In the current age.
The battle method of mages lining knights up in front, comfortably raising their staffs from the rear.
Chanting long incantations to complete magic circles.
Then sweeping away enemies in an instant had become commonplace.
But in the very distant past.
To deal with monsters or demons charging in from every direction, mages naturally had to be good at close combat as well.
‘Otherwise, they died.’
Archmage Tvalier.
In such chaotic melee situations, he was a specialist who could send most upper-grade knights flying with his bare hands.
Because he had spent most of his long years of magic training alone.
There were many times when he had no choice but to face numerous enemies with his own strength and without any assistance.
Bandits who stuck close and stabbed with blades, enemies who fired arrows from afar.
And sometimes even monsters that attacked from underground or high in the sky.
To survive such complicated melees, Tvalier had to be able to respond to all of those situations.
Like that, the magic skill Tvalier had forged literally in the wild field.
Later became an extremely powerful foundation when he surpassed stages.
In particular, Tvalier had already experienced countless battles on river water like this one as well.
***
BOOM— BOOM— BOOM—!
BOOM— BOOM—
From the central command ship flying the Jinsung Escort Agency’s flag, the urgent sound of drums had been ringing out repeatedly since earlier.
“River pirates ahead! Roughly one kilometer to the front! ”
“That flag is…… the Eighteen Stockades of the Yu River Waterway. Among them, the Flood-Dragon Stockade! ”
“Their scale is five sailboats! W-wedge boats number more than twelve!”
“A huge force is also rushing in from the left! Their scale is three sailboats! The flag is…… That flag belongs to the Hell King Stockade!”
“They have appeared on the right as well! Their scale is also three sailboats! It is the Blood Wolf Stockade!”
Shouts burst from every direction, along with the fierce sound of drums.
The skilled sailors aboard the sailboats handled the sail ropes this way and that, trying somehow to adjust direction, but it was useless.
In the middle of the Yu River, as wide as the sea.
This place was no different from a playground for river pirates.
It was a place where there had never been a way to escape from river pirates charging in with determination.
“Even by simple calculation, the difference in fighting strength is more than double!”
“The distance is too close to flee! They likely hid their ships near an uninhabited island nearby and came out from there!”
“Agency Head, your orders!”
The Agency Head of the Jinsung Escort Agency, Gentleman Sword Jin Yu-seong, had not once left the vicinity of the most important iron carriage from the moment the escort run departed until now.
His three grown sons had been resolving the other issues on their own.
But when faced with a serious problem like this, he, the representative of the Escort Agency, had to step forward and make a judgment.
“How did they know to appear at this exact place at this exact point? Not ordinary land, but the middle of this vast Yu Riverr.”
“That is……”
As a look of dismay passed across everyone’s faces.
The Agency Head called the middle-aged man beside him.
“Manager Seo.”
“Yes, Agency Head.”
“How do you see this situation?”
“……It seems there is an informant within this escort run.”
When Manager Seo lowered his head with a grave complexion and spoke.
Jin Yu-seong, his expression slightly furrowed, nodded and asked the man standing at the deck railing with an expressionless face.
“Indeed, without an informant, there is no way this would make sense. How do you see it, Great Hero Namgung Min?”
“My thoughts are the same as yours, Agency Head.”
The client of this cargo.
Heaven-Shaking Sword Namgung Min showed little change in expression even while the river pirates swarmed toward them like a colony of ants.
Rather, now that the situation had actually arrived.
His heart had simply settled into the feeling that what was coming had come.
After briefly studying Namgung Min’s calm expression, Jin Yu-seong let out a sigh of relief inside.
‘If this is not something the Namgung Clan knows about, then the enemy’s scale may be unexpectedly small.’
At least here in Ming Province.
A large-scale troop movement that escaped the eyes of the great Namgung Clan could not exist.
Even if such a thing existed, he believed it would not be now.
‘Though the bandits of the Yangtze Waterway Stockades have appeared from three directions, most of them are small fry anyway.’
In this kind of large-scale battle, what mattered in the end was the number of Peak Experts.
Fortunately, the number of Peak Experts mobilized by the Jinsung Escort Agency for this escort run was as many as ten.
With this level of fighting strength, it was an overwhelming force capable of annihilating most small and mid-sized sects in an instant.
He had to make good use of the concentration and dispersion of force.
‘If there is a variable…….’
It was that this place was not land, but on river water.
If they were defeated, they had nowhere to retreat.
At that thought, Gentleman Sword Jin Yu-seong’s eyes deepened in an instant.
For now, judging by how those people were swarming over.
There was no way they would turn back after a few agreeable words or a few coins as passage fees.
It was a moment that required a swift decision.
“Divide the forces aboard the command ship as quickly as possible. Every expert except myself and the First Pavilion Lord will move to the other sailboats.”
From before departure, he had prepared at least a rough operational plan in case of emergency.
“The Third Pavilion Lord will take the experts I informed you of beforehand and move to the sailboat on the right. The Second Pavilion Lord will also check the list and move with the experts. Great Hero Heaven-Shaking Sword, please move to the left sailboat with the Second Pavilion Lord.”
“Understood.”
While everyone busily prepared to move from the sailboat like that.
The eldest son of Jin Yu-seong, who was scheduled to remain on the central sailboat.
The First Pavilion Lord, the only one among the three sons to have crossed the wall of Peak level, cautiously opened his mouth.
“What should we do with the wanderers we hired this time?”
At the First Pavilion Lord’s question, Jin Yu-seong, who had been standing on the deck and issuing orders coldly, spoke calmly.
“They will face the Flood-Dragon Stockade at the front. Their role is to buy us time to subjugate the Hell King Stockade and the Blood Wolf Stockade on both sides.”
“……Understood.”
Everyone aboard the command ship knew.
That the river pirates of the Flood-Dragon Stockade coming from the front were the largest in scale and the most infamous.
Without a doubt, the Flood-Dragon Stockade would be the center of this attack.
Yet no one present opposed the strategy of placing the sailboat carrying the wanderers at the front.
After all, they were manpower hired for that purpose.
“While they draw as much attention as possible and buy time, we will quickly break both wings as planned.”
The plan from the moment they departed the Escort Agency had been nothing special.
If an attack or battle broke out.
They would throw the wanderers into the most dangerous place, preserve the Escort Agency’s fighting strength as much as possible.
And quickly create a breakthrough.
‘The wanderers will probably all die.’
So what?
That was only natural for them.
There was nothing to feel sorry about.
They did not know the current fighting strength of the Flood-Dragon Stockade precisely, but there should be at least three or more Peak Experts.
After all, the Flood-Dragon Stockade had as many as six known Peak Experts.
Of course, he believed that not all of them would have come out.
But in the worst case.
‘All six may have come out.’
If the attackers knew exactly what the cargo was.
It would not be strange even if they had brought out their full strength.
And if all six truly had come?
‘Then even throwing the wanderers to them as bait would make the situation dangerous.’
If the Flood-Dragon Stockade had given its all.
That would mean the Hell King Stockade and the Blood Wolf Stockade had also sent a considerable number of Peak Experts.
Jin Yu-seong shook his head once at the worst-case scenario that rose in his mind.
‘In any case, I have no choice but to make the best choice immediately.’
Right now, there was only one thing Jin Yu-seong wished for.
Even if the wanderers were annihilated.
He wanted them to hold the Flood-Dragon Stockade back for as long as possible.
‘It would be good if they can hold out at least until we finish dealing with the Hell King Stockade on the left.’
Combat over a river was different from combat on land.
No matter how overwhelming the Flood-Dragon Stockade’s fighting strength was.
The wanderers could cling on tenaciously and drag them down.
‘Please, hold out like that…….’
Wishing so, Agency Head Jin Yu-seong wore as calm an expression as possible.
And sent the escort guard in charge to the lead sailboat where the wanderers rode.
He had delivered the final order.
***
“D-does this make sense?”
“They want us to block six ships of the Flood-Dragon Stockade with just our one ship?”
“No, putting the sailboats aside. What about those things over there? Those little boats?”
The wanderers who received the Agency Head’s final order all jumped and screamed.
Even though they knew the situation could not be helped.
This was clearly an order telling them to die, no matter who saw it.
Senior Escort Guard Jang Guk-du, who had transferred onto this sailboat, also spoke with a blackened complexion, forcing himself to remain calm.
“As stated in the subcontracted request, this is merely a demand that you fulfill the original contract.”
“No, even so, this is too much! Even a simple comparison shows such a difference in fighting strength! And you already boarded this ship too, so if we go like this, you’re going to die with us!”
When Yang Cheon-jo waved his spear wildly in front of him and bounced around in agitation, Senior Escort Guard Jang Guk-du turned his gaze aside and answered with a dark complexion.
“It cannot be helped. It is the Agency Head’s order. We have no choice but to carry it out.”
“No, what kind of……”
Senior Escort Guard Jo Chang, who had been with the wanderers on this ship the whole time.
Looked at the furious wanderers and spoke with a bitter smile.
“I am sorry. But I will be here with you, so please understand.”
“A-anyone can see we’re the discard card here! Right?”
When Yang Cheon-jo spoke while the hand gripping his spear trembled.
The middle-aged wanderer warrior wearing a broad saber, who had quietly listened to the conversation, Cruel Hegemon Saber Jang Geo-i, Song Gwang-sik.
Stepped forward and asked in a low, sunken voice.
“How long must we hold out against those river pirate bastards for us to live?”
“Uh…… Mm…….”
Jang Guk-du stopped for a moment.
Honestly, he could not know whether reinforcements would arrive in time or not.
But he could not bring himself to say that fact.
“……We will likely have to hold out for at least one double-hour (two hours).”
“What? One double-hour? Don’t give me that bullshit! We can’t even hold out for one meal-time (thirty minutes)!”
“If there are even one or two Peak Experts over there, we will be massacred in an instant. You know that?”
“……It is the Agency Head’s order. The time has come to honor the contract.”
Jang Guk-du merely repeated the same words like a parrot.
This was confirmation that there was no other way.
The faces of the cornered wanderers twisted miserably once again.
Except for Il-hyang, all the Bronze Plaque wanderers here were First-Rate Experts.
Jang Geo-i, that is, Song Gwang-sik, was a Peak Expert, but he was hiding his skill.
In truth, a First-Rate Expert was a level where one would not get beaten wherever one went, and could strut around with a fair amount of pride.
But before a Peak Expert, they were nothing more than mortals.
Would they dare endure even a single movement of a Peak Expert’s hand?
As despair slowly rose on everyone’s faces.
So Il-hyeon wriggled closer to Il-hyang, who had been quietly leaning against the bow deck with a frown as he looked ahead.
Then he asked,
“What does our Little Divine Dragon think? You know that if this keeps up, we’re all dead, right?”
“Well, surely it will not go that far.”
At Il-hyang’s voice, which somehow had no rise or fall and sounded ordinary.
Yang Cheon-jo, whose face had been anxious and nervous since earlier, answered as if having a fit.
“Oh my, Father! Do you still not get it? Those bastards don’t take hostages in the first place. If we’re caught, they’ll just kill us all, I’m telling you. They don’t hold back with their hands like we do!”
SNAP—
“I told you not to speak casually to your father.”
“Aaaaagh! You crazy bastard! You want to play make-believe family even in this situation? We’re really all going to die!”
Il-hyang turned to Yang Cheon-jo, who was pressing forward in panic, and showed cold, calm eyes.
Then Yang Cheon-jo suddenly came back to his senses, hunched his shoulders, and fled to the corner.
The effects of the rote education he had received all this time had manifested.
Meanwhile, Il-hyang turned his gaze toward Jang Guk-du and said, “Looking at the order letter the Agency Head sent a little while ago, it says that if we block only the Flood-Dragon Stockade at the front, this request will be considered complete. Is that correct?”
“That is correct. I even brought the confirmation seal here. According to the final order of the subcontracted request, you need only deal with the Flood-Dragon Stockade.”
“Then that means we do not need to step forward in matters involving the Hell King Stockade and Blood Wolf Stockade on either side?”
He was saying he would deal with the Hell King Stockade and Blood Wolf Stockade too in this situation? Was he sane?
Jang Guk-du wore a briefly dumbfounded expression, then nodded and answered.
“We do not have the spare strength to step forward in the first place…… and that is a part the Agency Head does not expect at all.”
At Jang Guk-du’s confirmation, Il-hyang smiled faintly and nodded.
“Good. Then it is worth trying.”
“……Do you have a plan?”
The other party was a young child who looked barely around ten years old.
As if he were trying to imitate an adult.
He wore a black long robe made of extremely expensive-looking silk, and his hair was neatly tied down with a black jade hairpin.
But such outward adornment alone could not hide that young face and small body.
‘However.’
Jang Guk-du looked at Il-hyang’s noble-looking face and thought seriously.
During the escort run, he had already seen Il-hyang’s skill sufficiently.
Bloodstorm Spear Yang Cheon-jo, a man counted among the strongest of First-Rate Experts.
Had been unilaterally disciplined by him as if he were beating a neighborhood puppy.
Because of that, no one here doubted Il-hyang’s skill.
‘After all, in the martial world, the skilled are kings.’
Just as Jang Guk-du thought that far.
The expectant gazes of every person on the sailboat turned toward Il-hyang.
Expectation that perhaps this genius boy might show them something.
After sweeping his gaze over each of their longing-filled eyes.
Il-hyang spoke briefly.
“Do you know the saying, ‘To defeat the enemy, strike their leader first’? ”
“Ah~ Our Father is using literary phrases again. Those things are hard, you know!”
As Yang Cheon-jo twitched his fierce eyes and grumbled quietly from the corner.
Il-hyang crooked a finger.
“If you come now, I will end it with only one hit.”
“Ah, hehe, did you hear that all the way there, Father?”
“Come here.”
As Il-hyang straightened from the deck railing he had been leaning on as if he would truly come catch him.
Yang Cheon-jo was startled and quickly pretended to flee into the cabin.
Meanwhile, Cruel Hegemon Saber Jang Geo-i, Song Gwang-sik, who had implicitly taken the position of leader among the wanderers, asked again.
“Can that be done? We will have only one chance.”
“It seems it may be possible.”
Jang Geo-i looked at Il-hyang with a serious expression.
In truth, he did not know what was going on.
But even now, he still could not measure Il-hyang’s exact level of martial arts.
Even if Il-hyang was a Sorcerer.
Normally, one should at least be able to read the approximate aura the other party held.
‘But even now, my eyes cannot gauge him.’
Perhaps.
Truly perhaps.
This mysterious boy before his eyes might be an expert on the level of the “elders” in the Namgung Clan.
‘No, surely not. There is no way.’
However, he was a monster who possessed the mental strength to control as many as ten Blood Jiangshi.
In a situation like this, they had no choice but to gamble on this fellow.
“What should we do?”
At Jang Geo-i’s question, Il-hyang folded the two loose sleeves on both sides once each, wrapped them around his arms, and fixed them in place, smiling gently.
“Draw the enemies’ eyes. As loudly as possible.”
“Oh! That’s my specialty! Just trust me, Father!”
When Yang Cheon-jo, who had been carefully watching for his chance, came out of the corner and waved his spear again like a flag.
Il-hyang sighed and spoke quietly.
“Please throw that fellow into the most dangerous place if possible.”
“Mm, that is too easy a request. I had intended to do that from the start.”
Once the conversation was more or less concluded, the wanderers looked at the enormous sailboats of the Flood-Dragon Stockade, now approaching right before them, and pulled up the fighting spirit that had sunk to the very bottom as much as they could.