Chapter 130: Breaking Through
Boom—
With a deafening roar, the West Gate of Northwind Keep exploded open.
Rusted iron mechanisms groaned and spun, emitting a screech of friction as the massive drawbridge slowly lowered across the wide moat, bridging the gap to the far shore.
"Who’s the traitor?!"
"Damn it—someone opened the City Gate!"
"Quick! Pull up the drawbridge!"
"No—here they come!"
"Everyone, prepare for battle!"
Chaos erupted within the city. Shouts, screams, curses—no one could tell friend from foe.
For hours, the Dragonline Followers had waited beyond the walls, and now they surged forward with unrelenting fury, pouring onto the drawbridge like a flood, unstoppable and overwhelming.
At the front of the charge stood the towering, muscular Ogre Club-and-Shield Warrior. Behind him came Goblin Riflemen and Lizardfolk Tribal Warriors, their eyes blazing with bloodlust.
"For Ashen Hollow!"
"Take over Northwind Keep!"
Though the Lakanman Family’s grip on the City Defense Force was ironclad—nearly reaching the peak of feudal control—its ranks were not entirely unified.
And now, with the Red Dragon’s own presence and chilling ultimatum, even the most loyal "Eagle’s Shield" soldiers felt the faintest tremor of doubt. Perhaps among every ten defenders, one or two had already made their choice. That was all it took to shatter the foundation of Northwind Keep.
What followed was simple.
The traitorous soldiers secretly contacted the Player Spy hidden within the city, gathered strength, and launched a coup. In an instant, the city gate commander—completely unprepared—was slain. The gates of Northwind Keep, sealed for over a century, were finally breached.
The leader of the rebellion was John. His wife had died at the hands of the so-called "Devil," making him once one of the Duke’s most loyal soldiers. But when he drove his sword into the commander’s chest, the man’s face twisted in shock. He never expected the man nicknamed “faithful hound” to turn on him.
The traitors followed their pact—tying red ribbons around their right arms—and turned their weapons on their former comrades.
"Kill these vampire lackeys!"
"For our families!"
"For survival!"
John raised his standard longsword and bellowed.
Thus began the brutal clash: Ashen Hollow’s followers, the traitorous soldiers, and the loyal city guards all clashed in the heart of the city.
Northwind Keep, the deepest stronghold of the Lakanman Family, would not fall as easily as Telo City.
Loyalty was not the only bond—it was the benefits that truly held them together.
Many of its elite forces were bound to the Lakanman Family through contracts, oaths, and shared stakes. They knew that if the Duke fell, their own fates would be no better than death—perhaps even worse. So they fought to the death, holding the narrow passage at the City Gate like a wall of steel, repelling Ashen Hollow’s advance.
"Human, die!"
The Ogre swung his spiked club with brutal force, crushing a soldier into pulp. He advanced, shield raised, deflecting arrows with his massive hide, charging like a living war machine.
Then—crack—a shard of ice struck his thick forearm.
The fragment exploded, unleashing a wave of freezing agony. His movements slowed, his strength waning.
An Ice Blade spell.
Spellcasters loyal to the Lakanman Family joined the fray.
"Charge!"
"Kill that monster—avenge our brothers!"
Allied soldiers surged forward, eager to strike down the Ogre.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Great Goblin skirmishers unleashed volleys of bullets, felling several soldiers in quick succession.
Since the Battle of Tiriel, the Players from Storm Armory had perfected their rifled guns—more accurate, more deadly. And in response, the Freedom-focused Ranger Tactics emerged, nimble and adaptive for small-scale warfare.
"For Ashen Hollow! For endless food!"
"Charge!"
Ogre Tribesmen advanced behind their massive shields, forming a living wall, relentless and unstoppable.
Ice Spikes, Fireballs, Acid Sprays, and Luminous spells rained down upon the Followers. Several Ogres fell—one torn apart by ice, another burned to ash, another dissolved by acid. Yet their expressions never changed.
Their simple minds knew only two things: fight and eat. Death was nothing new—quite literally. In the wilds, hungry Ogres often held impromptu feasts, burying their fallen kin in their bellies.
But Ashen Hollow had not come empty-handed.
While the Great Goblins kept firing, picking off defenders one by one, the Players themselves entered the battlefield.
Suddenly, dazzling magical auras flared across the field—powerful, colorful, and overwhelming. The Players brought a new kind of chaos, their tactics more varied, more unpredictable.
"Damn, their fire’s too strong—"
"Paladin, push forward!"
"Give me Haste! I need Haste, I’m invincible!"
"Priest, cast Holy Domain!"
Naked-chested, the Monk Player "Great威 Tianlong" soared through the air, fueled by Haste, leaping from rooftop to rooftop before plummeting down like a thunderbolt into the midst of the City Defense Force’s formation.
Surrounded by panicked soldiers, utterly confused about where the enemy had come from, he grinned fiercely.
"I’ll take ten!"
"Rapid Storm Strike!"
His fists blurred, a whirlwind of motion. The thud-thud-thud of impact echoed like a drum. Each punch, infused with aura, smashed into soldiers with such force that their armor dented, cracked, even imprinted with fist marks.
This Monk Player had unlocked Grass-Cutting Invincibility Mode.
"Hahahaha! I’m a god descending from heaven—pure slaughter!"
Great威 Tianlong roared through the chaos, dancing through the ranks, blood splattering his bald head.
The defenders quickly noticed him. Arrows flew—whizz!—aimed at his skull.
Zing—
One arrow screamed toward his head.
"Deflect Arrows!"
Great威 Tianlong sneered, gathering aura in his palms. He caught the arrow mid-flight—bare-handed—and slammed it back with brutal force.
It pierced the archer’s forehead. Dead on impact.
"Hmph. Such petty tricks. How dare you challenge a master?"
He barely finished speaking when a storm of arrows rained down from all sides.
Yes, a Monk could deflect arrows—but he wasn’t an eight-armed Buddha. His bare body soon became a pincushion, pierced through and through.
"Not wise," he muttered, lying on the ground.
"…My life… was worth it."
As his vision darkened, he watched his Character Sheet update—overflowing with a massive surge of Contribution Points and Experience Points (XP).
Then—blackness.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
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