Chapter 84: Ambush (3)
Reidar watched the slaughter, but he was actually grimacing. For two reasons: he was killing people, and he was getting survival points from them.
[You have earned 200 survival points.]
[You have earned 250 Survival Points.]
[You have earned 190 survival points.]
He wasn’t getting C.L.A.S.P. points, though, and that was likely because the enemy was too weak for him. This didn’t stop the system from rewarding him with what was in essence their money.
Each death hit him like a punch to the gut. Reidar’s hands felt slick on the wand, his stomach turning. He swallowed hard; the taste of bile was strong in his throat.
He watched another man fall beneath the jaws of his summoned wolves, and a cold tremor ran through him. But then he remembered the crossbow bolt aimed at his throat, the glint of the blades pointed at him, the sheer necessity of it all.
The wand felt heavier in his grip, as if weighted with every life it helped erase. He tightened his fingers, forcing steadiness into his stance.
These weren’t monsters; they were people. They had lives. They had reasons. He could see it in their eyes: that mix of fear and grim resolve.
Every spell he cast, every creature he sent forward, left something cold and hollow inside him.
He never wanted this. But a crossbow bolt slammed into Jorik’s shield, meant for him, and the truth became cold and clear. There’d be time for regret later. Right now, all that mattered was making it out alive.
Reidar shoved the sick feeling deep down, gritting his teeth as he called up another wave of elemental power. His face stayed hard. He didn’t turn away from the chaos he was unleashing.
Torren wasn’t standing still either. He was a whirlwind of destruction, his enormous blade cutting through two attackers at once. Again, and again, and again.
Death followed him, but with Jorik supporting him, there was no way he would die.
[You have earned 200 survival points.]
[You have earned 250 Survival Points.]
[You have earned 190 survival points.]
He was actually the only one taking some damage, since he was not as fast as Lysa and Lena, but he was by far the tankier of the lot, and his presence among the enemy ranks was attracting a lot of attention.
Jorik’s barrier shuddered again as a concentrated blast of various kinds of energy struck it.
"They’re testing the spell!" he growled, sweat beading on his forehead. "Reidar, do not leave this bubble!"
"I’m not going to! I’m not suicidal!"
[You have earned 220 survival points.]
[You have earned 270 survival points.]
[You have earned 180 Survival Points.]
[CRITICAL! Your Fireball struck the enemy human for 827 burning damage.]
[Arcane Leech effect triggered. 249 damage points converted into mana.]
Reidar then redirected the Rift-Sprites to target those around Torren, significantly easing the pressure he was shouldering. Then, a wave of healing energy wrapped the man.
"Thanks, Jorik!" The large man nodded.
Thanks to that, Torren unleashed carnage, and the following disruption broke the rhythm of the enemy barrage, bolts going wide, and spells fizzling as concentration was shattered.
At that point, the enemy were in far fewer numbers.
Torren and the assassins then redoubled their efforts. Torren bellowed, charging deeper into the now-disorganized ranks. His sword was like the Grim Reaper’s scythe.
Lena and Lysa just killed.
But the attackers adapted fast. A few of them started chanting. Lena and the others had fought these people before, whoever they were, though the Church of Unbinding was their first guess. They knew exactly what was coming. It was a powerful skill that needed several casters pooling their mana, and that’s what made it dangerous.
The ground at the edge of Jorik’s barrier began to bubble and blacken, releasing a foul, sulfurous stench that reminded him of rotten eggs and that clawed at the back of his throat.
"Corruption field!" Jorik said, his voice strained. "They’re trying to rot the foundation of my barrier spell! I can’t hold this and keep Torren alive!"
Reidar’s eyes narrowed. He turned to Jorik.
"You just take care of the barrier. I will deal with this!"
Reidar didn’t just launch fireballs or summon creatures. He also boosted his allies with Group Rally and created a healing field using Circle of Renewal to which Torren could head back to heal.
Reidar’s focus narrowed to the chanting group. He channeled mana and called forth his power. The earth beneath their feet erupted. Thick, thorny roots burst from the ground, coiling around the legs and torsos of the casters with vicious speed.
Their chant fractured into cries of surprise as the roots tightened, yanking them off their feet and pinning them in place. But that alone was not going to do anything.
Before they could even think of struggling, Reidar channeled his mana again. The air above the trapped mages thickened, crackling with unstable elemental energy.
A swirling vortex of fire, water, stone, and wind coalesced into an Elemental Storm. He unleashed it directly into their midst.
The world dissolved into a maelstrom of elemental fury. Fire scorched, water pierced, shards impaled, and wind cut. The result was the church members being tossed around like rag dolls while their bodies were ravaged with wounds.
The skill shattered completely under the onslaught, and the corrosive field at the base of Jorik’s barrier sputtered and died as its casters were obliterated.
A raw, panicked scream rose above the noise. "Fall back! Fall back now!"
The order shouted by a voice thick with terror, was all it took. The remaining attackers’ discipline broke.
The grim purpose in their eyes vanished, replaced by raw panic. They abandoned the fight, scrambling over roots and fallen comrades, fleeing into the thick woods without looking back.
In moments, the forest fell into an uneasy silence, broken only by the crackle of dying flames and the heavy breathing of Reidar’s group.
The clearing was a slaughterhouse, scattered with bodies and dismembered limbs. The air smelled of fresh blood and various kinds of scents from the many skills unleashed.
The smell of burnt meat was the strongest. Reidar’s summoned creatures stood still among the wreckage, not lowering their guard.
He lessened the grip on his wand as the rush of adrenaline faded, leaving a cold, heavy feeling behind. They won. He made it through.
But the cost was counted in the survival points ticking upward in his vision, each one a life he had taken.