Sheto was then taken out of the cage, and the shackles were removed from his ankles and wrists. And then a few goblins entered the caged wagon in his place.
The demon general then raised his voice so that everyone could hear.
“Gather unit commanders! I will explain the plan!”
Out of the crowd, a few in more impressive armor stepped out. Most were hobgoblins, sorcerer goblins, and ogres.
“According to the scout reports, there are human knights waiting for us by the hill up ahead. Along with the main army from the south side, they intend to ambush us with a pincer attack.”
As Sheto stood between Berganda and Komos, he had a good view of the monsters lined up in front of them.
They all wore leather armor and wielders spears and short swords. Some had bows, slings and equipment he had never seen before.
‘Up until recently, the Demon King’s army was like a disorderly mob. But the quality of this general’s soldiers is quite different.’
“And so! We will be setting our own trap… Drasel!!”
“Aye! General!”
He called out the ogre and a few hobgoblins and pointed to the wagon.
“Your units will escort that wagon and charge into the knights on the hill.”
“Its contents have escaped. Are you sure?”
“I know that they are after this kobold. And so we will make the enemy think that we have found out about the ambush, and tried to get through by brute force in order to let him escape.”
The soldiers in the wagon now wielded weapons. And the Sheto decoy was covered in a blanket.
“It seems like an obvious trap. Will it work?”
“That is why we will rely on the charging power of ogres. They are the only ones who can go head to head against riders. While Drasel and the others are holding them, we will attack the main army.”
“Why not have everyone go forward?”
“The knights will try to stop us in full force. Not only that, but with the hills up ahead, the formation will be narrow. It would be better to take the initiative and attack, instead of having them stab us in the back.”
As Sheto watched, the strategy meeting continued. It was his first time seeing someone else plan for a battle. And this was a real army.
“Judging by the way they fought up until now, the enemy foot soldiers use spears, and they advance in a square-shaped formation. Normally, we would want the ogres to support the center, but it won’t work this time. And so we will also advance with spears, stopping their attack while spreading out on both sides and chipping away at them with the stone-throwing units.”
‘I see. This man has studied a lot. And the Seer’s army has been using the Phalanx a lot here as well.”
“What, that?”
The way the monsters moved here seemed to dispel every assumption about them. Sheto watched as they scattered out with organized speed.
‘It is a type of formation. Soldiers wield spears in every direction, and with shields raised, they advance in the shape of a square.’
“…Don’t understand. Is it, strong?”
‘Well, it is useful when humans are fighting against each other. In fact, excluding special cases, it is also quite effective against monsters.’
Sheto found the explanation difficult to visualize. As he listened to Salia, the monsters lined up in front of him. In the meantime, about two-hundred ogres surrounded the wagon he had been in. It was like a wall of muscle.
“…Commence, the advance!”
Berganda’s order echoed as he raised his battleaxe towards the sky.
The monsters answered with their battle crise, and all at once, began their march with a thunderous rumble.