Chapter 257: The Battle of Tecks (Part 4)

“Sir! There are undead in the northeast.”

“As expected,” Roderick sneered. “Wipe them out.”

The battle unfolded almost exactly like the afternoon before. While the soldiers took a defensive stance, the skeletons were able to inflict even less damage on the mastiff soldiers than before. This boosted Roderick’s confidence. What frustrated Wu Qingsong, however, was that Roderick stood securely hidden within the protection of at least two battalions, refusing to step out even slightly.

When Liuli and Ling once again pretended to be overwhelmed and retreated into the forest, Roderick even called off the soldiers who tried to pursue them.

“It seems like I’ll have to make my move,” Wu Qingsong said with a sigh.

Nina fetched him a black hooded robe. Wu Qingsong grabbed a strange-looking wooden stick to pass off as a magic staff. He then walked to the edge of the forest. He made sure he was in full view of the mastiff soldiers and began pretending to cast spells.

“Sir! The enemy’s mage has appeared!” 

The officers immediately reported the sighting to Roderick, and all eyes turned to Wu Qingsong.

“Stay calm,” Roderick shouted. “It’s just an apprentice.”

He was part of the new generation of elves born after the fall of the Batiz Kingdom. Necromancy had already been completely eradicated during his upbringing and only survived as a relic of stories and myths. For this reason, as a magic warrior and not a mage, Roderick’s knowledge of necromancy was actually quite limited.

According to what Raman had said before, this necromancer should only be an apprentice, unlikely to cause significant damage.

However, much to his surprise, as Wu Qingsong began his exaggerated ritual-like movements, the nearest front line of soldiers suddenly descended into chaos. At least a dozen soldiers screamed in terror. They clutched their heads and writhed on the ground, thrashing about wildly. They even smashed their heads against the ground as if something had invaded their minds.

“A curse?” a half-elf squad leader muttered in alarm.

It immediately spread a wave of panic among the troops.

Fighting the undead was already a test of courage and resolve, but at least those creatures had physical forms that could be cut down with swords. This, however, was different. The soldiers couldn’t understand what was happening, and it terrified them to their core.

This invisible threat was even more frightening than Raman’s fireballs. With fireballs, you could at least see whether you were the target, but now, they had no idea who would be struck by misfortune next.

“Put them out of their misery,” Roderick immediately gave the order. “Bring the crossbowmen forward, shoot him down!”

Ling appeared just then. She stepped in to block all the incoming bolts aimed at Wu Qingsong. A moment later, even some of the crossbowmen exhibited the same strange symptoms.

The soldiers instinctively glanced toward Roderick. 

In the past, whenever they had faced powerful enemies like the savage insectoids—ones they couldn’t deal with on their own—it was always warriors like Roderick who would step forward and take them down.

“Damn it!” Roderick cursed under his breath.

He carefully scanned the woods. Other than the necromancer casting spells and that half-blood dogkin, there was no sign of anyone else. Even the catgirl had disappeared.

Nina Rams hadn’t shown up at all. 

Was she lying in wait for the right moment? Or had her injuries forced her to stay away from the battlefield?

“My lord?” the officers asked anxiously.

The third batch of soldiers was now collapsing. So far, only about thirty had been affected, but with the undead assault already beaten back, the soldiers were left helplessly watching their comrades fall without warning. The sheer agony of their screams struck a chord with everyone, making it feel as though they were suffering alongside them.

The once steadfast battle line that had held strong against the charge of thousands of skeletons was now starting to waver under the weight of these sudden casualties.

Roderick knew exactly what he had to do. He scanned the forest around Wu Qingsong one more time before finally drawing his sword.

“Victory!” 

The soldiers erupted in cheers, especially those from the Sentalus legion. The belief in the elves’ invincibility had been ingrained deep in their hearts, a conviction that even Raman’s death had not shaken.

Everyone was convinced that the figure hiding beneath the black robe would be cut in half with a single strike.

Lightning surged around Roderick’s body. In the next instant, for the first time in two days, he burst out from the safety of the tightly guarded formation.

“Die!” he shouted

He darted and weaved through the forest with incredible speed, rapidly closing the distance between him and Wu Qingsong.

Wu Qingsong raised his hand, sending over a dozen soul fragments hurtling toward Roderick. Just as he had suspected, they disintegrated into nothing before even reaching him, annihilated by the powerful lightning aura surrounding the magic warrior.

In the blink of an eye, Roderick was right in front of Wu Qingsong.

He didn’t bother to question why Ling had suddenly moved away from Wu Qingsong’s side. 

At this close range, between a magic warrior and a necromancer, the outcome was already certain.

Before Roderick’s sword could even strike, Wu Qingsong’s wooden staff burst into flames and disintegrated into ash. The lightning-infused blade struck Wu Qingsong directly, sending him flying like a cannonball. He smashed through one tree and crashed into a second, embedding himself into it.

What was that feeling?

This bizarre outcome sent a chill down Roderick’s spine.

Something’s wrong!

But before he could react, a figure suddenly leaped out from the pile of fallen leaves at his feet. A massive greatsword, radiating destructive power, came crashing down toward him with terrifying force.

Nina Rams?!

Roderick didn’t have time to adjust his stance or summon the power of his lightning. Nina’s strike, which she had clearly been preparing for some time, crashed into his sword with overwhelming force.

The lightning sword let out a mournful cry as it shattered into pieces. 

In the next instant, the lightning surrounding Roderick’s body instinctively formed a protective barrier, desperately trying to block the blow. But it crumbled in moments.

Just as Nina’s sword was about to make contact with Roderick, a magic shield flared to life, shimmering briefly before dissolving. Her greatsword slammed into his chest plate, denting it inward with a loud crash. Though it didn’t cut through, it had enough force to send Roderick flying backward into the bushes.

Nina didn’t hesitate. She swang her sword toward Roderick. 

Under the threat of death, Roderick tapped into a level of agility he had never shown before. Before Nina’s sword could strike, he rolled and scrambled away, darting over ten meters in a desperate dash. Without a second thought, he abandoned all his soldiers and fled frantically toward the northeast.

“Nina!” 

Wu Qingsong and Ling both shouted in panic, but the distance between them and Roderick never closed. Within mere seconds, he vanished completely from everyone’s sight.

The soldiers, who had just been cheering moments before, suddenly fell into a dead silence. The canine troops watched in shock as Ling pulled Wu Qingsong out of the tree. Then, one of the soldiers dropped his weapon and bolted, like a crack in a dam.

In the next instant, all the soldiers started to flee in a chaotic rush.

However, their frantic escape was short-lived. Their hope turned to despair as they saw the forest around them swarming with countless skeletons, emerging silently, cold and merciless, blocking their path on all sides.