Slaying the Minotaur with a Clever Stratagem (Part 1)

Annie's heart pounded in her chest. She was probably the only one who knew the exact plan, besides the group of reckless warriors blindly devoted to their lord.

Rationally, she couldn't find any flaws in Richard's plan, but her intuition wasn't so easily convinced; it just felt like it couldn't possibly go smoothly.

"Their formation clearly shows they're guarding something in the center." The lord had made another discovery.

Although his gaze couldn't directly penetrate the area the Minotaurs were shielding with their bodies, it was obvious even to someone with common sense that it had to be the shaman.

"They're using their bodies to protect the shaman from being directly targeted by the Ballista. We tried it last time, and almost succeeded." Sendak turned to the arrow tower behind him and said, "Fire immediately, before they go berserk."

The Dwarf sentinels on the arrow tower began chanting as they drew the bowstrings. Moments later, with a loud "whoosh," a dark blur flashed overhead.

Richard was surprised to find that their Ballista had excellent accuracy. Six bolts were fired consecutively from the two arrow towers with loud clangs, and five of them accurately hit Minotaurs hundreds of yards away. And these weren't stationary targets.

This type of heavy weaponry was far more complex than it seemed. While it might not be difficult to make a high-draw-weight bow with suitable materials, maintaining its precision above a certain standard was a technical skill that required significant knowledge.

If the Pompeii military saw this scene, they would likely break out in a cold sweat. Could indigenous people who mastered heavy weaponry still be simply regarded as indigenous?

Unfortunately, the Minotaurs were well-prepared, carrying very thick shields, and only three were felled.

"Keep going! Are you arms dealers really short on a few more bolts?" Richard saw the sentinels climb down from the arrow tower and join the frontline warriors, which greatly surprised him.

"We actually ran out," Robbie said with a frustrated, bitter expression.

The casualties among their comrades caused by the Ballista fire had completely enraged the Minotaurs. Their hearts began to pump at a higher frequency. Their eyes quickly became bloodshot, their surface veins bulged further, and their rapid breaths caused the iron rings on their noses to clank chillingly.

They waved their wooden mallets, their hooves restlessly pawing the muddy ground, their faces utterly frenzied. Their remaining sanity might temporarily suppress their desire for slaughter, but it certainly wouldn't last long.

"So this is the Semi-Berserk State," Richard said, watching with great interest through his telescope.

In his sight, the Minotaurs suddenly began to gather tightly towards the center, panting heavily. The lord initially found it inexplicable but quickly realized they were trying to get as many of them as possible into the spell's area of effect.

It was exactly like High Mountain Keep's earlier use of Obscuring Mist, a typical commoner's crude method. They were quite clever too.

A red magical energy band drifted into the air, then settled onto these Minotaurs who were already in a Semi-Berserk State.

It was like pouring a ladle of hot oil onto a blazing bonfire. The muscles and veins on these incredibly strong Minotaurs began to twist and bulge further, and their scorching breaths formed rising white steam in the air.

Whether it was full berserk or Semi-Berserk State, or even Nehru's half-baked Bloodlust Art, stimulating the body's potential would inevitably place a burden on the physique. This wasn't even a side effect, but rather two sides of the same coin.

For example, increasing strength easily leads to muscle strains, inciting battlelust inevitably raises blood pressure, and faster blood flow can bring greater stamina but also increases the heart's burden, and so on.

"Awooo!" The combined double burden of double enhancement was naturally even harder to bear. Even Minotaurs, strong as they were, couldn't help but let out roars of pain. Old scars on their bodies ruptured and bled again due to the drastic physical changes.

Some even collapsed to their knees, unable to bear it, but soon shook their heads and struggled to get back up.

The heaviness and unbearable nature of the cost also reflected how astonishing the amplification effect they received truly was. Even cowardly Kobolds, when empowered like this, would be sufficient as qualified warriors, let alone Minotaurs who were already incredibly strong and skilled in battle!

They could no longer suppress the surging, rampant impulses in their hearts, and with furious roars, they charged forward together, their hooves pounding.

Their steps were slow at first, but quickly became dense. Their heavy bodies slammed onto the ground with their hooves, mud mixed with rainwater splattering everywhere. The sound of their footsteps became a rapid, thunderous explosion, like a black cloud about to unleash a torrential downpour, pressing down on the city!

The small gravel on the wall vibrated slightly with it, and ripples spread across the accumulated rainwater in the depressions, like the moment before a giant rock in the mountains is about to hit the ground.

Only a few dozen of them, but in terms of momentum, they were more than ten times stronger than the hundreds of Goatfolk auxiliaries accompanying them!

The Dwarf warriors guarding the wall seemed calm at first glance, only the occasional exhalation after holding their breath for a long time betrayed their inner tension.

"Ah!" Finally, a Dwarf could no longer suppress his fear. He cried out, dropped his weapon, and turned to run without a second thought.

Sendak immediately drew a throwing axe from his belt and hurled it. After spinning a few times, it deeply embedded itself in the deserter's neck. The first casualty of this battle came from a disciplinary action.

His voice was as steady as steel, showing little emotion, yet it contained undeniable resolve, "To flee is to be executed."

Compared to the solemn, almost oppressive atmosphere at the front, the High Mountain Keep guard force remaining at the back was much more relaxed.

"Well, well, today we have the Hum-Ha Duo here, so it's only right for me, the King of Hell, to put on a show." The lord laughed at Hert, who stood there looking utterly bewildered.

"Double berserk! It strengthens the Minotaur's body to its absolute limit, can we win?" Robbie clutched Richard's knee, his pupils trembling with fear.

"What seems like their strongest moment might actually be their weakest," Richard gently patted Robbie's head, his eyes looking into the distance with an unreadable expression. "So-called 'extremes' often mean it's downhill from there."

Gunther turned his face away and secretly grimaced. He felt his boss's words were meaningless; he had no idea what they meant after hearing them.

"Do Minotaurs have weaknesses too?"

"Even dragons do."

"Richard, stop wasting time, they're really coming!" Annie's mind kept imagining a hypothetical scenario—what if the plan failed?

"Where's High Mountain Keep's spellcasting team? Get over here, now!" The lord bellowed.

The Hum-Ha Duo came trotting over, dragging a tear-streaked Nehru by his arms and legs, the Kobold suspended in the middle like he was hanging from parallel bars. This guy had tried to sneak away after seeing the Minotaurs, but he was caught red-handed by the two Ogre squad leaders.