Chapter 436
Chapter 436: Just Keep Going Like This. (3)
As Ghislaine jumped down, the people were astonished.
I was already too familiar with her behavior to understand why she was doing that. It meant she would stall for time alone again.
But in the past, she brought mercenaries and knights when she jumped down. It was rare for her to recklessly fight many enemies alone like now.
“Ghislaine!”
Zvalter shouted loudly. That guy always leaps into the enemy camp if things don’t go his way during a fight.
How many headaches did she cause back in the Perdium workshop battle because of this?
“Young Master!”
“Lord!”
Belinda and Gillian also shouted anxiously. I understand their feelings, but the enemies are on another level now, far more than before.
Immediately upon her descent, Ghislaine was shrouded in a gray wave, making it almost impossible to see her properly.
As everyone was about to rush down to help Ghislaine, a loud voice echoed from below.
“Don’t come down! Take a rest! Eat some water and powder and organize your formation! I won’t push myself either!”
At those words, Ghislaine’s close associates and knights were frozen in place, only trembling. They clearly understood the situation.
The area had expanded tremendously compared to the existing rift. Maintaining combat power was no easy feat due to the piled-up rifts within.
They needed to rest even a little to continue fighting. Ghislaine was buying that time for them right now.
At that moment, Vanessa stepped up and said.
“I’ll create barriers to support the Lord.”
While it was crucial not to waste mana, they couldn’t afford to conserve it indefinitely. If their side faltered before even fighting Equidema, having excess mana would mean nothing.
People could only nod in agreement. They needed to utilize the time bought by Ghislaine as much as possible.
Kaa-aat!
Ghislaine fought at the front, where the number of cracked beings was highest, drawing their attention.
In particular, the cracked beings that sensed the divine power emanating from Ghislaine charged at her like madmen.
To draw their focus, Ghislaine wrapped her body in divine power.
Thanks to that, the number of cracked beings ascending to the fortress was cut down to less than half in an instant.
“Earth Wall!”
Kruu-rung!
As Vanessa again blocked all sides with barriers, the number of cracked beings climbing decreased momentarily.
Yet, the ones coming up were blocked by knights, alternating to rest, while the soldiers seized the moment to eat water and powder for the first time.
During their break, they could observe Ghislaine’s fighting style in detail. Her movements were nothing short of astonishing.
Kwa-aaaang!
She only emitted mana to create space when the cracked beings crowded too much. It was a different fighting style from her usual one, where she devastated her surroundings fiercely.
Kaa-aat!
Su-gak!
Ghislaine’s spear drew large circles as it severed the necks of the cracked beings. She fought them using only technique, conserving mana as much as possible.
Pa-pa-pa-pak!
In one breath, the spear shot out dozens of times. All the cracked beings surrounding Ghislaine fell with pierced heads.
Although the vacant spot was quickly filled by cracked beings, Vanessa cast her magic again.
Kwaaang!
Explosions occurred around Ghislaine several times. Using the gaps created, she pulled the cracked beings along.
“How is she moving like that?”
“She’s not pushing through with strength.”
“It’s like she’s dancing.”
Until now, Ghislaine’s abilities were hard to discern due to her overwhelming destructive power. Enemies burst apart every time she swung her weapon.
But now it was different. Although dozens of cracked beings died with each movement of her spear, they could clearly see the process this time.
Tatata-tatata-taang!
Ghislaine blocked and evaded all the attacks coming from the surrounding cracked beings. Her movements flowed like water.
So swift and precise, the bodies of the cracked beings kept piling up.
It was the peak of skill.
Though she was killing fewer per attack than before, she demonstrated how to fight effectively with the least amount of effort.
It felt as if she was showing everyone the path they should take.
“Amazing.”
Even Kaor momentarily lost his senses, uttering words he wouldn’t normally say.
That monstrous lord was growing stronger day by day. It was unbelievable.
Kwa-aaaang!
Thanks to Vanessa’s magic, the cracked beings that surged again exploded. Among them, Ghislaine’s crimson spear danced like a waltz.
The knights and soldiers gulped as they watched her.
“Indeed… the strongest in the North…”
Ghislaine’s fighting style was something special.
Watching her battle made everyone’s hearts race and blood boil.
If they fought alongside her, it felt like they wouldn’t face defeat in this battle. It instilled that belief.
This was precisely why the army led by Ghislaine could maintain high morale.
“Let’s push ourselves a bit more!”
“We can do it! It’s not like we’ve never dealt with a few rifts!”
“How long will we let the Grand Duke fight alone!”
The soldiers gritted their teeth and stood up. The priests rejuvenated them, and thanks to Ghislaine, they had significant time to rest.
Drinking water and eating Penris’s combat food, the nutrients provided in extreme conditions helped them regain strength.
“Waaah!”
With a loud cheer, the soldiers repelled the incoming cracked beings.
Even the elves, who dropped arrows, joined in the battle against the cracked beings.
Thanks to Ghislaine’s divine power attracting attention, they could drive out all the cracked beings on the castle wall and re-establish a solid formation.
Now they had returned to a state similar to the beginning.
“Vanessa!”
Feeling that, Ghislaine shouted loudly as Vanessa stretched out her hand and unleashed her mana.
Kwak-wak-wak-wak-kwang!
Many pillars of flame erupted, scorching the area around Ghislaine. Seizing the moment of respite, she quickly climbed up the wall.
The heat was so intense that steam rose from Ghislaine’s body.
“Young Master!”
Belinda, who had dealt with more cracked beings than anyone else with her unique skills, rushed to cover Ghislaine’s body with a cold, wet cloth.
“What’s this? Where did that come from?”
“I prepared it in advance.”
“Typical Belinda. Thank you.”
Wiping his face casually, Ghislaine smiled broadly.
“Alright! We’re back at it! Just a little more to endure!”
It took a day to safely handle 100,000 cracked beings. Now the number of cracked beings was greater, while their own side was fewer.
However, they were fighting with the fortress as support, and the wizards were pouring more power into their magic.
Ghislaine and the soldiers were striving to maintain their combat strategy.
Vanessa separated the cracked beings while the wizards concentrated their magic in dangerous areas.
The priests healed the soldiers at the perfect timing under Ghislaine’s orders. If things didn’t go well, Ghislaine would descend once more to draw the attention of the cracked beings.
Constantly moving, Ghislaine surveyed the surroundings.
‘Just keep going like this.’
Powerful allies like Belinda, Gillian, and Kaor were a great help as they each took charge of different areas, leading the knights and soldiers into battle.
Zvalter, Randolf, Skoban, and Ricardo were the same.
Even the knights of Perdium, who had significantly improved, pushed themselves as if it might be their last battle.
Thus, they fell into a trance, fighting on and on.
“Huff, huff…”
Skoban, labeled as the cause of the disaster, swung his sword with glassy eyes while thinking.
‘Why am I living such a tough life?’
Life felt hard. He was living a life that was too intense.
At some point, he didn’t even understand why he was swinging his sword. He just swung it because there were cracked beings in front of him.
Even after fighting carefully and conserving his energy, his sword now emitted only a faint light. It was becoming difficult to gather mana properly.
‘Why… aren’t they healing me?’
Thanks to the priests, he was able to continue fighting. However, it seemed their healing had stopped.
In the long battle, the priests had exhausted their divine power and fell without Skoban knowing.
‘Ah, I’m sleepy.’
His eyes were growing heavy. His body felt too heavy. It was evident he had surpassed his limits, yet the sword continued to swing, which was fascinating.
Having lost all sense, he felt no pain whatsoever.
Demond’s trio of spies, who had transitioned to Penris’s side, also thought.
‘I feel like I have to fight until I die.’
‘Should I just die?’
‘Yeah, dying here would be fine.’
Still, their trio attack inflicted great damage on the cracked beings. They supplemented each other with minimal effort to fight.
They had fought for three full days without sleeping, thanks to the priests, but that was now over.
Using sheer willpower, they had held on until now, but it was no longer possible. They had long surpassed their limits.
“Uh?”
The soldiers, still swaying, felt something odd.
“It has decreased.”
Someone murmured. There were only a few hundred cracked beings that had scrambled up to the fortress.
Even those charging up from the piles of corpses were similar.
“Really, it has decreased.”
How many had they killed?
Despite the wizards burning and exploding the corpses, a mountain of cracked beings’ bodies was piled in front of the fortress.
The wizards had exhausted most of their mana and had stepped back. Only Vanessa was still fighting with her spells from the Lower Circle.
“It’s… in sight.”
The cracked beings pressing against the fortress had vastly diminished compared to before. Now they were climbing up sporadically. It was only natural since they had killed more cracked beings than those emerging from the rifts.
“Just a bit… more strength….”
The soldiers gritted their teeth and continued to fight. The knights were also swinging their swords while spitting blood.
It had been a long time since they had lost all sensation in their hands. Though standing was a struggle, they endured solely out of a sense of responsibility to protect this place.
At least Ghislaine and her close associates could still fight. They were effectively distributing their strength and focusing on helping their allies.
Pa-ak!
Ghislaine exhaled as she severed the necks of the cracked beings and looked ahead.
Most of the cracked beings that had climbed the castle wall were dead. The ones climbing up had diminished even further.
It was nearly over. Only the final battle remained.
“Everyone, retreat!”
At those words, the soldiers slowly stepped back while fighting the few remaining cracked beings.
And before them stood only Ghislaine’s close associates, Zvalter, and Randolf.
This had already been discussed before the battle.
— Koo-ooo-oooh!
From afar, a beast’s roar was heard.
Equidema’s mission was to expand its domain and guard it.
It wouldn’t move unless necessary, so it rarely acted close to the rifts. However, there were times when beasts moved on their own.
Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!
Something was approaching from afar, shaking the ground.
Equidema was moving.
“Huff…”
Ghislaine took a sip of water and steadied her breath.
Cracked beings were still trickling up. Most of the soldiers had grown weak and collapsed, while the knights stood barely, blood trickling down their faces.
Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!
— Koo-ooo-oooh!
The beast’s roar erupted again.
Equidema had only one reason for moving. To guard its territory.
In all the ruptures dealt with by Ghislaine and the Northern Army, Equidema had never appeared even after all the rifts were cleared. It had only focused on conserving energy and expanding.
The rifts handled until now were too minor for Equidema’s concerns. Even if all the cracked beings were killed off, they would soon recover, so it was no cause for alarm.
But now that the territory had expanded to this extent, that story changed.
Despite having many cracked beings enter this world, most had died off. It indicated that a threat substantial enough to endanger its domain had appeared.
Ultimately, Equidema had no choice but to cease its expansion and rise from its place.
— Koo-ooo-oooh!
Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!
The ground-shaking noise made the soldiers tense up and grip their weapons tightly. Equidema rushing this way was problematic, with the slowly re-emerging cracked beings presenting a threat as well.
Though not as many as initially, the numbers of cracked beings still emerging combined to surpass a thousand. It was horrifyingly numerous. Thank goodness they didn’t know about strategies and tactics.
“Keugh…”
They needed to keep fighting. Despite their fatigue, they stubbornly stood their ground.
Kaa-aat!
Cracked beings climbed the castle wall and surged in again.
Ghislaine no longer dealt with them. Others nearby handled the cracked beings instead.
She merely swung her sword broadly towards the front.
Kwa-aaaang!
A sound like something exploding echoed, and a massive body landed on the castle wall.
Krrr-r…..
Equidema appeared. It bore a thin scar on its face, but it wasn’t serious.
The soldiers, seeing the beast for the first time, turned pale and involuntarily took a step back. It was instinctive fear.
Kraa-aaaang!
As the enraged Equidema roared, the already exhausted soldiers froze, dropping their weapons.
In the brief moment that Ghislaine and Equidema glared at each other, the cracked beings surged again.
They charged towards the frozen soldiers. Ghislaine and her companions were unable to entirely deal with the cracked beings due to focusing on Equidema.
But that was fine. They still had their faith.
Soon, from behind, a voice like one descending from heaven resonated.
[The Goddess declares, I have granted you the power to trample upon them and control all the abilities of the enemy, so none shall harm you.]
Jjeo-uhng!
In an instant, a bright light spread across the battlefield, enveloping everyone.
