The Third Prince Of Darkness

I had successfully managed to pull the army back to the defense line. At the same time, I quickly assigned a trusted soldier to inform the main coalition army that Alpshar was here. During the retreat, although a few of my soldiers were wounded from some attacks from the city, which were no longer under siege, overall, the situation of the army was good... Or rather, physically they were fine, but morale was gradually decreasing with every passing second. And since Alpshar had deployed his army about a kilometer from my position about an hour ago, seeing the size of the enemy forces further diminished their morale.

As I rode along, I was reviewing the state of the army. The retreat had been complex and swift, but that was why the army's spirit was sinking more and more with each passing moment. There was concern and exhaustion in my eyes, but I knew I had to remind them of how important morale was when facing such a large army.

I tightened the reins of my horse and slowed down to get closer to my soldiers. Then, I stopped my horse, rose above them in the dark shadows surrounding their shoulders, and called out:

"Soldiers of the god!" I raised my voice so that the entire camp could hear me.

"I know you're all tired. The roads are hard, the enemy is strong, and we are surrounded like a furnace! But remember, we are the descendants of holy ancestors who drove the barbarians from these sacred lands in the name of God! You are the army of a nation that writes history. Just as we drove away the twisted devil hordes that defied our great Creator from these holy lands thousands of years ago, today we are here to rid the world of these blood-tainted barbarians! As far as I know, the enemy forces outnumber us... But we are not afraid of their numbers, nor do we hesitate because we are fewer! Right now, main coalition army of nearly a hundred thousand soldiers is advancing towards us, just one day's distance away. As long as we hold this defense line and stop these vile barbarians, reinforcements will come to us with winged cavalry. And this is not hope for us, it is a mission. God has not abandoned us in the past... He will never abandon us!"

I pushed my horse forward, coming closer to the front of the army. "I know the strength within each of you! You are all warriors seeking light in these dark times. As long as we stand together, we will become even stronger. Our fight symbolizes not just this moment, but the honor of our people throughout history! Remember, this war is not only ours; it will be an epic remembered for all time!"

After a brief silence, movement began to stir in the ranks. I wanted them to see the fire in my eyes, to awaken the courage within them, to nurture their hopes.

"One day, when our grandchildren walk on these lands and look back, they will say, 'These were the heroes who defended these lands that day!' Today, we are not just resisting, but we are writing an epic that will change the fate of a people!"

Sitting upright on my horse, I looked into the eyes of each soldier as I finished my words. "Just a few hours, maybe one more day... Such a short time! We will hold together and stop these barbarians until help arrives! The only way forward for us is victory, and victory will only be possible if we fight together. Remember, there is no turning back. Now, we will either write a history that will be remembered forever or we will become nothing... I choose to write history. What about you? Are you with me?! Will you fight with me?!"

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There was a brief silence, but it lasted only a moment. Then, a voice rose from the depths of the army, echoing as if shaking the heavens. Each soldier, feeling the strength within themselves, cried out with courage,

"We are at your command, Commander!"

"We will fight with you!"

"For victory!"

"In the name of our God!"

The voices grew louder, more determined. Each soldier no longer saw themselves just as a warrior, but as a hero, a writer of legends. The fear within courage had replaced them. In each of their eyes, the light of victory shone. In each of their hearts, the desire to change history was born.

I urged my horse forward and looked at the advancing army with courage. In their eyes, I saw not just the will to fight, but also determination, pride, and honor.

"This is it!" I shouted, "You are my strength, my heart! Together, we will write a legend on this land! Now, together with God's blessing, we will embrace victory! Are you ready to fight?!"

"HURRA!" they responded, their voices echoing through the mountains. Together, standing united, we took another firm step towards confronting the enemy. There was no turning back now; this battle would determine our fate.

"Are you ready to destroy the enemy here?!"

"HURRA!"

"Are you ready to write an epic?!"

"HURRA!"

This time, I drew my sword and held it up to the sky, shouting one last time, "Then scream with me one more time!"

"HURRA! HURRA! HURRA!"

---

A few hours later—

In the hour that passed, Alpshar sent an envoy to offer a peace proposal, but I rejected it. He also personally offered me a one-on-one duel, but I rejected that as well. To be honest, I knew how dirty Alpshar played his games, and I wasn't sure whether he would stop his tricks when he was on the verge of losing. Plus, I wasn't even sure if I could defeat Alpshar. According to Evangeline, since he was born with at least as much potential as me and was older than me, he could be stronger than I was. Not to mention the experience gap.

Additionally, Alpshar had rarely offered one-on-one duels to his enemies, which showed he wanted to end the war as quickly as possible. This was because Alpshar was naturally not prepared for the battle with the main coalition army. That's why I decided to stick to the main plan. I would inflict as much damage as possible on Alpshar's army to ease the job of the main coalition army.

Even though the Emperor of Tiamat had betrayed the coalition, he was likely doing so secretly and on a minimal scale. So, when he saw that the coalition army was winning, he would probably stop his betrayal. I would deal with him later, but now, we had a serious problem. Although I had told the soldiers that the main coalition army was a day's distance away, that was a lie. They were probably at least two days away and definitely couldn't help us.

That's why every soldier here would most likely either die or be taken prisoner. I may have lied to them, even gambled with their lives, but sacrifice is necessary for absolute victory. It could be said that it's not my place to gamble with someone else's life, but frankly, I don't care what others think. The only thing that matters to me is protecting my loved ones and making them happy.

I must do this for my mother, my sisters, the women I love, and, lastly, for the children I only just learned existed. Whatever it takes, at the end of the day, I must be the one standing.

*Gum-Gum-Dut

The sound of war drums signaled that Alpshar's army was advancing, but the unease inside me didn't fade, even for a moment. My ten thousand soldiers, positioned along the riverbank, withdrew to defensive positions. Each soldier prepared using the natural barriers by the river to their best advantage.

Our defensive line was set up in an excellent position. We had shallow rivers in front of us, which would slow down enemy attacks and make it difficult for any aggressor to cross. Behind us was another river, providing an additional advantage to our defense. Crossing this area would be very challenging for Alpashar's army. Furthermore, to our left was a forest, and to our right, the point where the two river converged, making it nearly impossible to pass. Nearby, towering rocks served as natural cover from attacks by archers and mages. These points were becoming strong defenses against any type of enemy attack.

A few minutes later, Alpashar's forces began to appear on the other side of the river. As we waited for the battle to begin, I carefully observed the enemy's movements to understand their plans. Alpashar appeared to be committing all his forces to this attack, but I was prepared as well.

While keeping a close watch on the enemy army, I noticed something. Alpashar's troops looked like they were set up in a straight line, ready to charge forward. But there was a detail that didn't escape my notice. Alpashar had split his army into three, positioning each part with a different strategy. The first group was positioned along the river to launch a direct attack. The second group had started moving towards our rear, as if planning a surprise attack from behind. However, the most dangerous move was from the third group. Alpashar had cleverly planned to use the forest to sneak up directly on our flank. If we didn't notice this group, our defense could collapse entirely.

Within seconds, the first assault began. The first group by the river launched a quick and effective attack, while I swiftly moved to strengthen our defensive positions. However, my eyes were always on Alpashar's third group moving through the forest. As soon as I realized their movement, I gave orders to my units. Depending on how strong the attack would be, we couldn't leave a large gap in our flanks.

Then Alpashar made his move. The soldiers from the third group advanced swiftly towards the rocks, as if unnoticed, and suddenly targeted the weakest point of our defense. Other group, having infiltrated our rear, would attack from behind. With our attention focused on the front, they would weaken our flank and divide our army in two. That was the first sign that we were in for a very tough fight.