Almond wasn't the only one determined to charge in. Everyone seemed to have the same thought.

“Chaaaarge!”

The Joseon soldiers wielding halberds ran toward the Roman infantry again.

Almond started running with a lighter step too.

[Acceleration]

The cavalry spearmen’s speed trait applied even after dismounting. Their running sped up, making them much faster than regular infantry. Almond followed behind them.

‘We even have cover fire.’

Friendly archers began providing them with cover fire. It was reassuring. While arrows previously only came from above, now they also came from the sides.

The Romans, who only had to block from above, had to block from the sides now too.

Fwoosh! Fwoosh!

As arrows tore through the air, Roman soldiers fell one by one.

“Joseon seizes the opportunity and charges!”

“The Roman phalanx is now useless!”

“Yes! With arrows shot this close, direct hits are much easier! The Romans now have to block from the sides too!”

“Since earlier, Rome keeps exposing their sides to Joseon! Are they nervous!?”

The commentators hoped that the Romans felt nervous. Although a few Roman soldiers could have been, the army's organization would recover as long as one person kept their composure.

“Step back!”

That person was Pierre, the one commanding them. He gave orders without a hint of hesitation.

“Left! Up! Shield wall!”

Thump!

The Roman soldiers blocked above them and to the left simultaneously. While doing so, they indifferently pushed aside the bodies of their fallen comrades and created a new phalanx. 𝘙áɴỒʙЕȘ

“Ah...! Their organization is still intact!”

“There's a Roman ace there! That's why!”

“No wonder this is the main battlefield!”

Thud! Thud!

Arrows struck the thick Roman shields. No matter how strong the arrows were, they couldn't pierce the Roman shields.

However, Joseon had more than just archers now.

“Now! The cavalrymen wielding halberds are about to engage!”

“Even though they don’t have horses, their faction bonus remains!”

Thud thud thud thud!

Malatang, Almond, Moggie, and other surviving Joseon swordsmen kept charging. No Roman crossbowmen were available to stop them.

Moreover, Almond noticed an issue when the enemy phalanx changed formations.

‘The shields are spread thin.’

The Romans were blocking from above, in front, and now the sides. Maybe even slightly behind. The switch was swift and smooth, but they had a limited number of shields. Blocking more directions meant the shield density grew lower.

Malatang led the charge and shouted, “Attackkkk!”

He swung his halberd forcefully.

Bang!

The Roman front line crumbled spectacularly.

Joseon soldiers surged in, slashing at the enemy formation, and chaos ensued among the soldiers.

‘Gaps...!’

Almond spotted the glaringly visible gaps between the shields. His halberd pierced someone’s abdomen.

Thunk!

“Ugh!”

Blood spurted out as he withdrew his weapon.

‘Where’s Pierre?’

He wanted to target Pierre, but shields stood in his way. Almond eventually lost sight of him.

Rumble...

The phalanx suddenly changed. It felt like being in a moving maze.

Someone stabbed through the shield gaps, targeting Almond’s shoulder.

Almond ducked and swept his halberd low.

Slash!

Blood splattered beneath the shields as one attacker fell and tumbled out of formation.

Almond moved to finish them with a downward strike—

“!?”

Thunk.

The enemy grabbed Almond’s weapon even though they were practically dead.

‘A mistake.’

He had made a mistake due to a lack of experience. The halberd was primarily a slashing weapon. Its weight made thrusting risky, often leading to such situations. Almond didn’t have enough experience with it.

Then, a sword swung in from the side at a sharp angle.

Almond had no choice. He let go of the halberd and quickly retreated, ducking low.

Shhh!

The blade grazed the back of his neck. Feeling a tingle, he straightened up to see his opponent.

[Pierre]

The sword belonged to Pierre. When had he gotten there?

Pierre asked Almond the same question, “You. Why are you here?”

He felt just as puzzled by Almond’s presence.

— Does Pierre recognize him??

— Wow, famous guy.

— It’s possible that Pierre recognizes him.

— No wonder he’s surprised to see the archer here.

‘Does he know me?’

Almond observed Pierre with interest, but his eyes were more drawn to the sight behind Pierre. A line of fallen Joseon soldiers. It seemed that Pierre had been cutting Joseon soldiers down one by one while the phalanx held.

Almond was next.

“Did you drop your weapon?”

As expected, Pierre’s sword came at him again.

Shiiing!

A deadly sound echoed, but Almond easily dodged it by stepping back.

— Wow!

— What a crazy dodge

— Nice.

Pierre smoothly transitioned to the next move.

Whoosh!

Again, he swung in the air and quickly followed up with another move.

Almond dodged again, but—

“!”

He instinctively knew that would be the final blow. It came at an unavoidable trajectory. After two dodges, his feet became entangled and he could no longer dodge the next one.

The attacks had been designed that way.

Almond could try making the attack miss a vital point, but he only had eleven percent of his health left. Even his armor taking the hit would be fatal.

He had no weapon to block with. Dodging was the only way to survive, but he couldn’t dodge at this angle. He wondered whether or not to die here. No, it was better to do something to Pierre before dying.

‘Ah.’

An idea flashed in Almond’s mind.

Thump!

He stomped the ground. Actually, he stepped on a long spear lying on the ground. The spear, awkwardly placed on a corpse, teetered up and blocked Pierre’s strike.

Clang!

— Wow!

— ??? I can win even with my feet.

— That’s crazy.

— Wow, nuts.

— Nice.

Almond grabbed the spear and thrust it forward.

“!?”

Even Pierre felt briefly surprised and couldn’t predict an attack from an unknown weapon. It was too late for him to retreat. The strike struck near his heart.

Thunk.

His fingers tingled, but it wasn’t enough to pierce his armor. His posture became awkward because he wasn’t a spearman.

At least Pierre’s health had been reduced.

Pierre’s lips twisted. Not in delight, but in frustration. After all, he had almost been stabbed in the heart.

He began fiercely counterattacking.

Shing! Shing!

His swordsmanship now looked distinctly different.

However, the now armed Almond was faster and more solid.

Clang!

Clang!

Their sword and spear clashed repeatedly in the air.

— Can Almond win?

— How is Almond holding his ground?

— An archer hiding sword skills

— Crazy.

Almond’s eyes shone among the sparks flying between them.

‘Now!’

He lunged with a final thrust, but—

‘!?’

Thunk!

His spear struck something behind. Like tripping over a stone, the spear’s path completely altered and the thrust failed.

‘A shield?’

Another Roman soldier appeared with a shield. When did he get there?

At that moment—

Pierre’s sword, as if waiting, pierced Almond’s abdomen.

Thunk!

[HP: 0%]

All his health was finally depleted.

They were close enough to touch shoulders when Pierre whispered, “War isn’t fought alone.”

Exactly. Pierre had placed a soldier behind him on purpose. He issued such orders during the fight.

However—

“!?”

An arrow suddenly pierced Pierre’s eye.

Thunk

!

“Ahhh! Pang with the perfect shot! X marks the spot!”

It was Pang. He had arrived to provide covering fire.

— Why is it a perfect shot?

— X mark

— LOL

— Wow

— X mark indeed

Pierre lost an eye. Had the battle continued, the archers would have riddled him with arrows or maybe Pierre would have kept dominating with his shieldmen.

They would never know because the match had ended.

[Defeat]

Cookie’s surrender echoed out.

— What?!

— What’s this?

— Crazy.

— Huh ㅠㅠ

— What???

Even viewers on Almond’s personal stream felt bewildered.

‘What?’

Almond felt equally puzzled. Only when he ascended the battlefield as a spirit did he realize it.

— Oh…

— Damn.

— What a disaster.

The Joseon cavalry reinforcements from the west had been annihilated and the additional Joseon archers had mostly fallen too.

The Roman crossbowmen from the west had taken them down. Just like the initial attack, the Romans quickly and easily took them out from the sides and the rear.

Pierre’s phalanx had been stalling for time and Joseon could no longer hold on.

Even Pang, who helped Almond, barely survived.

— Pang’s final arrow…

— Just a last spiteful shot, Pang

— War is hard.

The commentators sighed while explaining.

“Ah, the decisive move was brilliant, Anto.”

“Yes, Rome’s siege weapons circled from the north to the east and attacked from there! Cookie intended to end things in the north!”

“Cookie focused on the northern battlefield, missing the eastern movement! It was out of sight!]

“Even if he knew, recalling the northern soldiers wouldn’t be easy!”

“Pierre skillfully held the main force! Too much time was lost!”

Almond understood that Pierre’s goal was to buy time, which Pierre executed perfectly.

***

Hiss.

The capsule opened and Sang-Hyeon sat up.

“Phew...”

He stepped out of the capsule, tossed his white shirt aside, and sat on a chair. Although the sweat had dried, his body still radiated heat.

“War isn’t fought alone.”

Pierre’s words echoed in his mind.

It wasn’t just about positioning soldiers. That was a tactical variable.

He was speaking of war and he was right. War wasn’t fought alone.

Today, Private Ryan couldn’t shake those words from his head.