By Zephyria 
The sky, filled with the colors of the sunset, began to turn reddish again. Half a day had passed. In that time, the Devouring Ghouls had built three more dams, and the Crimson Rain Brigade had fired their cannons six times. Each time the cannons fired, the ghouls were helplessly shattered, collapsed, and scattered.
“…….”
Watching the ghouls being swept away by the current, Ho-eun felt his vision blur and squeezed his eyes shut. Having stayed awake for two consecutive nights, his eyeballs were so dry it felt as if someone had shoved a handful of sand beneath his eyelids.
As Ho-eun pressed firmly on his eyelids with his thumb and middle finger, Dong-ja nudged his forearm and spoke.
“Young Master, you can sleep.”
“Ah, I’m fine.”
Ho-eun answered quickly, widening his eyes as if he had never complained of fatigue.
“…….”
Dong-ja stared blankly at him. She couldn’t understand why Ho-eun was fighting sleep. It wasn’t as if he were wielding a weapon and fighting; their only order was to ‘stay hidden and still,’ so she wondered why he bothered to stay awake.
Ho-eun continued to force his eyes open. Then, at some point, his eyelids slid shut without him realizing it. He hadn’t intended to sleep. He had only meant to close his eyes for a moment.
But Ho-eun fell fast asleep without even the awareness of drifting off. Staying awake for two nights was a trial too harsh for his frail body to endure.
How much time had passed? Ho-eun, who had been sleeping soundly with his forehead pressed against the ground, suddenly jolted awake.
“Fuck…….”
He woke up at Dong-ja’s coarse cursing. Simultaneously, he realized he had fallen asleep. He felt an overwhelming sense of shame and embarrassment. He wouldn’t have felt this way if he hadn’t said he was fine. For a man to go back on his word so quickly.
“I’m sorr—”
As Ho-eun began to apologize out of habit.
“…….”
Dong-ja didn’t look at him. She only stared down at the river with wide eyes. With her upper body raised and one knee resting on the ground, she looked like a beast preparing for the hunt.
Ho-eun frowned slightly. Come to think of it, he had woken up to Dong-ja’s cursing. Had something happened?
He instinctively looked toward the river. And in that instant, he had to hold his breath.
“What… is that…?”
The Devouring Ghouls were building dams. That wasn’t strange in itself; they had done it before. However, it wasn’t just one dam being built. Not two, but… three. The ghouls were building three dams simultaneously.
Ho-eun hurriedly reached for his telescope. He could see the Crimson Rain Brigade standing by the riverbank in a commotion. They were exchanging glances, and some were aiming their arrows even though Tae-muk hadn’t given the order. The soldiers in charge of the cannons moved the muzzles back and forth, unsure of which dam to target first.
What followed was nothing short of chaos. One thing was certain: the Crimson Rain Brigade did their absolute best to stop the three dams being built at once. They fired cannons at the first dam and arrows at the second. Then, once one dam collapsed, they belatedly dealt with the remaining one.
Fortunately, all three dams were destroyed. The ghouls were swept away by the current again, screeching.
But before they could breathe a sigh of relief, the ghouls began to create five dams at once. With multiple dams being built simultaneously, the current was filtered again and again, making it easier to construct them. It meant their speed had increased.
“Ah…….”
Ho-eun realized it immediately.
The fact that they could no longer stop those things.
* * *
“Ha…….”
Tae-muk let out a hollow laugh as he watched the five dams being built. Even seeing thousands of Devouring Ghouls leaping into the river with his own eyes, he couldn’t believe it.
He had never anticipated this kind of tactic. The Crimson Rain Brigade had a thousand soldiers, but since their numbers weren’t overwhelmingly large—certainly not reaching 100,000—he had never devised a strategy that ‘wasted’ soldiers in such a manner.
Thus, he was quite flustered. Or perhaps, he should say he was afraid.
It was an emotion he hadn’t felt in a very long time. It seemed to be the first time since he was ten years old, when his body was being torn apart by the ghouls. Ever since he learned to manipulate power, the ghouls had been disgusting creatures, but not frightening ones.
“C-Captain. What… what should we do?”
A soldier beside him asked in a trembling voice.
“Where is Oh Gil-sang?”
Tae-muk asked, his gaze fixed on the ghouls. At that, the soldier whipped around to look behind him. The sky beyond the mountain was still empty. Not a single bird was visible, let alone a kite. It meant that no one had appeared.
“Not yet.”
“…….”
Tae-muk contemplated, folding and unfolding his fingers. No matter how capable he was, and no matter how outstanding the skills of the Crimson Rain Brigade soldiers were, it was impossible to win a head-on clash against 100,000 Devouring Ghouls.
Retreat was the correct course of action.
But they could not retreat. If they retreated, everyone would die. Ultimately, this country would fall.
Therefore, they had to hold out somehow.
Tae-muk took a deep, sharp breath. Then, he issued orders rapidly.
“Cannons target the first dam; arrows target the third.”
“Yes, sir!”
“And tell the rest to establish a defensive line at the foot of the mountain.”
“A defensive line?”
“Yes. We will avoid melee combat as much as possible. Prepare to fire arrows from behind the line.”
“Yes, understood!”
The soldier who received the order quickly turned and ran, shouting something. Then, except for the soldiers holding bows, the rest of the troops rushed toward the mountain in unison to bring out their hidden fortifications.
And shortly after,
Boom! Boom!
Shells exploded.
Sshhh, sshhh.
Arrows were launched.
“…….”
Tae-muk, still standing before the river, narrowed his eyes. When a shell hit the first dam, the resulting explosion would cause the current to surge violently. If that happened, it might interfere with the ghouls’ dam-building.
The attack hit its mark without fail. The first dam, struck by the shell, collapsed instantly, and the second dam disintegrated as it surged from the aftershock of the explosion. The third dam, hit by arrows, remained intact at first but soon collapsed under the subsequent barrage.
The fourth and fifth dams were still being built at a rapid pace. The creatures drew closer with heavy strides. The sound of their clicking filled his ears, and the characteristic fishy stench of the ghouls brushed against the tip of Tae-muk’s nose.
And just before they reached the shore.
Boom! Boom!
The cannons fired again, striking the midsections of the fourth and fifth dams, causing them to collapse as well. Thus, all the dams were destroyed. However, neither Tae-muk nor the soldiers rejoiced.
“…….”
Tae-muk clenched his teeth. He knew this strategy was nothing more than buying time. He knew that since they had stopped five dams this time, ten dams would be built next time. Eventually, those things would set foot on this land—their land.
Tae-muk silently watched the creatures on the other side of the river, jumping up and down like grasshoppers in frustration.
They had killed many ghouls in the two days of continuous battle, but at most, it seemed they had killed about 5,000. This meant that nearly 100,000 remained.
What should he do?
How could he deal with that many of them?
No matter how much he racked his brain, nothing came to mind. The number of enemies was too vast to handle with mere tricks. It seemed he could no longer stop them simply by using his head.
And at that moment, the ghouls began building dams again. As expected, there were ten this time. Watching from a distance, it almost looked as if they weren’t building dams, but trying to fill the entire river.
“…….”
Tae-muk tilted his head slightly, then slowly straightened it. His pupils were darker than ever before. They were burning black.
Just then, a soldier rushed to Tae-muk’s side.
“Captain, the defensive line is complete!”
He said, panting. Tae-muk glanced back.
At the entrance of the slope leading up the mountain, thick stakes were driven into the ground at regular intervals. Iron nets were stretched between the stakes, and behind them, cheval de frise—long spears nailed together in the shape of the character for water (水)—were placed densely in rows. This was the defensive line the Crimson Rain Brigade erected instead of walls when establishing a camp on a plain.
At the very back, soldiers were distributing bows and arrows alongside two cannons.
And further away, in a higher spot, tents hidden by branches and leaves were faintly visible. Those were the tents where Ho-eun, the wounded soldiers, Chilbok, and Yeonggam were hiding.
Tae-muk stared at them and gave a short nod of approval. Then, he gave another order to the soldier.
“Bring me a sword. A thick one.”
“A sword? What do you intend to use a sword for…?”
“Quickly.”
“Ah, yes, sir!”
The soldier quickly ran off. And beyond the running soldier, cannons and arrows were launched once more. Roars continued, the ground shook, water surged, and the ghouls screeched like pigs.
The same situation repeated itself. Many dams collapsed, but many others survived. Now, the river was so filled with the corpses of ghouls that the current, the original master of the river, hesitated, unable to find its path.
Around then, the soldier returned carrying a sword nearly as large as his own body. Taking it, Tae-muk pulled it from the scabbard and tossed the sheath aside carelessly. He then swung the sword wide with his right hand, then his left. The blade, thick and broad like an axe, was quite heavy, but in exchange, it was strong and sturdy. At this level, it seemed the sword would not break even if Tae-muk swung it with all his might.