Liu Bei POV
“Jia! Jia!”
Eh? Yuan Zhi? Just then, loud commands could be heard and I looked over to see Yuan Zhi leaning against her horse as she swung her reins down hard over and over, kicking the horse lightly as she did so. Is she planning to catch up to Zi Long?
“Yuan Zhi, you led the charge just now, take it easy for now!”
“…” Yuan Zhi did not reply and continued accelerating, overtaking us in no time at all.
“Oh~ Lord Xu Shu’s horsemanship is impressive too huh?” Chen Dao said, feeling impressed at Yuan Zhi.
Wu… In comparison to Chen Dao, I was feeling rather despondent now. Even though I was with my companions and my troops, I had someone beside to protect me. What kind of lord am I? And what difference is there between the me of now and before?
How can I possibly be content with staying in the middle here after coming this far? No, even if it’s only for this battle, I must stand shoulder to shoulder with everyone and just be protected.
“Jia!” I yelled out as I did my best to visualise Yuan Zhi’s actions as I closed my eyes. Yuan Zhi’s actions seemed rather violent but the horse did not cry out. And when I thought back to the scene I saw, it seemed like her actions were loud but not as hard as they seemed.
“Un… Jia!” I opened my eyes and did my best to mimic Yuan Zhi. It was not perfect but it was an improvement from where I was for sure.
“Oh? Ah… Lord Shamoke, you’re…” Chen Dao paused a little when addressing me, seeming rather unnatural as she did so. Come on, if you really cannot do it, then just call me by ‘my lord’, no one will hear you now.
“I’m going to catch up to them. Jia!” I said and swung my reins down again but the horse seemed to resist me and actually slowed down a little instead of accelerating, “Wu…”
“Don’t be too hasty my lord, slow down!”
I began to feel vexed but when I heard what Chen Dao said, I took a deep breath and tried to picture myself in Yuan Zhi’s position, “Hu…”
Take it easy, do not be hasty.
Despite the din around me, I only thought of 1 thing: How to catch up.
“Jia!” I roared and swung down my reins as I tried to bring my thoughts into reality.
*Tatatata*–
Ah, my horse is getting faster, so much so that Chen Dao was also forced to swing her reins down and accelerate as well.
“Yes, that’s the way!” Chen Dao exclaimed excitedly, “My lord has potential huh~”
“Jia!” I did not reply and continued to focus on commanding my horse. Of course, I am actually rather elated inside but there’s no need to talk about it. I looked at Zi Long and Yuan Zhi and saw that they were about 20 paces ahead. I could not catch up any further but I was not falling behind anymore either so that was good enough for me.
“But what’s up with you? Why do you have to push yourself so hard?” Chen Dao asked with elation and confusion on her face. At this, I merely smiled in response.
Everyone is doing their utmost best in this battle. What reason is there for me not to push myself this hard? After all that talk about honour and benevolence, they will only be empty words if I do not take action.
“Jia!” I continued to command my horse, feeling the rush of hot-bloodedness. Even though it was the end of winter, the weather was really cold. Yet, I could not feel the coldness, thanks to all this activity that’s caused so much perspiration.
*Dong* *Dong* *Dong*!
*Dong* *Dong* *Dong*!
Un? All of a sudden, a thunderous sound came out of nowhere. I sat up and looked about and saw that the drummers at the edge of the battlefield had begun playing again. This is…
“No good! The enemy has begun to reform their surround!” Zi Long yelled from the front. Zi Long and Yuan Zhi, who were 20-30 paces ahead of us were now much closer. It was not because we were faster but because their charge had begun to slow.
“What’s going on?!” I yelled as we finally caught up to them, “What’s the status of the enemy?”
I looked about and saw that the enemy troops were beginning to move again. But they did not surround us like Zi Long had said. Instead, they seemed to be putting some distance between us and them.
“The enemy’s formation has begun to… Change again.” Yuan Zhi said as she looked about with her bandana off.
“It’s changing?” I asked as I could not quite see the enemy formation clearly from where I was.
At this time, we have slowed down our pace. Zi Long too was surveying our surroundings while Chen Dao seemed to be just as puzzled as I was. I looked behind and saw that the troops at the back were under intense attack from the enemy. If we do not get out soon, the troops at the back will not be able to hold on.
“If our army… Continues like this, we will fall for their trap.” Yuan Zhi said with confidence after a long while. When I heard this, my mood took a nosedive again.
“That does indeed seem to be– Uwaa!” Zi Long nodded and was forced to deal with several ambushing enemy troops mid-sentence. I too have been ambushed 4 times now. Looks like the enemy is really detailed. If we are careless, this battle can end very quickly for us.
“Why?”
“We are currently heading into the center of the enemy’s formation.” Yuan Zhi explained.
“The enemy formation has become like a spiral and the more we try to charge out, the closer we get to the center of the entire enemy formation. Changing directions will not work as the enemy will just keep reinforcing the formation in a way that forces us to go in the direction they want us to. When we reach the center, we will be eradicated.” Zi Long continued the explanation.
“That’s how?!” I exclaimed in surprise. But even so, we did not stop and continued charging albeit at a slower pace than before.
“So that means we are charging in a curved path?”
“Yes!”
“Then why are still continuing to charge in this direction!” Chen Dao exclaimed.
“I know what you’re saying! But we don’t understand the enemy’s formation so we can’t do anything else for now.” Zi Long replied in a loud tone that seemed to behold anger but also had frustration, “Besides, it’s getting difficult to get our bearings.”
She looked up at the skies when she finished. I too looked up and saw that the sky was dyed a bright red by now and was much less bright. This means that we should be approaching evening soon. And because of that, it will become more difficult to get our bearings without the sun.
“I almost forgot that it’s still winter.” Yuan Zhi said as she spat out a long sigh, “It will be nightfall soon. When the time comes, we won’t even be able to figure out where we are, much less which of the 8 Doors is which.”
Yuan Zhi still looked like she was tipsy but there was worry on her face. It was also clear that her mind was functioning normally despite being inebriated.
“How long do we have until nightfall?” I asked as I looked up at the skies with worry.
“An hour at the most.” Chen Dao replied, “But to be more precise, we have just 15 minutes before the sky gets dark enough for things to get real bad for us.”
“Yes.” Zi Long nodded with a severe expression, “But it will be an arduous task for us to escape this spiral in 15 minutes. I never thought the enemy would have another trick up their sleeves.”
Zi Long gnashed her teeth as she said so but still did her best to suppress her rage and frustration due to her position. I looked at Yuan Zhi and saw that she was still looking up and breathing heavily. I do not know if she is still thinking or if she has given up but I do know that the rest of us have no ideas anymore.
There is no way we can rely on Yuan Zhi’s knowledge of history at this point as the situation we are in right now does not exist in history. How then are we to survive and break out of this predicament?
In gaming terms, this would be an event battle at the highest nightmare difficulty. And it has taken its toll on both our minds and bodies. The effect from adrenaline wore out and I was now feeling really terrible. Right now, I can really understand why some warrior generals feel and why they are always trying to maintain that adrenaline rush.
Liu Bei POV
“Jia! Jia!”
Eh? Yuan Zhi? Just then, loud commands could be heard and I looked over to see Yuan Zhi leaning against her horse as she swung her reins down hard over and over, kicking the horse lightly as she did so. Is she planning to catch up to Zi Long?
“Yuan Zhi, you led the charge just now, take it easy for now!”
“…” Yuan Zhi did not reply and continued accelerating, overtaking us in no time at all.
“Oh~ Lord Xu Shu’s horsemanship is impressive too huh?” Chen Dao said, feeling impressed at Yuan Zhi.
Wu… In comparison to Chen Dao, I was feeling rather despondent now. Even though I was with my companions and my troops, I had someone beside to protect me. What kind of lord am I? And what difference is there between the me of now and before?
How can I possibly be content with staying in the middle here after coming this far? No, even if it’s only for this battle, I must stand shoulder to shoulder with everyone and just be protected.
“Jia!” I yelled out as I did my best to visualise Yuan Zhi’s actions as I closed my eyes. Yuan Zhi’s actions seemed rather violent but the horse did not cry out. And when I thought back to the scene I saw, it seemed like her actions were loud but not as hard as they seemed.
“Un… Jia!” I opened my eyes and did my best to mimic Yuan Zhi. It was not perfect but it was an improvement from where I was for sure.
“Oh? Ah… Lord Shamoke, you’re…” Chen Dao paused a little when addressing me, seeming rather unnatural as she did so. Come on, if you really cannot do it, then just call me by ‘my lord’, no one will hear you now.
“I’m going to catch up to them. Jia!” I said and swung my reins down again but the horse seemed to resist me and actually slowed down a little instead of accelerating, “Wu…”
“Don’t be too hasty my lord, slow down!”
I began to feel vexed but when I heard what Chen Dao said, I took a deep breath and tried to picture myself in Yuan Zhi’s position, “Hu…”
Take it easy, do not be hasty.
Despite the din around me, I only thought of 1 thing: How to catch up.
“Jia!” I roared and swung down my reins as I tried to bring my thoughts into reality.
*Tatatata*–
Ah, my horse is getting faster, so much so that Chen Dao was also forced to swing her reins down and accelerate as well.
“Yes, that’s the way!” Chen Dao exclaimed excitedly, “My lord has potential huh~”
“Jia!” I did not reply and continued to focus on commanding my horse. Of course, I am actually rather elated inside but there’s no need to talk about it. I looked at Zi Long and Yuan Zhi and saw that they were about 20 paces ahead. I could not catch up any further but I was not falling behind anymore either so that was good enough for me.
“But what’s up with you? Why do you have to push yourself so hard?” Chen Dao asked with elation and confusion on her face. At this, I merely smiled in response.
Everyone is doing their utmost best in this battle. What reason is there for me not to push myself this hard? After all that talk about honour and benevolence, they will only be empty words if I do not take action.
“Jia!” I continued to command my horse, feeling the rush of hot-bloodedness. Even though it was the end of winter, the weather was really cold. Yet, I could not feel the coldness, thanks to all this activity that’s caused so much perspiration.
*Dong* *Dong* *Dong*!
*Dong* *Dong* *Dong*!
Un? All of a sudden, a thunderous sound came out of nowhere. I sat up and looked about and saw that the drummers at the edge of the battlefield had begun playing again. This is…
“No good! The enemy has begun to reform their surround!” Zi Long yelled from the front. Zi Long and Yuan Zhi, who were 20-30 paces ahead of us were now much closer. It was not because we were faster but because their charge had begun to slow.
“What’s going on?!” I yelled as we finally caught up to them, “What’s the status of the enemy?”
I looked about and saw that the enemy troops were beginning to move again. But they did not surround us like Zi Long had said. Instead, they seemed to be putting some distance between us and them.
“The enemy’s formation has begun to… Change again.” Yuan Zhi said as she looked about with her bandana off.
“It’s changing?” I asked as I could not quite see the enemy formation clearly from where I was.
At this time, we have slowed down our pace. Zi Long too was surveying our surroundings while Chen Dao seemed to be just as puzzled as I was. I looked behind and saw that the troops at the back were under intense attack from the enemy. If we do not get out soon, the troops at the back will not be able to hold on.
“If our army… Continues like this, we will fall for their trap.” Yuan Zhi said with confidence after a long while. When I heard this, my mood took a nosedive again.
“That does indeed seem to be– Uwaa!” Zi Long nodded and was forced to deal with several ambushing enemy troops mid-sentence. I too have been ambushed 4 times now. Looks like the enemy is really detailed. If we are careless, this battle can end very quickly for us.
“Why?”
“We are currently heading into the center of the enemy’s formation.” Yuan Zhi explained.
“The enemy formation has become like a spiral and the more we try to charge out, the closer we get to the center of the entire enemy formation. Changing directions will not work as the enemy will just keep reinforcing the formation in a way that forces us to go in the direction they want us to. When we reach the center, we will be eradicated.” Zi Long continued the explanation.
“That’s how?!” I exclaimed in surprise. But even so, we did not stop and continued charging albeit at a slower pace than before.
“So that means we are charging in a curved path?”
“Yes!”
“Then why are still continuing to charge in this direction!” Chen Dao exclaimed.
“I know what you’re saying! But we don’t understand the enemy’s formation so we can’t do anything else for now.” Zi Long replied in a loud tone that seemed to behold anger but also had frustration, “Besides, it’s getting difficult to get our bearings.”
She looked up at the skies when she finished. I too looked up and saw that the sky was dyed a bright red by now and was much less bright. This means that we should be approaching evening soon. And because of that, it will become more difficult to get our bearings without the sun.
“I almost forgot that it’s still winter.” Yuan Zhi said as she spat out a long sigh, “It will be nightfall soon. When the time comes, we won’t even be able to figure out where we are, much less which of the 8 Doors is which.”
Yuan Zhi still looked like she was tipsy but there was worry on her face. It was also clear that her mind was functioning normally despite being inebriated.
“How long do we have until nightfall?” I asked as I looked up at the skies with worry.
“An hour at the most.” Chen Dao replied, “But to be more precise, we have just 15 minutes before the sky gets dark enough for things to get real bad for us.”
“Yes.” Zi Long nodded with a severe expression, “But it will be an arduous task for us to escape this spiral in 15 minutes. I never thought the enemy would have another trick up their sleeves.”
Zi Long gnashed her teeth as she said so but still did her best to suppress her rage and frustration due to her position. I looked at Yuan Zhi and saw that she was still looking up and breathing heavily. I do not know if she is still thinking or if she has given up but I do know that the rest of us have no ideas anymore.
There is no way we can rely on Yuan Zhi’s knowledge of history at this point as the situation we are in right now does not exist in history. How then are we to survive and break out of this predicament?
In gaming terms, this would be an event battle at the highest nightmare difficulty. And it has taken its toll on both our minds and bodies. The effect from adrenaline wore out and I was now feeling really terrible. Right now, I can really understand why some warrior generals feel and why they are always trying to maintain that adrenaline rush.
