The Genius Archer Who Became a One-Man Army

Chapter 4

‘If it’s this person…’

In the middle of the officers’ meeting, Lian’s position was that of a newly enlisted recruit.

But despite that, Lian spoke to Raymond.

“In the battle where I brought back the head, the enemy must have realized they’ve been discovered. An ambush that has been discovered is worse than not having one at all.”

Lian then moved and looked at the map on the table.

His past experience as a squad leader naturally surfaced.

Raymond’s gaze also turned to the map.

“The enemy must be busy now, as their ambush was detected at an unexpected time.”

Lian pointed at the gorge with his finger.

“If we give them time, they might take over the gorge, which is an advantageous terrain. If that happens, we’ll have to fight in disadvantageous terrain or take a long detour around the entire gorge, which would take too much time.”

The destination of the Eagle Company was Tempoorn, the northern front of the kingdom.

They were transporting supplies for the war against the beastmens.

The geographical feature of the Pellon Gorge is that the direct path is short, but the detour is significantly long.

Transporting all these supplies via the detour would not only be laborious but also prevent them from delivering the supplies on time, which would cause problems for the frontline troops.

“But that’s not the only problem.”

There’s another issue with taking a detour around the gorge.

“If we take a detour, we’re essentially opening a path to the kingdom for the enemy.”

The right decision now would be to move quickly and strike the enemy first.

However, Lian glanced at Raymond as he finished speaking.

Gulp.

Lian knew the gravity of what he had just done.

It was a completely reckless situation.

But the reason he could take such a gamble was simple.

From his past experience, Lian had a strong feeling that Raymond was a “real soldier.”

But no sooner had Lian finished speaking,

“This crazy bastard!”

“How dare a recruit speak out of turn! What do you know!”

“Haha, it’s quite something to see this in my lifetime.”

Some were angry at Lian, while others laughed in disbelief.

Most were criticizing Lian’s behavior, and Derek, the leader of the 3rd platoon to which Lian belonged, couldn’t hide his embarrassment.

“I-I’m sorry! Captain!”

“…So you’re saying we should strike them before they take over the gorge?”

“In my opinion, yes.”

Raymond nodded at Lian’s response, stroking his chin as he looked at the map.

At this moment, Raymond probably envisioned the allied and enemy forces fighting on the map.

After staring at the map for about 30 seconds, Raymond turned his gaze to Lian.

“Is your name Lian?”

“Yes!”

“Let me ask you one thing. Why did you scout that far?”

Although Lian was sent to scout the gorge, he ended up checking beyond the gorge, into the plains.

All eyes turned to Lian as Raymond asked this.

Lian responded.

“That’s because the scouting leader, Squad Leader Tauran, ordered a search to the end. I discovered it by chance when I went there.”

“I see.”

Raymond nodded. He then addressed the platoon leaders.

“Move the troops. We’re heading into the gorge immediately. Platoon leaders, relay the orders and return here.”

“What?”

“Captain, are you changing the plan based on a recruit’s words?”

“Wouldn’t it be better to send another scouting party for confirmation…”

“Enough!”

The captain’s strong voice silenced the platoon leaders.

Seeing the captain’s expression, the platoon leaders stiffened.

Raymond spoke to the platoon leaders.

“Everyone, return to your positions.”

“Understood.”

“Yes!”

The platoon leaders knew that although Raymond was known for his fairness, he was unmanageable when angry.

Obeying Raymond’s orders, the platoon leaders and Lian left the barracks. At that moment,

“Platoon Leader Derek.”

“Yes, Captain.”

Raymond called Derek, the leader of the 3rd platoon to which Lian belonged.

After the other platoon leaders left, only Raymond and Derek remained in the barracks.

Raymond spoke to Derek.

“Keep a close eye on that soldier.”

“…Aren’t you giving him too much credit?”

Derek asked cautiously.

Of course, discovering the enemy in a hard-to-reach place was a great achievement.

Derek had intended to reward him for that.

But Raymond shook his head.

“He gave credit to his superior and shared his achievement. How many soldiers do you think can do that?”

“…What?”

“Do you really believe the scouting leader sent him to the end of the gorge? As far as I know, Tauran is in charge of that scouting party. Isn’t he?”

Raymond tapped the end of the gorge on the map.

Raymond was already aware of the capabilities of the squad leaders.

To his knowledge, there were no soldiers in his company capable of such actions.

Derek remained silent.

He also knew Tauran wasn’t capable of such decisions.

“Keep an eye on him, and if he asks for anything, provide it and observe. Also, give Tauran a reward as well.”

“…Understood.”

Derek momentarily looked into Raymond’s eyes.

Raymond’s eyes showed considerable interest and curiosity.

* * *

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the Eagle Company became urgent.

“All squad leaders, prepare your troops for quick movement! And Tauran!”

Upon returning to the platoon, 3rd Platoon Leader Derek immediately gave orders to the squad leaders.

They had to prepare for both passing through the gorge quickly and engaging in battle.

Tauran approached upon hearing Derek’s call.

“I heard from Lian. You’ve done an excellent job.”

“What?”

Tauran’s eyes widened as Derek patted his shoulder.

When Lian entered the officers’ meeting tent alone, Tauran had been extremely anxious.

The reconnaissance in the gorge had been entirely Lian’s achievement.

So he had thought Lian wouldn’t keep his word.

“Despite being a new recruit, you trusted Lian and achieved such merit. It was indeed wise to send you on the scouting team. But the reward will have to wait until after the battle.”

“Y-Yes!”

Tauran saluted loudly and immediately went to where Lian was, giving him a firm pat on the chest.

“Well done.”

Watching Tauran walk back, Lian just smirked to himself.

He understood the meaning behind Tauran’s words.

‘The real challenge starts now.’

How would they handle the tactics while moving the troops so quickly?

‘I have no choice but to trust them for now.’

Honestly, there was no guarantee of the outcome.

All Lian could do was to steer them away from the worst-case scenario given the current situation.

Now…

‘I have no choice but to trust Captain Raymond.’

* * *

“You plan to hit them from behind?”

“We’ll split off 100 men. Two platoons will split up and flank them from both sides.”

“Will that work?”

“It has to. Otherwise, there’s no point in engaging now.”

The Eagle Company had several problems to solve in this battle.

Firstly, they didn’t have the luxury of prolonged combat, and they needed to minimize their casualties.

If they were delayed or their numbers diminished, their mission to support the frontline troops would lose its meaning.

They had to act quickly and completely annihilate the enemy.

“To do that, it’s best to draw them into the gorge and then attack from behind.”

“They’re just beastmens. What do those primitive creatures know about tactics? All they ever do is charge in numbers.”

“That’s right. It’s better to conserve our strength and fight them in the gorge.”

Raymond chuckled at the platoon leaders’ opinions.

He knew well how the kingdom’s people viewed the beastmens.

Primitive, stupid creatures.

Beasts that only followed their instincts.

“If we hadn’t discovered their ambush, those primitive creatures would have slaughtered us.”

“That’s…”

“…”

A silence fell over the tent.

It was an undeniable truth.

“Be confident but don’t underestimate the enemy. War isn’t like chess. Losing doesn’t just hurt your pride.”

It results in bloodshed and many grieving people.

The platoon leaders nodded at Raymond’s words.

“The 5th platoon is best suited for quick maneuvers. Leave it to us.”

“Your numbers are too few. We need another platoon.”

Raymond pondered for a moment before looking at Derek, the leader of the 3rd platoon.

“Can the 3rd platoon handle it?”

The 3rd platoon had discovered the ambush. Additionally, Derek’s platoon was well-trained in physical endurance.

Even if they had to move quickly to flank the enemy, they had the stamina for it.

Raymond, who knew the company’s tactics well, made a quick decision.

Derek nodded at Raymond’s question.

“If you entrust it to us, we will succeed.”

“Good. Then the 3rd and 5th platoons will take command of the operation. The remaining three platoons will take positions in the gorge and draw the beastmens in. Once the 3rd and 5th platoons flank the enemy, signal us.”

Raymond’s eyes gleamed.

“Then we will annihilate the enemy simultaneously.”

“Yes!”

With a resounding answer, a tense atmosphere spread throughout the unit.

* * *

“Damn, an unexpected battle…”

“Aren’t we supposed to flank them?”

“That gorge… we’re in for it.”

They had to climb the gorge’s hills and flank the enemy.

And they had to do it faster than the main force breaking through the gorge’s center.

The soldiers were filled with complaints at the daunting task ahead. However,

‘Did I really see it right?’

In fact, Raymond’s current plan was the closest to the right answer in this situation.

If the operation went as planned, they could minimize their losses while annihilating the enemy.

‘But…’

Lian glanced at the other soldiers.

For this operation, speed was of the essence.

‘Without memories of the Eagle Company, I can’t gauge their capabilities…’

Lian’s only memory of the Eagle Company was their crushing defeat at the Pellon Gorge.

After that, he joined another unit and never heard from them again.

‘Can we do it?’

Even though he had over 20 years of veteran experience, he was still in a rookie’s body.

At that moment,

“Who’s making noise over there!”

The soldiers of the 4th squad turned their heads in shock at the sudden shout.

The 4th squad leader, Bark, approached and spoke to the soldiers.

“Get your heads straight! This isn’t training, it’s the real thing! If you lose focus, you’ll die!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Understood!”

“Yes!”

The soldiers, who had been complaining earlier, answered with stiff expressions.

Bark’s expression was harsher than usual.

“You too, keep your head straight!”

“Yes, sir!”

Lian responded loudly to Bark’s words.

Lian’s expression was different from the others. Even his eyes.

There was an odd sense of calm about him.

‘What is with this guy…?’

Bark hadn’t been in the military for long either.

It was only his third year.

During those three years, he had fought in five battles and narrowly escaped death many times.

He had lost squad members in each war and received new recruits.

But he had never encountered anyone like Lian.

Looking at the enigmatic Lian, Bark just nodded.

And then,

“Squad Leader, can we get some bows?”

At the unexpected request, Bark’s eyes flickered with surprise.