Because of the mages' bombardment, the lizardmen were already disorganized and exhausted.
When they finally noticed us, they were visibly shocked.
At the forefront of our army, the Northern Knights were already moving.
They did not give the lizardmen time to shout orders.
They simply charged.
There was no complicated formation. No hesitation. No attempt to intimidate the enemy.
They charged straight toward the lizardmen's lines.
The lizardmen tried to reorganize themselves, but it was already too late.
The Northern Knights cut through them like a sharp sword cutting through vegetables.
However, the most terrifying part was not the sharpness of their blades.
It was their momentum.
The first impact broke through the lizardmen's front line, but the Knights did not stop. Even after killing several enemies, they continued charging toward their destination.
Any lizardman who stood in their path was cut down.
But Verken was different.
As the captain of the Northern Knights, his movements were almost impossible to follow.
His sword moved like the wind.
One moment, he was striking toward the left.
The next, his blade was already moving to the right.
By the time I noticed his movements, another lizardman's body had already fallen to the ground.
The Knights continued forward without slowing down.
Behind them, Azpen led the cavalry into the opening they had created.
Their charge struck the lizardmen from the rear.
The moment Azpen entered the gap, he raised his sword and shouted.
"Maintain your formation! Cover the Knights' rear! Infantry, close the distance and follow us! Make sure no lizardman escapes!"
We obeyed immediately.
"As the first wave of cavalry entered the battlefield, we widened the opening."
Rany continued.
"Azpen rode at the front, his spear cutting down lizardman after lizardman. I stayed close to him, attacking whenever I saw an opening. My halberd was soon covered in lizardmen blood."
"We moved behind the first charge, but the Northern Knights didn't stop. Even when some of them were wounded or killed, they continued forward without hesitation."
Our job was to protect their rear while killing any lizardmen who tried to attack them from behind.
The infantry followed closely behind us, making sure that the lizardmen could not surround the cavalry.
After two charges, the lizardmen's morale began to collapse.
I saw several of them staring at the battlefield in fear.
Their comrades had been killed as easily as insects.
Their hands began to tremble.
Their weapons suddenly seemed too heavy for them to hold.
One lizardman dropped his sword and tried to run toward the swamp.
An infantryman threw a spear and killed him before he could escape.
No one stopped.
Everyone understood the same thing.
Today, this battle—and perhaps this entire nightmare—would finally end.
Our morale rose as the Northern Knights continued cutting through the enemy.
As we pushed deeper into the lizardmen's territory, their elite warriors finally began to react.
They started reorganizing their forces.
Then I saw it.
At the front of the enemy formation, the lizardmen began forming a defensive wall.
The first line raised long spears and large shields.
Behind them stood heavily armored lizardmen.
Further back, I could see their mages preparing spells.
Some of the lizardmen were even wearing full-body armor.
Their formation looked far more disciplined than the scattered troops we had fought earlier.
For the first time, Verken stopped.
He looked at the formation ahead of him.
Then he shouted.
"Throw them!"
The Knights gathered together.
The first charge group moved forward.
All of them pulled out an alchemical jewel.
Then I saw the Knights pull something out."
Rany paused for a moment.
"One of them threw it into the lizardmen's formation."
Raven recognized it immediately.
It was the same kind of crystal the scouts had used.
I knew that whatever mana was stored inside it would produce a powerful effect when the crystal broke.
Those crystals were expensive and could only be used once.
The knight threw the jewel into the enemy formation.
A massive explosion followed.
Fire and wind erupted at the same time.
The combined blast tore through the lizardmen's defensive wall.
Their shields were thrown aside.
Their formation shattered.
Several lizardmen were killed immediately, while others were thrown into the swamp.
The explosion also disrupted the mages behind them.
Their spells collapsed before they could be completed.
The battlefield became chaotic once again.
Through the smoke, I saw a brown horse moving like a storm.
Verken had already begun another charge.
His sword flashed as he attacked the elite lizardmen.
The Northern Knights followed close behind him.
We remained behind them, protecting their rear while the infantry continued advancing.
Then the lizardmen's mages finally reacted.
They began firing spells into the air.
Water gathered above us.
It looked as though they were preparing a massive attack.
Perhaps they believed they could break our morale by killing us instead of saving themselves from the Northern Knights.
But that decision cost them dearly.
Their attention was divided.
They were trying to attack us while their front lines were already collapsing.
And the Northern Knights were still advancing.