[Panamera's Charge]
As I watched from a safe distance, away from the reach of the cannon fire, I couldn't help but be stunned by Panamera's audacious actions.
What kind of courage did she have? Amidst the explosive bursts and rising flames that would paralyze anyone with fear, Panamera spurred her horse, slapped its rear, and charged straight into the thick smoke.
"...If it were me, I’d probably break the shots into two phases or fire three times instead."
Was she a reckless show-off? Or was she daring enough to bluff her way through with her life on the line?
While I was contemplating this, Kamshin, who had been somewhat startled by the explosions, spoke up.
"Van-sama... Lady Panamera has gone alone. The other cavalry are still not ready to move."
Kamshin, sounding concerned, reported. But the thing was, Panamera's strategy had always assumed she would be the one to take the lead. Even if the flow of events shifted, her role hadn't changed.
"It’s alright. Let’s trust Lady Panamera," I said, trying to reassure him as I observed the situation.
Panamera's plan was simple: using her fire magic, Panamera would outmaneuver the enemy on horseback. That was the key.
And right now, she was in the middle of executing that plan.
As the smoke slowly started to clear, the view became clearer. In the meantime, the sound of cannon fire echoed from all around, and although we were far from the range, I couldn't shake the unease that one of them might accidentally come our way.
Meanwhile, Panamera's knights, along with Stradale’s command, followed Panamera's lead, charging into the battlefield where the cannonballs fell.
"Follow Viscount Panamera!"
Stradale shouted loudly, and the knights responded with enthusiastic war cries, charging ahead.
The front line was led by the armored wagons I had prepared. The knights followed behind, staying in formation. The cavalry, on the other hand, spread out, ensuring the cannon wouldn't be able to target them easily.
As the cannon fired at the ground where Panamera had just passed, she seemed to time her move perfectly. With a chant, she unleashed a powerful fire spell. A massive fire arrow, as strong as any shot from a bow, flew towards the castle walls, setting a portion of it ablaze in an instant. The power of the arrow was impressive, but what truly stood out was her ability to hit her target with such precision from that distance while riding at full speed.
It would be incredibly difficult to hit such a moving target, even with a rifle.
"Hahaha! What's wrong, Yellenetta!? What's wrong, Shelvia!? Did you not need two thousand soldiers after all!? Was this weakling coalition of nations unable to even take me down!?"
Panamera laughed loudly, urging her horse forward as she began chanting again, preparing to launch another fire spell.
"WOOOOOHH!"
"Lady Panamera!"
"Keep going, keep going...!!"
Panamera’s overwhelming fire magic and her confident, awe-inspiring presence rallied the knights, who also continued to charge forward, shouting their battle cries.
Even Panamera didn’t think she could single-handedly breach that fortress city. Her goal was simple: to use her bravado to sow doubt among the Shelvia Alliance’s knights.
As Panamera provoked them, the cannonfire noticeably increased, with shot after shot launched in retaliation. Yet, the cannonballs all landed on the ground where Panamera had just been, while she soared through the smoke, dodging the explosions effortlessly. The sight of her galloping through the flames likely boosted the morale of our troops while causing the enemy’s spirits to plummet.
However, we all knew that a one-sided battle couldn't last forever. The enemy outnumbered us significantly, and they had weaponry like cannons and black powder balls, things we didn’t possess. The odds were still stacked in their favor.
"...! Arrows!"
Someone noticed the change first, shouting loudly. Looking up, I saw a volley of arrows being shot from the castle walls in a wide arc. Hundreds, if not thousands, of arrows were soaring into the sky before coming down in a deadly rain toward the ground.
It was an overwhelming barrage of arrows, enough to make anyone's blood run cold.
At this point, I knew Panamera had to unleash her trump card.
As I thought this, Panamera finished chanting her spell.
"Flame Chain Web, Flame Vein!"
As soon as Panamera activated the magic, flames shot out from her palm, spreading in a wide arc. The fire expanded rapidly, creating a wall of flame over a hundred meters in radius. The arrows that came into contact with the flames were instantly incinerated, turning to ash.
The fire spread so widely that most of the knights were spared from the arrow storm. However, a few knights on the right wing weren’t so lucky. Among them was Stradale, who was riding his horse and holding his sword.
"Stradale!"
I couldn't help but shout his name in a panic. It seemed hopeless to me.
But Stradale, without changing his expression, looked up at the sky and swung his sword. With minimal movement, he managed to deflect a few arrows, letting them fly past him and embedding themselves in the ground. It was as if the arrows deliberately avoided him, as he sliced through those that were heading directly for him while continuing to gallop.
What was truly terrifying was that he did all this while riding at full speed. No wonder he was chosen to be the commander of the knights instead of Dee.
Although a significant number of cavalry had likely fallen, it was clear that the enemy outnumbered us by a large margin.
Despite our smaller forces, the battle had been a magnificent display of skill.
"...But, we should probably move soon."
I murmured to myself as I watched the armored wagons approach within range of the fortress city. At almost the same moment, Panamera, who had been leading the charge, began to return.
"Ballista! Prepare to fire!"
Panamera ordered, and the knights behind the armored wagons quickly began to get ready. The team preparing the ballista was led by our strongest rapid-fire crossbow team.
"Set up the shields first! Remove the side walls and place them on the floor! Extend the bowstring of the ballista all the way!"
"Make sure the pulley parts aren’t obstructed!"
"Check that the string holder is perfectly aligned!"
The team, now seasoned experts at setting up the mechanical crossbows and ballista, swiftly gave instructions to the skilled knights.
They quickly set up the shields first, and fortunately, none of the ten armored wagons were hit during the assembly. If the cannons had fired while they were being set up, we would have suffered significant casualties.
"Mobile ballista, ready!"
The central ballista was the first to be completed. Upon the signal, Panamera pointed toward the castle gates.
"Aim for the castle gate and fire! The second and third ballistae will aim for the watchtowers as soon as they're ready!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
With Panamera's orders, the ballista team began to fire. The first shot hit the castle gate, and the second and third shots targeted the watchtowers as instructed.
"Castle gate, four watchtowers! Direct hits! The other five arrows also hit the castle walls!"
As I squinted, trying to see the results, Kamshin gave me the report.
"The accuracy is far better than any cannon. As Lady Panamera said, as long as we know how to handle them, cannons are nothing to fear."
Kamshin’s words lit up his eyes as he spoke. I smiled and lowered my chin, gazing into the distance.
At this point, with the power of magic, I couldn't say that cannons held a clear advantage. But as research continued, it was clear that weaponry would soon surpass mages entirely.
Until that day came, we needed to prepare thoroughly.
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