Free Web NovelChapter 62: Chapter 44: Fierce Battle 2: The Divided Battlefield
"Zolt, take the Fierce Raptor Druids and circle around the side. Avoid the enemy’s ranged units and attack their Bone Catapults."
"Hero Squads One through Three, intercept the charging Bone Cavalry."
"Squads Four, Five, and Ten, intercept the Bone Cavalry charging toward the Elemental Druids."
"Squads Seven and Eight, clean up those White Bone Giant Beasts."
"Squads Six and Nine, on standby."
Having received their orders, everyone moved out swiftly.
Under Zolt’s lead, the Fierce Raptor Druids transformed into peregrine falcons, golden eagles, and more, shrieking as they flew toward the battlefield’s flank.
They needed to bypass the battlefield to launch a sneak attack on the Bone Catapults in the rear.
They were incredibly fast, reaching the airspace above the Bone Catapults from the flank in just two or three minutes.
"Commander, the enemy has guards!" a peregrine falcon reported to Zolt after getting a clear view of the area around the Bone Catapults.
Next to the Bone Catapults stood a row of skeleton guards wielding Two-Handed Greatswords. Compared to the Giant Shield Skeleton Soldiers on the front line, their bones were much thicker. They were clad in Bone Armor, and the Two-Handed Greatswords in their hands were far sharper. A single glance was enough to tell they were much stronger than the Giant Shield Skeleton Soldiers.
Behind the Bone Catapults, many White Bone Giant Beasts were lined up and waiting. Each time a Catapult launched a bone ball, one of them would walk into the Catapult’s empty launching basket, curl up into a ball, and wait to be fired.
Zolt observed them carefully. "It’s fine. They’re all melee units. As long as they don’t have ranged attacks, we have nothing to fear. They can’t hit us!"
Still, just in case, he decided to test them.
"Golden Eagle squad, aim for the supports of the Bone Catapults below you! Break them, and the Catapults will be useless!"
Thirty golden eagles immediately dove toward the Bone Catapults below.
They split into ten groups of three, each group attacking one of the ten Bone Catapults.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!~~
The golden eagles’ talons and beaks were imbued with the metal element, greatly enhancing their attack power.
Some continuously swooped past the Bone Catapults, slashing at the supports with their talons and leaving deep gouges.
Others landed on top of the Bone Catapults, relentlessly pecking at their slender bone frames with their sharp beaks.
Under the assault, the Bone Catapults quickly began to show damage. Soon, the support of one Catapult broke, and it collapsed with a crash as it tried to launch a bone ball.
The disturbance drew the guards’ attention. The Great Sword Skeletons immediately commanded the White Bone Giant Beasts to let out a series of howls.
The White Bone Giant Beasts opened their mouths wide, spitting out a blast of frigid air. When the golden eagles flew into this cold air, their flight speed immediately dropped.
Seizing the opportunity, the Great Sword Skeletons threw their greatswords at the golden eagles.
The spinning greatswords whizzed through the air, rapidly streaking across the sky and about to strike the slowed golden eagles.
Zolt reacted in time, casting "Purify" on the golden eagles to remove the negative effects, then added "Gale Rush" to quicken their speed. With a few sharp turns, they dodged the spinning greatswords.
A few of the greatswords struck the supports of nearby Bone Catapults instead. With a sharp CRACK, the supports snapped. After flying a certain distance, the greatswords flickered and returned to the hands of the Great Sword Skeletons.
’If one of those things hits us,’ Zolt thought, clicking his tongue, ’even if it’s not fatal, we’ll be out of the fight. If we lose the ability to fly and fall into that skeleton horde... we’d just be waiting to die.’
"Brothers, we’ve figured out the enemy’s tactics! Form groups of five! Two will attack the Bone Catapult supports at a time, in rotation. Watch out for the White Bone Giant Beasts’ frigid breath and the Great Sword Skeletons’ thrown attacks!"
The Fierce Raptor Druids immediately formed groups and swooped down, launching a fierce assault on the Bone Catapults.
The White Bone Giant Beasts and Great Sword Skeletons on the ground were now on guard. The Giant Beasts roared at the Fierce Raptor Druids, sending plumes of grayish-white, frosty mist rising into the sky.
This time, however, the Fierce Raptor Druids were also prepared. They used agile maneuvers to dodge the slowing mists.
Even if a few raptors accidentally flew into the mist, other Fierce Raptor Druids on standby would quickly cast spells. They would either remove the slow effect, apply a displacement spell, or grant a burst of speed. In any case, they were always able to rescue any druid who was inadvertently slowed. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Seeing no good opportunity to strike, the Great Sword Skeletons on the ground could only throw their greatswords haphazardly, hoping to get lucky and hit a few of the enemy birds.
The two sides were thus locked in a fierce, back-and-forth struggle.
The role of the Great Sword Skeletons and White Bone Giant Beasts was to harass and tie them down, while the Fierce Raptor Druids focused on the assault.
-----------------
Hero Squads One through Three were the Demon Race Hero Squads.
Squad One was the Ox Race, comprised of various wild oxen, water buffalo, and rhinoceroses. frёewebηovel.cѳm
Squad Two was the Pig Race, including wild boars, warthogs, and the like.
Squad Three was the Sheep Race, including various large mountain goats and Musk Oxen—which, despite their name, are actually part of the goat family.
The defining traits of these three races were their thick hides, tough bodies, and incredible sprinting speed. Furthermore, Squads One and Three all had horns, while Squad Two had tusks. They had a powerful charge and were extremely durable.
They ran straight toward the Bone Cavalry that were charging the Catapults. As they ran, they transformed one by one.
As members of the Demon Race, their true forms were several times larger than their original animal forms. Each one stood five to six meters tall, looking for all the world like a herd of stampeding elephants.
The 150 behemoths formed a flying-V formation and charged toward the 1,500 Bone Cavalry. Far from being intimidated by their numerical disadvantage, their momentum was even stronger, their presence more overwhelming.
Leading the charge was a colossal wild bull, six meters tall and eight meters long. Its thick hide reflected a metallic sheen. The two sharp horns on its head were over a meter long, approaching two meters. They were thick and glinted with the same metallic luster, looking utterly terrifying.
The Bone Cavalry adjusted their direction, but the Demon Race squads adjusted in response. The Bone Cavalry then shifted into a cone formation, intending to break through the behemoths’ interception.
’As long as we destroy the Catapults in the distance, our mission is complete. Death is irrelevant.’
"CLIP-CLOP, CLIP-CLOP~~"
"THOOM, THOOM, THOOM, THOOM~~"
The two forces collided head-on.
Due to the limited front of engagement, each of the Demon Race behemoths only actually faced a few Bone Cavalry at a time—five at most.
Here, the massive stat advantage of the Demon Race behemoths became clear. The Bone Cavalry that crashed into them were like waves striking a great reef, shattering into pieces.
However, more Cavalry followed close behind, and the charge of the Demon Race behemoths, led by the wild bull, was brought to a halt.
Their four hooves dug into the ground, holding firm. The massive impact pushed them back more than ten meters, carving deep furrows in the earth.
The Bone Cavalry’s charge was stopped.
The Demon Race behemoths on the flanks quickly closed in, surrounding the Bone Cavalry who had lost their momentum.
Cavalry with momentum are ferocious tigers; cavalry without it are toothless kittens.
Under the swats of the behemoths’ huge paws, the number of Bone Cavalry dwindled with incredible speed.
