Becoming a Swordmaster by Reading

Chapter 114. Capture the Flag (3)

The person disguised as Taher was Liviano.

And Liviano's sword pierced Kalat's heart with precision.

At the same time, Kalat uttered a single word with an expression of disbelief and died.

A moment of silence.

This silence was, of course, broken by the Special Task Force Company, which was disguised as the Imperial Army.

“Clear the area!”

Roden, who had a different face, regained his original appearance and shouted.

Then, as if they had been waiting, the Special Task Force Company, led by Chevalier, rushed towards the defense force.

Liviano, whose face had been grotesquely disfigured as if burned, also rejoined the attack on the defense force in his original form.

Although their total number was only about 60, the Special Task Force Company easily overwhelmed the defense force of over 100 men.

The defense force was helpless as the unidentified unit they had believed to be allies suddenly killed their commander and charged at them.

Moreover, the individual skills of the Special Task Force Company were overwhelming.

All the soldiers in the Infantry Platoon were knights of 1-star or higher, and most of the Light Cavalry Platoon were also of 1-star or higher rank.

In addition to this, they unsparingly used shields enchanted with defensive magic, so the Special Task Force Company was able to suppress the defense force with almost no casualties.

When Roden beheaded one of the defense force officers who had fought to the end.

The soldiers of the Special Task Force Company raised their voices.

“We won! We are victorious!”

“Kroxen Castle is now ours!”

Roden calmly listened to the cheers of victory and surveyed the scene of corpses and discarded weapons, and the surrendered defense force.

In the meantime, Chevalier crossed this landscape and approached Roden with disciplined steps.

“The area is cleared.”

“What are our casualties?”

“None.”

“That's a relief.”

At some point, the number of people dying in battle in the Special Task Force Company had greatly decreased.

However, after a battle, there were always one or two seriously injured.

It was unavoidable, as the other side also fought with their lives on the line.

But in this battle, there were no seriously injured, let alone fatalities.

It was a testament to how successful the battle had been.

“This victory is all thanks to the Company Commander's brilliant plan. It's amazing to think about it again.”

Liviano, wiping the blood from his sword, chimed in on their conversation.

He was right.

Even though all other conditions were the same, the reason for this result was entirely due to Roden's brilliant plan to induce the enemy's carelessness.

To disguise themselves as key officers of the defense force and have them open the castle gates themselves.

However,

'The plan almost failed. It was a good thing I stepped forward myself.'

This thought crossed Roden's mind.

The reason was none other than this.

Kalat's personality was more cautious than Roden had anticipated.

Originally, Roden thought that regardless of who stepped forward, the success rate of this plan was over 80%.

In reality, if it had been an ordinary defense force commander, he would have hastily opened the castle gates upon hearing the news of Taher's injury, without even properly confirming the identity of the unidentified unit.

However, Kalat cautiously ordered them to bring someone he could recognize.

On top of that, he even carefully checked the person's face to see if it was the right person.

In other words, if the Special Task Force Company's disguise had been sloppy, the castle gates would not have opened.

But Roden's disguise was meticulous.

This was because he had the skillful Antonio draw portraits of Taher, Zabur, and Kalat, and then conducted a cross-verification before proceeding with the disguise.

This was possible because many people in the 3rd Corps knew the faces of the three men, as they had been in a long standoff over Kroxen Castle.

Moreover, it was not a sloppy disguise that merely mimicked them using surrounding tools.

It was a disguise that Roden had carried out by casting the 6th-circle magic 'Mask of Contract'.

So, no matter how cautious Kalat was, he was bound to be deceived by this disguise.

For reference, the person who had disguised himself as Kalat was Chevalier.

However, because the cavalryman had confirmed and reported that the real Kalat was standing on the castle wall, Roden, disguised as Zabur, stepped forward.

If Zabur had been on the castle wall, Chevalier would have stepped forward and deceived the defense force.

In this way, Roden had prepared a flawless means that the enemy could not help but be deceived by.

However, if someone other than Roden had stepped forward, this plan would have ultimately failed.

It would have been impossible to create a perfect disguise using magic like Roden.

This was the reason why Roden thought it was a good thing that he had stepped forward himself.

“Anyway, we need to hurry up and clear the area and lock the gates. Infantry Platoon Leader, I'm counting on you.”

“Yes. I understand.”

“And Light Cavalry Platoon Leader, you might be a little tired, but I want you to go to the Corps Commander right away and report the fall of Kroxen Castle.”

“What’s there to be tired about? I was lying in the wagon the whole time and just flicked my finger to take down the enemy commander. I'll be back in a hurry.”

Thus, Chevalier and Liviano began to move as Roden commanded.

A short while later, the Imperial Army's flag was lowered from Kroxen Castle and the Allied Forces' flag was raised.

***

“What? What’s hanging where?”

Taher, who had joyfully advanced to Velia Castle and even conducted a siege, was startled and shouted upon receiving Zabur's report.

Zabur, breaking out in a cold sweat, spoke again.

“I-it is said that the Allied Forces' flag is hanging over Kroxen Castle.”

“Does that mean Kroxen Castle has fallen! What was the 2nd Company Commander doing while the castle was being taken!”

“I-I don’t know about that either……. According to the scout who observed the situation from afar, the castle gates were open and undamaged.”

“What?”

The fact that the castle gates were undamaged meant that someone had opened them from the inside.

Taher, being a battalion commander-level officer, had no difficulty in grasping this fact.

“Was the 2nd Company Commander a spy? Or was there another spy in the 2nd Company?”

Taher did not think that Kalat had opened the gates after being deceived by the Special Task Force Company's disguise.

It was only natural, as he knew Kalat's cautious personality better than anyone.

In the first place, it was because of this personality that he had left Kalat in Kroxen Castle.

As Taher was trying to find the reason why Kroxen Castle had been taken, he belatedly realized that it was not the important thing and lamented.

“Ah. What am I to do.”

From Taher's perspective, it was a situation that could only bring forth lament.

This was even more so because not even a single mistake was tolerated.

But even so, he could not give up like this.

Although the chances were slim, he had to hurry back to Kroxen Castle.

He had to somehow retake Kroxen Castle to undo the current situation.

Taher hardened his resolve and gave an order to Zabur.

“All troops, return to Kroxen Castle! We must do whatever it takes to retake Kroxen Castle with all our might!”

Thus, Taher led his troops back the way they came.

Then, without even resting, he immediately and desperately attacked Kroxen Castle.

“Place the ladders and climb the walls! The enemy's numbers are small!”

“We only need one person to get up, just one! Risk your lives!”

However, Kroxen Castle did not fall in the end.

No matter how much the Special Task Force Company was the only one defending Kroxen Castle, a castle that had not fallen for nearly half a year was not likely to suddenly collapse.

The Special Task Force Company cleverly and quickly pushed down the enemy's ladders, continuing to buy time.

In the end, unable to bear the frustration, Taher personally climbed a ladder, but Roden blocked his path.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

“Argh!”

There was no need to even cross swords.

He was able to easily subdue Taher just by pushing down the ladder with the power of a 6-star.

If Taher had been a practitioner below 6-star who could not deploy an aura shield, he would have been seriously injured.

In this way, the Imperial Army's attacks were repeatedly thwarted by the Special Task Force Company's defense, and when they advanced towards Kroxen Castle for the third time.

Alexis appeared with the 3rd Corps.

“Argh! How did those bastards get back here! Don't tell me the surprise attack unit failed!”

“Before we worry about that, we must flee! If this continues, our army will not be able to avoid annihilation!”

Zabur rushed to the enraged Taher, who couldn't contain his anger and was shouting, but his words fell on deaf ears.

Taher's reason had already been burned away by his anger.

“Shut up! We must retake Kroxen Castle no matter what! Even if we go back, all that's left is death anyway!”

However, hastily increasing the offensive did not make it easier to get over the castle walls.

On the contrary, the morale of the Special Task Force Company, who had also witnessed the appearance of the 3rd Corps, rose, making the castle's capture even more difficult.

“We really have to flee! If this continues, it's really a pointless death!”

“Shut up! Shut up!”

In the end, the Imperial Army was struck in the flank by the 3rd Corps troops led by Alexis.

Only then did Taher snap back to his senses and realize the gravity of the situation, biting his lip.

“So this is the end here.”

“Battalion Commander!”

“Yes. Let's retreat. Our lives are already forfeit, but let's at least make a final struggle.”

“Retreat! Retreat!”

Thus, Zabur belatedly began to pull back the troops.

However, since they had already been attacked by the 3rd Corps, it was inevitable that they would suffer heavy losses.

But,

Toot!

Even that was not allowed.

Adriel's siege force, which had retreated to Velia Castle, appeared on the Imperial Army's retreat path.

Thud.

In the end, even Zabur lost the will to retreat and collapsed on the spot.

And so, Taher and the unit he led were completely annihilated in front of Kroxen Castle, which had been theirs until just a short while ago.

***

It was a great victory.

Not only did they succeed in capturing Kroxen Castle, but they also defeated all the enemy forces that should have preserved their troops as much as possible to build a new defensive line.

As a result, the 3rd Corps was not only able to completely erase their previous mistake, but they were also able to achieve more than that.

Now, no one could find fault with the 3rd Corps' slow advance compared to other fronts.

And Roden was recognized for his contributions to all these achievements and was promoted to the position of Main Battalion Commander.

Along with various other rewards.