
Hans would lead the elite Paladin soldiers and block the entrance to the mine.
Meanwhile, the mercenaries would hunt down the scattered orcs in the mountains.
The main force would move in last.
Because the orcs who saw the humans could prepare for it.
The most difficult mission in this operation was for Hans and the elite Paladins.
They had to block the enemy’s entrance and hold their ground.
“Good job, Hans.”
“It wasn’t difficult, thanks to the Paladin soldiers.”
He said so, but Hans’s body was covered in orc blood.
“How many are left inside?”
“We’ve killed about 200 orcs inside the mine. We don’t know how many are left inside.”
“Leave the rest to the main force. You rest with the vanguard soldiers.”
Thunk.
“Thank you.”
The main force unfolded their formation at the entrance of the mine as the Paladin Corps.
After that, crossbowmen were deployed.
Once the orc corpses at the mine entrance were cleared, orcs poured out in an instant.
“Fire in the first row!”
Orcs emerging through the narrow entrance.
They were nothing more than easy targets.
“Fire in the second row!”
“Fire in the third row!”
Thanks to dividing the crossbow units, arrows continued to fly without interruption.
However, the orcs kept charging.
To break through the allies.
“We must acknowledge their bravery. Be prepared for the impact of the Phalanx unit!”
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Whoosh. Whoosh.
Even the orcs who pierced through the first arrow barrage
couldn’t overcome the second Phalanx wall.
The orc attack ceased only after nearly 500 casualties.
10 minutes, 20 minutes,
Even after waiting for an hour, no orcs came out.
The commander gathered opinions.
The initial strategy was to stop them and kill.
The allies have surrounded us, so they suggested waiting until the orcs run out of food.
I saw a mercenary expressing their opinion.
They seem unfamiliar with the situation here, as they are from the mainland.
“That won’t work. Our allies might run out of food first.”
On the mainland, they could hunt animals, pick fruits, or eat grass.
But all of that is impossible here on the island.
At that moment, Uncle Miller stepped forward.
“It seems like this is our area of expertise.”
