“As expected of a madman. Flying boats is it?” Absalon’s eyes sparkled with unbridled praise as he observed the flying boats floating in Orez. “Imagine the scenes once we arm them all. It will transform the way battles are fought in Destia. No matter the age or location, aerial superiority always spells victory.”
“True. But, we won’t be arming the flying boats. At the very least, not yet.”
Absalon looked at Leila. “Care to explain? Why would you give such a massive advantage?”
“The flying boats will undoubtedly give us a large advantage in this battle, but you must remember that we are fighting a war. A war against all of Destia. We have to look at the big picture.”
Absalon chuckled. “Perhaps my age is beginning to slow me down. I cannot see the loss you are wary of. Simplify it for this old man.”
Leila’s lips twitched and she glanced at Absalon. It was impossible to know Absalon’s real age, but his in-game avatar’s eyes were sharp and powerful, but also deep and melancholic, possessing the vicissitudes that could only come with time.
Yes, Absalon reminded Leila of her father. In the rare moments when General Adachi let down his guard, his eyes were very similar to Absalon’s. Perhaps that was why Leila was always guarded against him.
Leila took a deep breath to sort out her thoughts, and then looked away from Absalon. “The flying boats will be the hallmark of our merchant infiltration into the various countries. As a result, we have to be very careful of their first impression of the world. If the flying boats resemble doomsday machines, it will be all too easy for perceptive leaders to ban them with the people’s support.”
“However, the leaders’ hands will be tied if the first impression is positive.” Absalon chuckled as he scratched his beard. “The common people and merchants will push hard to allow flying boats to expand their markets and profit. Even the most perceptive will not wish to anger their constituents without due cause.”
Absalon shook his head with mirth in his eyes. “Scary. You show me every day why I should never make an enemy of you.”
“The same could be said of you.” Leila sighed. “I do not wish to face any army you lead on the battlefield.”
“Heh, but I already lost once?”
“That was different. We would not have won if you weren’t a competent commander.”
Without Absalon’s forces’ pressure, Kashi’s infiltration team would never have been able to isolate and battle the drakul’s king.
“So my competence ultimately failed me?” Absalon paused and then corrected himself, “No, on second thought, it saved me? I shudder to think of the Maggots working for another nation. In the end, everything worked out for the best.”
Absalon and Leila took a moment, each reminiscing about various things.
After a few minutes of silence, Absalon looked at the almost completed flying boat. “If we want to make a good impression, why don’t we go all the way and make the debut something the world will never forget?”
Leila thought about it. “How do you suggest we do that?”
“I might be able to help with that.”
Absalon and Leila turned to see Lunette walking towards them, wearing a bright smile.
***
[10:00]
Lunette’s voice crashed onto the battlefield like a tsunami. Torrents of mana exploded from the skyboat, shrouding it in a resplendent glow visible for hundreds of miles.
From atop the skyboat, Lunette’s holy-infused song blessed the Rosen coalition with abundant strength and infused the holy attribute onto their weapons.
“Kagh!” While the song blessed the coalition, it was like poison to the undead. Hundreds of lower-ranked undead stumbled as the song burned their nonexistent ears. The holy attribute, while unable to kill them, severely scrambled their thoughts, leaving them sluggish, like malfunctioning robots.
Despite the advantage, Absalon did not order his army to charge. He did not forget that this was first and foremost a defensive battle. He would not move until he needed to. “Ready the pylons!”
Following his orders, several drakul dropped to the ground and walked up to dwarves holding massive bags. The drakul reached into the bags and lifted three-meter metal rods that had purple gemstones embedded at the top.
Absalon coldly examined the faltering undead. The stronger amongst them had begun to resist Lunette’s holy attribute. The recovering undead then opened their mouths and let out a terrifyingly loud shrill scream!
The coalition cried out in pain and covered their eyes as the scream seemed to tear at their brains. Seeing the situation devolving, Lufer directed the orchestra to switch songs. This time, the drums took center stage, letting out terrifying booms that pushed back the undead’s scream.
Through it all, Lunette kept singing, even as blood began leaking from her ears. She refused to let up on the holy attribute, which made her the target for most of the screams.
Unfortunately, despite Lunette’s best efforts, the orchestra shifting to push back against the shrill scream reduced the overall holy power. Due to this, even more undead recovered. Amongst those that recovered, many exploded on the spot, turning into a dark fog that seeped into their brethren and strengthened their holy resistance.
The undead took a moment to recover their senses as the dark attribute slowly pushed out the holy infection.
Absalon’s eyes narrowed at this juncture. He ignored the blood seeping from his nose as he ordered. “Three hundred meters; Launch!”
The waiting drakul uniformly twisted the inlaid gemstone on their pylons, and then, after a short running start, flung them with all their might. The drakul’s practiced motion showed they had done this several times.
Dozens of metal rods zipped through the skies at blinding speeds. As they flew, the gemstones glowed as they hummed to life. The beautiful lights hid the activation of formations embedded in each gemstone.
The gemstones sparked, signaling the formations had activated and were on standby.
Bam! The rods stabbed into the ground at separate spots within the undead army. In the process, the hidden mechanism at the rod’s base pushed in on impact.
Click! Amongst the soft clicking sound, several intelligent undead sensed incredible danger! They immediately moved to destroy the pylons, but it was too late.
BRRACKKT!
Nothing could move faster than light!
A deluge of Lightning bolts suddenly struck from the skies. The bolts struck the gemstones, activating the second layer of formations.
The gemstone instantly amplified the lightning bolt, and then using the metal rod as a medium, exploded, sending lightning arcs snaking through the undead army!
The only thing undead feared more than the holy attribute was lightning! Dozens of pylons exploded, causing an apocalyptic lighting storm that shredded thousands of undead to dust in an instant!
Once again, silence descended upon the battlefield as spectator and soldier alike stared in awe.
“Too bad this won’t work again.” Absalon looked at the suddenly bare battlefield with an even gaze. The experienced commander did not reveal any signs of excitement or elation. He objectively analyzed the successful attack.
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The pylons were single-use lightning-style explosives. Although powerful, they had many downsides. First, they needed an external lightning/electrical source. This time, he got a few mages to generate a small-scale lightning attack. The base lightning storm was not large enough to attract the enemy commander’s attention. At most, they would have lost a few dozen undead to the lightning storm.
The pylon’s second weakness was that they needed to land to activate. After this display, the undead and all future enemies would be wary of flying projectiles. They would undoubtedly shoot down any future attempts.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, pylons were expensive! The gemstones alone cost a fortune. Due to their one-time-use nature, Absalon could not afford to equip his army with too many pylons. Each explosion was equivalent to thousands of Syros down the drain!
Absalon took a deep breath and then glanced at the Lich across several miles.
The Lich softly tapped its throne and then raised its finger.
Following its finger, many more undead surged out of the forest to reinforce their brethren. However, unlike the previous horde, these batches of undead almost looked alive. They possessed most of their flesh, and intelligence shone in their cold gazes.
Absalon’s eyes twitched. This bastard! Just how many undead were hidden in that forest!? Absalon had never fought such an unfair battle. He knew that if it were not for the advantageous terrain, the undead would have surrounded and slaughtered the coalition ages ago.
Absalon swallowed his complaints and once again objectively judged the quickly approaching undead. ‘We’ve stalled enough. From here on out is the real deal. ’ The commander then turned around to look at Lunette atop the flying boat. ‘Mm. We should be fine as long as we have the holy buff.’
With those thoughts in mind, Absalon was about to give the next order when a series of thunderous booms blew through the battlefield.
Absalon’s heart quickened as he felt an oppressive force bear down on him. Absalon rapidly channeled his mana, blowing apart the dangerous force, and then flew into the sky. The commander rapidly scanned the battlefield for the source of the pressure.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Absalon’s eyes twitched when a group of undead walked out of the forest and stood next to the lich. The undead held several instruments, ranging from drums to violins. The previous booming sounds came from a set of two-meter tall drums erected on the ground.
“An undead orchestra.” Leila, who stood on a clump of petals, muttered as she flew to Absalon’s side. “And I thought I had seen everything this game has to offer.”
“Heh, this is why I love Line.” Absalon’s lips curled in a tight smile. “The enemies just refuse to stick to any sort of script.”
Regardless of Absalon’s feelings, the undead orchestra’s instruments boomed even louder. The somber, timber tones filled the surroundings with a gloomy undertone.
The coalition then watched in shock as an apparition formed above the undead army. The torso of robed undead wielding a giant scythe appeared above the movie. The giant apparition raised its scythe and then swung down, aiming to strike the coalition.
“[Soul of Song]!” Atop the skyboat, Lufer’s eyes widened in shock. [ Soul of Song ] was a passive skill that erupted when a musician’s music managed to move Suvron, the goddess of music and beauty. To achieve this, musicians needed to imbue their songs with powerful emotions.
Lufer could not understand how undead managed to stir such emotions!
“Hmph. If you can do it—” Lufer snorted as he twirled his baton, directing the orchestra to once again switch out their songs.
A rumbling crash akin to a stampede rapidly replaced the ethereal, holy music. The roaring drums boiled the soldiers’ blood, increasing their strength, concentration, and speed.
Meanwhile, Lunette, still infusing her voice with the holy attribute, switched to an uplifting, fast-paced song. She poured all her desires to destroy the enemy and return home into the song.
The orchestra’s intense emotions resonated with Suvron. Shortly after, a female paladin wielding a shield and sword appeared in the night sky.
The reaper’s scythe crashed against the paladin’s shield. Rather than sparks, loud sound waves crashed into the armies below, causing random status boosts or ailments.
Buoyed by Lunette’s resolve, the orchestra increased their tempo! Their emotions carried over to the paladin, whose body turned even more corporeal. With its newfound body, the paladin pushed the reaper back!
Absalon let out a breath as he glanced at the ethereal bodies fighting above. The current stalemate was fine by him. At this stage, they could keep the orchestra’s buffs and avoid the enemy’s debuffs.
With those thoughts, Absalon cooled his roiling blood and faced the charging undead.
300 meters… 150 meters… 50 meters… “Towers!”
Following Absalon’s order, several knights pushed to the frontlines and slammed giant tower shields into the ground. The knights used a few steps to correct the line and then formed a perfect shield wall.
“Musketeers!”
Directly behind the knights, several dwarfs raised their rifles and pointed them skyward.
“Bombardment! One hundred meters!”
Even further back, a group of lined up mages and archers let loose a hail of arrows, fireballs, and more. The projectiles flew over the shield walls and crashed haphazardly into the onrushing horde.
Several undead perished in the unforgiving salvo, but thousands more blitzed through the bombardment. Without fear, the undead crushed the skulls of their fallen and swarmed the coalition!
The Rosen knights planted their feet and steeled their resolve. It did not matter what came through. They would hold their ground!
BAM!
The first contact occurred unceremoniously. The undead skeleton crashed into the shield with its shoulder but failed to push down the sturdy steel wall.
The choking smell of rot, sulfur, and mold wafted through the steel walls. The knights forcefully swallowed the bile that rushed up to their throats as they imbued their feet with mana. With that, they dug even deeper into the earth, making their frames even sturdier as the undead crashed into them with the force of a stampede.
Above the armies, Absalon’s observed the undead. The next wave jumped on the backs of those pinned against the steel wall and then leaped over the barricade.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Without needing Absalon’s prompt, a cacophony of gunshots rang out in tandem. The leaping undead suddenly turned into honeycombs as they flew back the way they came. The few that resisted the bullets’ push landed behind the dwarfs, where they were promptly sliced to pieces by the waiting soldiers.
The undead army did not give up, despite the setback. Many more leaped over, while several undead werewolves jumped onto the surrounding cliff faces in an attempt to bypass the army entirely.
Absalon’s gaze narrowed as he glanced at the undead running along the rocky wall. He should have been worried, but his eyes were calm. As if everything was in control, he promptly looked away, paying the werewolves no heed.
The undead werewolves did not care about Absalon’s plans. They charged over the walls, but just when they reached the steel barricade, dozens of beastkin ran to meet them halfway.
On one side, Asha gently dashed across the wall, using her nails to keep her balance on the vertical surface. She swept past the charging werewolves like a gentle breeze, but the beasts froze in their tracks, eyes wide as their heads slid off their necks.
This was the reason Absalon was not worried about the cliff face. He already calculated every possible way the enemy could bypass them before the battle started.
In the real world, no one would bother about the cliff face. Absalon, however, had seen enough of L.N.E to know that many people could run on walls using various methods.
Fortunately, he had the beastkin present, who could ‘stick’ to walls with their claws.
Absalon left the cliff face in their care.
Absalon surveyed the battlefield. Finally, the battle had reached close-quarters combat. From here on out, he could only trust his soldiers’ ability.
Absalon then looked out at the enemy Lich, who remained in place, seated proudly on its throne. He then observed the ten or so special-looking undead that stood guard around the throne.
Absalon could tell that these undead were different. They were much stronger than the riff-raff and possessed great intelligence. Defeating them would not be easy.
Fortunately, it did not look like they had any intention of moving for the time being.
After taking the entire battlefield into view, Absalon sighed and then cast his gaze to the tussle below.
It would be a long few hours…