TSNF 29

Chapter 29

The dawn in the north was cold and heavy.

A dense fog lay over the frozen ground, and the wind whipped about like blades.

A plain that had advanced north from the First Defensive Line.

An encampment where as many as 2,000 soldiers had gathered.

The armed soldiers were resting, fully prepared to advance the moment a signal was given.

And atop the observation post of the camp, Belkein and Ervan stood side by side.

Despite it being late dawn, the sound of soldiers’ footsteps patrolling on guard duty could be heard from behind them.

Yet unlike elsewhere, the atmosphere here was heavy and filled with silence.

Swish.

Feeling the cold air brushing against him, Ervan pulled his coat a little tighter.

Though he was looking in the same direction as Belkein, unease lingered in his eyes.

“……Is it really possible?”

Ervan’s words were cautious, but there was no hesitation.

At the calmly asked question, Belkein let out a quiet breath.

Though Belkein had passed through countless battlefields, this operation was a decision bordering on a gamble even for him.

Keeping his mouth shut, Belkein gazed at the fog-shrouded plain.

He tried to picture the Helikel Gorge beyond that limited visibility, but he could not easily arrive at an answer.

The suffocating silence continued once more.

Only after a long while did Belkein nod and speak.

“It has to be.”

Those words were closer to responsibility than conviction.

“If we miss this opportunity, we may never again have a chance to reclaim Helikel Gorge. And if that happens, this place will once again be stained with soldiers’ blood for a long time.”

It would not be an exaggeration to say that if they took Helikel Gorge, the fighting along the First Defensive Line would be over.

It meant that the most dangerous and brutal battlefield in the north could end in their victory.

But……

“That is precisely why Helikel Gorge is so difficult to overcome. As much as we stand to gain by taking the gorge, the advantages the Kar Tribe currently holds are enormous.”

“Still, the difference between their fortress defense techniques and ours is like heaven and earth.”

Belkein knew it as well.

That there was some forcing in those words.

Even accounting for the difference in defensive techniques, breaking through the Kar Tribe holding Helikel Gorge would be far more difficult than imagined.

Knowing that, hadn’t they concentrated the maximum force they could mobilize at the First Defensive Line?

Ervan let out a small sigh.

“No matter how little concept of defense they may have, they’ll know every passage and every bit of terrain. Sending only thirty people into that place is……”

“They’re the finest elites we can gather on this front. They’re no ordinary soldiers.”

Belkein turned to look at Ervan.

His gaze was solid and menacing enough to suit his nickname, the Ogre of Benhard.

“If they fail, then this operation isn’t even worth carrying out. It would be a battle that was impossible to win from the start.”

At Belkein’s words, Ervan silently met his eyes.

He was always in a position where he had to weigh reality and coolly judge possibilities.

That was why this kind of uncertainty was so painful.

Ervan quietly released the words he had been holding back.

“For now, all we can do is wait.”

“That’s right.”

With Belkein’s reply, the two of them shut their mouths once more.

In a grim situation where nothing ahead could be known, that was the only thing they could do.

But then……

Piiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!

Far away, from the direction of Helikel Gorge, a red signal flare shot up into the sky.

At that sight—

“B-Belkein, sir!”

Ervan shouted in alarm.

Belkein immediately turned his head and bellowed.

“Aaall uniiits! Prepare for battllle!”

It was a completely unexpected situation.

Just what had the special unit sent to Helikel Gorge done…?

‘What the hell did they do?’

Belkein’s eyes, fixed on the front, were trembling more violently than ever before.

“Ugh…!”

“Puhah!”

The unit members who had crossed the river panted heavily, unable to hide their exhaustion.

Even though they had crossed using ropes, hadn’t several of them nearly slipped and been swept away midway?

‘T-They crossed a river like this… without ropes?’

‘Isn’t that guy completely insane…?’

Those who had crossed stared at Arteon, who was sitting and resting, unable to hide their astonishment.

Some even looked at him with eyes full of awe.

“Hoo… Is everyone here?”

“There are no stragglers. Everyone has successfully crossed.”

Tertian, the deputy leader of the special unit, reported to Isaac.

Isaac then walked up to Arteon and spoke.

“Good work. Are you hurt anywhere?”

“No, sir. I’m fine.”

Arteon stood up from his spot.

The dark circles under his eyes showed just how desperately he had pushed himself in that short time.

‘Such a young soldier…’

And yet he had accomplished something so brutally difficult.

Isaac nodded.

“If this war ends in victory, the very first step of that victory will have been earned by your contribution. I will never forget it.”

“……Thank you.”

At Arteon’s reply, Isaac turned his gaze toward the cliff face.

It felt nearly vertical in its steepness.

Arteon stepped closer and spoke.

“The height of the eastern cliff of Helikel Gorge is roughly seventy meters. It’s a bit lower than other areas, but the slope is so steep that no one would ever think someone could climb up from here.”

“Seventy meters… Then we’ll have to fix a new rope anchor halfway up.”

The ropes they had brought were far too short to connect all at once.

Arteon spoke again.

“We can climb up to about twenty meters from this point without issue. We’ll prepare the rope up to that section.”

“Don’t worry. I can easily climb to that height.”

“But… Lieutenant Isaac. Are you really all right?”

Ponlaron asked as he approached.

Isaac lightly clenched and unclenched his fist as he replied.

“This is the moment when I have to show it.”

Isaac was the only one among the special unit to have reached the realm of three stars.

The others did not know this fact.

‘…Does he know?’

The gaze of this young soldier looking at him was slightly different.

As if he could see right through him.

It felt strangely familiar, as though he had seen those eyes somewhere before.

Though it was an indescribable sensation, Isaac soon shook the thought away.

In response to the unbelievable courage this young boy had shown, it was now his turn to answer it.

Isaac firmly fastened the rolled-up rope and wrist-thick iron pitons around his waist.

And then—

“Just make sure you’re watching for the rope falling.”

Leaving only those words behind, he began climbing the cliff.

Step, scrape!

Because the slope was so steep, it was practically rock climbing.

It was a dangerous path with no safety equipment whatsoever, but Isaac focused all his mana into his fingers and toes.

And before long, when Isaac’s figure disappeared from sight—

“…This is insane.”

Below, Ponlaron frowned and scratched his head roughly.

Being in the same unit as Isaac, Ponlaron held exceptional respect for him.

That was why he was angry at Arteon for devising such a ridiculous operation.

But now, wasn’t it too late to vent his anger at him?

Whoooosh!

Ponlaron looked back at the river flowing behind them.

Crossing a river with such a ridiculous current with nothing but their bodies—no, while carrying over twenty kilograms of rope on them.

‘…It’s terrifying no matter how many times I think about it.’

This went beyond whether it could be done or not.

Even attempting it was madness.

Pure recklessness.

Using the word “courage” didn’t even come close.

Ponlaron looked at Arteon.

He still didn’t particularly like the guy, but—

“…Hey.”

“…?”

“Sorry for cursing at you earlier. Honestly, I really thought it was completely insane.”

Ponlaron apologized to Arteon, trying to correct his mistake.

Arteon smirked and replied.

“An apology with just words?”

“What did you say?”

“When we get back, treat me properly.”

When we get back.

Everyone here knew what that phrase meant.

The corners of Ponlaron’s mouth lifted.

“Fine. When we get back, I’ll treat you properly. Don’t go whining just because you’re young. I’ll stuff you full all night.”

Their exchange lightened the heavy atmosphere, if only a little.

And so, all the unit members strained their necks, staring up toward the top of the gorge.

Clatter!

“Watch out!”

“Aaagh!”

As stones occasionally fell from above, the expressions of the unit members grew tense.

They worried that something might have happened.

Praying that what fell would not be Isaac himself.

And then—

“…Huh?”

“It’s the rope!”

The unit members exclaimed at the sight of a rope falling down.

It was even knotted midway, so the length was more than sufficient.

‘…Seriously, that man is incredible.’

It hadn’t even been forty minutes since he started climbing the gorge.

At this height, on this slope.

On a cliff face where the ground was so unstable that there were hardly any proper handholds or footholds.

Yet just as expected, he had done it.

Far beyond what they had imagined.

“I’ll go up first. If too many people gather at once, it could cause problems, so follow one by one at five-minute intervals.”

Climbing seventy meters with bare hands would be difficult, but ascending it by rope was incredibly easy.

At Tertian’s words, all the unit members nodded.

“Understood.”

“Yes.”

Soon, Tertian shot up the rope in an instant.

“Next, go.”

“I’ll go.”

The next soldier climbed up, and five minutes later, another followed.

“You go up ahead of me. You might have a hard time since your stamina’s pretty drained. If you fall, I’ll catch you, so don’t worry.”

“Heh, thanks.”

At Ponlaron’s words, Arteon let out a small laugh.

At last, when it was Arteon’s turn, he grabbed the rope.

“Hoo.”

There had been more than enough time for his depleted stamina to recover.

Drawing up his mana, Arteon began climbing the cliff in an instant.

The higher he went, the more fiercely the icy blade-like wind battered his body.

It could have been dangerous if he lost his balance, but not a single member of the special unit fell.

As they quickly reached the top of the gorge, Isaac gave Arteon a signal with his eyes.

Everyone lay flat against the ground of the gorge, observing the situation.

“Last one?”

“Only Corporal Ponlaron remains.”

Nod.

From here on, minimizing conversation was crucial.

The enemies might notice sounds carried by the wind.

When Ponlaron finally climbed up, panting heavily, Isaac raised his index finger to his lips.

Ponlaron clamped his mouth shut, his shoulders heaving as he snorted through his nose like a bull.

Whoosh, whoosh.

Isaac raised his index and middle fingers and pointed forward.

Starting from him, the entire unit crawled forward toward the center of the gorge.

Their arms and legs scraped against the hard ground, but not a single person complained.

And after moving for some time—

They advanced cautiously, prepared for enemies that might appear at any moment, so it took quite a while.

But when they finally reached a point where they could see the central area—

“…So this is what it looks like.”

Isaac murmured quietly as he looked down.

The terrain of the gorge was more complex than expected, and Kar Tribe warriors were standing guard in tight security.

‘…If we had climbed from anywhere other than the eastern gorge.’

They would have been discovered before even reaching the top.

The enemies themselves had never even imagined that someone would cross the eastern river and climb up the cliff.

‘Is it luck… or…?’

Swish.

Isaac looked at Arteon.

Could this situation really be dismissed as mere luck?

But soon, Isaac turned his gaze back to the lower central area of the gorge.

The enemy’s vigilance was stricter than he had thought, and simply going down as they were seemed difficult.

They needed a way to shake the enemy from behind and create confusion.

But just then—

“Lieutenant Isaac.”

“…?”

“I have something to tell you.”

Arteon, who had crawled over beside him, whispered softly.

And at his next words—

“…What did you say?”

Isaac stared at Arteon with a murderous glare.