Time until impact 10 seconds.
Frost could see the varied expressions of the enemy standing in the distance. Beastkin, bipedal ants, mantises, spirits, elementals and even a few drakes. A real hodgepodge of species yet they all bore similar weaponry.
Those standing in the periphery were armed with spears and halberds, equipment specialised in taking down larger targets such as cavalry. Defenders, close combat units tasked with protecting those in the rear and mid sections of the army.
The majority of the target enemy however was made up of ranged fighters, archers, crossbowmen, mages as well as some war machine operators, individuals who faired poorly in close combat.
The Defenders had strong stances and determined expressions as they planted their feet deep into the snow and pointed their weapons unwaveringly ahead.
But those behind them, the mages in particular. were shaking in their boots, internally dreading every single metre crossed by the enemy.
"Archers fire!" Thankfully the command structure was still in full swing. The moment Frost and the cavalry corps crossed a certain threshold an enemy officer ordered for a devasting volley.
Twang!
With an immediate response hundreds perhaps thousands of arrows and or their equivalent were launched from the central belt of the enemy army.
"Arrows incoming!" Casper roared and in return half of the cavalry corps retrieved their shields from the rear of their battle mounts while the rest either withdrew blades to cut down the approaching arrows or took shelter by those with shields. None of them however decreased their speed rather the promise of arrows seemed to give them a boost.
Frost given his B-rank capabilities scoffed at the deluge of arrows, with a simple swing of his glaive and a couple hastily prepared magic shields he and Kiba received not a single scratch. Unfortunately not everyone was as lucky.
Don! Don! Don!
Several soldiers from the left wing faltered under the fierce stream of arrows, their shields failing to block, breaking under the assault or their swords being too slow to chop them all down.
With reluctant cries and roars of anguish these brave men and women were the first to fall.
The enemy's hastily launched volley was actually rather strategic, individuals such as Frost and Casper received only the minimum coverage whereas those weaker received a near endless deluge.
With every solider that fell those behind had to not only ignore their grief but avoid the fallen corpses lest they wished to be the next victim.
A poorly trained outfit would likely crumble under such an onslaught, their deceased comrades driving them into a killing frenzy, destroying their formation and turning them into easy targets...The War Ursa Battalion was not like that.
With skilled manoeuvring they easily avoided their fallen comrades and kept their speed. The deadly and imposing arrow formation was still solid and moving in for the kill.
Time until impact 5 seconds.
With arrows falling down upon them endlessly and magic spells falling close behind Casper gauged the distance to the enemy. A moment later he nodded and craned his neck upwards.
"Garow!" Kiba grunted in reply, locking his gaze on the enemy. With the two of them working in concert their strength was enough to take on someone in the upper stages let alone an early stage newbie like this one.
The key wasn't just killing the enemy but to kill them quickly and without much injury. With this point in mind Frost didn't hold back and neither did Kiba.
"[Hammering beast's charge]" Frost's blue tinged internal energy merged with the yellow energy from Kiba to generate a green almost emerald coloured energy that elevated their combined strength. With a form that appeared 50% larger than normal Kiba leapt at the enemy with his limbs outstretched, prepared to rend the foe apart with his razor sharp claws while Frost pulled back his glaive for a valiant thrust.
A layer of ice chakra protected the shaft and bonded it to his hand while cold flames danced along the blade edge, forming ice crystals in the air as it passed by. With an injection of aura his glaive was ready to pierce through even the thickest of hides.
"Eh!" Not expecting to be violently attacked the enemy B-rank was caught by surprise and barely had time to defend himself.
Ting!
The enemy monster was from the large horned drake tribe and in order to protect himself from the combined might of Frost and Kiba he curled up his large body, hoping to rely on his durable to scales to endure the attack. Unfortunately he underestimated the force behind their attack.
Kiba's claws though tough and sharp were still those of a C-rank monster, they rubbed against his scales generating a metallic sound, scratching them and even prying off a few but in the end failing to deal any serious damage.
"Grrrr!" The young tiger was quite dissatisfied by this.
Squelch!
On Frost's end however the result was far different. The sharp tip of his glaive, aided by his aura and chakra pierced through the outer layer of scales and continued to sear and pry open hardened flesh, only stopping after ravishing the monster's left lung and hitting the back of his ribs.
"Tsk!" Frost frustratingly clicked his tongue, he missed. His original target was the monster's heart, but its size and physique threw off his aim.
The enemy officer coughed up blood in response, his face paling and a cold shiver running down his spine. His durable scales were pierced through so easily, he had underestimated his enemy, a mistake that would likely cost him his life.
"Fuck! Get over here and help me take down this asshole" Fearing for his life the enemy monster called for aid.
"Tsk! Kiba again." This was exactly why Frost wanted to take down the enemy in a single blow, this was no longer a duel but a large free for all.
The operation was supposed to last no more than 15 minutes so as to capitalise on their strengths and diminish their weaknesses. The longer cavalry was tied up the less effective they became.
Frost spent almost two minutes to take down the enemy elite monster as well as those that came to his aid. 40 seconds to rejoin with Colonel Casper, another few minutes to take down some C-rank officers dotted around and another couple minutes to plunge headfirst through the flanks and into the heart of the enemy ranks, drawing ever closer towards the A-rank Generals and upper ranked officers.
Wisely however Casper and Colonel Ridge didn't delve in too far, merely teasing the enemy, provoking them until their faces turned red in anger.
By this time the operation was past the halfway point and over 20,000 enemies had been killed while no more than 40 had been lost amongst the left wing and 50 by the right, a clear and decisive victory.
Filled with hubris, pride and perhaps arrogance many among the cavalry corps started to let down their guard, relishing in the joy of their invulnerability. Find exclusive stories on empire
A very, very dangerous state to be in when it comes to war.