"You are free to act as you like. Just know that there is no plan. Rampage as you like."
Trudviar is feeling a headache from recalling his majesty's words. It is irresponsible, thoughtless, and just too much! He cannot read the thoughts of his nephew, and he doesn't know whatever deep meaning is there in these words.
He looks for Zeraya for help. For one, he thinks she knows what that annoying nephew of his is scheming. Zeraya helplessly shakes her head. She doesn't understand either what his majesty means by 'Rampage as you like', moreover, she is even more confused as the words 'You are free to act as you like' are quite contradictory to his latter words.
For all the two might know, those words might actually mean nothing.
The two look at the blind 'messenger' who can be their only recipient of annoyance at the moment. The dreary gaze of the two didn't bother Varen as he is blind and has difficulties detecting social cues.
Varen is loyal, broad-minded, and easy to convince. This must be how his majesty roped the blind elf. The three of them are some distance from the main elf camp. The elves are packing, cleaning up, and preparing themselves to attack the county. After learning that their King went ahead to start the party without them, all of the elves start panicking like headless flies.
If not for Trudviar's confident words that it is all planned, they would be devolving into more chaos.
As the three self-elected leaders converse with each other, Lafira who is sharpening her axe gazes at the high walls of the county. She desires to murder the humans more than the others, and this flame is what attracts her elf kin to her. With her as the center, the other murderous elves gather on her.
Except for Lameya, Mima, and a few elves who are more of sound mind and calm heart, almost all of the elves are rearing to go, and do some slaughtering.
Trudviar's eyes widen in surprise and disbelief at the mention of a 'Godly Berserker Potion' coming out of Varen's mouth. "What the hell are you talking about!? He said that!?" Zeraya is much calmer but she still has a frown on her face.
"The decision is yours to make… General Trudviar." Varen respectfully addresses Trudviar and removes himself in front of the two.
The commotion attracts the other elves, but their curious eyes quickly recede as Varen tells them with a small explanation that everything is fine.
…
Trudviar has no time to brood. The longer he idles, the more the King will be putting himself in danger. But what point in saving the King when he is dead? The news of the 'Godly Berserker Potion' is a bitter pill to swallow.
"He wishes to create a god that will be immortalized in the annals of time…" Varen's words are rather exaggerated, but that is actually what he means by those words. This is the King's intention.
"Such a foolish… person…" Zeraya regretfully whispers.
The King is now giving full autonomy to Trudviar on how to mobilize his people. Trudviar can see it plain as day. "I can do as I like… That is what he means by those words, huh? And for me to rampage, he must mean I don't need to bother with the casualties."
"I have decided…" Trudviar whispers to no one in particular, but Zeraya catches on to this as her ears perk up. Trudviar adds with solemnity as he addresses the half-elf. "We are going to save his majesty… Help us, Zeraya the half-elf…"
"What is the plan?" Zeraya seriously asks Trudviar keen on participating.
Trudviar's eyes land on Lafira and the elves gathering on her. "First, we will need cannon fodder…" He declares with cold cruelty. This is war, and there is no need for niceties anymore."
…
Lafira doesn't know why the King went before the army. It doesn't make sense. What can that wise-ass do? At first, she imagines the King as a wise elf capable of seeing far into the future. The King knows the way, so she follows, however, she really doesn't respect him much.
If there is someone she respects with all her heart, then it will be Trudviar. As a warrior and someone who fights on the battlefield fearlessly, Trudviar is Lafira's role model.
That is why when Trudviar comes to him and asks her to become the 'Flag Bearer', she willingly accepts the job. With over twenty elves under her, it is her responsibility to plant the flag at the highest point of the Urden estate.
The elves divide themselves into three groups— the Flag Bearer group with her at its helm, the Rescue group with Lameya in charge, and the Potion group with Trudviar leading it to ransack the alchemy workshop of the estate.
Lafira is not a fool. She understands quite a lot about what her current situation is— she is cannon fodder. She doesn't have any grievances, but only a sense of honor.
The elves do away with their crossbows, destroying the body except for the bow and string. What remains of it is the short bow that they can still use to fire steel bolts. The short bows' strings remain strong, and with the augmentation of their Berserker Potions, the elves can still fire these steel bolts with the same power as their crossbows.
It is a starless night, and a full moon is above them. It reminds Lafira of that fateful night in the bandit's village.
All of the elves drink their Berserker Potions at once, and together, they march from the south gate of the estate, opposite to the gate where the King comes from. The Elven army makes a sprinting march. Unreserved, the elves are like a gale sweeping on the dirt road.
Lafira is at the forefront of the march waving a white flag with the symbol of the branding from elf slaves. It has a bloody circle with an inverted triangle in the middle. The flag is tied to a spear that weighs heavier than her axe, but she is carrying it as if it is a twig. The flag Lafira is carrying has the symbol of a sword inside the triangle overlapping itself to the rigid lines and curves, and just outside the circle, it has wreaths reminiscent of golden ears of wheat.
It would look like just a mundane flag of an unknown noble lord, but the fact that human blood dyes this flag creates a different story.
The sentry who is dutifully watching from his watchtower sees the shadow of a small contingent. At first, he is thinking that they are suicidal bandits, but then he realizes… "They are running as fast as horses! This… this! What is happening!?"
Despite the sentry's confusion, he is able to do his duty as he sounds the bell just beside him. The clanging of the bell resounds in the deep of the night. It is still silent in the southern part of the county, but the presence of the angry elves changes the atmosphere instantly.
At the sound of the bell, soldiers who are sleeping in small barracks by the south gate gather. Similar activity from the other barracks occurs as they pass on the messages. Except for the north gate whose soldiers are busying themselves with an abnormal Stalker, the other barracks are conveniently gathering their troops in response to an invasion.
Resounding twangs of steel bolts and strings resonate in the air. A steel bolt makes its mark on the sentry's chest killing the irritating clanging of the bell and the poor sentry. More steel bolts follow, landing on the walls. The steel bolts arrange themselves in a certain pattern.
Some human archers were able to gather on top of the walls. However, before they can even fire an arrow in retaliation, the elves have long marked them and sent a steel bolt on their way.
Trudviar who is the center of the formation screams a new order. "Scale the walls!"
The elves don't need any siege tools, they only need to rely on their tough arrows as footholds to climb the walls.
Lafira scales the walls first. Waving the flag in the air, she arrives at the top of the wall. Human soldiers with spears gather on her. Lafira pierces the flag on the marble floor and draws the axes from her waist. She bloodily makes quick work of the little soldiers barring her way. The more elves gather, the quicker they suppress the soldiers on the walls.
The Berserker Potion that the elves ingested are not as lethal as its Godly version, but still, the elves' attributes are still able to border superhuman. This is because the elves are almost superhuman in the beginning already.
Lafira picks up the flag once more and runs forward not giving a second look to Trudviar. The other bloodthirsty elves follow her.
Trudviar and the others scatter to accomplish their own objectives.
The white flag with its dreadful symbol showcases itself on the empty road. The commoners in their houses look fearfully at the marching elves. Some of them are surrounding Lafira, and some of them are on roofs casually sending an arrow or two.
Lafira sees the tallest building in the county. It is a watchtower twice the height of the watchtowers at the gate. Just on top of the watchtower is the Urden flag carrying an image of a hateful bear. The closer Lafira's troop comes to the tower, the more resistance they face, but Lafira is fearless.
She knows her purpose for coming here. She knows that she is just cannon fodder, yet that doesn't diminish her motivation. Once she replaces the flag hanging by the damnable watchtower, with it being such an obvious provocation, more soldiers would then gather on her. Through this, she will be able to kill more humans.
With her small troop, Lafira makes use of their mobility, individual prowess, and small numbers to maintain their superior advantage over the human soldiers.
As the Flag Bearer, Lafira crazily waves the flag in the air as she casually axes a soldier, and stabs someone with the pointy end of the flag's spear. "My elves! Gather on me! We fight!"