Chapter 6: Reinforcements

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~" The guards shot dead a few more war dogs, and the beasts were closing in. Without hesitation, Fark ordered the other guards to drop their crossbows, draw their swords and shields, and prepare for combat, while shouting, "Boss, run! We'll hold them here!"

"Boss, the horse!" Guard Mathew used his long sword to pierce through the belly of a war dog and chopped it in half, spilling its intestines and hot blood all over the ground, a bloody mess. Oliver managed to suppress his urge to vomit and quickly ran towards his horse.

More war dogs appeared, and in addition, a beast with the appearance of a giant pig, covered in fangs, spikes, and coarse hair, also entered their view. It wasn't as fast as the war dogs, but it charged through, knocking aside any war dog in its path and slammed into a guard's shield. Although the shield didn't break, the guard's arm couldn't bear the massive weight, and he fell to the ground screaming. The beast then pounced on him.

Falling amid the chaos was horrifying. Several war dogs immediately pounced on him, and chunks of flesh were satisfyingly devoured by the pack. Seeing this, the remaining two guards, Fark and Mathew, quickly retreated while the beasts were focused on the dead guard. Fark glanced back and noticed that Oliver had managed to mount his horse. Clenching his teeth, he said to Mathew, "Quick, let's pull back too, leave the stuff!"

"Okay!"

The two guards quickly mounted their horses, and while internally apologizing, they turned their horses and prepared to flee.

"ROOOOAAAAAR~" A long howl came from deep within the forest, startling a flock of birds.

"Neigh!!!" The horses panicked, and the three riders fell off.

"This is bad, is that a Beast King? We're done for!!!" Fark spat out a mouthful of mud after falling. But there was no time to worry about that. He helped the dazed Oliver up and said in despair.

"That's... that's a Razor Beast, a mutated form of a boar. I've seen them in the empire. We... we can't escape." Oliver had a large bump on his head, and when he turned back, his horse was nowhere to be seen.

Despair, deep despair, humans on two legs could not outrun beasts on four.

Indeed, after hearing the howl, the busy war dogs and Razor Beasts all raised their heads. They stopped their frenzied feeding and charged towards the remaining three people.

"Tu-tu-tu~" Just when the merchant and his party were preparing to fight to the death, a series of horn sounds echoed, deep and imposing, stopping the beasts in their tracks, some looking around uncertainly.

"Boss, it's the mercenaries, the mercenary horn, we're saved, we're saved." Fark exclaimed excitedly, he quickly pulled Oliver back, but the merchant's face didn't look too pleased. He spat and complained, "God knows how much these greedy mercenaries will squeeze out of me, a poor merchant?"

After complaining, Oliver finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Forget it, being able to save our lives is already the blessing of the goddess of fortune."

From the shadows of the forest emerged more figures, resembling humans. They carried long spears or simple battle axes, and had unremarkable pointed horns on their heads. Other than that, they didn't differ much from normal humans. Their muscular bodies emerged in groups from the forest, hesitating upon hearing the horn sound, and not attacking immediately but rather forming ranks of varying heights as if on guard.

"Those are Lesser Horned Beasts, regular soldiers of the Beastmen tribes, also responsible for making and repairing weapons." Oliver swallowed hard, "Looks like this is a full Beastmen warband. I'm not sure about the strength of this mercenary group; otherwise, we might still end up dead here."

On the other side, a group of people dressed in mismatched mercenary gear emerged from another part of the forest. They held a flag adorned with a bloody great axe, about fifty to sixty in number, varying greatly in appearance. The leader, a man in his thirties, was particularly sturdy, with golden long hair and fierce eyes, wielding a large battle axe and wearing scale armor made of iron scales. He was the best-equipped among the mercenaries, while most of them wore simple leather armors or breastplates, and some even wore tight linen clothes with pieces of beast skin sewn on them.

"This is an elite Berserker." Oliver whispered a low comment and then smiled, "Thank you very much, sir, it seems you and your mercenary group have saved me."

"My name is Boris, leader of the Blood Axe Mercenary Group. Less talk, more action. If your men can still fight, then join us! Otherwise, we all die here today!" The mercenary leader had no time for small talk; his face was stern, knowing the enemy, Beastmen, were a significant threat, and he was well aware of his group's capabilities.

"Uh, yes, Fark, Mathew, follow Commander Boris and join the battle!" Oliver spoke hurriedly but gestured subtly with his hand, signaling them not to overexert themselves. The two guards exchanged glances and nodded, quickly joining the ranks of the mercenary group.

The mercenaries were armed diversely, some with swords and shields, others with long spears and pikes, some with daggers and curved swords, axes, hammers, bows, and even slingshots. They formed two rows, melee fighters in the front and ranged at the back. The Lesser Horned Beasts seemed to be waiting for something, holding their position and keeping the war dogs and Razor Beasts at bay.

A slender, tall figure emerged surrounded by the mercenaries. Oliver turned back and was stunned.

She appeared to be a woman under thirty, very tall, wearing a somewhat large snowy white fox fur coat, her stunning black hair hanging down from her shoulders and back, shimmering with light and life. Beneath the coat, she wore a black leather outfit that highlighted her impressive figure, with tight leather pants wrapping her long legs and sturdy leather boots on her feet.

This woman had an incredibly captivating aura, every move radiating a mature charm. Her silver eyes, beautiful phoenix eyes, high nose, dark red lips, and a charming beauty mark under her lips added endless allure.

But what Oliver valued wasn't just her appearance. What mattered was that this woman held a purple staff in her hand, with a red gem embedded at the tip, gathering energy.

High magical power, high elemental affinity—she was a spellcaster! Oliver was certain now; with a spellcaster present, how could they lose?

"Commander Boris, launch the attack immediately. I sense the energy of chaos—it's Demon Rock! There's Demon Rock nearby, and fallen hunters are using it to summon more Beastmen!" The spellcasting woman didn't even glance at the empire merchant properly; her tone was commanding. The mercenary leader respectfully responded, "Yes, Ms. Trovick."

"Be careful behind you! Beastmen love to flank and ambush." As she spoke, the spellcaster began chanting, preparing her magic. A sky-blue magical force gathered around her body. Seeing this, the mercenary leader no longer hesitated, waving his hand to order: "Attack!"

"Yes!" The rear row of mercenaries loosed their arrows while the front began clashing with the Lesser Horned Beasts. As the beasts formed a line, many were struck down, falling and disrupting their formation. The mercenaries seized the opportunity to break into their ranks and engage in brutal melee combat, with screams and howls filling the air.

"Ice Armor!" As the melee began, the spellcaster's magic took effect. The leading mercenaries' bodies were covered in frost-like white crystals. The Lesser Horned Beasts' spears bounced off the ice crystals, and the mercenaries laughed triumphantly. After one deflected a spear with his shield, he plunged his sword into a Lesser Horned Beast's head and kicked it away. Another beast tried to stab him in the ribs, but the ice crystals deflected the spear tip. The mercenary used the opportunity to shove a Razor Beast with his shield before triumphantly raising his sword at the fleeing beast.

"Come at me!"

Often, the most terrifying thing is not the entity itself but fear. Magic, an unknown and powerful force, intimidated the Lesser Horned Beasts. Seeing they couldn't harm this human, one howled mournfully and turned to flee.

The same scenario unfolded across the front line. The Lesser Horned Beasts scattered in panic, the mercenaries pursuing the fleeing enemies with high morale. However, the mercenary leader shouted, "Stop chasing! Don't go too far."

His command was effective; the mercenaries stopped their pursuit. But just as they were about to regroup, deeper and louder footsteps and roars came from the forest: "ROAR!!!"

A massive humanoid beast emerged, towering over ordinary humans, wielding a large axe, with long goat-like horns and a beastly face, its powerful body steaming from its nostrils. It disdainfully glanced at the fleeing Lesser Horned Beasts, casually grabbing one attempting to escape, ripping it in half with its hands.

The corpse was thrown to the ground, and the chaos dogs and Razor Beasts swarmed over it, quickly devouring the remains of the Lesser Horned Beast.

"It's the Beast King! Retreat, quickly regroup!" The mercenary leader watched in horror, shouting continuously as he readied his large axe for battle.

The mercenaries hurriedly retreated, as one by one, more humanoid beasts wielding large axes emerged

 from the forest. Though not as massive or strong as the Beast King, they were still over three meters tall, the main warriors of the Beastmen tribe. The Beastmen sneered as they charged into the battlefield, the ground trembling slightly, as if even it feared this source of calamity.

"They are Horned Warriors, the main fighting force of the Beastmen tribe!" Oliver, while retreating, muttered to himself, always moving towards the female spellcaster for safety.

At that moment, only the spellcaster could give Oliver a sense of security.

The previously triumphant mercenary, because he chased too far, was the last to retreat. Running, he felt a gust of wind by his ear, and turning back, he was chilled to the bone—the Beast King was right before him!

A large axe swept horizontally; he could only raise his shield to block. The outcome was his shield shattering into two, and the mercenary screamed as he flew several meters before landing on the ground.

"My hand is broken, my hand is broken! Help, someone help me!" The mercenary's left hand was severely deformed, lying on the ground, continually retreating as the Beastmen leader approached with a sneer.

Just as it was about to take the mercenary's head, the Beastmen leader instinctively sensed danger and raised its axe to block.

"Ice Spear!" A delicate shout.

The Beastmen leader was frozen.

Unfortunately, it only lasted two seconds. The Beastmen leader roared angrily, the frost on its body instantly shattered, and it grabbed the struggling mercenary. With a sweep of its axe, a bloodied human head was raised high into the air.

It looked at the surrounded female spellcaster, her face fluctuating with emotions, pointed at her, and called to the beast horde: "Woman... Sorceress... Eliminate!"

"You froze me... I want your life!" The mercenary's heart was pulled directly from his chest, still faintly beating. The Beastmen leader bit off half of the heart in one bite, blood splattering all over its face, chewing contentedly, the scene gruesomely vivid.

"ROAR ROAR ROAR!!!" Having spoken, the Beastmen leader's howling echoed throughout the forest, shaking off countless snowflakes. The fleeing Lesser Horned Beasts, hearing their leader's call, turned around and rejoined the battle, pushing the mercenaries back continuously.

At this point, thirty to forty Horned Warriors had appeared in front of the mercenary group. Mercenary leader Boris's face turned ashen: "Ms. Trovick, please move back, I will hold off these Beastmen."

"There's no escape, the forest is full of Beastmen!" The beautiful sorceress clenched her staff, raising her hand to cast Mind Blast. A black aura of magical energy spread across the battlefield, causing all Horned and Lesser Horned Beasts to feel a piercing pain in their heads, slightly easing their assault. But several mercenaries had already fallen to the Beastmen's axes. Seeing this, Boris shouted angrily and joined the fray, his large axe reaping the lives of several Lesser Horned Beasts upon entering the battle.

Naturally, the mercenary leader's performance caught the attention of the Beastmen leader: "You... fight me!"

Boris gripped his fine iron axe, stepping forward through the swirling snow, his golden hair and thick beard catching the flakes. As leader of the mercenary group, faced with the Beastmen leader's challenge, he had to respond, for this was the only chance for survival.

Beastmen are powerful, but these survival-of-the-fittest creatures have a weakness—victory belongs to the king. If the leader is killed, the morale of the Beastmen army would instantly collapse.

"Huff~ Huff~ Huff~ Ah! Kill... man, then kill... woman!" The Beastmen leader cleaved a Razor Beast in its way into two, then gestured for the obstructing Horned Warriors to clear the way. The Beastmen warband made room.

"Thump~ Thump~ Thump~" The Beastmen leader charged forward, and the mercenary leader also took heavy steps, his heavy boots thudding in the snow.

The distance closed.

The Beastmen's crude large axe was stained with fresh blood, while Boris's fine steel axe gleamed with a silvery light.

Closer, even closer!

"AAAAAHHHHHH!!!" Boris swung his axe with all his strength.

"Boom!" The blades clashed, the sound of metal striking metal resounding across the battlefield.

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