“Kill, kill—cough cough.”

Veru’s voice was hoarse, and his helmet had been knocked off in the fray by a cannibal demon warrior. Half of his body was covered in blood, which seeped through his armor, dyeing it red, though it was impossible to tell whether it was his own blood or that of the demons.

After being knocked from his horse, Lea disappeared without a trace. It was likely he had been killed.

After Marquis Wade ordered a retreat, the cannibal demons launched a perfunctory pursuit before concentrating their forces on besieging Veru’s cavalry.

Under the relentless assault of the demons, wave after wave of dog-headed people charged the Northern Expeditionary Army’s cavalry, throwing themselves under their horses’ hooves. Though these creatures were weak, they fought with a reckless determination that eventually overwhelmed the cavalry’s defenses.

The cavalry’s speed was slowed, ensnared in the quagmire of the demon army. But now that victory belonged to the demons, they were unwilling to sustain further losses, and so did not directly engage the cavalry as they had before. Instead, they drove the dog-headed people forward to exhaust their enemies.

“Kill!”

Veru sent another dog-headed person flying with a slash of his sword, the force of his heavy blade tossing the creature several meters away, blood spraying out even further.

But Veru felt like he’d punched a wad of cotton, an emptiness as he struck his foe. He wanted to kill more giants, not waste his strength on these cannon fodder.

If the giants had continued to ignore him and allowed him to lead his cavalrymen through, things might have been different, but the giants had abandoned their pursuit of Marquis Wade to focus on wiping out this cavalry force. How could they possibly let him pass?

Finally, just as it seemed they were about to break free, large numbers of giants began to stir.

Leading them were two enormous chiefs, who blocked Veru’s path as he charged forward.

“So we can’t escape after all.”

Veru’s expression lightened in the face of this despair-inducing situation.

No one wanted to die; Veru was no exception. With his noble birth, status as a peak knight at such a young age, being the pride of the Lancelot family, and a bright future ahead of him, he obviously had no wish to die.

However, now that all hope of escape had been extinguished, Veru no longer feared death. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that the responsibility and honor he felt as a member of the Lancelot family overpowered his fear of death.

Veru raised his sword once more.

“Lancelot!”

“Lancelot!”

The knights had already suffered losses of more than half their number, but their spirits remained undeterred, and they shouted along with Veru.

“Attack!”

“Kill!”

Veru led the remaining knights in a final charge against the cannibal demons up ahead.

“Bang!”

The sword in Veru’s hands clashed fiercely against the chief cannibal demon’s weapon.

In this first strike, Veru drew even with the chief cannibal demon, aided by the momentum of his horse. The demon even seemed to retreat half a step.

Unfortunately, without the power of his warhorse, Veru was completely incapable of withstanding the second strike from the chief cannibal demon.

In one blow, he was knocked from his horse, tumbling helplessly to the ground.

The difference between them was simply too great. A half-step Great Knight was still only a half-step Great Knight, and Berserk’s buff elevated the cannibal demons to a level far beyond him.

Veru’s grip cracked, and blood flowed from the cracks, saturating the hilt of his sword. His sword hand trembled slightly, unable to maintain a firm grip.

The chief did not give Veru any time to catch his breath, stepping forward toward him with each stride.

Perhaps I should have died trying to break through, thought Veru. He exerted all the remaining energy he had, struggling to keep a firm grip on his sword with both hands. “Kill!”

With a hoarse battle cry, Veru launched a suicide attack against the incoming chief.

Clang!

Bang!

After effortlessly parrying Veru’s sword, the gnarled club struck down on his chest.

Veru coughed up blood, and a careful observer would have noticed bits of internal organs mixed in with the crimson liquid. Though his armor remained relatively intact, the blunt force of the blow shattered his internal organs. He collapsed onto the ground, clearly dead.

At least he died with dignity. Even though it did nothing to change the outcome, he had still tried to lead his men out.

This was what Veru thought in his final moments.

---

Golden Dragon Calendar, 521 A.D., early spring

The Northern Expeditionary Army’s campaign against the cannibals ended in a decisive defeat.

After their commander, Veru Lancelot, fell in battle, the majority of the cavalry soldiers were killed, with only a small number escaping from the cannibal army and fleeing back to the northern lands.

---

The news arrived in the capital, and the court convened an emergency meeting. The ministers discussed the matter at length, but none could offer a solution.

“Your Majesty, we must act swiftly and decisively to address this crisis,” said Minister of War Veleno. “The enemy is at our doorstep, and our forces are spread thin across the continent.”

“And where are these enemies you speak of?” asked Minister of Finance Zelene. “I have yet to see any evidence of this ‘cannibal army’ beyond hearsay and rumors.”

“I have seen it with my own eyes,” countered Veleno, his voice rising in anger. “I have seen the horrors these beasts are capable of, and I will not stand idly by while they threaten our people!”

“Then perhaps you should lead the charge yourself, if you are so eager to engage these ‘beasts,'” retorted Zelene, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “After all, it was your incompetence that led to this mess in the first place.”

The two ministers continued to bicker, their voices growing louder and more heated by the second. The emperor, seated on his throne, listened to their exchange with a look of deep concern.

Finally, after what felt like hours, the emperor raised a hand, signaling for silence. “Ministers,” he began, “the situation is dire, and we must act swiftly to address it. However, we cannot afford to let our disagreements fester and divide us further.”

He paused, weighing his words carefully before continuing. “Therefore, I hereby appoint Minister Veleno as commander in chief of our military forces, with Minister Zelene serving as his deputy. Together, you will devise a strategy to counter this threat and restore peace to our lands.”

The ministers exchanged glances, but neither protested the emperor’s decision. And so, with a heavy heart, the court adjourned, leaving the ministers to contemplate their next move.

---

As news of the Northern Expeditionary Army’s defeat spread throughout the land, panic began to grip the populace. People grew fearful for their safety, and whispers of conspiracy theories filled the air.

In one village, a group of frightened villagers gathered around their local blacksmith, who had been working tirelessly to repair their weapons and armor.

“What shall we do?” asked one villager, her voice trembling with fear. “With the army defeated, who will protect us from these cannibals?”

The blacksmith looked up from his work, his brow furrowed with worry. “I’m afraid there’s little we can do but arm ourselves and hope for the best,” he replied grimly.

“But surely there must be something more we can do!” exclaimed another villager. “We cannot simply sit by and wait for death to come knocking on our door!”

As the villagers continued to fret over their uncertain future, they failed to notice that something strange was happening within their own midst.

---

In another part of the country, a young girl named Aria found herself wandering through the forest near her home. She had always loved exploring the woods, marveling at the beauty of nature and discovering new wonders hidden within its depths.

But today was different. As Aria ventured deeper into the forest than ever before, she felt an inexplicable pull towards an ancient oak tree standing alone at the edge of a clearing.

Upon reaching the tree, Aria noticed something peculiar: a small golden acorn nestled within a crack in its bark. Intrigued by her discovery, she reached out to touch it when suddenly, a brilliant light erupted from within the acorn.

Aria recoiled in shock as the light enveloped her entire body, filling her with an overwhelming sense of power and energy. She gasped for breath as her vision blurred and swam with colors she had never seen before.

And then, just as quickly as it had begun, the light faded away, leaving Aria standing alone once more amidst the trees. But she was no longer alone; within her heart now burned a newfound determination-a burning desire to protect her home and loved ones from harm.

As Aria made her way back home through the forest, she knew that her life would never be the same again-and neither would the world around her.

“Woof, woof!”

Two dog-headed people stood face-to-face, baring their teeth at each other, as they fought over a half-broken arrow on the ground.

In the Wilderness, anything made of iron was a rare commodity. This recent battle represented the first time the dog-headed people had seen so many iron weapons.

Unfortunately, the standardized equipment issued to the Northern Expeditionary Army was not suitable for use by giants. The armor was too small for them to wear, and the weapons were too light to wield comfortably.

The giants could only melt down the armor and reforged them into new weapons. However, although the giants possessed some forging capabilities, their skill was limited, and their work would be considered subpar by any measure.

Nevertheless, the giants’ standards were low. They cared little for armor, and only those ogre warriors who ranked above the basic warrior class received them. As long as they could forge the heavy metal rods into something more substantial than their wooden clubs, it would be an upgrade.

“Grugesh-dono”

“This time, we eliminated at least forty thousand human soldiers and captured another two thousand.”

Inside the giant’s tent, a giant chief was reporting their battle results to the Two-headed Ogre priest.

Grug and Gesh were actually two names. The two-headed Ogre priest had given himself a name for each head, one named Grug, the other named Gesh. When reporting, the chief Ogre simply combined the two names.

“Separate the craftsmen from the captives, especially the blacksmiths. Treat them well and have them forge weapons and armor for us. Send people to learn from them as well.

“The rest, send them to the labor camp. Have them learn how to set up camp from the humans, and use them as slaves—they’re much more useful than dog-headed people.”

“Yes, my lord.”

After a large battle, it was inevitable that some captives would be taken. Of course, if the Ogres had acted in accordance with their previous customs, they would have killed all their captives without exception. This time, under Grugesh’s orders, the captives were spared, totaling over two thousand.

“Also, relay my orders to your tribes and any others: There’s no need to hide anymore. Have them hurry over to our position immediately.

“After we meet up, we’ll attack the humans’ castles and villages.”

In order to lure the Northern Expeditionary Army into making the first move, Grugesh had deliberately concealed his strength. Now that the battle had ended and the Northern Expeditionary Army had been decimated, posing no threat, Grugesh saw no need to continue hiding and ordered the tribes to gather for a full-scale attack.

“Yes, my lord!” The demon chief before him once again bowed in affirmation.

Grugesh’s performance on the battlefield today had fully won over these demon chiefs. If he had previously relied on an elusive legend and the support of the ancestral gods to secure his position, he could now be considered the undisputed leader among these demons.

After assigning tasks to the demon chiefs, Grugesh turned away, allowing them to depart. Only when he was alone did he collapse heavily into his chair, appearing extremely weak. “The cost was too high; my body almost couldn’t withstand it.”

Only Grugesh knew that, after exerting himself like this, he would not be able to cast Berserk again for at least half a month.