Chapter 290: Chapter 289: Breaking Through as Is (3)
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"Aaaaaargh!"
Desmond''s spearmen fell like dominoes under Ghiin''s charge, which shot through them like a beam of light.
Boom!
The following charge by the knights and cavalry was no less devastating than Ghiin''s attack.
With their formation shattered, they had no way to block the cavalry''s assault. Desmond''s lines crumbled in an instant.
When the formation copses, so does the chain ofmand. Desmond''s forces plunged into chaos, unable to respond effectively.
Shouts frommanders echoed everywhere.
"Block them!"
"Focus on the enemies right in front of you!"
"We have the numbers advantage!"
Long-trained instincts were ingrained in their bodies. Even with their formation in disarray, Desmond''s soldiers instinctively regrouped and attacked the enemies before them.
"That''s the lord! The one on the ck horse!"
At someone''s shout, Desmond''s forces rushed toward Ghiin to pull him down. But it was futile.
Every time Ghiin swung his spear with his glowing red eyes, the approaching Desmond soldiers lost their heads.
Some tried to attack his horse, only to witness something bizarre for the first time in their lives.
Snort!
The ck king, with fierce eyes zing, began rampaging wildly.
It leaped to dodge iing weapons and kicked at enemies that approached. The horse fought furiously, paying no attention to the fact its rider was atop its back.
Seeing this, Ghiin let go of the reins and focused solely on wielding his spear. It was as if both horse and rider werepeting to see who could kill more.
The synergy between the unruly master and horse was unmatched.
Thud! Thwack! Crack!
"Argh! What''s wrong with this horse?"
"It''s too fast! I can''t even see the spear!"
"Stay back! Don''t get close!"
Desmond''s soldiers were thrown into disarray. The erratic movements of the horse and rider made them impossible to predict.
Whenever they thought they saw an opening and charged, their heads flew off in an instant. Thwack! Thud! Thwack!
With every dull sound, Desmond''s soldiers'' heads were sent flying in all directions.
The knights following Ghiin poured their mana out without holding back.
Since armor enhancements had been activated, staying mounted was disadvantageous. One by one, the knights dismounted.
Among them, Gordon shouted louder than anyone else as he leaped off his horse.
"Today, I''m working my legs to the limit!"
Boom!
Mana surged into his legs, propelling him forward with explosive power. The other knights unsheathed their weapons and stormed into Desmond''s ranks.
"The ck-armored ones are here!"
"There''s even more of them than before!"
"Don''t give them any openings!"
Desmond''s troops, upon seeing Fenris''s ck-armored knights, screamed in terror as if gripped by a nightmare.
They had suffered greatly at the hands of Gillian and his knights in the past, witnessing their power firsthand.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The fully unleashed power of the knights'' armor was awe-inspiring. Within moments, hundreds of Desmond soldiersy dead.
The heavy infantry, realizing the danger toote, rushed en masse to push back Fenris''s forces.
Desmond''s elite knights also joined the fray, trying to hold back Fenris''s knights.
Although Fenris''s troops had quickly broken through the front of the formation, their
numbers were limited, and their momentum inevitably began to slow.
At that moment, Ghiin seized the reins of ck king tightly and shouted.
"Move aside!"
The moment his voice rang out, Fenris''s knights and soldiers moved to the sides without even looking back.
Shwaaash!
A clear path was instantly carved out, like a sea parting.
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
Ghiin''s horse charged forward without hesitation.
Ghiin let his spear hang low and opened the third core again.
Rumble!
His eyes turned an even deeper shade of red.
Desmond''s troops, meeting the fierce gaze of Ghiin''s horse and the even fiercer gaze of Ghiin himself, hesitated instinctively.
"Stop him!"
ng! ng! ng!
The heavy infantry nted their massive shields into the ground, forming a wall. Soldiers who had witnessed the earlier charge clenched their teeth and braced themselves.
But Ghiin had no intention of colliding with them head-on.
sh!
"Huh?"
Desmond''s troops looked up.
The ck king leaped high into the air, clearing the shield wall.
Boom!
Ghiin plunged into the center of Desmond''s formation and mmed his spear into the ground, unleashing a powerful shockwave.
"Gaaaah!"
The soldiers nearest to Ghiin coughed up blood and copsed, while those slightly farther
away stumbled and lost their footing.
However, their hesitation was short-lived. There was no way they would merely stand by
while an enemy lord charged into their formation alone.
The densely packed medium infantry turned to surround Ghiin, and Desmond''s knights redirected their focus toward him.
At that moment, something unimaginable happened.
Rumble.
The spears carried by fallen soldiers began to rise into the air. Desmond''s troops stared in
horror as if witnessing ghosts.
Before they couldprehend the situation, hundreds of spears rained down on the soldiers
surrounding Ghiin.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"Aaaaaargh!"
With spears moving of their own ord through the air, panic spread rapidly. While knights managed to deflect the projectiles, the soldiers fared much worse.
Each spear carried varying levels of force. Some were deflected by armor or shields, while
others pierced straight through, killing instantly.
"Spears... flying on their own?"
"It''s magic! Count Fenris is using magic!"
"What are our mages doing?"
Though it wasn''t magic, no one present could recognize the technique Ghiin was using.
Not just Desmond''s troops but even Fenris''s knights and soldiers stood momentarily
dumbfounded.
Aside from a handful of knights who had apanied Ghiin to the Shadow Mountain Range, most were witnessing this skill for the first time.
"So, this is the technique we''ve only heard about."
"I told you! That''s an insane skill."
"With that, he could probably fight alone!"
Their astonishment was short-lived. Ghiin, who had disrupted the formation, shouted
loudly.
"Get your heads in the game!"
Rumble!
The third core opening couldn''tst long. Blood vessels bulged in Ghiin''s reddened eyes,
and veins began to protrude all over his body.
Startled by Ghiin''s roar, Fenris''s senior knight Gordon waved his hand and shouted.
"Alright, let''s get back in there!"
Even with the armor''s power, breaking through the tightly packed heavy infantry with their
large shields wasn''t easy.
However, Ghiin''s initial disruption had thrown the formation into chaos, making entry
much easier than before.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Fenris''s knights and soldiers stormed back into Desmond''s formation, swinging their
weapons.
Faced with this extraordinary and reckless strategy, Desmond''s forces were helplessly
overwhelmed.
Desmond''s forces still held superior numbers, maintaining a thick rear line, but at this rate,
even the soldiers in the rear would eventually fall.
Fear finally began to appear in the eyes of Desmond''s soldiers.
However, Ghiin wasn''t feeling at ease either.
''I need to get through faster."
Fenris''s main forces all had limits to how long they could sustain their strength. With so many
enemies, they''d exhaust themselves before they could kill them all if this dragged on.
''What a persistent lot.''
Ghiin and Fenris''s forces were punching straight through Desmond''s formation. They
killed everyone blocking their way, but reinforcements kept pouring in from the nking
lines.
This was the terrifying aspect of arge army. No matter how many you killed, their fighting power didn''t seem to diminish.
On top of that, the individual skill of Desmond''s soldiers wasn''t negligible. Even though
Ghiin and the Fenris knights held the upper hand, the pace of breaking through the lines was slowing down.
Ghiin''s sharp gaze swept across the battlefield.N?v(el)B\\jnn
Emerson''s cavalry, previously fighting the Kingdom Army, began moving to target the cavalry archers. Fenris''s cavalry archers, which had been harassing Desmond''s rear, now had
to retreat to avoid the approaching enemies.
''We need to take out the mages first.''
To secure a decisive victory, Fenris''s forces needed to eliminate Desmond''s mages. That
would allow Fenris''s own mages to freely attack the remaining enemies.
The mages positioned on the nks weren''t the concern. The real target was the high-circle
mage, heavily protected in the rear of the formation.
Boom! Boom!
Ghiin poured out mana without holding back, hammering away at the center of Desmond''s
formation.
Following his pre-issued orders, Fenris''s forces pressed forward relentlessly behind him.
Thanks to their brutal focus on attacking a single point, Desmond''s forces began splitting
into two.
From afar, Harold watched this withbored breaths.
"That bastard... is he really this strong..."
Even seeing it with his own eyes, he couldn''t believe it. This was beyond the rumors. Though
Harold had already assessed Ghiin highly due to previous encounters, even that had underestimated him.
It was staggering enough to witness the preparations Ghiin had made, but his individual
strength rivaled that of a high-level knight.
At this level, calling him the "North''s Finest Sword" wouldn''t be an exaggeration. He was more than capable of handling thousands of soldiers by himself. "But why... why is he doing this?"
Something felt off about his movements. Ghiin advanced with brute force, ignoring all else. With his skills, employing a different strategy would have been more effective. Yet, his single-minded advance was putting him in a precarious position, as Desmond''s forces gradually began to surround him. If Fenris''s knights tired out, Desmond''s forces could
counterattack and crush them.
"What is he aiming for?"
Harold was unaware that Fenris''s forces had limited endurance and that their strength came
with a time limit. However, Ghiin''s movement direction quickly revealed his intentions. Following Ghiin''s sharp movements, Harold bit his lip.
"He''s targeting the mages."
The direction Ghiin was heading toward contained Willow, Desmond''s high-circle mage.
As someone capable of countering Fenris''s 6th-circle mage, Willow was a significant threat to Ghiin.
While Desmond''s forces were steadily forming a surrounding formation, Ghiin''s sheer
power made it clear that Willow would be captured before the formation could bepleted.
But withdrawing Willow farther back wasn''t an option. To disrupt enemy magic or cast his own spells on enemy forces, Willow needed to maintain a certain range.
For now, Willow''s 6th-circle abilities allowed him to hold his position and counter the enemy
effectively from his current distance.
Finally, Harold decided to deploy his trump card, something he had hesitated to use until
now.
"Lenos."
"Yes, my lord."
"Take the entire escort unit and stop that bastard. Emerson will deal with the enemy cavalry
archers and mages."
"...Our duty is to protect you, my lord."
"If Willow falls, we''ll be at a disadvantage. Besides, it seems the enemy has no hidden cards
left. Focus on stopping him."
"...Understood."
For a lord of Desmond''s stature, having numerous knights in his retinue was a given. Among
them, the most skilled were appointed as escort knights.
These elite guards, known as the Royal Guard, numbered 50 under Count Desmond. They
weren''t just numerous; they were highly skilled. Their captain, Lenos, was a high-level knight, while the others were all at least mid-level knights.
Harold was deploying even this elite group, which was usually reserved for his own protection, to stop Ghiin.
Lenos spoke with a calm but firm expression.
"Let''s move."
d in gleaming armor, they mounted their horses and rode out.
Trained for defense and interception, their tactics excelled at blocking enemies and
protecting targets.
Fifty Royal Guards could capture or subdue even a Baron Hutton-levelbatant without
killing them.
Thus, Harold believed that no matter how skilled Ghiin was, the Royal Guard would
prevent him from reaching Willow.
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
But they weren''t the only ones riding with urgency. Having evaded pursuit by the Kingdom
Army, Emerson began chasing Fenris''s cavalry archers.
The cavalry archers, aware of the situation, gradually pulled back while continuing to harass
Desmond''s rear.
Surveying the battlefield, Emerson issued new orders to his adjutant.
"I''ll spare 1,000 troops. Crush the enemy mages at the rear."
"Understood."
The adjutant immediately led 1,000 cavalrymen toward Fenris''s mages.
Currently, Fenris''s mages were guarded by about 300 soldiers in the rear. These guards, dressed in dirty gray robes, wielded massive two-handed swords. The swords,
with extended handles, were designed specifically to slice through mounted foes.
As Desmond''s cavalry approached, the guards encircling the mages began walking slowly
toward them.
Thud, thud, thud, thud!
Desmond''s cavalry gripped their spears tightly, increasing their speed, determined to crush the scruffy-looking guards and reach the mages.
"Some filthy beggars are blocking our way."
The cavalry''s adjutant sneered, confident that their numbers would easily overwhelm the
guards.
One of the robed figures stepped forward, ring at the charging cavalry. Walking slowly at
first, he gradually broke into a sprint.
As the distance closed, the cavalry''s adjutant shouted and thrust his spear.
"Die, you fool!"
Whoosh!
The robed man swung his massive de at the charging horse.
Boom!
The adjutant''s spear never reached its target. Instead, his body, along with his horse, was
cleaved in half and sent flying.
The robed man swung his de several more times, cutting down the oing cavalry.
Boom! Boom!
Neighhh!
As the leading cavalry fell, the remaining guards leaped into the fray. Wielding their massive
des, they mercilessly ughtered Desmond''s cavalry.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
"Aaaaargh!"
"Who are these guys?!"
"Avoid them! Move aside!"
Desmond''s cavalry fell one after another to the robed guards. Many were tripped up by the
bodies of their fallenrades, unable to stop in time.
As a brief moment of respite fell, the first robed man tossed back his hood with a bored
gesture.
Sweeping back his tangled red hair, Kaor, the Ogre yer, smirked arrogantly. "Guess who''s here."
The robed guards were none other than Kaor and the hunters from the Shadow Mountains,
renowned for their monster-ying prowess.
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