One of the soldiers hurriedly approaches the knight commander, looking flustered.
The commander was leading his 400 strong troops consisting of 295 soldiers, 100 archers and 5 priests. The troop was not in any battle before this and thus the level of each unit was only around 20-25.
While on track to enter into Greywood, roaring sounds exploded out from within, loud enough that even those at the very end could heard it. Surprised by it, he swiftly halted his advance and ordered his subordinates to appoint some soldiers to recon the area as to have an inkling of what has occurred.
Reaching the commander who was whiling the time away by feeding his prized stallion, the soldier promptly reported.
“Sir Lothor, we are only able to discover a group of wild bears located north-east of our position, they numbered about 180. We are unable to locate the rest of the targets no matter how hard we searched.”
Dismissing the soldier and not forgetting to give word of thanks, Sir Lothor pondered about the report he received for a while before dispelling any doubts that has gathered at the back of his mind, confident in his ability to handle any situation and believing the troop he possess are strong enough to deflect any pathetic attempts by the animals.
Sir Lothor is a dashing young man around 20 years of age, with locks of golden hair and eyes of sapphire. On his hand held a longsword decorated with exquisite carving and his body wore plate amour set which shone brilliantly in the sun. The way he held in his hand shows mastery in the sword, as well exuding a strong presence in his surroundings. Hoping to quickly rise up the ranks, he had accepted his majesty order to clear Greywood.
As he mounts his white stallion, Sir Lothor began laying out his plans to the troop.
“We will move as a group to engage with the bears that were sighted by our scouts, move at a normal pace and be alert at the surroundings to prevent any possible ambush by the animals.”
Smiling fearlessly, Sir Lothor shouted out.
“Our mission is to clear out the forest of any potential threats, they are just a bunch of animals that are inferior to us. Let’s finish this quickly!” The morale of troops perked up at his words.
Having motivated them, Sir Lothor and his troops entered the forest and made their way to where the bears are sighted. Moving cautiously towards them while looking out for any ambushes, they arrived at the front of the clearing.
Looking inside the clearing which stood out within the forest, they could see that the left side of the path contains a steep slope which has patches of branches and leaves about and only stumps remains in place of the trees. On the right it was the same except for the ground which is flat. In the middle of the clearing were the bears, growling fiercely and making battle stance, looking as if they are fully prepared for the battle.
Staying on guard at the bears, Sir Lothor quickly shouted out orders, preparing to engage the enemies.
“All troop halt! Offensive formation now! Archers prepare to give support fire behind the soldiers and priest to stay with the archers and cast blessing now. Archers and priest to stay at the back and wait for further instruction.”
Giving a haughty look and smiling wryly towards the bears, his morale swell up as he view the difference between his troop and them which is not even half of theirs. Once his troop is ready Sir Lothor cried out intensely, the tip of the longsword pointing at his targets.
“ATTACK!” the voice mark the start of the battle.
Tens of bowstrings trembled, and innumerable arrows poured down over the incoming bears.
The infantry raise their weapons and gave a cry before rushing forward. They kicked up the grass and shook the earth, hardening their bodies in reflex.
The two forces clashed, sword crossing with claws and bodies colliding with shields.
Some soldiers collapsed from the bears’ unstoppable charge, while others knocked the bears into the ground. Those who had fallen were bitten on or cut down as the forces swarmed across the clearing.
The grass was wet with morning dew, and the cold disappeared as blood dyed the earth. The heat rapidly escaped from the corpses as they fell, while others were quickly killed as they tried to stand again.
Priests hurry to heal those with grievous wounds at the battlefield. The bears began to retreat at the onslaught of the human troops, pulling the soldiers further away from the archers and priests.
Overlooking the battlefield at the top of the slope, Zero sense that the timing to start his plan was now.
“NOW PUSH!” Zero emerged from hiding, giving the signal to the boars waiting at the sides to push down the trees which were weakened beforehand, causing it to topple at the front of the archers and priests.
Blocked from the view of the battlefield, the archers point their bows at the culprits behind it, intending to kill the boars first before moving away from their position. The boars responsible were shaking in their hooves, trembling at the prospect of dying. As they pulled their arrows back with the tips aiming at the poor boars, Zero gave another command.
“SECOND TEAM ATTACK THE ARCHERS AND PRIESTS NOW!”
At the command, boars and wolves that were hiding below the leaves and branches came out and rush at the archers and priests, intending to make mincemeat out of them. The archers swerve around and began shooting the approaching target while backing to the fallen trees, forming a defensive line with the priests behind.
****
Sir Lothor was at the forefront of the troop, giving a few elegant slices at the nearest bear causing it to drop to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Calmly surveying the battle, he checks on the progress.
--Looks like less than half of the bears remain standing. With them dying at this rate, I will be able to win over them and fulfill the task. Looks like I am one step closer to the post of royal knight.
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
Chuckling to himself, He began to hone in his next target when he receive a report from one of his subordinates.
“Our back units are under assault by the animals.”
“…..What! ?“ Lothor was shocked.
Immediately regaining his demeanor, Sir Lothor quickly request 50 soldiers to come with him to protect the archers and priest.
Moving swiftly, Sir Lothor and his 50 units cross the clearing and was close enough to render assistance when all of a sudden, a voice of a man echoed in the forest.
“THIRD TEAM RELEASE THE LOGS NOW!”
As soon as the voice said it the ground started rumbling, with increasing strength every second. Looking up the slope, Sir Lothor spotted waves of huge log rolling down, coming ever closer. Finding himself in a trap, he quickly gave out orders to his unit to escape the catastrophe.
“ESCAPE TO THE SIDES NOW! AVOID THE LOGS!” pulling the reins of his horse to maneuver through the rolling logs.
Sir Lothor narrowly managed to avoid most of them but unfortunately the stallion he is riding on lost its footing due to one of the log brushed at its hind leg, causing both to fell and hit the ground.
After releasing the last of the logs, Zero looked down at area which now looks as if a typhoon has passed through. He could see that most of the enemy was trapped under the logs, with some piling on each other. The few that escaped was shaking from the ordeal, looking somewhat pale.
Bernhard led the remaining bears to Sir Lothor who is sprawling on the ground with no signs of being conscience to secure him, with Zero in tow.
Tying Sir Lothor with ropes, Zero quickly announces the capture of their commander and to surrender themselves. Confusion reigns at the human troop, with some thinking that it was ploy by Zero to lower their morale. Spotting Sir Lothor tied up and surrounded by the bears, one by one they drop their weapons to the ground and raise their hands in surrender.
Pooling the enemy together and ensuring all have been disarmed, Zero had the surviving animals to keep a strict watch. Looking disheveled and in low spirit at his defeat, Sir Lothor was brought to the lair accompanied by Bernhard and Zero.
Showing him that there was nothing of value inside to further enforce the truth, Sir Lothor was release from his bonds and allow him and his troop to retreat with their weapons as a gesture of sincerity. Understanding the futility to continue, he promises Zero to inform the king of this treachery. He led his troop back to Brent Kingdom in a somber mood, less than half of what he started with.
Signaling to the hawk to check the area for any remaining soldiers, Zero went to check out on the surviving animals. Out of 350 animals, 180 were killed in battle while the rest have varying level of injuries with only the third team comprising of 20 bear remain unscathed. Using his bandage skill, Zero started on the most serious ones.
As Zero was busily bandaging the wounded, the hawk dived down next to him to report what he saw.
<”A group of humans with several large cages on their cart were found at the east side of the forest. They appear to be leaving”>, giving a screech before flying off.
--Hmm. So the perpetrator was trying to capture the bears. But it still doesn't explain why they needed to do such a roundabout way instead of just capturing themselves.
Thinking hard about the issue but unable to find an answer, Zero readily gave up and turns his attention back to bandaging. In a trance with his attention wholly at the wounded, he ignored the messages that appeared whenever a skill level increase. It was late into the night when he finally finishes bandaging all of them.
****
Now aware of the time, Constantine hastily logged out and quickly change into his uniform. Skipping his breakfast in order to make it in time, he rushed to school.
Constantine lethargically plopped down on the chair with his head lying on the table once he reached his seat, the stomach growling at the absence of breakfast . He had not slept since yesterday and has been pulling an all-nighter due to the battle.
Feeling someone giving a pat on his back, Constantine looked up to see Jason staring at him with a worried expression.
“Are you alright? You have the looks of a dying man. You have been playing without sleep right?”
Giving Jason a dazed look, Constantine replied.
“Yeah, just finished a big battle. What about you?”
“Hehee” smirking at Constantine, “I have just joined under the Hermes guild which is one of the strongest in the Haven Kingdom.”
With his interest spiked by the news, Constantine stood up straight and began questioning Jason.
“What is your character and how high is it now?”
“My character is a magician and it is already in the second advancement which specializes in wind. Level is already 211.”
--Wow, considering that it has just been 9 months since the launch, his level makes him one of the top players. Magician was known as a class with high offensive abilities thus making it easier to level up. Summing up what he knows of Jason’s character.
As Jason was about to prattle on about the hardship of being a magician, the teacher arrived and begin the lesson. Soon after the school hour ended earlier than usual and Constantine, not wanting to waste even a second of it, rushed home and logged back to Royal Road.
NEXT CHAPTER>>>
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This is my first time writing about battle scenes. If there is any problems that you found or changes needed you can let me know here. Any comments to improve the story will be appreciated.