Chapter 57: Fourteenth Floor, Drina River Defense Operation (2)

The Community of the Dead.

[Guys, is this even doable...?]

[It’s going to be tough. Even at a glance, the opponent’s numbers are easily double ours. But the real issue is that we’re up against a trained military force.]

[Exactly, and that’s the biggest concern. Sure, we might be stronger individually, but large-scale battles are a whole different beast. Nobody has fought in a group larger than six people.]

...

[Wow, Su-Hyeok is an absolute legend... How many did he take down with that one lightning strike?]

[It looks like he wiped out close to ten thousand of them.]

[lol, one lightning = ten thousand lizardmen.]

[ 😂 I didn’t realize how broken that lightning ability was until now.]

[And from how often he’s using it, the cooldown must be pretty short.]

[AHAHAHA Su-Hyeok’s gonna be unbeatable in any aquatic battle now. Unlimited lightning is insane.]

[Man, if I had a skill like that, I’d be in first place too lol.]

[^ Don’t feed the troll.]

***

An enormous wave of lizardmen surged rapidly down the riverbank, charging relentlessly.

Even though the receding water had turned the ground into a muddy mess, their pace remained unbroken. If they were human, they would have certainly tripped and fallen in the muck mid-charge. It seemed that lizardmen weren’t hindered by such terrain.

I had initially thought lizardmen were only agile in the water, but it was clear now they moved just as effortlessly on land...

“The Shadow of the End watches over us! Spearmen to the front!"

“Spearmen, advance!"

“Spearmen, step forward!"

The first to respond was the Deiorne Empire's military. Hearing the command of their legion commander, the frontline spearmen marched forward by three steps.

We had to act as well.

Ha Hee-Jeong and I had already planned this out. I would lead the warriors, while she would oversee the rear and manage overall coordination.

To command effectively, you need a clear view of the entire battlefield.

There were close to three hundred thousand climbers. None of them had proper battlefield training, nor had they formed a cohesive battle formation before.

Commanding such a large, untrained group was a daunting task. Therefore, having someone as overwhelmingly powerful as myself act solely as commander wasted my strength.

It made more sense for me to engage in the front lines.

Still, it’s fortunate we managed to establish some control over the situation.

Whether it was due to our ability to keep things organized or simply because we were at the top of the leaderboard, the climbers had instinctively recognized both Ha Hee-Jeong’s and my authority.

Even earlier, they had followed our instructions and created a formation without much resistance.

I imbued my voice again, ensuring it echoed across the battlefield.

“Move forward in sync with the Sobornese! Frontline, advance!"

“Push the frontline forward!"

“Move up to the front!"

“Target the riverbank with your fire spells!"

Heeding our command, the mages cast thousands of fireballs that soared above our heads.

The timing was perfect. Drying up the river would force the lizardmen to climb a slope to reach our side of the bank.

Our elevated position gave us a decisive advantage. We could easily bottleneck them here and control the high ground. Of course, we also had to fend off the wyverns’ aerial strikes.

“Don’t let them gain a solid footing! Archers, aim at the wyverns!"

“Focus on the wyverns!"

“Fire!"

“Shoot!"

The lizardmen scaled the riverbank, and the thousands of fireballs finally rained down on them.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The explosions tore through their ranks, sending limbs flying through the air.

Unfortunately, some wyverns had managed to break through the rain of arrows and came crashing down into our forces, sowing confusion and destruction.

The battlefield was in complete chaos.

Damn it, I need to decide what my role should be.

Looking at the allied Earthlings and Sobornese forces, I seemed to be the strongest individual. Although I couldn’t gauge the full strength of the legion commander, she didn’t seem stronger than me.

I had to act as if I was the most powerful asset. It would be up to me to balance the opposing forces and overcome the disadvantages of numbers and battlefield training.

Simply fighting alongside the climbers won’t make enough of a difference.

I had three options to go on the offensive at the moment: Lightning Essence, my double-headed axe, and Shadow Veil.

Positioning myself within the climbers’ ranks and fighting there would only limit my potential. To fully capitalize on my abilities, I needed to charge straight into the heart of the lizardmen army and wreak havoc.

Alright, it’s time to dive in.

I grew excited to unleash lightning with abandon, swing my axe with deadly precision, and use Shadow Veil to shield myself from their attacks.

While mana consumption was a concern...

With the Mana Accumulating Gauntlet of the Underworld, I should be fine.

After defending the bank from the enemy’s four river-crossing attempts, I had accumulated a massive amount of mana. Measuring based on my normal mana reserves, I now had access to four times that amount.

Even if the Shadow Veil consumed plenty of mana, each kill in close-quarters combat would replenish the expenditure.

Plus, I didn’t have to hold out forever. The 588th Bombing Squadron also known as the Night Witches, which the legion commander mentioned, were due to arrive in less than an hour.

I am not sure how a bombing squadron fits into a medieval world, but...

According to Ha Hee-Jeong, they were an allied force with tremendous firepower.

Regardless, I could easily hold out for an hour with the mana I had at my disposal. And if things got too difficult, I could always drop the Shadow Veil. Fearing that a few climbers might follow me in my reckless charge, I shouted loudly while sprinting ahead.

“Stay here! Hold the front line!"

I could hear their startled voices behind me as I surged forward.

“What the fuck... What’s he doing?"

“Where’s he going?"

Ignoring the climbers, I pressed onward. Currently, the only task they needed to focus on was maintaining the high ground. If they needed reinforcements, Ha Hee-Jeong and other powerful climbers like Alexei were there to command and maneuver the forces to wherever the line was weakest.

I reached the riverbank’s steep slope, observing the fierce battles raging around me. Kicking off the ground, I launched myself into the air, aiming for the center of the dried-up riverbed.

Starting with lightning seems like the best move.

I poured mana into activating Lightning Essence, summoning a massive amount of lightning. A bolt descended from the heavens which illuminated the entire riverbed.

Gripping my axe with both hands, I raised it high above my head. Sparks crackled violently along the blade, arcs of lightning dancing across the metal. The once-mighty river, now a deep U-shaped ravine, bathed in the lightning’s blinding light.

I brought the axe crashing down on the largest lizardman in sight, a towering figure that stood out among the crowd of enemies. Conveniently, it was positioned directly in the center of the riverbed.

“Argh!"

“Screeeech!"

“Kieee..."

The lightning formed a sphere of searing energy, spreading outward in a fifty-meter radius. Inside the electrified sphere, the lizardmen convulsed violently, unable to resist the power surging through them.

I landed lightly on the ground, though the muddy terrain grabbed at my every step like quicksand.

For now, I ignored the fallen enemies. While targeting their leader would be ideal, securing the high ground and maintaining our advantage was a top priority.

I need to defeat as many enemies as I can manage, as quickly as possible.

I had to slow the advance of the hundreds of thousands of enemies somehow, and blocking their path was the only feasible idea I had come up with. Even if it meant piling the bodies of the lizardmen high across the river, I had no choice.

Launching myself forward and imbuing my legs with lightning, I sprinted with all my might. I leaped and dodged through the relentless magical bombardment raining down, quickly making my way fifty meters forward.

First, I will activate Shadow Veil.

Swinging fiercely, I let loose with my lightning-charged axe. A single strike sent lightning coursing into more than ten lizardmen.

Their bodies convulsed under the surge, and I didn’t wait for them to fall, instantly using lightning to accelerate myself again and continue the assault.

***

[Hold the Drina River defense line. If the line is breached, survive. Time remaining: 7 hours 1 minute.]

An hour had passed since I started fighting in the heart of the U-shaped riverbed. Without Shadow Veil, Lightning Essence, and my gauntlet’s mana accumulation ability, I wouldn’t have lasted this long. Those skills had consumed the vast amount of mana I had stored, and of the more than four times my usual reserves I started with, barely half of my base mana remained.

However, thanks to my efforts and Ha Hee-Jeong’s leadership, the Earthling and Deiorne Empire alliance still held the high ground along the river.

Of course, that’s also because the black dragon hasn’t entered the battlefield.

It was strange. It didn’t seem logical for the master of magic[1], to be absent for over an hour, simply to hold back the river.

Yes, the river was vast, but the dragon’s capabilities should have allowed it to return long ago. Even if it had used magic to manipulate the earth and create a dam, an hour was more than enough time to finish the task.

Well, for all I knew, it could have been physically holding back the water.

Either way, the dragon’s absence benefited us. The bombing squadron would arrive soon.

Come on, hurry up.

I swung my axe about ten more times before hearing a sound cut through the air behind me.

Blasting lightning all around me, I created an opportunity to glance back. Arriving at the Drina River were hundreds of Night Witches flying under the moon’s bright glow, riding strange, eerie-looking brooms.

... How did they even create something like that in a medieval world?

Blue flames flared from the tails of the brooms, while large metal canisters were attached on the underside. Being a bombing squadron, it was clear that these canisters likely contained magical bombs. Each witch wore a tall, pointed black hat.

So, that is why they are called the Night Witches.

“The 588th Bombing Squadron has arrived! Strike with all your might!"

“Yeah! Night Witches! Night Witches!"

“The bombing squadron is here!"

After five hours of relentless fighting, the Deiorne Empire's soldiers had been worn and weary, but the arrival of the Night Witches had instantly shifted their morale. They suddenly surged with renewed vigor, as if they had been injected with pure adrenaline.

It was clear from their reaction that the Night Witches were no ordinary reinforcements. In a situation where we were vastly outnumbered, aerial support was exactly what we needed to hold the river.

I better get out of here. They could bomb this area.

Leaping over the lizardmen’s corpses, I used Kashatum’s Sky Shoes to double jump and ascend to the top of the riverbank.

Unlike the Deiorne soldiers, the climbers stared at the reinforcements in confusion.

“What the hell are those things?"

“No clue, but judging from their reactions, those witches must be something else."

“Wow, Su-Hyeok, how did you even last until now? That was insane."

“You were just flying through the battlefield like it was nothing... I thought I was catching up to the top climbers, but nope, you’re on a completely different level."

Even amidst the chaos, the climbers who had just spotted me offered hasty greetings.

I gave them a brief nod before turning my attention back to the sky. The Night Witches flew overhead and passed us in a rush.

“Screeeech!"

“Screeeech!"

The airborne wyverns hurled themselves at the witches, but none of the witches fell. Their brooms allowed them to dart and weave, skillfully dodging the wyverns’ attacks, all the while trailing blue flames.

“Stupid dragon-spawned bastards!"

Their taunting, magically enhanced laughter echoed over the Drina River as they dodged with ease.

Moments after they passed overhead, thumb-sized metal spheres began raining down from the sky.

Are those bombs?

Falling toward the lizardmen, the spheres exploded above the enemies' heads before the bombs could even land.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ground shook from the continuous detonations as mud and body parts flew into the air along the riverbank.

Now I understand why they said things would improve if we could hold out until the bombing squadron arrived...

But one concern remained: The Black Dragon Sarkeiz. The only reason the Night Witches had been able to bomb the enemy so freely was because I distracted Sarkeiz away from the battlefield.

Originally, Ha Hee-Jeong had insisted we had to draw the dragon’s attention and force it to descend to the ground. If the dragon had remained in the sky, the bombing squadron would have taken heavy losses.

There was no way the witches could have carried out their bombing so effectively with the dragon overhead.

I need to head upstream.

I had to stop the dragon from returning to the battlefield.

Until now, I had stayed on the frontline and focused on holding our position until the bombing squadron arrived, but that was no longer necessary.

The witches were still relentlessly bombing the enemy. If I could stop the dragon, the river would flow again, allowing the squadron to continue their assault without interruption. If that happened, the alliance would flawlessly conquer the fourteenth floor.

I turned to make my way upstream but quickly realized I wouldn’t need to.

“Roooooar!"

A thunderous roar echoed from the distant sky. It was the dragon. The Black Dragon Sarkeiz had returned to the battlefield.

***

「Invisible message: Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok has single-handedly changed the tide of battle by rampaging through the heart of the enemy forces. He has completed the hidden mission 'One-Man Army.’ All stats increased by 2.」

「Invisible message: Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok’s skills have leveled up. Combat Focus is now lvl 14. Bear’s Blood is now lvl 10. Shadow Veil is now lvl 4.」

1. The dragon. ☜