The young warrior led the charge toward the enemy. He was thrilled to be on the front lines against the undead troops; he could finally prove his worth and earn a place at the table of the great lizardmen warriors. He was certain that after this battle he would become known as one of the future Six Heroes.
"Move forward! They’re exhausted!"
He cried out after reducing yet another skeleton to a pile of broken bones. It was the only way he knew to prevent those damned monsters from reassembling themselves from nothing. The soldier looked over at some of his companions who were doing the same job.
There are many wounded...the rain of arrows from earlier did a lot of damage.
In such a position, the most logical course of action would have been to retreat and carry the wounded to safety, taking advantage of the covering fire from the allied archers. However, the idea of retreating bothered the soldier. He wanted to bask in the glory and lead his faction to greatness. Teh young man glanced at some comrades who were catching up with him; the glint in their eyes was enough to tell him they shared his desire.
-They would lead the charge to victory. The new generation of legendary heroes was born.
Despite this, they still had to carry the wounded to Combust's village before they succumbed to their wounds. He and his comrades were driven by pride rather than duty, but they would never risk the death of their faithful comrades.
"Take the wounded to the druids! We—"
A sound, like a bang or a gunshot, interrupted the young man. The lizard soldier felt a pang in his chest. He looked down and saw a large hole near his heart. He had been hit. Although the wound was tiny in diameter, it hurt so much that he couldn't move easily.
"W-What? H-How-"
A second shot, this time aimed at the head, silenced him forever.
Is this how it ends? No…it can't be…
Before dying completely, the soldier could only hear ghostly laughter, more roars similar to those that had preceded his wounds and a shrill, evil voice shouting in the distance.
"You are only inferior beings! Prepare to be destroyed by the endless might of the Absolute Lord!"
Following the evil din, dozens of black swords appeared around the other soldiers who had followed the deceased soldier. Moved as if by a ghost, the dark blades pierced the confused lizardmen, killing them without mercy.
-That was the end of the new generation of heroes, who never even became ones un the first place. Their hope was crushed by an enemy whose face they didn't even know. Was there greater disrespect for proud young warriors?
Another roar followed their deaths. This time, two of the three Mud Elementals were hit. Normal bullets wouldn't have done any damage, but whoever had targeted them had used some sort of incendiary attack, which neatly eliminated the two behemoths.
It was then that the lizardmen soldiers noticed a figure approaching from the enemy rear. It was a red monster, resembling a stonefish, with two small bone cannons on its shoulders and two razor-sharp wrist claws for limbs. Its mouth was set in a tight smile, yet the lack of lips made it look more like a grimace than a sneer. It wore elegant red light armor, and where its heart should once have been, a metal device with a dark red "A" embedded inside was implanted.
"This one is different from the others! Retreat! Retreat!"
One of the lizardmen shouted, backing away in fear.
“W-Wait! Another one’s coming!”
Next to the red monster, a dark-skinned one appeared. This one had a more humanoid shape, and was armed with a shield and a mace. Like the previous one, it had a device on its chest, with a red "A" inscribed inside. Some would have mistaken it for an angel, given the small halo above its head, but the raven color of its halo allayed any doubts. This was not an angel, but a flesh-and-blood demon.
"Don't panic! Call in the elite Heroes division!"
Another roared, charging forward with some brave comrades.
"Whoever can fight move forward! Let's all attack together! We need to buy time!"
One of the young men continued, killing some of the remaining skeletons in his path.
"You're just hopeless fools! Bone Bullets!"
The red monster roared with fury, firing a volley of explosive bone rounds from its shoulder cannons. The bullets' velocity proved so great that they pierced the lizardmen's shields and hard scales. Many lives were lost in a single wave of fire.
"Ahhhhhh!"
"Bwooof!"
"Waaaaaaah!"
The two monsters advanced together toward the battlefield, heedless of the danger. The various arrows fired at them bounced away, as if some sort of skill protected them.
“Ahahahaha! It’s the end for you, arrogant lesser beings!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The cries of the dying soldiers could be heard from the walls, causing Druso and the others to peer out for a better view. His allies were fleeing in fear before those two powerful units. They looked more like a flock of birds than proud lizard warriors, but he couldn't entirely blame them; he, too, would have fled before creatures capable of such destructive force.
"It seems they're serious, finally!"
Kan roared enthusiastically. He couldn't wait to get out there himself.
"Yes, those two powerful units can only be the generals! Strange that they've just arrived now..."
Tiberio commented, confused by the enemy's strange timing. Nevertheless, it was clear that the situation had suddenly turned against the lizarmen. Their front line had just been destroyed, and the retreating soldiers were being killed one after another like gnats. The red monster seemed capable of covering a range of over two hundred meters. Tiberio wasn't sure the walls would withstand his fiery attacks.
"Lulu, do you know what kind of monster that red one is?"
Druso asked his beloved, hoping to learn more, to understand how to approach the enemy. For now, the more dangerous of the two was the one who could attack from a great distance. He truly hoped to gain some important information, such as possible weaknesses.
"No, unfortunately."
Lulu retorted, sighing in grief.
"But what I'm seeing looks like it has a range of at least two hundred meters. How are we supposed to reach it without getting killed first?"
The druid continued, watching the retreating soldiers be picked off one by one by the enemy general's bone bullets. He was picking off Lizardmen like flies, not to mention that he could launch powerful incendiary attacks that could eliminate multiple lizardmen with a single shot. Essentially, attacking him en masse would be futile due to the area-of-effect attacks, while trying to spread out was pointless due to the bullets.
"I have an idea, but it's dangerous."
Druso began, shifting his gaze to the sole remaining Mud Elemental.
"I don't care! I'm in!"
Kan added, eager for a fight. He would have charged his enemy head-on, if his little common sense hadn't told him otherwise.
"I trust you too, Druso!"
Lulu smiled at him. The wanderer nodded, smiling, and approached the others, beginning to explain the plan he'd devised in that short space of time. He didn't expect it to work, given the limited information he had, but it was their only hope of winning this war.
"So listen to me carefully, because it's a bit complicated..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In the town of Almy, the clash was being followed with great interest, as if it were a match of some famous sport.
"Wow! Those lizardmen were good!"
Almodea commented, looking at the magic screen. She cuddled up to Shion and grabbed some popcorn from the bowl on her lap, resting her head against her friend's shoulder, who simply smiled.
"You are right, Lady Almodea! They were good, and it's no coincidence that they are as proud as us Oni!"
Shion puffed out her chest for emphasis, the way she spoke making it sound as if she'd been on the battlefield personally, fighting that specific war. Her naively taking credit for others always made Almodea laugh, and this time was no exception. In fact, the demoness snuggled even closer to the woman, using her shoulders as a support for her chin, careful not to be uncomfortable.
"You're so hot when you're all confident, Shion! So prideful."
"Pride won't help, not now that those two monsters have entered the fray..."
Hirashi added, with her usual cold and disinterested tone, despite being very attentive to the details of the fight.
"Y-You know that red being, Lady Hirashi?"
Huna stammered. The little Oni had hidden her face behind Hirashi's arm as soon as the red monster appeared. She was extremely embarrassed by her behavior, but also too scared to look. More than the blood, she feared the energy the demonic generals released, being a cultist of the sacred. She had grown accustomed to the dark miasma generated by Almodea, but the monster's had still had an effect on her, despite being of a much lower level than that of her eighteen-year-old master.
"Yes, it belongs to a minor race of demons called Scratchers. They are usually assassins, with an average level around level 30. However, this one has been upgraded...I believe it's around level 34."
The white giantess replied, rubbing Huna's head and holding her gently to comfort her. Hirashi's bored tone made the demon ally seem insignificant, yet the Sacred Priestess was trembling with fear just looking at him. Hirashi's lack of reaction was entirely justified, considering she and Almodea were well over level 100- if the strength had to be estimated only with the level system. It was a system used in the old world, but impractical for beings who could exceed the maximum level of 100, like Hirashi or Almodea.
"Do you think the lizardmen have any hope of victory?"
Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.
Ryu asked, still busy arguing with the household appliances, this time with the oven... for some unknown reason.
"I doubt they have even one. Aside from Scratcher, there's also that Darkbright, a level 32 dark cleric; none of the ones I've seen would be able to defeat even one of them. However, the wielder of the magic sword would be the sole exception..."
Hirashi replied, looking at the magical projection before her.
"I say we'll see how it ends! Bets are welcome!"
Almodea commented, returning to observe the battle.
"Oh! They're launching a counterattack, but...with what?"
Shion asked, puzzled, unable to comprehend the lizardmen's movements. Something large had burst out of the fort and was speeding toward the front. What were the lizardmen up to?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scratcher smiled proudly at himself.
Things were going great for him. He had annihilated the enemy's front lines and was now slowly advancing towards the village of Combust. He would raze it to the ground with his powerful incendiary attack, Fire Blast. It wasn't an ability normally possessed by one of his race, but thanks to the modifications made by his creator at birth, he could now generate powerful explosive fireballs even more powerful than the Fireball spell itself .
“What the hell?”
Scratcher shifted his gaze toward the fort's entrance, noticing something emerging from it. He expected a squadron of lizardmen armed with some sort of shield, but instead he saw the last of the Mud Elementals summoned by the lizard druids rushing at him.
"Look at you! You're such an idiot monster! It's obvious you weren't summoned by the Absolute Lord!"
Scratcher declared in his shrill voice. He doubted, however, that they'd actually sent that monster out on its own. He'd already taken out two of them earlier; that would have been idiotic. Were they using him to buy time and retreat? He didn't care. Scratcher would take him out right then and there.
“Die, fool!”
He fired a few explosive rounds from the cannons on his shoulders. Scratcher expected the elemental to die instantly from Fire Blast, but some strengthening spells that had been cast earlier, unbenounced to the general, prevented the monster from being destroyed in a single blow.
"You think you can come near me, you vulgar beast?! Die!"
Scratcher fired more shots at the elemental, but it took them without being destroyed. However, it began to slow down and shrink in size. This was the Mud Elementals' great weakness: the lower their health points, the weaker and smaller they became.
"Why doesn't it stop?! Why do you keep moving forward?!"
Despite having the upper hand, Scratcher was none too pleased with the situation. His failure to destroy the elemental was an insult to his creator, the great Almodeus Fearterror—the Absolute Lord. Bolstered by his infinite devotion, he continued to fire on the monster until he saw something moving within the elemental itself.
A tail?
It was then that Scratcher understood everything: the elemental was nothing more than a Trojan horse. Someone was using it to get close to him, healing him from the inside. That's why it didn't die or stop.
"What the hell?!"
Furious at the affront, Scratcher unleashed another volley of fire aimed at the elemental. Just before it could be struck, Druso, Kan, and Lulu emerged from its body and began advancing toward him. The lizard heroes wanted to attack all six at once, but the druids didn't have the energy for a second Mud Elemental, and they needed someone to stay behind to coordinate the troops and exterminate the last remaining undead.
Seeing them approaching, Scratcher turned even redder with rage. He had realized their plan too late, and this irritated him. He decided to punish those fools who had dared to insult a creation of the Absolute Lord, so he fired at them again, this time using the single-target projectiles, which were more accurate than those unleashing Fire Blast.
"You're just arrogant fools! Bone Bullets!"
"You don't scare us! Mana Flow!"
With a swift movement, Druso unsheathed the Lich Bane, activating one of its abilities: Mana Flow. It allowed him to absorb the energy of any attack and retain it within the sword's magical blade. There was a limit to the amount of energy that could be absorbed, and Mana Flow could only be used five times a day before it became dangerous to the user. It was all about energy transfer after all, and Druso's body was that of a mere mortal.
Scratcher couldn't believe his eyes: the bone projectiles, stripped of their magic and speed, had fallen to the ground like pebbles. One of his attacks had been completely blocked by those lesser beings. How was that possible? He was a servant of the Absolute Lord; he should have been invincible. But it was Druso's next words that hurt him even more.
"Throw as many as you want! You'll just give me more energy!"
"Oh, yeah? That's not all I can do! Taste my ice! Frost Ray! "
Instead of the usual bone bullets, a beam of ice shot out of Scratcher's shoulder cannons, aimed at the wanderer. Lizardmen were weak to ice; that shot would surely have killed the target if it had hit, but-
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Even though he was still a long way from his enemy, Druso could clearly see that icy beam coming at him. He wasn't sure if the Lich Bane would be able to stop such an attack. The main problem was the power of the aforementioned blow. He felt like his sword was already more than half full. The blade still contained the energy drained from Kan during their previous fight, and from Scratcher's bone bullets.
Druso gripped his sword even tighter. He felt the cold getting closer; he had little time to think. The lizard made his decision almost immediately—he would take the risk. Druso started to raise the weapon as if it were a shield, when something large positioned itself in front of him.
"I'll take care of it!"
Druso stopped dead in his tracks as Kan intercepted the ice beam and caught him square in the chest.
"Kan! What are you doing?!"
"Don't worry! Pain Resistance...Massive!"
A green aura surrounded the monk, who seemed to withstand the blow quite well, almost as if he'd nullified it. Lizardmen were naturally weak to ice, so Druso doubted his friend was truly okay. He was probably exhausted after that blow, despite the monk skill he'd just used.
Pain Resistance Massive was a skill Kan had learned to withstand ranged attacks, a major weakness for a melee fighter like him. The skill didn't negate or reduce the damage, but it did allow it to be delayed for a certain amount of time; in Kan's case, about half an hour.
Explosive artillery and ice shells? This monster is too powerful! We must eliminate it quickly!
That's what Druso thought, ready to strike Scratcher, who was now within sword reach.
However-
“You're just a bunch of deluded people! I'm not alone!”
-The monster was prepared. A red circle surrounded the three lizard heroes, and a strange dark energy forced them to bow. For fighters like them, that was a grave disgrace, even if it was caused by a magic unknown to them.
“You forgot about my colleague, huh? Great job, Darkbright!”
Scratcher raised his right hand, prompting a high five from the dark cleric. Druso and his companions obviously hadn't forgotten about the second monster, nor had they deluded themselves into thinking they could defeat the two enemy generals with just the three of them. They'd devised a plan, and the enemy had fallen for it like chickens.
It was just a matter of waiting for the right moment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scratcher was truly pleased. Seeing those lesser beings bowing before him was a divine sight.
This is your place, insects!
They were worthy fighters, there was no doubt about that. However, they had not been created by the Absolute Lord like him and his companion, so they were ultimately worthless. Scratcher approached the wielder of the magical sword and brought his bone claws to his neck; he would decapitate him with one clean blow. Scratcher could already imagine himself in the glorious act of handing their heads to his sovereign.
“Are you sure your magic won't vanish if I hit them?”
He asked to his colleague, Darkbright.
“Yes, don’t worry. As long as I stay focused, my Submit skill stays in effect. It doesn’t matter what you do to them.”
The corrupt cleric replied confidently, waving his mace for emphasis.
“If you say so, I trust you...”
Scratcher raised his arm to spring forward, ready to bring his two bone claws down on Druso's neck. He would kill him in a single blow and bring his remains back to his master.
“Die, inferior being!”
“Hey! Why don’t you pick on someone your own size!”
“Huh?”
Scratcher opened his eyes in shock. Three more lizardmen had appeared out of nowhere, within swordshot. Two had leaped at Darkbright, while a scarred one was swinging his great sword at Scratcher, forcing him away from Druso.
“And who the hell are you?!”
“You don't have to care, red monster. We are not your opponents.”
Scratcher felt a pang in his chest. He whirled around, but all he could see was a tail that smack him in the face. Thanks to his enhanced physiognomy, he had managed to withstand both blows without serious damage, but he had still been thrown several meters away.
Someone can tell me what the hell happened?!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Druso inwardly thanked his brother for arriving at the right time. Their plan had worked perfectly. They'd expected the enemy monsters to underestimate them and let their guard down. The Mud Elemental they'd used as a Trojan horse contained another distraction: themselves. Druso and his companions needed to buy enough time to allow the remaining heroes—Tiberio, Shark, and Sakka—to sneak up on them by taking the long way around.
Now, essentially, two groups had emerged: Druso's, who would face Scratcher; and Tiberio's, who would instead deal with Darkbright. Their plan was entering its final stages; all that remained was to defeat the two enemy generals and they would win the battle.
"Summon: Ink Assassins!"
Realizing he was outnumbered, Scratcher used a level 4 spell to summon a dozen of Ink Assassins, level 20 monsters cloaked in black and armed with poisoned daggers. They were skilled in melee combat and would give him a significant advantage.
"I am Scratcher! A demon in service of the Absolute Lord! Bow to him and I will grant you survival until his Absolute Judgement falls upon you!"
The general promptly declared, using the assassins as a shield.
"No! Let your Absolute Lord come here and face us, if he really wants to subjugate us!"
Druso responded, raising his sword towards the enemy, in defiance of him and his master.
"Then prepare yourselves for a slow and agonizing death! This will be the last time I will show mercy and you—"
Scratcher pointed his wrist claws at the wanderer, taking aim.
"-You dared to speak that way to my Absolute Lord?! He who is all and can do everything! You will die last! I will make you know the meaning of the word suffering!"
With a wave of his hand, Scratcher commanded the ink assassins to attack, allowing him to gain further distance. The enemies were all close-quarters combatants; attacking with the long range of his cannons was the most logical choice.
"Where are you running to? You're just a coward!"
Kan shouted, attacking some assassins with his enhanced arm. The punch slammed two enemies together, knocking them over like salami. He decided to activate one of his warrior skills, Battle Madness. It was an ability that allowed him to draw the attention of lower-level enemies, forcing them to attack him instead of the others. A Taunt, in short.
"I'll take care of them! Take care of the red guy!"
The monk roared at Druso, before being stabbed in the back by one of the Ink Assassins. The blade wasn't hard enough to pierce the colossus's scales, but it still infuriated him. The monk whirled around and blew off the monster's head with a well-aimed punch. Despite the kill, there were still quite a few left to deal with.
“Magic Arrow!”
Luckily for Kan, Lulu arrived to his aid with a level 2 spell. The druid fired magic bolts at some of the enemies, killing them instantly. It seemed to be an effective spell against that type of monster.
“Stay behind me, girl. If you do anything to yourself, Druso will make me pay dearly.”
The colossus declared, stepping in front of Lulu. His taunt skill was still active, so the enemies would favor him over the girl.
“Let me heal you, if necessary.”
“That's kind of you, woman. I'm in! But save some strength for the others...”
With that, Kan went back to give away punches like they were Christmas presents.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Darkbright wasn't having a good time.
The enemies he was facing were powerful, he couldn't deny it. He was more of a support monster; it would have been foolish to fight more experienced warriors head-on.
Damn! It wasn't supposed to be this way!
He managed to parry a blow from Tiberio's great sword by sheer luck before being knocked back by Shark. Of all the lizardmen, he was the only one wearing armor, not to mention the bone spear he was carrying.
“You guys are annoying! Summon: Fallen Angel!”
Determined to even the playing field, Darkbright activated a level 5 spell. From the swamp waters rose two large, winged creatures made of stone. They looked more like gargoyles than fallen angels. They were unarmored, but their base stats were very high, being level 27 monsters.
“Come on! Take them out!”
Without waiting for further prompting, the two fallen men immediately lunged at the lizardmen. Tiberio managed to block one with his mighty sword, and the other was intercepted by Shark.
Just where I wanted you!
Taking advantage of his enemy's distraction, Darkbright once again deployed his ace in the hole: Submit. As long as he remained focused, he would force his enemies to physically submit to his will, leaving them vulnerable to the Fallen's attacks.
“Take this! Sub- “
Darkbright didn't have time to finish the vocal component when a stone hit his forehead, making him lose his concentration.
“W-What?! A stone?”
Darkbright was shocked. Had they really used a mere rock to attack one of the Absolute Lord's subordinates? Who had committed such a despicable act?
“Who was it?! I demand to know!”
Another blow to the head made him realize who was mocking him: Sakka, the enemy archer. He'd switched to the sling because he'd seen that arrows had little effect against the dark priest. Even the rocks themselves weren't very effective, but they were certainly a good distraction.
“How dare you, inferior being?! I will tear you to pieces! Thousand Swords! ”
The general was about to cast his most powerful offensive spell, capable of summoning a vast number of dark swords capable of attacking from any direction. However, Darkbright didn't have time to activate the spell before a slash struck him in the chest, knocking him backward.
It was Tiberio, who had managed to free himself from the fallen angel and take advantage of the general's moment of distraction. A second blow knocked Darkbright to the ground, leaving him to join the fish in the swamp. His beautiful black ceremonial robes had been completely soiled by the rancid waters. But what was worse was that the A on his shield now bore a tiny cut. It was inconceivable and unforgivable that the symbol of the Absolute Lord had been treated so disrespectfully.
“How dare you?! How dare you?! I am Darkbright, monster created by the great Almodeus! Do you realize who you are insulting?! You will die for this!”
Darkbright stood up with fire for eyes. He was tired of playing with his head. He gripped his quarterstaff in his right hand and charged at the lizard heroes. If using his brains wasn't working, he might as well attack blindly, using brute force and stored-up fury.
“Come on, Darkbright!”
Tiberio roared in return, charging in turn. Their weapons clashed, bringing the war into its final stages. Everything would be decided right there and then.
