Chapter 29 [Silva's Forest, Part 2 Intercept Battle]
Through the horn, they gathered information on the invading army as far as the elves knew. Simultaneously, with the cooperation of the elder spirit tree, they sought information about the baron's army from the spirits. Oh, and wind magic has been successfully learned, enabling practical-level flight.
The invading force is divided into two battalions, with a squadron in the vanguard and another in reserve for relief and supply. Since the invasion route is known, they consider possible ambush locations. However, it needs to be sufficiently far from the elf village to avoid drawing attention.
The vanguard unit approaches. Although the assumed combat area has already undergone dungeon transformation, it's indistinguishable from the surrounding trees and underbrush. The dungeon's reinforcement is minimal, but it suppresses magical emissions, making it unlikely to be noticed without a very cautious commander.
As the vanguard unit—about two hundred soldiers, as per this world's squadron—closes in on the assumed combat area (basically the dungeon's territory), it turns out there are quite a few of them. A squadron against elves is typically around two hundred people, but wait, heavily-armored infantry for a forest battle against elves? And they're marching in neat formation?
"Master... elves are skilled with bows... did they bring out metal armor as a countermeasure?"
"Well, aren't elves also skilled in magic? I don't understand why they'd sacrifice mobility in a battle against magicians."
"Listening to the soldiers' conversations, they say they were provided with magic-resistant amulets from the Yalta Church as a countermeasure."
"I see. Whether they actually work or not is uncertain, but they confidently advanced with those amulets."
"But, Master, if they have such amulets, will magic be effective?"
"Keen, magic-resistant amulets should only work against magic itself. I doubt they have an effect on the consequences of magical effects. Besides, my dungeon hasn't shown any signs of being affected."
"So, even if direct fire magic is repelled, you can't extinguish the spreading fire. Is that what you're saying?"
"That's right. But causing a forest fire is also a problem. Let's go with a simpler approach."
They had considered various procedures, but witnessing the unexpected entrance march of heavily-armored infantry—there's no other way to describe it, really—made it all too bothersome. So, they hollowed out the ground beneath the formation, or rather, a trench, causing everyone to fall. With no tension or vigilance, and appearing neatly aligned, it was easy. Pouring in water afterwards, the heavy armor became a hindrance, and the vanguard of the invading army, two hundred strong, drowned.
"Wow, Master, no mercy."
"The time it took to annihilate a squadron was less than ten minutes. Soldiers do cry."
The corpses of the squadron were absorbed into the dungeon, but the equipment is still left without absorption. They plan to use dungeon gates to bring it to the dungeons of Romulus and Remus later, so they haven't released the dungeon transformation yet. For now, they sealed the hole, restoring the forest to its original appearance at a glance. Still, they'll advise the elves to stay away from here for a while; it would be troublesome if they noticed something.
"Now, the vanguard squadron is dealt with, but there's still a whole squadron outside the forest. Leave their disposal to them. You heard about the amulet's weakness, right? Clean them up while staying hidden."
.....
The Baron's second squadron, waiting outside the forest, suddenly came under attack from an unidentified enemy. Despite the invisible nature of the enemy, flames erupted around them. Caught in the underbrush or suddenly sinking into muddy ground, they were burned by spreading fire when overturned, pierced by water spears coming from nowhere, and trampled by panicked horses that were set on fire. Many soldiers died.
They had come to kill, but they hadn't prepared to be killed themselves. In a panic, blinded by the smoke of the fire, unable to breathe properly, the group lost its rational judgment and swung swords indiscriminately. Friendly fire broke out everywhere, and the somewhat comical tragedy further expanded as comrades mistook each other for enemies.
Survivors, though battered and bruised, numbered less than thirty. The Baron's invasion force into Silva's Forest was utterly destroyed.
No information useful for understanding the situation was obtained from the survivors. Their only repeated explanation was that they were done in by Silva's monsters.
...
"Alright, Rai, sorry, but sprinkle water to prevent the spread. Let's dungeonize this entire area like the forest. Later, we'll use dungeon skills to extinguish it, so just focus on preventing the spread. It's tiring to dungeonize a wide area repeatedly."
They dungeonized the battlefield just like the forest, absorbing the corpses into the dungeon. They decided to gather equipment and supplies with those of the vanguard unit later. They let the horses escape since they were innocent.
They gained a lot from this battle. The practical combat experience of their children was invaluable, and the interesting aspect of panicked soldiers starting friendly fire could be considered as a tactic. Afterward, they planned to visit Baron's territory for greetings, and the experience might prove useful for the tasks there.