Lord of Cosmos-Chapter 200: General Hugo Vs Noor II

The Captain hesitated for a moment, then said, "I received word of the Supreme Admiral's arrival a short while ago, sir, but I do not believe this is a mutiny."

Hugo ground his teeth. "It is a mutiny. It cannot be the Prince; he is undoubtedly marching on the Tree right now."

Hugo drew his paintbrush, gripping it in his right hand, and took hold of a wooden palette bearing seven watercolors in his left.

The bombardment thundered on, shells smashing into everything and reducing the camp to scattered dust. Flames climbed higher as soldiers fell one after another. The men began to break and run toward the road leading to the Tree, desperate to escape the heavy artillery surrounding them. Hugo scowled, barking orders for the men to push forward toward the Tree and break out of the valley so they could reform their lines. But suddenly, objects were hurled at them from all sides, emitting blinding flashes of light. Hugo threw his hands over his eyes to shield them from the searing glare. He caught a glimpse of the Captain writhing on the ground, the rest of the soldiers blinded, before the cannons roared once again.

Hugo roared like a cornered lion. "This is an annihilation of my army! I am Hugo, master of military tactics and the premier strategist to the conqueror Emperor Darleon—I do not fall into traps set by my enemies!"

He dipped his brush into the white paint and slashed it through the air. A powerful gust of wind surged forward, clearing the smoke just enough for the soldiers to see their way. Hugo ordered them to charge ahead.

They surged past him, and he followed at a hurried pace, artillery shells pounding the earth all around him, the stench of gunpowder burning his nostrils. The soldiers fled down the path, but no sooner had they gained some distance than they began stepping on landmines. Explosions tossed bodies left and right. Panicked, the men scrambled backward, only to be met by the relentless cannon fire from their rear. Trapped and disoriented, they began begging the General to save them from the massacre.

The General pushed his way through the chaotic ranks. He dipped his brush into the red paint and swept it through the air. A dense volley of red lines, like a swarm of arrows, materialized and rained down, piercing the earth violently and triggering the myriad mines planted along the road. The mines detonated one after another in a cascading chain of explosions, clearing a path fifty meters ahead. Hugo ran a finger over his jagged mustache.

"They planted these mines while we made camp and lowered our defenses," he muttered. "Then they threw smoke bombs to blind us, sowing chaos so the men would start killing each other. They surrounded us with artillery, bombarded us from all sides, and followed up with flashbangs to sear our vision. We are facing unprecedented military genius, gentlemen. This is undoubtedly not the work of a Ghlizan. It is the Supreme Admiral, trying to be rid of me. But fear nothing. I am not a prey that is easily hunted." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Hugo advanced fearlessly. Bolstered by his courage, the soldiers followed. But suddenly, he found the road blocked by a massive herd of armored beasts—the same creatures the Ghlizan used as beasts of burden. He ordered the men to open fire, but a soldier cried out that their hides were hard as iron, impervious to bullets.

General Hugo was utterly baffled. Every step forward met with a new disaster, while the cannons at his back continued to decimate the rear guard. He had to move fast. He scanned the horizon and spotted three towering creatures—resembling giraffes, but each possessing two flat-topped heads. Suddenly, a glint of light flashed from atop them, and several soldiers dropped dead beside him.

Hugo raised an eyebrow. "Snipers perched atop the beasts' heads? Take cover, men!"

"Take cover where, General?!" the Captain shouted. "The Ghlizan giraffes are tall enough to oversee the entire battlefield. They can pick us off like flies from up there!"

The General looked around, his heart pounding. He finally realized this was indeed the Ghlizan resistance, not a mutiny. But who had engineered this masterful ambush that was systematically dismantling him and his army? And who had supplied them with these wondrous weapons? Was it a Zurix spy arming the Prince with advanced technology? Had the Prince abandoned the Tree to eliminate him first? There was no doubt about it.

Another volley of flashbangs detonated, blinding them once more. The General threw his hands over his aching eyes. Suddenly, a searing pain tore through his back—a knife driven deep into his flesh. Agony overwhelmed him, but he spun around, swinging his arm wildly. His attacker stepped back, allowing Hugo to finally get a clear look. His eyes widened in shock. Standing before him was a young man with black hair, a long black coat billowing in the wind, and a black mask concealing the lower half of his face.

"You..." Hugo pointed a trembling finger. "It is you. You are the one who gave that boy the mask in the village. You planted the mines in front of the town, costing me dozens of men. And there is no doubt... you are the one who spun this devious web and trapped my army here!"

Hugo shrieked at him in a fit of rage, ripping the bloody knife from his own back. "What do you want from me?"

Noor's eyes glinted fiercely as he melted back into the smoke. "Revenge."

Hugo plunged his brush into the green paint and swept it over his back. The wound vanished, knitting itself back together instantly. A fury unlike any he had ever known consumed him as he watched resistance fighters emerge along the hilltops, rifles raised, picking off his men one by one. He spotted another contingent riding golden deer, charging them from the rear. They fired their rifles with unparalleled marksmanship from the backs of their mounts, felling soldiers with lethal precision. Some of his troops tried to rally, returning fire at the Ghlizan and knocking a few from their deer, but the rebels swarmed them from every direction, hunting them down.

General Hugo dipped his brush into the blue paint and slashed it in every direction. A translucent blue barrier of watercolor manifested, shielding his remaining troops from the Ghlizan gunfire. "Regroup and hold the line!" Hugo bellowed. The soldiers steadied their nerves and formed up.

"Fear for nothing!" General Hugo called out to them. "I will get you out of here. Watch your backs and follow me!"