Chapter 92
92 a.s.sa.s.sination (I)
‘Dammit!’
Cain was furious, but his Ego Wave was still active, allowing him to control his facial expression and hide his emotions, preventing any soldiers from noticing that something went wrong.
Even if the cadets and soldiers did not understand the great picture, they all saw a rise in the Wave Beasts’ numbers and a decrease in their own. The notion that the plan worked allowed them to carry on with this fight despite the immense pressure a.s.saulting them.
Although Cain performed the monumental task of neutralizing two Level 4 Horn-Flame Boars, he failed to take care of the Horn-Flame Boar Leader, so their prospects did not seem very good. The trick with the C-Blast and the flash grenade artifact would not work again, and he knew facing them head-on on the battlefield would not be wise.
The Horn-Flame Boar Leader felt extremely dizzy and nauseous, but there was a burning fury in its eyes as it focused on the city.
Cain could feel the beast’s murderous intent and put down the binoculars before closing his eyes and shutting down his Ego Wave. He was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep, but he could not allow himself that small pleasure until the current battle was over.
‘I did my best. I hope the venom that reached the beast’s bloodstream is strong enough to neutralize it for at least a few days. These stampedes will be over once the empire warriors return, which should happen any day now.’
Unfortunately for Cain, while his thoughts were optimistic, the reality was about to take a very bad turn over the next few hours.
Cain opened his eyes as he felt a ma.s.sive burst of Life Wave at the northern position and saw storm clouds filling the sky.
.....
‘That amount of Life Wave. It is immense even for someone at the Wave Champion Rank!’ Cain could not elaborate on that thought when a ma.s.sive lightning pillar fell from the storm clouds.
“BOOM!” A blast echoed through the city the next second, generating a small earthquake!
Cain clenched his fists as an ominous feeling a.s.saulted his heart. He knew that the last attack would not have good repercussions on his side.
Luckily, before things could get any worse, the first rays of sunlight emerged on the horizon.
“AHHHH!” A feral roar came from the northeast position, reaching all the battlefields and marking the end of today’s stampedes.
Cain’s eyes narrowed as he felt much less vigor in that roar than on previous nights. Still, he did not jump to conclusions and focused on his battlefield.
The Horn-Flame Boar Leader was in bad condition but still managed to give the command to retreat to its p.a.w.ns once the Stampedes’ Leader unleashed its roar.
The cadets and soldiers did not pursue the retreating horde due to the presence of the two Level 4 Horn-Flame Boars and the fact they were beyond the point of exhaustion. The increasing number of enemies meant they had to work even harder, draining their stamina much faster.
Cain used the binoculars one last time on the Horn-Flame Boar Leader before this one vanished into the forest. A sharp and cold light appeared in his eyes as he noticed how the beast kept all its minions away, not letting anyone get near.
‘A chance?’ A train of thought began to form in Cain’s mind as he got down from the broken building and called Lurin to his side.
The duo then moved to a place far from everybody’s sight and began investigating the situation in the northeast position.
It took a while, but they finally got an answer from Vice-Captain Razmun and discovered that the Stampedes’ Leader had injured Major Luma.
Things were not so horrible since Major Luma’s wounds were not deadly, but they limited her battle power. The only silver lining was that the Stampedes’ Leader did not come unscratched and received some severe wounds.
In summary, while Major Luma’s wounds diminished her battle capabilities, the situation in the northeast position remained the same.
Lurin smiled as he cut the call since that news calmed his heart. He was worried that the Stampedes’ Leader would have overwhelmed Major Lumar since that would have meant the end of Korin City. Wave Warriors like him and the soldiers could have escaped if that was the case, but that would have meant leaving the hundreds of thousands of civilians in the underground tunnels to die under the maws of the Wave Beasts.
“It seems everything is...” Lurin was not able to finish his sentence as he saw the somber expression on Cain’s face.
“What is wrong?”
Cain could march into a fight with two Level 4 Wave Beasts while carrying explosives that could blow him to pieces with a calm and composed expression on his face, so for something to affect him to that level, it must be awful.
“The situation on the northeast position remains the same since both Major Lumar and the Stampedes’ Leader have weakened each other. However, now that our Wave Champion’s battle capabilities are diminished, there is no deterrent for the Horn-Flame Boar Leader to march into the city.”
Lurin’s eyes widened when he heard that, and a cold feeling a.s.saulted his heart. If it came to it, they had the power to take care of the Horn-Flame Boar Leader and its two remaining Level 4 p.a.w.ns, but they would suffer ma.s.sive casualties.
Vice-Captain Razmun knew that the next battle would be hard but did not find the need to explain or give a reason for them to continue fighting. A soldier must be ready to die on the battlefield if the cause is right, and what better cause than to protect hundreds of thousands of innocent souls?
All sorts of plans formed in Lurin’s mind as he attempted to figure out what to do next. The best path forward was combining a form of siege and guerrilla warfare, allowing the horde to enter the city and take advantage of the terrain.
However, even though that plan was impressive, especially for someone so young and with little experience like Lurin, it only improved their chances of success. There would still be many casualties among the soldiers and cadets.
In the end, Lurin could not help but turn toward Cain, hoping this one would have a better plan.
Cain noticed the hopeful gaze of Lurin, and he indeed had a plan.
“Make sure everybody gets a good rest. Gather Beelze, Levi, and the soldier squad’s leaders in six hours.”
Lurin nodded and left, fulfilling that command while distributing medicine to the wounded.
Cain returned to the battlefield. After some search, he found one of the Level 4 Horn-Flame Boars. The corpse was scorched, and part of its skull was missing. As for the other, he could not find it.
‘The C-Blasts were powerful, but one of them only endured the blow in the side of its body. It most likely had the strength to flee into the forest, but it will be impossible for that beast to enter the battlefield again.’
Cain did not waste too much time worrying about the wounded Level 4 Horn-Flame Boar and used his right hand to pierce the body of the one that remained on the battlefield.
The Blood Refinement Art filled Cain’s body with vitality, mending his wounds and improving his condition. Once he finished with the corpse, he returned to the city and finally got some rest.
As soon as Cain woke up, he gathered with Lurin, Levi, Beelze, Jamal, and the other squad leaders. Everybody focused on him, and their eyes glowed with expectation, hoping he would give them another miracle.
That sort of pressure could affect anyone, but Cain had acclimated to the commander role incredibly fast and felt extremely calm with everything.
‘Maybe I led armies in my past life.’ Cain shook his head, not wasting time with unnecessary thoughts, and went straight to the point.
“If we don’t do something now, during the next stampede, the horde will attack with all their power, including the Horn-Flame Boar Leader and the two Level 4 Horn-Flame Boars that are still alive. I a.s.sume all of you understand what will happen then.”
A somber aura a.s.saulted everybody that heard those words as the image of the bodies of cadets and soldiers spread across the battlefield appeared in their minds.
Once Cain saw that everybody understood the danger they faced, he spoke again.
“I have a way to solve that, and it is quite simple. A small group will infiltrate the forest, and while the rest launch a lightning strike toward the Wave Beasts to draw their attention, they will kill the Horn-Flame Boar Leader.”
Silence reigned for a moment as everybody looked at Cain as if he was a madman. Even on the battlefield, with dozens of soldiers firing their Wave Rifles, killing the Horn-Flame Boar Leader would be a monumental task. Doing it in the beast’s territory, surrounded by its p.a.w.ns, was simply impossible.
Cain saw their expression, but a confident smile appeared as a flash of red light crossed his eyes.