Charge!

The bandits roared as the snow collapsed under their feet, destroying their formation.

“Archers, mages, attack them with everything you have,” ordered Ignatius, calmly.

Till now, the mages have been mostly silent. Only a few had acted, but now their staffs lit up and power hummed in the air.

A moment later, the spells rained down upon the bandits.

Like beautiful, terrifying destruction, which mesmerized and horrified me at the same time.

All types of spells are being cast by mages. Ice Lances from my sister. Hydro Burst from Zela, Wind Blades from Shaun, Acid Strikes, Fireballs, Light Missile, and many other spells.

So many that I couldn’t even name some.

It is not just the mages who are attacking, but also the archers. They are using every skill they have that made the distance between them and the bandits covered in arrows.

The best of them is Ignatius Blackwell.

He let go of single steady arrows. Now three magic arrows are forming on his bow at every moment, and he is shooting them at the bandits at a speed, I couldn’t even see.

Most importantly, his arrows are finding the target.

Unlike before, most of the arrows are now finding the target. The collapse of snow had destroyed their formation and opened the holes in their defense, which he is targeting.

The bandit had recovered themselves and now charging toward us fast.

They didn’t try to regroup, and that is a wise choice. These bandits have never worked together, and don’t know how to do that on a big scale like this.

If they try, they will end up wasting time, giving our archers and mages more time to shoot them.

I watched the bodies of bandits falling at every step. Their archers are attacking and mages casting the spells, but they are not coordinated as us, and most focus is on defending.

It is why not a single one of us was injured while we have killed hundreds of them. If I were to guess, I think, we have killed around four to five hundred.

I feel no joy at that. We are still in very much danger.

They still have more than twice the number and more high-level people than us. The only thing we have is a highly experienced disciplined army, which is well-equipped.

A few seconds passed, and mages and archers begin to retreat in the line.

Half of the archers have put back their bows and joined the ranks with the warriors, while the rest of them retreated further, but kept shooting.

Zela and Shaun had also returned close to me. It couldn’t help but made me feel relieved.

Seeing such large bandits, I am worried. With them returning, I feel a little more secure than before.

As bandits came close, my sister took out her real weapon.

It is a beautiful broadsword. Its blade looked like it is carved out of ice and had a mural of dancing ice spirits on it. It has a red stony grip and an icy blue gem at its pommel.

That sword is named Ikira. The house has brought it for an extremely high price.

It is not an artifact, but a weapon that is closest to what we could forge at this age.

It is a powerful mage weapon, and she is very good at using it. In a few seconds, I will see how good she is with it.

The bandits are about to crash into them, but Ignatius didn’t retreat. He remained on the first line with the others, despite knowing he was a target of all the bandits.

It might seem like bravery, but to me, it feels like a total idiocy.

Not because I don’t think he didn’t have strength. He has, and I know, he is hiding more, but still, being in front will put more strain on people around him.

Thankfully, he is surrounded by powerful people. My sister, Baron Harrods, Colonel Grennan, and two mages, one of whom had yet to cast any spells.

The roaring bandits finally crashed against the first line, and it was furious.

They are angry and they are channeling it all against the Blackwell and his army. The first line had stopped the bandits and moved their weapons against them in a practiced manner.

Killing and injuring many bandits within a second. It is a blood scene that made me shudder.

It is a simple brutal efficiency with discipline. It didn’t feel like they were people, but death-reaping machines.

I looked at the army before turning to its lord.

Ignatius shot the bandit at point black range, creating a bloody hole through half-orcs eyes, before defending against the sword attack with his bow and shooting another arrow, killing the attacker.

It is great when you don’t have to nock physical arrows in the bow. Though the physical arrows could be nocked, he is seeing no need to do that.

As the bandits crashed, they begin to push against us in high numbers, but there is limited space, and the first line guarding it tightly, without a flaw.

They have become a cutting machine, killing the bandits as they came.

“The forces are trained well and experienced. Even back home, they would have won, praise,” said Stone beside me. He and Jon are beside me, watching while Zela and Shaun would cast the spells at the bandits.

“I hope they can stop bandits in the first line,” I said with hope, but all four of them smiled hearing that.

“That is possible, but I don’t think Lord Blackwell would use that strategy. The losses will be huge,”

“The killing circle is a better strategy. Let the bandits enter inside and grind them to them,” said Stone.

I sighed and looked at my sister, kill another bandit.

She had decapitated him with her sword before sending ice daggers into the eyes of another bandit through the edge of her sword. That expect moment, an arrow came at her, and she defended it with a frost shield, before attacking the archer with frost daggers.

It seemed like there was no way to get her; every side of her is protected, including the top.

Where she had impaled the assassin with the ice lance.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

As for the old man beside her, he is a killing machine. There is shiny magic in him, like my sister.

It is all grace, gotten through the experience.

I could see it clearly, unlike Ignatius and my sister, whose moves are so fast that it is a blur. The old man is not like that. His every move he is making is visible, but despite that, his enemies can’t seem to dodge any of them.

“Is he even using the skills?” I asked.

“Yes, but the most basic ones,” answered Stone, and it couldn’t surprise me. If he is so powerful when using the basic skills, then what he would be when he starts to use his real skills?

There is also one question in mind. His class, the ruling class, to be specific.

The ruling classes are different. They work a little differently.

I know he got the class; Count had told me himself, but now the question is whether he got through the advancement of his main class, or he got it like a new class.

If he got the noble class through advancement from the main class, then it would be best. He is above Lv. 30, and he would have levels if he got through the advancement of his main class.

While some of the levels will disappear, due to the nature of ruling classes but still, the upgrade will be huge.

His power will increase, and his skill be upgraded, becoming far more powerful than before.

If he got the ruling class as a new class, then he will have to start from zero, like every new class.

Merging it with his main class wouldn’t happen till he takes his ruling class to Lv. 10 or even Lv.

The second option is more common than the first among the new nobles.

I am glad he is here and seeing him fighting. I am having more confidence in our chances of winning the battle.

A minute passed, and the battle has become even more intense. The bandits are trying to breach in while the forces are trying to hold them back.

The weapons are clashing everywhere and so are the spells flying.

The enemy spellcasters are casting the spells, and they are coming from above. We may not have as much as men as the bandits, but we have enough mages to deal with every spell they cast.

Shaun and Zela also doing their best, casting both offensive and defensive spells to help.

Zela had even cast a few healing spells on the men fighting in the first line, who had received injured.

The first line was so swamped that they couldn’t even drink the potion. It is a good thing Ignatius had come prepared and brought five clerics with him.

They are casting healing spells all over.

“Be ready, Mr. Silver; they are going to let the bandits in,” warned Stone, and two and half seconds later, the soldiers separated perfectly and let the tides of bandits enter the small hilltop.

While the top of the hill flattened and big, but not enough to hold three to four thousand people.

Two thousand will be the limit of what it could hold.

The bandits entered like a tide, and my guards reinforced their position. Zela and Shaun were already casting the spells while Jon and Stone waited for them to come closer.

“As expected, Lord Blackwell is their target,” said Jon, and I could see it too, and the army had also predicted it.

All the bandits that had entered are trying to move toward Ignatius, but the army had made it too hard to do it. Bandits will need to crush the whole army if they want to rush toward Ignatius.

It forced them to change their strategy.

The common bandits stopped moving toward Ignatius and started attacking anyone that was coming their way.

The leaders, on the other hand, didn’t change their way and focused on Ignatius. It is very easy to recognize them, with their weapons and power.

“They are coming,” said Shaun, as the tide of hundreds of bandits came toward us.

People around me got read and also me my guards. They have already started attacking the tide. There are some mages in there, but they are weak, the stronger ones have gone for Ignatius.

I am fully focused on what is coming to me, with only survival in my mind.

I have to survive. I will kill anyone that stands in the path of me and my survival.

Soon, the bandits were only a few meters away from me when a blue layer covered me. At the same time, I begin to feel the effects of tens of skills on me, each one with a tiny effect, but together, they are strong.

The surrounding soldiers activated their army skills and added me to it.

I couldn’t help but feel grateful for every aspect of my strength that begin to enhance, from my speed and strength to my senses.

All of them have received boosts from their skills.

The bandits that came are powerful, with their average strength being Lv. 15 and, like me, they have also been boosted by the army skills, but their greatest advantage is their numbers.

They have more than twice our numbers.

I will need to be extremely careful in dealing with them. A mistake, I will die and not even my guards would be able to save me.

Finally, the bandits are in front of me. It is a grey orc, wearing light armor and having a great sword in his hand.

His eyes are bloodied and his expression maddening. He is already feeling the bloodlust and there might even be skill involved in it; it will make things even more difficult.

“Die, human!”

It roared as he reached me and swung that great sword toward me.

I activated the Rapid Legs and moved toward him. He got surprised by that, and increased the power behind his attacks.

That is when I increased my speed further and moved sharply left, dodging the attack, before moving right and appearing in right front of it.

I immediately activated the Quick Blade and attacked.

He tried to dodge the attack, seeing my rapier coming at his neck, and retreated with his speed skill, but I followed, while my sword moved closer and closer, before finally reaching his neck.

Slice!

It cut through the leather covering before cutting his neck cleanly.