Fight to the Death

Time waits for no one. All manner of land mounts, flying mounts, and vehicles were mobilized, and soon the main force arrived near the Silver Spring Mine.

Looking up, thick smoke from the fires of war blotted out the sun in the sky.

The Silver Spring Mine was a large copper-iron mine, one of Ironforge's few vital sources of copper ore. Around the mine stood dozens of miner dormitories and guard barracks.

Now, all those buildings were burned and destroyed, and the watchtowers dozens of meters high had long since collapsed in flames.

The intelligence came just in time. Outside the mine, a few surviving guards were putting up a stubborn defense behind their fortifications.

Lieutenant Knight Drey arrived first near the mine. Riding atop his towering Mammoth Mount, he charged straight into the fray, man and beast together.

The Mammoth Mount itself had no offensive power, but he directed it to ram into the densest clusters of enemies. In no time, the enemy's assault was scattered.

He carried a Dwarf Battle Flag in his hand, using the long banner as a lance. Every foe he met was pierced clean through, dead beyond dead.

The flagpole was now blood-red, and the green banner had been dyed crimson.

After scattering the enemy, Lieutenant Knight Drey rode his Mammoth Mount to the surviving guards' fortifications.

"Silver Spring Mine Guard Kurt salutes you, Officer! Thank you for the swift reinforcement!"

A guard ran out from the fortifications and reported to Officer Drey.

"Good! You've all done well. Now, report the situation!"

Sun Busong jumped down from the Mammoth Mount as well, accompanied by a Level 42 Elite Hunter!

"Yes, sir!"

"At around 10 this morning, during our first relief shift, the Relief Squad encountered a raiding party of over thirty Ratmen on their way back. Five of them were Magic Professionals. We were caught in a Sneak Attack, losing half our squad, but we took down two of their Magic Professionals in return."

"Then, sounds of battle came from the mine. The Relief Squad fought their way out and returned to the Guard Barracks to raise the alarm. But when they got back, the barracks were also hit by a surprise attack from hundreds of Ratmen. We organized everyone into the fortifications to resist. Now, we have fewer than 30 guards left!"

"Damn those bastards! What's the situation inside the mine?"

Officer Drey fumed, his beard bristling.

"We have no way of knowing what's happening in there. And those Slave Miners have all been incited to revolt."

Drey's brow furrowed deeper.

"What about the personnel inside the mine before this?"

"Report! The mine had 114 guards: 80 regular soldiers, 30 Warrior Professionals, and three Magic Professionals—one Mage and two Paladins."

"And your commanding officer?"

"Report! The Captain is also inside the mine."

"Good! They should be able to hold out until we break in."

While the guard was reporting to Officer Drey, the rest of the troops had arrived.

"All squad leaders, report here!"

Officer Drey shouted. The captains quickly broke off from fighting the Ratmen and gathered before him.

"Squads 1, 2, 3, and 4, coordinate with the guards to eliminate all the attackers and rebellious miners here!"

"The rest of the squads follow me into the mine to rescue our comrades. We push in as fast as possible. Remember, leave no one alive!"

"Yes, sir!!!"

Officer Drey climbed back onto his mount. He turned to the Elite Hunter and said, "Nari, stay here. Use your skills. Don't let a single enemy escape."

The Hunter saluted Officer Drey and replied, "Don't worry. Even if they burrow, they won't slip my tracking!" With that, he let out a sharp whistle, and a raptor over a meter tall appeared beside him.

It was a White Eagle, pure white all over, with a red beak and talons, and golden eyes. Its body was larger and sturdier than the Hunter himself.

This was also a Level 42 Elite Combat Pet!

Sun Busong's eyes sparkled with envy.

"Forward!"

Soon, the squads received their orders and dispersed to their battle stations.

Near the mine entrance, three Level 28 Ratmen Sneak Attackers stood guard. The 7th Squad Captain charged straight in, pinning one down, then swung his blade at another.

The last one, panicked, tried to flee into the mine to raise the alarm. But the next second, three arrows lodged in the back of its head.

Those arrows came from the 5th Squad Captain, a Level 36 Elite Hunter.

"The terrain inside the mine is complex. Don't split up. Concentrate your strength and push forward quickly."

After issuing his orders, Officer Drey charged straight in.

"Kill!"

"For the Alliance!"

Sun Busong led his nine teammates into the mine and veered left down a side tunnel. Sultan followed behind, casting Protection from Fear Barrier on them and giving Sun Busong a Power Word: Shield.

The battle began quickly. Inside the winding mine, visibility was poor. Sun Busong ran at the front of the group. After a turn, he spotted a crowd of Ratmen and rebellious miners blocking the path ahead.

The Ratmen had three classes: Tunnel Rat Raider, Geomancer, and Prospector!

The enemy was numerous. Sun Busong, at the front, saw clearly and shouted, "They've got three Magic Professionals! Watch out!"

He raised his axe and charged forward. Target: the three casters!

He knew the ordinary soldiers and warriors behind him were no match for those casters. If the three of them focused fire, they could kill someone in three seconds.

Watching Sun Busong charge in alone, the enemy casters grinned and began casting spells. Sultan, at the back of the formation, grew anxious.

"Hold them off! Warriors, use your skills to interrupt their casting! Everyone else, handle the physical attackers—stay alive!"

As Sun Busong rushed the casters, fury blazed in the eyes of his teammates. Over the past half year, his reputation among them rivaled the Captain's. And the gear they wore? All top-tier Green Gear forged by Sun Busong himself.

"Charge! Protect Busong!"

"I'll interrupt the one on the left—you take the right!"

"Go! Go!"

"Bastard! Your fight's with me! Come on! Come on!"

The rest of the squad surged forward, and chaos erupted.

One warrior slammed into a caster with a Charge, locking it in place and breaking its spell. But two Magic Missiles had already struck Sun Busong.

Level 31!

The enemy casters were level 31. The two Magic Missiles exploded across Sun Busong's body, the blast radius wide. Two teammates trying to shield him lost half their Health Points in that single hit.

The smoke cleared. Sun Busong's face was blackened, his armor dented in two places. But his Health Points had dropped less than 2%.

Seeing his comrades gravely wounded protecting him, Sun Busong snapped.

Basic Melee Attack erupted. His twin axes turned into streaks of white light, slamming into the enemy caster.

His Strength Value had long surpassed a hundred. These casters had barely over seven hundred Health Points total.

Two axe blows, and one caster fell. Sun Busong spun to face the next.

The third caster—a Ratman—was pinned by a level 32 warrior. Both sides' Health Points had dropped to half. Behind them, a horde of Ratmen swarmed the remaining teammates.

With teamwork, the two quickly finished off both caster Ratmen. But the battle behind them was far bloodier.

The two warriors who'd shielded Sun Busong from the Magic Missiles now lay in pools of blood—fallen heroes.

The enemy outnumbered them. Nearly every teammate faced two or three Ratmen at once.

Sultan's healing skills had cooldowns. So far, he'd only cast two heals. Furious, he raised his staff and joined the fray.

After eliminating the caster Ratmen, Sun Busong darted through the narrow tunnel, charging wherever danger flared—especially toward comrades whose Health Points were running low.

War was brutal.

Though their squad won the fight, only six remained, including the Captain.

With all Ratmen wiped out, Sun Busong sat in silence, a Black Iron Dwarf cradled in his arms. It was Sem—the dwarf who'd bullied him as a rookie at the start.

"He died protecting me. In that chaos, I couldn't watch over everyone. I'm a failed Captain. And as a caster myself, why did I ever choose to be a priest?"

Sultan stood before him, his green priest's robe soaked in blood—not the enemy's, but his own. As a healer, he was the most vulnerable in such melees.

Just as Sun Busong had prioritized killing enemy casters, most of the Ratman melee fighters had charged straight at him.

Sun Busong looked up at the Captain's Health Points—barely a third left. His face bitter, he said, "Captain, this isn't your fault. No one blames you. They had too many. You did everything you could to protect us. If only I were stronger."

The teammates huddled together, bandaging wounds in silence. The four bodies on the ground were brothers-in-arms who'd fought beside them day and night.

Sun Busong hated himself.

He had six professional skills at Grandmaster Level, yet all he did was grind monsters for stat points. If he'd leveled up Alchemy too, equipping every teammate with life-saving potions, none of them would have died.

The Captain's healing skill refreshed. He raised his staff again, casting a heal on a severely wounded teammate.

Half an hour later.

"How's everyone recovering? We've been delayed too long. Deeper in the mines, many of our people are still waiting to be rescued."

The Captain's Health Points were full. Everyone knew that whenever his healing skill came off cooldown, he'd cast it on the wounded—never once on himself.

Sun Busong watched his teammates rise one by one. Then he spoke: "Captain, I've got some stuff here. Hand it out to the brothers. It's not great, but it might save a life in a pinch."

With that, under the Captain and teammates' puzzled gazes, Sun Busong pulled out a pile of grilled food.

Large Bear Ribs:

Required Level 15

Use: Restores 332 Health Points over 24 seconds. Must remain seated while eating. If you spend at least 10 seconds eating, your Stamina and Spirit increase by 5 for 60 minutes.

Spider Sausage:

Required Level 35

Use: Restores 1392 Health Points over 30 seconds. Must remain seated while eating. If you spend at least 10 seconds eating, your Stamina and Spirit increase by 12 for 60 minutes.

Then he pulled out potions he'd gathered over the past six months—looted from treasure chests using his Racial Trait, Treasure Hunting.

Finally, he produced a pile of bandage-making materials.

"I never learned First Aid. If any of you can make these, do it and share them around. I don't want to see another comrade fall!"

"Busong, where did all this come from?" Sultan stared at the items spilling from Sun Busong's pack, stunned, then asked.

"I made all the food myself—I've already trained my Cooking skill to Master Level. These potions and materials came from killing monsters and opening treasure chests. They're useless to me, but they can help everyone else. Take them all. I want us all to make it back alive!"

Watching the grateful looks from everyone, Sun Busong felt a twinge of shame. To ease his conscience, he steeled himself and said, "Everyone has to survive. If you make it through this battle, I swear—I'll forge two pieces of blue equipment for every brother."

When Sun Busong finished speaking, everyone's eyes lit up, and the tunnel erupted into chatter.

"Really? Busong? Haha, that's amazing!"

"Gahaha, I've got to survive for your promise!"

"I knew you were the best blacksmith—my judgment's never been wrong!"

Sultan quickly silenced the noise. With a wave of his hand, the teammates all shut up, not a single word spoken.

"Are you serious?"

"I swear on my honor. Of course, you'll have to get the materials yourselves. Oh, right, Captain—your gear is on me too!"

Sultan stared at Sun Busong in shock.

In his eyes, Sun Busong was already beyond words, but now he'd said all this. He knew that when Sun Busong made a promise, it was as solid as a nail.

He saluted Sun Busong with deep gratitude.

"On behalf of all the comrades of the Sixth Squad, I offer you our highest respect!"

The items were quickly distributed. Everyone sat on the ground and ate on the spot, and soon the food's buff effects kicked in.

Seeing the admiring gazes fixed on him, Sun Busong shyly lowered his head and scratched his scalp with a finger.

"Move out!"

The battle wasn't over. There were still many Ratmen to kill, and many comrades and allies to rescue.

This time, Sun Busong absolutely wouldn't allow any more comrades to fall.

"Captain, don't worry about me—same for everyone else. I'll take down the tough enemies as fast as I can. Just hold on. Once I've killed them, I'll come back to support you."

"We believe in you!"

Another wave of Ratmen appeared, but this time only a dozen or so. Sun Busong charged ahead, plunging straight into the Ratmen pack and hacking wildly.

The two caster Ratmen were dealt with in just over ten seconds. Then he started providing Guardian Support to his teammates, driving the whole squad's offensive forward.

In the battles that followed, the Sixth Squad suffered no more losses.

Sultan stood at the back of the formation, gripping his staff, his eyes fixed entirely on Sun Busong.

What kind of man was this? Incredible health, flawless combat skills—even as a mere soldier without a professional's abilities, his figure charging into the enemy like a beast lingered in Sultan's mind.

"This is the teammate I need. Only he can help me achieve my dream. I, Khadgar Sultan, Third Prince of the Wildhammer Dwarves, must keep him in my clan and restore the glory of the Wildhammer Dwarves!"

The fighting dragged on until nightfall. The main force had fully entered the mine. Squads 1, 2, and 3 had wiped out the enemies outside and rushed in to reinforce them.

Sun Busong had reached Level 20. He'd killed too many Ratmen, all of them around ten levels above him.

His Slaughter Value was nearly ten thousand—that was a hundred Free Attribute Points.

Officer Drey had cleared the enemies in the other tunnels. Now, the squads had treated the rescued survivors, and everyone gathered at the entrance of the Main Tunnel.

"Just this one tunnel left. Stay sharp—give it everything for the final battle of this war. Inside are several officers from Silver Spring Mine, more comrades and allies to rescue, and of course, plenty more enemies."

Lieutenant Knight Drey raised his right hand, looking at the hundred-plus people before him, and shouted with force: "For the Alliance! For honor! For the Dwarf race! Charge in and kill them all—fight to the bloody end!"

Anyone alive? Move if you're breathing!