Parallel Vol. 5

Chapter 31: Berserkers

[11:15]

While the advance party struggled on the Sin Floor, the three-nations coalition led by Absalon faced might challenges of their own. It seemed like every undead in Drakase had answered the call of war. The unending, black tide was akin to a natural disaster – never-ending and all-consuming.

By this point in the battle, every party had thrown out their trump cards, leaving the battle to the fate of the meatgrinders. Throughout the battle, every nation showcased its unique skills in various ways.

The indomitable Rosen army, of which the Maggots played a huge part, numbered the largest amongst the forces. These brave men and women occupied the vast majority of the frontlines, and as a result, took on the brunt of the undead army's attack. Despite suffering massive casualties, they somehow kept the tide at bay, preventing the undead from taking a single step forward.

Even more surprising was the fact that most of their casualties never resulted in fatalities. Instead, the injured party would quickly switch positions with another waiting in reserve. They would then chug down a potion with lightning-quick healing that just stopped short of regrowing limbs.

The potion's effects were so potent that even the Transcendents in the skies above were tempted. They wondered how the Rosens managed to get their hands on such an overpowered healing potion. It had to be known that a good healing potion was as good as a second life. No one could resist the lure of having that level of insurance.

Unfortunately, how could they know that the Rosens somehow acquired the services of a Transcendent Botanist? The tiny seed Kashi planted a year ago had blossomed into a magnificent tree that shielded Rosendun from the elements.

By the Rosen's side, the fearless Serians, who largely consisted of beastkin, engaged the undead's stronger lieutenant and captain-level figures. Their abnormally resilient physiques enabled them to endure these targets' stronger attacks, thus relieving pressure on their allies to weed out the numerous soldier-level undead.

The dwarfs were the second smallest allied forces, only beating out the even smaller centaurs. Despite their diminutive size and numbers, the undead soon learned to especially fear them. Following their major losses in the Battle of Aygorzi, the dwarfs took to Just Matt's hot weapons after assisting him with upgrading a few. Eager to preserve their remaining numbers, the dwarfs rapidly tweaked and improved a rifle model until they came up with a mass model that was cheap and reliable. Of course, they lost some firepower due to substituting for cheap materials, but, in some instances, a thousand bullets were more effective than a single cannon.

Every dwarf, armed with these cheap rifles, fired endlessly at the hordes of weaker soldier-level undead. Without needing to worry about things like mana exhaustion, the dwarfs never had to pause, except to reload the rifles. Fortunately, under Absalon and Just Matt's tutelage, they learned to take turns, thereby ensuring the bullet hail never ended.

Finally, despite being the least in numbers, the centaurs played an extremely pivotal role in relieving pressures on the frontlines. They constantly charged into the undead's ranks, using their ki-formations to tear them apart. The centaurs intelligently kept close to the frontlines during each pass to allow Absalon and others to intervene in time if a particularly strong enemy tried to intercept and trap them. Everyone present knew that a calvary's speed was tied to both their effectiveness and lifeline. It was in the allied forces' best interest to ensure nothing and no one stopped their charge.

Unfortunately, despite everyone's best efforts, the undead forces' sheer numbers had begun to take their toll. Fatigue rapidly spread amongst the frontlines as the unending undead did not permit much time for resting and recuperation. The dwarfs got introduced to Just Matt's firearms too late. As a result, they did not have enough time to manufacture sufficient bullets, which led to their ammunition reserves running dangerously low. None of the dwarfs were looking forward to returning to close-combat when their population was already at the brink.