“Report, Your Majesty! The rebel army has begun to march and is headed this way!”
“Oh?” Hearing his scout’s report, Babel was slightly astonished. “Impressive,” he thought. The cavalry unit had been active all day and was rather worn out. They wouldn’t be able to mobilize immediately. The enemy had likely realized that fact and was taking advantage of it. “What of their spears?!” he shouted.
“Their spears, Your Majesty?”
“I’m asking, are they as long as ours?!”
“Ah, no. Normal length, your average, run-of-the-mill spears.”
“Is that so?!” Babel roared. A diabolical grin crept across his face, wide enough to reveal his molars. That settled it, then. The enemy was unable to use weaponry or knowledge from the land beyond the heavens. “Then they don’t even qualify to be our enemies,” he sneered.
Babel had given Nozomu a number of introductory lessons on swordsmanship, so he knew he had absolutely no talent for swordplay. Through that acquaintance, Babel had also spoken with him on a number of occasions, and he knew Nozomu didn’t possess that particular brand of eccentricity associated with those who were unusually gifted in one particular area. Nozomu was normal—balanced, in fact. For that exact reason, he wasn’t a threat.
“Hm, I’ll bet they have units hidden in the forest, ready to ambush us from either side when we get near.” Babel saw right through Arness’s plan in an instant. He was the current reginarch of the Steel Clan, so he knew the terrain of this area well. The moment he’d heard that the enemy had made camp here, he’d figured they meant to ambush him. Arness and Sigurd might’ve had a talent for strategy, but compared to the reginarch Babel, they were still greenhorns. Babel not only had experience, but talent and wealth on his side. For him, the battlefield was like his own backyard.
“Cavalrymen, continue to recuperate, but stay on your guard for an ambush from the right side of the forest. As for my two-thousand-man phalanx, Dogos Unit, stay alert on your left side!” He fired off orders as quickly as one would fire a volley of arrows.
To initiate the phalanx formation, soldiers had to hold their shields in their left hand, which left them exposed to attacks from the right. Therefore, Babel had the strongest unit at his disposal, his cavalry regiment, guarding the right side. With that, preparations were complete. Everything was perfect.
“All right, sheltered prince, you’ve been doted on for far too long. Time for someone to show you how the world really works!” Babel proclaimed.
“The phalanx formation, huh? He really is just using forbidden knowledge willy-nilly,” Arness said.
“Seems like it,” Nozomu agreed with a sharp nod. In contrast, they’d also equipped their soldiers with spears, but theirs were of normal length, in accordance with the technology available to them in the current era. If both sides pitted their units head-to-head against each other, it was obvious who would win.
“You know, I think we have the advantage when it comes to reach,” Arness said. While it was true that the enemy’s spears were nearly double the length of their own, that made the enemy’s side overly confident—leaving an opening. “Sure, we can’t win by simply thrusting our spears forward. However, throwing them is a different thing altogether.”
As if on cue, Babel’s forces came into view.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Spears from Nozomu’s army flew like projectiles toward Babel’s men, one after another. No matter how long the enemy’s spears were, they couldn’t reach as far as the thrown spears could. Furthermore, because the enemy’s spears were that much longer, they were unable to throw them at Nozomu’s army in retaliation. That difference had been taken into account when formulating this plan.
“Guh!”
“Ugh!”
“Sh-Shields! Raise your shields!” Shouts of confusion and panic began to arise from Babel’s men. Yuuto had never needed to utilize throwing spears since he’d already used modern technology to improve arrows to a level far beyond anything known to the people of this time, but in this current era, throwing spears were an incredibly powerful weapon, and quite advanced in their own right.
Spears were distinctly heavier than arrows, so, in turn, that meant they had all the more force behind them. The average arrow could be blocked by a shield, but a throwing spear could easily penetrate a shield’s defenses.
One after another, the spears pierced through the enemy’s shields. While they didn’t go on to pierce through the enemy soldiers’ abdomens, each weighed several kilograms, and the added weight of the long spears made the shields markedly heavier and harder to raise. It wasn’t difficult to imagine the terror a soldier would feel if they were suddenly hit with a weight that effectively rendered them immobile the moment they engaged their enemy on the battlefield. In no time at all, the phalanx fell into a panic.
“All units, draw your swords and charge!” As if waiting for this exact moment, Nozomu’s voice rang out. Hearing his orders, Nozomu’s soldiers bellowed with renewed vigor. Just moments ago, they’d been subjected to an endless rainstorm of arrows. It was now time to pay the enemy back for that disgrace in full as they charged forward.
“Gyaaah!”
“Ugahhh!”
“Guhhh!”
Screams arose from Babel’s camp. No clashing of steel could be heard—it was a one-sided sweep. That was just how frazzled Babel’s soldiers had become.
“Looks like your plan went off without a hitch, Arness!” With a big grin, Nozomu turned to face his younger brother. First, they’d schemed to render the enemy’s shields useless with the spears, then rush in with swords when the enemy started to panic.
When he’d first heard the plan Arness had proposed, Nozomu was honestly doubtful. Spears were the predominant weapon on the battlefield, so deliberately throwing them away and forfeiting that advantage was something only a madman would suggest. However, if they were going to lose to longer spears anyway, it didn’t matter, so Nozomu decided to adopt the plan in the end...and it had paid off in spades.
“Out of all of us, you’ve definitely inherited the most from dad. No doubt about that,” Nozomu said. He wasn’t cracking a joke—he truly did think that. And it was true: if Yuuto had been here to see it, he likely would’ve been beside himself with surprise. This particular tactic was the very same that the Roman Empire had used against the Grecian Army’s phalanx formation. Without realizing it, Arness had managed to formulate a strategy that wouldn’t see its first use for another thousand years.
“The front lines are crumbling! At this rate...”
“I am well aware!” Babel snapped at his scout before he could finish his report. He’d never expected in a million years that the enemy would discard their spears, nor had he ever dreamed such a thing would actually be an effective counter against the phalanx.
“Damn it! They pulled one over on me this time,” Babel spat hatefully. He was sure Nozomu had learned the tactic from his father Suoh Yuuto.
The front lines were already in complete disarray, overrun with ally and enemy alike. Their spears would be useless here, now merely a nuisance due to their ridiculous length. The enemy’s swords had the advantage in a close-range battle. If nothing changed, the confusion and chaos could spread to the entire army. If that happened, this battle would be over.
“Guess it’s up to me to finish this, then. You there! Bring me my steed!” Once his lackey had done as he commanded, Babel mounted his personal horse and headed for the front lines himself. He was an Einherjar who’d overcome countless battles, undisputably the legendary warrior of this era. Naturally, he was well-versed in the flow of battle. He knew that if he didn’t act now, he would lose—but at the same time, he was supremely confident he could turn the tide of this war.
“Hyah!”
“Gaah?!”
No sooner than he had arrived at the front lines, he’d already cut down his first enemy.