Fight to the Death

Time was running out. Every kind of land mount, flying mount, and vehicle was mobilized. Soon, the main force reached the outskirts of Silver Spring Mine.

Smoke from the fires of war rose everywhere, shrouding the sun in the sky.

Silver Spring Mine was a large copper-iron mine, and one of Ironforge's few important sources of copper ore. Dozens of miners' dormitories and guard barracks surrounded it.

Now, all those buildings had been set alight and destroyed. The watchtowers, each dozens of meters tall, had long since burned and collapsed.

The intelligence had arrived just in time. Some surviving guards were still outside the mine, stubbornly holding their positions behind makeshift defenses.

Lieutenant Knight Drey was the first to reach the mine. Riding atop a towering mammoth mount, he charged straight into the thick of battle, mount and rider together.

Mammoth mounts weren't much good at attacking, but he directed his into the densest cluster of enemies. In no time, their assault had been broken apart.

He carried a Dwarf Battle Flag in his hand, wielding the long banner like a lance. Nearly every enemy he met was run through twice and left dead beyond any doubt.

The flagpole had turned blood-red, and the green banner had been stained crimson.

After scattering the enemy, Lieutenant Knight Drey rode his mammoth mount to the defenses where the surviving guards were holding out.

"Silver Spring Mine guard Kurt salutes you, sir! Thank you for coming to our aid so quickly."

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 his mammoth mount. A Level 42 Elite Hunter was with him.

"Yes, sir!"

"At around ten this morning, we carried out our first relief rotation. On the way back, the relief squad ran into a raiding party of over thirty Ratmen. Five of them were Caster Class. We were caught by surprise and lost half our squad, but we killed two of their casters."

"Then we heard fighting from the mine. The relief squad fought its way out and came back to warn the barracks, but hundreds of Ratmen attacked the barracks at the same time. We gathered everyone and fell back into the defenses. We have fewer than thirty guards left now!"

"Those damned bastards! What's the situation inside the mine?"

Officer Drey was so furious his mustache bristled.

"We have no way of knowing what's happening in there. And all the enslaved miners have been incited to rebel."

Drey's brow furrowed even deeper.

"What were the numbers inside the mine before this?"

"Reporting! There were 114 guards inside the mine: eighty ordinary soldiers, thirty Warriors, and three casters—one mage and two Paladins."

"And your commanding officer?"

"Reporting! The commander is inside the mine too."

"Good! They should be able to hold out until we fight our way in."

As the guard briefed Officer Drey, the others arrived as well.

"All squad leaders, over here!"

Officer Drey shouted. The squad leaders quickly stopped killing Ratmen and gathered in front of him.

"Squads One through Four, support the guards. Kill every ambusher and every rebellious miner here!"

"All other squads, follow me into the mine and rescue our people. We'll push in as fast as we can. 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 and don't let a single enemy escape."

The Hunter saluted Officer Drey and replied, "Don't worry. They couldn't escape my tracking even if they dug their way out!" He gave a sharp whistle, and a bird of prey over a meter tall appeared beside him.

It was a White Eagle, snowy white all over, with a red beak and talons and golden-yellow eyes. It was taller and more powerfully built than the Hunter.

It was also a Level 42 Elite Combat Pet!

Sun Busong's eyes glittered with envy.

"Move out!"

The squads quickly split up and headed to their assigned positions.

When they reached the mine entrance, they found three Level 28 Tunnel Rat Raiders standing guard. The leader of the Seventh Squad charged and pinned one in place, then raised his blade against another.

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

They belonged to the Fifth Squad's leader, a Level 36 Elite Hunter.

"The tunnels are complicated. Don't get separated. Stay together and push forward quickly."

After giving his orders, Officer Drey charged in at the head of the group.

"Attack!"

"For the Alliance!"

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

The battle began almost at once. The winding tunnels were poorly lit. Sun Busong ran at the front of the group, and when he rounded a bend, he spotted a crowd of Ratmen and rebelling miners blocking the way.

The Ratmen had three classes: Tunnel Rat Raiders, Geomancers, and Prospectors!

There were a lot of them. Sun Busong had a clear view from the front, so he shouted, "They've got three casters! Watch out!"

Then he raised his axe and charged straight at them. His target: the three casters!

He knew the ordinary Warriors and soldiers behind him couldn't stand up to the enemy casters. If all three focused their attacks, they could kill someone in three seconds.

As Sun Busong charged, the enemy casters began casting with cruel grins. Sultan, at the rear of the group, grew frantic.

"Keep them occupied! Warriors, use your skills to interrupt their casting! Everyone else, deal with the physical fighters. Stay alive!"

Watching Sun Busong charge the casters, the others' eyes blazed with anger. Over the past six months, Sun Busong's standing among them had been every bit as high as their captain's. And every one of them wore top-quality Green Gear that Sun Busong had made.

"Attack! Protect Busong!"

"I'll interrupt the caster on the left! You take the one on the right!"

"Move! Move!"

"Bastard! Your opponent's right here! Come on!"

The rest of the squad surged forward, and the melee began.

One of the Warriors charged and pinned one of the casters in place, interrupting its spell. But the other two Magic Missiles had already slammed into Sun Busong.

Level 31!

The enemy casters were Level 31. Two Magic Missiles struck Sun Busong and exploded across him, the blast covering a wide area. Two teammates standing nearby, ready to protect him, each lost half their Health Points in the blast.

When the smoke cleared, Sun Busong's face was blackened and his armor dented in two places, but he had lost less than two percent of his Health Points.

Seeing his teammates badly wounded while protecting him, Sun Busong flew into a rage!

Basic Melee Attack erupted. The axes in his hands became two streaks of white light, slamming into the enemy caster.

His Strength Value had long since passed a hundred, while the casters had only a little over seven hundred Health Points in total.

Two blows were enough to kill one of the enemy casters. Sun Busong turned at once to attack another.

A Level 32 Warrior was keeping the third caster occupied. Both their Health Points had fallen to half, while a huge group of Ratmen behind them swarmed toward the remaining teammates.

With their teammates' help, the two of them quickly killed two Ratmen casters. The battle behind them, however, was far more brutal.

The two Warriors who had been caught in the blast while protecting Sun Busong now lay dead in pools of blood!

The enemy outnumbered them badly. Nearly every teammate had to face two or three Ratmen at once.

Sultan's healing spells had cooldowns. So far, he had managed to cast only two. Furious, he raised his staff and joined the fight.

After taking out the Ratmen casters, Sun Busong darted back and forth through the narrow passage, rushing wherever danger broke out—especially when one of his wounded teammates was in trouble.

War was cruel.

Their squad had won the battle, but only six of them remained, including the captain.

After wiping out the Ratmen, Sun Busong sat on the ground in silence. A Black Iron Dwarf lay in his arms: Sem, the dwarf who had bullied Sun Busong for being a new recruit at the very beginning.

"He died protecting me. In a fight like this, I couldn't protect everyone. I've failed as a captain. We're both casters, so why did I choose the Priest class?"

Sultan stood in front of him, his green Priest's robe covered in blood. It wasn't the enemy's blood—it was all his own. A healer was in the most danger during a chaotic fight like this.

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

Sun Busong looked up at the captain, whose Health Points were down to a third. With a pained expression, he said, "Captain, it wasn't your fault. No one blames you. They had too many people. You did everything you could to protect us. I just wish I were stronger."

The teammates huddled together, bandaging one another's wounds. Everyone was silent. The four bodies on the ground belonged to brothers-in-arms who had been at their sides day and night.

Sun Busong hated himself!

He had six Grandmaster Level professions, yet he had spent every day grinding monsters to level up and gain attribute points. If he had raised his Alchemy skill too, he could have given every teammate life-saving potions. Then they wouldn't have died.

The captain's healing spell came off cooldown. He swung his staff again and healed a badly wounded teammate.

Half an hour later.

"How's everyone recovering? We've already wasted a lot of time here. There are still many of our people waiting for us deep in the mine."

The captain's Health Points were back to full. Everyone here knew that whenever his healing spell came off cooldown, he immediately cast it on a wounded teammate. He had never once healed himself.

Sun Busong watched his teammates get to their feet one by one. Then he spoke. "Captain, I've got some things here. Hand them out to the guys. They're not very effective, but they could save someone's life when it matters."

As he spoke, Sun Busong took out a pile of grilled food, leaving the captain and his teammates staring at him in confusion.

Large Bear Ribs:

Required Level 15

Use: Restores a total of 332 Health Points over 24 seconds. You 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 a total of 1,392 Health Points over 30 seconds. You 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 took out some potions he had gotten from opening treasure chests with the Treasure Finding Racial Trait over the past six months.

He also took out a lot of materials for making bandages.

"I haven't learned First Aid. If any of you know how, take these and make bandages for everyone. I don't want to see another teammate die!"

"Busong, where did all this stuff come from?" Sultan stared at the items Sun Busong had taken from his pack, dumbfounded, then asked.

"I made the food myself. I've trained my cooking skill to Master Level. The potions and materials came from killing monsters and opening treasure chests. They're not much use to me, but they'll help you. Take everything. I want everyone to make it home alive!"

Seeing the gratitude in their eyes, Sun Busong felt a little ashamed. To make amends to his conscience, he hardened his heart and said, "You all have to survive! If you make it through this battle, I promise to craft two pieces of Blue Gear for every one of you!"

As soon as Sun Busong finished speaking, everyone's eyes lit up, and the tunnel erupted in chatter.

"Really, Busong? Ha ha ha, that's wonderful!"

"Gahahaha! I have to survive for that promise!"

"I knew you were the best blacksmith! My judgment has never been wrong!"

Sultan quickly quieted everyone. He raised a hand, and the teammates fell silent. Not one of them said another word.

"Are you serious?"

"I stake my reputation on it. You'll have to find the materials yourselves, of course. Oh, and Captain, I'll take care of your gear too!"

Sultan stared at Sun Busong in astonishment.

In his eyes, Sun Busong was already so outstanding that words could hardly do him justice. And now he had made this promise too. Sultan knew Sun Busong always followed through on his word.

Overcome with gratitude, he saluted Sun Busong.

"On behalf of every brother-in-arms in the Sixth Squad, I offer you my deepest respect!"

The supplies were quickly handed out. Everyone sat down on the spot to eat, and soon the food's beneficial effects began to take hold.

Seeing the admiration in everyone's eyes, Sun Busong bashfully lowered his head and scratched it with a finger.

"Move out!"

The battle wasn't over. There were still many Ratmen left to kill, and many comrades still waiting to be rescued.

This time, Sun Busong refused to let another teammate die.

"Captain, don't worry about me. The same goes for everyone else. I'll take down the tough enemies as fast as I can. Just hold on until I kill them, then I'll come back and support you."

"We trust you!"

Another group of Ratmen appeared, but this time there were only a dozen or so. Sun Busong charged ahead and plunged into the middle of them, hacking wildly.

He took only ten seconds to kill the two Ratmen casters, then began supporting his teammates. Sun Busong's actions rallied the whole squad.

From then on, the Sixth Squad didn't lose another member.

Sultan stood at the back of the formation, staff in hand. His eyes never left Sun Busong.

What kind of person was he? His Health Points were astonishingly high, and his combat skills were incredibly polished. Even though he was still just a soldier without any class skills, the sight of him charging into the enemy ranks like a beast stayed with Sultan long afterward.

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

The battle continued until nightfall. The main force had fully entered the mine, and Squads One, Two, and Three had wiped out all the enemies outside before coming to support them.

Sun Busong had reached Level 20. He had killed too many Ratmen, and the enemies he had killed were all around ten levels higher than him.

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

Officer Drey had killed all the enemies in the other tunnels. The squads had rescued and treated those who could be brought back. The survivors had now gathered at the entrance to the Main Tunnel.

"Only this tunnel remains. Stay sharp and give everything you've got in the final battle of this war. Several of Silver Spring Mine's commanders are inside, along with many more comrades who need rescuing—and, of course, plenty of enemies."

Lieutenant Knight Drey raised his right hand and looked at the hundred-plus people before him. He shouted with all his might, "For the Alliance! For honor! For the Dwarf race! Charge in and kill them all! Fight to the death!"

Anyone there? Could someone alive move around a little?