Chapter 463 - Death Knight

"Has everyone below Tier 5 evacuated?" Sodren asked as the walls started to crack and all the crystals started to dull.

"Yes, we pulled back from the wall. However, won't this give the weaker undead a chance to break through?" A cat beastkin with dark striped orange fur replied. 

"It is more important that we do not take unnecessary losses." Sodren replied as everyone evacuated from the wall. The following attacks from the liches caused it to slowly collapse. 

Of course, during all this everyone adept at ranged attacks had thrown everything they had at the undead army. However, the damage had not been as great as they had hoped. Only having managed to kill a few hundred of the undead. 

As the undead started to charge in mass, Eldrian arrived and shouted at the top of his lungs. "Everyone! Fall back!"

His shout naturally confused everyone on the field, and this confusion grew even more when they saw he was just a Tier 4 elf. However, when they recognized who he was they became slightly inclined to listen. 

Evale, hearing the shout and recognizing it, immediately ordered those under her command to pull back. Seeing this, Sodren gritted his teeth and followed suit. Staying on his own would just be suicide. 

However, how could the undead allow them to simply run after what they had done? They chased and tried to do as much damage as possible. This was where the multiple camps and arrays set up long ago came into play. 

Not only did it slow the undead and allow most to escape, but it also killed another few hundred. Slowly dwindling the undead's numbers while not giving them a chance to replenish them. 

Eldrian was currently riding on Cephaphyr next to Evale while trying to explain what he had gained from digging into the network. 

"The reason the network is capable of increasing the strength of the undead is that it is maintained by an Oni."

"Cephaphyr said the same, but I still do not understand why that is important."

"That is because this Oni is truly special!" Cephaphyr took to the sky while Evale jumped to the side, an explosion destroying everything where they had been seconds ago. 

"He isn't just a half-demon. Rather, he is a third demon, a third draugr, and a third revenant. Don't ask me how, but I am certain of this."

"Tha-that is impossible!"

"Or it is just improbable. That doesn't matter. The reason it can strengthen others is due to this mixture. I am not quite sure how things work together, but I know that the further from the network the weaker all the undead will become."

"You did clear all the ackley tress in the forest, right?"

Evale bit her lower lip as she shook he head in denial, leading to Eldrian throwing a slew of curses. 

"How do you warn the fort that enemies are incoming? We will have to rely on the magic tower to repel the attack."

"No, we can still fight." Evale countered, but Eldrian didn't want to give her a chance to argue. 

"Maybe, if the Oni was still waiting in the heart of the forest. But he decided to join this army of his!"

"Then, doesn't that mean this is the perfect time to try and end this once and for all?" Evale questioned as she jumped to the side, took aim, and let loose. A small explosion stopping the closing undead from killing the slower soldiers. 

"If it was that simple, of course. However," Turning around, Eldrian used mana sense and quickly scanned the horde. Ignoring all the normal undead and searching for this particular one. 

It was an undead that seemed to be the embodiment of a death knight. It was over 2 meters tall, clad in deadly-looking armor with shadow flames coming from the openings. It held a massive sword with light similar blue shadow flames in one hand and a spiked shield in the other. 

[Oni (Vagus)- Draugr & Revenant souls]

[Tier 8 - Level 75]

[HP: 48k]

[Mana: 41k]

[Attack (Menos) - 112 (3.9k)] 

[The blade is imbued with the fire of undeath, each attack that so much as grazes the opponent will attack not just their body, but also their soul.]

[Attack (Myalo - soul corruption) - 4118]

[Attack (Magic) ~ 6k]

[Special ability: Nomad - having never settled in one place and called it home, the normal restrictions of a draugr does not apply to Vagus.]

[Instead, Vagus can settle anywhere he wants. However, doing so requires time, during which he will be weakened similar to normal draugr.]

[Special ability: Nassa - Allows Vagus to spread the area of his home, making a land most suitable for the undead. Requires structures capable of maintaining the network.]

[???]

'There's even more?!' Of course, Eldrian didn't have the time to even read through the descriptions. However, this had allowed him to again confirm that this guy was no joke.

"How confident are you that you will be able to survive a soul attack?" Eldrian asked as they dodged another attack. Luckily, Vagus was not all that fast and the arrays were keeping even it at bay every time they reached one of the old camps. 

Truly, if not for the arrays they would likely all be dead or in a bitter struggle for survival. 

Hearing Eldrian's question, Evale shivered as she realized that this must be the true danger. Instead of trying to think how they could fight it, she focused on keeping as many of the soldiers alive while also sending a signal arrow into the air. 

Seeing the flare lighting up the day sky, those in the fort sprang to life in disbelief. Unable to accept that the forward camps had all fallen. 

Their army rushed through the gates as the magic tower launched a stream of holy fire at the undead. Yet, shockingly, shadow flames sprang to life and blocked the attack. 

"No way..." Eldrian looked at Vagus who had flown to block the attack, having just lost 1k HP which he was quickly regaining. 

'This is freaking impossible!'  Eldrian nearly wanted to shout this, instead, he tried to think of a way to beat this. 

It was at this moment when the dwarves made their move. Hrothgar appeared behind Vagus and slammed down with his hammer. Sending the 'death knight' flying away from his army to where Bringïrr and the others were waiting. 

However, shocking not just Eldrian, Vagus had taken no damage from the attack. 

"Now is our change, fire again and prepare to charge!" Sodren shouted after seeing the leader of the undead being sent flying. 

The undead were unsure what to do with their leader suddenly removed from their lead. However, it just took a few seconds for one of the liches to step forward and take command. Ordering them to charge and slaughter the fort. 

This time, the magic tower did its magic. Killing nearly a hundred of the undead in one blast while the soldiers of the fort released volley after volley to kill as many as possible. 

Unfortunately, the soldiers of Taurus didn't have the luxury of waiting on their walls and using the advantage of their fortification. The commanders clearly knew that they needed to do as much damage as they possibly could before that undead knight returned. 

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