Far across, the eastern front of the battlefield roared with chaos.
Commander Hale fought desperately, struggling to withstand the relentless attacks of his opponent.
With the Blood Knight caged in a block of ice, he once again found himself at the mercy of his attacker. He was getting overwhelmed within seconds, and by the look of things, the outcome of the battle had already been decided.
Blocking another brutal strike from the metal spiked ball once again, he breathed heavily with exhaustion.
Just as he was about to move backwards, a sudden sharp pain ripped through his gut. Blood and entrails spilt out from his stomach as the brute viciously pulled the heavy chain back, ripping more flesh from his body with a cruel grin.
Hale's eyes widened in horror as he fell into his pool of blood, life fading from his eyes.
Elsewhere in the battlefield, still locked with one of the enemy commanders, Varick received shocking news of Hale's death.
Gritting his teeth, his expression darkened as he quickly scanned the battlefield.
He noticed another shocking revelation. The General had brought along with her fierce warriors riding atop beasts. They were already causing havoc across their ranks.
"That damn Prince..." Varick growled under his breath. "He really did screw us. To think he ran away. It's over... we need to pull back and–"
His thoughts were cut off by the trembling ground. Hooves thundered in the distance. A massive cloud of dust rose on the horizon, barely hiding the force charging forward.
Leading them was a pale figure with white hair tied in a ponytail. His crimson armour clung to him like a second skin. Two warriors rode beside him, each exuding power.
Alexander's eyes were slightly fixed on the translucent screen before him as they advanced.
Just before launching his charge, he had received a system quest.
[System Quest: Your presence his needed in the battlefield. Turn the tide of the battle and secure victory]
[Additional Quest: Take control of the Drakarhold kingdom]
Reading through, Alexander clicked his tongue.
Winning the battle was hard enough, but taking control of an entire kingdom? That was a challenge on a whole other level. To succeed, he needed to win while keeping both armies as intact as possible.
First of all, he had to win the battle at all costs and, at the same time, minimise the casualties on both sides.
After all, a kingdom with no military force wasn't worth ruling. Not in a world where power was everything.
He quickly checked through the system skills.
[Subjugation: Instinctively influence the will of living beings]
[Mind Shackle: Enslave weaker minds of beings into servitude]
Going through the runic stones, he discovered something. At the front of the runes, a new tab glowed faintly.
[Lightning rune: Uncommon grade]
[Water rune: Common grade...]
Finally, the last was what caught his interest.
[Nullification rune: Rare grade]
As the rune grade increased, so did the effect duration along with new perks. Staring at the Nullification Rune, his lips curled into a sly smirk.
A plan slowly formed in his head as he rode forward.
Closing the system, Alexander drew his sword.
"Commander Ren... Captain Dylan. You're with me. We're going for the General." He ordered.
"The rest reinforce the line. I believe that once their general falls, their morale will crumble."
Storming into the battlefield, Alexander's blade flashed, cutting off a soldier's head cleanly.
Acting as the cavalry, their impact was instantly felt in the battle. Commander Ren was a force on his own, tearing through warriors and beasts with terrifying ease.
Captain Dylan moved with deadly precision, his mace slamming into soldiers with monstrous strength.
The remainining warriors–the strongest of the elite force–descended on the battlefield, their presence reigniting the shattered morale of their comrades.
Issuing a sharp command, Dylan broke off from the warriors joining up with Ivan and Ren as they pushed deeper into enemy lines.
They continued forward, cutting down every obstacle that stood in their path.
Alexander had quickly dismissed his blood summons after joining the battle. Though they had done quite the job filling his blood core halfway.
[Blood Core: 550/1000]
Finally, their opponent appeared before them as if realising she was the target.
She stood amidst the chaos like a war goddess, her short blades gleaming at her sides.
"General Freya... you look beautiful as ever. But I think… red would suit you better," Ivan said with a smile, eyeing her as he casually jumped down from his horse.
He walked forward, Ren following closely behind.
Freya raised an eyebrow. "Well... if it isn't the Crippled Prince... what brings you far west?"
Surprisingly, the general was a young lady, barely in her twenties. Her pale golden hair shimmered and swayed gently behind a firm back as she replied coolly.
Seeing them exchange words casually, one would think they were old acquaintances. But they were far from that.
They knew their clash was the deciding factor of the battle. And each carried a responsibility: to win the battle at all costs.
"How's your brother? I'm pretty sure he's having quite the trouble ruling the kingdom your father left." Alexander said.
"Well, that's neither of us concern, right? We've got our job to complete." Freya replied in a neutral tone.
"Touching what belongs to the Eternal Dynasty is unwise." Alexander warned, entering a tensed eye contest with her.
Freya scoffed, a strange glint flickering in her eyes. "I doubt your father cares. Sending you here proves that."
"How sad..." Ivan muttered with a frown. His gaze fell on the towering brute as he stepped forward, standing beside her. His weapon, a spiked flail, was soaked in blood and was slowly dripping to the ground
"One of your rats bled on my chains." The brute sneered, revealing a set of yellow teeth.
"It'll be a pleasure adding the exalted Crippled Prince blood to it... and having his head as a trophy for my bitches! Hahaha!"
Ren's eyes narrowed dangerously as he stared at him.
Krazoth, the huge brute, gripped his chains tightly as his gaze landed on Ren, his grin widening.
"If it isn't The Executioner, hahaha! Who would have thought you'd come this far to die."
"Don't worry... I'll let you watch as I turn your Prince to a fucking cripple once again!" He said bursting into laughter.
"Krazoth." Freya voice was low but tinged with a silent warning.
The brute reluctantly fell silent, licking his lip before dipping his fingers into his mouth as if trying to pull out something from between his teeth.
Gripping her short swords tightly, Freya's presence grew colder with the temperature plummeting deeper.
"No more words!" The sooner we end this, the fewer men die."
"Easier said than done," Ivan muttered, also taking a stance.
"Dylan, deal with the brute. Ren and I will handle Freya."
"I don't think things will be going your way." A voice echoed calmly.
Their footsteps echoed loudly as they stepped forward.
Alexander eyes narrowed as a sly grin spread across his face.
"So the mutt finally reveals himself..."
"...Took you long enough."