Chapter 88 - Aftermath

Zelos began to walk sideways as if he was trying to study the enemy. Thanks to that, he began to hear some of the enemies around, they stayed quiet until now, but now they decided to interfere while their leader just studied Zelos.

“Are you planning to take a tea break mid-duel, or are you just enjoying the scenery?”

“I’ve seen snails move faster than you in a duel!”

 “Come on, I don’t have all day! I’ve got places to be and people to kill!”

“If you spent as much time fighting as you do twirling your sword, maybe you’d actually stand a chance!”

Zelos ignored the insults since he couldn’t care less about the opinions of others, even more so when those guys wanted to take his life. Little by little, he circled around the enemy and got closer at the same time. 

Eventually, the enemy assumed that Zelos was just trying to buy time and waste his, so he charged ready to swing his spear, but soon Zelos charged as well and then began to bombard the enemy with side attacks. 

While swinging his sword left and right viciously, Zelos saw the enemy’s expression changing for one of surprise thanks to the continuous charges and the weight behind his attacks. Before long, the enemy captain reached the end of the encirclement and his underlings were forced to move away and create more distance.

Still, the enemy captain soon gritted his teeth because being forced backward like that in front of his allies would ruin his reputation… he suddenly trusted his spear forward and knocked Zelos’s attack and then stopped his momentum. However, Zelos raised his left foot and then kicked the ground with his right one. He pushed the enemy more and more…

“You little… where does that strength come from?” 

Zelos smiled and then used his charging technique again and pushed the enemy backward… the enemy jumped and then changed his posture… he was taking too much time against a wounded enemy. 

The enemy captain's anger reached the peak when Zelos moved his sword to his left side while still holding with his right arm… that stance was completely stupid, Zelos was full of openings. 

In the end, the enemy lowered his posture even more and tensed his body… he was determined to impale Zelos. When he charged, Zelos wobbled a bit and then the enemy found a chance since that was a clear sign of blood loss. Still, that had been faint. Using all his might, Zelos used his charging technique and in the next moment, he passed by the enemy… a gush of blood erupted from his left arm as a wound in the shape of a line emerged on him. However, soon a lot more blood began to emerge from the stomach of the enemy.

The enemy captain fell forward and Zelos immediately ran away in the opposite direction. Zelos discovered a way to improve his charging technique. Instead of exerting his full power, he learned to harness only half of it, effectively reducing the strain on his body. In duels like the one he faced, this adaptation proved perfect. With this modified technique, he could change directions in the blink of an eye, catching opponents off guard and delivering devastating attacks with precision.

As he executed the maneuver, he witnessed its effectiveness firsthand. With a swift movement, Zelos altered his trajectory mid-charge, bringing his blade down with unparalleled speed and accuracy. The result was a deep gash that cleaved through half of the enemy’s belly, leaving him wounded and reeling from the unexpected assault.

This newfound control over his charging technique allowed Zelos to strike with deadly efficiency, exploiting the slightest opening in his opponent’s defenses. It was a game-changer, granting him a significant advantage in the heat of battle. However, the trouble was far from over…

Zelos decided to escape, but the enemies had other plans for him. He ignored them all and kept charging while swinging his sword viciously. Still, his eyesight was starting to get hazy, thanks to the blood loss. When Zelos had a hard time mustering strength, he suddenly saw an opening in front of him in the middle of the enemy’s lines, and then he saw Irlan and Kaitrine there, covered in blood.

“Hurry up, Zelos!” 

Zelos didn’t have the energy to do anything else… he just walked toward his allies, who were at some point sent to create an exit path for him. It looked like they knew that he would win and escape in that direction.

It felt like a load had fallen on Zelos’s back or from it… since as soon as he reached them, everything turned dark for Zelos…

… …

Irlan opened his eyes widely when he saw Zelos falling with his face into a pond of mud and blood. For a moment, he thought that he had died, but soon Irlan saw the light in his eyes and then went to carry him.

“What the heck… how are you so heavy?”

“It is his sword and those balls on his waist,”

After Kaitrine pointed that, she took those from Zelos’s body. Even while unconscious, he refused to let go of his sword, but she eventually managed to do it. She had a hard time carrying all that, to the point that she couldn’t even activate her trait. To make things worse, the enemies were starting to catch up. Fortunately, some arrows flew at their heads and stopped them once and for all…

Irlan turned while carrying Zelos and soon saw Edea covering for them. He nodded, and then those two left the front lines. A couple of minutes later, they reached Liry, Heirina, and Edea where… they saw Zelos fighting, but they didn’t think that his wounds would be that bad. He dealt with three of the enemy’s captains in less than ten minutes, after all. They thought that it had been easy for him. 

 “Edea and Irlan look after him in the tent and clean his wounds. I still have to oversee this battle. Fortunately, it looks like things are already turning in our favor.”

 As the battle raged on, the defending side suffered losses, with half of their captains and three of their elite soldiers falling in combat thanks to those archers. However, despite these setbacks, they fared far better than their adversaries.

The reason for this became apparent as the battle progressed. The reinforcements that arrived for the enemy side had been led by the very individuals Zelos had targeted and eliminated. Without their guidance, the reinforcements were reduced to little more than a mindless mob, lacking a goal and coordination.

Among the fallen was a key figure who wielded a large horn, which he used to transmit signals across the battlefield. This horn had been crucial in alerting the enemy forces when to advance or retreat. With its bearer gone, the enemy found themselves without a means of coordinating their movements effectively.

At the same time, upon realizing that he was alone and without his companions, the final captain decided to retreat, imagining that he would become the next target.

In the end, the battle becomes a war of attrition since the enemies don’t want to retreat no matter what since they hate the defenders with passion. Still, the quality of warriors on the defending side is better, and thanks to Liry’s strategies of encirclement attacking the flanks and the back of the enemies with cavalry, they eventually win and force the enemies out of that area. Still, they realize that they won’t last for long if they let the enemies keep pushing them around.

… … 

In the end, Zelos only woke up three days later. He frowned a bit after not recognizing his surroundings, but soon he recalled what happened.

“I messed up, huh?” 

Zelos’s strategy to make use of his trait worked, he got rid of three powerful opponents in a row, but he lost three days of training thanks to the blood loss. Once again, he was reminded that he wasn’t immortal… far from it, he was very mortal. The feeling of weakness in his body proved that.

In any case, Zelos needed rest, but he needed food as well, so he forced himself to get up and leave the tent. He was surprised to see that most of the camp had disappeared. Those who stayed behind looked like they were in much worse condition than him.

“You need to rest to recover properly. Those are Liry orders this time around.”

Zelos saw Heirina approaching with some rations with her… that kind of food was really depressing, so Zelos couldn’t help but sigh. Which made Heirina annoyed.

“Just lay down already.”

“What happened?” 

“I will only tell you if you lay down and rest. You might not like rations but there is plenty here for you.”

Zelos decided to obey, feeling the weight of exhaustion coming down on him. He made his way to a spot where he could lay down, and as he closed his eyes, darkness enveloped him.

When Zelos regained consciousness, Heirina was there to fill him in on what had transpired while he was out. The battle had continued to rage until the end of the day. Without their leaders to lead them, the enemy warriors had allowed their hatred to consume them. They fought with reckless plans, driven by sheer fury.

As a result, both sides suffered heavy losses. While the defenders managed to hold their ground, they paid a steep price. Four thousand of their soldiers fell in battle, victims of the enemy’s unrelenting onslaught. It was a grim reminder of the brutality of war, where victory often came at a staggering cost.

“After that, Liry sent the remaining captains and the soldiers that still could fight the remains of the enemy’s army around the villages in the area. They can’t use anything or anyone around since they killed everyone, so our side can chase them without worries. It is their turn to learn a bit of extermination.”