Chapter 588 - 588 - Thump!

From atop the partially demolished wall, standing by the side of his resistance force, Aiden, -though unbeknownst to him, his cover is already somewhat blown because of the mental connections he created with his captains-, were frowning as he looked at the lines of disciplined mass of oppressor forces of the Temple Guards.

From the newly opened feature in the system, which was vastly similar to the managing view in Haven, Aiden had a fairly good understanding of the strength and power they were facing off against.

Aiden was currently analyzing all the information of the three separate groups. From his initial short tooltip, the system had finished processing the extra detail and presented it to its host in a similar manner as to how it did for his own forces.

Like it was shown before, the opposing army was separated into three groups, with two having roughly the same size and strength and the central, middle one being slightly stronger and larger.

Also, even without the information showing, Aiden could clearly see the shining, sparkling steel and metal armors and weaponry each soldier was donning. From the distance they looked like shiny sparkling carts filled with precious minerals, being toiled closer and closer to them.

Squinting his eyes, Aiden first looked at the first group, which he now named 'Infantry #1'.

[Group: #1 -> Infantry #1

Efficiency: 105%

Power: 275 -> 288.7

Toughness: 91 -> 95.5

Quality: Tier 1+ (Equipment Bonus 5%)

Composition: 

Officer (Power Level: 5) : 1;

Soldier (Power Level: 3) : 90

Threat Level: Medium

Group Skills:

Sword and Board (Level 3), 

Sword Mastery: Advanced (Level 4), 

Mace Mastery: Basic (Level 8), 

Axe Mastery: Basic (Level 7), 

Spear Mastery: Advanced (Level 4),

Draconic Skink Tenacity (Level -), 

Basic Regeneration (Level 3),

Martial Arts (Level 2)

Active Effects: 

Authority of the Ancient One (Level -),

Under the General's Command (Level -)]

Now that the system finished analyzing the information, there was a lot of extra information readily available to process for Aiden. For one, the Power level was borderline frightening, with the group's efficiency standing at a terrifying 105% percent. Second, it was clear that compared to the same type of soldier's, Aiden's Infantry, these soldiers were better trained and much more disciplined. Each of their weapon proficiencies vastly overshadowed those of the resistance's, with their sword and spear handling even reaching the middle stages of the advanced rank. 

Yet, none of these mattered truly. What was the most surprising were the two effects they had. Though Aiden couldn't get detailed information of what the two effects truly meant, he was fairly certain, that they were important clues in overcoming this massive trial and keeping his own men and dear Tolliah safe.

The rest of the invading army, the other two groups had similar details on them, with the exact same Active Effects present in each. The main difference, besides the numerical data, was that the second group with mostly the same size had Long Bow Mastery instead of being proficient with Maces. For the central, and the now aptly named 'Core Group', Aiden saw active abilities, skills for the first time. Also, it had terrifyingly high efficiency, something that Aiden just couldn't comprehend.

[Group: #2 -> Core Group

Efficiency: 150%

Power: 395 -> 592.5

Toughness: 126

Quality: Tier 1+

Composition: 

Unnamed (Power Level 10): 1;

Officer (Power Level: 5) : 5;

Soldier (Power Level: 3) : 120

Group Skills:

Sword and Board (Level 3), 

Sword Mastery: Advanced (Level 4), 

Mace Mastery: Basic (Level 8), 

Axe Mastery: Basic (Level 7), 

Spear Mastery: Advanced (Level 4),

Draconic Skink Tenacity (Level -), 

Basic Regeneration (Level 3),

Martial Arts (Level 2),

Disciplined Charge (Level 3),

Undying Will (Level 5),

Berserker's Rage (Level 4)

Active Effects: 

Authority of the Ancient One (Level -),

Under the General's Command (Level -)]

Apart from the three new skills, Disciplined Charge, Undying Will, and Berserker's Rage, the most intriguing tidbit was undoubtedly the new, unnamed tier of a single unit with a shocking Power Level to its name.

Still, from the skill list and effects, Aiden still wasn't certain that this single individual, this monstrous entity, was actually the General he was looking for or not. From the looks of it, even this creature, currently unnamed in the system, was not free from the Mental Shackles and control either. He, she or it was actually in the same boat as the others, making Aiden wonder if it was just a special sort of creature, a so-called 'trump card', so to speak.

However, this meant that the true leader of the group and his subordinates were not part of any of the visible forces, and were somewhere else instead. If that were the case, the question remained: Where is the General? What did it look like? Why can't he see it clearly in the system's map?

—

Suddenly, the sound of a horn being blown, and blaring across the vast empty plain, brought Aiden back to reality and put an end to his pondering. 

Reacting to the loud call for battle, the three distinct masses in the distance slowly but steadily began to move. 

The central column marched forward in a steady rhythm, the ground shook under the weight of their steel-plated boots hitting the cavern grounds. The 3rd group on the other side, which Aiden simply named 'Infantry #2' in the system and the first Infantry moved ahead, albeit at a slightly slower speed, quickly forming up their most likely already trained and well-practiced charging formation. Though the Core Group was undoubtedly their most important force, their abilities made them the perfect front liners, the best solution to breaking through their enemy's defenses.

Also, since the group was mostly wielding, long lances together with a one-handed single iron shield, they should be more than adequate to fulfill their objectives and crush the seemingly thin, single line of tower shields blocking entry to the rest of their invasive force.

*Thump!* *Thump!*

Their feet hit the ground in a practiced, well-trained regimen, causing the numerous small pebbles and dust to fly behind their advance. 

Noticing their advance, Aiden raised his right arm in the air, giving the warning signal to the resistance forces to get ready, the dreaded time to fight for their survival was now rapidly closing in on them. There was no more ground for hesitation or retreat… not that any one had any such thoughts at all. Even the little Tolliah, standing by her lonesome behind the forces in the dark Cavern entrance were looking excited, rather than pensive quite surprisingly.

*Thump!* *Thump!* *Thump!* *Thump!*

Soon the rhythm of how their feet hit the ground, turned faster; the steady march was slowly transforming into a gallop eventually resulting in a full-blown rush. Their Group Skill now in full effect, the [Disciplined Charge] was a terrifying sight to behold…

---

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