The Battle Beneath the Walls

As Lane and Videl were thinking about these different things, two Ogre Kings managed to push through the endless tide of undead while dragging massive fortified scaling ladders behind them. Thick iron chains rattled across the blood-soaked ground as the enormous wooden ladders bounced over corpses and shattered weapons.

Ruby and Natalia were still far away, locked in fierce combat as they destroyed the remaining fortified scaling ladders. Neither of them noticed that these two had slipped through the battlefield amid the chaos.

The defenders lining the city walls instantly realized what was happening.

As the massive Ogre Kings dragged the enormous fortified scaling ladders closer and closer to the walls, panic spread through the ranks.

"If those ladders reach the walls, we’re finished!"

A grizzled veteran knight shouted at the top of his lungs, his voice cracking with desperation.

The soldiers around him tightened their grips on their weapons. Faces that had already endured hours of relentless battle turned pale. They knew exactly what those ladders meant.

The moment even one of them touched the wall, thousands of undead would pour into the city.

The fortress would become a slaughterhouse.

Eon’s eyes narrowed.

He didn’t hesitate.

Without waiting for orders or backup, he launched himself from the battlements.

His body cut through the cold night air before crashing onto the battlefield below.

Boom!

His boots slammed into the scorched earth with enough force to send dust, shattered stones, and fragments of broken armor flying in every direction.

The impact echoed across the battlefield.

For a brief moment, even the nearby undead slowed their advance.

Eon straightened, his gaze already locked onto the monster leading the assault.

The Ogre King.

It stood nearly four meters tall, towering over everything around it like a moving fortress. Thick slabs of battered iron armor wrapped around its massive body, each piece stained with old blood and countless battle scars. Bulging veins crawled beneath its dark green skin, while a pair of rotten yellow tusks curved upward from its lower jaw.

Its crimson eyes burned with savage hunger.

Every thunderous step it took shook the ground beneath its feet.

Despite its monstrous size, it dragged the gigantic fortified scaling ladder with terrifying ease, as though it weighed no more than a bundle of sticks.

Eon slowly tightened both hands around the handle of his Giant Battle Axe.

His muscles tensed.

His breathing steadied.

"So you’re the ugly brute blocking our path..."

The Ogre King responded with nothing but pure rage.

Its enormous mouth opened wide as an earth-shaking roar erupted from its throat.

"ROOOAAARRR!!"

The sound rolled across the battlefield like thunder.

Several ordinary undead instinctively staggered away from their king.

Without warning, the giant raised its massive arm.

Its fist descended like a collapsing mountain.

Boom!

The earth erupted beneath the impact.

A violent shockwave blasted outward, sending dirt, shattered rocks, and broken corpses flying through the air.

Fortunately, Eon had already moved.

He rolled to the side a split second before the fist struck, narrowly escaping the devastating blow.

The spot where he had stood only moments earlier had become a massive crater.

Dust swirled through the air.

"What ridiculous strength..."

A direct hit would have crushed him into the ground.

But Eon didn’t allow himself even a heartbeat to recover.

Using the momentum from his roll, he planted one foot firmly against the ground and exploded forward.

His entire body twisted with practiced precision.

The Giant Battle Axe swept across in a brutal horizontal slash.

Clang!

Steel scraped against reinforced armor as the blade slammed into the Ogre King’s massive thigh.

Sparks burst into the darkness.

The strike managed to carve only a shallow wound beneath the armor.

A thin stream of dark blood seeped from the cut.

The Ogre King barely reacted.

It didn’t even glance at the injury.

Instead, the monster swung one enormous arm backward with terrifying speed.

Bang!

Eon’s instincts screamed.

He barely managed to raise the haft of his Giant Battle Axe before the attack landed.

The impact exploded through his entire body.

An overwhelming force threw him backward as though he weighed nothing.

His boots gouged deep trenches into the scarred battlefield, carving long lines through the scorched earth as he fought desperately to stop himself.

After sliding several meters, he finally regained his footing.

"Tch..."

He clicked his tongue.

A dull ache spread through both arms.

His fingers trembled slightly from the impact.

"So that’s the strength of an Ogre King..."

Even after blocking the blow, the sheer power behind it had almost torn the weapon from his hands.

High above, Brinda stood upon the city wall.

Her long purple robe danced wildly in the cold night wind as one spell after another flowed effortlessly from her fingertips.

Brilliant magic circles bloomed around her, illuminating the darkness with crimson light before releasing streams of destructive magic into the endless tide of undead below.

Explosions echoed across the battlefield.

Undead bodies were torn apart again and again.

Then she saw Eon being forced backward.

Her confident expression immediately changed.

Her brows knitted together in worry.

"Eon!"

Without hesitation, she extended both hands.

A brilliant crimson magic circle expanded before her.

More circles appeared behind it, each one feeding greater power into the spell.

A dozen blazing fire lances condensed in the air.

The surrounding temperature surged.

With a sharp wave of her hand, every lance shot forward like blazing comets.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The fiery projectiles struck the Ogre King’s shoulders and chest one after another.

Each explosion shook the battlefield.

Flames engulfed the giant’s upper body, swallowing it within a roaring inferno.

Thick smoke billowed into the night sky.

For a brief moment, the defenders on the walls held their breath.

Some even allowed themselves a flicker of hope.

Then the smoke slowly began to clear.

A massive silhouette remained standing.

The Ogre King hadn’t fallen.

Its heavy armor was blackened with scorch marks, wisps of smoke rising from the metal, but the monster itself appeared almost completely unharmed.

Not even its advance had stopped.

Brinda’s eyes widened in disbelief.

"What?"