The howls filled the air as the awakened wolves and dire wolves leapt into action, each tearing into the hydra as their teeth gnashed at their flesh. The chanting was almost drowned out by the noises, but light filled the air and a gentle warmth pressed upon Adam’s shoulders.

“To think you would move Rick and the others before you would move us,” Dunes said, holding onto his shield, reaching for his magical blade. “Are we so unreliable?”

“What are you talking about? Didn’t I want you by my side exactly because of something like this?” Adam asked, noting how only Dunes and Sara had stepped forward, the woman slinging fire towards the hydra, making sure it couldn’t regenerate. Dunes’ holy magic formed blades of light, which fell across the beast, while he stood a short ways away, out of the creature’s range.

‘I forgot how amazing that spell was,’ Adam thought. Not only did it strike their foes with divine might, it slowed them down too. In order to survive, the hydra have to kill the wolves, then the priest who was heavily armoured and pressing them down with his divine magic, before coming across the rest of the Aswadians, and then finally a young half elf in purple.

The wolves snarled as they attacked, each emboldened by their nearby allies, tearing into the hydra as though it were a chicken. A very powerful, vicious chicken, which tore into the wolves in return with its ravenous maws.

Adam’s ears twitched, hearing the whimpering of the children behind him. He shuffled his way towards the children, the sounds of terror all around. “Hey, are you alright?”

“There’s so many monsters out.”

“Haha, right, aren’t we lucky?” Adam replied, smiling calmly, though he had personally counted how many figures remained to protect the children. His eyes glanced aside, towards the other side of the forest. ‘I should be enough if one more comes, but if there are any more…’

“Lucky?” Max asked, his voice a whimper.

“Yes, don’t you think? We’re going to bring back so much hydra leather, scales, and so much more. I’ll make sure they don’t ruin the hydras too much, that way you can all get your own scale.”

“We can have our own scale?” Copper asked. “Me too?”

“Of course! Why wouldn’t you get your own scale? You’re a part of the business, just like me and your sisters, aren’t you?”

“Are we gunna get magical swords?” Copper asked.

“Once you’ve done some good work and you’re older, sure.”

“I want two.”

“Then you need to work twice as hard.”

Copper looked to Shannon, raising his brows, as though he wasn’t sure if Adam was being serious.

“Would you like us to assist?” Cobra asked. “We could probably help out a little.”

“Perhaps if a ninth hydra appears you might be needed,” Adam replied, drowning out the sounds of bestial death, though kept his ear towards the other forest.

“Ninth? I count seven.”

“Everyone else is working so hard, but I’m also an Executive, you know?” Adam flashed a confident smile, one which gave the vibe of someone who actually believed their words, but it was Cobra who already believed Adam more than himself.

‘If it’s him, it should be okay…’

‘Hey, Bell, make sure you split the XP with everyone but the Rays and Hopes.’

[Okay.]

Adam glanced around, noting the way the children had drawn around the Ray.

‘Including Vonda.’

[Okay.]

‘I mean, include Vonda into our group, not the group of Rays and Hopes.’

[Okay.]

‘Thank you.’

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

[Okay.]

Adam wondered if he should speak to Bell more often. ‘Oops.’

Cobra’s eyes fell to the other hydras around, vaguely aware of the hydra nearby, yet kept at bay by the Aswadians, though one remained beside the devilkin who was shooting out fire bolts, while the other remained beside the priest, tossing javelins.

‘Are the Iyrmen going to be okay?’ Cobra thought, her eyes glued to Nirot and Bavin, who were supported by a Ray who had cast a similar spell to that of the Aswadian priest beside them. Her eyes scanned around, noting how many Rays were supporting with the same spell, the hydras slowly being whittled down.

Though death was all around them, with so many hydras one would have thought they were trying to ravage an entire army, there was a certain serenity within Cobra’s heart. The hydras tore into wolf, man, and Iyrman alike.

Uwajin and Naqokan were more wounded than Bavin and Nirot, though that much was obvious due to the fact Nirot and Bavin both wore shields, while the other pair wielded greatblades, and yet the hydras seemed so much worse for wear. She glanced towards Adam, understanding why the young half elf was almost as calm as the sky above them.

‘I should be able to deal with one,’ Adam thought, glancing off to one side to check something.

Omen: 3, 20

‘This time no one’s going to ask me to step back…’ Adam’s eyes glanced towards the forest. ‘If one comes, and I kill it, won’t I be able to claim a bunch of stuff? I could tell Lanababy and my adorable little kids that I defeated a hydra by myself…’

Cobra felt the energy Adam was giving off into the world, and she glanced across the road, wondering if the Marquise’s army would appear again.

Alex stared out at the death, watching with wide eyes. ‘They’re so strong!’ He couldn’t believe how powerful the warriors all around them were. They could fight not one or two hydras, but seven! Seven! Even the Hope and the Rays could probably only deal with one, though the Hope was currently engaged with a hydra with the support of…

‘Farmers?’

Javelins swam through the air towards the second closest hydra, as Remy and Jeremy supported from the side. Their packs had been rather full of javelins precisely for this reason.

“Heave!”

“Ho!”

The pair tossed their javelins one by one, a stream of javelins slipping through the air, striking alongside the hard scales of the hydra.

Adam’s eyes also peered towards the farmers, just for a moment to check they were alright. They seemed fined, with the Hope and her flaming blade leading them into battle, the farmers were spurred with a zeal he hadn’t seen from them previously.

‘I gotta be careful, otherwise the Hope’s going to steal my people.’

The music of slaughter continued to play all around them, the cackling and shouts growing louder than the roars as the hydras fell, one by one, while the children watched in awe and shock. Adam’s worried were unfounded, as the hydras fell, each slain with the assistance of flame, otherwise the group would have found themselves to be quickly overwhelmed by the wicked beasts.

Once the first hydra fell, it was only a matter of moments before the tide of battle changed. Jurot and the others stepped, not towards the trio who were fending off the hydra they were up again, but rather made their way towards the Hope and the farmers.

“Come,” Jurot said, his axe tearing into one of the hydra’s many necks, while the Hope’s flaming blade pierced through the creature’s heart.

“May the Son watch over you,” Willow whispered as the hydra fell before her. She and the farmers followed Jurot, while the others went to assist Uwajin and Naqokan, Vasera’s warriors already making their way to Lucy and Mara.

The Hope’s blade tore through the hydra, which had torn the wolves apart with its monstrous teeth. Sky snarled, wincing as he tore into the hydra’s chest, his maw tasting the hydra’s death, while the other wolves pounced upon it, several pikes piercing through its hide.

Once the most dangerous hydra was dealt with, the group turned, watching as the last of the hydras were dispatched with, with minimal injuries, in no small part thanks to the floating shields all around the Rays of their Spirit Sentinels, while their healing magics made sure to deal with any of the nastiest injuries.

Nirot and Bavin, Uwajin and Naqokan, Lucy and Mara, each were Rage Dancers. Though they were wounded by the hydras, their rage suppressed much of the damage from the monsters. Adam’s Health was over 90, outpacing many other warriors, the only exceptions being perhaps Rage Dancers, who would have held a similar amount of Health given their great toughness.

However, while a hydra could strike Adam for a fair amount of damage, such damage would be almost trivial even to the likes of Nirot. Though the young woman was an Expert, and so her Health would have been in the fifties or so, technically she could last longer than Adam with her rage.

So while the six were tasked with facing the hydra themselves, they were tough even to deal with the blows of the hydra, while their own blows battered the hydra more viciously. Also, while Dunes could heal the Rage Dancers for a fair amount with his divine magic, Priests of Life each could heal for greater amounts, thanks to their connection with the Goddess of Life.

While the hydras dealt less damage to the Rage Dancers, each Health regained by the magic of a Priest, even those who did not worship Mother Soza as their main deity, was twice as effective than Health regained by Adam or Jaygak, who were not Rage Dancers.

Thus, someone like Jurot, whose Health was no doubt similar to Adam’s, could last not just twice as long as Adam, with the ability to shrug off blows with his rage, but even longer with equivalent healing, and the more someone was to wound Jurot, it meant they would wound his companions less.

Though no one had thought so deeply about that particular relationship between Priests and Rage Dancers, they had naturally felt into the rhythm of partnership, with almost every prayer flowing into the veins of the Rage Dancers, keeping them eager for battle.

‘Damn,’ Adam thought, eyeing up the trio of pairs who had formed the walls to keep the three hydras at bay. ‘They look pretty good considering they were being chomped by the big snakey monsters.’

“I tolds yous they were gunna win,” Copper said.

Alex blinked.

‘No casualties?’ Hope Willow thought, her heart full of relief, though the curiosity tainted it.