Chapter 422
Chapter 422: Let’s Use Our Most Powerful Forces. (2)
The fog was so thin that it didn’t impede visibility.
However, that blue fog exuded an extremely ominous aura.
The soldiers who entered the area of the Rift swallowed dry gulps and wore tense expressions.
“Is this the eroded area?”
“It looks horrifying just to look at.”
“Aren’t there monsters all over this place?”
The desolate land was tinted gray. The surrounding trees and grass were all withered, devoid of any breath of life.
A place where blue fog and gray land existed, with all life, excluding monsters, dead.
This was the appearance of the area eroded by the Rift.
The Rift already occupied an enormous area. Somewhere within this area, there would also be the Cracked Beings.
As everyone wondered how to move forward, Ghislaine raised her hand and said.
“Set up the catapults and prepare the hot air balloons.”
No sooner had the words left her lips than the engineers sprang to assemble the catapults.
The first to be completed were 200 Galbarium medium catapults from the Penris Army. Shortly after, 100 standard catapults brought from various territories and Penris were also completed.
Simultaneously, about 100 hot air balloons rose into the sky carrying wizards.
“All troops, form up!”
Though the enemy was still unseen, the soldiers moved in perfect unison according to orders.
The heavy infantry of Penris, clad in Galbarium armor and shields, stood in a line to block the front.
The infantry held their spears and waited behind the heavy infantry. Archers stood behind them, while cavalry and archer cavalry waited on either side.
They stood still, formation intact, awaiting further orders.
‘Are we not striking anywhere?’
‘Are we just waiting here?’
‘Didn’t they say it was about the size of a small territory?’
The soldiers were full of tension but equally filled with curiosity. They must find and kill the monsters, wherever they gathered, yet they were just standing still.
How long did they wait like this? A faint cry reached the soldiers’ ears again.
― Ka-a-aang!
The soldiers couldn’t distinguish whether it was the roar of a monster or the wailing of the Cracked Beings.
They could only speculate that the roar from Equidema, so far away, couldn’t possibly reach them.
After a while, sounds of something bustling and running came closer.
Da-da-da-da-da-da!
‘It’s coming!’
The soldiers instinctively knew that waves of Cracked Beings were rushing towards them.
Dududududud!
With the increasing numbers, the ground began to tremble more.
Ghislaine dismounted and raised her greatsword, along with her close associates and knights nearby.
She gently tapped the Black King, who then snorted a few times and moved back behind the formation, looking displeased.
As the knights’ horses moved back, the sound grew nearer.
Dududududud!
Kaa-a-a-a!
Though their forms remained unseen, the monstrous cries of the Cracked Beings made the sheer volume felt.
Ghislaine extended her hand forward and said.
“Fire.”
“Fire!”
Though the Cracked Beings did not yet come into sight, it didn’t matter. If Ghislaine commanded to shoot, then they would shoot.
Kwang! Kwang! Kwaaang!
From hundreds of catapults, stones flew.
Simultaneously, arrows from the archers and archer cavalry darkened the sky.
Pa-a-a-aat!
“Ka-a-aak!”
The agonizing screams of the Cracked Beings echoed from all directions. It meant their attacks were landing.
The Northern Army pressed on with relentless attacks. The sounds of stones dropping and arrows flying never ceased.
And after a bit more time passed—
“Ka-a-a-a!”
An enormous number of Cracked Beings charged through the blue fog.
Kuwuung!
Ghislaine struck the ground with her sword and shouted.
“Do not stop! Attack the rear! There are over 100,000 of them! Knights, follow me!”
Ghislaine had no intention of simply commanding from behind the heavy infantry. The heavy infantry were just there to shield the other soldiers.
“Prepare!”
As the Cracked Beings drew near enough to be seen, Ghislaine infused her greatsword with mana.
Clank! Clank! Clank!
The knights also raised their greatswords, while only Gillian held a massive two-handed axe.
As the Cracked Beings were finally within mere steps—
“Let’s go!”
Ghislaine shouted loudly as she surged forward, swinging her greatsword.
Kwaa-a-aang!
In an instant, dozens of Cracked Beings exploded. Following behind, the knights’ attacks made hundreds of Cracked Beings vanish in moments.
But still, the numbers rushing at them were overwhelming.
Thung! Thung! Teroong!
Hundreds of Cracked Beings quickly latched onto the heavy infantry’s shields. In just a blink, that number skyrocketed to thousands.
“Block them!”
“Hold on!”
“Attack quickly!”
The spearmen among the heavy infantry earnestly jabbed their spears.
The Cracked Beings, though powerful and fast, had no defense better than a commoner’s. Each exchange resulted in hundreds perishing.
Kwang! Kwaaang! Kwang!
Ghislaine and the knights held the front, continually sweeping the Cracked Beings away, yet there was no end in sight.
Some knights were even pushed down and trampled by the overwhelming surge of Cracked Beings.
With an astounding number flooding in, everyone began to be pushed back. It was inevitable since they hadn’t prepared a fortress like they had when facing Grex.
This was precisely why they had lost many territories and lived only in fortified cities in their past lives.
‘We need to eliminate them just a bit faster.’
Ghislaine gritted her teeth and swung her sword.
Compared to her previous life, this number was relatively small. She had to eliminate the Equidema before it expanded to 500,000 or 1,000,000.
Kwang! Kwaaang! Kwang!
No matter how many they killed, it felt endless. With over 100,000, it was to be expected. They could kill them all, but if the soldiers suffered heavy losses, they would surely lose when facing others.
As the formation began to be pushed back, a holy hymn rang out from behind, and bright light started seeping into the soldiers’ bodies.
120 priests began using their Divine Power to protect the men.
“Ka-a-a-aak!”
As light filled the formation, the Cracked Beings recoiled in agony. Divine Power was their ultimate counter.
Chiiiiiing!
The bodies of the Cracked Beings that were directly touched by Divine Power began to burn away.
Kuwuung!
On the other hand, the soldiers reinvigorated by the Divine Power thrust their shields forward with newfound strength. The knights also swung their swords with greater vigor.
The Cracked Beings that charged at the forefront began to be pushed back again.
But that wasn’t all.
To protect the relatively weaker flanks, the wizards stepped forward.
“Fire Wall.”
Vanessa, riding in a hot air balloon, created a massive wall of fire on the sides of the formation.
Chiiiiiing!
“Ka-a-aak!”
The Cracked Beings, rushing at tremendous speed towards the flanks, rolled around in flames upon hitting the giant fire wall created by the 7th Circle wizard.
Still, there were simply too many of them, and some managed to survive and escape.
“Chain Lightning.”
Zzap!
Those who got hit by the electric magic were instantly turned to ashes. A spell she had used against Grex.
Kwagakakakakakak!
Even without using a runestone, Vanessa, now a 7th Circle wizard, incinerated thousands of Cracked Beings in an instant.
Yet still, thousands of Cracked Beings continued to rush in on the flanks.
Vanessa furrowed her brow. She couldn’t expend all her magical power here.
While they had a plan to face Equidema, she had to conserve her power in case it failed.
It was now time for other wizards to step up.
Turning to the other hot air balloons, she shouted.
“Alfoy!”
Having wrested the position of Vice Director of the Penris Magic Laboratory, Alfoy bellowed.
“Everyone, don’t hold back on your magic! Someone else is going to take down the monsters anyway! Hurry up, you lot! Do you think war is a joke? If you slack off, your lives in the territory will be over!”
He surely was much better at motivating than Vanessa.
The two 6th Circle wizards and five 5th Circle wizards who had become slaves bit their lips.
‘Ah, that arrogant jerk.’
‘He acts like he’s some kind of magic king.’
‘How did I end up under that guy…’
The unspoken rule that wizards from high circles acted like gangsters didn’t apply here. In the Territory of Penris, older individuals simply held more power.
This itself could be understood as part of the territory’s culture. The problem was that this jerk had no respect for high circles whatsoever.
Though their insides boiled with resentment, they couldn’t defy the ‘higher up,’ so the wizards had no choice but to swallow their frustration and follow Alfoy’s command.
Under Alfoy’s orders, countless spells burst forth from the hot air balloons.
“Fire Pillar!”
“Aqua Bolt!”
“Earthquake!”
Boom! Rumble! Kwang!
The enormous spells poured onto the Cracked Beings.
Excluding Vanessa, there were two 6th Circle wizards and a total of six 5th Circle wizards. Adding in the lower circle wizards, there were over 200 of them.
Ka-a-a-aak!
Each time the massive spells unfolded, the Cracked Beings were swept away en masse.
Hundreds of catapults, tens of thousands of arrows, and hundreds of spells rained down upon the battlefield.
With overwhelming attacks, the number of Cracked Beings over 100,000 began to swiftly dwindle.
The Cracked Beings that had approached the front of the formation were killed by the knights.
“Do not stop attacking!”
Ghislaine’s shout resonated throughout the battlefield.
It was still manageable. They had to eliminate as many Equidema as they could before the other monsters, especially aerial ones, showed up.
“Waaah!”
The soldiers let out a mighty cheer.
It was tough, but they suffered almost no losses. They were steadily taking down the myriad of Cracked Beings rushing at them.
The fighting parties themselves found it hard to believe the results, spurring their morale immensely.
Kwah! Kwaaang! Kwah!
The Cracked Beings, undeterred by the overwhelming strength of the Northern Army, continued to swarm in.
The soldiers, too, fell into a trance, simply moving as commanded.
After hours of indiscriminate slaughter, the seemingly never-ending battle began to show signs of concluding.
The 80,000-strong army had exhausted all their stones. Hundreds of thousands of arrows had been unleashed. Over 200 wizards were reaching the point of exhaustion.
By this time, the rushing Cracked Beings were barely visible.
Ka-a-a-a…
At most, only a few dozen lagging behind had managed to join late. They posed no threat whatsoever.
They had dealt with the immense number of Cracked Beings that had inhabited this land.
However, the battle was not yet over. Ghislaine mounted the Black King and shouted.
“We’re going straight for the Equidema!”
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Ghislaine’s close associates and knights swiftly mounted their horses. The relatively reserve-minded 10,000 Mobile Army gripped their reins tightly.
Several priests and wizards, including Piote, also climbed atop their horses.
Hee-ying!
“Everyone else, maintain formation and wait here!”
“Yes, Sir!”
The soldiers replied vigorously. The Resolver Max and Elf Lumina would surely be leading the Northern Army.
“Let’s go!”
Ghislaine charged forth through the blue fog. Her close associates and the Mobile Army closely followed.
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
On the way, they encountered more rushing Cracked Beings, but they were only a few dozen to a hundred at most.
Kwah-zzzz!
The Penris Army effortlessly trampled the attacking Cracked Beings as they headed to where Equidema awaited.
After a long stretch of continuous galloping, they finally arrived at the location of the rift.
Krrr…
Equidema lay on the gray ground, beginning to bare its teeth at the intruders.
Ka-a-a-a!
From the rift, Cracked Beings continued to emerge, but not in the hundreds like before.
Equidema needed time to gather its strength to erode this world.
Kuwuung!
The beast lifted its massive body.
Equidema was already aware that invaders had entered its territory. It sent all Cracked Beings to attack but knew it had failed.
The beast had no choice but to unleash the power it had been storing.
Ka-a-a-aang!
Hee-ying!
With just one roar from Equidema, the horses foamed at the mouth and toppled over. Even the strong steeds charging across the battlefield couldn’t withstand the pressure.
Only the Black King, with its courage, attempted to charge forward. Surely it seemed like only the Black King could remain unfazed.
Ghislaine and her close associates, along with all the soldiers, dismounted and drew their weapons.
“Ka-a-a-k!”
A handful of Cracked Beings charged forward. Of course, they fell to the knights blocking the front, dying as they emerged.
Now, if they could just kill Equidema, this place would be safe for a while.
“Everyone ready?”
At Ghislaine’s words, everyone nodded. With this many people, they could surely take down Equidema.
Ghislaine had killed Equidema by herself once. Though she was severely injured doing so, she was not alone now.
Powerhouses like Gillian, Kaor, Tenant, Vanessa, and Belinda stood with her, and behind them were 10,000 Penris Mobile Army troops ready to engage.
The problem was that they were all quite exhausted from dealing with numerous Cracked Beings. Though they had tried to conserve their strength, facing a super-class monster was perilous. One slip-up could mean death for someone.
Ghislaine grinned.
“Everyone is tired, so there’s no need to go about it the hard way. Let’s use our most powerful forces. Alfoy, you ready?”
Alfoy nodded.
“It’s time to use the final weapon.”
Everyone looked at Ghislaine and Alfoy. No one understood what the two were talking about.
‘It seems there’s a strategy we don’t know about…’
‘Most powerful forces? Final weapon?’
The one that matched those words was undoubtedly Ghislaine. Yet it felt like they were discussing someone else.
As Belinda, who was tilting her head, suddenly recalled something, she gasped in amazement.
“Oh, could it be?”
There was a being who could unleash powers close to divine might, albeit under rigorous conditions and within a very short timeframe.
Surely, for that brief moment, that being would be stronger than Ghislaine.
As she turned around, everyone followed suit. Simultaneously, Alfoy marched confidently towards someone.
In the direction he was headed…
A naive-looking Piote blinked his eyes in confusion.
