The army of the Nepoca Kingdom advanced on a path that was built between two mountains and a thick forest. As the troops of 50,000 marched forward on the 100 meters wide road, Duke Easton suddenly had a bad feeling.
'Why do I feel like something bad is going to happen today?' Shaking his head, Duke Easton continued with their march. After a good night of rest, Duke Easton urged the troops to move as fast as they could.
'We're only a few kilometers away from the Vrane city fortress.' Last night Duke Easton prioritized getting his troops proper rest before the battle. He didn't wish his troops to fight while being exhausted. Even if their troops were 50,000, almost double the size compared to the enemy troops, Easton didn't dare underestimate the enemy. This fight was far more important than any other fight that took place between the three Kingdoms over the last 100 years.
This war was going to decide the future of the Eastern part of the Dying Isle continent. If the Istarin Kingdom manages to win, then the Nepoca Kingdom will be suppressed and the Istarin Kingdom will become the new overlord replacing the Zulux Dynasty, having the power to rival the great Kingdom of Nyland which was a 4th-tier powerhouse. The Nepoca Kingdom cannot let that happen as the Istarin Kingdom becoming this powerful would harm them in many ways.
As Duke Easton was leading an army of 50,000 through the forest, suddenly he became alert hearing a noise from the bushes.
"Everyone stop" Duke Easton used his mana to look for any third party. After sensing that there was no one in the bushes, Duke Easton ordered the troops to resume their march.
"Who is there?" After another minute, Duke Easton and several other soldiers sensed the presence of a third party behind the bushes.
Bang!
Duke Easton easily deflected the dagger that came out from the bushes. Before he could fully understand the whole scope of the situation, he and others heard multiple footsteps around them.
"Everyone be careful." The whole army of 50,000 turned was alert and on their guard looking around in caution. Duke Easton wasn't afraid. In front of the 50,000 forces, even a Peak second-order has to think twice before daring to block their way.
As everyone waited for the people hiding in the shadows to attack, several minutes passed in silence. Only the sound of wind blowing and the leaves rustling could be heard.
"Sire, it looks like Duke Sarlus had set up an ambush in hope of killing you." Once the commander of the army died, there would be no one else to lead the army anymore. The 50,000 soldiers would have no choice but to retreat back. Without a commander, the 50,000 soldiers would be quickly defeated. In a battle having a capable commander can make a lot of difference.
Duke Easton and others mistakenly assumed that Duke Sarlus of the Istarin Kingdom had used cheap means to prevent the war with the Nepoca Kingdom. But in reality, Sarlus would never do something this low. Sarlus was a man of pride and honor. He would rather die in the battle than escape from a fight even if it meant his death.
Why would Duke Sarlus try to use underhanded means to take out the enemy commander? Duke Easton failed to understand this part. What Duke Sarlus and his general Haku had planned was something even more grand and big.
One of the soldiers who was standing among the infantry groups started feeling bored. He didn't wish to come here and fight. To him, his life was more valuable than anything. He only joined the army because of the good salary and benefits that he received as a soldier. "Man I really want to go back." Saying that the young soldier remembered his newly married wife.
His eyes glowed in lust as he remembered his wife. He couldn't wait to return home and spend more time with his dear wife.
Just as the random soldier was thinking about his dear wife, he suddenly felt a shadow blocking the sunlight. When he opened his eyes and looked up, his whole body suddenly cooled with a layer of sweat. The soldier felt as if he was seeing his own death. At that very second his entire body became stiff, and he felt his heart wildly begin beating.
"Lo.....Look.....up" Hearing those words, a few soldiers around looked up as they had nothing better to do. Just when they looked up, they too also had a similar reaction.
Duke Easton who was waiting for the assassins which he and others assumed were sent by Duke Sarlus suddenly felt something above him. When he raised his head to look up, others also followed the Duke and looked up. Everyone who looked up had their eyes widened in fear. Because what they were seeing in front of them was the arrival of death itself.
"Hahaha! So this is how we're going to die." No one knows who said those words but everyone silently agreed with whoever said those words in despair.
1000 meters above the ground, right above the 50,000 soldiers' heads, the whole sky had been covered with countless black needles. But those who have seen arrows before know exactly what those black finger sizes needless were.
Above the soldier's head, the whole sky has been covered with countless thousands of arrows. No one knows when those arrows were fired but the arrows were only a few seconds away from taking the lives of thousands of soldiers.
To the soldiers, this whole scene was like seeing heaven itself sending down divine punishment. Duke Easton's whole pale turned deadly pale as he looked at the horrifying scene in front of him. "Everyone take cover."
But It was too late. Piercing the air, countless thousands of arrows rained down on the 50,000 troops who were on their way to annihilate the Istarin army.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Before any soldier could run into the forest to take cover, the countless thousands of arrows had rained down on them.
Ahhhh! Ah!
"Someone help me"
"Save me"
The thunderous roars of the soldiers sounded all over the battlefield. Unfortunately, not everyone soldier of the Nepoca Kingdom was given shields. Other than a few thousand luckily soldiers who had shields made from unrefined iron ore to protect themselves, almost everyone soldier was hit with multiple arrows that either directly hit their heads and chests or other parts of their bodies.
Giving shields to every soldier was very costly. Not to mention carrying iron shields on a battlefield would slow down a soldier's agility. Each shield weighed around 25 kg which was something that not every soldier was able to handle. Shields were only given to cavalry troops but that was also limited to only a few thousand troops.
Using a special kind of artifact which functioned as a binocular, Duke Sarlus smiled seeing the terrible state of the Nepoca troops.
After about 5 minutes,
The rain of countless arrows finally stopped, the 100 meters wide road was now dyed in red blood. The whole area was filled with a heavy smell of blood. The army which previously consisted of 50,000 troops now only had around a few thousand troops who somehow managed to keep difficult with the wounds on their legs or on their shoulders.
The road now had been covered with a layer of arrows.
"That bastard" Duke Easton who used a mana shield to protect himself and a few hundred soldiers around him couldn't help but curse out loudly seeing the disaster.
Each arrow was strong enough to break the mana barrier of a 1st order-order soldier. Under the constant and endless rain of arrows that lasted for whole 5 minutes, even the soldiers who were near reaching second-order perished after their mana shield was broken.
When Duke Easton looked back, the only thing that came to his view was red blood that was flowing like a water stream. Countless dead bodies of soldiers and horses lying on top of each other with countless arrows still stuck on the top of their bodies.
From the distance, Duke Sarlus and Haku both looked at the scene and couldn't help but admire his Majesty for coming up with each grand plan. "Good. Now that the enemy forces have fallen. It's time for us to strike. We cannot allow Duke Easton to flee and return to the Nepoca kingdom." Even Aditya had strictly warned Sarlus about Duke Easton and ordered him to use whatever means necessary to keep the 3rd-order Duke from escaping.
[_Name: - Aditya Bainnith
_Race: - Dragon
_Bloodline: - Crimson Heavenly Dragon
_Class: - War Dancer, Rune Monarch
_Level: - 89 → 100
_Innate Skill: - Instant learning and adaptation, Crimson Blaze, Weapon Grandmaster, Runic Enchantment, Dragon Transformation
_Passive skill: - Eruption Wave, Crimson Blink, Silence Mind, Blast of Divine Fury, Aura of Soul Fire, Lunar Vision, Disturbance of Blessings, Mystic Surge, Charm of Inferno Rune, → ([New]Lightning Dash)
_Artifact: - Bracelet of Wind Fairy, Crown of Seven Sea
_Strength: - 209 → 220
_Speed: - 377 + [100+] → 388 + [100+]
_Stamina: - 209 → 220
_Health: - 209 → 220
_Mana: - 2,781 → 2,792
_Free stats: - 68 → 90 ]
