Chapter 173 The Final Battle
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
To get straight to the point, the final engagement between Coalmine Kingdom¹ and Canaria Kingdom² unfolded precisely as Kushe, the Chief Court Mage, had orchestrated.
When the Canaria Kingdom forces witnessed that singular burst into the heavens from the new magical weapon, “Matomeru-kun”³, they didn’t once suspect it was a mere provocation. Instead, they fell for the ruse, assuming the enemy had initiated a brand-new tactical maneuver.
Actually, the specifics of how the hostilities broke out are trivialities. The crux of the matter was that the Canaria side launched the initial assault. Against the Coalmine army arrayed as usual before Pikeaxe Fort⁴, the archers unleashed a sweeping volley in a bid to seize the initiative.
With this, the Coalmine army secured their casus belli. In short, their narrative was set: despite arriving with the intent to negotiate, their peace-keeping forces were targeted by an unprovoked attack. Therefore, they simply retaliated in kind. While it was unlikely anyone would actually believe that story, it made it exceedingly difficult to hold them legally accountable for the escalation.
”Was this truly for the best? In the wake of this battle, your name may be etched in history as a foolhardy general,” an officer questioned.
General Van Valedda, the supreme commander of Coalmine, dismissed the concern with a sharp laugh. It was an inquiry far too late to matter.
”Kuku, if I can make my infamy resound, that’s fine by me. At best, history will record that a final skirmish took place, or it will simply vanish into the margins and be forgotten,” General Van Valedda said.
Even as he spoke, his eyes betrayed a different conviction—he had no intention of letting that happen. Looking back, they had squandered far too much time since the onset of the war. They should have committed to this from the very beginning. Namely, an all-out offensive by the entire army—a death-defying, do-or-die strategy that discarded all thoughts of future logistics or occupation.
”Move out! Charge—!!!” General Van Valedda bellowed.
”OOOHHH!!!” the soldiers roared in unison.
* * *
At Van’s signal, the Coalmine soldiers surged forward. Leading the vanguard were the General and his mounted cavalry, while support from mages and archers rained down from the rear. It was a charge that mirrored their first battle, yet while the appearance was similar, the underlying strategy was entirely different.
Last time, they had been repelled by volunteer forces led by adventurers, but they would not permit a repeat of that failure. This time, they had a singular objective: the head of the enemy commander-in-chief, Duke Roost Badcage.
They would secure a decisive achievement. By doing so, they could crush the growing anti-war sentiment back home. Fortunately, Duke Badcage had been notably off his game on the battlefield of late. He seemed so preoccupied with the logistics of ultra-compact magical weaponry that he had seemingly forgotten the traditional importance of individual martial prowess.
Of course, that didn’t imply the Duke was incompetent. He had adapted with remarkable flexibility and boldness to the new paradigm of a battlefield dominated by portable magical weapons. However, on this particular day, the Coalmine army—firmly entrenched in the old paradigm—possessed the advantage of seniority, and more importantly, a far grimmer resolve.
”Shield-bearers, on guard!!!” a Canaria commander ordered.
It was a textbook counter-tactic. The heavy shield units of the Canaria army, primarily composed of beastmen, had successfully anchored the line against the Coalmine charge in their first engagement. Moreover, they were now supported by the ultra-compact magical weapons that didn’t exist back then, ready to strike from the rear.
”Jump over them!!!” General Van Valedda commanded.
”Wh-What!?” a soldier gasped.
However, the Coalmine forces had no intention of engaging them head-on this time. The cavalry leaped clear over the heavy shield units, bypassing the front line to target the support units—the soldiers armed with the ultra-compact magical weapons.
”Shield-bearers, hold your positions! Repel the infantry! Let the rearguard handle the cavalry! They’re just rats in a trap!!!” Duke Roost Badcage shouted.
Naturally, there was no way the Duke, who had spent the night refining his tactics, had failed to account for such a brute-force maneuver. If the shield-bearers turned to address their rear, they wouldn’t be able to hold against the incoming magic, arrows, and the approaching infantry. The rearguard would simply have to deal with the riders who had broken through.
In a crisis like this, the Canaria army’s ultra-compact magical weapon, the PHZ⁵, proved its worth. Being easy to handle and quick to cycle, the PHZ could incinerate an enemy with a mere flick of a switch, regardless of whether the user was ambushed, panicked, or even knocked to the ground.
Swoosh—!!!
”Gwaah!!!” a rider shrieked.
Cavalrymen were swallowed by flames across the field. Yet, they didn’t falter. They had learned from previous clashes that stopping meant certain death under concentrated fire. They also realized that the common soldiers wielding the PHZ weren’t necessarily hardened ‘individuals’ of high combat rank.
”Don’t back down! Push through!!!” General Van Valedda bellowed.
”Gyah…!” a soldier choked out.
Shrugging off the clinging fire, the cavalry pressed their advance, trampling over the PHZ soldiers. Standing in their path now were the volunteers—the adventurers. Before General Van’s eyes, the loathed duo of Tania, the Elf adventurer known as the Witch of Fresh Verdure⁶, and Laika, the Dog Beastman adventurer, vaulted into the fray.
”So you’ve finally shown your faces…!” General Van Valedda growled.
”I don’t know why you’re in such a rush, but we’re putting a stop to this here… Go, Laika!” Tania said.
”Grrrrr!” Laika snarled.
With a guttural growl, Laika pounced, aiming to drag the General from his mount. Suddenly, a pink shadow that had been hovering near the General intercepted the beastman.
”I won’t let you! Give my sister back—!!!” Earl Martin Popol shouted.
”Wh-What’s with this guy…!?” Tania asked.
Unintentionally, the Earl’s outburst was directed at the women who had taken his sister-in-law, Lily, as a slave. Had Tania been in a position to analyze it calmly, she might have connected the dots, but the truth of their connection wouldn’t be unraveled here. To her, he was just another madman screaming nonsense.
”Laika, fall back!” Tania ordered.
”You got it, Sis!” Laika replied.
”Wait…!” Earl Martin Popol cried out.
True to form, the Earl—mimicking the style of the Snow Owl⁷—gave chase. However, a wall of fire erupted from Tania’s hand, forcing Martin to stumble back.
”Tch…!” Earl Martin Popol hissed.
”Not finished yet!!!” Tania shouted.
Sensing his hesitation, Tania transformed the barrier into a surging wave of flame. This level of fine manipulation was the true advantage of ‘magic casters’—something the PHZ couldn’t replicate. Naturally, support fire from PHZ units added to the chaos from all sides.
”Urgh… When the goal is within reach…!” General Van Valedda muttered.
General Van gnashed his teeth, glaring past Tania’s group at Duke Roost Badcage, who was observing the field from the rear. Around him, the cavalry’s momentum had stalled, and they were quickly being encircled. Was this it? Was he to perish here, after a move so reckless it bordered on treason against the crown? To die without even crossing steel with the enemy commander…
”It’s not over yet! GOOOO!!!” a woman’s voice pierced the din.
* * *
Far behind the stalled charge, Kushe, the Chief Court Mage who had orchestrated this entire gambit, let out a scream. She funneled her own mana beyond all safe limits into the ‘Matomeru-kun’, which had been gorging itself on accumulated power.
Just like the cavalry’s suicidal gambit, this was a strike that could only be unleashed by someone who had already decided this battle would be their final act. Re-activating the ‘Matomeru-kun’ after this would likely require the same effort as building it from scratch.
Nevertheless, if it reduced Pikeaxe Fort to rubble and wiped out the mages of Canaria Kingdom, it was a bargain. In a total war, it would grant them the upper hand; in a ceasefire, they could negotiate from a position of absolute power. That was the logic she’d used to sway the generals, though in reality, it was all based on her raw intuition.
”KABOOOM!!!” Kushe shouted.
To her, the politics were irrelevant. She simply wanted to witness the maximum output of her creation and see the vista that lay beyond ‘total destruction.’ A beam of ruinous power, unlike anything seen before, erupted from the ‘Matomeru-kun’.
”Wh-What is that!?” a mage cried.
”Satsuki! Boost the output!!!” Marsetta screamed.
Within the fort, the Canaria Kingdom court mage Satsuki, along with her senior Marsetta and the mages exhausted from the relentless manufacturing of the PHZ, deployed their defensive wards with desperate screams.
”This is bad…!” Tania muttered.
As the gargantuan beam of concentrated mana bore down on them, everyone on the battlefield looked up in awe. Those with magical aptitude, led by Tania, instinctively redirected their power to bolster the fort’s defenses.
BOOOOOOOM!!!!
The earth groaned and shuddered…!!!
Against all odds, the strike from the ‘Matomeru-kun’ failed to breach Pikeaxe Fort. The magical energy dissipated into the atmosphere with a deafening roar and a series of seismic tremors. While the rest of the soldiers were paralyzed by the spectacle, General Van kept his eyes locked on Duke Roost Badcage.
”THE CHANCE IS NOW!!!!” General Van Valedda roared.
”Damn it…!” Duke Roost Badcage gasped.
Slipping through the disarray of the volunteers and PHZ troops, General Van and his remaining riders launched one final, desperate charge. They would take the enemy general’s head—a testament to martial valor from an age before magical weapons redefined war.
”I am Van Valedda, General of Coalmine! Duke Roost Badcage, face me!!!” the general challenged.
”Nuh…!” Duke Roost Badcage grunted.
Had it been Roost’s father, the retired Duke Fedal Badcage, he likely would have returned the challenge with a roar. But the current Duke, though he respected the old ways, had his hands full simply trying to bring his weapon up to meet General Van’s thunderous lance.
”Duke Badcage!!!” General Oromanso shouted.
General Oromanso, the commander of the Royal Army who was serving as the Duke’s advisor, moved to intervene. As a Bear Beastman, he leveraged his staggering physical strength to thrust a heavy spear that would have been impossible for a normal man to even lift.
”Stay out of this!!!” General Van Valedda roared.
Van parried the heavy blow, his focus never wavering from the Duke. This time, Duke Badcage met his gaze—his red eyes sunken and framed by deep shadows of fatigue—and swung his own spear.
”Lord Oromanso, stand down! I will face him as a warrior!!!” Duke Roost Badcage shouted.
Perhaps moved by Van’s sheer, spectral intensity, the Duke bellowed his response as they traded blows. For reasons neither could fully explain, a grim smirk tugged at the corners of their mouths.
Coalmine Kingdom had sought to rewrite the battlefield with the ‘Matomeru-kun’. Canaria Kingdom had countered with the ‘PHZ’. Yet, at the center of it all, they remained soldiers who worshipped the individual spirit of combat.
Though this clash would eventually be cited by historians as the turning point where the age of heroes began to fade, for a brief moment, the old ways reigned supreme.
”ROOST BADCAGE!!!” General Van Valedda screamed.
”VAN VALEDDA!!!” Duke Roost Badcage bellowed.
Bellowing each other’s names, they drove their mounts forward in a final pass. The duel between the supreme commanders reached a visceral conclusion as their spears found their marks, piercing one another simultaneously.
”Gwah…!”
”Gufu…!”
”General Van…!!!”
”Duke Badcage…!!!”
”Withdraw! Fall back—!!!”
”Don’t let them go! After them—!!!”
—
Summary:
The final battle between Coalmine and Canaria begins at Pikeaxe Fort after a series of provocations. General Van Valedda leads a desperate, old-school cavalry charge to bypass Canaria’s new ‘PHZ’ magical weapons and target Duke Badcage directly. Meanwhile, the mage Kushe unleashes the full power of the ‘Matomeru-kun’ weapon in a massive strike against the fort, which is barely blocked by the combined efforts of Canaria’s mages and Tania. The battle culminates in a dramatic 1-on-1 duel between the two supreme commanders, ending with both men wounding each other and a tactical stalemate.
—
Character Insight:
This chapter highlights the clash between the emerging era of mass-produced magical weaponry and the dying tradition of individual martial prowess. Both Van Valedda and Roost Badcage, despite being the drivers of this new technology, find their most authentic connection in the heat of a personal duel. Roost’s red, sunken eyes signify the extreme physical and mental toll of the ‘death march’ required to innovate, yet he still finds the spirit to meet Van’s challenge as a ‘warrior,’ showing that his core identity remains tied to the battlefield’s ancient codes rather than just being a technician.
—
Behind the Scene:
The author uses the term ‘death march’ (デスマーチ) to describe the mages’ condition, a common loanword in Japanese work culture, especially in software development, applied here to the ‘production’ of magical items. The PHZ weapon’s name is likely a play on onomatopoeia or a specific brand-like acronym common in light novels to give a sense of ‘corporate’ magical engineering.
—
T/L:
Notes:
• Kushe – The Chief Mage of the Coalmine Kingdom. She has dark green hair grown out haphazardly and wears a mage robe loosely over her shoulders. She has a blunt, informal, and somewhat insensitive personality, focused on her ‘thinking experiments.’
• Van Valedda – The General and Marquis overseeing the operation. He is the father of the current Queen and grandfather to the First Prince. He has black hair mixed with white, a neatly trimmed beard, and carries an air of calm dignity. He is elderly and suffers from old wounds in his knees.
• Roost – Duke of Badcage and father of Tina Badcage. He has long silver hair mixed with some white, a cool-headed expression, and red eyes. Despite a relatively slender build, he possesses a strong fighting spirit.
• Witch of Fresh Verdure – A legendary elf from the Age of Heroes. She is a true ‘magic user’ from an era before formalized magic systems. She is an old friend of the Canaria Kingdom’s founding king.
• Laika – The beastwoman dog.
• Tania – An Elf adventurer who, despite her race’s reputation for low sex drive, is secretly quite passionate. She initially seemed ‘wasted’ (emotionally dry) to her friend Raika, but was easily introduced to the pleasure-items sold at ‘Harvest.’ She is easily embarrassed and attempts to maintain a dignified facade, despite her recent, frequent purchases. She wears practical but light armor over a simple cloth tunic and short pants, highlighting her grace and agility. Her primary relationship is one of friendly senior-junior with Raika.
• Martin – Lily’s non-blood-related younger brother. Considered the strongest candidate to succeed the Popol family due to his lineage and manifested ‘power. He has pink hair.
• Lily – the sl*ve and primary experiment subject for the magic shop, ‘Harvest.’ She has striking pink hair, Blue eyes, medium breasts, which the Protagonist associates with being ‘wanton’. She has a working knowledge of magic, which she kept hidden from the slave trader.
• Marsetta – A senior court mage and specialist in magical weaponry. She has disheveled hair tied back, wears glasses, and has deep dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep. She hasn’t eaten in two days and is under heavy pressure to find a countermeasure for the enemy’s weapons.
• Satsuki – A talented Court Mage who was forced to analyze the shop’s adult magic tools. Miranda’s granddaughter. Now she’s the new worker at Harvest, a development she finds both humiliating and surprisingly fulfilling due to the rapid progress in her research under Kento’s guidance. Has long black hair, palace mage robe, and staff.
• Oromanso – A General serving as the assistant to Duke Roost.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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