The Wight

"It might not be a bad thing." The black-robed man chuckled.

"Hm?"

"Baldur's Gate collapsed, Underdark Creatures invaded, and then there was a flood. Do you know how many people have died in the city? How many die every day? There are too many to count. Our chance has come, hahaha..." The more he spoke, the more excited he became.

He had just used Speak with Dead on the dead Amnian and learned everything about what had happened in Baldur's Gate.

His companion's mouth fell open, eyes wide, like a bear that had spotted honey. "Really?!"

"Heh. Ask for yourself in a bit."

His companion's lips curled into a smile, his eyes narrowing to slits. "Why don't we gather the faithful and hold a grand Ritual? Perhaps we'll receive a response from my lord..."

More than ten minutes passed.

Anse followed the group as they retreated to a rise, where Brat and Finn were waiting for him.

"Why have you stopped running?" he asked, puzzled.

"The Undead didn't follow us out, and the Amnians broke through..." Finn quickly relayed the situation Gray Hawk had scouted out.

Aside from a few Zombies that were still doggedly following the scent of the living, the main force of Undead had been focused on dealing with the Amnians.

The Amnians weren't stupid. They had broken through in the direction of the camp not only to sow chaos, but also because there was a lake this way.

They mustered their remaining strength and made one last attempt to break through. In the end, two of them made it through the encirclement and leaped into the lake.

The Undead hadn't let them go and continued the pursuit, but they couldn't swim. The Skeletons sank to the bottom, while the Zombies were too poorly coordinated. They couldn't drown, but they couldn't catch up, either.

In the end, the Undead left a Death Knight behind to hunt them down, while the main force dragged a pile of corpses and moved east in great numbers, led by the two black-robed men.

From the direction they were heading, they seemed to be bound for Baldur's Gate.

"What's the Death Knight like? Is it fast?" Anse pressed.

"I didn't dare get close. Probably not as fast as Noronos." Finn shook his head.

Gray Hawk was a daytime creature, after all, and couldn't see clearly at night. The other side had a bow, too, so he didn't dare get close.

Anse rubbed his chin and fell into thought.

The Undead leaving had been within his expectations. The place had been exposed, and he was wearing a holy symbol. The other side couldn't possibly be stubborn enough to wait here to die.

Undead wreaked havoc on the ecosystem and commerce, making them unwelcome wherever they went. The Lords' Alliance, the various churches, and the guilds could offer just a little Gold Coin in bounty, and there'd be plenty of people willing to do the job.

The Amnians' origins and intentions were unclear, but there were no good people in the evil alignment.

Now that the greatest threat had left, he decided to check the lakeside. He might find something unexpected.

"Have Gray Hawk lead me there."

"Okay."

Anse swung into the saddle and galloped southeast.

Before long, Gray Hawk flew over and circled above his head, then changed direction slightly and led the way through the air.

Noronos understood at once, shifting his direction to follow closely along the ground.

More than ten minutes later, a shimmering lake came into view.

Under the moonlight, two figures were wandering in the middle of the lake. Each clung to a dead tree trunk, stirring the water until it looked like a shattered silver mirror.

On the shore, a gray-white knight kept pacing, bow in hand, poised to attack.

Pretty clever, Anse thought with a quiet laugh.

The Amnians had clearly realized that the other Undead had withdrawn. With a mounted warrior still on the shore, they had simply stayed in the middle of the lake.

They only had to wait until dawn, and the Undead would naturally leave.

But they weren't having an easy time. The gray-white knight occasionally fired a few arrows. The distance was great, but its aim was good, keeping them constantly on edge.

Anse slowed his horse and approached from the other side. The dull clop of hooves rang out, immediately drawing the attention of the Amnians and the Death Knight.

When the Amnians saw who was coming by the moonlight, their faces lit up with delight.

"Sir, do you remember me? We met earlier today. That thing on the shore is an Undead. Help me take it down, and I'll pay you a thousand Gold Coins as thanks..."

Anse sneered. Even now, the other side was still playing tricks, trying to lure him into fighting an Undead of unknown strength.

He stopped by the lake and carefully observed both groups.

[Amnian Elite, Dragonborn, level 3 Barbarian (Berserker)]

[Amnian Captain, Human, level 5 Warrior (Battle Master)]

[Skeleton Warhorse, Undead, Challenge Rating 1/2]

[Wight, Undead, Challenge Rating 3]

"Now that's something. A Wight has shown up."

The Skeleton Warhorse wasn't much to worry about. The real problem was the Wight.

Wights were transformed from the corpses of cold-blooded soldiers. They retained the memories they had in life and were intelligent Undead. Humanoids killed by a Wight's poison would rise as Zombies a day later and become its underlings.

Whether they were mages from the Necromancy school or Milkor's Clerics, both had limits on how many Undead they could control. They especially liked transforming and controlling Wights, using them as the foundation for an Undead army.

The two Amnians saw that he still hadn't answered. Clinging to their tree trunks, they swam toward him, seemingly trying to force him to get involved.

The Wight immediately charged over, full of menace.

Anse patted the horse's back. Noronos wheeled around and ran, circling the lake.

If they chased, he ran. If they stopped, he stopped. Noronos was faster, and the Wight couldn't catch up.

The two Amnians slunk back to the middle of the lake. They had just entered the Wight's range and taken two arrows. If they hadn't used the tree trunk to block them, they'd already be dead.

Anse was patient, continuing to tease the Wight. After several rounds, it had wasted quite a few arrows.

He quietly communicated with Noronos. "Can you block its arrows?"

"Of course!" Noronos replied confidently.

Anse took a deep breath. Magic surged as orange-red energy gathered in his chest and throat, making him feel like he had to let it out.

"I'm counting on you. Go!" He patted the horse's back and leaned forward at the same time.

Noronos abruptly wheeled around and charged the Skeleton Warhorse. The clopping of his hooves was like a dense, rhythmic drumbeat.

Seeing this, the Wight was delighted. It spurred its mount into a head-on charge and drew its Longbow to full tension. When they drew close, the bowstring snapped, and the arrow shrieked through the air.

The blade-like neck armor of Noronos spread backward in layers like flower petals or a folding fan, forming a half-cone that tightly shielded Anse and his body, leaving not the slightest gap.

The next instant, the arrow struck the armor. The angle was shallow, and it ricocheted with a metallic ring, leaving a deep scratch.

The Wight froze for a moment, then shot again. With a sharp crack, the arrow broke off several scales and bounced away, no one knew where.

It tried to shoot again, but its hand met empty air. It was out of arrows.

Noronos was already close. The Wight decisively drew its Necrotic Sword—this was its real specialty.

It had just taken up its stance when Noronos abruptly changed direction, avoiding its strongest attack.

The two were about to pass within a few meters of each other when the horse's neck armor suddenly folded away, revealing Anse with his mouth open, ready to unleash his fury.

"Whoosh—"

A fierce Dragon Breath poured out, engulfing the Wight and the Skeleton Warhorse in an instant, striking them both dead on.

The Wight was blasted away. The Skeleton Warhorse lost its balance and fell; powerful momentum sent it tumbling several times, scattering bones everywhere.

[...Skeleton Warhorse was hit, taking 16 points of fire damage and 6 points of bludgeoning damage. Critical hit. Target killed. Gained 100 Combat Experience]

[...Wight was hit, taking 10 points of fire damage and 4 points of bludgeoning damage. Current HP: 68/82...]

"Huh, bludgeoning damage?" Anse was surprised.

It seemed that standing breath and charging breath were different. Or perhaps the other side had taken such a bad fall.

This had been his first attempt, and he hadn't expected it to work so well. Spellcasting while mounted was too difficult, but Dragon Breath made it much easier. The drawback was that it had to be used at close range.

Noronos slowed, turned around, and charged again.

This time, the Wight had no horse!