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As the wall collapsed, soldiers poured through the breach like a tide.Dust and flame surged together, and a blast of hot wind drove the stench of iron and blood deep into the city.The density of arrows raining down from the wall thinned for a brief moment.
In that instant, Park Seong-jin was the first to throw himself down from the wall.
The moment his feet hit the ground, earth exploded upward in a cloud.The assault unit landed one after another behind him.Blades snapped into hands the instant they touched down.
"Left side. Push in. Head for the gate."
Park Seong-jin's shout cut through the smoke.He drove forward at once.
His blade flashed like lightning.At the end of that cutting arc, an enemy helmet split apart.Riding that momentum, he forced his way deeper into the space.
Youthful sharpness and fear worked together,their combined force driving his body forward.
The area before the gate was already the heart of the melee.
The enemy held a three-tiered formation.Under red banners, spears were raised as they packed together and endured.The roar filling the space was not order, but raw, primal pressure.
Park Seong-jin drew a deep breath.
The first line advanced.
He dropped his waist and let the line of spear points slide past.Cold iron brushed his shoulder and missed.At the same time, he twisted his body and drove his blade upward.
The straight thrust pierced a soldier's throat.He ripped the blade free and chopped downward.
Metal screeched sharply as armor split from shoulder to waist.
Blood splashed across his face.
Another enemy closed in from behind.Park Seong-jin flung his blade backward in a spinning motion.The tip punched through the back of the neck and stopped.
He twisted the hilt, shoved the body aside, and seized the spear of a fallen soldier at his feet.Tucking it under his arm, he hurled it.
The spear flew like a stone, tore through a shield, and pinned the man to the gate wall.
Over that, another warrior vaulted, stepping on Park Seong-jin's shoulder.A blade plunged straight down from above.
In blood and smoke, their movements flowed short and fast.Without meeting eyes, they read the current.Where to strike, where to leave space—it was shared through the lines of their blades.
Overlapping trajectories carved the space apart.
Then cavalry surged in from the north wall behind them—the riders led by Yi In-jung.
They did not dismount.Spears locked forward, they charged straight in.
Each time iron hooves struck stone, sparks burst.Horses collided, soldiers were flung aside.The disciplined charge shattered the grain of the melee.
"Park Seong-jin. Left flank. Break the shield wall."
Yi In-jung's shout arrived with perfect precision.
Park Seong-jin pivoted at once.
Goryeo heavy crossbowmen who had crossed the wall opened fire from the rear.Arbalest bolts skimmed low over the charge path.Heads snapped back, shields flew into the air.
Through that opening, fire troops advanced.
Small flaming jars smashed against stone and burst.Oil spread, and yellow flames leapt up in an instant.One axis of the formation collapsed.
"Now."
Park Seong-jin raised his blade high.
At the signal, soldiers surged forward together.Blood splashed underfoot like mud.Each scrape of steel flashed with light.
With every breath, smoke and heat burned his lungs.The pressure of advance held his body moving forward.
The gate gave way.
As the last stone fell, the inner space opened.Enemies inside began to redeploy toward the rear.
Park Seong-jin steadied his breathing and leveled his blade.He bent his knees and wiped his blood-slick hand against his armor.
Firelight washed his face in red.
From behind, soldiers' cheers erupted.
"Gate breached. Foothold secured."
Allied troops poured in through the gate.
The lonely struggle of the assault unit had opened the space—now the full siege battle was underway.
Deep within the city, drums and shouts continued without pause.The battlefield was shifting into its next phase.
Zhang Shicheng's main force still held its ground.Its density wavered, but its scale remained intact.
In Park Seong-jin's vision, the shapes of the assault unit stood out clearly.
Black shadows moving through flame.
In this moment, they were as vivid as memory itself.Not legends—but living people, breathing here and now.