Switch Mode

Chapter 325

Chapter 325: It’s Not Easy Even If You Know

Kwang!

“Keyeeek!”

As Gillian’s two axes swung, the Grex charging at him turned into a spray of blood and vanished.

Pududuk.

With gritted teeth, a blue flash erupted from Gillian’s eyes. His bulging muscles looked like they were about to burst with the strain.

He called upon all his strength in that instant. Any hesitation would mean getting overwhelmed by the tremendous number of Grex.

Kwang! Kwang! Kwang!

With just a few swings of his axes, dozens of Grex were torn apart.

Yet, Gillian had barely moved a few steps. No matter how many he cut down, the Grex kept pouring in endlessly.

Gillian exhaled deeply. He had never felt such despair even when fighting Desmond’s Army.

The weakness of an individual meant nothing. He had to think of it as fighting an army that feared no death.

Kwahahah!

Like a rampaging ogre, Gillian swept away everything that stood in his way.

Even the soldiers fighting on the fortress were left in shock by his overwhelming power.

“What are you doing!? Keep attacking!”

“Don’t get distracted!”

“We have to kill more to keep Gillian safe!”

Commanders shouted from all around. As veteran soldiers following Ghislaine, they were effectively managing the chaotic situation.

Pah!

Countless arrows rained down beside Gillian. Thanks to the soldiers, the Grex couldn’t swarm him in greater numbers.

But it wasn’t a time to feel relieved.

Ddududududu!

The forest echoed louder. He could feel a much larger number of Grex coming from afar.

‘My Lord…’

Ghislaine hadn’t even left the forest yet. If swallowed by that red tide, even Ghislaine would find it hard to come back alive.

So Gillian pushed forward with all his might.

Pah!

“Keyeeek!”

He surely cut down the Grex in front of him. But the empty space was filled with more Grex in the blink of an eye.

At some point, Gillian couldn’t take a proper step forward. No matter how much he slashed, the front was filled with Grex.

Kwang! Kwang!

“Kuugh…”

No matter how many Grex he killed, it felt like he was just swinging his axes in place.

Gillian was one of the few known for his destructive power in Penris. Yet even he couldn’t push forward.

It would be more accurate to describe this as a natural disaster. A calamity beyond human control.

Just as he was feeling suffocated by the overwhelming despair, dozens of daggers flew in from behind.

Papapapak!

“Keyeeek!”

He didn’t need to see who it was. Belinda was fighting alongside him from behind.

“Phew!”

Only then did Gillian feel his previously blocked breath begin to ease.

She was fighting incredibly smart. The dozens of daggers connected to Belinda moved as if they were alive.

The daggers attacked the monsters blocking their path while luring the surrounding Grex away.

With the Grex’s attacks scattered, Gillian was slowly but surely able to advance again.

He could hear her breathless voice from behind.

“We surprisingly work well together, don’t we?”

“…Can’t deny that.”

Gillian muttered a reply and focused solely on swinging his axes.

Belinda was already worn from participating in a tough operation before this. He could easily sense her breath was ragged even from a short conversation.

The two worked together, gradually moving forward.

Though it might seem reckless, it had to be done. No matter how exceptional Ghislaine’s skills were, being surrounded by this many Grex would eventually exhaust her.

To be of any help, they had to break through the monster horde and meet up.

Those in the fortress understood this, too, and busily supported the two.

“Don’t stop shooting!”

“Deal with anything that gets too close with spears!”

“Get closer! Don’t dodge, just get closer!”

Since the Lord hadn’t arrived yet, they couldn’t use the catapults, nor could they wield magic. They couldn’t risk getting caught up in it. The only offensive they had was to contain the Grex with arrows.

However, even with the continuous barrage of arrows, the wave of monsters showed no sign of diminishing.

“Keyeeek!”

The Grex were desperately climbing the fortress, scratching their sharp claws across the barriers.

The corpses piled beneath helped the Grex ascend further.

“Gather your strength!”

Puh-wook! Puh-wook! Puh-wook!

To the backdrop of the commanders’ shouts, the soldiers thrust their spears and pushed back the encroaching Grex. If they hadn’t built the fortress, they wouldn’t have been able to endure this.

The battle intensified to the point where there wasn’t even time to admire the Lord’s preparedness.

Watching over the scene with a stern expression, Vanessa opened her mouth.

“We need to make a way.”

The mage next to her said respectfully. Now that Vanessa had become the head of the Penris Mage Institute, nobody could order her around.

“If we cast magic now, we’ll have to regain our mana afterward. The soldiers will have to hold on during that time.”

“If the Lord doesn’t arrive, no preparation will matter anyway. It’d be better to resolve this situation quickly.”

“…Understood.”

Guuuuuuung!

As Vanessa reached out, light began to emanate from the magic circle carved into the ground.

They had gathered all the runestones left in the territory for this operation. Some of them were embedded around the magic circle to make it easier to gather mana.

Additionally, dozens of mages were accumulating their mana in the magic circle. That magic flowed into Vanessa.

Soon her clear voice emerged.

“Ice Spear.”

Ddudududuk.

Water began to gather in the empty air, forming ice spears.

When the tremendous mana met the realization of a 6th Circle Mage, thousands of ice spears were created in an instant.

“Go.”

As she uttered the word, the ice spears shot forth.

Kwah-kwah-kwah-kwaang!

“Keyeeek!”

The enormous ice spears swiftly swept away the Grex to either side of Gillian and Belinda.

Vanessa quickly followed up with more magic before the Grex could flood in again.

“Earth Wall.”

Kukukukukung!

A massive wall of earth rose beside Gillian and Belinda.

“It won’t hold for long.”

Vanessa spoke those words and then withdrew her magic. If she used up any more mana, she wouldn’t be able to cast the prepared spells.

She seated herself and closed her eyes to meditate, beginning to gather her mana once again. The mages beside her followed suit.

Thanks to Vanessa, Gillian and Belinda could move forward faster.

Walls had formed on either side, preventing the Grex from rushing over.

“Thanks to Vanessa, we’re alive. Why does the young master always have to be so reckless?”

Even while fighting, Belinda grumbled. Hearing her consistent nagging, Gillian couldn’t help but smile.

That smile had another reason, too.

“It’s the Lord.”

Kwah-aaaang!

Before them, numerous Grex were being flung away. Ghislaine was also struggling against the monsters as she approached the fortress.

Ghislaine was fighting many more Grex than Gillian and Belinda.

“Keyeeek!”

Hundreds of Grex suddenly swarmed over Ghislaine. In the blink of an eye, her body was completely obscured.

Kwah-aaaang!

The Grex that had enveloped Ghislaine burst apart. But just as it happened, more Grex quickly swarmed back over her.

Kwah-aaaang!

Again, the Grex exploded outwards in all directions. In the meantime, Ghislaine quickly rolled forward to clear some space, but the monsters continuously lunged at her.

“Phew, this is no joke.”

Ghislaine muttered, even while fighting, impressed by the situation.

With her current abilities, she could easily cut through thousands of soldiers in an instant. But the brute force of the Grex was something even she couldn’t slice through effortlessly.

Humans were greatly affected by morale. If she killed just a few hundred at the front, the remaining ones would lose their fighting spirit.

Even if the opponent was not human, that fear could be exploited. Monsters that followed their instincts also feared death.

But the Grex didn’t experience such feelings. They showed no fear of death. It seemed they had no such concept at all.

An army moving solely for one purpose, following Queen Grex’s orders.

This was the most ideal yet most terrifying kind of army.

“It’s not easy, even if you know.”

Ghislaine, drenched in exhaustion, swung her sword without pause, a wry smile on her face.

From just the information of her past life, she had anticipated it would be pretty tough… but experiencing it firsthand felt entirely different.

“Thrilling.”

Chiiiiiiii!

Red mist poured forth from Ghislaine’s body. Even in such a dangerous situation, a smile lingered on her lips.

Ghislaine had an inherent love for combat. Especially battles that pushed her to her limits.

Kwah-aaaang!

Her red eyes glimmered as she wildly swung her sword. The newly completed defensive technique proved immensely helpful in this fight.

No matter how much the Grex clawed and scraped, she didn’t suffer a single proper wound.

The only issue was one.

‘Can I hold out until we reach the fortress?’

In this situation, she couldn’t be certain.

There seemed to be at least 100,000 Grex lurking around. They were even still increasing in number.

Despite how many she killed, pushing forward was a struggle. It felt as though walls made of Grex stretched infinitely before her.

When estimating her remaining strength, the probability of reaching safety unharmed was less than fifty percent.

‘Still, I have to go.’

I have to get through somehow. I didn’t enter this forest to die in a place like this.

Like always, it only mattered to succeed in the end.

Kwah-aaaang!

Ghislaine shook off her distracting thoughts and focused solely on swinging her sword. Before long, she spotted figures approaching from ahead.

She was so deep in combat that it was a delayed realization she had someone coming toward her.

“My Lord!”

“Young Master!”

“Gillian? Belinda?”

“I told you not to come out, and yet you can’t seem to listen. But Ghislaine smiled.

“Now we’re halfway there.”

The chances of getting back safely increased. As the three gathered, their speed through the Grex improved slightly.

Kwah! Kwang! Kwang!

The sounds of mana exploding and the screams of the Grex echoed continuously.

The wall created by Vanessa proved to be of great help. However, magic never lasts forever.

Kuruuruung!

As the mana dwindled, the wall began to crumble rapidly. The Grex that had previously been blocked came flooding toward the three.

The moment they entered the open space, they found themselves once again caught in the tide of Grex.

The people in the fortress, witnessing this, quickly sprang into action.

“It’s the Lord! The Lord has arrived!”

“Shoot faster! We need to clear a path!”

“Prepare the catapults!”

Now that the whereabouts of the Lord were known, there was no need to save the catapults.

Galbarik, together with the dwarves, adjusted the catapults to take aim and attack.

As excellent engineers, they had already mapped out this area.

Having gauged the distance just right, Galbarik shouted.

“Fire!”

Pang! Pang! Paaang!

Dozens of catapults hurled massive boulders.

The dwarves realized why Ghislaine had said there was no need for precision.

Kwah-aaaang! Kwah-aaaang! Kwah-aaaang!

The Grex charging in behind Ghislaine were being smashed by the flying boulders with satisfying force.

Nothing missed. Given their tight formation, it would have been strange for anything to not hit.

As the catapult barrage commenced, the pressure of the Grex coming from behind certainly seemed to falter a bit. The stones impeded their movement, and the growing pile of corpses hindered their advance.

But that didn’t change things drastically. There were still far too many Grex swarming the three in front, and more kept pouring in from the sides.

Kwah! Kwang! Kwah!

Indeed, the sight of the Grex being flung back and torn apart by the three’s attacks could be seen even from the fortress.

Yet, despite all that, the three were still unable to move effectively. They possessed the skills to carve a path quickly, but they were overwhelmed by sheer numbers.

Reluctantly, Vanessa rose once more.

“I’ll make a path again.”

At her words, the mages turned pale. The number of Grex had increased since before. That meant more mana would have to be used.

“Gathering mana with the magic circle and runestones has reached its limit.”

“If we use the mana we’ve gathered now, we won’t be able to cast the spells the Lord planned.”

“Perhaps we should wait a little longer…”

If they were unable to cast the prepared spells, they might have to fight against those countless Grex for several days. Many soldiers could die.

But Vanessa shook her head firmly.

“We can’t wait any longer. This is a dangerous situation.”

The mages couldn’t contradict her. After all, they couldn’t just leave the Lord to die.

As they found themselves in a predicament, Kaor, who had taken a moment to breathe, approached.

“From what I’ve heard, I don’t think using magic right now is a good idea.”

“We have no choice. Look over there. If we delay any longer, we won’t be able to take action.”

Vanessa pointed to the forest. It had now turned completely red.

A staggering number of Grex had gathered.

Seeing that, Kaor spat on the ground, then spoke.

“We just need to make a quick path, right?”

“Is there a way?”

“What we train the most under the Lord is charging forward. We’re the best in the kingdom at carving a quick path.”

A shock tactic attempted by 400 knights would be unstoppable, even if it could only be exerted for a brief moment.

As Kaor gestured, a few soldiers brought him his armor.

“I didn’t want to wear this out of shame, but I don’t have a choice. Since the old man helped me once.”

The reason he typically refrained from wearing the new armor was simple. Gillian didn’t use it either. However, right now, this armor was needed.

Kaor’s armor, like the others’, had the emblem of Penris on one side of the chest.

However, it had an additional drawing on the back. A fierce black dog, baring its fangs, was illustrated on the rear side of his armor.

“Hey! Gather quickly!”

As Kaor donned his armor and shouted, the knights, who had been pushing back the Grex at the barriers, all assembled.

They were already fully prepared to descend.

“Let’s go. Time to create a path.”

Clang.

With Kaor lowering his helmet, the knights maximized their mana.

Being half a knight, he always fought by distributing his strength as efficiently as possible. But now, it was time to unleash his full power.

Jing—!

A brilliant light started to emanate from the gaps in the knights’ armor.


My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.

The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.

Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.

 

Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Options

not work with dark mode
Reset