Reborn 10 - Demonic Valor (4 page)

As Ash read through the papers he thought about a number of things as he made marks on a scrap piece of paper.

10-6

As the day passed more and more soldiers arrived from the other side of the mountain and soon the forest was so full of demons Ash was afraid that the illusion that had been put up wouldn’t be able to hide them all.

Two times over the past weeks Ash had moved with the scouts to check out the area. One time they flew high over the enemy troops. To keep from being seen they brought along one of the illusionary mages to make them the same color of the sky. If they were close to the army it would be easy to tell the difference but since they were flying more than a hundred feet overhead they were completely undetectable.

The second time they went to the duchy capital to see how the condition of the regular people were. It was odd for Ash to be so close to Emelia without seeing her. It had never been as hard as when they flew over the fort. He wanted to do nothing more than to land and let her know that he was alive but Ash had to admit it wasn’t worth the risk.

There was too much of a chance that there were spies within the fort, or those who hated demons so much they would turn on Emelia if they knew that Ash was waiting not far away with an army of them ready to come to her aid during the coming battle.

During his short say within the limits of the city Ash spent a good amount of time looking at his own house from more than fifty feet away. He had seen Yuki coming back from her school. The young fox girl looked slightly older than she had last time Ash had seen her but she was so far away that it was hard for him to tell for sure.

Today once again Ash looked at the fort where his wife waited for him though this time it was different since he was not the only one watching the fort. Coming from the west was an endless number of soldiers marching with hate filled eyes.

Ash wanted to move closer but the mages had only cast a think illusion of a tree over him so the closer someone came to him the easier it would be to see through his disguise. Just before he turned around to go back into the forest Ash noticed a woman wearing a dark red dress step on top of the battlements.

There Emelia stood looking more beautiful than she had ever looked before. She raised her head and looked across the field at the enemy approaching her and let out a sneer then her eyes flickered and she turned in the direction of where Ash was standing. For an eerie moment Ash almost thought that she was looking right at him before she let out a weak smile and left the battlements.

With his stomach tied in knots Ash turned around and left the field at a dead run. “How does it look my lord?” Li asked holding her staff tightly to her chest.

“Everything is happening as planned so far,” Ash replied. Now we just have to wait to see if they set up camp for or go straight to attacking.”

Ash and a number of other officers crouched near the edge of the forest to watch the enemy. Even though they could clearly be seen it still took more than two hours for all of them to come to a standstill. Just as expected they started making camp and then started sending soldiers towards the forest to gather trees in order to start making siege weapons.

When the near two hundred men broke off from the main force Ash and the others moved back and sent a signal to the soldiers.

Though they couldn’t risk the enemy learning that a horde of demons were waiting for them not only inside the forest but in a number of other locations as well that didn’t mean they couldn’t do anything to the soldiers. When they were far enough back Ash once again crouched down as twenty demons sung through the trees with bows on their backs. The illusionary mages would play much of a part in the larger war but this was the perfect place for them to display their skills.

Once they were in position the demons made themselves look like parts of the trees they were standing in and waited until the enemy soldiers came close. Soon the twang of bows filled the forest followed by the shrill sounds of soldiers dying. Within moments the enemy soldiers ran from the forest in full flight.

Once they were clear Ash once again moved up to the edge of the forest to watch the movements of the enemy. Ash could clearly see when more soldiers broke away from the main force to check on those returning. Even though the small encounter hadn’t lasted long the demons were able to kill over thirty of the enemy troops but it seemed as if they wouldn’t be deterred by such small losses as soon more soldiers were sent toward the forest though this time instead of a few hundred it looked closer to half a thousand troops had been dispatched.

With the increased numbers the demons couldn’t afford to continue their attack without heavy risks of being exposed so leaving only a few well-hidden scouts behind Ash and the others returned to camp.

Once they were back at camp reports came in every half hour. Just as they had expected the first order of business had been the construction of siege weapons. With such a large number of forces working on transporting the lumber most of it would be finished before nightfall but no one expected them to attack before the morning. There was always a chance but only a foolish commander would try a full assault when the light was waning. That was unless he was certain of a complete and quick victory.

Other than preparing the siege weapons the enemy forces had also sent a small group of people to parley with the fort commanders but they left after less than a quarter of an hour.

When the news came back that the soldiers had withdrawn from the forest Ash had wanted to return to watch them but neither his advisors nor his wives thought that it would be a good idea.

Ash felt as if he had drank a bottle of snakes as much as his stomach was writhing around. He knew that most likely the battle would start in full but he still wished that it would begin earlier. Ash hated waiting and a part of him knew that once it was over he would wish it had never happened at all but that was life. He always seemed to be waiting on something that he never wished was needed.

That night Ash didn’t sleep a wink but he was not alone in this as both Tolarea, and Li joined him in his nightly vigil though for different reasons. It was clear that Tolarea was eagerly awaiting her first real battle while Li much like Ash was nervous about what the dawn would bring.

About half way through the night a messenger ran into the camp and straight into his tent. Since Ash was away from his tent he had to hurry to see what was happening. Just as the scout was leaving the tent Ash ran into him.

“My lord we just received news that the enemy has launched a sneak attack on the city,” the scout said his words almost jumbled together.

Ash let out a string of curses under his breath before calming down slightly. “What happened?”

“They tried to send a thousand men over the eastern wall under the cover of darkness but out men were waiting on them along with a large number of civilians. They were able to push them back but more than a hundred civilians were kills and thirty of our demons. There were more injured but none of them fatal.”

“What about the enemy?” Ash asked through gritted teeth as he worried about the many people he knew within the city. Ash didn’t know if he could take it if many of the people he knew died.

“They lost more than half of their attacking force. It doesn’t seem like they expect the wall to be defended at all. Most likely they have some inside men within the city but they weren’t able to interfere thanks to our men but since we didn’t get a detailed report it is hard to tell,” the scout replied.

“Is there anything else?” Ash asked though he was afraid of the reply.

“No my lord,” the demon said hesitantly.

“Then report to the rest of the commanders and let me know if anything more comes from the enemy’s side.”

“Yes my lord,” the scout said before running toward the next tent.

Once he had finished his talk with the messenger Ash returned to where he had been sitting previous at the edge of the camp. As soon as he was seated Ash pulled a small knife from its sheath while picking up a thick piece of tree about half the size of his hand and started shaving away thin strips of the wood.

“Is everything ok?” Li asked in a slightly worried voice.

“Just worried,” ash said without looking up.

“Why worry,” Tolarea said as she pulled her sword from her back and practiced her swings. “If something happened then you can’t change it now. All you can do is prepare for tomorrow so that you can limit what you might regret.”

As nearly dropped the knife in his hands. With a slightly surprised look on his face he turned his eyes toward Tolarea who looked at him and narrowed her eyes.

“What?” She asked with her lips tightly pressed together.

“I just never expected such inspiring and thoughtful words to come from you,” ash replied honestly without thinking.

“Then what would you expect to come from me?” Tolarea asked while Li let out a barely contained giggle.

“Something like. Tolarea destroy,” Ash said trying to do his best impression of an ogre.

Tolarea’s face turned beat red as she stormed over to Ash and easily lifted his feet from the ground. “I am not an ogre,” Tolarea said with small flecks of spittle hitting Ash in the face.

Even though he knew that he had already said too much Ash couldn’t help but laugh. When he saw Tolarea grip the handle of her sword he quickly raised his hands in defeat even though he knew that she couldn’t strike him with the intent to hurt him purposefully. “I was wrong,” Ash said quickly.

Tolarea sat him down then stalked off back toward her tent while muttering. As he watched her go Ash couldn’t help but laugh again. He didn’t know why but it was fun to tease the giantess.

“That was mean my lord,” Li said though with the large smile on her face it was hard to take her serious.

“She will be fine,” Ash said confidently. It was not the first time he had teased Tolarea and she always got mad easily but she forgot it just as quickly or at least it appeared that she did though she was always a bit more aggressive the next time they practiced.

While he was thinking he felt something soft and warm sit on his lap and noticed that Li’s arms were wrapped around his neck. “Everything will go well my lord,” Li said her voice holding far more confidence than he felt.

“I hope so,” Ash replied weakly.

Li didn’t try to comfort him more with words instead she gave him a warm kiss then jumped from his lap and headed back to her own tent only a few steps behind Tolarea.

Shaking his head Ash thought about returning to his own bed but knew that it would be pointless so he turned his mind back to the small block of wood in his hands.

10-7

As the sun crested the horizon the next morning Ash along with thousands of demons waited at the edge of the forest while they watched the large human army as it formed up ranks to start their first assault on the fort.

Heavy knights moved too slow and would make easy targets so they were at the rear of the group. At the front were thinly armored troops carrying long ladders. Before they started to charge the trebuchets that had been built the night before started to launch stone at the battlements. The first attack landed short of the wall so they were readjusted and the second attack more than half slammed into the magically enhanced walls.

As the sound of stone hitting stone filled the air the fort counterattacked using two trebuchets of their own that had been built within the confines of the fort. It took much longer for each volley coming from the fort and they were much smaller in number but with the much larger number of condensed enemies present they were much more effective.

After the fourth volley of attack the enemy charged with more than a third of their numbers running toward the fort.

As stood up ready to lead his own charge when a hand landed on his shoulder. “Not yet my lord they haven’t committed enough forces to the charge yet. We have less than a quarter of their numbers with us. If they are able to turn and fight us head on then our losses will be great.”

Ash returned to his position but his hand never left the hilt of his sword as he watched the soldiers’ charge where his wife was while raining down heavy boulders on the fort. Whenever one of the rocks made it over the wall Ash had to remind himself to breath.

“Looks like they want to end it at once without caring about their losses,” Uthla said as he watched as more and more soldiers rushed toward the fort. From where they were sitting it looked like a tidal waves of bodies looking to crash against a stone wall and from the looks of the numbers it would be the walls that would be the one to give first.

“Time to go,” Uthla said as he got to his feet and unsheathed his sword. Ash followed suit releasing his own sword while getting to his feet.

Ash led the charge. Not because he was the strongest but because he had abilities that could only be used if he was out front that could help devastate the enemies moral and numbers. Some of the officers were considered about him being put in such a position of danger but when he explained his plan they all ended up agreeing. In the end the demons were a people of war and there was no way they would truly accept a maoh who hid away from a battle.

At the forefront of the charge Ash couldn’t see those that were behind him but he could hear the roar that rose from their throats as they thundered toward enemy.

Ash could hear, feel, and smell everything around him as he ran across the ground. The sound of his and his guard’s feet on the ground. The smell of the freshly growing grass, and the feel of the morning dew as it covered his boots.

Ash could almost see the second the enemy noticed them. Ash couldn’t hear the voices of their commanders shouting over the sound of thousands of feet hitting the ground but he could see as thousands of enemy soldiers turned to meet their charge.

When Ash was only twenty yards from the enemy line he came to a quick stop and just as planned LI covered them with a shield of light as he used gambler’s boost.

“Tring.”

[You have activated gambler’s boost. All stats increased by + 34.]

Ash had wanted to use boost and double his stats but the cost was too high and would leave him almost devoid of SP. Which could be deadly in a prolonged battle.

Once his stats were boosted Ash quickly activated the ability total destruction which took 300 MP and 100 SP.

As soon as the ability was activated the feeling of being drained overcame Ash for a second as a massive force of magical energy spread out in front of him hitting everything in its path. Ash had learned after practicing the ability a number of times he could focus the attack in one direction. This was vital since if he just cast it normally it would spread out in a perfect circle and hit his troops as well. That was the main reason he had lead the charge since he was unsure that he could completely control it in the heat of a battle.

As soon as the storm of magic ended Ash activated tremor causing the ground beneath his feet to shake as if one was trying to stand on top of a roaring waterfall.

Ash had spent days training on how to move with the ground shaking below him and while it wasn’t easy it wasn’t impossible. The enemy was completely taken by surprise given the large abilities Ash had used. If he was a normal person his MP would already be drained but he had only used a quarter of what he had so he was still fine to continue the battle. Taking a deep breath Ash took a quick glance at his wives who sounded him and nodded his head.

When the enemy started firing a cloud of arrows Ash used aegis shield of protection. While it only covered a small portion of his forces it still blocked a good number of the incoming arrows. Before the shield disappeared Ash continued his advancement forward looking for anyone who might have the sign of the reaper above his head.  

When Ash had previously looked over the enemy he had noticed a number of them with the sign of the reaper above their heads. Ash had been slightly surprised that none of the normal troops had the mark but it seemed that the higher rank a person obtained the more likely that they earned the mark. Ash had given it some thought and started to understand that under the laws of a goddess that if a person was following an order that they would not be blamed for the breaking of a law instead it was the person who ordered it that would be. The only exception he could think of was when one killed an unborn child or salted the earth. Since there were few humans who would do that unless they were truly evil there were few low ranking soldiers who earned the mark for death. That meant Thad Ash’s main goal during the battle would be to kill as many high ranking soldiers as he could, which was a good plan no matter how he thought about it.

Ash met a number of soldiers but due to the two abilities he had used they were almost defenseless and easily killed. The few soldiers who had kept their wits never even had a chance to meet with him sword to sword since they were quickly taken down by Tolarea, Gena, or one of his other guards. Seeing this Ash felt slightly annoyed since a large part of him wanted to join the battle more than he was given the chance currently.

Ash didn’t have to wait long before he was given the chance to prove his mettle in battle as soon the enemy regained their composure and put up a united front. Ash kept looking through the crowd as he blocked blow after blow until he noticed the floating symbol of a reaper in the distance. Taking a step back Ash let Tolarea intercept the next blow and pointed in the direction he wished to go. Due to the noise of the battle around them talking was pointless but his wives seemed to understand his meaning even without words.

Ash retook his position at the front though with Tolarea standing at his side while the others moved to form a protective circle around LI who was the only one who was weak in direct battle.

As they pushed forward Ash took a step to the side to dodge an incoming blow while bringing his sword up to block a second strike. Without thinking Ash activated dark spear and sword of illusion at the same time. Ash attacked the first man with the newly created spear in his left hand and the other with his sword. The first soldier tried to parry the spear with his sword but due to the nature of the weapon it passed straight through it as if it were made of water and stuck the man just below the neck. Seeing what had become of his comrade the other soldier didn’t try to block it but instead tried to doge Ash’s sword but with three versions of it coming at him at one he was unsure of which way to move. Luckily he choice to go to the right which only left him with a small cut on his right shoulder from one of the illusionary swords but Ash quickly followed up with a second attack this time using both weapons at once.

The soldier’s movements were well trained and Ash could tell that he was not among the common fodder as he sidestepped the black spear while bringing his sword up to block Ash’s sword which had returned to normal. Seeing both of his attacks come to nothing Ash didn’t let himself become shaken and altered the path of the spear tearing through the side of the soldier with the edge of the spear as he brought it back to his side.

When the bold words “Trick attack,” appeared above the soldier’s head Ash prepared himself for something unexpected.

The soldier attack with a straight stab but just before it reached where Ash had positioned his sword it suddenly moved to the left heading straight for where Ash’s heart was located Ash gritted his teeth and quickly activated armor of thorns while trying to slid his left foot back to move his heart out of the way of the strike.

Ash’s luck shilled didn’t activate but his armor of thorns was fast enough to cover his shoulder when the blade stuck which left behind only a small wound which Li quickly healed before more than a thimble full of blood had been able to spill out. Ash readied himself to strike back but a gust of wind passed by his ear as a black arrow flashed past his ear. The soldier battled the arrow away but it still left a small scratch on the back of the man’s hand.

With an evil smile the soldier brought his sword back up but his face started to stiffen and the sword fell from his hand. The man looked at his hand as if it had betrayed him before his knees gave out and he collapsed to the ground. With his eyes going wide he only got a second to look up before the blade of Ash’s sword passed through his neck sending his head tumbling across the ground.

With a look back to Seia Ash nodded his head knowing that the arrow had to be poisoned.

Ash continued forward but the soldiers around him were starting to lose their footing and were being pushed back quickly by his demon army but Ash wasn’t sure how long it was last since a large portion of the force attacking the fort had started to turn back to try and repel the attacking demons. It was at this time the second magic company moved from their position in the forest casting together to create a tidal wave of fire at the forces retreating from the fort.

Seeing the large force coming to help the forces from the fort let out a cheer as they doubled their efforts to repel the invaders.

Most the time when a small group was defending against a much larger force they had limited supplies and would hold back on using all of their arrows and oil on the first attack but with hope of breaking the siege early they had no reason to hold back.

Ash didn’t know if but Emelia was watching the entire battle from her place in the commander’s tent through one of her personal abilities called “ruler’s vision.” Just like Ash’s ability it was a blood ability and one that allowed her to view anything within the domain of her realm through magic though it was quite costly on her MP so she could never use it for long if she moved it more than a few miles away though if she kept it within a mile she could currently easily sustained it for a little under an hour.

When Emelia had received the news that a horde of demons had attacked the enemy she had quickly used her ability to check on what was happening outside the walls of the fort and it was then that she noticed a young man charging at the front of the battle.

“Ash,” Emelia said as a thin line of tears streamed down her face.

Emelia had known that Ash was alive. It had taken her more than a day to calm down enough to think to look for Yuki and Ash’s other slaves. When she checked their slave tattoo and noticed that there had been no change she knew that Ash was still alive.

The slave bond was made using spirit magic and if the owner was to die then the tattoo would turn a light grey so that the slave guild knew that they were free of ownership and could be transferred as long as a person bearing the right appeared with proper documentation.

When Emelia learned that Ash was alive it only alleviated a part of her worry. If they had not killed Ash where had they taken him and what had they done to him? She had worried endlessly over this but when the king’s army approaching she had to put her personal worries aside though she still held out a small ray of hope that she would see Ash again either in this life or the next. Now she was getting that wish.

“Order all troops to the battlements,” Emelia said to the older soldier standing at her side. “Don’t hold anything back. We will break the siege today and chase those godless bastards to hell.”

“My lady what about the demons?” the man asked hesitantly. “Should we not simply let the king’s men and demons kill each other.”

“Fool,” Emelia shouted her face turning red in anger. “Those ‘demons’ are trying to help us. Why would we return their bravery by simply letting them go to their own slaughter? Now do as I told you and order my men to hold nothing back. If I find out that so much as a single arrow was kept from a bow then I will have whoever is at fault boiled alive and given to the demons as an apology.”

The older man’s face turned slightly white as he ran from the room at a full run. When the man had gone Emelia leaned back in her chair and rubbed her temples. “Idiot…Why are there so many idiots?” She asked to the empty air. It had not been the first time her orders had been questioned. She didn’t know why men refused to believe that a woman could do as good as a job just because she didn’t have something swinging between her legs.

After drinking a bottle of light blue liquid to help recover her MP Emelia once again focused her ability on the battle.