50 vs 150 (1)

Guildmaster of the mercenary guild Eye Tooth.

Vicente Thamus slammed his desk.

"Damn it. They haven't come back this time, either."

That made six already.

It had been a week since they'd gotten intel that those cowardly Brown Hawk bastards, who had latched onto Red Eyes like leeches, were hiding in the western forests of Komus City.

He had selected seven members who were both skilled and quick, sending one to scout each day.

Yet, already six hadn't returned.

The only one who had come back was the very first to scout.

He'd returned half out of his mind, mumbling the same words day and night for three days.

"Stop messing around and just wait quietly... Stop messing around and just wait quietly... Stop messing around..."

On the fourth day, when he finally came to his senses and was questioned:
When he had tried to start scouting, some brat showed up, dictated lines for him to deliver, then beat him, made him repeat the lines, and kept repeating this a hundred times.

'So it's true a crazy guy took over the Brown Hawk guild...'

Tactics start with intelligence.

They'd already planted a spy in the Red Eyes Southern Branch.

Through him, they'd gotten their hands on Red Eyes' guild war plan.

Their own Eye Tooth Mercenary Guild was listed for eradication.

The Brown Hawk Guild, now Red Eyes' lapdogs, was said to be leading the attack.

At first, he hadn't believed it.

He'd only admired the cunning of Jose, guildmaster of the Red Eyes Southern Branch.

He thought Jose had known they'd planted a spy and so was feeding them false information.

He'd laughed off the idea that mere Brown Hawk could actually attack them.

But then it happened.

Those bastards took over Red Bull.

It was said Red Bull's guildmaster, Angel Pionic, was beheaded in a single stroke.

Angel Pionic.

No way could Brown Hawk's bald-headed Calvin and mad dog Pablo possibly take down a guy like that.

Afterward, they quickly took over two more guilds.

It was said Bradley of Strong Guild had joined under Brown Hawk without even a fight.

Crack, pop.

Vicente Thamus rolled his thick neck, bones popping audibly.

He was only stretching, but his thick trapezius muscles bulged with strength.

"This is getting interesting."

Knock, knock.

"Who is it?"

Knocking and waiting for the commander's permission before entering the office was a rule you usually only saw in the military.

—It's Fifty-Squad Leader Hakob.

Hakob.

Hakob was the Fifty-Squad Leader of the Eye Tooth Guild.

Not a standard military rank, but one that Guildmaster Vicente Thamus had created, tailored to the size of the Eye Tooth Guild.

"Come in."

Bang!

In contrast to his composed knock and reporting in, hakob burst open the door and ran in.

"They've attacked!"

"Who has? For a Fifty-Squad Leader, your report is sloppy."

"Ah, Brown Hawk has attacked! One kilometer in front of our base's main gate!"

"You left something out. Their numbers?"

"Oh! A little over thirty!"

Vicente Thamus nodded.

"Thirty, huh... They actually came with more men than expected."

"What should we do?"

Vicente Thamus, still seated, asked,

"Hakob."

"Yes, guildmaster."

"You can handle it alone, right?"

After a brief hesitation, hakob shouted back.

"Yes!"

At last, his chance had come.

Hakob, who was rated lowest among the three Fifty-Squad Leaders.
Today was the day.

He would achieve a great feat and flatten the noses of the other two Fifty-Squad Leaders.

* * *

"You said the enemy organization consists of three squads of fifty, right?"

Squad Leader Bradley answered.

"Yes, guildmaster!"

Despite having surrendered on his knees, Bradley, the Strong Guildmaster, had maintained stiff posture for awhile.

After the hell training, his mental reconditioning was now complete.

Still, his bold gaze had not faded.

His intense eyes were noteworthy.

"Then only one Fifty-Squad will probably come out."

Bald Calvin asked,

"What? Then wouldn't that be a loss for them? Everyone knows the basics—you have to come out together and overwhelm with numbers to win."

"That's only in your mercenary brawls."

Bald Calvin jutted his lips and shrugged.

This time, Bradley asked,

"May I ask why you think that, guildmaster?"

"This isn't a war between Brown Hawk and Eye Tooth. If the Eye Tooth guildmaster has any brains, he's not worried about us but about the main forces of the Red Eyes Southern Branch."

"So he'll want to hide his real strength."

"Sharp, Bradley. Exactly. At first, he'll try to face us with only a portion of his strength. That way, he won't reveal his real forces to the Red Eyes army that'll barge in afterward."

Suddenly—

"Aaaargh!"

Mad dog Pablo howled like a madman.

"They're seriously underestimating us!"

"Pablo."

"Yes, guildmaster."

"If this was a week ago, you all would've been wiped out by just those partial forces. If the Eye Tooth guildmaster had taught tactics to even the Fifty-Squad Leaders, that is."

"Guildmaster! You keep going on about tactics, but what is that? After hell training, I'm stronger now than ever! Am I the only one? All our members are the same! If you have the power to knock down the enemies in front of you and trustworthy comrades guarding your back, isn't that all you need?!"

"No."

"Huh?"

"No, you bastard. Sit down."

"Yes, sir."

I looked around at my four squad leaders.

"We stick to the plan. For the first battle, only Calvin, Pablo, and Bradley, whose faces are known, will take the field."

"Yes, guildmaster!"

Fweeeee—

A sharp whistle rang from the hill.

"They're out. Go."

"Yes, guildmaster!"

* * *

Hakob led his Fifty-Squad out from the base.

'Today... I will finally prove my worth.'

200 meters ahead, thirty men of Brown Hawk guild stood around in no formation.

From the way the sunlight glinted off their drawn weapons, they were clearly already armed.

Guildmaster Vicente Thamus had taught:
Unless it was a special moment to boost morale, the commander should never stand at the very front.

He'd explained that if the commander died or was gravely injured, the battle would quickly turn into a defeat.

But Hakob stood at the very front, leading his fifty guild members.

'We're going to win anyway, but as a Fifty-Squad Leader, I must prove my own value.'

He had broken one teaching by standing in front,
but otherwise carefully followed the rest.

"Megaphone."

A subordinate behind him handed over a cone-shaped amplifier that would carry his voice farther.

"Brown Hawk, hear this! If you surrender now, your lives will be spared! Having set foot here, you can't escape now!"

Of course, there was no way the newly arrived enemies would surrender after hearing this.

The real purpose was to lower the enemy's morale.

Even from far away, he could hear murmuring from the other side.

'Ragtag amateurs.'

The enemy was 200 meters away.

At full speed, it would take 30 seconds to clash.

Hakob spread two fingers and pointed left, then three and pointed right.

This meant, "Second Squad, flank left; Third Squad, flank right to surround them."
Then, he clenched his fist and thrust his arm forward.

The rest—First, fourth, and Fifth Squads—were to attack head-on.

"Now then..."

Sssshh.

Hakob took a deep breath.

"Attack!"

Second and Third Squads moved first.

It would take longer for them to swing around and strike the flanks.

'How's that? They have no idea what's happening, do they?'

Just as Hakob expected.

The thirty Brown Hawk guild members just stood there, staring blankly.

'They must be wondering why we're suddenly splitting left and right. Those dumb mercenary bastards. This is what formation means.'

For a moment, hakob forgot he was a mercenary himself.

"The rest, charge!"

Timing it perfectly,
First, fourth, and Fifth Squads started charging too.

Hakob led from the very front.

Kicking up dust,
Hakob's Fifty-Squad began to surround the Brown Hawk guild members.

Fifty meters to impact.

Almost there.

"Heavy infantry, move forward!"

This wasn't an army, there were no heavy cavalry, light cavalry, heavy infantry, light infantry, spearmen, or archers in organized squads.

Those were just names the guildmaster used based on the soldiers' gear.

Basically, it meant the bigger members in thicker armor with large weapons.
Heavy guys, literally.

At that moment—

"Retreat!!"

Brown Hawk split left and right, running away.

'Fools. Already frightened. They must have been forced to move only because they were worried about Red Eyes' opinion.'

He imagined they'd report back, claiming they had no choice but to withdraw.

No group could be more ragged than this.

They'd clearly come with no intention of fighting from the start.

'They were told to attack and just came to pretend, planning to slip away. Not on my watch.'

Hakob shouted,

"Chase them! Leave no one alive!"

* * *

A rocky hill overlooking the whole battlefield.

"It's true! Just like you said, Evan."

Haa—

I let out a long sigh.

They'd said the enemy would use tactics.

For this first battle, I'd prepared five new strategies based on Sixth Comrade Soldier Eiker's teachings.

But watching the enemy formation move, it looked like I wouldn't need the rest.

Well, that's a relief.

Bradley was one thing, but honestly, Calvin and Pablo hardly remembered the third tactic, let alone any more.

If the third tactic failed, I'd planned to lead First Squad myself.

But looks like there's no need.

"Wow! It's really as you said! Evan, the flanks are spreading out and the center is thinning!"

It looked like they were just running in random directions with no formation,
but Brown Hawk's Third, fourth, and Fifth Squads were currently splitting exactly fifteen to each side, widening the gaps as they ran.

"They're actually doing pretty well."

"Right? They could run much faster than that, but they're holding back. Must be the hell training working! Evan!"

Obviously.

Thanks to hell training, they matched their speed—fast enough to stay ahead, slow enough not to get caught.

In terms of speed and stamina, they'd never lose to Eye Tooth's guild members.

"Oh! Oh! The center is thinning even more!"

Pursuing the Brown Hawk squads as they split left and right,
Eye Tooth's formation had stretched into a long, thin line.

At first, they'd charged forward in a convincing encircling formation, but within moments, their shape had twisted into the image of a thin stick snapped in the middle.

Actually—
It wouldn't even be called a formation anymore.

"Alright, Bradley. Now's the time."

Bastian beside me shouted excitedly.

"Go and sever their waist!"