Legend of the Arch Magus_The Upheaval

by Michael Sisa

  Fior paused and looked at everyone in the room. “General, with all due respect, I suggest that we launch another all-out offensive against the humans.”

  The Rabbit’s words made sense, but General Urkawi could not easily issue out the orders. Right now, they were still suffering casualties from the ambushes of the humans. The number of killed scouts were only in the dozens, but it was enough to instill fear among their ranks. After all, the dead bodies were mutilated.

  Also, there were over a thousand injured beastmen currently recuperating in the infirmary. Those guys were easy targets for these humans, and General Urkawi knew that once given the chance, they might once again use underhanded tricks like last time. Furthermore, if the humans suddenly attacked the camp where the infirmary was located, the beastmen army would have a hard time fighting back.

  It was no exaggeration to say that the Legion was crippled at the moment.

  “Retreating is an option—,” said Fior.

  “—Out of the question,” spat the General. “The will of the Beast King is absolute.”

  General Urkawi knew that his head would come rolling if he retreated now. What would he say to the Beast King? That he retreated because his army was inflicted by a simple curse? That a simple out-of-the-textbook tactic of mere humans managed to drive him into a corner? He inwardly shook his head. He could not let that happen.

  “If retreat is not an option,” said Fior. “Then an all-out offensive is our last resort.”

  The entire room silently listened to the Rabbit.

  “Leave a unit to guard our injured comrades, and with the entire might of the Legion,” the Rabbit’s eyes turned predatory. “Crush the enemies in a single blow.”

  The General stared at the Rabbit. He sighed, “Haa.”

  After a deep breath, he said to Phantomim, “Gather the Black Scimitars, Red Lotus, and the Diabolos Units. We’ll start our counteroffensive against those damn bastards.”

  Phantomim did not dare question the General’s commands. “Understood.”

  “Kratos.”

  “General,” a beastman which resembled an elf replied. He looked more human than a beastman.

  “You’ll be in-charge of protecting the camp while we’re gone,” said the General. “I’ll leave half a thousand men with you and a few magicians.”

  “Leave it to me.” Kratos bowed. “I’ll make sure those pesky humans are unable to harm our injured comrades.”

  With this, the board was finally set.

  After the necessary preparations, the three main units of the Third Legion – the Black Scimitars, the Red Lotus, and the Diabolos Units – moved out. They numbered several thousands, and each were armed to the teeth. Although it was noticeable that they were fatigued, most definitely due to Magic Poisoning, just their number alone was enough to send shivers down one’s skin.

  To raise morale, the three flags of each unit fluttered in the air as they marched.

  The moment they moved out of the forest, the sound of a gong was heard inside the walls of the town. The mellifluous sound of the horn rang out. Immediately, the workers fortifying the wooden gates ran back inside. The wooden bridge was taken out and the gates closed.

  ***

  The moment the horn was blown, the entire town moved as one. The workers outside went back, the bridge was pulled out, and the gates were closed. Numerous weapons, which resembled catapults, were placed behind the walls. The soldiers started loading hardened clays on it, while several archers assumed their formations behind the gates.

  On the watch tower, the elite archers – the hunters from Gahelpa Village – stood with their bows on their hands.

  Previously, they participated in burning down the forest and shooting down those who tried to escape the fire. Clearly, these beastmen did not know yet of the fearsome strength of their arrows imbued with mana. A feat possible only because of the bows bestowed upon them by the Young Master.

  Outside the walls, over a hundred beastmen formed a defensive line with wooden wankel shields. They slowly marched forward, confident that the arrows of these humans would not penetrate their line. Behind them, the magicians started chanting their spells.

  Lark felt the undulating mana which filled the air. Thankfully, the magicians of the beastmen were incapable of chantless magic. As the runes started forming below their feet, Lark immediately issued his orders to the elite archers.

  “The real threat in this war are those magicians,” said Lark. “Valak.”

  Valak immediately understood what the Young Master meant. He nock an arrow and imbued it with mana. His targets were those magicians hiding behind the defensive line.

  “Do it.”

  On cue, Valak release his arrow. It shot forward, unhindered by the wind. It pierced through a wankel shield then struck a magician right at the head. Blood splattered as the magician fell limp and lifeless on the ground.

  And that was the start.

  The other hunters from Gahelpa nock their arrows and started firing with pinpoint accuracy at the magicians. Under the unending fire, the magicians panicked and were unable to complete their magic.

  Seeing this, the General ordered his men to cluster the shields together to form a tighter barrier – but it proved useless against the arrows imbued with mana.

  “What’s going on?” General Urkawi was flustered.

  When they first attacked the town, only ordinary arrows flew out. But this attack on their magicians right now were clearly from magic arrows. Lethal weapons infused with mana.

  His instinct screamed at him that now was the chance. While those archers were occupied with killing the magicians, General Urkawi ordered an all-out charge.

  “Annihilate the damn bastards! Kill these pesky humans!”

  With a roar, General Urkawi led the charge himself. Thousands of beastmen charged towards the town, and at the same time, volleys of arrows flew down the sky and struck them down. Still, despite their wounds, the beastmen continued their attack.

  There was no tactic involved in this one.

  An offensive which relied purely on numbers.

  And it seemed that the General’s decision was right.

  Several beastmen managed to destroy a portion of the wooden wall. Like locusts, they swarmed inside. Metals clanked and blood filled the air as humans and beastmen fought to their deaths.

  Slowly, the beastmen started pushing back the humans. General Urkawi grinned from this sight. On his left, beastmen stoppered the trenches with giant logs and began crossing to the other side. With their sheer strength, another portion of the wall broke down. Beastmen also started swarming inside.

  General Urkawi knew that it was only a matter of time before the town fell into their hands.

  But an unexpected scenario played out.

  An ominous moan reverberated. It reminded the beastmen of a monster on the brink of death. A split second after, bodies of beastmen started flying as three suits of armor rampaged about. The swarming beastmen were immediately stopped in their tracks.

  General Urkawi did not know where those three suddenly came from, but each of them should have the same strength as Phantomim.

  General Urkawi was about to personally slay those three himself when another commotion broke out.

  On the other pathway, beastmen warriors were being slaughtered left and right. Their cries of anguish and terror reverberated. General Urkawi squinted and he soon saw the perpetrator of the massacre.

  A young man with golden hair used a claymore to cleave the beastmen warriors in half. The human moved swiftly, leaving behind afterimages.

  What’s that?

  Behind the man with golden hair was a giant. A human clad in flames. The flames blocked all attacks directed at the human. It was as though he was a living, impregnable fortress.

  The three suits of armor were blocking the opened path to the right.

  The two human monsters were blocking the path to the left.

  Despite their numbers, the beastmen w
ere unable to advance any further.

  General Urkawi gnashed his teeth. “Phantomim.”

  His right-hand man immediately answered, “General.”

  “Secure the path to the right. Take care of those things.” General Urkawi pertained to the three suits of armor.

  Phantomim was among the most-nimble men within the Third Legion. He was the perfect match against those three suits of armor.

  “As you wish.” Phantomim unsheathed his long sword. His figure blurred and he disappeared from sight.

  General Urkawi set his eyes on the two humans blocking the left path. They were strong, but he knew he was stronger.

  Feeling the rise in temperature, General Urkawi looked up. A large ball of fire started to form in the sky. Since the archers capable of shooting magic arrows were preoccupied with dealing with those who managed to break inside the walls. The surviving magicians from the beastmen army managed to complete their spell.

  Once that large ball of fire struck the town, the tables would turn around. Although it felt like a waste to destroy a large portion of the town with that spell, it was a necessary sacrifice. They could just fix the town after and convert it into a stronghold for the beastmen race.

  The spell was finally completed. General Urkawi decided to see the upcoming destruction with his own eyes.

  From the rear, he heard the leader of the magicians issue the order to fire.

  Humans and beastmen alike looked above. The ball of fire the size of several carriages combined sent shivers down their spine.

  Just right when the ball of fire started descending towards the town, a shadow leaped into the sky. Azure chains made of magic twined around the ball of fire, condensing it into a much smaller form. In a matter of seconds, the colossal ball of fire created using the mana of several dozens of magicians turned into the size of a palm.

  A young man held it on top of his hand, his body still hovering in the sky. Although General Urkawi could not see his face from the distance, he could feel the bloodlust emanating from his eyes.

  General Urkawi stiffened. He felt a premonition of what was to come.

  “Don’t tell me,” he breathed.

  He looked at the rear and was about to warn his men about the incoming attack when suddenly, the young man threw the condensed ball of fire towards the place where the magicians gathered.

  There was a split second of silence the moment it touched the ground, before a deafening explosion rang out. The earth groaned and shook. General Urkawi’s eyes widened at what he saw.

  That single strike massacred the Legion’s magicians.

  Slowly, the young man flew down and touched the ground. He stood right before General Urkawi.

  “Hello?” the young man greeted.

  General Urkawi stared at him bewilderedly. In his entire life, he had never seen such feat before. The man clearly diverted his magicians’ ultimate magic and used it against them.

  The young man unsheathed his sword. His eyes glimmered with bloodlust.

  “Who are you?” General Urkawi managed to ask.

  The young man paused for a moment. “Someone who’ll be dead soon doesn’t need to find out.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Lark and General Urkawi faced each other. Around them, swords clashed and blood splattered, blanketing the ground. Lark had not expected the beastmen to break in this easily. If these guys have not been weakened by Magic Poisoning, this town would have been conquered long ago. The difference in strength between humans and beastmen were that far apart.

  On the two pathways forcefully created by the beastmen, Lark’s best soldiers stood guard to stopper the attacks. The three suits of armor were currently fighting against a nimble beastman who resembled a jaguar. With the jaguar’s speed, the three were unable to inflict even a single scratch on their opponent’s body. But Lark knew it did not matter. It seemed that in exchange for speed, the jaguar lacked the offensive capability to defeat them. An even situation.

  The beastmen were no longer able to take a step further in the other pathway. It was, after all, the place guarded by Anandra and Commander Daltos. The two, with the help of several soldiers, stoppered the gap between the wall. The beastmen who dared to charge inside were slaughtered immediately. The beastmen had no choice but to take a few steps back out of fear.

  The only thing that could break this stalemate was the presence of this monster in front of Lark. He was sure that this beastman was the Supreme Commander of this Legion. The General.

  If this monster managed to reach any of the two openings, the delicate balance would immediately crumble and the beastmen would come pouring in, massacring the residents of Blackstone Town.

  Lark unsheathed his sword. He slightly tilted his head. “I see. You’ve been healed, huh?”

  The General immediately understood what he meant. He was definitely talking about the Magic Poisoning. “Brat. Are you the one responsible for that dead forest?”

  Lark nodded. “That’s right. I’m the one who poisoned your entire army.” He slowly grinned. “And I’m also the one who cut the heads of those fools who dared invade my territory.”

  General Urkawi’s eyes shook upon hearing this. His entire body quivered from rage. His eyes turned bloodshot. Ever since he saw the defiled bodies of his comrades, he vowed to rip the perpetrator into shreds. And now, that person was before his very eyes.

  Before he could even think, General Urkawi’s body move by itself. It instinctively shot forward, his fists clenched as he tried to blow away the head of the human with a single punch.

  His punch struck nothing but the air. A split second after, he felt a pricking sensation in his thigh. Looking down, he saw a deep cut, with blood oozing down.

  He looked around. A good distance away from him, the human silently stood. The blade of his sword had red blood clinging to it. In that single exchange, he easily evaded General Urkawi’s strike and retaliated.

  “I’ve been careless,” he mumbled. Although he knew that this human was taunting him to gain the upper hand in this battle, he could still not help but tremble in rage whenever he thought of the fate that befell the Vanguard Army.

  General Urkawi tightened the muscles of his thigh and the bleeding immediately stopped.

  He looked around him. It seemed that the Magic Poison was starting to show its effects. Slowly, his men were starting to be pushed back. With the advantage of terrain on their side, the humans were killing his warriors one after another. The most noteworthy enemies were those archers in the watchtower. Before their arrows imbued with mana, his men easily lost their lives.

  General Urkawi knew he had to finish this fight soon and join the fray. It was the only way to prevent more casualties on their side. Once the beastmen managed to pour in, the humans would eventually succumb to their bane.

  “Human,” said General Urkawi. “I would have loved to give you a slow and painful death, but the circumstances do not permit it.”

  The General’s body started sucking in the minute amounts of mana which lingered in the air. Slowly, the silver-black hair covering his entire body turned azure. His black eyes turned crimson.

  It was a high-level technique which Lark was very much familiar with. With this technique, the user was supplied with indefinite amount of mana from his surroundings. Although Lark was also capable of such feat, he never attempted to do it with his current body. The rebound was catastrophic. Lark knew that if he used this technique with this fragile shell, he would die once the spell ended.

  Lark scrutinized General Urkawi. Judging by the reaction of the beastmen around them, this was not the first time the General used this technique.

  The lizardman I tortured told me that the General is an immortal monster. Maybe he’s referring to this?

  Lark frowned. If this General was capable of handling the rebound effects of this technique, then he was surely a monster befitting the title of an Immortal. As long as his body was capable of maintaining the spell, the chances of ki
lling him was close to nil.

  Let’s see how long he can maintain that state.

  He was about to attack when suddenly, the General disappeared from his spot.

  Lark’s instinct screamed at him. His arms moved on its own and blocked his face.

  An earth shattering sound reverberated as a tremendous force struck Lark’s body. The hands he used to block the attack bent and broke. He gnashed his teeth as pain coursed through his entire body. He was sent flying, eventually hitting the wooden wall, destroying a portion of it in the process. Clouds of dust flew about.

  “Young Master!”

  “Young Lord!”

  Anandra and the Blackstone Soldiers immediately ran to where Lark flew. The clouds of dust receded and a young man with broken arms silently stood. He coughed out blood and his legs momentarily wobbled.

  General Urkawi entered through the new opening in the wall. Behind him, hundreds of beastmen followed.

  “Damn it,” spat Commander Daltos. “Is this the end?”

  The Young Master who easily defeated him was sent flying with a single punch from that beastman. Looking at the General, Commander Daltos could not help but shudder.

  Lark spat the blood that clung to his mouth. He channeled mana into his broken arms and forced them to regenerate.

  “You’re capable of high-rank healing spells?” General Urkawi had entered the town. “Interesting. It seems I can slowly rip you to shreds. Let’s see how long you can last.”

  Anandra stood before the Young Master. Despite the large difference in their physique, he did not back down in front of the General.

  “Step aside,” said Lark. His broken hands have been fully healed now.

  “But—”

  “—It’s fine.” Lark unsheathed his sword. He channeled mana into it, making it vibrate hundreds of times in a second.

  He slowly stepped forward until he was only ten feet away from the General.

  “Hey, Gorrilla.” Lark’s eyes were predatory.