Chapter 688 (Patreon)

The battle had started hours ago yet unlike most of the recent battles to happen during the war the elites had yet to get involved let alone the champions. It had gotten to the point where the battle had moved miles from where the engagement had first started and throughout the beastkin had held the advantage despite the Republic’s losses being low. 

“We need the elites to engage.” The Republic general made the request for the third time since the battle had begun. “My people are dying while you are just looking out for your own.” 

“We need to delay the escalation of the battle.” The prince remained stoic, since almost all of the elites present were Gryndor soldiers, they were waiting for his go ahead regardless of what the general would say. “If us champions were to join the fight now it won’t be long until we are all dead.” 

While the republic general was having issues dealing with the prince of a foreign nation, the beastkin commander was having issues dealing with a prince of his own. 

“Your Highness, we should push the war forward, without two of their champions here they have no chance of winning.” The commander argued. 

“Not yet.” The prince growled softly with a grin on his lion jaws. “He can’t get away. I will bring my father the head of the human who took his eye. Keep moving with the surround.” 

Slowly but surely over the next hour the situation got worse and worse for the Republic as the beastkin army was starting to get a proper surround in place, with their retreat path about to be cut off the prince had no choice but to have their elites finally join the battle. 

“Focus on buying time.” The prince made sure all of them were aware of their objective. They didn’t need to kill the enemy, they needed to clear the path for retreat and prolong the battle. 

Even as the elites joined and their spells gave the Republic army more breathing room than they had in the last two hours both princes as well as the general and the commander knew the timeline for the end of the battle had moved up as the beastkin elites also joined the fight. 

Since Gryndor’s elites were focused on clearing a path for retreat it meant there were few of them at the front when the beastkin elites hit and the difference in power shattered the vanguard. Without the vanguard the fighting retreat of the Republic army had turned into a full on retreat. 

“They already sent their champions ahead to surround us.” Evelyn commented as she inspected the surroundings. “What should we do? If we try we might be able to break through their surround.” 

“No.” The prince shook his head. “That’s exactly what they are expecting, it's what they are counting on. The whole reason why we managed to drag this battle out as long as we did was because they were making sure we couldn’t do that.” 

“We have to fight.” Evelyn said with a hint of resolve. “We’ll lose.” 

“We’ll take as many as we can with us when we do” The prince said. “Unlike the rest of our forces we’re not fighting to prolong the fight, we fight to take as many of them with us as we can.” 

With the elites joining the fight the battle was going to be over in less than an hour. The Republic formation was in shambles, the military discipline that had let them keep a fighting retreat up for more than four hours total crumbled like aged cheese and the soldiers turned to run for their lives.

That’s when Gryndor’s champions took the field. They already knew they were surrounded so there was no point in trying to run, instead they decided to give their own people a chance to run as the stuck together and mimicked the beastkin elites and smashed into their vanguard while Evelyn kept her chanted spell at the ready to blunt the beastkin champion’s attack that surely soon to follow. 

The power of the champions was easily noticeable as only the strongest of the elites could even react to them joining the fray. Evelyn stood at the ready in the center of the formation with the prince right next to her ready to stop any assassin while the three physical champions formed a whirlwind of death around them. 

Their domination didn’t last long. The beastkin champions were ready and eager to join the fight so once Gryndor’s champions made a move they only took a moment to ensure the prince wasn't using the rest of the champions as a diversion to make his escape. Once they saw the prince among the champions they attacked.

Those few moments of hesitation however cost the beastkin forces all of their momentum and they were forced to disengage from the Republic army or be caught in the battle between champions. 

Where before the republic general had issues getting the elites to join the battle it was getting them to run that was now an issue. All of them had seen the dedication their champions had to keeping them safe in all the previous battles so leaving them for what was essentially dead went against their instincts, despite knowing how little they could do to help. 

Evelyn’s defensive spell was quickly used the moment she noticed the incoming attack. A wall of earth surrounds the Gryndor champions as a large amount of Mana shaped the ground around them, not only to form the wall but also to reinforce it.

“Their mages tried to trap us.” Evelyn managed a smile despite their circumstances, she predicted they would try something like that so she specifically cast a spell that would make use of any other spell looking to reinforce the earth to strengthen her own wall. 

Despite drawing some power from the enemy spells the four spells that hit still cracked and the wall all the way through leaving nothing but rubble all around them as the enemy physical champions moved in for the kill. 

“No need to hold back now.” Despite the danger and their changes the prince was still grinning as the fight was starting to heat up and he pulled out one of the tricks his champions had been keeping hidden for now since they were fighting separately. 

As the enemy champions charged in close four champions met them while Evelyn prepared her next spell. “You’ll watch your own people die before I take your head.” The lion beastkin called out as seven physical champions descended on the four of them. 

The prince didn’t take the bait and focused on the enemy in front of him while keeping an eye out for the enemy mages.

The next few moments were tense as the prince did his best to not only keep up with two physical champions in melee combat but also use his own use of Mana as a cover for the spell Evelyn was casting.

Most of the beastkin champions were weaker but they had a two to one advantage. In the seconds it took Evelyn to chant her second spell of the fight cuts and stab wounds slowly added up on the bodies of the four champions protecting her. 

“Now!.” Her yell was the signal that she had finished the spell. 

The prince and two of the three champions dove for the ground at Evelyn’s feet as a massive burst of fire erupted around. The last champion however had a different role. Over the last few years Evelyn and the captain of the third Squad had been battling it out and swapping positions constantly as he and Evelyn one upped each other after, with her steadily getting better at incorporating the Curse Mana he generated into her own spells. 

The erupting wall of flames were already hot enough to force the enemy champions back but seeing as the other four champions were defenseless they had deemed the damage as acceptable. None of them had expected the Curse Mana that was added to the flames. 

Black flames swallowed the seven enemy champions forcing them to retreat as the flesh burned and the Curse Mana soaked into their flesh. The cursed spell took all of the beastkin by surprise, even their mages held back on their spells since it was a known fact that launching spells blindly into cursed spells could end very badly. 

The beastkin high general had arrived moments after the wave of cursed fire erupted around Gryndor’s champions. While the spell was indeed a surprise for him as well as he looked towards the battle from a decent distance his mind was already adapting to the new capabilities of the Gryndor champions.

“His rash actions might actually pay off.” The tiger beastkin growled as he took in the battlefield. “He’s going to be insufferable, though he might actually have earned it.” 

The high general still thought the move had been too risky but it seemed like the risk was paying off. The lion beastkin’s combat intuition showing as he didn’t hesitate the moment the black flames burnt out to charge in himself, taking advantage of the moment where all of Gryndor’s champions were out of position since they needed to dodge the eruption of cursed flames as well. The beastkin’s claws dug deep into Evelyn’s guts. 

Whatever the lion beastkin’s next move would have been had been interrupted as a roar resounded from above. The high general making out the shape of Aurexion above the battlefield a moment before A blur all but appeared next to the beastkin prince. Ajax’s Pseudo-Mthyic Skill already activated and his axe already in motion as he took off the lion beastkin’s arm at the shoulder before a Vibration empowered kick to the chest shattered three ribs and broke four more launching the beastkin away from the mage. 

They might have been a little late but Ajax and Aurexion had finally arrived.