When the black-robed man arrived at the side of Rat Queen, Gard and his members were guarding the surroundings of the carriage, killing the woodrat's horde which was about to jump up.
These woodrats were very cunning, and after a few attempts to jump onto the carriage failed, they began to turn the side of the carriage and attack the horses in front.
"Protect the horses at all costs! Don't let those bastards attack them!"
The mercenary leader Gard jumped onto the outermost horse with a stride and chopped down the woodrat near the horse's leg with a long sword in his hand.
The other mercenaries looked at each other. A few people learned how to jump like Gard to get on the outermost horses on both sides and fight off the horde of woodrats that were trying to bite the horses.
'It can't go on like this...'
Aurora leaned on the carriage and frowned as she looked at the mercenary members who were facing the woodrats at the moment.
There would be a lot of gaps in the battle on the horses. It was indeed barely able to protect the carriage in a short period of time, but the woodrats would eventually reach out, focusing on attacking the people on the horses, and there would undoubtedly be casualties!
"Miss Claudia, tell Captain Gard to drive the carriage to the left! Hurry up!" Aurora said anxiously, stopping Claudia's hand, which wanted to bandage her urgently.
Seeing her persistent expression, Claudia also realized that this matter was extremely urgent. She nodded and immediately left the carriage to deliver Aurora's news to Gard.
"Go to the left? Isn't that the direction of the Twilight Forest?"
Although Gard was puzzled, he still obeyed Aurora's order decisively, and the mercenaries behind him went to the left together.
He didn't know why he obeyed the instructions of the girl, who looked young enough to be his daughter. This might be the influence of the commanding aura revealed in Aurora's body.
The carriage started to turn to the left, and the group of woodrats that were chasing them also quickly turned around and clung to the carriage. Two mercenaries stretched out the window and shot towards the rear with the crossbow arrows in their hands.
Each arrow could penetrate the body of one or two wood rats. In addition, several mercenaries on the carriage behind also threw some Repelling Powder and Poison, hoping these things would slow their progress.
Screech, screech…
The ears of the running woodrats shook slightly at the same time, and they all began to accelerate at the same time, passing the carriage behind them and pouncing sideways on the wheels.
Click!
The carriage swayed badly as the wheel on the right side was knocked off by the rats. The high-speed carriage suddenly lost its balance and overturned to the right side.
In just a few seconds, the swarm of woodrats buried the carriage, and then the sound of gnawing chills came, and a figure covered with woodrats got out of the carriage. Not even a few steps were taken, and he fell to the ground again.
This tragic scene caused Claudia in the front carriage to cover her mouth in disbelief, and the corners of her eyes were filled with tears.
Gard's eyes turned red. He fought back tears that threatened to burst out while protecting the remaining carriage so it could continue moving forward. His mercenary group was reduced again.
The rest of the woodrats rushed towards them without slowing down, bypassing their companions who were nibbling on the spoils, and seemed to want to use this method to deal with them.
"Captain...they are here again!"
The remaining mercenaries crazily shot these approaching woodrats with crossbow bolts. The tragic ending of their companions had filled them with an infinite fear of these woodrats.
At this moment, the businessman was clutching an amulet with the goddess pattern printed on it, his eyes closed and his lips trembling in prayer, hoping that the goddess would hear his plea and lead him away from the clutches of death.
Aurora took a deep breath and sat up slowly. She took out the Flamberge Waltz and inserted it into the carriage with all her strength.
The Flamberge Waltz emitted a crimson light, and fiery flames surged from the rapidly rolling wheels and the bottom of the carriage without burning the wood in the slightest, pushing away the group of woodrats that were rapidly approaching.
"Lady Aurora... this is..." Claudia switched into a more polite manner subconsciously when she addressed Aurora. By this point, she had realized that this goldilocks-haired woman was far from ordinary.
She watched the group of woodrats being driven away by the flames outside the car window, and a gleam of hope flashed in her eyes. Under such circumstances, there was no need to worry that the woodrats would destroy the carriage's wheels.
"The protective magic attached to the Flamberge Waltz can only last ten minutes at most! If we can't make it to the Twilight Forest within these ten minutes..."
Aurora spread her hands, and the others fell silent.
Needless to say, everyone knew what was going to happen next, if they didn't make it to the end, they would be crushed like their previous companions, and would eventually become the rations of these woodrats.
"Ten minutes? It's enough!"
Gard gritted his teeth, pulled out the small dagger behind him, and stabbed the horse hard in the hindquarters. The horse neighed in pain, and the original speed increased again.
Under such high-intensity running, the ending of these horses will be exhausted without exception, but there was no other way now, either exhausted or bitten to death.
The few remaining mercenaries regained their confidence. After feeling the hope of survival, they worked harder to protect the carriage, and the arrows they fired became much more accurate.
Finally, at about six minutes, Gard could see the dense forest ahead.
"Hold on everyone! We're almost there!"
As the carriage was about to approach the Twilight Forest, the surrounding wood rats began to attack frantically.
The woodrats rushed to the wheel frantically, and as soon as they were in touch with the flames on the wheel, they were immediately ignited by it and turned into balls of fireballs that rolled to the ground.
Even so, the other woodrats were still fearless and rushed upward, rushing straight at the mercenaries in the carriage.
Under the tide-like attack of woodrats, Gard's long sword had bent at some point. He gritted his teeth and used the sword that had lost its sharpness as a blunt weapon to kill the woodrats who rushed up, blowing them one by one.
The other mercenary crossbow arrows were also shot, and all the things that could be used to smash them were thrown away. They could only draw out the small daggers around their waists and stab the woodrats that had crossed the flames from the carriage.
Time passed by, and the forest was getting closer and closer to them. The running horses had begun to spit white foam from their mouths, which was a sign that the horses were about to die of exhaustion.
Gard's heart couldn't help but tremble as he felt that the speed was gradually slowing down.
Just as he was distracted, the Flamberge Waltz that had been inserted into the carriage slowly dimmed, and the flames protecting the bottom of the carriage and the wheels also began to dissipate.
Screeech!!
Seeing that the fire weakened, all these woodrats became excited. They surged forward like a tide, piling up one by one to form a wall of rats and pressing against the carriage.
"Oh, Goddess above!"
Seeing this situation, the mercenaries in the carriage were frightened out of their wits and made trembling voices. In their eyes, the three-meter-high rat wall was like a god of death wielding a sickle, about to reap their own lives.
"Captain... it's up to you next... If everyone can go back this time, please help me give this thing to my wife and tell her that I'm going to help her find medicinal herbs for her illness. It will take three to five years to go home..."
A forty or fifty-year-old mercenary man forced a smile as he looked up at his captain, took out a small bag of money that was still warm from his body temperature from his inner pocket, and handed it to Gard.
"Old Cain, what nonsense are you talking about! We're almost there!"
Gard was startled when he heard this. He knocked down a few woodrats biting on the horse's legs with the blunt sword, turned to the mercenary man, and scolded him.
"Captain...we've run out of ammunition and food..." Cain took a deep breath and said, "My brothers are still young... they don't deserve to die in this place. My parents are gone long ago, and there is only one sick lady at home, the coins here are enough for her for a while..."
"Captain, you've been working nonstop for the mercenary group for the past few years, and you're covered in old wounds in exchange for a stable income for the brothers, thank you... We would have died a long time ago if it hadn't been for you...."
Old Cain looked at the pale and exhausted faces of his companions around him, and heaved a long sigh, with a trace of reluctance on his face.
Although the scale of the mercenary group was small and everyone's income is not high, and although the world is still not peaceful, everyone in the group has actually been helping him, whether it is the fresh fish and vegetables on the stove when he goes home occasionally, or the inadvertently extra silver coins in his pocket, all proofs of their secret help.
"My humble life should have ended in the labyrinth last year. I was greedy for money and stepped into the trap. You got hurt trying to block two arrows for me, and many of the brothers were killed trying to clear the path for me with their bodies. I owe you guys too much already... In this way, I can repay you all…"
What a good mercenary group... If possible, he really wants to stay with them all the time... sighed Cain helplessly in his heart.
"Captain... everyone... you must live! Please also tell my wife... I love her..."
Cain opened the car door instantly and looking at the rat wall that was about to come down behind him, a look of madness appeared in his eyes.
Before everyone recovered from their daze, Cain poured a bottle of kerosene hidden on his body, and jumped towards the rat wall, "We will be brothers in the next life!"
On the wind came his final roar.
"Go to hell! You beasts!"
Boooomm!!!
The flames blazed from Old Cain's body as he used his own body to block the desperate wall of rats.
"Old Cain!!!"
Gard and other mercenary members looked at the scorching woodrats behind them and fled in grief.
Aurora gazed into the distance in a daze. Unknown emotions were creeping into her heart. She had only met the old man for a short time, and they didn't even communicate with each other. However, watching the end of the old man, her heart felt like prickled by a thousand needles.
Her eyes once again turned solemn. It reminded her that she too could lose her life at any moment in this dangerous world.
Cain used his life to win them a chance. Before his sacrifice, the Twilight Forest was approaching right in front of them!
The massive swarm of woodrats had receded a lot, leaving only a few sparse woodrats still following closely, but obviously at a much slower speed.
Just when everyone's hearts were about to let go, the horse running ahead gave a soft foot and fell down. In an instant, the world before everyone's eyes was tumbling and spinning, and before losing consciousness, a thought emerged in everyone's mind: the carriage was overturned!