Chapter 247 - 145: Rammed to Death
’We’ve... we’ve been discovered?!’
’How is that possible? How did they find us?’
Sachelli was first startled, then filled with disbelief. Their concealment techniques had been honed through countless trials. They had long lived in the underground passages, constantly practicing to fight Demonized Beasts and deal with their enemies. Forget the Undead, who were unfamiliar with these tunnels—even a Demonized Beast could pass right by without noticing them.
The City Guard had always been proud of their stealth, yet today, they had been exposed. And so easily, too. The enemy had simply glanced around and spotted them.
Sachelli was a decisive man. Now that they were discovered, their original plan was useless. Fortunately, there were only a dozen or so Undead. ’If they took them down quickly, it shouldn’t be much trouble.’ With that, he stepped out from his hiding spot, calmly gazing at the Skeletons before him.
Seeing that their captain was no longer hiding, Sachelli’s team members also emerged from their hiding spots and gathered behind him.
"I’m curious, how did you find us?" Sachelli asked, his eyes probing.
The Undead didn’t respond. They simply tilted their heads, carefully observing the humanoid creatures before them.
"Since you’re unwilling to answer, let’s fight. We can question you properly after we’ve captured you." Seeing the Undead remain silent, Sachelli assumed they were simply refusing to talk. That was normal enough; after all, they wouldn’t just give away the secret to how they’d found them. He reached for the hilt at his waist, drew his Longsword, and assumed a battle stance.
The squad members behind Sachelli also raised their Weapons, aiming them at the Undead ahead.
CLACK CLACK...
The sound of scraping on the ground echoed, much louder and more chaotic this time. One by one, more Undead rounded the corner, their skeletal heads swiveling silently to fixate on Sachelli and his party.
’Th-this... Just how many Undead are there?’
Sachelli froze. He swallowed hard, watching as more and more Undead emerged to stand before them. This was no longer an issue of a mere dozen. In just a few moments, their numbers had swelled by over a hundred, and there were still more coming!
The scraping was incessant, making it impossible to tell just how many more Undead were still behind them.
"Captain, what do we do?" a Demonized Jackal Wolfman asked Sachelli, his mouth twisting into a grimace at the sight.
’There are too many of them. This isn’t about taking them down quickly anymore; it’s about whether we can even beat them.’
’He really hoped Sachelli wouldn’t do anything stupid. There were too many Undead. Without reinforcements, they would all die here.’
"We..." Sachelli’s gaze grew profound and his voice deepened. His squad held their breath, flexing their fingers and gripping their Weapons tighter as they awaited their captain’s command. Sachelli took a deep breath, then spat out a single word: "Run!"
Having said that, he immediately spun around and bolted. Looks of immense relief spread across his squad members’ faces. Without a moment’s hesitation, they followed Sachelli, running for their lives. ’That’s our captain, all right,’ they thought with immense satisfaction. ’He didn’t let us down!’
The few Skeleton Undead at the forefront faltered, clearly not expecting their opponents to suddenly turn and flee. Then, they each received a sharp rap on the skull. A Low Level Skeleton Warrior had arrived beside them. It raised the Bone Saber in its hand, pointed at the fleeing intelligent Demonized Creatures, and let out a spiritual roar.
Attack!
The Skeleton Undead set off, giving chase to Sachelli and his men.
Compared to the Undead’s sluggish running speed, Sachelli and his men were much faster. Pumping their long legs, they easily widened the distance.
The Demonized Jackal Wolfman glanced back and saw the Undead were already far behind. Amused, he even had the presence of mind to turn and make a face at them, not caring whether they could see it in the Darkness of the tunnel.
Just then, several figures suddenly burst through the ranks of the slow-moving Undead and charged toward them. The Demonized Jackal Wolfman was the first in their path.
He got a clear look at the figure pouncing through the air. It was a wolf-like Skeleton, trailing a long shadow that flowed behind it like a black ribbon as it soared toward him.
The Demonized Jackal Wolfman was no pushover, either. Though startled to see the Skeleton Desert Wolf pouncing at him, he immediately swung the Nail Head Hammer in his hand, lashing out with vicious force.
The Nail Head Hammer struck true, landing squarely on the Skeleton Desert Wolf’s skull. A normal Skeleton Undead’s cranium would have shattered from such a blow, its Soul Fire dissipating instantly. However, the Skeleton Desert Wolf’s skull was reinforced. The Nail Head Hammer slammed into it with a dull thud, stopping the creature’s body in mid-air before sending it flying backward, its form scattering into a shower of broken bones.
The wolf’s skull landed on the ground and went clattering a good distance away. The impact was severe; its Soul Fire showed signs of dissipating, flickering precariously before coalescing once more. The Jackal Wolfman’s Nail Head Hammer hadn’t shattered its skull, but it had left several hard-won cracks.
The Jackal Wolfman shook his hand, dispelling the force of the recoil. He shot a fierce glare at the other Skeleton Desert Wolves snarling at him from behind, backed away slowly, then turned and ran. The other Skeleton Desert Wolves immediately accelerated, paying no mind to their reassembling companion.
"Captain, this is bad! The wolves are catching up!" the Jackal Wolfman said urgently, running up beside Sachelli.
Sachelli glanced back over his shoulder as he ran. Sure enough, several wolf-shaped Skeletons were gaining on them. Their agility and Speed far surpassed that of the humanoid Skeletons, and they were steadily closing the distance. This was not a good sign.