Chapter 31: Deadly charge
{mass released}
The formidable charge of the cohort had begun, moving in the direction of Drake’s command. Each of the members fought with all they had, even willing to empty their mana reserves, as they all knew this was their one and only chance to escape this hell.
Despite their chance being nothing more than a theory, they gave it their all, cutting through the horde relentlessly. Nonetheless, it was a great challenge for the cohort to move forward, as this was far different from simply holding a position and preventing the monsters from breaking in. They were marching forward against the devastating current of monsters, doing their best to slay them while pushing ahead.
This was extremely difficult and, with time, forced the group into a tight formation once more. The long-ranged users who had been in the midst of the cohort at the start of the battle were not so lucky this time.
Many of them were now at the frontlines, forced to unleash every ounce of their abilities if they wanted to survive the horde’s assault.
As expected, many did not last long — running out of mana and getting pulled into the horde, dismembered within seconds.
Others were protected by the tankers before such a fate could befall them, thereby surviving without mana, but not for much longer.
Kresha was at the side of the cohort, doing his best to battle the monsters as everyone else did. However, he was still unable to recover fully from the mental deficiency Drake’s words had inflicted upon him. He was the main force at the flank of the cohort, managing to take down many monsters thanks to his wind ability, which gave them an advantage. Still, within him, his mind continuously screamed, ’Death!’
One thing was certain—he had lied about being a Lord.
Drake, Luna, Tessa, and a few others had fallen to the rear of the cohort, which was the most crucial position of the entire battle. However, it was also the trickiest of all positions.
Moving at the back, they were forced to run backwards, avoiding bodies on the floor as they moved, and while doing so, had to fend off the monsters charging from behind.
Taking on the full brunt of the horde while under such discomfort—this was a mission only experts could handle.
That was why Drake had volunteered to come; the others had simply ended up there by chance or rotten luck. Thanks to his experience from his first life, he was able to handle a situation like this. Not that he had done it before, but he could withstand the pressure.
And because of him, many of the awakened at the rear managed to last longer against the monsters through his leadership.
However, he couldn’t save everyone. Every now and then, a single man would fall—either from tripping or being tackled to the ground. There was little to nothing that could be done, as the cohort was moving too fast for anyone to turn back and help.
That was the single most dangerous rule about being at the rear of the cohort.
"No matter what you bloody do, don’t get separated."
As soon as Drake spoke those words, as though Fate wanted to use him as a sorry example, a large skeleton-like monster leapt from his side and clamped onto him in a suffocating death hug.
The sudden attack made him stagger, groaning in pain, as there was nothing he could do to defend against the crushing hold of the demonic being.
"Damn you!" The fear of being separated struck deep into Drake’s nerves, and he jerked his head back with all his might, slamming it into the skull of the skeleton beast.
His headbutt was strong, forcing the monster to buckle and loosen its deadly grasp. Without hesitation, Drake drove his elbow into the creature’s ribs, sending it tumbling back into another monster charging toward him.
"Shut! Shut! Bloody bastard!" Drake grunted, slightly panicked as he realized he was getting left behind. He immediately picked up his pace, sprinting to rejoin the cohort.
Luckily, they weren’t moving too fast, and he managed to catch up—but not without sustaining a few injuries from monsters ahead and behind as he fought his way back.
When he reached his spot at the rear of the group, he noticed several new faces among them—something that filled him with dread.
There were more than a few new members, which meant that in his brief absence, a great number of valuable awakened had fallen—probably trying to rescue him from being separated, only to die in their attempt.
That explained why he hadn’t encountered as many monsters on his way back.
Beside him, Tessa grunted with another battle cry—this one filled with frustration—as she began swinging her sword, not with precision anymore, but with sheer desperation to survive.
The same scene unfolded all around the cohort. Most of them had run out of mana and were now swinging their weapons wildly, driven only by the instinct to live.
They were exhausted, barely able to catch their breath. Even the hope that Drake’s speech had sparked earlier had finally died away. Why wouldn’t it? After all, they were facing an endless army of monsters.
Numbers after numbers. Line after lines. Creature after creatures. It was far, far too much for them to handle.
They were really going to die here, weren’t they?
Many of them wanted to give up. But no—the thought of being torn apart limb from limb in the most gruesome way imaginable was even more terrifying than surrendering.
So they held on to their lives, clinging to the little hope they had left—to move forward into the unknown.
Drake stayed steadfast in his beliefs. He wasn’t one to doubt himself, and despite his theory not yet proving right, he held onto it and fought with everything he had.
His strength had increased greatly since the beginning of the battle. By now, he was far stronger than the average awakened. Still, that did not change the morbid fate awaiting him—or his cohort.
They were being picked off one after another. The group of more than a hundred was now reduced to barely thirty, and their numbers were dwindling fast.
For a moment, everything around Drake seemed to slow down—the color fading from the world. Confused, he blinked rapidly, only to be struck hard in the chest by the fist of a mutated goblin. The blow made him cough violently as he realized he hadn’t inhaled for a while and was losing consciousness.
He slashed the goblin’s throat, decapitating it in one swift motion, then struggled to catch his breath—dodging between gaps in the chaos just to stay alive.
Drake felt his arms grow heavy, as though cuffed with a thousand-ton weight at both sides. Despite his willpower, his body was weak, and he knew soon it would give in.
Death was creeping closer—not just for him, but for all of them—and the endless horde only grew fiercer.
Either his theory was correct or not—if it didn’t prove right within the next few minutes, their inevitable death was assured.
***Author’s note***
1 Castle 6 Chapters mass release.
Any gifts apart from that and 2-5 mass release
Golden ticket 200— mass release 6
Powerstone 500— mass release 5.