20 The Expedition 3 (1/2)

Theodluin Presdove was a 48-years-old elven guard, with high talent. Three weeks pa.s.sed already since the evil humans had invaded their lands, captured their soldiers, and ambushed their elders.

Theodluin was not blind. He knew things were going south for the Grace Settlement. Half of their forces had been killed already, maybe even more considering the many elves whose whereabouts were unknown. The enemies appeared in one place, and as soon as they finished their business, they would disappear. Those who witnessed their intervention were either huge powerhouses, or captured.

Theodluin was the pride of the Presdove family, 682-years-old household which witnessed the birth of many heroes. Theodluin, however, couldn't accept what was happening in front of him.

He was the guard captain of a faction of 50 elven swordsmen.

While elven swordplay and human swordsmans.h.i.+p shared similarities, they were two very different styles. The elven swordplay was balanced, elegant and from a distance, it looked like a dance. On the other hand, human swordplay was relying on physique, brute force and revolved around feints and parries.

The Grace Settlement had a wide array of swordsmans.h.i.+p, but…The Presdove Guard Faction had met the wrong enemy. They were protecting the walls, deemed as a 'safe' area by the elders who were studying the enemies' patterns.

However, whoever thought of Drodosis' tactics as a mere pattern would be doomed! Drodosis used unpredictability, and his ability capability was several times that of his enemies. After all, elders would have to debate among themselves, before issuing their findings to the Leader Diana Lockear. Besides debating, Diana had to agree on that. Internal conflicts would erupt, and this took sometimes up to several hours! In the meantime, Drodosis could easily s.h.i.+ft his targets, and that was exactly the flexibility he needed to overwhelm his opponents.

An elven out of two could fight. Other 'civilians', as one would call them, also knew to fight, but because of their talents in crafts, their age or injuries, they weren't powerhouses. Yet, in these difficult times, the Grace Settlement had managed to summon 3500 powerhouses to fight, most of them being as strong as preparatory knights! This was a huge number, even for Drodosis!

Back at the rear walls of the settlements, the Presdove Guard Faction led by Theodluin was surrounded by three golems who emerged from underground tunnels. As soon as the crowd of preparatory knights and knights arrived at the surface, the soil seemed to close naturally, making the ground look like untouched. This sight was too magical for the elven who had never witnessed Earth Magic!

'So this is how they avoid elders' detection! I have to report! I definitely have to give this information to the higher ups! Only then we will have a glimmer of hope!', he thought.

However, Diana and the elders had already come across this information a long time ago. They had also heard about the elven prisoners' condition. Everyday, Drodosis would emerge somewhere in the village, and throw a few executed guards' head in the wooden village.

Although Diana supressed the news, it wasn't necessarily a good thing. By keeping this calm, her subordinates lacked direct knowledge and were even more vulnerable in the eyes of her enemies!

Distracted by internal conflicts, she had trouble intervening and defending her troops for the various attacks in different locations by golems and knights. Elders with significant strength had already been captured in their own homes or killed in daylight.

”Surrender!”, Siegfried shouted to the enemy, but he was only met with a refusal, ”Then die!”

Opening his eyes, drawing his bow, he shot an arrow which seemed to be able to deal 25 points of damage, a considerable amount for a novice knight. His men, following his actions, all released an arrow as well.

The elves rose their s.h.i.+elds, tried to parry a few arrows, but they were surrounded by the knights. A coward elven youth, barely 30 years old, which was considered a teenager in elven society, tried to break out of the encirclement, but the golem, despite being 3 meters tall and seemingly weighing several tons, stomped the elven youth with its muddy and gigantic right foot.

Blood splattered everywhere, and bits of its brain landed on everywhere on the ground. The scene was brutal. To elves who lived peacefully for years, some of them being gardeners or herbalists just yesterday, it was a horrifying experience.

Soon enough, the golems started to close the distance with the Presdove Guard Faction, or at least what remained out of it. This time, the Ironcloud knights and preparatory knights weren't hiding behind the golems, but they were actually closing in next to the golems, making it absolutely impossible for just one elf to escape. This was the Encirclement Formation Drodosis taught them.

Protected by the 150-centimetres-high s.h.i.+elds covering most of their bodies, the Ironcloud Order could easily advance without any fear. There was a slight opening on the top of the s.h.i.+eld, specifically made for the knights and preparatory knights to see what was in front of them. It was narrow enough to block incoming arrows, and big enough to let them see perfectly.

”Spears!”

*Sling*

The spears moved in a particularly synergised way, with force coming from the Ironcloud soldiers' whole body, the scene looking like a water tsunami cras.h.i.+ng against the enemies' ranks. Rotating their waist slightly, the force coursing through their body was concentrating at the tip of their spear, which was the core essence of the Water Fortress Spearmans.h.i.+p, an inheritance left behind by a Thornfield ancestor of Peak knight strength, which Drodosis pa.s.sed down to his subordinates.

The elven soldiers had waited the perfect moment to parry, but surprisingly, they couldn't deflect the fast spears at all. These spears seemed to weigh over 12 kilograms, which was huge, and their puny 3-kilograms-heavy sword had very little power in comparison. Their racial and trained nimbleness couldn't be put to use, since the s.p.a.ce around them was too small to display any athletic feats. This was the essence of the Encirclement Ironcloud Formation, a perfect counter to elven' attribute advantage.

*Splash*

Tens of elves were killed.

This was a ma.s.sacre. Injecting a paralysing solution into the survivors' body, Drodosis, from a distance, commanded his golems to shackle the prisoners. In a few minutes, they would be back in the Underworld Base, and these elves would join their kin, shackled in maddening conditions.

When Theodluin opened his eyes, he found himself incapable of lifting anything besides his toes and his fingers.

'Where am I?'

In the darkness of the night, he could hear the breathing of other prisoners.

”Is there anyone?”, he asked.

”…ahhh”, an elven woman wailed in pain and frustration. She tried to speak, but because of dehydration, the words were never voiced.