Ch.1278Intensifying Melee

Caliburn, charging fiercely through the heart of enemy lines, came to a halt as it clashed with the half-rotted Hrungir, while the charge of the Werebeasts under his command was likewise blocked by the formation of undead giants.

What followed was a bloodbath where blood washed away blood.

True to their nature—Werebeasts with exceptional regenerative abilities and undead that were difficult to kill in the first place—they rampaged without concern for wounds that would have been fatal to other races.

Even with intestines spilling out or limbs severed and scattered, these were merely minor injuries they could easily regenerate.

Befitting a battle between those who spared no thought for their bodies, the scene unfolding on the battlefield was horrifically brutal and grotesque, reminiscent of hell itself.

“We can’t let those Werebeasts have all the fun! We’ll push through as well!”

And behind that hellscape created by monsters that refused to die, the main force, having endured the rain of magic artillery, finally joined the front line.

“UWOOOOOAH!”

“KREEEEK! CHAAARGE!”

Roars like screams, howls filled with madness.

The desperation of knowing that stopping meant death, hatred toward the cause of the Great Collapse, and the fighting spirit of those raised as warriors—all mixed together and blazed like fire.

“Like mindless boars… circle around to the left! Target their flanks!”

“KIIIIIIK!”

“Purification magic! Can’t use it? Then set them on fire at least!”

Befitting an allied force of numerous races and tribes, their tactics varied greatly.

Most charged straight ahead, but some targeted the relatively vulnerable flanks. Others burst from underground or leaped high to wreak havoc in the middle of enemy lines.

A wingless dragon charging with protective magic covering its entire body.

A troll swinging a whip of flames while laughing maniacally.

A shadow advancing like a storm, wielding four swords in four arms.

Dark elves reducing the number of mid-level commanders through repeated ambushes and stealth.

Even spiders, working in groups of three to pick off enemies one by one, as the old saying goes.

A festival of tactics with no uniformity whatsoever. While appearing disorganized at first glance, this chaos actually worked to the allied forces’ advantage.

“Secure the flanks! No, the front first—no, no, from the rear…!”

If the allied forces had moved in unison like a single unit, the undead army’s mid-level commanders could have devised appropriate countermeasures.

However, with numerous races causing all sorts of chaos from every direction, orders inevitably became confused, throwing the entire formation into disarray.

“Position the giant-type undead at the front! Deploy four skeleton serpents to counter enemies coming from underground! You, use breath of corrosion on the spider webs first—KUHEK…!”

Even amid this confusion, the commanding undead were desperately formulating countermeasures, but their orders were cut short by dark elf ambushes before reaching their subordinates.

“Damn it…! What are Her knights doing?!”

“They’re engaged with an Orc warrior! Estimated demigod-level! We can’t expect support!”

Normally in such situations, at least a hero-class warrior—a “Knight of Bellona”—should have taken command to bring order to the chaos, but they were currently pinned down by a single Orc and unable to move.

“Haha! You lot are quite enjoyable to fight! Let’s have some more fun!”

“Damn it… an Orc demigod? This is unexpected.”

“Wasn’t Caljarat the only Orc who survived…?!”

As if taking the place of Caljarat who was mysteriously absent, a demigod-level Orc female warrior, Arkala, had appeared.

She devastated a section of the battlefield, swinging her massive axe that absorbed the blood of those she wounded and released red lightning.

Though Arkala was relatively weak among demigods, a demigod was still a demigod.

It took the full deployment of Bellona’s knights, including Arthur, to barely halt her advance.

“Roar with thunder, Caliburn!”

= KWARRRRR!

Even then, it was only because Arthur’s lightning sword Caliburn could redirect and neutralize the blood lightning discharged from Arkala’s axe.

“A fine sword. But it can only defend!”

Yet, even with the blood lightning neutralized, Arkala’s axe strikes themselves carried the terrifying power of a demigod’s slash.

If they allowed a direct hit, it wouldn’t be surprising if their entire bodies were reduced to dust. The Knights of Bellona had no choice but to focus all their attention on this desperate struggle.

“Hold on! Until His Excellency seizes victory!”

They waited for the moment when their lord, Garmerlic, who had gained power beyond his prime, would defeat the enemy leader.

…Of course, this didn’t mean the undead army was at an overwhelming disadvantage.

They had merely been forced into a chaotic melee without strategic direction. Their forces still outnumbered the enemy several times over and were continuously being replenished.

“KRAAAK!”

“Jarshu?! Why are you attacking your kin…?!”

“Look carefully! He’s been turned undead! That’s an enemy now!!”

As Haschal had predicted, Garmerlic had awakened the power to resurrect the dead as undead, and the range of this power extended throughout the battlefield beneath the floating island.

“Grrrr…”

“Master’s… orders… death…”

Corpses touched by the black raindrops falling from the bottom of the floating island soon revived with blue glowing eyes and turned their weapons and claws against those who had been their comrades moments before.

“Magic users, burn the corpses first! We must prevent them from reviving!”

“Easier said than done in this situation…!”

If they could crush the corpses as soon as they showed signs of revival, they could prevent secondary damage, but this was impossible in the current chaotic battle.

Everyone was struggling just to keep themselves alive, with no capacity to pay attention to who had died or who was being revived around them.

“AAAAARGH!”

“Did they get hit over there…? Orte, Rashid! Block the left! They’ll be coming soon!”

“GRWOOOOAR—!”

“What is that huge thing…?!”

“My leg! MY LEEEEG!”

Thus, even with the undead army’s command structure half-collapsed, the battle situation remained evenly matched.

– KWAOOOOOO—!

“What is that…? It’s too much to be a dragon’s breath…”

The key to breaking this balance was not on the ground, but in the sky above.

======[ Haschal ]======

– KWAOOOOOO—!

The breath of the Death Dragon.

The moment I tore open the floating island’s defensive barrier with my severing slash, a wave of death shot out as if it had been waiting, mercilessly engulfing my entire body that had no chance to defend.

‘This bastard, so this is what he was preparing…’

Perfect ambush at an unpredictable timing, sharply piercing the gap in my thoughts.

The attack was fired at point-blank range in a fully charged state, leaving no room to defend or even stop time to evade.

…Considering that the past Garmerlic had countered time manipulation with his own powers, even if I’d had the chance to use Defying Fate, it probably wouldn’t have made much difference.

Anyway, I was directly hit and engulfed by the breath of death.

“Kya-eugh, grrrrk…!”

My armor decomposing as if rotting away, excruciating pain racing through my entire body. It felt like every cell in my body was being shattered and scattered.

This was completely different from Kudsedra’s dragon breath that spewed fire like a fire dragon, or Leviathan’s breath that was closer to a high-pressure water cutter.

True to its reputation as the dragon of the underworld, Kelebre’s breath contained the power of death that decomposed life itself, flesh and all.

If anyone other than me had been hit by this breath, they would have instantly decomposed into dust.

“You think… this kind of attack…! This kind of ambush will kill me?!”

Amidst the excruciating pain as if my entire body was being torn apart, I drew upon the divine power of the stars to its maximum to resist the power of death invading my flesh, and stretched my left arm forward.

Perhaps because it was imbued with a curse of similar properties, albeit in a different direction, Frosting somehow maintained its form and endured even as the dragon scale armor was decomposing.

“Hagalaaaaz!!”

The twilight rune hidden within, the seal of collapse, emitted a dark blue light and released a destructive force that shattered everything it touched.

– KUDUDUDUK…!

However, it was impossible to counteract a great dragon’s breath with just one hastily released rune of collapse.

The dark blue barrier that spread like an umbrella before me was riddled with holes from the moment it appeared and was completely torn apart in less than a few seconds.

Of course, those few seconds were enough for me.

“KYAAAAAAAH!”

My body burning as if on fire.

Instead of the divine power resisting the force of death, an immense power stemming from my Karma of Murder spread through my limbs and body via blood vessels, nerves, or something else.

I released that power as if throwing away reins I had been holding, and with the longsword in my right hand, I drew hundreds of lines in the air before me.

Durandal’s blade barrier, temporarily liberated from all constraints, emitting the power of severance on its own.

Hundreds of trajectories, drawn so quickly they seemed to be created simultaneously, tore apart and pulverized the entire space before me.

– PATSTSSTSTSTS…!

Along with the Death Dragon’s breath that was still being poured toward me.