In the darkness of the setting sun, Spinola’s army was marching stealthily through the forest path.
Having effectively entered the territory of Lorend, they were seized with intense tension.
“Move carefully until the end. It would be dangerous if we get spotted here.”
“Yes, I will warn the soldiers.”
General Spinola was now set to arrive near the lord of Lorenz’s estate by tomorrow morning. However, at this moment, he realized he needed to stay cautious until the very end.
While sneaking through the forest provided a clear advantage, it could also become a weakness for them.
In such a complex terrain, it was hard to maintain formation, and if they were ambushed by enemies, responding would be quite difficult.
They could hardly enjoy the advantage of a large army, and their defense was weak.
But still, General Spinola believed there wouldn’t be significant issues with the current situation.
“There’s no way the enemy can discover us. This road is one of the most desolate in the Lorend region. Plus, with General Tilly and Valenshtein throwing up smoke screens, we have nothing to worry about.”
He had initially prepared extensively for this, and he wasn’t engaging in any actions that could cause problems.
In a nutshell, he was following through with the best strategy possible.
In this regard, General Spinola was tense but not anxious, confidently proclaiming that everything would end well as he expected.
Thus, General Spinola, along with his soldiers, moved cautiously through the forest.
Then…
“Stop!”
“Stop!”
They halted their march at the command of the soldier at the front.
With 20,000 troops needing some time to receive orders and cease action, they remained in place, momentarily waiting for the entire army to come to a stop.
During that time, General Spinola carefully inquired of the soldier who had returned to him.
“What’s going on? Is there something happening?”
“Yes, there’s a light over there.”
“A light?… Is it the enemy?”
“I’m not sure. The distance is too great… But it’s certain that someone is there.”
Tension escalated among them, including General Spinola, but the seasoned veteran remained composed and began giving orders calmly.
“We need to ascertain whether there are enemies. You go check the enemy’s movements.”
“Yes, General.”
Since they were relying solely on the moonlight in the dark night, each movement required their utmost attention.
If they missed even the slightest detail, it could pose great danger to the troops.
Thus, General Spinola instructed his men to prepare for the worst-case scenario, and the scouts headed towards the light.
Trained to move swiftly even in dark forests, they proceeded with caution.
A short while later, they saw…
“Uh?”
“What is this…?”
Before their eyes lay an empty campsite.
A campfire flickered in the center, and it seemed people had been there just a moment ago, yet no one else was in sight.
The soldiers felt a mix of curiosity and wariness as they cautiously approached the area.
“What’s going on here…”
“Were hunters camping out here? But where are the people…?”
As they surveyed the area with uncertainty, suddenly…
-Bang!-
“Ugh!”
“What.. what was that!”
A sharp gunshot rang out unexpectedly.
One of the scouts screamed and collapsed, and the remaining soldiers were engulfed in shock.
“Damn! The enemy is ambushing us!”
“We need to hurry and report this to the main force!”
Although no more gunfire followed immediately after, with one comrade dead, they could think of nothing else but to rush to where the main force was.
Frantically, they ran back to where General Spinola was stationed.
As soon as they relayed their tale, General Spinola’s face stiffened and he issued commands immediately.
“Damn! Have we been discovered?”
“I can’t be sure, but it seems likely. If they were just hunters, they wouldn’t shoot on sight.”
“That’s true… Order an emergency alert to the entire army. For now, keep the fires off and prepare for a possible enemy attack.”
“Yes, understood.”
The soldiers began to take defensive positions as per General Spinola’s orders.
To be honest, he wanted to avoid a fight in the woods as much as possible, but if the enemy was indeed right here, there was no other choice.
‘If a battle breaks out in a place like this, it will quickly turn into chaos. Damn… how did they catch on? The scouts reported that the enemy was just holed up in the castle without any special movements…’
In stark contrast to the current situation, General Spinola had doubts while still clinging to the notion that this might just be a simple misunderstanding.
‘Gunfire did come, but no enemies appeared… Perhaps a hunter mistook the soldiers for bandits and fired a shot. Besides, the enemy would number at most one thousand… Even in the forest, they would struggle to move here.’
The more he thought about it, the more he concluded that the likelihood of a surprise attack was low.
In reality, though they had taken defensive stances, no signs of an enemy attack appeared afterward. Thus, General Spinola’s belief that this was merely an overreaction began to grow stronger.
‘From the absence of an enemy attack, it really seems like a hunter panicked and acted foolishly. After all, we’ve worked so hard to get here.’
Suddenly, General Spinola felt a twinge of regret, pondering that if he, like the others, could extend the magical circle widely, this incident might not have occurred.
Though he possessed formidable power as a 10th-grade mage, Spinola was particularly inexperienced in that regard.
While feeling bitter about his unfamiliarity with magic, he prepared to lower the guard and initiate movement again.
However…
“Huh?”
“What’s that smell?”
A sudden, intensely unpleasant odor filled the air.
Alongside that, chilling sounds began to resonate in their ears.
-Click.. Click Click!-
That small, distinct sound.
The moment Spinola recognized what it was, his expression hardened automatically.
At the same time, a deep shadow began to cast over the faces of the soldiers present.
‘The smell of something burning and this sound… does that mean?’
Frantically, General Spinola started to scan the surroundings.
Almost immediately, the bright flames that appeared all around shocked him.
“Fire…?”
“Oh my God!”
Flames erupted suddenly from all directions.
General Spinola and the soldiers immediately understood what this meant.
“It’s an arson attack!”
“Damn! They’ve set fire to the forest!”
The worst disaster was occurring in the worst possible situation.
Currently, they were huddled together, forming a makeshift defense while fearing that enemies might approach.
In the darkness, it was difficult to distinguish between friends and foes, and General Spinola had no choice but to make such a decision.
However, at this moment, that decision was quickly turning into a worst-case scenario as the entire forest began to ignite.
The clustered soldiers struggled to move easily, and avoiding flames from all directions was no easy task.
“Damn! The entire army, move! We need to get out of here by any means!”
At General Spinola’s command, the soldiers attempted to mobilize in chaos.
Meanwhile, observing this pandemonium was Duke Moritz and Friedrich the Lord, the very ones who had ignited the flames, their faces adorned with a broad smile.
“As planned…”
