In Ark Simulator, why do I always get a tough start?

Chapter 114 Bloodbath of the Vanguard! Advancing Against the Wind and Snow!

"One-two-one! One-two-one!"

Several days later, on the plains outside the snow-capped mountains of Kjerag, an army composed of Victorian and Colombian soldiers was marching in a grand procession towards Kjerag.

Judging from the size of this army, they are clearly not the main force of the coalition, but rather an advance force.

Even so, this vanguard coalition of ten thousand men was still a formidable force.

Their impeccable military bearing and strict discipline proved that they were not some ragtag army used as cannon fodder, but rather the personal guard of a duke.

The steam-powered tanks and small missile vehicles that followed the army's advance further demonstrated the well-equipped nature of this vanguard force.

[And within the army, rows of steel mechs, each about three meters tall and entirely forged from steel and manufactured in Colombia, added a touch of futuristic sophistication to this steam-powered army.]

"Da da da."

A guard knocked on the window of a small landship in the center of the legion.

As the window rolled down, a slightly aged but kind and elegant film aristocrat was revealed.

[His expensive mink coat concealed a military uniform, and the row of medals he wore seemed to indirectly tell everyone that this kind-hearted man was not as simple as he appeared.]

"Harold, in about an hour we'll be at the foot of Mount Sherag."

"……Um."

Surprisingly, this bodyguard showed absolutely no respect for the nobleman, but the Viscount Harold was not angry; instead, he seemed quite used to it.

"There's going to be another war soon."

Harold was silent for a moment, then whispered to the guard by the window:
"How's it going, Lisbon? It's been so long since the last war, can you still handle a weapon?"

“…very heavy.”

After a moment of silence, the soldier named Lisbon obediently answered his old superior's question, saying:

"And this is a battle I really didn't want to fight."

Harold asked curiously, "Oh? You have family in Sherag? How come I didn't know?"

Lisbon replied, "...No, I just took advantage of the crowds during my vacation a while ago."

"Shelag is a great place. The scenery is beautiful and the people are very kind. I'd even like to come here to retire after I retire."

"...I never expected that I would come back here not because I'm retiring, but to fight in the war."

Harold was silent for a moment, then, feeling the same way, he replied:
"Me too. I originally planned to take my wife and kids here for a visit before the war with Letania started."

"Unfortunately, there's no chance now."

From a personal perspective, Harold never liked war; if possible, he would have preferred to be a farmer or a teacher.

Unfortunately, these dreams are now impossible to realize. As a soldier, Harold cannot allow himself to show any weakness during wartime.

"Lisbon, relay my order: the entire army shall continue its march at an accelerated pace."

"We must seize Sherag quickly before Letania can react, and use it as the front line of the war for Victoria."

“Harold, it’s not that I’m disobeying orders, but the weather in Sherag has been terrible lately.”

Lisbon cautioned, “Our steam tanks, and those tin huts in Colombia, are all suffering from sluggishness due to the climate.”

"Moreover, our troops are not used to marching in the snow, which is very physically demanding. It would be best for them to rest and recuperate."

"--no."

After a moment of contemplation, Harold decisively shook his head and said:

"The Leitanian army is advancing faster than us. If we slow down even a little, Leitania might take over Shelag first."

"By then, even if we bring the Steam Knights over, I'm afraid we still won't be able to take down Sherag, and the sacrifices we make will only be greater."

Harold, who had served as a soldier for nearly forty years, understood this principle very well.

"Order the troops to march for one hour with all their might, as if they were risking their lives."

"Also, be wary of any traps the Sherag people might set; they certainly won't sit idly by while we've come—"

Before Harold could finish speaking, suddenly, accompanied by a muffled explosion, Harold's land-based ship shook violently.

[After a large expanse of snow gradually fell, nearly burying several innocent soldiers nearby, everyone finally saw what had happened.]

"*A Victorian elegant greeting*! It's a landmine! And it's hidden in the snow!"

Lisbon brushed the snowflakes off his clothes and, after inspecting the land-based ships, reported to Harold:

"Harold, the land-based ships can't operate anymore, so you'll probably have to walk from now on."

"These pack animals actually hid landmines in the snow? Aren't they afraid the landmines will get wet and become useless?"

"It seems that there are indeed people in Sherag who understand tactics, but unfortunately, they don't understand weapons."

Seeing that the landship was unable to move, Harold disembarked without hesitation and went straight to the crater caused by the explosion.

Although the landmine had already detonated, Harold, with his extremely rich combat experience, was able to identify the type of landmine even from the remaining shrapnel and traces.

But this time, after looking down and observing for a while, he came to a conclusion that puzzled him.

"This kind of shrapnel and its power... it's not an anti-armor mine?"

"That's strange. If it's not an anti-tank mine, then why didn't the infantry in front trigger it when they passed by?"

Harold's experience taught him that anti-armor mines require a certain amount of pressure to trigger in order to prevent accidental detonation.

However, this landmine was far less powerful than an anti-tank mine, yet it happened to hit its own land vessel.

Are all the infantrymen in front so lucky? Did none of them step on this landmine?

Harold's intuition told him this was impossible, but after careful observation, he noticed something strange in the snow.

He discovered a partially detonated fuse, proving that the mine was a tripwire mine.

The fuse, blackened by gunpowder smoke, remained lodged in the snow despite Harold's slight effort.

Harold exerted his strength again, only to discover that the fuse was buried in the snow, almost connecting to the other side of the snowfield.

But this snowy plain had no trees to use for stringing.

[Then this tripwire mine hidden in the snow could only have been triggered manually.]

But in this vast expanse of white snow, there's no one around—

Suddenly, Harold seemed to realize something, as if a terrible possibility had occurred to him. He abruptly raised his head and shouted sharply:

"Halt! Be on high alert!"

But it was too late.

"boom--!!"

As soon as Harold finished speaking, similar explosions of landmines began to echo from all directions around the vanguard.

Almost without exception, all of these landmines detonated precisely beneath the feet of the tanks and Columbia's armored vehicles!

No one could have imagined that the snowfield, which had already been trampled over by countless infantrymen, would conceal such a large-scale danger. The allied forces were thrown into chaos amidst the smoke and fire.

"Take cover! Reorganize the lines!"

Under the immediate protection of his personal guards, Harold used the land-based ship as a shield to conceal himself.

After ensuring his own safety, Harold immediately issued orders by shouting, attempting to reorganize the army.

But soon, a high-pitched trumpet blast drowned out Harold's roar.

The trumpet's sound was sharp, high-pitched, and impassioned.

Harold, a nobleman with a profound knowledge of music, detected a hint of murderous intent in the stirring trumpet music!

[It's like a signal for attack, a prelude to a massive army offensive!]

Harold's bad premonition came true once again.

The sudden sound of a trumpet, originating from an unknown place, echoed across the battlefield, and in that instant, something terrifying happened to countless Victorians.

Suddenly, soldiers with terrifying skull patterns on their helmets sprang out from the snow beneath their feet!

"Kill!!"

"Go straight for their commander!"

"Let's show these invaders what we're made of!"

The moment the bugle sounded the attack, all the First Legion soldiers who had been hiding here since yesterday seemed like ghosts leaping out of the snow.

Facing the enemy before them, their eyes were bloodshot, and even their bodies, frozen stiff from hiding in the snow all day, seemed no longer an obstacle.

They roared and howled madly, raising their weapons high as they launched a raging onslaught against the enemy before them!

At this moment, both the Victorian soldiers and the surviving Columbia mech pilots were stunned by this frenzied offensive.

They never expected the Sherag people to hide in the snow and launch an attack on the weakest point in their army's center!

[Keep in mind, this is Kjerag, with temperatures dropping to tens of degrees below zero!]

Even if the soldiers racked their brains, they would never have imagined that the very ground they had just stepped on might have been sheltered by the Sherag people hidden in the snow!

They underestimated the Sherag people.

The Sherag people, who constantly battle the harsh climate, are more adapted to the cold than any enemy from afar.

[Their primitive lifestyle in the past meant that many of them had experienced getting lost in heavy snow and having to survive in the snow while waiting to be rescued.]

[Furthermore, the mountain snow demons' equipped gear allows them to fight even if they hide in the snow for a whole day.]

Even so, many of the Sherag soldiers who launched the charge still witnessed a scene that chilled them to the bone.

Many of their comrades and fellow villagers, who were hidden not far from them in their memories, did not rush out of the snow when the bugle sounded to charge.

Beneath the vast expanse of white snow, their bodies seemed to have become one with the snow... devoid of any life.

But to protect Kjerag, and to prevent the tactics devised by their king from being broken, they chose to burn their last ounce of will until death.

At that moment, everyone who caught a glimpse of their friends, fellow villagers, or even relatives in the snow—people from Shelag who would never emerge again—had tears in their eyes and felt a pang of heartache.

But neither of them cried.

They unleashed all their anger and hatred upon the invaders who had violated the land that had nurtured them for generations!

"puff!"

Soon, a Victorian soldier, before he could even react, was pierced through the body by a halberd, becoming the first casualty of this war.

Blood stained the pristine snow, staining the snow demon's helmet and wildly stimulating the adrenaline rush in everyone's veins.

At this moment, national and personal grievances transformed into a bloodthirsty thirst for revenge in their hearts, erasing even the last vestiges of fear they felt on their first battlefield experience. Now, their eyes were fixed solely on killing the enemy!

[For Shelag, for our fallen comrades, let us fight the enemy!]

"Warriors of the Perroche family! Follow me!"

"Kill these scum who dare to blaspheme Sherag!"

[Actorus, as the head of the family, raised his battle axe high and led his hand-picked warriors of the Perochi family at the forefront!]

Driven by their patriarch's exemplary leadership and fueled by national and personal grievances, the warriors of Perroche were in high spirits, displaying an unprecedented level of unity!

Before the troops of Victoria and Colombia could react to the surprise attack, they launched wave after wave of desperate charges towards the center of the vanguard!

In that brief opening, they actually managed to tear a gap in Victoria's central battle line!

"Line up! Form ranks!"

"Block the enemy's attack!"

[Meanwhile, Horn Peak, leading his shieldbearers, charged out of the snow, determined to hold back the breach opened by the Perochi tribe.]

Wielding large shields, the well-trained mountain snow demons, in an impenetrable square formation, attempted to completely cleave Victoria's army in two, isolating the outer forces from the central area!

As time passed, Victoria's army, under the command of several junior officers, began to regroup and launch wave after wave of attacks against the shieldbearers of Horn Peak!

But neither the Horned Peak nor the shieldbearers he had personally trained were overwhelmed by Victoria's infantry offensive!

They held their formation with all their might, like a dam forged of steel, using their armor and flesh to stop the surging offensive!

Now is the perfect time to strike at the vanguard's command center!

"Beep beep beep! Beep beep—!"

Just as the battle reached a stalemate, the Victorian army, caught off guard, gradually began to regain its organizational capacity.

Just as the vanguard realized that the Sherag army's target was their command center, they began to move closer to it.

Just as the last remaining steam-powered tanks and kinetic mechs were about to be deployed to the battlefield.

A high-pitched trumpet blast rang out again! The memory of the previous sneak attack resurfaced, sending a shiver down the spines of the vanguard soldiers, who instinctively gripped their weapons tighter.

The next second, they saw a flag being unfurled from the snow!

It was a military flag with a blue base color, embroidered with snow-capped mountains, blue skies, statues, and swords!

Although the vanguard had never seen this banner before, seeing it now, they understood that it was the banner of Shelag!

But where did they come from?!

"Soldiers of Shelag!"

"Follow me! Charge!!"

"Charge—!!!" XN
Amidst the deafening battle cries, the vanguard soldiers gradually came into view of the warriors charging fearlessly towards them!

Their equipment was indistinguishable from that of the enemies in the center, making it difficult to discern their status based on their clothing.

But they all saw it: the "flag bearer" at the very front, with an extremely bright red ribbon on his arm!

[They also noticed the soldier beside the standard-bearer holding a musket that was clearly not one that Shelag could produce!]

[And it was under the leadership of these two that this formidable Sherag army, like a sharp dagger, plunged into the vanguard's ranks!]

"Reorganize the army! Stop this army!"

[Some commanders of the vanguard army reacted quickly, organizing their soldiers to launch a counterattack against your elite force!]

"Stop them with your armor! Annihilate them! We must not let them reach the Viscount's position!"

Under the command of Victoria's officers, Columbia's kinetic armor begins to approach you.

[You know very well that if these armored vehicles were to gather, you, lacking heavy firepower, would find it extremely difficult to break through their encirclement.]

And all the soldiers who followed you into battle knew this perfectly well.

Therefore, they will do everything in their power to intercept these Colombian kinetic armors!

"Don't even think about leaving!"

[A warrior from the Perroch family, upon seeing a kinetic armored vehicle approaching, completely disregarded the disparity in strength between his body and the armor, and lunged at the vehicle's body.]

However, his interception had little effect on the armor; with just one punch, the warrior was beaten until he was bleeding profusely.

But he clung tightly to the mech's body, and without hesitation, pulled the trigger of the bombs he had prepared at his waist!

"By Yelagund!"

"boom--!!"

With a final scream, the bomb exploded, taking the soldier's flesh and blood with it!

The mech shook violently from the close-range explosion, barely managing to maintain operation after a few stumbles.

[But before the operator inside the armor could recover from the explosion, another Snow Demon charged towards him without hesitation!]

"By Jeragand!!"

"boom!!"

Another explosion rang out, and this time, the mech, along with its pilot, was destroyed, finally ceasing all operation.

And a similar scene is being repeated time and again on this bloody battlefield!

"Crazy! A bunch of crazy!"

The Sherag people's fearless sacrifice instilled a profound sense of dread in the Victoria soldiers, and even in the Columbia pilots controlling their armor!

They were terrified by this group's determination to defend their country and their spirit of self-sacrifice!

[Having never fought against such a frenzied army before, the morale of the vanguard was somewhat shaken.]

[But at that moment, something even more astonishing happened!]

Accompanied by an extremely strange gust of wind, the blizzard began to fall even more rapidly!

The soft snowflakes, like tiny knives, constantly scraped against the soldiers' skin, forcing them to shield themselves from the wind and even preventing them from opening their eyes.

Many mechs and steam-powered vehicles were completely blinded by the heavy snow and didn't know how to move.

Under this sudden blizzard, all command systems seemed to malfunction, and everyone was unable to clearly see the faces of those around them.

All that could be heard was the echoing sounds of collisions, slaughter, and flesh being torn apart.

[And there, in mid-air, the only clearly visible military flag, continued to advance deeper into the center of the army formation despite the heavy snowfall...]

……

"Huh, huh..."

"Damn it, is the heavy snow finally over? It almost buried me!"

The eerie snowfall lasted for a full half hour, and Harold, who had been hiding behind the wrecked landship, slowly stood up after shaking off the snow that had almost buried him.

However, just as he raised his head, he felt a cold, hard touch on the back of his head.

Harold's body stiffened abruptly as a terrifying thought surfaced in his mind.

"...For your safety, you'd better not move around, Your Excellency."

Chen Qi, who had raised his gun and aimed it at the back of Harold's head, had somehow removed his helmet, revealing his true face.

"You have been captured."

"Your test has failed; you have lost this battle."

"To avoid further innocent casualties, you'd better surrender."

"...Or are you so fearless that you'd rather have your head blown off than surrender?"

As Chen Qi finished speaking, Harold, who had gradually realized his situation, let out a sneer and then revealed a bitter expression of defeat.

The next second, he raised his hands without resistance, expressing his meaning.

He didn't even wait for Chen Qi to urge him before calmly speaking into the communicator:

"My apologies, my comrades in the vanguard, I have been captured."

"Don't let our brothers make meaningless sacrifices. Please give up the resistance."

After Harold finished speaking, the bloody battlefield gradually returned to calm, and no more casualties occurred.

"—A smart choice."

Seeing that Harold was being pragmatic, Chen Qi breathed a sigh of relief, but his tone remained unchanged.

At Chen Qi's signal, the two mountain snow demons beside him quickly handcuffed Harold, who had already been captured.

But at that moment, Harold, who had turned to look at Chen Qi, finally had a chance to speak:

"Your Majesty, King of Kalan, this battle was fought brilliantly. I concede defeat."

"But, could you please consider exchanging my life, that of a lowly viscount, for the lives of my brothers?"

Harold spoke calmly, showing no concern for his own death, and said in an exceptionally relaxed tone:
“You don’t even need to worry about them. Just let them go on their own. With all this snow, the chances of them getting lost are too high. There’s not even a chance that one of them will make it back to Victoria alive.”

"But how about we spare their lives? Your Highness, King Kalan, please have mercy and spare these brothers who have risked their lives with me?"

"I'm sorry, Viscount Harold, I can't do that."

Looking directly at Harold, Chen Qi's lips curled into a slight smile as he calmly said:
“I don’t intend to release your people back to Victoria. I plan to capture you all and take you back to Shelag.”

"However, you can rest assured that you will not be mistreated there. I only intend to use your lives as bargaining chips in future negotiations."

"—Hahaha! Then I'm afraid His Majesty King Kalan will be disappointed."

Harold laughed heartily upon hearing this, making no attempt to hide his laughter:
“In Victoria, I am just a minor viscount. Even if the Duke of Caesar knew that I had been captured, he probably wouldn’t care about my life or the lives of these brothers.”

"At that time, His Majesty King Kalan will likely be greeted by the real Victorian army, rather than a negotiating team?"

"...You don't need to worry about these things."

Chen Qi ignored Harold's words. Having achieved an initial victory, he now only wanted to make arrangements for the next step as soon as possible.

"Everyone, collect the bodies of your comrades and escort the prisoners back to Shelag!"

"Take all equipment and supplies! Destroy what you can't take! Don't leave any for the enemy!"

"Next, we still have a real tough battle to fight!"

(End of this chapter)