NOVEL NEXT Chapter 525
Chapter 525. The Hellfire of Life
When humans are exposed to extreme heat, they lose the ability to distinguish between hot and cold.
“――Guwaahhh!?”
There was a moment’s pause before the screams erupted because the demon race didn’t comprehend the situation.
Everyone had deployed their protective spells like true warrior demons, but they were weak against liquid penetration. They managed to avoid being drenched and charred from direct hits, but the molten iron clung to their bodies, mercilessly scorching their flesh and flowing down to sear the air.
As a result, a fiery hell manifested.
The warriors of the Anoitus tribe who charged in—especially those at the forefront—began to burn like torches while still alive.
“Gieeeeeaaahhh!”
One warrior, overwhelmed by pain, collapsed and was finished off by the molten iron swirling on the ground, becoming still.
“Aaaaagh! Water! Water!!”
Another, engulfed in flames and screaming, frantically tried to conjure water with magic to extinguish the fire.
The fur armor that the demons wore had turned into nothing more than good fuel.
“Ha! Hah!”
“Look at you, barbarians!”
“Burn to death right there—!!”
The Dwarf Blacksmith Warriors cheered enthusiastically, but—
“――[It’s prey.]”
In that hellish scene of wailing and despair, the leading warrior of the flaming Anoitus tribe widened his eyes, locking onto a new [prey].
He realized he could not be saved from his burns. Thus, he resolved to fulfill his duty.
His body was a spear.
There was no need to think.
――Pierce.
“[Charge!]”
He stepped forward, thrusting his spear with the arm almost entirely charred.
“Nuuh!?”
The targeted Dwarf Blacksmith Warrior gasped and leaned back in surprise, raising his hand axe in instinctive defense.
He used his prideful ‘Shinuchi’ to deflect it. The pitiful demon spear was—
――Zuburi.
“What!?”
In the next moment, a spear tip appeared right before the astonished Dwarf Blacksmith Warrior’s eyes.
The blade of the ‘Shinuchi’ axe—was cleanly pierced through!
“No way!?”
Such a… primitive-looking spear made of bone and stone could pierce an ancestral treasure!
But that was its limit—having exhausted his strength, the captain of the Anoitus tribe slowly fell.
Floating in the sea of molten iron, both he and his spear were engulfed in flames.
“Nuuuh…! Guuu…!!”
Comparing the ‘Shinuchi’ battle axe, which had been made ineffective, with the fallen captain, the Dwarf Blacksmith Warrior groaned in regret.
“…Truly remarkable, even as an enemy…!”
Even if they were foes, even if they were barbarians, or wicked denizens of the darkness.
That ‘fervor’ shown as he wielded his spear while ablaze was genuine.
“――Follow the captain!”
“Uooooooo——!!”
“[That’s our prey!]”
The Anoitus tribe warriors, who had begun to hesitate, regained their spirits. They conjured wind with magic, created water, froze it to cool the iron, and steadied their stance to prepare for a charge.
“…You barbaric scum!”
With hardened faces, the Blacksmith Warriors adjusted their battle axes and war hammers once more.
Despite calling them barbarians, the initial disdain in their eyes had faded.
Instead—there was now a sort of awe present.
The front line of the Demon Lord Army was indeed made up of valiant, death-defying warriors.
““――[Charge!]””
Here they come.
“Prepare yourselves—!!”
The Dwarf Blacksmith Warriors readied to intercept.
Clash. The melee battle around the fortress was finally set to commence.
“Daaaahh!?”
The Anoitus tribe warriors attacked with an extraordinary ferocity.
“Don’t take it head-on! Deflect it!”
A Dwarf warned as the ‘Shinuchi’ was about to be pierced. Ironically, thanks to the captain’s desperate strike, the abnormality of the demons right before him became even more pronounced.
――If they take those thrusts head-on, they would be in deep trouble.
Calmly considering the situation, these were the guys who had drilled through the fortress walls reinforced with multiple layers of protective spells using such crude spears. It was no surprise to be concerned.
However, now that they understood the nature of the spears, the countermeasures were obvious.
“Nuuh!”
“Dooor!”
“Seeei!”
The Dwarves swung their battle axes and hammers. The Blacksmith Warriors were also elite forces of the Dwarf Kingdom, not just craftsmen reliant on ancestral weapons.
They were warriors.
Skillfully dodging the thrusts, they aimed for the spear handles and the arms of the Anoitus warriors holding them.
“Gaaaah!”
“Gunuuh!”
Some succeeded in counterattacks while others found themselves pierced by the spear users.
“――――”
They were capable. Both sides were raising their evaluations of each other further.
“――Push forward!”
The Dwarf Blacksmith Warriors moved a step ahead. Short, stout, therefore the melee battle was their forte. The axes and hammers unleashed at close range were simply formidable.
Moreover, each of those was a ‘Shinuchi’ masterpiece, which would be classified as a national treasure in human countries.
This time, it was the demons’ turn to receive the pain of taking the hits. Unable to fully deflect the heavyweight strikes, some had their bodies cleaved in two by axes. Others were folded and blown away by hammer strikes.
“Damn it!”
This wasn’t even the range for spears! The demons were forced to retreat, momentarily losing ground. With their instantaneous footwork notwithstanding, Dwarves were generally slow, thus maintaining distance was easy.
And—such a ‘weakness’ was well understood by the Dwarves themselves.
That’s why, in their ancestral battle axes and hammers, there were often ‘secret plans’ embedded to compensate for their shortcomings—
“Deeey!”
One blacksmith warrior swung his axe with all his might, unleashing a shining magical blade.
“Dodseeey!”
Another one brought down a war hammer, causing the handle to extend abruptly, gaining the reach of a spear.
“What!?”
“Guhah!!”
The magical blade deeply slashed through the body of an Anoitus warrior or struck them hard on the head with the extended war hammer, causing them to fall.
“Go! Drive them out!”
“Uooooo——!!”
Fueled by momentum, the Blacksmith Warriors attempted to chase down their enemies—
“[Tear apart!]”
“[Stone Penetration!]”
“[Fierce Flames!]”
However, a rain of magic came flying from behind the Anoitus tribe, slowing their charge. The weak magic attacks were all blown away by the ‘Shinuchi’ armor, causing no damage, but it signaled the arrival of new enemies—
“Thanks for waiting!”
—Warriors of the Korvto tribe appeared one after another. They completed their field fortifications and connected corridors to the breach created by the Anoitus tribe.
“Warriors of the Anoitus tribe! Your valiant efforts were superb!”
“I witnessed the bravery of the first spear, indeed!”
“We shall also take part in your honor!”
Alongside the beleaguered Anoitus tribe, the warriors of the Korvto tribe, clad in shiny, quality armor, readied their spears. Realizing that their gear was all dwarf-made, the expressions of the Blacksmith Warriors turned grim.
“Those injured, please step back without hesitation; it’s a slide straight to the main camp!”
As both sides glared at each other in a tense atmosphere, such relaxed words also reached their ears. A warrior of the Anoitus tribe, barely able to stand due to burns, wobbled back with a confused look, (a slide…?) while the Blacksmith Warriors watched him leave, also looking puzzled at the mention of a slide.
To their surprise, the corridor had a slippery stone slide prepared, and the burnt warrior, hesitantly, slid down it.
“Now… shall we begin!”
A young Korvto warrior with a big smile shouted, and the battlefield regained its heat and mania.
The Dwarf Blacksmith Warriors clashed with the heavily armored demon warriors of the Korvto tribe.
“Uooooooh——!!”
“Die——!!”
“Get out, you filthy barbarians——!!”
“Give me your head, you bastard——!!”
They shouted and roared, fiercely exchanging blows. Amidst the clash of spears, axes, and hammers, magical forces wrestled for control at their feet, curses flew and scattered, while the Dwarves’ fire magic was stopped by protective spells, resulting in a back-and-forth battle.
Ironically, with the injured Anoitus tribe stepping back, the Dwarf Blacksmith Warriors no longer had to fear the abnormal piercing power of the spears.
But conversely, due to the high quality of the Korvto tribe’s equipment, it became difficult for the Dwarves to land effective hits.
Ultimately—an extremely rare stalemate was born in the battle of the Demon Lord Army.
A Korvto warrior accidentally received a strike from a war hammer that shattered his armor and retreated, a jagged rock spear lodged into the unfortunate Dwarf’s helmet, seriously injuring him, while a demon, having his spear cut by a hammer blow, also retreated, and a young warrior moving forward struck back with lightning magic—
“Push, push—!!”
“Hand over your heads, hurry—!!”
“I’m planning on proposing after this battle!”
No, despite making light-hearted banter, the Korvto tribe displayed precise spear maneuvers and slightly gained the upper hand. The individual magical power and physical strength created an undeniable gap in their nearly equal numbers—
That ‘flow’ turned decisive when the nearby wall emitted an unusual sound, “Gwan!”
“Not good! That wall has been breached too!!”
Screams echoed.
“Monsters! Gah—!!”
Sounds like something tearing and flying apart echoed ominously.
“Ha ha! The Sauroe tribe is slow to arrive!”
“No, but we didn’t break through the wall ourselves.”
“If they started from scratch to break through, that’s quite something. This magical power, could it be from Prince Spinethia?”
While the Korvto tribe warriors chatted calmly, the mood on the Blacksmith Warriors’ side was grim.
“――We’re falling back! To the second defense line!”
Upon that command, the Blacksmith Warriors, engaged with the Korvto tribe, slowly began to withdraw.
“Ha! You think I’d let you go that easily?”
A fierce smile appeared on the faces of the young Korvto warriors.
The assault from the demon side grew even fiercer.
While the Dwarves fought tenaciously—they were steadily, assuredly being pushed back.