Unlike the hotheaded Sandor, Sylvia was a master of strategy. In fact, there was something she hadn’t mentioned during the meeting.

She had already analyzed the monsters’ movement patterns over the past few days and deduced the general area where their commander was hiding.

But that area was still quite large, requiring further narrowing down—and figuring out how to execute the decapitation strike was another problem entirely.

These were all issues that demanded careful consideration. She couldn’t afford to leak any information before a perfect plan was in place, otherwise Sandor—in his impulsive temper—would charge headfirst into the fray without a second thought.

Though she was the nominal commander-in-chief, Sandor was never one to patiently follow orders.

As Sylvia continued to refine her decapitation strategy, on the other side of the forest, Sandor’s cavalry unit had already come to blows with the monster horde.

“Charge! Kill them all——!”

Sandor, the strongest among them, led the charge at the forefront. Flanking him on either side were two A-Rank warriors.

With three A-Rank powerhouses clearing the way, the monster horde crumbled at the first charge, completely unable to put up any resistance.

The cavalry unit surged forward relentlessly, leaving a trail of monster corpses in their wake.

But the monsters’ greatest advantage was their sheer numbers—and now, under the influence of their commander, they fought with suicidal recklessness.

With these two traits combined, they feared no death, throwing themselves at the cavalry unit without hesitation. They fell easily beneath the cavalry’s blades, yet their ranks never seemed to thin.

Wherever the cavalry cleared a path, more monsters poured out of the forest on both sides, instantly filling the gaps.

As the cavalry pressed onward, their retreat route was gradually cut off by the endless tide of monsters, trapping the entire unit in a encirclement.

“Lord Sandor! Something’s not right!”

One of the A-Rank generals rode up beside Sandor, his voice urgent.

“Ever since we broke through the initial lines, the only monsters we’ve faced are the weak ones! C-Rank monsters are few and far between, and we haven’t seen a single B-Rank! I suspect they’re deliberately wearing us down by sending cannon fodder first!”

Sandor listened to his words, but his face remained fearless. He raised his weapon and struck forward with a mighty blow.

BOOM——!

All monsters within a hundred-meter radius were annihilated in an instant.

“Fear nothing! Keep hacking through them! When we grow tired, I’ll personally cut a path for us to escape!”

“Yes, Lord Sandor!”

The general responded loudly, then returned to his position, slashing at the monsters with even greater ferocity.

Meanwhile, on a high ridge deep within the forest, a figure hidden in the shadows watched the battle unfold with a cold smile.

“Heh heh. I’ve long heard that Sandor the Bear King is a hotheaded brute. Now I see it’s true—what a fool!”

“Since you’ve come all this way, don’t think you’ll leave so easily. You’ll have to pay a price before you go!”

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As the figure spoke, he sent out a signal.

A short time later, the monsters in the forest began to move in droves. Among them were countless C-Rank monsters, and every now and then, a High-Rank Monster could be seen stalking through the trees……

BOOM——!

Another wave of monsters was wiped out by Sandor’s attack. He glanced around, realizing that his unit had already pushed deep into enemy territory.

He turned to look behind him and saw that many of his soldiers were starting to show signs of exhaustion.

Gritting his teeth, he raised his weapon high and shouted at the top of his lungs.

“All units—retreat! Fight our way back!”

At his command, the cavalry unit began to turn around within the monster horde’s ranks.

Sandor still led the charge at the front, while the two other A-Rank warriors slowly fell back to guard the flanks, ensuring that the unit wouldn’t be thrown into disarray during the maneuver.

On the ridge in the forest, the hidden figure chuckled maliciously.

“Heh heh heh. Now you want to retreat? It’s too late for that~!”

As Sandor led his unit back, he soon realized that something was terribly wrong.

The monsters blocking their path were growing stronger and stronger. The low-rank cannon fodder had been replaced by an elite force composed primarily of C-Rank monsters.

Even for an A-Rank warrior like Sandor, killing large numbers of C-Rank monsters in a short time was no easy task. Coupled with the occasional B-Rank monster that darted out to attack, his advance inevitably slowed down.

The cavalry unit’s power lay in its speed—the slower they became, the less effective their attacks were. And slower speed meant higher casualties.

Worse still, the monster horde now consisted of elite troops, causing the cavalry’s casualty rate to skyrocket.

“Dammit! Get out of my way——!”

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Sandor began attacking with reckless abandon. Even B-Rank monsters that charged at him were instantly obliterated by his blows.

Thanks to his efforts, the cavalry unit managed to stop its retreat from slowing down, and even began to pick up speed again.

But this brief respite was soon shattered by the appearance of a special unit.

It was a force composed entirely of High-Rank Monsters—over a hundred of them. On the backs of some of these monsters stood members of Gulos. Clearly, remote control was no longer sufficient to command the monsters accurately; they needed to be directed on the battlefield.

ROAR——!

Under the command of the Gulos members, a portion of the High-Rank Monsters charged directly at Sandor, while the vast majority circled around him and attacked the rear of his unit.

“No! Not good!”

Sandor’s face paled with shock. If that many High-Rank Monsters broke into the ranks, the soldiers behind him would be unable to hold them off, and the entire unit would be thrown into chaos and brought to a halt.

Once the cavalry unit stopped moving, they would be in extreme danger.

“I won’t let you! Stop right there!”

Sandor roared, and his mana surged around him, crackling with power.

BOOM!

One strike landed, and several B-Rank monsters were reduced to dust.

BOOM!

Another strike, and several more B-Rank monsters fell to the ground, lifeless.

But no matter how fiercely Sandor fought, the Gulos members seemed determined to hold him back, even if it meant sacrificing some of their High-Rank Monsters.

Soon, High-Rank Monsters broke through the cavalry’s defenses, and Sandor’s unit behind him began to fall into chaos.

Cavalrymen were constantly being dragged off their mounts by the monsters and torn to pieces.

“Bastards——!”

Sandor grew more and more furious, but by this point, the cavalry unit had come to a complete standstill. Even if he managed to kill all hundred B-Rank monsters, the unit’s heavy losses were already inevitable……

“Heh heh heh. That’s it~!”

In the forest, the hidden figure laughed triumphantly.

“Tsk tsk. Sandor the Bear King~. I wonder if you’ll be able to sleep at night, knowing that you’re the one who led your entire cavalry unit to destruction.”

Just as he was congratulating himself on his victory,

ROAR——!

A deafening roar suddenly echoed across the sky from far away.

“That voice——!”

The figure in the forest paled dramatically, as if he recognized exactly what had made that sound.

ROAR——!!

The roar came again, this time much closer.

In the short time between roars, the being that had let out the sound had crossed an immense distance.

ROAR——!!!

When the roar rang out for the third time, the being was already hovering high above the monster horde.

Whoosh——!

A violent gust of wind swept across the battlefield.

Both sides in the battle stopped fighting, looking up in shock at the colossal red figure in the sky.

“Why is a dragon here……”

A Gulos member standing on the back of a High-Rank Monster stared up at the sky, muttering in disbelief.

In the next moment, the dragon suddenly lowered its head, its golden slit pupils locking onto his position.

Then, the dragon opened its mouth.

A brilliant red light began to gather deep in its throat.

“N-no way……”

The Gulos member stared at the sight in stunned silence, unable to believe what he was seeing.

BOOM——!

A searing gout of flame swept across the ground.

The area where the Gulos members stood was completely engulfed in fire, incinerating them all in an instant.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep