The intense heat of Father Matthias's Sunburst spell engulfed Gareth, but it did nothing to him; instead, it was the Barony of Oscana's troops that burned.
"Argh!"
"Fuck, it's hot!"
"Retreat!"
The troops, unable to withstand the searing heat, retreated frantically from the city, their ranks falling apart.
"Tsk!" Gareth is annoyed by Father Matthias' action, knowing his plan is failed.
Countess Maresha, seizing the opportunity, ordered her troops to regroup and strengthen their defenses.
"Ren, we have to retreat!" Gareth called urgently to Ren.
"You go first, I will meet you later." Ren want to retreat but he is getting block by Grand Master Albert.
Grand Master Albert, furious and determined, stood in Ren's way, his eyes ablaze with anger.
"You're not going anywhere, Ren! you will die here!" Grand Master Albert declared, raising his sword menacingly.
"Fuck off you old fuck!" Ren dodged Albert's sword and countered with a swift kick, sending Albert stumbling backward.
Ren took advantage of the moment to create some distance between them.
"Stop him!" Countess Maresha orders her troops to block Ren's path.
Ren looked around and saw that he was surrounded by Countess Maresha's troops, who were closing in on him.
He cursed under his breath and reached for his sword "Get fucking away from me!"
Ren infused his sword with his chaotic energy and slashed at the nearest soldier, cutting him down with ease.
He then spun around and parried another soldier's attack, before stabbing him in the back.
Ren moved swiftly and ruthlessly, leaving a trail of blood and corpses behind him.
The remaining soldiers hesitated, momentarily stunned by the ferocity of his counterattack.
Gareth, watching from a distance, took the opportunity to break through the weakened defenses and join Ren.
Together, they sprinted away from the blazing Emberwood City, leaving behind the chaos and destruction they had orchestrated.
"Countess, I am sorry that they were able to leave the city."
Countess Maresha, witnessing the escape of Ren and Gareth, clenched her fists in frustration.
The city, still recovering from the chaos, now faced the aftermath of their ruthless tactics.
"It's not your fault, Grand Master Albert, it's just that the enemy is too ruthless, and they have outrageous abilities, mass healing, resurrection, magic resistance, no wonder we're overwhelmed by them."
"Even our formation is useless, so don't worry about it, honestly, I'm glad that we're able to defend the city."
Grand Master Albert, though visibly frustrated, nodded in understanding. The situation had been challenging, and the enemy's abilities had proven to be formidable.
Countess Maresha surveyed the damage to Emberwood City, her expression a mix of concern and determination. "We need to tend to the wounded, repair what we can, and bolster our defenses. This battle may be over, but the war is far from finished."
_____________________
Ren and Gareth retreated from Emberwood City, leaving chaos and destruction in their wake.
As they moved away from the battlefield, Ren couldn't help but feel the toll of the intense battle.
HP: 1940/3400] (HP Regen 40/second.)
[Chaotic Energy: 70/1000] (Chaotic Energy Regen 10/second.)
[Attribute
Strength: 170 (+170 Blood Pact) (3 Minutes)
Agility: 100 (+100 Blood Pact) (3 Minutes)
Intelligence: 100]
Ren grimaced as he assessed his condition. "Fuck, I'm almost dead, this resurrection skill is too much, the chaotic energy is constantly being used just to resurrect my soldier."
"When my chaotic energy drops below 100, I'm really dead for real."
"Thanks to that damn priest, he really ruined our plan to loot the city." Gareth is still angry about what happened.
"And you should stack the Blood Pack Buff for the third time so you can defeat him easily." Gareth gives his opinion on Ren's performance in this battle.
"My bad, I too underestimated our enemy, I thought it would be an easy battle, turn out they still have the power to defend the city." Ren feel bad about the strategy he uses in this battle.
Gareth nodded, "We can't afford to underestimate them again, we need a better strategy."
"How about letting the city starve?" Ren give his idea is to cut off Emberwood City from the other city so that the merchants cannot deliver their food, and since the villagers are already taking refuge in the city, they will not have to bother raiding the village again.
Gareth considered the idea. "It's a great idea, but it'll probably take a month for the effect to kick in."
"In the meantime, we also need to recruit more soldiers, 1000 soldiers are not enough, especially that we need to isolate Emberwood City."
"Yes, you are right, it takes a lot of manpower to patrol a whole county that is bigger than our barony." Ren agreed with Gareth's idea to recruit more soldiers.
"Oh, right did our soldier had casualty?" Ren asks.
"I don't know asks Kael, he the one who manage our soldier to get out the city first." Gareth answer his question.
"Kael!" Ren shout.
"Report on the casualties," Ren demanded, his eyes narrowing as he assessed the situation.
Kael saluted before delivering the information. "We have suffered losses, Baron. About 12 soldiers were killed and another 351 were injured, but thanks to you, milord, their wounds healed quickly."
"I see."
"After they're fully healed, quickly form a team to patrol around Emberwood City, don't let anyone enter the city, especially the merchants, we'll let the city starve." Ren gives his order to isolate the city from outside world.
"As your command milord." Kael bow and leave.
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Back in Emberwood City, Countess Maresha focused on rebuilding and fortifying the city's defenses. The damage was extensive, but the resilience of its people shone through.
Grand Master Albert approached her, "Countess, we need to message his holiness and his majesty about Oscana barony that they already make his move on us."
"I doubt His Majesty will send his troops to help us, especially since the Pinnacle Republic is invading our eastern realm, the only hope is that His Holiness will send Holy Knights to my county." Countess Maresha held out hope that Pope Ealdred III would send help.