Lireesa stood with her arms folded on the high ground where the temporary command post was located, watching the Trolls advancing below.
Such a minor engagement was hardly worth mentioning to someone who had fought large-scale battles against the Trolls. If she had not been trying to train her subordinates, she could have dealt with more than half of them alone with the power of Thas'dorah.
Professionals who reached the Heroic tier had, to some extent, already begun to transcend the realm of mortals. Although they could not go so far as to destroy an army alone, escaping unscathed was no great difficulty.
With an artifact aiding her, Lireesa would feel no fear even against Zul'jin, who had reached the peak of the Heroic tier. In fact, she was confident she could defeat him in this forest.
The battle below was not particularly difficult. The High Elves already held a certain numerical advantage, and the two commanders, Akil'zon and Nalorakk, were held back by Lianda Sunstrider and his old opponent Yawen, respectively.
Their only other strong point, Halazzi, was now tied down by her own student and daughter. While joining Yawen in attacking Nalorakk from both sides, Skarren also kept an eye on the two young elves, covering them. Judging by the current situation, the two youngsters were doing quite well.
Blocked by the traps the elves had laid in advance, the bulk of the Troll force was still struggling forward through all manner of traps, apart from a small number of Troll Warriors who had forced their way through regardless of the danger.
Some Trolls even tried to be clever and skirt the traps from the flanks. Clearly, however, the elves were not that foolish. Once caught in the traps laid there as well, these isolated Trolls usually died even faster than those breaking through head-on.
Under Lianda's leadership, the mage corps also exchanged spells with the enemy's hexers at range.
Compared with the hexers, who leaned toward curses and support, the High Elf mages attacking directly with arcane, frost, and fire caused far greater disturbances.
Having reached the peak of the sixth circle, Lianda was clearly considerably stronger than Akil'zon. While suppressing him, she could still spare the effort to provide her own troops with powerful support.
Flamestrike, Blizzard, Wide-Area Arcane Barrage-Lianda cast these area-of-effect spells in succession. With the assistance of the two fifth-circle deputy leaders, Sean Morningstrider and Lanas Bladesinger, she inflicted heavy casualties on the Trolls while they were still in the traps.
Under Yawen and Skarren's combined attacks, Nalorakk struggled to fend them off on every side. Although the help of the Troll Warriors who had advanced alongside him kept him from being defeated quickly, expecting a breakthrough on his side was probably impossible.
The most closely contested fighting was on Halazzi's side. This follower of the Lynx Spirit possessed both a lynx's speed and a Warrior's strength. Although Charlemagne devoted himself to defense and keeping him engaged, dealing with a Warrior a full tier above him was still extremely difficult.
Without Sylvanas's supporting shots whenever an opening appeared, he would probably have long since been slain by Halazzi's blade.
Yet under such intense pressure, Charlemagne's previously inadequate melee skills instead grew increasingly practiced, and his two short blades gradually began to dance in his hands.
Could I have a talent for being a rogue, too? Why does melee combat feel smoother the longer I fight...?
In fact, it was perfectly normal for Charlemagne to feel this way. Talanas had originally created the ranger system by combining the experience of rogues, the Night Elves' Sentinels, and some mages.
This class's energy system incorporated both the energy of rogues and the mana of mages almost simultaneously. As a ranger, knowing only how to shoot a bow did not make one qualified.
Having rapidly supplanted the original position of rogue scouts among the High Elves after its emergence, this class naturally had accomplishments in various fields. Traps, close-quarters combat, and even disguise and Stealth were all compulsory subjects for rangers.
In the midst of battle, Charlemagne had no time to think further, but he resolved to study the various skills of rogues and mages carefully once this war was over.
At the same time, Halazzi grew angrier the longer he fought. After weathering his first fierce assault, the elven brat who had initially been scrambling to cope instead became increasingly troublesome. Coupled with the precise shots the girl in the distance fired from time to time, this battle was making him utterly miserable.
By contrast, Charlemagne and Sylvanas coordinated with increasing harmony. They did not even need to exchange glances. Charlemagne only had to dodge sideways, and Sylvanas's arrow would immediately appear in the opening he left behind, interrupting Halazzi's movements.
Amid the fierce fighting, Charlemagne also grew increasingly proficient at using focus. Halazzi's scimitar was constantly coated in Rage. If he had not likewise reinforced his twin blades with focus, these two ordinary steel blades would probably have been shattered long ago.
Even so, the cracks in the steel blades gradually multiplied. Although he did not know the origins of the strangely shaped green scimitar in Halazzi's hand, it was clearly no ordinary weapon.
Yet it was the Trolls who were anxious now. They had made no progress on the other fronts and were even being suppressed in turn.
He, a dignified Advanced Warrior and noble follower of the Lynx Spirit, had actually been tied down by two Intermediate brats. As Halazzi grew increasingly impatient, his movements also became more and more crude and forceful.
Gradually sensing his opponent's urgency, Charlemagne unleashed his sharp tongue again.
"What's wrong? Where did all that smugness go? Are you one of those all-talk champions? You could work wonders with your mouth before the fight, but you're nothing special in actual combat."
"That last slash was pretty good! Ah... I give you one compliment, and your next swing goes to crap. Come on, slash here!"
Already in a foul mood, Halazzi was goaded into an even greater fury by Charlemagne's foul mouth.
"You sharp-tongued elven brat! I'll cut off your head and use it as a chamber pot!"
In his fury, Halazzi's swordplay gradually lost its discipline. His broad, sweeping attacks naturally left plenty of openings, giving Sylvanas, who was supporting from afar, quite a few opportunities.
Had he not been an Advanced Warrior, with condensed Rage covering his entire body and dissipating much of the arrows' force, Sylvanas would probably have shot him full of holes long ago.
Still, his Rage had its limits. If he continued taking the attacks head-on like this, it was only a matter of time before his defenses were breached.
Under Halazzi's fierce assault, Charlemagne gradually sensed something amiss. His focus, which had already been somewhat abnormal lately, seemed to be surging increasingly out of control.
Charlemagne did not panic, however. According to Yawen, this seemed to indicate that his breakthrough was imminent.
Actual combat really is the fastest way to improve. I was still half a step behind Alleria, but it looks like I'll enter the Advanced tier before her.
Feeling the energy boiling within him, Charlemagne worked even harder to control his focus. He wanted to break through to the Advanced tier during the fight and catch Halazzi off guard.
Sure enough, as Halazzi's fierce assault gradually began to run out of steam, Charlemagne felt as though some switch within him had been flipped. Surging focus filled his entire body, several times more abundant than usual.
(End of chapter)