Chapter 288

Isaac had no angels at his command. However, since other faiths had been drawn into the battle, even the Archangels wouldn't abandon their cherished warriors.

The Archangel possessing Lianne's body was Nimloth, the Lady of the Lake.

Upon realizing that the Lady of the Lake had descended, the morale of the Elil Knights soared even higher, and they began to fight with fierce intensity. The Lady of the Lake was revered in the Elil faith as the guide who led fallen knights to heaven. The battlefield blessed by her presence was guaranteed to be a gateway to paradise, leaving the knights with no reason to hold back.

One of the distinctive traits of the Elil Knights was that they grew stronger the more they were consumed by the frenzy of battle.

"Nimloth, witness my battlefield!"

One of the Elil Knights, consumed by madness, let out a ferocious roar and, with a single strike, cleaved a Keshik warrior in two.

The sight of an ordinary knight—neither a Swordmaster nor anything of the sort—slicing through the thick bones of a Keshik left the orcs in shock. However, the Elil Knights, as if this were an expected outcome, charged forward with unyielding ferocity, as if they refused to accept anything but victory.

Inevitably, the battle lines began to collapse much faster than before.

"Khan!"

Teherma urged once more.

Sahulan clicked his tongue in frustration. He could rely on the blessing of Manseungja, so facing the Lady of the Lake here wasn't necessarily a bad idea. But during that time, both the front and rear lines would be utterly decimated.

'What a waste.'

Sahulan had the manpower and resources to crush the Elil Knights, no matter how many of them came, or how many emerged from the World's Forge. But the battlefield was unfavorable.

Had he known he would be fighting against three faiths simultaneously, he would have completely revised his strategy. Perhaps he would have started by setting the mountains ablaze, for instance.

"We retreat."

Sahulan quickly withdrew amidst the troops who had already started pulling back. A disciplined march was simple, but an orderly retreat was several times more challenging, especially in a situation where knights, driven mad by the frenzy of battle, were charging in.

In the end, by the time Sahulan had crossed the makeshift bridge they had barely constructed, he had no choice but to make a decisive order.

"Destroy the bridge."

Even Sahulan felt bitter as he commanded the destruction of the bridge they had constructed to achieve their strategic objectives, especially considering there were still soldiers fighting for their lives on the other side.

He considered waiting until the enemy was about to cross, but with an Archangel on the other side, there was a high possibility they would fiercely defend it or reclaim the bridge with a sudden assault.

The best way to protect the remaining soldiers was to destroy the bridge now.

*Bang, bang!* As the axes began to fall to destroy the bridge, the Elil Knights, realizing the situation, pressed forward with even greater intensity. Nimloth, in particular, led the charge at the forefront, smashing through the orcs like a sharp spearhead.

But the orcs, in turn, fought desperately to block the knights. Believing that even if they died, they would be reincarnated, they did not think their Khan had abandoned them.

In the end, the Elil Knights reached the bridge only to watch it collapse into ruin.

Countless orcs, pushed by the advancing Elil Knights, screamed as they plummeted into the deep valley below. Teherma's face twisted in pain as he struggled to accept and guide the countless souls that were dying once again.

'This should halt their pursuit. Now, to deal with the dwarves...'

At that moment, Sahulan locked eyes with Nimloth's golden gaze.

Despite the collapsed bridge, Lianne, now possessed by Nimloth, didn't slow her charge at all. Neither did the knights following her. As Sahulan doubted their sanity, Lianne unleashed the Holy Sword, Lumiarde, releasing a burst of icy energy into the air.

From the crumbled stone bridge, white crystals began to grow with a deafening roar. The crystal bridge that formed grew at an unbelievable speed, becoming sturdy enough to support dozens of knights charging across at once without collapsing.

Seeing this, Sahulan let out a nervous laugh and spurred his horse forward. This location was unfavorable for facing such war-crazed opponents. His plan was to return to Soir, regroup his forces, and wait for the right opportunity.

However, luck was not on his side.

Rumble!

A sudden bolt of lightning struck from the ground, causing Sahulan to lose consciousness for a brief moment. But thanks to his resilient horse, Orthea, which maintained its balance and stood firm, he didn't fall.

Even as dozens of orcs lay charred and fallen, their devotion remained unwavering.

Sahulan recognized the man who had summoned the lightning from the earth. He was an annoying opponent for an old warrior like Sahulan to face. Before him stood an elderly one-eyed dwarf wielding a hammer as large as a human head.

The dwarf grinned, revealing his yellowed teeth.

"It's been a while, Sahulan."

"Tuhalin. I didn't expect you to survive after having your head split in two."

Tuhalin rubbed the large eyepatch covering his left eye.

"Today, I'll roast that old horse of yours."

Sahulan was enraged by this shocking statement.

The two veteran warriors let out fierce roars and clashed together with unyielding ferocity.

***

The battle involving the Olkan Code, Codex of Light, World's Forge, Elil, and even the Nameless Chaos—known only to a select few—raged on for days.

The followers of the World's Forge moved through the abandoned mines like they were their own domain, traversing the entire mountain. The Olkan Code was shattered as dwarves and lycanthrope warriors emerged from places where no enemy should have been able to appear.

Meanwhile, the Knights of Elil tore through the orcs with brutal efficiency, pushing forward without hesitation. They acted as if retreat, evasion, or negotiation were foreign concepts, slaughtering every orc they encountered. Though a few orc heroes put up heroic resistance, it wasn't enough to bring about any meaningful change with the entire command structure in shambles.

However, in Isaac's assessment, the most commendable faith was the Olkan Code.

Despite facing Elil's hammer from the front and the World's Forge's anvil from behind in the Geliphurd Mountains, they managed to retreat successfully.

Sahulan Khan had led a significant portion of his forces to safety.

"Not fearing death is quite the advantage in warfare," Isaac mused.

Isaac grimaced as he looked down at the valley, where the bodies of orcs were piling up in vast numbers.

As the chain of command within the Olkan Code collapsed and defeat loomed, they chose the path of 'dying in battle.' They judged that the Great Raid was lost and opted to return through death. This posed a serious threat to Isaac.

Strategically, they had the upper hand, but the sheer number of orcs under the Olkan Code was overwhelming.

"Still, thanks to Sir Issacrea's advice to create an escape route while pushing them back, we were able to minimize our losses. If we had faced all 200,000 orcs head-on, our casualties would have been enormous."

The young king of Elil, Edelred, expressed his gratitude to Isaac. It had been half a year since they last met, and Edelred seemed much more mature, likely due to the experiences from that time.

"I'm just grateful those stubborn dwarves listened to reason," Isaac replied, though that was what troubled him the most.

The World's Forge harbored a deep grudge against the Olkan Code, akin to the Codex of Light's hatred for the Immortal Order. However, the leader of the warriors of the World's Forge, 'Thunderhammer' Tuhalin, had inexplicably agreed to Isaac's request to create an escape route for the orcs.

Isaac still couldn't understand his intentions.

Regardless, the result was that while the orcs suffered enormous losses, their own side's casualties were minimal.

While the combined forces of Elil, the World's Forge, and the Issacrea army barely exceeded a thousand in losses, over 150,000 orcs under the Olkan Code had been killed or injured. If they included those who fell to their deaths or got lost in the Gelford Mountains, the number could be increased by another 20,000.

This meant they had achieved a staggering 170:1 casualty ratio, securing a massive victory.

Militarily, Sahulan's army was virtually annihilated. Although there were still many more forces in the rear, they could not match the quality of the troops led by the Khan.

Throughout history, such an unbelievable victory was unheard of, except in cases where angels had intervened. But Isaac thought that it wasn't due to his own brilliance but rather because the gamble of involving two other faiths in this battle had paid off.

The World's Forge wouldn't have intervened if not for the Olkan Code, and if it weren't for the imperial excommunication, Edelred would have gone to Ultenheim instead of the Issacrea estate.

A series of historical coincidences led to this overwhelming victory.

However, the stain on this victory was the Khan's escape. Given Tuhalin's deep grudge against Sahulan, this outcome had been unforeseen even by Isaac.

Yet, the hero of that escape was eventually captured by the Issacrea army.

Isaac and Edelred were on their way to where he was being held.

***

At the edge of the cliff, a Keshik warrior knelt, his arms twisted behind him and his body collapsed forward.

For a Keshik warrior who neither lay down easily nor sat comfortably, this was a humiliating posture, though his expression appeared peaceful. Sitting above him was Tuhalin.

"The Holy Grail Knight has arrived."

Tuhalin merely glanced at Isaac while polishing his bloodstained hammer. Since Tuhalin's status within the World's Forge was similar to that of Dera Heman in the Codex of Light, Isaac offered the first courtesy.

"Tuhalin Ede Pada, I once again thank you for joining this unfamiliar battle in a foreign land."

"Hah, it's not so unfamiliar. I crushed orc skulls here 360 years ago. Wherever the scent of orc blood lingers, that's my battlefield."

Edelred's face showed surprise at the mention of 360 years.

Even considering the lifespan of dwarves, 360 years made Tuhalin an elder on the verge of death. What's more, Tuhalin had already been notified of his impending ascension as an Archangel and had even received his posthumous name, 'Thunderhammer,' which he would assume in the afterlife.

Yet, Tuhalin was still active as a warrior, refusing to die just yet.

"I heard you pursued Sahulan Khan to the end. This one interfered at the last moment."

"Indeed. Sahulan, that damned orc warlord. He kept acting like he'd fight to the death, but each time he was about to lose, he'd flee. Even cursing his wife didn't work after a while. It seems that the younger orcs nowadays value their lives more."

At Tuhalin's words, the Keshik warrior lying on the ground twitched.

Tuhalin raised his hammer briefly, then let it fall. The sound of bones breaking was followed by the Keshik groaning in pain.

Isaac touched his face, then spoke.

"His name is Atlan."

"Is he someone important enough to remember?"

"He's considered a warrior of the Olkan Code. He's also Sahulan Khan's son and might have become the next Khan if circumstances had allowed."

One of the reasons Isaac had spared Atlan was precisely that.

If Sahulan died, Atlan, indebted to Isaac, could become the next Khan, potentially leading to more favorable negotiations. Even if Sahulan survived, the Netherworld might choose to appoint a young Khan instead of an 'incompetent' one. In that case, Atlan would be the best candidate.

But now, Isaac's trump card, Atlan, was pinned under Tuhalin's heavy frame.

Tuhalin looked surprised at the notion that Atlan could have become Khan.

"His skill didn't seem that impressive."

"The wounds he sustained in our battle a few days ago are likely the cause."

Tuhalin pondered for a moment before speaking.

"Now that you mention it, something strange did happen when I fought this guy."

"Something strange?"

"It was when I nearly had Sahulan. Suddenly, this one charged at me, unarmed. I quickly broke his leg, but by then Sahulan had already escaped."

Tuhalin grumbled as he continued.

"So, I was going to smash his skull in out of frustration. But then, out of nowhere, Sahulan's horse—the one he treats like his wife—suddenly threw Sahulan off and charged at me. I've never seen a horse go so mad before. I thought, 'This must be worthy of an orc warlord,' and then I smashed its skull in."

Tuhalin pointed at Atlan with a hint of unease.

"At that moment, this guy started mumbling something about his mother."

"Ah, um."

"I've heard rumors that orcs get aroused by horses, but is that really true? Can they really have offspring from that?"

"Well... I'm not sure about the details."

"Anyway, after seeing all that, I didn't feel right killing him too. So, I brought him along and have been giving him some life lessons. A man should dream of revolution and fight against the world, not just think about lazily stealing and pillaging..."

After grumbling on for some time, Tuhalin finally turned away, as if leaving Atlan's fate to Isaac. It was clear he didn't care whether Atlan lived or died.

Only after the talkative old man had left did Isaac let out a sigh and sit down in front of Atlan.

Atlan looked up at Isaac with calm eyes.

There was no anger or despair in his expression.

It was Atlan who spoke first.

"Was all of this your plan, Holy Grail Knight?"