"Then we need to strike them first." The reply was quick and concise.
"..."
Aaron and Thalia immediately went pale. They well knew the source of the voice and his reckless attitude.
"No-"
Aaron almost turned to look over his shoulder when a cape walked past him. His tongue escaped down his throat as he sat there like a statue, staring at the back of an ironclad champion. The glittering plates of armour echoed the inextinguishable flames of valour burning inside the heart of a patriot.
With each step, Adam disclosed his figure to the Tarragons. The entire army saw the foreign being walking out of the building. A faint waft came by and extended an invitation. At once, the cape fluttered and danced with elegance. The elf felt both mesmerised and bewildered watching the scene.
At this moment, the duo began to reevaluate their decisions.
Were they behaving like soldiers or bandits?
Roar!
A deafening warcry unified by the bellows of myriad beasts rose into the air. Promptly, the beasts pounced at Adam with an unreined murderous aura.
"Heh... I would only be surprised if they didn't display such an ambience."
The berserker's blood began to boil with excitement. Without sparing a moment, Adam dashed at the approaching squad. His jabs and punches failed to disable those brutes but proved his point that he's not an opponent to be looked down upon because of his inferior size.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Tarragons barely had a chance to counterstrike when Adam's limbs connected with their torsos. The massive momentum packed within each movement stunned the creatures. They were expecting a futile attempt of a dying flame. But what they got instead was a fierce wildfire!
Thrown off-balance, the tarragons got up on their legs and stared at Adam intently. These piercing gazes were strong enough to slice through the soul of a mortal.
While maintaining eye contact with the steel-plated competitor, the beasts began to growl and hiss and snarl.
[Adam, they are communicating with each other. It seems like they have determined the presence of the survivors inside the building.]
'Noted.'
The earthling wasn't surprised by this development. While sending away the brutes, his eyes had caught the gazes of a few creatures aiming at the storeroom building. He had already assumed that they have deciphered the occupancy of foreign race in the vicinity.
After the fusion, Adam can perceive a significant growth in his range of recognition. The helmet seems to amplify and widen his visual range. The slightest noises couldn't escape his ears. His nose can discern the bloody stench of the tarragons circling him like the light of the day.
Even the skin hiding beneath the plates of armour can judge the fluctuations in the variables around him.
"Aaron, they've found us all and we can only fight them. As for whether we perish or not, let's see the results after the battle." Adam sensed the figures emerging from the dark. He knew the soldiers' resolve and could only encourage them to place their lives on the line, to brave the suffocating intensity.
The safety of the survivors was the most important aspect at the moment. Even if they were trained hardcore soldiers, they are truly helpless when confronting these colossal mutants.
But Adam knew that it is futile to discourage them. the situation demands their assistance even when defeat is certain.
"Thank you for your words." The knight commander brandished his sword and slipped the helmet onto his head while replying. Their steps halted with vigilance looming over them. Together, they formed a circular battle formation.
Furthermore, it was their decision to join the battle.
"ATTACK!!" With a courageous roar, Thalia dashed outwards and the soldiers followed her vigorous leadership.
Adam followed suit and his jabs were like lightning. They were swift and housed an inflated amount of power.
While the soldiers were struggling with their opponents, the earthling was exploiting his newfound reinforcement.
And that was the very reason why tarragons concentrated their attacks on him.
"This feels nostalgic." There was a faint smile on his face.
Adam recollected the memories of a particular incident when he was living on Earth. Wandering far into the poles in search of eternal peace, he once encountered a pack of wolves. The lack of fresh blood and flesh was about to shatter the gang's integrity when he stumbled into the scene.
Guided by hunger, they pounced on Adam without sparing a second thought.
Needless to say, both parties sustained grave injuries. But only one survived.
And as several miscellaneous thoughts were about to flicker through his mind, Endevil's voice pulled him back to his senses.
[Adam, we have multiple types of hostile entities inbound.]
'Multiple types?' Adam repeated the armour's words straight back at it.
[They seems to have elemental affinities and aberrant physique.]
Raising his head, Adam saw what Endevil mentioned.
'Those?' Kicking the head of a colossal and destabilising it, the earthling probed.
The large winged tarragons hovered in the air with an arrogant smug. Each wingbeat seems to emit a faint oppressing pressure.
[They are creatures with air affinity. Their lacking of strength is compensated with agile movements. The sky is their world.]
Halfway through the listening, Adam felt a chilliness creeping over his skin. His eyes lowered and caught the presence of a peculiar complexioned creature amongst the crowd.
"Ice?"
The blizzard-blue skin interwoven with a layer of frost displayed a film of ice. The innate grey skin of the tarragons had compromised the hue of ice but the chilliness was unmistakable.
[Ice affinity tarragons. Can utilise ice magic. Standing behind them are the fire affinity tarragons which uses fire magic.]
Adam couldn't afford to stand idle and stare at the enemies under the relentless attacks. Thus, Endevil filled him with basic information as he battled against the brutes.
'So what tier magic do they use?'
[Basic elemental projectiles like fire-ball and ice-lance. Their intellect is terribly shunned by their overdependence on barbaric strength.]
Adam nodded and let out a chuckle as he successfully pierced a tarragon's heart with a swift jab.
And as he was wondering why the elemental creatures aren't making a move, Endevil alerted, [An ice-lance arriving at you. Sidestep to the right.]
Adam's insanely agile movement left an afterimage which was pierced by the aforementioned projectile.
[Multiple projectiles approaching.]
The hindlimbs launched the earthling into the air. Seconds later, he saw ice and fire showering down on where he stood a moment ago.
"Missed me, hahaha..."
Adam used the moment to mock the tarragons on the ground. But something was waiting for him in the air.
Swish!
The winged creature came down and scooped Adam before flying upward. Instinctively, he realised their plan and his fingers pierced into its wing skin tearing the film.
Rawr!
What went down the spine of the aerial being was the agony of being skinned alive. Writhing in pain, it tightened its hold on Adam. Somehow, its face displayed lividness the next second.
"Your claws are strong, but my armour is stronger." What followed after these words were an overwhelming punch that jumbled the innards of the beast. Together with the ironclad opponent, it descended under the influence of gravity.
Boom!
The impact after falling from a considerable altitude was unquestionably fatal. When a cloud of crimson red dust arose obstructing the view of the onlookers, it was evident that the collision has neutralised both parties.
"That was fun. Who's next?"
An exhilarating voice emerged from the envelope of dust and the soldiers could swear that they saw Adam who's presumably dead from the impact running out of it. The despair in their hearts was instantly replaced by perplexion which soon transformed into a will to storm to the midst of the enemies.
If he, an inexperienced wanderer can do so, then why can't I?
For an instant, the survivors felt an existential crisis in their hearts. This question that rose from pure instinct and gut feeling swept across them with a revitalising sensation. At once, a new resolve veiled over them.
"I don't want a shield to block your strikes. Come at me, you filthy abominations."
"Heh, I don't even need a sword to slice through you, dirty animals."
...
The oppressed party of twenty or so soldiers were mostly on their defence and rarely executed any offence. The tarragons had won the psychological warfare of striking fear into the minds of the enemies from the first glance itself. This severely limited the strength of human, the agility of elves and the defence of dwarves.
But when they saw a complete rookie with an awesome armour running around and wreaking havoc, they felt their dignity being questioned and morals being sullied.
At once, the tides changed by a notch. The vigorous wave of attacks miraculously avoided the oncoming sharp claws and punches with ease. A desire to slaughter more tarragons than the fellow troopers had sharpened their senses. This peculiar feeling guided them through the barrage of attacks and their weapons bathed in blood with delight.