Retreat!

Earth-shattering war cries erupted from the dense forest on the other side of the slope!

The elite soldiers of Evernight, who had long been lying in ambush, charged fiercely down the steep slope!

They didn’t choose to charge the most solid core phalanx of the Holy Knights, but instead precisely pounced upon the area where the chaos was greatest and defenses were weakest—the noble private soldiers, adventurer parties, and parts of the regular army’s flanks that had been startled by the explosions.

Although these Evernight warriors numbered only two thousand, every single one was a veteran who had experienced brutal, bloody battles on the front lines, fearless in the face of death!

They were equipped with the best weapons and light armor from the inventory, which Vivian had taken from the underground warehouses of the Demon Lord’s Castle!

In the space of a few breaths, they transformed into dozens of lethal black torrents, swift as phantoms, precisely and ruthlessly slicing into the chaotic mass of people!

They began to weave through and segment the enemy lines!

“Form ranks! Quickly, form ranks! f*cking hold them back!”

“What are you idiots still gawking at!”

“Hold them back!”

“Damn it, they’re too fast!”

The unexpected blow caused the flank of the expeditionary army to collapse instantly.

The nobles’ private soldiers were in disarray amidst the heart-wrenching, panicked howls of their masters, lacking unified command and fighting on their own.

The adventurers and mercenaries instinctively protected themselves in the chaos.

Some regular soldiers tried to resist but were stunned by the ferocious assault of the Evernight warriors.

In a flash, blood splattered, and screams rose and fell.

The Evernight warriors were like sharp scalpels, cutting bloody gashes into the massive body of the expeditionary army.

No one had expected to be ambushed like this the moment they set foot in the Territory of Evernight!

Everyone had thought that the Territory of Evernight was now in ruins, with no real organized forces left apart from the remnant army the Demon Lord had brought back.

Everyone had thought this would be nothing more than a leisurely outing!

The entire column was in a relaxed marching state.

Many nobles and knights even had their equipment and weapons still loaded on vehicles and horses, let alone having formed a battle line.

But even so, the main force of the Holy Knights reacted quickly, trying to turn and support the flank.

However, their heavy equipment and dense formations made turning difficult in the chaos, and they were further hindered by their own retreating allies.

That squad of Gospel Holy Knights tried to use holy magic for area suppression, but the Evernight warriors cunningly mingled with the enemy forces, making them hesitate to use area-of-effect spells for fear of hitting their own.

But those fanatics didn’t care about any of that.

Fanatical faith could burn away reason.

“For the God of Rhine! For the Lord of Holy Light!”

“For humanity!”

The lightly armored fanatics immediately completed their turn.

They ignored the chaos, ignored the casualties, and like a torrent of scorching magma, they roared and charged toward the black tide of demons!

They lunged at the attacking demons!

But fanaticism was one thing; the Evernight warriors attacking this time were all elites.

They would not be easily defeated.

In fact, they paid no attention to the charging fanatics.

After completing one round of charges and piercing through the entire column, they carved a sharp arc at the rear of the human formation, turned their spearheads, and once again launched a deadly penetration!

This time, the blade was aimed directly at the even more chaotic, baggage-laden area at the rear of the column!

“Kill!”

Elia roared.

The Head Maid Shadowveiled Fox’s figure flickered through the crowd like a phantom, moving through the humans as if through an empty land, slaughtering everything in her path, leaving no survivors!

Wherever she passed, the human resistance was torn apart like paper!

And the Frost Banshees, led by Lorlu, wore smiles on their faces as they turned one human soldier after another into ice sculptures, bringing a biting death.

The Evernight demons charged back and forth for a while, and in an instant, the rear of the column was in chaos, with men and horses overturned, armor and weapons abandoned.

But just as the fanatics charged forward, and the Holy Knights turned, their heavy hooves beginning to pound the earth, creating a thunderous prelude to a charge, a sharp whistle suddenly sounded—

“Retreat!”

Elia’s command was transmitted concisely and forcefully into the ears of every warrior.

The Evernight warriors did not linger in the fight.

Like a receding tide, they quickly disengaged, using their familiarity with the terrain to vanish rapidly into the dense forest and rugged mountains, leaving behind only a scene of utter chaos and the terrified soldiers of the expeditionary army.

The entire raid came and went quickly, lasting no more than ten minutes in total.

“Cowardly demon bastards! All you know is how to sneak attack like rats!”

A knight roared in anger, but his fury could only be directed at the mess before him.

And looking at the demons who had retreated like a gust of wind, most people didn’t seem to have reacted, even forgetting that the humans actually far outnumbered the attacking demons.

They didn’t even mount a decent pursuit.

However, although this swift raid was extremely effective, it didn’t actually cause many deaths among the human troops.

In fact, more soldiers were injured from being trampled and crushed in the chaos than were cut down by the demons’ own hands.

After quickly withdrawing from the battlefield, Elia stood in the dense forest, watching the human expeditionary army, which was already beginning to regroup, deep in thought.

“Damn it! Head Maid, why did we retreat directly?! We could have clearly expanded our victory!”

After the retreat, the Shadow Demon captain, Gangrel, came before Elia with some dissatisfaction.

“We had just achieved some results, and many enemies didn’t even have time to be finished off! This raid was so good, we should have pressed our advantage! We might have even been able to crush those damn humans right here… and even end this invasion!”

“Do you think that’s possible?”

Elia silently turned her head and stared coldly at Gangrel.

“The Lady Demon Lord’s order was—counting from the start of the raid, after ten minutes, regardless of the outcome, we must disengage from the battle.

Even if the enemy commander’s head is at your feet, you must immediately disengage.”

“The enemy has twenty thousand, and we only have two thousand.

And we attacked their weakest, most chaotic part.

The enemy’s main force has not suffered any damage.

Those fanatical madmen, the heavily armored knightly orders, and even those Gospel Knights, each one is more difficult to deal with than the last.

And do you think that when the running dogs of the Rhine react and launch a charge to surround us, we could still leave so easily?”

“Come, Gangrel. Look me in the eye, and then answer me.”

“…”

And facing the Head Maid’s icy stare, Gangrel was at a loss for words.

Although at first, the Head Maid Elia had also been somewhat puzzled by Vivian’s orders, and had even almost gotten carried away in the heat of battle, when the time was up, she still followed her reason and the thought of obeying orders, forcefully issuing the command to retreat.

But now, looking at the regrouping knights, Elia knew—her choice to completely obey the will of the Demon Lord was the right one.

If they had delayed their escape even a little, they would have surely been caught by the knightly order.