Barbarian Quest

Chapter 78

Urich, with his bloodied axe held in both hands, balanced himself on his horse using only his legs as he galloped forward. His mounted combat skills had reached a considerably high level.

'Gidwick, you son of a bitch!'

Urich's eyes blazed with fury. The veins and muscles beside his clenched lips stood out prominently.

‘You dare to betray me?'

If Gidwick had simply fled because he couldn't bear the pressure any longer, Urich would have let him go without a fuss.

'But selling out a brother deserves nothing less than being torn to pieces.'

Anger fueled Urich's muscles. His steel axe mercilessly cut down his enemies. Kylios showed the whites of his eyes as he galloped fiercely, frothing at the mouth.

"What did I tell you! I told you that Urich is no ordinary man!" Gidwick shrieked. In front of the cavalry, the mercenaries were rushing toward them.

'It’s too late to turn back now.' The cavalry captain bit his lip roughly.

"Charge!" Ignoring Urich attacking from behind, the captain decided that it was important to carry on attacking the mercenaries first.

'Even if we are annihilated here, we will kill the prince!'

The cavalry captain was prepared for death. He was intending to kill the prince before Urich could completely catch up to them.

"Wahhhhh!" The mercenaries also roared, emboldened by the sight of Urich taking charge at the rear of the cavalries. They bravely held their weapons and collided with their enemies.

Crash!

The cavalry weaved through the mercenaries. Weapons clashed, and screams followed one after another. The mounted mercenaries were knocked off their horses during their close-range fight with the cavalries.

"Ignore them! Go straight for the prince!"

The cavalry captain shouted, pointing his sword forward. The cavalry ignored the mercenaries and charged straight toward Pahell.

"Protect the prince!"

Bachman turned his horse around and shouted. He pulled hard on the reins, rushing to protect Pahell.

There were seven cavalrymen who managed to make it out of the clash with the mercenaries. They were solely focused on Pahell, charging toward him.

"Woahhhh!" Urich also arrived on the battlefield with a roar. He had already taken down more than six cavalrymen all by himself as he caught up to the rear of the cavalry. His solo ambush effectively disrupted the cavalry's formation, splitting their attention. He alone had practically done the job of an entire side of a double-sided ambush.

'They’re going for Pahell.'

Urich frowned. He had chased the tail of the cavalry, so he was still far from the front where Pahell was.

"Capture Gidwick alive!"

Urich shouted his order to the mercenaries then steered his horse toward Pahell. His face was smeared red with the blood of his enemies.

"Kylios, just hold on a little longer."

Kylios tiredly gasped for air, having sprinted at full speed for a long while. His legs trembled with exhaustion.

“Your Highness, please take a step back."

The guard knights protecting Pahell grabbed their reins and drew their swords. These knights had been protecting Pahell for a long time, just like Phillion. Their loyalty was exceptional. If they had been faint-hearted and without their strong loyalty, they wouldn’t have been able to handle such a tough journey and fled long ago.

Even as seven cavalrymen charged straight at them, the two guards stood their ground firmly, silent and unyielding as rocks.

Crunch!

The two guard knights faced the charging cavalry. They managed to strike down one cavalry but couldn't do much against the swords of the rest of the cavalries that followed.

"Gak!"

A sword pierced the throat of one of the guard knights. His eyes widened, and blood gushed. Looking at the face of death, he looked up at the sun, praying that his soul would find peace. The other guard knight also died in a fleeting effort to buy the slightest of time.

"Kill the prince at all costs! We must kill him!”

The cavalry captain commanded with his blood-stained blade. Pahell spurred his horse and evaded the attacks. He circled the battlefield, evading the cavalry's pursuit.

'Damn, he’s good with the horse.'

A cavalry pursuing Pahell thought as he clenched his teeth as he could not find a way to close down the gap between the two men. Pahell skillfully maneuvered his horse, shaking off the cavalry's pursuit.

"Don't mess with our employer!" Bachman and two other mercenaries caught up to the cavalries on their horses.

"Tch," The cavalry captain clicked his tongue as he swung his sword. His eyes darted about wildly, desperate looking for a solution, which only seemed to be fleeing from his mind.

'Dammit, this could not get any worse.'

The cavalry captain had messed up his judgment one after another: splitting up his forces for the pursuit, ignoring Urich charging from behind, and splitting what little he had left of their forces to recklessly pursue the prince. These errors piled up on top of each other and were leading his cavalry to the brink of annihilation. Cries of agony from his men grew more and more frequent.

"Jump them! Do not let them get to the prince!" Bachman led the small group of mercenaries and hit the flank of the cavalry. The cavalrymen chasing the prince stumbled. Bachman and the tangled cavalrymen fell off their horses together.

Thud!

Bachman drew his dagger and slit the throat of a fallen cavalry. The blood pooled in his palm felt warm. The dismounted soldiers grabbed their weapons, scrambling to their feet.

‘You’d better hurry, Urich.’

The number of mercenaries who attacked the cavalries was only three including Bachman himself. Bachman’s charge was a calculated move, hoping for Urich's swift support.

"You money-blinded scumbags!"

The cavalry captain stood up and yelled at his enemies. He too was among the fallen and had suffered a concussion after his head hit the ground. He threw off his helmet and picked up his sword as he gagged. There was no room for groaning about pain and dizziness on the battlefield. If one couldn't quickly pick up their weapon, they were as good as dead.

'That must be their captain.'

Bachman picked up his spear off the ground as he stood in front of the cavalry captain.

"How dare you pigs without conviction or loyalty stand in my way!" The cavalry captain charged toward Bachman as he spat out his insults mixed with hatred.

'I may not have convictions, but I do have a future.'

Bachman muttered and thrust his spear forward. It was a simple yet powerful thrust, a move he had repeated countless times. The thrust was as fast and beautiful as light itself.

Clang!

The cavalry captain parried the tip of Bachman's spear with his sword. It was a highly skilled move.

The cavalry captain was a retainer of Duke Harmatti. He had been trained in combat ever since he could walk, and he was raised to offer his life for his master. He differed from the common-born Bachman. His combat skills far surpassed Bachman's, which was to be expected.

‘Goddammit.’

Bachman watched as the cavalry captain charged at him. He realized the gap in their skills and threw himself to the side.

Slash!

The cavalry captain's sword deeply cut into Bachman's thigh. It was a blow so deep that the blade of his sword grazed the femur. Bachman screamed and clutched his thigh.

"Uuurich!" Bachman yelled. The cavalry captain tried to finish Bachman by cutting his head off.

Crunch!

A steel axe flew in, striking the cavalry captain's head. Taking his helmet off to alleviate the dizziness from the concussion was yet another mistake committed by the captain. The cavalry captain trembled as the axe got buried in his head before collapsing to his death, with his sword still in his hand.

"Just stop the bleeding, Bachman.”

Urich dismounted and pulled the axe out of the cavalry captain's head. With a splitting sound, the captain’s flesh and blood dripped from the axe.

Bachman pulled out a cloth and tightly wrapped his thigh. The cut was deep and had slit an artery, so he was bleeding profusely.

"Huff, huff. We won, right?" Bachman, pale-faced, looked around and asked.

"Almost."

Urich answered as he finished off the remaining cavalry. The tide of the battle had turned in favor of the mercenaries. The cavalry captain had underestimated them, leading to his own demise.

"But we need to get back on the move right away. The other half of the split chase party will be here in no time."

Bachman pulled himself up by the tree and stood on his feet with a heavy limp.

The mercenaries had also suffered heavy losses. Four were dead, and even the survivors had minor injuries. Three, including Bachman, were seriously injured.

‘Sir Lepin, Sir Jespin.'

Pahell muttered the names of the dead knights. They had died protecting him.

'The moment they faced the cavalry, they knew they would die. Yet, they stood their ground to protect me.'

His heart ached. The dead mercenaries were also laid out in front of him. The path to the throne was stained with blood.

'How much more blood must be spilled?'

Civil war awaited Pahell. It would create many widows and orphans, with the blood of the men flowing like a river.

"Dammit."

Pahell felt sick to his stomach. Vomit was up to the top of his throat. He was experiencing severe pressure and anxiety. Being a sensitive man, he couldn't simply ignore the deaths that had been incurred for his sake.

"Hey, now, who do we have here! If it isn’t our very own brother Gidwick!" Urich exclaimed with a grin. Fierce curses erupted from the mercenaries.

"You dog!"

"You dare betray us?"

"I'll kill you with my own hands!"

The relatively unharmed mercenaries punted Gidwick, who lay on the ground, whimpering amidst the group assault.

'I just wanted to live a good life.'

The beating ceased. Gidwick lifted his head to see Urich stopping the mercenaries, standing over him.

"L-leader! Please let me live. I must have been blinded by greed! I'll do anything if you let me live. I'll become a slave, do all the menial work for the mercenaries... so, please."

Gidwick clutched at Urich's feet, begging desperately. Urich looked down at him coldly.

"Everyone, get ready. We gotta get moving first. Let’s get going."

Urich grabbed his axe. He knew precisely where to strike a person’s body to render them immobile. He lightly sliced the back of Gidwick’s heels with his axeblade.

Thwack.

The tendon in Gidwick’s heels snapped, and he curled up in severe pain.

"Ughhhhh."

Urich grabbed Gidwick and tied him up like baggage behind the horse.

"We'll decide your fate later. Gidwick. I'll make sure you don’t even consider asking me to let you live."

Urich's warning made Gidwick wet himself.

There was no time to collect the bodies or regroup. The group quickly mounted their horses. Even the injured received only makeshift first aid.

A few mercenaries looked unwell, and that included Bachman.

"Bachman."

Urich approached Bachman.

"The bleeding stopped. I'm fine."

Bachman responded with a shadowed face.

"We're not far from our destination. Hang in there."

Urich spoke calmly as he passed by Bachman, encouraging other mercenaries as well.

‘They hit us pretty hard.'

Urich glanced around at the surviving mercenaries. Less than ten remained, some of whom would probably die before joining forces with Ferzen's army.

Clop, clop.

The group continued moving without rest as they were unsure when the cavalry's pursuit might catch up. They got on with eating and even sleeping on horseback.

Thud.

Hearing the sound, Urich looked back. Bachman had collapsed and fallen off his horse.

"Shit.”

Urich hurriedly dismounted to help Bachman.

"It’s alright, I’m just exhausted."

Bachman insisted, but Urich's eyes were heavy with concern. He had witnessed many warriors' deaths. By now, he could tell who would live or die.

Bachman's face was deeply pallid. Urich fashioned a makeshift stretcher from his cloak, attaching it to the horse, and laid Bachman on it.

"Bachman. Any last words for me to pass on to your family?"

Urich asked Bachman, who was lying on the stretcher.

Some mercenaries prepared for their deaths and had designated a location for their families to claim their share of the reward after the job was complete. As big as this job was, they were familiar with the risks that it entailed.

"Put your bullshit away. I'm not dying."

"I’m asking you just in case," Urich replied calmly.

"...I don’t need any last words. I am not going to die."

Bachman spoke bitterly. His long-desired life of comfort was right in front of his nose. He was soon going to be able to live a better life than anyone he knew.

Bachman lay on the makeshift stretcher, gazing up at the sky. The sunlight was dazzling and warm.

'Not yet Lou. Please, this can't be it!'

Bachman prayed.