ATAPOW Chapter 58
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Chapter 58: Bursting gate
As traces of blood and destruction littered the city walls made of catalpa wood and iron, fire and smoke rose in spirals from the walls and nearby homes. The lamp posts on two sides of the city gate flickered between bright and dark as if it was a lone flickering flame in the middle of the wind.
Above the city gate towers, the smell of despair was almost so strong that one could even see it. Laying against the wall, the knights were willfully sitting down while pouring water in their parched throats. Their old and damaged weapons were thrown to the side, they would, however, from time to time, vigilantly size up the enemies that were like vipers waiting to strike below them.
To these knights, this could be the final fight in their knightly careers. Without receiving any further orders from their superiors, they would die defending this place. In the eyes of the temple, to desert in the middle of a battle was an absolutely unforgivable act.
But not every knight possessed such a high moral consciousness. A series of weeping sounds began to faintly pass through the area.
The motives behind someone becoming a knight could be worlds apart. There were some that wanted to be promoted, gain wealth, or to be a cut above the others. While others just merely wanted to make a living. In such an extraordinary era, no one had the qualifications to criticize the motives of the other.
“Little brats, shut up unless you want your cries to piss me off!” On the southern city walls, an old knight who had been silent for a good time erupted and ripped off the large helmet covering his head. The wolf-like expression shown in his eyes intimidated the surrounding young knights that were lowering their heads and bawling to the point they turned silent. As their bodies faintly trembled, they looked towards the veteran knight that had stepped into the middle age.
This was their mentor. As a frontline knight that had been through countless battles, he strictly abided by his orders. He was especially strict towards his inept students, vigilantly supervising and urging them to perform better. This had caused them to dread him a lot. Moreover, they had never seen the slightest trace of a smile appear on this iron statue before.
To the young knights, he was the physical manifestation of the knight’s creed. Under his eyes, he would never allow himself or his students to commit anything that was against orders.
“…” The eyes of the veteran knight narrowed into a line as he swept them across the students he had taught for a year.
“From the first day you entered, your daddy here has told you that this set of armor is easy to put on but hard to take it off! Take off your helmet now and look at the disgraceful state you’re currently in! If you don’t have the resolve to become a knight, you should go back to your hometown, farm a patch of land, and support your aged parents! Why come here and fight a war? Because you think dealing with demons is a bunch of child’s play?! What a bunch of good-for-nothing brats!” The veteran knight angrily showered a torrent of rebukes at the young knights below him to the point they were unable to raise their heads.
“…Scram!” The veteran knight disdainfully grunted. He turned his body after donning on his helmet once more.
The young knights raised their heads in surprise.
“A bunch of little crybaby brats… Take your armor off and then scram back to your hometown! This will save you from holding me back when I fight!” The veteran knight didn’t look at them anymore after he finished. While in an angle where the numerous young knights couldn’t see him, the veteran knight’s face revealed a trace of relief.
‘At the very least, this bunch of brats could survive in my place.’
“Roar!… Boom! Boom!” A series of war-drum noises, which would cause one to panic, suddenly rang out and shattered the brief moment of silence into pieces, like lightning that appeared out of nowhere.
The second wave of the siege had begun.
The young knights looked at the aged silhouette standing with a long sword, and then at the waves of trolls that were rushing forth and were fervently attacking the city. They were finally able to clench their trembling hands as determination began to fill their eyes. Of course, there were also a good number of knights that had been relieved from their burden. After they hurriedly took off their helmets and threw them to the ground, they crazily ran down the city wall.
……………
Mu Feng was one of the few that were crazily running away. The wind blowing behind his back seemingly carried the angry roars, the sad wails of his comrades, and the evil laughter of the trolls. All of it was seemingly rebuking his decision to flee before the battle began.
‘W-What exactly am I worried about? … This is the chance my teacher had given me to escape. I don’t belong there! The reason I joined the order back then was just to support my family, nothing else… The trolls are just too strong… How can we win against them? I don’t have any plans of giving my life away. Since this is an opportunity my teacher gave me, surely he won’t report to headquarters that I deserted the battle, right? What am I exactly worrying about then?’
As he covered his ears and removed all the armor he had on his body, Mu Feng crazily fled until he arrived at a street that had already been deserted.
‘I-I’m just a coward. I’m not as brave as them nor as passionate either… I still have a younger sister at home who is currently schooling and I’m her only kin! What will she do if something were to happen to me?’
‘I’m sorry comrades. I’m sorry teacher…’
“Sorry to disturb you, Mister. May I ask if the road ahead leads to the south city gate?” A puerile voice that carried a good deal of politeness in it interrupted Mu Feng’s silent confession.
“Eh?” Mu Feng was faintly stunned as he looked towards a corner.
The pale moonlight dispersed itself over a goth loli whose beauty was as if she came out from a dream. With a pure silver hair that was without blemishes, her petite and exquisite figure was standing not too far away from himself. Her scarlet pupils were as calm as water while the corner of her mouth haughtily hung a trace of a polite smile.
“…Ehh, yes, yes…” Mu Feng’s face blushed. It was only until after he froze for a moment did he blankly respond.
“I see. Thank you for your generosity, mister. I’m sure we will meet again someday.” The silver-haired girl carried a calm smile, slightly bent her body, and performed a curtsey.
“…Eh!? Hold… hold on a moment! Little girl, don’t tell me you’re going to…” Mu Feng, who had come back to his senses, was suddenly startled. Just when he wanted to speak out and stop her, he found that there was nary a person in sight where the girl was.
…………
“Attack the city! Go, attack the city for your daddy!” The troll, 3rd Brother, brandished the spiked club in his hands as he yelled at the top of his throat. Seeing the erected ladder, he was itching to push away the slow troll soldiers and personally go into battle himself.
“Get out of the way for your daddy! Blasted door, open for me!” The air mingled with blood caused the 3rd Brother to get incomparably excited. As he pushed the crowd of foot soldiers away, he personally swung a hammer ferociously towards the closed city gates and hollered outwards.
“Boom!!” A sound that even the deaf could clearly hear echoed as the entire city gate tower trembled.
“Aim the anti-demon giant crossbow at the demons! Go towards the city gate where that loud boom happened! Don’t allow them to attack the city gate! What’s going on?! Hurry the hell up and open fire!” The leader of the frontline knights, who was guarding the south city gate tower, looked at the troll officer that was smashing the city gate along with his subordinates. He was so anxious to the point that profanities went out of his mouth.
“The people operating the giant crossbow, have you bloody not eaten your meals or something?! Why didn’t you bloody shoot a round after so long?!” The knight leader overturned a ladder. He turned his vision towards the area where the anti-demon giant crossbow was located, and yet, he had shockingly found that there was no one alive at its side, other than a pile of smashed up corpses encased in metal.
“Yo! Are you looking for them?” A voice filled with ridicule came from behind him, causing the knight leader to hastily turn around.
A tall and strong troll foot soldier was currently standing behind his back. Within his hand laid a number of human heads that were dripping with blood, the corner of the troll’s mouth revealed a teasing smile.
As the knight leader looked at the seemingly few companions around him, alongside the trembling sound of the bursting gate and the excited howls of the trolls, he finally realized the truth; The southern city gate tower had been breached.