Capítulo 44: Chapter 44 : Siege of Crimson Spire (2)
Kiyotaka danced through the hordes of Nightmare Creatures, his Ascendant rank sword cutting through their bodies like butter. Empowered further by Nephis's Crown of Dawn, there were few among the horde who could put up a decent defense. The blade sliced through carapaces, sending streams of black blood and chunks of flesh flying in all directions. Each swing of his sword cleaved through multiple foes, dismembering limbs and decapitating heads with ruthless efficiency.
He was a whirlwind of death, his movements a ballet of destruction. Blood splattered across his face, mingling with the sweat that dripped from his brow. His eyes were cold, focused, and devoid of mercy. Each strike was precise, each kill methodical. The ground beneath him became slick with gore, the bodies of fallen Nightmare Creatures piling up around him.
Despite the carnage, Kiyotaka moved with a grace that belied the brutality of his actions. He seemed to be in his element, a predator amidst prey. His Abyssal Reaver glowed with a dark light, sending dark curse energy at his opponents.
Whenever he met someone sturdy, he would actively use the [Curse Strike] enchantment of his sword, directly attacking their souls and bypassing their physical defenses. Needless to say, the attacks were very effective as Nightmare Creatures screamed in agony.
Suddenly, a large shadow was cast above him as a monstrous abomination of a snake-like creature lunged at him, Kiyotaka barely dodging the strike.
"Fallen Monster? No, it seems stronger than the Spire Messenger I killed in the past... Fallen Demon?"
Immediately, he activated his augmentation ability, prioritizing speed. A red aura enveloped him as he looked at the snake's vertical eyes with the same ferocity and bloodlust.
The snake hissed and used its massive tail to swipe at him. Kiyotaka leapt back, narrowly avoiding the attack. He quickly assessed the situation, realizing that brute strength alone wouldn't be enough to defeat this beast. He needed a plan.
Kiyotaka observed the snake's movements, noticing that it had a predictable pattern. It lunged, then swiped with its tail, then reared back to strike again. He also noticed that the creature had a moment of vulnerability right after its tail swipe, when it was slightly off-balance.
An idea formed in Kiyotaka's mind. He would use the environment to his advantage. The battlefield was littered with the bodies of Nightmare Creatures, creating hazardous terrain for anyone moving quickly. Kiyotaka knew he could use this to trap the snake.
He began to lead the snake towards a particularly dense pile of corpses, moving with calculated steps. The snake, enraged and intent on killing him, followed without hesitation.
As the snake lunged again, Kiyotaka dodged to the side and swung his Abyssal Reaver, severing one of its smaller appendages. The snake roared in pain and fury, thrashing wildly. Kiyotaka kept moving, leading it deeper into the pile of bodies.
When the snake swiped its tail, Kiyotaka anticipated the movement and jumped onto a large carcass, avoiding the attack completely. The snake's tail hit the ground with a powerful thud, sending a shockwave through the corpses and causing some to roll over the snake's body.
Kiyotaka used this moment of distraction to his advantage. He leapt onto the snake's back, driving his sword into its scales and channeling the [Curse Strike] enchantment. The snake screamed, its body writhing in agony as the curse energy tore at its soul.
But Kiyotaka wasn't finished yet. He knew he needed to deliver a fatal blow. He quickly scanned the snake's body, looking for a weak point. He noticed a small area near the base of its skull where the scales were thinner, likely a vulnerability.
He repositioned himself, climbing towards the snake's head. The snake, still in pain and disoriented, tried to shake him off but Kiyotaka held firm. He raised his Abyssal Reaver high, then plunged it into the snake's weak spot with all his strength.
The blade pierced through the thin scales, driving deep into the snake's flesh. Kiyotaka poured a lot of his essence to channel curse energy into the strike, sending a surge of dark power directly into the creature's brain. The snake convulsed violently, its body thrashing and twitching uncontrollably.
With a final, desperate scream, the snake collapsed to the ground, its body going limp. Kiyotaka pulled his sword free, breathing heavily. He looked down at the fallen beast, its lifeless eyes staring back at him.
[ You have slain Fallen Demon, Mamba ]
[ Your war spirit grows stronger ]
[ You have received an Echo: Mamba ]
After taking a brief rest, he looked up at the battlefield. The battle was still raging on. He saw Effie get cornered by a Steel Demon but holding her ground. He saw Kai shooting at the skies, fighting some flying abomination, his hands never stopping to nock another arrow. He saw Nephis calmly meditating at the center, Cassie standing beside her. The Humans were fighting well, but there were also many casualties. Of the 600 who had come, only around 400 remained. Of those 400, 100 were heavily injured or couldn't fight properly.
He could see ballistas made by artisans attacking endlessly, sending huge projectiles at aerial and ground enemies. He could see handmaidens swiftly assassinating their opponents from behind. He could see all of this madness that enveloped the battlefield.
Taking a deep breath, Kiyotaka returned to battle, forcing himself to jump from the snake's head towards a swarm of abominations for yet another round of carnage.
He moved swiftly, killing one creature after another as he provided support wherever he went. Still, the earlier fight with the snake had taken a toll on him as he felt his essence dwindling. If he didn't have two cores, his reserves would have been depleted the moment he killed the snake.
That is to say, while he still had essence to spare, many Sleepers were already very exhausted and on the brink of collapse. Even as the battle went on, he could see a few exhausted ones slump to the ground, having drained their essence to the fullest.
Something had to change, or it would only be a matter of time before the army met their demise.
And change happened.
Nephis stepped into the battle.
A moment later, hundreds of human voices rose in a deafening battle cry, their spirits lifted, their crumbling resolve restored. With Nephis arriving on the battlefield, the balance of the whole battle shifted. The Nightmare Creatures surged to destroy the radiant figure, only to be obliterated by it. They almost seemed to melt under the furious assault of the incandescent blade, turning into cinder and ash.
Nephis's arrival brought a moment of relief to the exhausted warriors of the Dreamer Army. Instead of using it to catch their breath and regroup, however, they chose to use this opportunity to launch a ferocious attack, making the horde shudder and recoil.
Looking at the sight, Kiyotaka couldn't help but marvel at how the presence of one human could bring such change. Observing the human army, he momentarily couldn't see much difference between them and the horde. Both groups were abandoning their rationality and succumbing to bloodlust and fury.
Seeing Nephis step into battle, Kiyotaka decided to use yet another tool in his arsenal. Taking many bottles of blood he had been accumulating for a few days, he manipulated it, forming thousands of drops of his own blood and raining them down on Nightmare Creatures who were deeper in the horde. As the blood reached them, he set it ablaze, immediately enveloping one part of the horde in crimson fire. The inhuman shrieks could be heard as many weak creatures were engulfed in burning flames. The stronger forces were unaffected, but their advance was slowed down due to the weaker ones' sudden frantic movements.
Using the moment of confusion among the horde, the human army led by Nephis attacked with unprecedented fury.
Now, it was the human army that was pushing the horde, not the other way around.
The course of the battle was changing.
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