Chapter 35

Chapter 35: This Place is Insane. (3)

It was fundamental in battle to choose an advantageous battlefield rather than being dragged into one.

“I’ll tell you how we’ll fight.”

As Ghislain’s explanation continued, the expressions on the mercenaries’ faces changed by the second.

Some still seemed uneasy, but most looked impressed.

This young employer had already made preparations for a situation like this.

“A-amazing!”

“How did you know to prepare in advance?”

“I’ll trust you, Young Lord!”

The mercenaries reignited their fighting spirit.

The belief that they could indeed win the battle if they followed his plan started to blossom again.

“Get plenty of rest during the day. Once the battle starts, it’ll be a long night.”

Following Ghislain’s orders, the mercenaries quietly rested during the day, replenishing their energy.

As night fell, the Pallors came again and started taking the lamps.

The mercenaries no longer reacted and simply bowed their heads as if frightened.

Before long, only a few lamps remained. The field of vision had significantly diminished.

Crrrrr...

The Pallors left once again, their eerie laughter lingering behind.

And then, the next night.

Whoosh!

The last lamp disappeared, and the entire area was swallowed by complete darkness.

Even though they had cut down some trees, the forest was so dense that the faint moonlight couldn’t even illuminate the person next to them.

Crrrrr...

Everyone held their breath, remaining motionless in their spots.

The silence was so heavy that not even the sound of breathing could be heard.

Shrrrk, shrrrk.

Finally, the Pallors began to approach.

With all light gone, the Pallors had nothing to fear.

As hundreds of Pallors surrounded them, the mercenaries began to sweat coldly.

A primal fear surged within them as they felt the presence of something invisible standing before them.

Crrrrr...

They could feel the Pallors moving slowly in front of them, skin tingling.

Now, those creatures would either kill them or drag them off as prey.

At that moment, Ghislain shouted.

“It’s time!”

At his words, everyone ripped apart the objects they were holding.

Fwoosh!

White orbs, each about the size of a child’s head, instantly floated up into the sky, radiating light.

As over a hundred orbs floated into the air, the area lit up as bright as day.

What they had torn was the scroll for the 1st-circle spell, “Light.”

Ghislain had brought boxes full of them as his hidden card to deal with the Pallors.

Kaaaaargh!

The Pallors shrieked in agony, shielding their eyes from the light.

The mercenaries were stunned as they saw the creatures now revealed by the light.

“Wh-what... they look like this...?”

Though humanoid, the creatures were incredibly tall and emaciated.

They had four vertically slit eyes with pointed ears on the sides. Their mouths were torn up to their ears, revealing sharp teeth.

Their faces lacked a nose, with only two nostrils embedded into the skin, and disgusting, bulging veins covered their cheeks.

Where their hands should have been, only long, sharp, scythe-like horns extended.

Several long, wriggling tentacles hung from their arms.

These were likely the tentacles they had used to steal the lamps.

“Hurry and attack!”

Ghislain shouted at the mercenaries, who hesitated at the sight of the Pallors’ grotesque appearance.

“Charge! Attack!”

By now, Kaor and the Cerberus Mercenary Corps were already gleefully plunging their weapons into the bodies of the Pallors.

The other mercenaries quickly followed suit, drawing their weapons and launching attacks.

Unlike the previous night when arrows had passed through them, the Pallors’ bodies were now taking hits relentlessly.

“Kuhaha! I’ve been itching for this! You bastards!”

Kaor let out a crazed laugh, grabbing the Pallors by their faces and stabbing each one in the neck with his own hands.

Gillian, too, swung his axe with deadly precision, smashing the Pallors’ heads without mercy.

They unleashed the mana they had been suppressing and went on a killing spree, taking down the Pallors one by one.

The mercenaries, momentarily forgetting they were in the middle of a battle, muttered to themselves in disbelief.

“What... what the hell? He’s even stronger than usual!”

“I already thought he was amazing, but... is he actually stronger than I realized?”

Until now, Ghislain had only used one core in fights against monsters.

Exploding both cores put immense strain on his body, so he reserved it for only the most dire situations.

But now, despite the risk to his body, he had no choice but to unleash his full power.

There were simply too many Pallors; if he conserved his strength, the mercenaries would be slaughtered.

Slash, slash, slash!

With every flash of the red line, the number of Pallors dwindled rapidly.

The Cerberus Mercenary Corps, encouraged by the sight, began pushing the monsters back relentlessly.

“What are you doing? Are you just going to watch? We need to fight too!”

One mercenary shouted, spurring the others in formation to press forward against the enemy.

The shield-bearing mercenaries blocked the Pallors’ attacks, creating openings, while others thrust their spears and swords through the gaps.

Of course, they weren’t professional soldiers, so their teamwork wasn’t perfect.

Sometimes, their timing was off, causing the shields to falter, and their attacks didn’t land properly.

However, with Gillian and Kaor assisting them, the mercenaries could maintain their formation and continue their attacks, even if clumsily.

“Push them back! Push harder!”

The mercenaries, growing accustomed to their coordinated assault, pressed the Pallors with their shields while tightening their formation.

As time passed, the number of enemies visibly dwindled.

Kraaaah!

The Pallors realized they had fallen into a trap.

They were invincible in the darkness, but their entire species could face extinction if the current situation continued.

Kraaaah!

The leader of the Pallors, who had been attacking the mercenaries stealthily from the rear, sent a signal to its kin to retreat.

Though it was smaller in size than the other Pallors and didn’t appear like a leader, it was, in fact, the most powerful.

The leader glanced around, signaling its orders, and began retreating.

As long as it survived, the species could thrive again.

Just as it was about to make its escape, a human came charging toward it, destroying everything in his path.

This human’s blood-red eyes shone menacingly as he approached like lightning.

It was already too late for the leader to flee.

Deciding to kill the human first and then escape, the Pallor leader let out a screech and swung its scythe.

However, the scythe merely sliced through empty air.

Sensing a presence above, the leader lifted its head.

The human with the glowing red eyes was descending with a vicious smile; sword aimed downward.

“So, you were the leader.”

Ghislain was certain this creature had been commanding the Pallors’ hunt.

As he fought, his sharp eyes caught sight of the Pallor leader seemingly giving orders.

Slash!

With a merciless strike, Ghislain’s sword cleaved the leader in half, from head to body.

No ordinary monster could withstand the mana released from two cores exploding.

Kraaaaah!

With the leader dead, the Pallors fell into chaos, screaming and scattering in all directions.

“Everyone, get them!”

“Waaaaaah!”

“Kill them all!”

The mercenaries threw down their shields at Ghislain’s command and charged at the Pallors.

Some mercenaries were wounded by the frantic movements of the dying Pallors, but their rage drove them forward, eagerly stabbing their weapons into the creatures.

Kraaaak!

In the end, the Pallors were shredded to pieces, their bodies collapsing in heaps.

Only a few managed to escape into the darkness beyond the reach of the light.

“Stop! Don’t chase them!”

Even though only a handful of Pallors remained, there was no way for the mercenaries to fight them in the darkness.

The excited mercenaries reluctantly stopped their pursuit as Ghislain called them back.

“Haaa...”

Ghislain let out a deep breath.

Suddenly, his body swayed. The aftereffects of using two cores at once were hitting him.

Although the battle had ended, no one spoke, and they all turned their attention to Ghislain.

But soon after, the mercenaries, one by one, let out triumphant cheers and surrounded him.

“We won! We actually won!”

“Hahahaha! We’re alive! We made it!”

Filled with excitement, the mercenaries shouted in celebration.