Before my eyes, the magical portal that had been spinning around abruptly glowed red and then collapsed shut.
It meant the gate on the other side had been destroyed. I clenched my teeth.
"Who was the last to see the Shadow Squad?"
"Tha-that is..."
Damien stepped forward hesitantly.
"I looked back right before I boarded the gate. They had broken away from the retreat and were running towards the walls."
"..."
It was Damien's report, so it had to be accurate.
A headache began to pound, and I pressed my temples with my fingers.
Then, Torkel approached me, stuttering an apology.
"My apologies, your Highness. The situation was so urgent that, focusing only on the end of the column, we thought we were the last..."
I had entrusted the rear guard to the Leprosy Extermination Squad.
It was also their duty to confirm the retreat of all other allies. But they had failed to notice the departure of the Shadow Squad.
"...It's not your fault."
But how could I blame them when 30,000 goblins were overwhelming the fortress and rushing in? To look out for another party that had willfully broken away from the column was perhaps too harsh a task for the rear guard.
Yet, as cruel as it may be.
"The Shadow Squad must bear the responsibility for their own desertion."
I said this.
"Wait, Lord Ash! You don't mean to abandon the Shadow Squad like this?!"
It was Verdandi who asked this urgently.
As an elf herself, it wasn't strange for her to feel a strong camaraderie towards the three elves of the Shadow Squad.
"There is another emergency gate installed inside the forward base! We can send a rescue party through there!"
"..."
Verdandi was right.
There were three gates installed in the forward base. Two in the courtyard had just been destroyed.
As an emergency measure, to be used if necessary, the last one was hidden and installed somewhere else within the base.
We could deploy a rescue team through this gate.
Yes, it was possible to send one.
"...But what then? Should we form a rescue team now and send them into the heart of enemy territory?"
One had to think rationally.
The goblin army of 30,000 had seized the fortified base.
Should we send a rescue party to search for the Shadow Squad, not even knowing if they're alive or where they might be?
Chances are, the rescue team would be annihilated as well.
"The occupation by the enemy is not yet complete! This is our only chance to save them before the enemy fully secures the base!"
Verdandi pressed her point. But I shook my head.
"No, it would be wiser to wait until the enemy leaves the base and marches north towards Crossroad. Then we can send a search party. At least then, the safety of the search party can be guaranteed..."
"Then the Shadow Squad will all be dead!"
I closed my eyes tightly at Verdandi's cry.
The faces of the Shadow Squad, who had crossed the line of death with me, flashed through my mind. Oldgirl and Skull, who had died in my stead, also surfaced.
The Shadow Squad, under that name, had achieved numerous acts of valor.
Considering their dedication, it seemed right to organize a rescue team right away...
"My lord."
That was when Lucas, standing beside me, spoke coldly.
"That's not possible."
"..."
As I turned to him, Lucas shook his head firmly with a chillingly stern face.
"If you're considering a plan similar to what we did during Evangeline's time, I strongly oppose it. This situation is of a different magnitude."
"..."
"The opponent is the commander of the Nightmare Legion, and the enemy numbers 30,000. They are not dispersed; they are united. We can't hope for the same stroke of luck as last time."
"..."
"As the commander of the southern front, please judge this coldly, logically."
I clenched my teeth.
And then, I spoke to Verdandi.
Before the Goblin Legion, anyone who fell behind the procession might as well have been dead.
With the coldest voice I could muster...
"We're not children playing house here. We are at war."
"..."
"If one party falls behind, we cannot jeopardize everyone else. If we act on emotion now and our forces suffer further losses, then we'll fail to crush that Goblin Legion here, and the whole world will be trampled by monsters."
I reiterated as if to confirm.
"The Shadow Squad has been left behind deep within enemy territory. We cannot risk the lives of others for their rescue."
Verdandi's lips sealed tightly.
Torquel, feeling the weight of responsibility, hung his head low.
Then it happened.
Creak. Creak.
The sound of wheels rolling echoed.
Reluctantly, I looked in that direction.
There she was, sitting in a wheelchair, lips bitten, her face pale—the magician with fiery red hair.
I reluctantly called out her name.
"...Lilly."
***
The forward base was teeming with green monsters.
Hidden in an empty room on the outskirts of the base, the Shadow Squad kept their breathing low and surveyed their surroundings. Goblins with murderous intent were everywhere, their eyes flickering with malice.
"They won't stay here long."
Godhand whispered to Burnout and Bodybag.
"They'll soon march towards the Crossroad. Then the base will be empty, and our chance to escape will come... We just have to stay hidden until then."
Burnout and Bodybag nodded, their faces slick with cold sweat.
That's when it happened.
Squeak. Squeak.
Heavy footsteps on the wooden floor grew closer.
Startled, Godhand peeked in that direction to see a large Goblin, clad in ornate armor and with distinctive patterns on his face, walking down the corridor.
Goblin Amir.
A high-ranking Goblin general, just below the Goblin King.
"Kriek. Is the search proceeding well?"
"Yes, Kriek! We're combing through the inside of the base!"
"The Goblin King has given direct orders. There might be rats around. Search thoroughly. Kriek."
Bang!
Crash!
Led by Amir, a troop of Goblins started to forcefully open the rooms along the corridor, continuing their search.
Godhand exchanged panicked looks with Burnout and Bodybag.
They needed to hide—there was nowhere to go.
Glancing out the window, the exterior was swarming with Goblins too. It was a dead end either way.
Squeak. Squeak.
The footsteps were now right outside. Godhand clenched his teeth.
Bang-!
The door was flung open roughly.
Goblins poured into the room. A few steps behind them, Goblin Amir entered and slowly scanned the room.
"Hmm..."
The room was empty.
Kriek?
Kri-kriek...
The Goblin soldiers searched the room. It was cluttered like a storeroom, but they found no special trace.
"...No issues here, Kriek. Let's move to the next area!"
Goblin Amir turned to leave. The rest of the Goblins scrambled out after him.
"..."
"..."
"..."
Watching the room now emptied, Godhand quietly swallowed a sigh of relief.
The three members of the Shadow Squad were floating just below the ceiling.
Bodybag's psychokinesis.
Desperately, they had used it to lift their bodies into the air, pressing tight against the ceiling to stay hidden.
Fortunately, the Goblins never thought to look up.
After a few more minutes, the three Elves carefully descended to the floor. They exchanged glances silently.
They had done it. They had evaded the Goblins' search...
"Hehe. Hehehe. I knew it would be like this."
Just then, a low, grating laughter, like something scraping across the floor, rang in the Elves' ears.
Startled, Godhand turned to see the Goblin Amir and his soldiers, who he thought had left, pouring out from the end of the corridor.
"Smelled it, Kirik."
The Goblin Amir snickered, tapping his hooked nose lightly with his fingertip.
"The scent of tender elf flesh...!"
"Kugh...!"
"Kirik! Kill the elves! If you earn your merits, the God-King will 'promote' you!"
Kirik! Kirikirik!
The goblin soldiers' eyes blazed red as they let out a wild cry and charged down the hallway.
Godhand quickly pieced together iron shields from the storage, and Bodybag piled up that barricade at the entrance to the room. Burnout took out his bow and crossbow.
It was time to fight.
Kiyaaaaa!
The leading goblin effortlessly leaped over the barricade and lunged at Godhand.
Godhand struck its jaw with his left prosthetic arm and pierced its belly with the spear in his right. The creature died instantly.
The next one that followed was flung away by Bodybag's telekinetic magic, and the two behind were taken down by Burnout's arrows, spilling their blood as they fell.
During the brief battle, the goblins couldn't even get close to the Shadow Squad. For a moment, the three members of the Shadow Squad thought they could hold out easily like this.
But that thought quickly changed.
Thud!
"Kuk?!"
After dispatching over twenty goblins, a spear thrown from beyond the piled corpses pierced Godhand's shoulder armor.
As he killed that goblin, the next ones rushed in swinging their swords wildly, and when they fell, goblin archers from the end of the corridor started firing arrows indiscriminately, not caring whether their own were hit.
Bodybag deflected the arrows with her telekinesis, but a few still pierced through, wounding the members of the Shadow Squad.
Clang!
Crash-!
Simultaneously, the windows on both sides of the room shattered, and more goblins began pouring in. Not only from the front but from three directions, goblins grasped their weapons and leaped into action.
Goblins are often depicted as the weakest of monsters and indeed they are.
About half the size of an adult human male with even less strength. They may be quick on their feet, but that's not saying much compared to humans.
They're similar to human children under ten years of age.
But this is in a one-on-one comparison.
They move in packs and are instinctively skilled at slaughter.
Even if they're like human children of about ten, if dozens swarm you...
Especially with knives and spears in their hands...
And if they're adept at charging to kill without regard for their own lives...
Even the stoutest of warriors would find it difficult to cope.
"Hah...! Hah...!"
When the Shadow Squad had slain nearly fifty goblins.
The small room was so covered in goblin corpses and blood that it was difficult to move, and the three elves had suffered minor injuries all over.
More than anything - they were discovered.
Stealthily hiding and making a secret escape had become a distant dream. There was no hope left. All that remained was a fight to the death...
The three elves sensed their impending demise.
"Keke, Kirik. Silly elves."
As the elves showed signs of fatigue, the Goblin Amir himself drew his blade and advanced.
"I'll personally cut off your ears and present them to the God-King."
His long tongue licked the blade. Godhand wondered if he could use that creature as an ally to inflict some damage on the goblin horde.
'Ah.'
Suddenly, he longed to see his lover.
He missed her red hair scattered on the pillow, the affectionate gaze she had given him...
He longed for the night sky they had watched together.
Unknowingly, Godhand murmured.
"Lilly..."
At that very moment—
Boom!
The Goblin Amir and his entourage, licking their swords with their tongues, were suddenly engulfed by a brutal flame that tore through the corridor.
A terrible smell of burning flesh and intense heat swept through the room. The three members of the Shadow Squad hastily threw themselves to the ground to avoid it.
'Huh?'
After the storm of heat passed, Godhand bewilderedly lifted his head to survey the scene.
"Hey."
There she was.
"I told you."
Breathing heavily, her red hair fluttering, his lover stood before him.
The Senior Magician of the Monster Frontline—Lilly flashed a sly grin.
"Whenever there's trouble, I'll come to save you."