Fantasy Novel: Paradise
Hotel 23
【Twenty-Two】The Fierce Encounter at the Border
79
Anderson personally led the main force of the Black Bat Army, marching through the night until they reached the small town of Da Vinci.
The town was deathly quiet. A scout returned with Lorna and Keith and went to meet the vanguard commander, Ghost Night Hound.
Ghost Night Hound asked with concern, “When word came back that the two of you had gone missing, we thought you had fallen victim to John Chen.”
Lorna remained calm and said, “General, we did indeed encounter John Chen, the Ghost Who Makes Sorrow, at the Milan train station. We knew we were no match for him, but fortunately, we managed to evade him in time and escape safely.”
Ghost Night Hound, having no reason to doubt her, asked, “These towns near the border are all completely deserted. Do you know what happened?”
Keith deliberately played dumb. “We just arrived ourselves. We have no idea what happened either.”
Ghost Night Hound said suspiciously, “Even you two don’t know? Could it be that our operation has been exposed and the authorities are already on alert? But we have certainly kept a low profile all along the way. We did not want to attract the authorities’ attention…”
Ghost Night Hound then took the two of them to a large mansion to meet Anderson. Lorna and Ghost Night Hound separately reported what had happened.
Rufe thought for a moment and said, “Leader, several towns along the way have all been deserted. I believe the authorities have clearly discovered our movements.”
Anderson said anxiously, “Then what should we do? We can’t exactly retreat…”
Rufe said solemnly, “The enemy has deliberately cleared the towns and prepared the ground for battle, so they must have made extensive preparations. Leader, think about it—would the enemy leave us any way out? We are very likely to encounter fierce resistance from them next, perhaps even planned encirclement and interception operations. But we have no choice. We can only press forward, regardless of the cost, cross the border checkpoint, and enter Switzerland.”
Anderson asked, “Mage, are you saying that the enemy will deploy heavy forces at the border checkpoint to intercept us?”
Rufe said, “Exactly. We must mentally prepare ourselves for the worst. Everyone, conserve your strength and prepare to face a direct battle tomorrow night.”
80
The following day, just after sunset, all the soldiers, police officers, and members of the defense forces at the border checkpoint had taken up their combat positions.
Inside the command post, John Chen, Adono, Station Chief Marin, and several town mayors gathered around a long table, studying several mountain trails marked on the map.
Marin said, “Each of these mountain trails is guarded by a defense unit. When the enemy’s columns launch a major uphill assault, we will set the kerosene barrels on fire and roll them downhill, letting them experience what it is like to be engulfed in flames.”
Jean-Paul said worriedly, “There are fewer than twenty soldiers and police officers guarding the main road. Our forces are quite thin there. If the enemy sees through our plan and concentrates their main forces on a direct assault, I’m afraid they may overrun the position…”
John Chen said, “I expect their military strategist, Mage Rufe, to act cautiously as he always does. He will certainly divide his forces into several columns and have them approach through the mountain trails under cover of darkness. Once they begin their uphill assault on our positions, Adono and I will infiltrate the enemy ranks, kill their commanding officers, and take advantage of the confusion to throw them into disorder.”
Marin said confidently, “Mayor, don’t worry about the main road. Although we don’t have many men, they are all soldiers and police officers who have received rigorous military training. Even if the enemy launches a direct assault, they won’t gain any advantage.”
81
At 8:15 p.m., the forward outposts along several mountain trails began reporting that enemy columns had been spotted advancing up the slopes. The members of the defense forces lying in ambush on the high ground took up their combat positions and held their breath as they waited.
Fifteen minutes later, flashes of fire erupted along several mountain trails. The leading troops of the Black Bat Army suddenly encountered kerosene barrels rolling down the slopes and were caught completely off guard. Some of the ghouls who failed to get out of the way were engulfed in flames, screaming as they rolled down the mountain, while the ghouls behind them hurriedly scattered to avoid the fire.
The bat officers leading the columns shouted, “Don’t panic! Don’t panic! Keep moving forward!”
Taking advantage of the chaos, John Chen and Adono each infiltrated one of two Black Bat columns. Adono used the Phantom Technique to transform himself into the Dragon Knight. When the ghouls suddenly saw the Dragon Knight appear behind them, they cried out in alarm and panic, pushing desperately toward the front.
Wearing a human-skin mask, John Chen seized the opportunity to slip behind the commanding officer and launch a surprise attack.
After the commanding officer was killed, panic spread through the ghouls, and they scrambled forward in a desperate flight. At that moment, a dense burst of gunfire erupted from ahead. Several ghouls were shot in the head and fell to the ground, twitching and struggling.
Lorna and Keith were behind another column, killing ghouls who had fallen behind. In the midst of the extreme confusion, General Ghost Night Hound was directing the battle from the front and had no time to pay attention to what was happening behind him.
Seeing that every column was under heavy attack, military strategist Rufe immediately concluded that the enemy forces in the center might be weaker.
Rufe ordered, “Messenger, sound the ghost whistle immediately. Order all six columns to converge toward the checkpoint and launch a concentrated assault. Find a breakthrough point.”
Upon hearing the ghost whistle, the various columns began converging toward the checkpoint.
Station Chief Marin led nearly twenty soldiers and police officers in a desperate resistance, but in the end they were no match for the main force of the Black Bat Army. Seeing his comrades fall one after another around him, while he himself was surrounded by more than a dozen ghouls and was running out of ammunition and reinforcements, Marin shouted, “I’ll send you all back to hell!”
Marin resolutely activated the self-destruct device. In an instant, a series of explosions erupted around the checkpoint. Dozens of ghouls were buried in the flames alongside Marin. The deafening explosions and blazing fire shook much of the surrounding mountain range.
At that moment, Rufe received word that Lorna and Keith were actually killing their own comrades at the rear of the formation, so he hurried toward the back to deal with them.
Furious, Rufe shouted, “You two traitors! You won’t make it out of here alive tonight!”
Rufe summoned his magic and was about to strike Lorna and Keith down when Lorna quickly took out the invisibility cloak, threw it over Keith, and slipped underneath it herself. The two instantly vanished before Rufe’s eyes.
Lorna and Keith immediately turned and ran back the way they had come. Although Rufe noticed two rows of footprints suddenly appearing on the ground, Anderson sent a messenger to summon him at that very moment, so he did not pursue them any farther.
Rufe cursed bitterly, “I’ll spare your two worthless lives for now!”
82
Anderson, together with Grand Mage Rufe, several trusted followers, and a group of battered survivors, hurriedly crossed the border checkpoint and entered Switzerland.
Anderson’s group of evil creatures regrouped in a small village near Lake Lucerne.
Anderson asked, “How many brothers and sisters do we have left?”
Ghost Night Hound said, “We just finished counting. Only about sixty are still capable of fighting.”
Anderson said dejectedly, “Just as the Grand Mage predicted, the enemy conserved their strength while waiting for us and used the difficult terrain to block our advance. Even worse, there were traitors at the rear of our formation who took advantage of the chaos to sabotage us.”
Rufe said, “During the battle just now, I discovered that John Chen, the Ghost Who Makes Sorrow, and the Dragon Knight seemed to be the two masterminds behind this operation. But there is one thing I still cannot figure out…”
Anderson asked, “What is troubling you, Grand Mage?”
Rufe revealed his doubt. “If the Dragon Knight was leading the operation, why didn’t we see the elite force under his command, the Ironblood Imperial Guards?”
Anderson speculated, “The Ironblood Imperial Guards may have been deployed around Lake Lucerne, where we are heading next.”
Rufe said, “Yes, Master. That is very possible. If we encounter the Ironblood Imperial Guards at this critical moment, we may suffer total annihilation. Ghost Night Hound, go scout the area around Lake Lucerne first and assess the enemy situation. Report back immediately if you discover anything.”
“Yes, Grand Mage.”
Ghost Night Hound clasped his hands in salute, accepted the order, and with a single leap disappeared into the darkness of the night.
