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Creak. Creak. Creak...
As the Lich's voice rang out, chaotic roars began to faintly echo from the darkness.
Then, pairs of eyes adorned with eerie blue soul-fire suddenly lit up within the black curtain.
Tens of thousands of bone skeletons crawled out of the darkness, covering the land. Every movement made their bones grind together, creating a harsh creak-clack sound.
The Guard Army of E-Rantel could barely make out part of them with the help of the illumination magic on the city walls.
Below the city, everything had already become an ocean of ghostly white.
All the skeletons raised their heads in unison, staring at the living.
Despite having no expressions, everyone on the wall could clearly sense their hunger for blood and life.
Some even lost control of themselves at the sight, their legs turning to jelly as they collapsed onto the wall.
"So many... so many skeletons."
That was not all. As the adventurers arrived on the wall one after another, the magic casters suspended glowing orbs of light in the air, greatly expanding their field of vision.
Only then did everyone realize that this overwhelming sea of skeletons was merely an appetizer.
Behind the skeletons was a vast array of terrifying undead monsters, including tall, imposing zombies, Death Knights, and more.
And surrounding the Lich King's massive frame, several figures that looked equally powerful stood at his side in a defensive formation.
"Humans, as the first course after the breaking of my seal, I shall allow you to resist."
He paused, his towering height allowing him to take in all of E-Rantel at a glance.
It was only when he used this advantage to spot a white figure and a person in black full-plate armor rushing toward the wall that he continued, "Now, let the game begin."
As the Lich King's voice fell, the sea of white bones below the city was the first to move.
Creak. Creak. Creak...
The ear-piercing sound of grinding bones continued without end.
The adventurers and the Guard Army forced themselves to look down, only to see the sea of bones piling up layer upon layer, actually beginning to climb the city walls by stepping on the bodies of their own kind.
"Everyone, attack."
At the officer's command, everyone hurriedly began their assault on the sea of bones below.
"Magic unit, use Fireball."
The magic casters stood on the wall, condensing blazing spheres of fire in their hands and aiming at the skeletons clinging to the base of the wall.
"Attack."
Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.
Hundreds of Fireballs streaked through the night like meteors, trailing light as they smashed into the skeletal ladders built from white bone.
In an instant, countless bone fragments and limbs were blasted apart, and the skeletal climbing ladders collapsed with a thunderous crash.
Seeing this, many people on the wall showed signs of relief, their tension gradually easing.
They shattered in a single hit. They were not that impressive after all.
"Don't let your guard down. The dangerous ones are coming." The commander shouted coldly, raising his voice in warning.
As if to prove his words, a ranger among the adventurers stood at a high point and said in a trembling voice, "Armor. So many skeletons are wearing armor."
The commander quickly looked toward the battlefield.
He saw countless skeletons clad in armor appearing within the sea of bones, their frames reflecting a metallic sheen.
That was not all. He even noticed hundreds of armored zombies mixed in among them.
This group of armored skeletons and zombies advanced step by step.
Meanwhile, the skeletons below the wall were still spontaneously forming skeletal ladders.
"Damn that Lich King," he cursed, then turned to address everyone. "Attention. Mage unit, prioritize using Fireball on the skeletons at the base of the wall. We absolutely cannot let them climb up."
"All other adventurers and soldiers, go get oil and stones. Move, now."
The commander knew in his heart that those armored zombies and skeletons must not be allowed to reach the top.
Without exception, they were monsters capable of rivaling ordinary adventurers and guards. With their numbers, if they ever scaled the wall, E-Rantel would surely fall.
Watching the adventurers and guards on the wall fight desperately against the skeletons below, the commander's face remained calm, but his back was already soaked with sweat.
He looked at the massive figure in the distance, all confidence long gone. "It's impossible for us to win..."
Unless hope descends.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Another round of Fireball volleys from the mages snapped him back to reality. He turned to look at the women and children still evacuating in an orderly manner toward the shelters, and his resolve gradually hardened.
"At the very least, I must fight for my wife and child."
"Aim for the very bottom of the skeletal ladders. That's their center of gravity."
Every time a ladder made of skeletons formed, it was destroyed by a volley of Fireballs.
Below the wall, thick layers of white bones piled up, constantly reducing the effective height of the wall.
The commander looked at the skeletons still advancing in waves, as well as the armored skeletons and zombies waiting in the distance, and could not help but sneer. "Quite clever, aren't you? But prepare the oil."
Once enough skeletons died beneath the wall, they would naturally form stepping stones for the undead forces that followed.
After the commander gave the order, adventurers and soldiers poured barrel after barrel of oil. In the end, they even hurled the barrels down directly.
"Fireballs, release."
Another round of Fireballs came crashing down, and the flames instantly ignited the oil on the layer of bones. A wall of fire rose up at once, separating E-Rantel from the undead army.
The flames burned fiercely, gradually charring the layers of bone that had piled up earlier.
Skeletons continued to surge toward the wall of fire, but the moment they stepped into it, they sank into the scorched, brittle bones, becoming fresh fuel for the blaze.
Under the intense heat, everyone was drenched in sweat, yet they all felt a sense of relief.
Relaxed smiles even appeared on faces illuminated by the orange-red firelight.
At this rate, they would not be able to break through... right?
At that moment, the battlefield fell into a brief hush.
The firelight atop the walls of E-Rantel became the sole focus in the darkened battlefield.
Swish.
Suddenly, a terrifying sword aura sliced through seven or eight meters of the wall of fire and struck the city wall.
That sword aura seemed to have been restrained, dissipating the moment it touched the wall.
However, the wall of fire outside the city had been cleaved into a literal vacuum zone.
The guards on the wall could clearly see countless armored skeletons and zombies beginning to move.
It was as if that sword aura itself had been the signal.
"They... they're jumping up."
The Guard Army and the adventurers watched in horror as those monsters leapt over the seven or eight-meter-high wall with nothing more than a light bound.
Slash.
"Arg—!"
An adventurer failed to react in time and was cut in half by a sword-wielding skeleton. The stench of blood instantly filled the air.
Before anyone else could even process their shock, dozens of skeletons and zombies had already leapt onto the wall.
The ordinary guards were completely helpless against them.
Only the adventurers could barely manage to hold them back.
The commander struggled to block a bone sword that came within inches of him, then looked toward the distant Lich King.
That face seemed to be wearing a mocking smile. "See, I'm just playing with you."
As the smell of blood on the wall grew thicker and thicker, the hearts of the commander and everyone else sank.
Is the city... about to fall?
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