NOVEL NEXT Chapter 109 - Intentions
Chapter 109. Intentions (7)
– Whoosh!
As the darkness of the night deepened, a beacon fire flared up.
It was because the sudden sound of drums echoed along with the clatter of hooves.
Despite the surprise night raid, Sima Yi, who led the army, remained calm.
The girl gracefully moved her fan to the left and right as if she had foreseen this situation.
“General Baek, guard the walls, and General Zhao Yun, confront the enemy directly. Archers, secure the highest ground for cover.”
Upon receiving the orders, Sima Yi’s army dispersed in perfect harmony.
They had been preparing for an enemy raid for some time now, following Sima Yi’s instructions.
Thanks to this, they quickly formed ranks, establishing a perfect defensive position in no time.
When Zhao Yun charged forward to the front line, the clash of swords and spears and desperate cries filled the area outside the fortress.
Sima Yi closely observed the battlefield and made a judgment.
‘This is a skirmish.’
The number of enemy troops was too small for a full-scale battle.
In other words, the deployed enemies were merely scouts sent to gauge the strength of this place.
Sima Yi felt momentarily deflated but decided to crush them thoroughly now that things had come to this.
Only then would the enemy pay more attention to this Hongnong Army.
Yuan Shu’s forces began to turn to the flank. Sima Yi had anticipated this and signaled the trumpeter.
The intention was to maintain the standoff at the front while deploying the reserve forces.
Then, the cavalry led by Unsam cut through the infantry, reinforcing the defensive line.
“Rotate the right wing. Maintain the left wing. Cavalry, redeploy to the rear.”
Clap, clap.
As the girl folded and unfolded her fan, she called out each move aloud.
The sound of drums resounded, and the soldiers immediately grasped her commands and returned to their positions.
These movements were the culmination of months of training, which simulated real battles.
Soon, the right wing rotated, blocking the flank, while the left wing held up their shields, cutting off the enemy’s retreat.
The cavalry led by Unsam smashed through the central barricade, redeploying to the rear before rotating to the flank.
“Deploy the cavalry again. This time, perform a wide rotation and strike the enemy archers. The rest should maintain formation, encircling the flanks.”
The enemy formation scattered, surrounded on the flanks and encircled in a ring.
This disarrayed their ranks, and they failed to notice the wide-sweeping cavalry led by Unsam.
Then, boom!
Archers positioned at the enemy’s rear were seen flying far away.
Startled by this, Yuan Shu’s main forces began to scatter.
Clap!
Sima Yi folded her fan.
What followed was a one-sided engagement.
After deploying the main forces that had been held in reserve, the army that had rotated to the right struck the flank, and Yuan Shu’s forces, unable to cope with the chaotic situation, were helplessly defeated.
The girl shrugged indifferently and ordered her soldiers to capture the survivors.
Tear-streaked and snot-covered faces were visible.
Some had limbs severed, their blood mixing on the ground.
Sima Yi walked past them with her hands behind her back, occasionally tapping their shoulders with her fan.
“These are all useless.”
She first singled out those with missing body parts.
“Cut off their limbs and burn them.”
And then, with a sly smile—
She strolled in front of them again.
It was only then that the captured soldiers, realizing the situation, shivered and wept.
They had come to understand that the dainty girl before them was a merciless demon.
Again, tap, tap, tap.
The girl calmly handed down her death sentences.
These were the ones who glared defiantly at her.
“Those with willpower often bring about great disasters later. It would be best to gouge out their eyes and noses, behead them, and hang their heads on spears.”
Zhao Yun, who had just returned, bit her lip and turned away from the scene.
This was a display meant to instill fear.
If she were to speak against Sima Yi here, the girl would surely grant the prisoners an even more miserable end.
This was the true nature of the girl named Sima Yi.
She would tear out anything, even her liver and gallbladder, to gain the upper hand in the grand strategy.
She had merely concealed her nature for a while under Unryong.
In the end, the cries echoed throughout the mountainside.
Grown men begging for their lives at the feet of a young girl was, by no stretch of the imagination, a pleasant sight.
Yet, the girl simply smiled and spoke.
“Let’s go back. Well done, everyone.”
***
Two soldiers of the Unryong Army, now part of Sima Yi’s forces, Gilsam and Hanho, led the prisoners away with uneasy expressions.
“With such a heavy sin, I wonder if we’ll ever be able to face our brother.”
At Gilsam’s words, Hanho glared with fiery eyes and responded angrily.
“You idiot! Our brother died because of these bastards, and that’s all you have to say?”
“Hey, man. Do you really think our brother’s dead? I believe it. There’s no way that brother died.”
“Enough with the nonsense. Go start the fire.”
“Tsk, that temper of yours.”
Though he spoke that way, Gilsam, too, had been consumed with revenge when news of Unryong’s disappearance spread, ready to kill those responsible.
Now, after some time had passed and his emotions had dulled, he had the leisure to reflect on himself.
He couldn’t say he didn’t understand how Hanho felt.
Moreover, they had orders to follow.
That troublesome military advisor had told them.
‘Abandon your emotions.’
Yes, they had been told to abandon their emotions.
All they had to do was follow orders.
They could justify it by saying it was something mandated by the higher-ups.
Soon, the fire blazed.
Crackle, crackle. If meat were placed on it, it would surely cook to a perfect golden brown.
Gilsam stared blankly into the roaring flames before turning his gaze toward the prisoners.
Around a hundred people, swallowing nervously, awaited their imminent death.
“Sigh.”
It was truly exhausting.
Watching them like this made him feel as though he would vomit at any moment.
However, Hanho seemed unfazed.
He grabbed one prisoner’s neck as if catching a chicken and dragged him toward the fire.
“One day, I’m going to burn the bastards who killed our brother just like this. So, Gilsam, don’t concern yourself with trivialities. Isn’t it our duty to avenge our brother’s unjust death?”
“······.”
Gilsam scratched the back of his head.
It was true.
If their brother was indeed dead, he too had vowed to give those bastards a wretched death, just like Hanho.
As Hanho handed over the ropes, Gilsam slowly reached to grab them.
Thwack—
A clear, crisp sound echoed.
Thwack—
And the ground shook slightly.
Thwack—
As the sound drew closer, the forest trembled, and birds perched on branches cawed.
Thwack—
Gilsam’s heart tightened, feeling as if it were being squeezed.
What is this feeling…?
Finally, thwack.
The sound ceased.
With trembling hands, Gilsam handed the rope back to Hanho and turned his head.
There stood a man with a straw hat pulled down deep over his face, leaning on a cane, silently watching them.
“Who are you?!”
Hanho drew his sword.
The man resumed his steps.
Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.
As he approached, Hanho and Gilsam tensed and braced their footing.
“I asked who you are!”
When Hanho finally stepped forward, the man spoke.
“You two—”
“······.”
Hanho’s eyes widened.
Heavy.
The sword in his hand, his steps.
Everything felt unbearably heavy.
“What are you doing?”
Hanho couldn’t answer.
He couldn’t move a step.
This was fear.
The fear of death.
Move, and you die.
Hanho instinctively understood this.
“Hanho.”
“H-How do you know my name······.”
“And Gilsam.”
“······Yes, sir?”
“Kneel.”
At the sudden command, Hanho and Gilsam wore dumbfounded expressions, unable to determine who should react first.
But the man paid no mind and spoke again.
“I said kneel.”
“W-What the hell, you crazy bastard······!”
Gilsam tried to resist, albeit meekly, with hunched shoulders······.
“Gal⸻!”
But it was nothing more than a pitiful outcry from the prey.
The two, overwhelmed by the man’s intense aura, instinctively collapsed onto their buttocks.
“Kneel, you bastards.”
Realizing any further resistance would result in death, they immediately prostrated themselves.
Blood trickled from their ears, dripping onto the ground.
Just hearing someone shout had ruptured their eardrums.
Who in the world could wield such insane power?
A sense of dissonance.
Gilsam abruptly raised his head.
“B-Brother?”
The man did not respond. He only raised his cane high.
“You have no right to call me that.”
And then, whack!
Whack!
Whack!
The sharp sound of strikes echoed incessantly through the mountainside.
***
Sima Yi looked at the crescent moon hanging by the window, a satisfied smile spreading across her face.
‘Good… at this rate, victory is certain—’
Then, suddenly, birds began to move hastily across the night sky.
‘…What is this?’
It was undeniably strange to see birds flocking together and urgently relocating their nests in the dead of night.
Sima Yi leaned so close to the window that her nose almost touched the glass, observing the outside scene…
“He-Hey—!”
A chill ran down her spine.
“What is going on!”
It was truly a mysterious occurrence…