Chapter 4: The Stalemate Battlefield
"I'll be there soon."
Closing the small communication array that resembled a crystal ball in his hand, Joshua raised his head and took a deep breath. His sharply defined face showed no expression at all.
He scanned the snow-covered slope before him, where only a few pale rocks were exposed, then turned sideways to speak to the silver-haired girl holding his waist from behind: "Ying, I'm giving you a task."
"Yes, Master."
Without hesitation, Ying immediately nodded in agreement, though her green eyes showed confusion: "But, what task?"
"You should know the way."
Dismounting, Joshua walked into the wide expanse of snow. The northern wind howled past his ears with biting cold, the bone-chilling chill seeping into his body, only to be driven away by the gradually igniting crimson radiance: "Take Hei to Black Forest Fortress as fast as possible. It's not far, about an hour."
"Then... Master, you?"
Taking the reins of the black warhorse, the silver-haired Divine Mechanism girl seemed not yet to understand why, asking dazedly: "What are you going to do?"
"Me?"
This question was truly lacking in substance.
Taking out the sword and armor models from his waist and reciting the secret phrase, the black-haired, red-eyed warrior was instantly enveloped in a glow of light. In an instant, the mana light dissipated. A man clad in full heavy armor, holding a greatsword, stood on the white snow. He raised his left hand, covered in iron armor, his five fingers—heavy and powerful like iron clamps—opened, then clenched shut, producing a metallic creaking sound.
Black, covered with ribbed lines, the ancient Gothic-style armor appeared simple and unadorned, yet it was filled with a heavy majesty. Faint patterns on the shoulder tips formed two reliefs of spreading death-crow. On the cold, heavy helmet, two red dots flickered within a V-shaped slit.
Although the sound was somewhat muffled by the helmet, Joshua's voice still reached the Divine Mechanism girl's ears.
"Cleaning up the trash, of course."
"Boom—!"
Crimson battle qi surged from the depths of his body, blowing away the snow to reveal the black earth and hard rock beneath. Gravity was instantly broken, and the warrior clad in black Maximilian-style heavy armor rose into the air. Bathed in blood-like light, he looked toward the direction of Black Forest Fortress and let out a cold sneer.
A Gold-rank giant beast? A tide of frenzied beasts?
Facing him, they were all nothing but a joke.
—Black Forest Fortress.
When the masked warrior, Kili Uranus, awoke from his brief unconsciousness, what met his eyes was the smoke-filled fortress and the cold weapon he touched.
Chaotic mana summoned the wind and snow, gray clouds slowly appeared on the horizon, and palm-sized snowflakes swirled over the battlefield. The howl of the gale mixed with thunder-like war cries, all flooding into the man's ears, quickly restoring his dazed mind and making it unprecedentedly clear.
"I'm still alive..."
A vague voice carried a hint of laughter. Kili struggled to rise, using his steel spear as a crutch, adapting to his injured body as he stood on the frost-covered city wall.
What had happened before?
As this question arose in his mind, it was answered by the warrior's own memory.
"...Blocking the giant beast, I got sent flying and still survived—that's good luck..."
His internal organs ached faintly. The warrior's gray eyes swept around. The war continued. On the battlefield shrouded in purple mist, the smoke from cannon fire rose to the sky. Mana fluctuations exploded constantly, the earth shook with a roar, but the killing cries that pierced the clouds drowned out all other noise.
"All troops, hear my command!"
Suddenly, a strong and bold command rang out ahead, cutting through the chaotic battlefield.
"Enchanted archers, mages, siege ballistae, cannons—prepare in sequence. Aim—cover fire!!!"
"Yes!"
Scattered but equally clear responses came back. Seconds later, a black rain of arrows whistled across the sky, tearing through the air. Various spells either raised stone spikes, blasted the atmosphere, ignited molten fire, or summoned freezing ice. All of them struck the densely packed, surging tide of frenzied beasts below the wall, causing massive chaos and casualties.
Then came the slight tremors from enchanted ballistae and the roar of cannons. Countless huge gaps instantly appeared in the chaotic beast tide. The violent explosions brought scorching shockwaves, melting the surrounding ice and snow. Hot steam mingled with black-purple dust, creating a turbid mess.
But the beast tide showed no sign of retreating. Ignoring the deaths of their 'companions,' these monsters continued to bare their fangs, extend their claws, and drool sticky, foul saliva as they charged toward the fortress. They attacked the walls, shattered rock with their claws, and climbed bit by bit. Those behind followed the steps of those ahead, advancing rapidly.
A few magical beasts with breath abilities did not charge blindly. They stayed in place, gathering surrounding mana, then spewed out beams of various colors, bombarding the fortress walls and towers. Accompanied by a series of not-too-severe tremors, dust rose and rubble fell.
"Ugh—"
A lightning-fast electric-blue breath shot toward the masked warrior's direction. Kili quickly turned to dodge, but his still-injured body hindered his movement. The high-heat beam grazed past his head dangerously, melting the steel spear at his side.
The black iron shaft instantly turned red-hot. Releasing his weapon immediately, the warrior turned angrily to find the magical beast that had attacked him, but unexpectedly felt a coolness on his face. Startled, he realized his masked helmet had been knocked off.
"Troublesome." Deep cyan hair fluttered in the wind, and his slightly pointed ears, compared to humans, twitched. Kili gathered his hair and tied it into a simple ponytail. The half-elf warrior's handsome face was covered in tattoos inscribed with the blood of magical beasts, with cyan-blue electric currents flowing through them. He frowned: "Using lightning power against me? Ridiculous."
But now was not the time to deal with a magical beast that was at most Mid-Silver-rank and couldn't even break through his magic tattoo defenses. He had more important things to do.
Picking up a straight sword left behind by some warrior from the ground, Kili scanned the battlefield again. This time, he finally found his target.
It was on another section of the wall. A golden-haired knight and a white-haired mage worked together, supported by long-range attacks from the fortress towers, entangled with the frenzied giant beast. Though the massive monster, having lost its intelligence and judgment, possessed a Gold-rank's immense power, these two experienced Silver Peak-rank fighters tightly restrained it, preventing it from continuing to assault the wall.
But even so, the knight and mage struggled hard. They swung their cross-hammers and staves, using various battle qi techniques and spells, yet none could break through the ice tide and ice armor to deal decisive damage to the Gold-rank giant beast. They could only hinder its charge, making it circle in place.
Human stamina had its limits, but the giant beast possessed endless endurance. When their strength ran out, this stalemate would be broken.
Kili pressed his chest. His internal organs still ached faintly. The injuries from being sent flying by the giant beast were severe. Even with his elven bloodline, magic tattoos, and a Silver-rank warrior's recovery ability, he couldn't restore his full combat strength in such a short time.
"But it's enough for now."
Running quickly toward that battlefield, the half-elf warrior prepared to return to his own fight.
But an inexplicable chill swept over him from behind.
The other two Silver Peak-rank knight and mage also felt this fear-inducing, yet strangely unsettling, chill.
They all raised their heads at the same time, looking into the distance.
A dark red light rose on the distant horizon, dyeing the gray clouds a blood-red hue like the evening glow.