Chapter 169 The end of the tails Part 1
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Death floated amidst numerous undead, but the elf king and human general were nowhere to be seen.
"This is our chance. We'll split up. We'll hold him off here while you take care of the leakage. Bring twenty soldiers with you," Alistar whispered, seizing the opportunity.
"Everyone, split up!"
The group followed the orders and began to separate, but Death wouldn't allow it, as countless undead blocked our path. Lily and our soldiers engaged them, turning the situation into a stalemate. More Vargmuth arrived, and I was compelled to summon my fire dragon to eliminate them. As the dragon emerged, it unleashed flames, engulfing our surroundings. However, when the fire reached Death, it was protected by a dark barrier, rendering the flames ineffective.
Lily and Edelweiss seized the opportunity and sprinted towards the central government building, with me leaving my dragon behind, knowing Alistar would likely need its assistance. As we reached the government building, two figures awaited us. I recognized them immediately—it was the former elf king and the human general.
"I was wondering where they went. Of course, they were assigned to guard the last leakages," Lily murmured, preparing the sword Alistar had given her. Edelweiss swiftly positioned herself behind Lily, as if she had been trained to do so. Her position seemed a bit unusual, not quite fitting for a melee fighter, yet a bit too close for a mage.
The human transformed into a towering stone golem, standing at about three meters in height, while the elf readied his harp. I activated my mana sense, and as the elf plucked the strings, a mana wave surged toward us. Reacting swiftly, I shifted the shield I held with my tail, bracing for impact. When the thin mana wave struck my shield, we were forcefully propelled backward by more than two meters. The sheer force of the mana blade hit us like a truck.
"Lily, move! Another attack is coming!" I warned her, adjusting my buckler to counter the mana wave the elf unleashed. This time, Lily held the buckler firmly with both hands. However, even with our efforts, the mana blade reverberated through our bodies, causing our hands to go numb with each passing strike.
While we fared relatively well against the elves, the golem charged forward. However, this time, Edelweiss took the initiative. She conjured more earthen spears to encage the golem, as she had done before. Yet, the golem proved stronger this time, breaking free from the spears and barreling toward Lily. Observing that their original target was obstructed by friendly forces, the elves redirected their focus to Edelweiss.
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"Edelweiss! They're aiming at you!"
"Shields up!" Soldiers formed a defensive line in front of Edelweiss, wielding their tower shields. As the mana struck them, they were pushed back, but their expertise kept them grounded and prevented them from being knocked over.
Meanwhile, Lily deftly maneuvered beneath the golem, evading its punches one after another. My mana reserves were nearly depleted, and it remained uncertain whether fire magic would prove effective against the golem. It seemed this formidable foe would require a series of powerful fireball explosions to subdue.
"Edelweiss, do you know fire explosion magic?" Lily asked, rolling away from another swing of the golem. Seizing the opportunity, I cast a fireball at its feet, causing it to slip. As the golem fell, Lily rushed towards Edelweiss.
When Edelweiss nodded in response, we synchronized our actions and conjured two particularly massive fireballs. The fiery projectiles struck the golem square in the head, resulting in a tremendous explosion that reverberated across the field. Once the dust settled, the golem lay motionless, its head obliterated. Soon after, it dissipated into thin black smoke.
Now our focus shifted to the elf. The elf continued to play his harp while our soldiers fought valiantly to survive the onslaught. Despite their best efforts to defend with their tower shields, the mana blade managed to find its way to their ankles and legs. Some of them suffered severe wounds, but our skilled elf knights stood their ground. They adeptly concealed their heads and necks behind their shields, even if it meant exposing their legs. Consequently, the elf king couldn't inflict fatal injuries like last time. These soldiers must have worked with Edelweiss for a while, understanding that she could heal any wound except death. Their strategy aimed to buy time.
"Lily!"
"On it."
Now that the golem was defeated, we could direct our attention to the elf. Using my mana sense, Lily could perceive the trajectory of the mana blade. However, it moved too swiftly for her to dodge continuously, forcing her to constantly move in an attempt to evade it. Unfortunately, her efforts proved fruitless as a blade severed her legs. While she managed to block one mana blade with her sword, another swiftly followed, severing her from the knee down.
"Lily!" Edelweiss shouted as she unleashed a barrage of rock spears from her hands. The elf swiftly strummed his harp, creating a sound barrier that blocked the projectiles from reaching him.
As Lily fell to the ground, I mustered the last of my mana and conjured a firebolt aimed at the elf's face. The elf nullified the sound barrier and resumed his attack, but before he could strike, my firebolt collided with his head, causing it to explode into tiny pieces. Soon after, like the rest of the undead, he disintegrated into motes of light.
"Lily!" Edelweiss rushed over with the remaining knights. While retrieving Lily's severed legs, she crouched down and cast a healing spell upon them. It was a heartbreaking sight to witness the extent of our losses in this encounter. Out of the twenty who had accompanied us, only five remained standing. Eight of them were unlikely to recover from their injuries, despite Edelweiss's best efforts.
"Let's hurry to the temple. This is our only chance," Lily declared, rising to her feet alongside the surviving knights. Edelweiss wore a determined expression and nodded in agreement.