Chapter 467. Fierce Battle 1
Chapter 467. Fierce Battle 1
The battlefield that was quiet just dozens of minutes ago began to swirl with winds of blood. Flames erupted from multiple places, and screams and shrieks broke out.
Seol Jihu slowly turned his gaze and scanned the battlefield. The vanguard forces of the two sides partook in a fierce battle without backing down.
With Unsightly Humility captured and the vengeful spirit unit taking the lead, the Second Army was being broken through helplessly.
At this rate, it would not be long until the vanguard of the allied force would reach the Parasite’s center army.
Exploding Patience was holding her ground rather well. Seeing all the Sky and Cave Fairies, she sent the Fifth Army forward as a throwaway while fighting two Spirit Kings by herself.
She seemed to be focusing on defending the left-wing. However, unlike the other two battlefields, the Parasites’ right-wing was still in chaos. In favor of the allied force, of course.
The color of water and fire clashed in the sky endlessly, creating a foggy mist. Meanwhile, the Fallen Angels were steadily lessening the Fifth Army’s number.
Seo Yuhui was chanting one holy spell after the other, unhindered, dealing wide-range damage to the Parasite’s right-wing forces.
‘It looks like good news might come from the left-wing first.’
Seol Jihu initially thought the allied force would win in the order of middle, right, and left, but now he felt the order might actually be the opposite. That was how skilled Roselle was.
Overall, all three battles were going smoothly. Still, Seol Jihu did not lower his guard. Although it was true that they were in an advantageous position, he knew the Parasites still had three cards up their sleeves — the group of Nests that were still producing mother species, Twisted Kindness, and the Parasite Queen.
Furthermore, it could be said that time was on the Parasites’ side. While they were fighting well, the effect of the corrupted land would only make things harder for the allied force as time went on.
And so, Seol Jihu had to do something while the three battlefields were in their favor, something that tipped the scale even further.
“The enemy’s right-wing line has fallen into disarray!”
A timely report came in while Seol Jihu was eyeing the left-wing. The Parasite’s front and left-wing were trying hard to maintain their line of defense even while being pushed back.
On the other hand, the right-wing, where Vulgar Chastity was located, was slowly getting further from the center army in chaos. This chaotic gap was exactly what Seol Jihu was waiting for.
“The king said now is the time to charge in…!”
“Yes.”
Seol Jihu nodded his head.
“The preparation is done. Please tell him I will follow suit.”
“Yes, sir!”
The Beastman who came to deliver White Tiger’s message ran off.
It was finally time to make a move.
‘The card that’s left on our side now is….’
Seol Jihu looked back at the allied force while trying to calm his pounding heart. The first thing that caught his attention was the Dwarf squad. They were taking aim with their cannons while eyeing the battlefield with nervous expressions.
The Dwarf squad had not fired any Thunders since the vanguard force charged in as they were waiting for the perfect opportunity. Vidalif saw Seol Jihu and raised his hand. He seemed to be telling him not to worry about them.
Seol Jihu then turned to Seo Yuhui. She was concentrating on supporting the allied force’s left-wing army. With her eyes closed, she chanted holy spells endlessly, her left hand placed on her chest and her right hand waving in the air like a maestro.
Surprisingly, shining runes appeared in the air with each wave of her hand and began to revolve around Seo Yuhui’s body. As more runes appeared, Seo Yuhui’s forehead became drenched in sweat. She seemed to be in deep focus.
There were many tasks that Seo Yuhui was entrusted with in this war. It could be said that she was involved from beginning to end.
Knowing that she must have several things on her mind even as she chanted ancient prayers, Seol Jihu decided not to initiate a conversation.
“Representative.”
At that moment, Marcel Ghionea approached Seol Jihu.
“Are you setting off soon?”
“Yes. Oh right, Mister Marcel Ghionea….”
Seol Jihu gazed at the Archer of Steel, who had a complicated look on his face. Before the war, Marcel Ghionea had come to ask him whether he could participate in the left-wing’s battle.
Though he did not provide any reason, it was not difficult to find out why. Seol Jihu agreed without saying much.
“I hope you can achieve what you want.”
“Thank you. I am sorry that I cannot be of help.”
“Don’t worry. Also, don’t push yourself too much. Rather than being blinded by greed and putting yourself at risk, I suggest going for a single, sure-hit shot.”
Marcel Ghionea gave a relieved expression.
“I won’t forget it.”
Seol Jihu smiled as he saw Marcel Ghionea place his fist on his chest. He had great expectations from Marcel Ghionea. After all, he was the archer who revived the World Tree with a single arrow.
Soon, a report was delivered, saying that the Beastman squad was ready. Seol Jihu looked back at Eun Yuri before taking off.
When their eyes met, Eun Yuri gave him a coy look. Her cheeks and neck were flushed, as though she was nervous. This was no surprise given that her tasks were just as crucial as Seo Yuhui’s.
“Good luck.”
“…Hmph.”
Eun Yuri turned away and snorted. Seol Jihu tilted his head before turning to face forward again. He then saw the Beastman squad, which had finished preparing to charge in.
Kuhung! Kuhuhuhung! White Tiger, who transformed into a giant house-sized beast, kicked off the ground with a roar. Confirming the Beastman squad following suit, Seol Jihu quietly looked back at the Valhalla members.
He then spoke…
“Let’s go.”
…just two words.
But the moment these words came out, his comrades began to chase after the Beastman squad along with Seol Jihu.
Like the Cave Fairies, the Beastman squad formed a triangle-shaped attack formation. They ran in a roundabout way past the enemy’s vanguard army to dig into the gap between the enemy’s right-wing and center army like a sharp wedge.
With the appearance of new enemies, there were groups of parasites that dashed out of the right-wing. However, most of the Beastmen did not pay attention to them. They only focused on the goal of the triangle-shaped attack formation, which was to break through to the enemy ranks.
Because of it, Valhalla was able to join the fray quickly.
“Don’t mind the right-wing! Leave it to us and charge in!”
Seol Jihu shouted from the rear of the Beastmen squad. Next, Kazuki’s voice rang out.
“The head has clashed with the center army!”
This was easy to tell, even without the report. It was because Seol Jihu could feel a sharp aura from the outer area of the rapidly charging Beastman squad.
Soon, Valhalla’s members spotted the Parasites’ center army. At the same time, the sides of the triangle-shaped attack formation separated to the left and the right. Clashing into a group of parasites and corpses, they allowed Valhalla’s members to pass through safely.
It was at this time that Twisted Kindness understood the allied force’s intention.
“Fools! Are you out of your minds!?”
It was true that she did not have an army, but to think they would dare to break through to the center army where she was holding the ground! Twisted Kindness yelled in a fit of dumbfounded anger, but she couldn’t help but change her thoughts in the next moment.
Just as she tried to turn the troops in the left and the center to surround the right, the parasite soldiers of the center army suddenly fell into disarray.
She doubted her eyes when a strange cloud of smoke suddenly swept towards them, but upon close inspection, she saw that it was the vengeful spirit unit.
“Don’t stop! Charge, charge, chaaaaarge!”
Behind the smoke was Teresa, wearing a blood-soaked armor, and the cavalry following suit. The Parasites’ vanguard had finally been broken through.
With hundreds of vengeful spirits leading the way, the cavalry pounced on the center army like a raging wave. It was truly the perfect timing.
Twisted Kindness gritted her teeth.
Seol Jihu and the rest of Valhalla’s members ran. Shrieks and screams rang out endlessly, and something flew around in all directions, but they did not pay attention to any of it. They continued to cross the battlefield, only focusing on not falling behind the Beastman squad.
How much time went by? As the outer layer of the Beastman squad continued to separate left and right, its initially huge number dwindled to a few hundred.
White Tiger, who was leading the charge, was now only a hundred meters away from Valhalla’s members. And just now, the final layer separated off.
However, there was nothing to worry about. The Beastman squad had performed their role splendidly.
An open area could now be seen behind the Parasites’ center army. The allied force had succeeded in reaching the end of the enemy ranks. The rear of the center army had been broken through.
Kuhuhung!
White Tiger again let out a roar before swinging his front leg and sending half a dozen parasites flying. His white fur was stained red with blood, revealing just how fiercely he fought.
One king went past another.
White Tiger revealed his fangs in a broad smile. Seol Jihu also returned a smile.
“Don’t worry about us. Don’t lose!”
White Tiger’s shout quickly faded away.
Now, only Valhalla was left, but the enemy was also left with only one final line of defense.
‘We’re almost there.’
They were now only a step away from the Parasite Queen.
Seol Jihu slowed down once he caught sight of the enemy. On the other hand, Valhalla’s members sped up.
Seol Jihu was now running in the center of the team. His teammates were performing the role that the Beastman squad did before.
They quickly closed in on their enemies.
“200 meters, 180 meters…!”
Kazuki nocked an arrow on his bow while constantly measuring the distance between them. Yi Sungjin raised his shield with a stiff face, Vlad Halep spun his scythe, and Maria held up her crucifix artifact even while panting heavily.
“20 meters…!”
With that, Kazuki shut his mouth. Phi Sora, who was Valhalla’s vanguard captain, gripped her sword tightly.
“Go…!”
Then, just as she was about to run forward with her flaming sword held high, her eyes widened at the sight of a Warrior running ahead. It was none other than Hugo, charging in with his halberd.
“Valhalllaaaaaa!”
A beautiful light burst out as he swung the halberd. Then, just before clashing into the enemy, he struck the halberd down on the ground.
Level 6 Barbarian Mighty Warrior, Class Ability — Seismic Wave.
KWANG!
The earth rumbled and shot up like ascending dragons. That wasn’t all. The halberd burst with light again, enveloping the rising earth dragons. Swirling left and right, they swept forward like a tsunami.
The Parasites’ final line of defense broke into chaos.
Parasites that were hit by the earth dragons bounced up into the air. Everywhere the dragons hit caused a small earthquake, causing nearby enemies to lose their balance and fall.
Hugo flashed his teeth in a smile and jumped inside like a beast. Stomping on the squirming, fallen Parasites, he swung his halberd like a windmill, cutting and slashing as he pleased, and killed one enemy after the other.
The way he fought fiercely without a pause was truly worthy of the name Barbarian Mighty Warrior.
“Ahaha! What happened to our muscle-brain!?”
His strength was enough to make even Hoshino Urara amazed. It was hard not to be in awe when the enemies were blowing up with each swing of his shining halberd.
Seol Jihu had heard just how hard Hugo trained in the Path of the Soul, but he was even better than Seol Jihu expected. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say he was on par with a Unique Ranker.
The reason for this was in his halberd. According to Flone, a powerful and beautiful spirit was living inside it.
Apparently, the spirit closed its heart at Hugo’s past actions and remained dormant, changing its mind only after seeing him climb the Path of the Soul without giving up and ultimately reaching the summit.
Hugo had melted the halberd spirit’s frozen heart with his pure desire of never letting his comrade die again. Thanks to the halberd, Hugo inherited a special power of an ancient noble warrior.
“Let’s go!”
“We can’t lose to Hugo now, can we?”
Seeing Hugo’s performance, Chohong and Phi Sora shot forward at the same time. Using the manifestation spell, Valkyrie Skirt, Chohong swung the Thorn of Steel, her silver hair fluttering in the air.
Kwang, kwang, kwang, kwang!
As the mace strengthened with three successful enhancements struck the ground, the already rumbling earth sunk in even further. Because of it, the Parasites that were only now regaining their balance bounced up into the air again.
Hwaarrrr!
When Phi Sora stabbed her longsword up, dozens of flaming sword qi waves shot out, piercing the falling enemies and burning them up. With two powerful Unique Rankers joining the opening created by Hugo, the surroundings quickly turned chaotic.
Furthermore, each time Oh Rahee’s longsword moved like a flash of light, and Kazuki and Audrey Basler’s arrows pierced the Parasites’ heads, the enemy ranks quickly collapsed.
All this happened in the blink of an eye.
‘If we continue at this rate….’
Watching his comrades’ performance, Seol Jihu smiled without even noticing. It was then. He suddenly felt a particular sensation envelope his body.
“It’s her.”
Little Chick poked its head out of Seol Jihu’s chest pocket and murmured. Judging by the way it was trying to squirm out, it seemed to be ready to go.
Seol Jihu carefully gazed at the Parasites’ slowly collapsing final line of defense. He could see an enraged, powerful existence glaring at him from the middle of the enemy army.
It was the final gatekeeper guarding the way to the Parasite Queen — the strongest Army Commander said to be capable of crushing other Army Commanders with ease.
Twisted Kindness.