Battle of Ravenwood Town (3)

Meanwhile, Shadowfort.

On the city walls, Laxus, the Knight Commander of the Shadowfort garrison, used a simple telescope to observe the foreign troops surrounding Shadowfort. The longer he watched, the more he felt that something was wrong—and that he had overlooked something.

After a while, he finally discovered the problem. The number of foreign troops moving about in the siege camp outside the castle did not match the enormous camp they had built. They had constructed such a massive camp to give him the illusion that their numbers were overwhelming. The reason they had surrounded the castle without attacking was because they lacked the strength to threaten Shadowfort at all.

"Daisy!"

Laxus's expression suddenly changed. He had finally realized the truth. If this was only a feint, then their real target could only be Ravenwood Town. The plea for reinforcements sent by Ravenwood Town had likely been intercepted as well. Without time to think further, Laxus hurriedly said to the adjutant beside him:

"Quick! Gather the troops! Leave some behind to defend the city, and have the rest follow me to break through the encirclement and rush to Ravenwood Town!"

Noisy footsteps rang out as Shadowfort's troops continuously gathered beneath the city gates. For the sake of speed, Laxus brought only the two hundred cavalry stationed in Shadowfort, along with ten formal Knights and their attendants. Shadowfort's infantry took the lead, blocking the foreign troops outside for them.

The city gates opened, and the Shadowfort soldiers roared as they charged out of the castle. Just as Laxus had expected, the foreign troops outside were nothing more than a rabble with impressive appearances. They had neither decent armor nor fine weapons, and even their fighting relied entirely on instinct. Laxus then led the cavalry out of the castle, constantly swinging his spear to kill the foreign troops blocking their path. With the infantry's support, they swiftly broke through the encirclement and raced toward Ravenwood Town.

The scene returned to the church in Ravenwood Town. Lase had already led the bulk of his forces to the front of the church. When he saw Dorodamenro standing bare-chested at the forefront, his pupils contracted. "A Sword Dancer. It seems that girl's identity is real after all!" Shadowfort's reinforcements could return at any moment, so Lase did not dare delay. With a wave of his hand, he let out a furious roar and charged forward first.

The guards and mercenaries beside Dorodamenro hurriedly stepped forward, raising their shields and leveling their spears in preparation. Lase rushed to the formation, then suddenly leaped high into the air. He jumped over the front row of soldiers and landed directly within their ranks. Gripping his sword with both hands, he spun repeatedly, sending the surrounding soldiers flying. Dorodamenro's gaze sharpened. He flourished his twin swords and rushed forward as well.

As the Allied Forces of foreign troops crashed into the formation, a chaotic melee began. Most of the first wave of foreign soldiers were impaled directly on the raised spears, while only a few lucky ones slammed into the shields. Once the formation was broken, the Ravenwood Town soldiers could only form small groups and protect one another's backs as they fought. Though the foreign soldiers were inferior to Ravenwood Town's side in tactics, their natural physical qualities surpassed those of humans. Relying on savagery, instinct, and their numerical advantage, they quickly gained the upper hand.

Dorodamenro trapped the arm of a soldier thrusting at him, then turned and used him to block the curved blade slashing from behind before delivering a backward kick. The foreign soldier whose blade had struck his ally had no time to withdraw it before the momentum transmitted through the corpse crushed him down. Dorodamenro spun continuously as he advanced, his hands swinging with the motion and driving the longswords through one foreign soldier after another—their necks, abdomens, and chests. Most died in a single blow, while the few fortunate survivors were finished off by the Ravenwood Town soldiers.

When he saw Lase swing his greatsword into a soldier's raised shield and knock him straight down, then kick him in the head hard enough to snap his cervical vertebrae and twist his neck into a grotesque angle, Dorodamenro knew that only he could deal with this savage brown orc.

He quickened his pace, slaughtering with nimble swordsmanship as he rapidly closed in on Lase. Lase also noticed Dorodamenro drawing closer. He forcefully smashed the head of a soldier he was holding against the blade of the greatsword in his other hand. The blade cut nearly halfway through, spraying blood and brains across its surface. Lase tossed aside the limp corpse and gave Dorodamenro a bloodthirsty smile.

Dorodamenro was not provoked in the slightest. The grueling training and battlefield life of his early years had made his heart as steady as a rock. When he had been active on the battlefield, Lase had probably not even been born yet.

The two swiftly closed in. As they crossed paths, Dorodamenro suddenly lowered himself into a sliding sweep, slipping behind Lase while cutting a wound across the back of his left calf. Lase roared and turned with a horizontal swing, but Dorodamenro bent backward in an iron bridge to evade it. He immediately rose and thrust both swords straight into either side of Lase's abdomen.

Lase howled in pain and raised his sword for a downward chop. Dorodamenro tugged at his swords, only to find that he could not pull them free. Lase's muscles were incredibly powerful, clamping Dorodamenro's twin swords tightly in place. Seeing that he would be unable to evade Lase's descending greatsword without letting go, the totem on Dorodamenro's body flashed. Dorodamenro's strength and speed suddenly increased, allowing him to pull out both swords and retreat three meters at the same time.

With a twist of his twin swords, Dorodamenro flung off the blood. He spread his legs one before the other, held his swords horizontally with one hand high and one low, and stared at Lase. Lase compressed his muscles to temporarily stop the bleeding from his wounds, then gripped his sword hilt with both hands and raised the blade beside him in a fighting stance.

Dorodamenro sidestepped Lase's descending greatsword. The blade struck the ground and sent up a shower of sparks. Just as Dorodamenro was about to counterattack, an orc suddenly charged out beside him, forcing him to withdraw his swords and block the attack. Looking around, he saw that the Ravenwood Town guards had already been driven back step by step into the church. Foreign troops surrounded Dorodamenro, and he had fallen into an encirclement.

Taking a deep breath, Dorodamenro suddenly jumped to evade a spear thrust from a Lizardman. He twisted his body in midair and landed behind it, driving both swords directly through its chest. He flung the corpse out, knocking down another Lizardman, then crouched and swept both hands horizontally, severing the lower legs of two foreign soldiers nearby. The two soldiers fell to the ground.

Without time to finish them off, Dorodamenro swiftly crossed his swords behind his back to block a curved blade, then delivered a backward kick to force his enemy away. His twin swords immediately slashed horizontally to the left. As the enemy raised his sword to block, Dorodamenro's right hand suddenly straightened, turning the slash into a thrust. The enemy blocked Dorodamenro's left-hand sword, but the right-hand sword pierced his throat.

Hearing the wind, Dorodamenro swiftly withdrew his swords to block, only to be sent flying backward by Lase's tremendous strength. Seeing himself about to crash into a spear raised by a Lizardman, Dorodamenro had no choice but to activate the Magic Mark's power again. He forcibly twisted his body in midair, evading the spear while severing that Lizardman's head.

Enemies filled his sight. Even with Dorodamenro's formidable strength, he found it difficult to cope. After all, he wore no sturdy armor, and even weak enemies could injure him. Before long, several wounds had appeared on Dorodamenro's body.