Free Web NovelChapter 196: The Battle for Herald City - Part 1
By the time Celestina’s strike force landed, the beast horde was just 2 km from the walls, yet there were still several thousand civilians that had yet to evacuate.
There were a lot of reasons why so many were still trapped outside the gates, both here and at the 2 neighbouring entrances to the city, but at the moment, all that was irrelevant. The point was that the beasts would make it to the walls before all the refugees made it inside.
Sasha, Oliver, and many of the other leaders were frantically looking for ways to speed up the process, or delay the beasts, but no one had any practical solution to the problem.
Some of the more hot-headed ones thought that they should head out to meet the enemy in the field, blocking their path and buying time for the civilians to escape, but not only was this idea extremely reckless, it was also extremely questionable whether it would even be effective.
Trying to blunt the charge of a such a large horde of beasts, even in a limited area, would require hundreds of warriors with sturdy shields all acting together in a cohesive formation.
Even an elite fighting force carrying the proper equipment and having trained in the use of such formations would take at least a quarter-hour to arrange such a defence line. Expecting the rag-tag defence force manning Herald City’s walls to do so in less than 10 minutes was a fool’s dream. As such this idea was roundly rejected.
Others suggested lowering ropes and ladders from the walls to allow people to climb over, but no such equipment was readily available, making such a plan impossible to implement.
From the most cold-hearted and ruthless, the idea of simply shutting the gates now and fortifying the defences was suggested.
This idea was loudly condemned by almost everyone present; but, while the various leaders were vocally objecting, many were secretly considering this very course of action.
Sacrificing thousands of civilians was no doubt a brutal tactic, and certainly not a measure anyone would enjoy employing, but it was already uncertain if the city would hold against the approaching stampede. Leaving the gates wide open, trying to get the last stragglers inside while fending off the beasts would leave a gaping hole in their already shaky defences.
If the walls fell and the beasts got into the city en-masse, there would be no stopping them, so it was really becoming a choice between possibly saving thousands while risking tens of thousands, or increasing the chances of protecting tens of thousands by sacrificing thousands. freeweɓnovel.cøm
"2,000 paces! They’re just 2,000 paces away!"
"Time’s up, we need to make a choice!"
"How can you say that?! How can we even consider it?!"
"This is war! In war, there are always casualties!"
As the Beast Tide got closer, tempers flared and the bickering became louder. Many were calling for a decision to be made, yet no one wanted to be the one to actually make it.
All the hesitation and arguing came to an abrupt halt, however, when a streak of silver and crimson shot over and bounded up to the highest point on the wall.
Standing tall, a red-haired warrior channeled her Qi into her voice and shouted, "All Spirit Initiates, follow me! Archers and ranged attackers, concentrate your fire around the gate!"
Without even waiting for an acknowledgement of her command, Celestina leapt off the wall, brandishing her bow as she raced out to intercept the beasts.
With her aura blasting out, even the panicked and frightened refugees naturally made way for Celestina, opening up a path for her to charge out.
As she was passing through the crowd, Celestina didn’t forget to shout, "We will hold the beasts back! Get inside quickly!"
The refugees were initially confused about why the menacing female warrior had suddenly descended into their midst, but upon hearing that she was there to save them, many rejoiced and began pushing even harder to get to the gates.
Moments after Celestina jumped from the walls, 7 Spirit Initiates followed after her, including Great Elder Arnold Baker, drawing even more cheers as to these simple folk, the pressure coming from these individuals seemed no less than that of the previous red-haired woman.
Of course, this was just an illusion created by ignorance and anxiety, as there was no way for these Spirit Initiates to be Celestina’s equal.
In the moment, though, that hardly matter.
Powerful masters had appeared in their moment of need, and the civilians really didn’t care about their identities or relative strength as long as they could resist the beast horde long enough for them to escape.
.....
Celestina didn’t head very far out, stopping just over half a kilometre from the gates. This wasn’t because she had already closed the gap between her and the front of the Beast Tide, but because any further out and she would have to worry about beasts simply circling around her and attacking the defenceless refugees.
From where she was standing now, there was a roughly 150 metres gap between her and the crowd of civilians trying to push into the city. Celestina judged this to be a sufficient buffer zone to not get anyone caught up in the fallout of her battle while also not leaving the refugees too exposed.
This was also far enough from the walls that she wouldn’t be hit by stray arrow fire while also providing a wide enough engagement zone for those same arrows to pin down any beasts that might slip by her.
Less than half a minute later, the other Spirit Initiates arrived, with Vanessa Clark at their head, and stood at attention.
Turning back, Celestina addressed the group briefly, "4 of you deploy in a straight line starting 60 metres to my left; maintain a distance of 30 metres between yourselves. The other 3 of you do so likewise to my right. Push back or divert as many of these beasts as possible, killing is a secondary concern."
"Yes General!"
Just before the group of Spirit Initiates dispersed, Celestina gave them one last order, "If you spot any of those black-furred, red-eyed beasts, prioritize killing them."
"General, what exactly are those..." Vanessa started to ask, but a pointed glance from Celestina silenced her and she simply saluted back, understanding that now wasn’t the time to satisfy her curiosity.
60 metres was a distance even a weak Spirit Initiate could easily cross in just a couple seconds, so it didn’t take long for the thin defence line to be established. Despite there not being many of them, these 8 individuals undoubtedly represented the greatest fighting force available in Herald City, so they were not to be underestimated.
Of course, Great Elder Baker were far less enthusiastic compared to the other Spirit Initiates about leaving the safety of the city walls and directly engaging a massive horde of rampaging beasts. However, having experienced the fierceness of the crimson-haired General up close, he didn’t dare to make any objections.
For Arnold, it really came down to a simple choice, fight the beasts and have a chance to live, or stand accused of treason against the Rockwell Kingdom and be executed on the spot.
There were more than just 7 Spirit Initiates in Herald City at the moment, 3 more in fact. However, one of them, the local Count and City Lord, was ’incapacitated’ at the moment, while the other two were stationed at the neighbouring gates to coordinate their defence, too far away to effectively join this forward line.
Taking a deep breath, Celestina calmed her mind before assuming a shooting stance with her Spirit Weapon, an azure-coloured longbow. She then pulled a fire-red arrow that pulsed with a dangerous aura from her Space Bag and carefully knocked it onto the bowstring.
This arrow was also a kind of Spirit Weapon, one that when filled with enough Spirit Qi would explode when it struck its target, creating a conflagration over 20 metres wide that was capable of melting some ordinary Mortal Grade Tier 1 metals.
This ’Firestorm Arrow’ was an extraordinarily expensive disposable Low-Rank Grade 2 Spirit Tool, costing some 500 Spirit Crystals per shot as they were only made in Large-Sized nations or the Empire by Grade 2 Spirit Smiths. It also happened to be the perfect weapon for the current situation, so Celestina didn’t hesitate to take it out.
Scanning the approaching Beast Tide, Celestina aimed for the spot where she saw the greatest concentration of higher Order beasts and began circulating her Martial Qi into her muscles, drawing her bow to its maximum.
Channeling her Spirit Qi into both the bow and arrow, Celestina slowly breathed out as they charged up. As soon as the explosive arrow’s body began releasing a bright orange glow, she released her grip and let it fly, sending a stream of light soaring nearly 600 metres with a deafening sonic bang.
The arrow landed less than 2 seconds later, exploding into a massive fireball that lit up the dark night while sending a shockwave of hot air flying in all directions.
Not pausing for even a second, Celestina drew another Firestorm Arrow from her Space Bag and shot again, then again, and again...
In the span of just 30 seconds, she had unleashed 13 Firestorm Arrows, completely depleting her stockpile of these precious weapons.
It was an eye-popping expense, akin to dumping bags full of Spirit Crystals into the ocean, but the result of this barrage was no less astonishing, sending the entire front-line of the Beast Tide into utter disarray.
