In a World of Reversed Chastity, I Strive to Become an Honorable Male Knight, but Lustful Women Keep Targeting My Body - 280

Chapter 280: The Kukkoro Male Knight and the Heavenly Inferno

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On the outskirts of Runga City, there was a small clearing. It was a site for felling trees to gather fuel and building materials. Unlike the dense forest, here we could unleash our full firepower. It was the perfect place for a decisive battle. We ran full speed toward that clearing. But this was a feigned retreat disguised as a rout. We couldn’t march in formation. To avoid leaving stragglers behind, I ended up having a very difficult task on my hands.

“Run! Run! If you move like that, they’ll catch up in no time!”

I shouted while helping a soldier who had tripped over a tree root back to his feet. This kind of thing had happened repeatedly since earlier. After all, most of the infantry from the land assault corps were greenhorns, and this was their first real battle. Anyone not tripping in fear would be unusual. There was no choice but for the commander himself to act as rear guard. After all, my guards and I were clad in proper enchanted armor. A little attack wouldn’t faze us at all. We were the perfect force to protect the back of the unit.

“I-I’m sorry!”

“If you have time to move your mouth, move your feet instead!”

I pushed the newly risen Liseben soldiers forward while shouting at them. I felt like a drill sergeant. But this wasn’t training. It was real combat. If a soldier fell behind, what awaited them wasn’t punishment, it was simple death. I couldn’t afford to let a single one of them drop out.

Not to mention, I wasn’t fast enough to lead the unit anyway. The physical differences between hume like me, dragonewts, and beastmen were overwhelming, and on top of that, I was wearing nearly forty kilograms of unbearably heavy armor. If I placed such a slow unit in front, the rest would get bottlenecked. The newer type of armor these days weighed about half as much. But mine was a hand-me-down from my mother, so it was old-fashioned. I had thought about updating it, but money was tight, so that plan had been postponed.

“Whoa!?”

A sudden jolt hit me in the back, and this time I fell. I had been struck by an arrow, but it had hit the armored part of my enchanted armor, leaving me uninjured. Bless this armor. Heavy as it was, it was worth wearing.

“Male knight! Gotcha!”

“Gwaaah!”

But then, someone leapt at me. They wore a poncho and a komusō hat… An Elf soldier of the komusō! I had fallen to the ground and couldn’t avoid the attack. In no time, they secured a mount position on top of me and pinned my arms.

“What a fine specimen! I’ve found a treasure!”

“Kyaaaaaah!!!!”

A sudden crisis, but if you were a male knight in this world, situations like this were daily fare. Calmly, I head-butted the komusō Elf soldier. The hat, woven from tree bark, collided with my steel helmet. Naturally, the latter prevailed. The komusō hat crumpled, and the Elf soldier writhed, letting out a pitiful scream.

“Orraa!”

From here, it was simple. Unlike dragonewts or some beastmen, elves were small, making them easy to flip. I followed up with ground techniques, choking them until they passed out. Regardless of species, the carotid artery remained an untrainable weak point.

“This one isn’t just any man!”

“Surround him and take him! Surround and take him!”

But the danger wasn’t over. A group of komusō Elf soldiers charged with machetes. 

These pink-brained idiots!!

I rose to my feet and drew my pistol from my waist, firing. Though only one shot could be heard, five komusō Elf soldiers fell. I had used the rapid-fire technique called fanning, pulling the trigger repeatedly with my finger while holding it down.

“Wooooah!”

Yet, the enemy wasn’t wiped out. I threw a dagger with my left hand at the charging Elf soldiers. It hit its mark, embedding in one elf’s shoulder.

“Argh!”

High-voltage electricity shot from the dagger, shocking the Elf. Smoke rose as they collapsed. It was a magical dagger gifted by a former empress of the neighboring Holy Empire, A-chan. This was the first time I’d used it in combat. Indeed, it was incredibly powerful. The tricked-out attack seemed to intimidate the elves. Their gaze focused on the electrocuted soldier. I couldn’t waste this moment. Drawing my saber, I shouted.

“Behold, Pole Star! I, Albert Blondin, son of Desiree Blondin,stands here! Kyaaaaaah!”

Activating my body-enhancement magic, I kicked off the ground and charged at the elves. Running with my back to them would have been foolish. Attacking head-on was the safest route.

“One!”

I cleaved through a wooden sword of an Elf soldier trying to intercept me. My white surcoat was stained bright red, but I didn’t care. I charged on.

“Kyaaaaaah! Two!”

An Elf cast an ice spike, but I blocked it with my gauntlet while striking simultaneously. Another corpse fell.

“He’s like a demon god!”

“You better not underestimate this man! Keep your distance and finish him!”

The elves scrambled for their bows. Not good. My revolver was out of ammo, and though I had a rear-loading rifle, it was single-shot. Shooting against them was disadvantageous.

“Al-sama! I’m coming!”

“Charge, you fools! If you dare harm the young master, seppuku won’t be enough!”

Sonia and the elder charged in as well. They were extraordinary warriors. Without my intervention, they scattered the enemy in no time. 

…Wait, Elder, is “young master” referring to me?

“Albert-don! Here!”

A sparrow-man flew over, handing me something. It was my thrown magical dagger.

“Thanks! This is precious. We can’t resupply it.”

It was a treasure from the Holy Empire empress’s family. Losing it would have been tragic. I gratefully sheathed it and patted the sparrow-man on the head.

“Al-sama! Leave the path clearing to us! Let’s break through!”

“Yes!”

The enemy clearly faltered. Now was the chance. I readied my saber and charged. Swinging through, I cut down elves and broke through. Several had joined our side, greatly improving stability in the forest battle. Thinking this, we reached the clearing. Unlike the shadowed forest, tall grass grew abundantly here. We pushed through with sheer grit, checking our surroundings.

“…Alright!”

I could see both deployed Josette and Dalaiya squads. They were ready with rifles and elven bows, their firing lines crossing to create a deadly crossfire.

“Fire!”

Guns and whistling arrows erupted. The pursuing elves were hit by a barrage, screaming and cursing as they fell. Of course, I couldn’t observe, having my back turned.

“Damn you!”

“You’ll get a hundredfold!”

Still, one volley wasn’t enough. Enraged, the elves fired arrows back… but I anticipated this. The crossfire was only meant to delay. The real attack was elsewhere. Running at full speed, I shouted.

“Red signal flare, fire!”

With a pathetic pop, a red flare soared into the sky. I forced my legs to move faster. Once the flare was launched, we had to hurry… Not from the enemy, but from our allies’ attacks.

“Incoming! Get down!”

At the sharp, high-pitched whistle I’d known even in a past life, I shouted and dropped. Rolling onto the ground didn’t matter, low posture was priority. Face down, I left my mouth slightly open. I would have covered my ears, but the helmet prevented it.

“!!”

A tremendous roar shook the clearing. Fire pillars erupted, the ground quaked. A massive bombardment hit the clearing. Dozens of shells landed almost simultaneously. The shockwave and blast rattled my brain, debris and splinters striking me. Someone fell atop me. I panicked briefly, but it was Sonia, protecting me.

“Impressive firepower…!”

Suppressing a smile, I murmured. The bombardment was fire support from the Michael Collins. Not the main cannon. This clearing was far beyond its capabilities. It was a 90mm multi-launch rocket. Sixteen rockets fired in rapid succession. A secret weapon from the Michael Collins. First time in combat, but it performed perfectly.

“Alright, Sonia! Let’s finish this!”

These rockets had power but terrible accuracy. Effective for area suppression, not precision. Spectacular, but few enemies would be hit. Still, that was fine. Flashy attacks break morale. Even the elves were shaken. Now was the chance. I emerged from under Sonia, raising my saber high.

“This is the final charge! Only true heroes who fear not even the Heavenly Inferno, follow me!”

Even my allies were probably nervous. As commander, I had to lead. Responding to my shout, the trumpeters began the charge call.

“Forward! Charge!”

Swinging my saber, I ran. The Liseben soldiers followed, screaming recklessly. Even elves joined, shouting, “Don’t fall behind, short-lived ones!” Together, we plunged into the rising dust cloud.

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