Chapter 57: Shield Wall

With a quick glance, Tristan could see that their opponent's group was at least twice as big as them. So, there are around 500 barbarians that will be clashing with the orcs.

Grahl let out a loud battle cry, accompanied with the other orcs' battle cries, and ran forward riding his massive wolf mount. He directed his wolf to jump forward each hand with his battle axe raised.

The jump left deep claw marks on the ground.

Seeing the approaching wolf, the barbarians in the front held their shields to intercept the attack. But the wolf and warchief broke the defensive line open without effort, throwing a few of them away just like bowling pins.

The sight made the 200 grunts elated, their morale increased thanks to the deed. They all ran faster and charged the enemy line together.

From among the shouting and the clang of weapons, Tristan could hear gleeful laughter.

Tristan shook his head. Though the bravery of the orcs was quite something to be admired, he personally would rather be safe than sorry.

As the group started charging up the hill, Tristan decided to slow down his charge and hold back in order to observe the orcs from afar, accompanied by Borin standing behind him. As usual, Borin's eyes looked glassy and empty, there was no soul or emotion to be seen behind the creepy gaze.

The hill did not bother the orcs at all, as they kept on running with the aid of their bottomless stamina. Though they were fast, they were intercepted with close-knit, tight defensive lines made of round shields. The opponents held their shield shoulder to shoulder, making the defense much stronger than before.

Braaaaakkkkk!!!!

A loud sound of impact could be heard, and Tristan saw the side of the line was crushed by the warchief and his battle wolf. However, the rest of the line looked intact, a testament of humans', or the so-called 'barbarians' ingenuity.

Using crude tools and some aid of science, they were able to hold against the charge of orcs almost twice their size.

The barbarians wore odd-looking battle gear made of a mix of fur, leather, and metallic plates intermingled into one without a distinct pattern. Some had bits of fur on their shoulders, some had fur decorations lining their hips with all leather armor, while a few were decked out in full plate armor decorated with luxurious fur. One thing was the same among them - that is, their heads were adorned with a helmet decorated with a pair of wicked-looking horn protrusions on it. It was clear, the barbarians were far from being mere "savage warriors".

They could understand how to apply tactics in battle. They could taunt the orcs using the orcs' instincts. They could work together to create such an excellent, powerful shield line capable of holding against the much stronger orcs' attacks.

Braaakkkkkk!!!

Again, Grahl and his battle wolf managed to break the barbarians' formation, this time on the back side. Now, the shield wall formation had two holes.

For a few seconds, voices could be heard from inside the wall, and within that time, their opponents were able to close up the gap quickly.

Karra danced with her huge glaives at the center of the enemy formation, each quick strike felled several of the enemy. Meanwhile, the other 200 orcs attacked in a wild flailing, with neither tactics nor technique.

Even though it was a very unfavorable situation for the orcs, Tristan could see how these orcs were still able to fight, against all odds, with their brute strength alone. While observing the fight, Tristan even saw an orc still able to fight with very little difficulty even though two spears were pierced through its torso.

The orcs' enthusiasm made Tristan even more tempted to join the battle right away. But he wouldn't. Now was not the time, and their safety would be of utmost priority. Tristan stayed far in the back and kept on observing.

After jumping away to catch his breath, the warchief returned with his battle wolf in tow, each of the animal's steps leaving deep paw prints on the ground. In response, half a dozen men approached him.

The men wore no armor, they merely had simple clothing covering their lower body. However, almost every inch of their skin was covered in blue tattoos.

The men moved quickly, and Grahl's charge was halted

Clank! Clank!

One of the men used a massive spear to stab the wolf, throwing Grahl on the ground.

Grawl rolled away and jumped up, before immediately fighting the six warriors who surrounded him. The warchief held up his axe and swung hard to the side, removing one of the blue tattooed fighters' heads. In response, the other five jumped closer together and muttered a chant Tristan could not hear, causing the tattoos on their skin to turn into glowing blue lines. Tristan stared at them and used his scanner to check their strength.

[Human male]

[Battle power 68]

It appears these blue tattooed warriors each have a similar strength level to Borin. Thanks to the sudden increase of power, the barbarians were able to hold down the warchief this time.

Emery looked around and saw that the tattooed warriors were not just fast. Their movements seemed random, jerky, and unpredictable as if they were strung on strings, and they were scattered among the lines. Some fought with Karra and the other three orcs champions in the middle.

Thanks to what he saw, Tristan became sure that this fight unfolding before his eyes was not a mere clash without thought between two parties. It was clear that the so-called barbarians employed a very calculated strategy.

If he were in the position of the puppet master controlling the flow of the battle, he would have prepared a killing move to obliterate them in one fell swoop.

Right as Tristan finished his thoughts, another horn can be heard echoing.

Tooooeeeetttthhhh!!.

It was the distinct sound of a war horn coming from a different direction from the first one. Tristan looked at the southern hill, where he heard the clopping of horses and the sounds of footsteps getting closer, and he saw another 200 barbarian reinforcements charging towards them from their right side.