The Mighty Divine Dragon Ilx

''Obsolete'' Running on the Battlefield (Part 2)

"I can't see anything. What is the artillery doing? We're getting shot over and over again!"

Meanwhile, at a certain location in the first trench, a soldier with a heavy machine gun was complaining. The surroundings were constantly being hit by what seemed to be enemy artillery, surrounded by smoke caused by it. Since he could hardly feel the ground shaking, he knew that the force was weak. However, in this situation, even holding the gun, let alone shooting, was difficult and more troublesome than ever.

"Ah, whatever. The enemy can't advance in the middle of the shelling. We just need to stay alert."

"That's true, but—huh?"

"What's wrong?"

"What is this sound..."

"Sound?"

He strained his ears to listen. However, all he could hear was the sound of enemy artillery hitting—

"...? Certainly, something... What is this...?"

Thud, thud, thud. A sound, faint but audible to him, as if kicking the ground. It gradually grew louder, and he could sense a different kind of ground-shaking, though smaller than artillery fire.

When he realized that it was the sound of a group approaching, it was already too late.

"Ngh—"

A large number of shadows appeared in the white smoke. Judging them as enemies, he immediately aimed the machine gun, but it was too late. Out from the white smoke— a large group of cavalrymen jumped over their heads and rushed past.

"The fuck!!? Horses!?"

"Blasted barbarians!! Go to he—heh? What was that—"

Trying to turn the machine gun backward, they noticed. There was something at their feet. The moment they recognized it as a grenade, everything went black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"CHARGEEEEE!!!"

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!"

Paganda, once a country, is now a Gra Valkas Empire's colony. The empire possesses technology equivalent to the late World War II on Earth, and the defensive positions they have built on the Glend Plains include modern features such as field cannons, trenches, bunkers, and numerous tanks.

Currently, the area is enveloped in white smoke due to the ongoing Irnetian attack. In the midst of this, soldiers clearly out of sync with the era are rushing through. Robust horses carrying lightly armored soldiers—cavalry. Yes, they are cavalry.

The cavalry, incongruous with the surrounding scene, leaped over the chaotic trenches and threw grenades to destroy them. In the poor visibility, the Gra Valkan soldiers who were hesitant about friendly fire could not indiscriminately open fire. They stood in stunned shock as their defenses were destroyed one after another.

"Next volley, loose!!!"

At the forefront, an old veteran wielding a longsword shouted. In response, the surrounding soldiers raised crossbows they had in hand and let loose.

The released arrows showed abnormal acceleration, piercing incredibly long distances before detonating. The arrow they used was called 'Rune Arrow,' a weapon once invented by the Great Magearchy of Pandora. The arrowhead is made of magic stone, and after launch, the Tears of the Wind God embedded in it activated, propelling it forward by pushing air. The weapon would normally activate explosion magic upon impact, but this time they equipped the arrows with acoustic and smoke magic to deprive the enemy of both sight and hearing. It has minimal recoil, easy to handle even while mounted, and all the soldiers handling Rune Arrows are robust beastmen. They can reload their weapons by hand, a process that would typically require the use of legs. This turns Rune Arrows into portable smoke grenade launchers.