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"So far, it's working out great,

" Markus muttered, forcibly holding back his chuckle.

"I didn't expect them to react so strongly if I were, to be honest,

" he added, looking to the back at the group chasing right after them.

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"No one likes to have their emissary beheaded,

" Layn replied with a small smirk.

"Although rather than this chase, I have actually a big hope to how this small ploy will influence the situation of our friends behind the wall,

" he added.

nThe two groups were stuck in a relentless race on the vast emptiness of the grassy desert. With Layn's group running away and the Slavians of the unfriendly faction roughly a mile behind them, one would expect the two groups to meet up pretty soon.

nAfter all, the Slavians were all on horseback, and from the looks of things, they spared no mercy for their mounts. On the other hand, Layn's group was entirely on foot, looking like a bunch of thieves attempting to escape the chase of law enforcers.

nBut that this situation wasn't all that dynamic. Ever since the chase started roughly two hours ago, the cavalry failed to make any real progress.

n'I think we will need to slow down a bit relatively soon,' Lay thought, looking to the back. 'We can keep up this pace for as long as necessary, but their horses are going to tire out pretty soon,' he thought, calculating the distances between each of the groups before looking forward to where he was leading both groups.

nFor a moment, he brought his hand to his chest, where a small bump was heating up his breast. It was unrealistic to believe he could lead the military unit by their nose for so far, forcing him to bid his hopes on a small trick.

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"Layn, they are slowing down,

" Markus reported, proving that he was closely observing the situation as well.

"At this rate, they will give up before we bring them to that place,

" he added, looking at his friend's face in the hope of some bright ideas.

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"I think we have no choice, then,

" Layn replied, suddenly halting his run. Following his example, the entire group slowed down, only to turn around and actually run towards the cavalry, heading right for the confrontation!

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"Is this really the best idea?

" Markus asked despite following Layn's steps without a single word of complaint.

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"We need to kill exactly half of them, but spare their horses,

" the archmage replied, biting his lips as he did so.

"This way, they will be able to keep up the chase...

"

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"But will they give chase if we defeat them now?

" Markus pointed out an obvious flaw in Layn's plan.

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"I don't really count on them for that,

" Layn replied, massaging his chest once again. Bit by bit, as the heat of his small trick grew, holding it hidden in his pocket became almost unbearable.

nThis time, with both groups heading in the opposite directions, the distance between started to decrease at a rapid pace.

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"Men!

" Layn shouted just loud enough for his people to hear him.

"Try your best not to harm the horses. I know this is a hard thing to ask, but I need you to try anyway!

" he shouted his order before rushing towards the very front of the group.

nThere was no time for anyone to report back to him. Given how his group could easily outrun a damned horse if they so willed for, the two groups meet in just a moment.

nLayn jumped up, right as he approached the enemy. Conjuring simple lances made out of the magical fire in his hands, he aimed one of them at the chest of the closest enemy.

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"Die!

" the man shouted, cutting at the archmage with his saber.

n'What an idiot,' Layn thought, not even bothering to block the attack. Given how he was mid-air, he couldn't even attempt to dodge it.

nLayn's spear exploded outwards as soon as it touched the enemy's chest. Just like the nefarious spells from the future, it channeled all of its strength to the point of impact, turning a simple strike into a practical explosive.

nWith the advantage of the length of his weapon, by the time the saber reached Layn's body, it no longer had any strength to penetrate through his flesh alone, not to speak about the barrier that he coated himself with.

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"KILL!

" the rest of the archmage's group joined in the fight a moment later, exploiting the advantage that the first fallen Slavian created with his death.

nThe initial momentum of both parties quickly died down. Thanks to the mobility of Layn's people, in close quarters, the advantage of fighting from horseback quickly turned into a handicap.

n'It's getting closer,' Layn thought, kicking away a soldier from the saddle, only to use it as a stepping stone for another jump. Rather than fighting from the ground like the rest of his people, the archmage remained on top of the fight.

nWhenever his fire-lance would explode and cleave an enemy in half, he would instantly create another one and look for another target to fight with.

nYet, just as he was about to engage in another small skirmish, his head suddenly turned to the side, right to where both of the groups were heading during the chase part.

n'It's here,' Layn thought, dropping his firelance and reaching for his chest. He then ripped his robe without even the slightest hesitation and grabbed a small yet complex mechanism he created while using the cores from the monsters defeated at the camp.

nThis small device had a single-use. It resonated with the stones of the monsters, allowing Layn to know in advance when they would appear. But the true purpose of it was slightly different.

nSince its magic resonated with the monsters, they were all aware of its presence and drawn to it as well!

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"They are here!

" Layn shouted from the bottom of his lungs, moving his attention back to the battle.

"PUSH!

" he shouted, instantly ramping up the speed of his movements.

nIn a flash, the fake stalemate created by his people holding back broke down as Layn's companions started mercilessly cutting down the Slavians. Even though they didn't get to hear Layn's lessons for long, each of them was a veteran of expeditions to the desert or prolonged tribal warfare in Generians' case. The edge of the tricks that Layn taught them was more than enough to overwhelm Slavians who didn't even know what hit them.

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"RETREAT!

" One of the Slavian commanders finally noticed that they had fallen into a trap. And just as any military manual would advise, once in a trap, breaking away from the fight was the reasonable course of action.

n'Now, for the crucial part,' Layn thought, dropping down to the ground and looking in the direction of the new danger. He then took a deep breath and shouted,

"FORM THE LINE!

"

nIn the heat of the battle, this was one of the few commands that he could hope to enforce. The people on his side were veterans, but they didn't go through an extensive period of drilling together. Layn would only break their cohesion down by giving any more complicated orders, pushing them into the danger of actually getting annihilated by the monster's attack.

n'Now, let's hope it will work,' Layn thought as he moved to the former back of his group, rallying the people around him. And sure enough, before long, the cloud of dust in the distance revealed a furious assault of monsters, all heading straight for them!

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"Remember, men!

" Layn shouted as more and more of his people rallied around the place and formed the defensive line.

"Once the order is given, break out right away!

" he shouted before taking a quick glance to the back.

nThe Slavians didn't bother to wait and see why did their enemies suddenly stop. They didn't bother to think how Layn's people could easily chase them down, given how they managed to keep up with their horses for so long.

nThe monsters closed in fast. From their perspective, one coherent group suddenly split up into two, with those using mounts and proper armors escaping from their charge.

nThis was the crux of Layn's plan. This was the reason why he used a device to attract the monsters, even though now he was about to fight them.

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"Men! Don't falter!

" Markus shouted, sending a wink to his old friend.

"If we succeed now, we will guarantee the safety of the camp!

" he added before lowering his ax and grinning at the sight of approaching monsters.

nThe core of their plan was about to start right now.

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