The Orc soldiers, seemingly tireless, kept attacking without rest.
In contrast, the Goblin and Lizardman allied forces, trapped and being whittled down, were unable to break free.
They needed to regroup and tear through the encirclement, but doing so would mean abandoning the less mobile Goblins.
Moreover, how many of the injured and exhausted Lizardmen could follow?
Even if they retreated, there was no way forward. At this point, they had to think about leaving as many survivors as possible.
Normally, the fighting would end when victory was certain. However, the Orc soldiers seemed intent on eradicating them.
Without any offer of surrender, they just kept killing and eating.
This instilled fear. The weaker units began to lose morale, and the formation was on the verge of collapse.
The Goblins, who were already weak, could no longer be relied upon for combat power.
They were all collapsing and fleeing, but the Orc soldiers showed no mercy, chasing and killing the fleeing Goblins.
The Goblin forces, which once numbered over 1,000, were now down to a few hundred. The term "annihilation" was now an understatement.
The Lizardman warrior corps was also in dire straits. Initially, they numbered 8,000, but now they were below 6,000.
Their numbers were gradually being whittled down, making it difficult to act in an organized manner.
Still, they kept encouraging each other and attempting to break through the Orc encirclement.
However...
Suddenly, the black-armored Orc General's unit began to move.
Unlike the regular Orc soldiers, this was a well-organized group. Each member was clad in full plate mail.
They were equally strong as the regular Orc soldiers, but their control as a unit and the quality of their equipment were on a different level.
Moreover, the Orc General leading them exuded a presence that suppressed others, and his power was on a different scale.
The Orc General.
A formidable force in his own right, the general of the Orc soldiers, leading 2,500 Orc Knights.
One of the five Orc Generals, his abilities were ranked at "B+."
One-fourth of the highest force under the Orc Lord was now in motion.
It was over.
This was a decisive force in Gabil's eyes.
Escape was impossible. In this situation, he could only die honorably...
At least, he wanted to die as a warrior. Thinking this,
"Kwahahahaha! Cowardly pig general! Do you have the courage to face me in single combat!!!"
He shouted loudly.
It seemed he couldn't win. His scale mail was already tattered.
In contrast, the full plate mail of his opponent seemed to be enchanted.
If this challenge was accepted, at least he could die honorably as a warrior. If things went well, he might take the enemy general with him, he thought.
"Hahaha. Fine. I'll face you!"
The Orc General responded, dismounting his horse and walking over.
The atmosphere around them grew tense, and the sounds of the ongoing battle in the periphery seemed to fade away.
Gabil felt his concentration was higher than ever before.
"Thank you!"
Silently, the two faced each other.
Gripping his magic weapon, the Water Vortex Spear, he waited for an opening.
"Come on!"
The Orc General lunged. Simultaneously,
"Take this!!! Vortex Spear Water Crash!!!"
He unleashed his ultimate technique, combining his spear skills with the magic power of his weapon.
This was Gabil's strongest attack at the moment. However,
"Chaos Eater!!!"
The Orc General deflected the attack with his spear, reducing the vortex's power.
Not only that, the speed of the outer rotation increased, and a sinister yellow aura began to emit. The materialized yellow aura charged at Gabil.
It was trying to consume him! Gabil rolled to escape. But the aura pursued him...
"Hahaha! You're just a lizard. Rolling on the ground suits you!"
The Orc General mocked him.
Gabil didn't give up. At least, he would try one more time...
He grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it at the Orc General. Even if it was cowardly, at least it would buy him some time!
However, the attack was futilely absorbed by the yellow aura.
Gabil felt the spear's strike coming towards him.
Desperately trying to avoid the yellow aura, he had no time to dodge the spear.
Is this it...
Gabil thought, closing his eyes.
Suddenly, a loud noise echoed.
The previously still sounds began to move.
Distracted by the noise, the Orc General's strike grazed Gabil, not causing a fatal wound.
What is this?
Gabil was confused, even in the midst of battle. At this moment, the situation was already changing.
The situation was rapidly developing, regardless of Gabil's awareness.
??????????????????????????
Shion's attack swept through the Orc soldiers.
This signaled the start of the battle.
Benimaru, witnessing the power of the surprise attack from the rear, was not surprised.
He simply muttered,
"What are you doing... you idiot..."
It was unclear if he was reassured by the lack ofε¨ζ in the commander, but the Goblin Riders were also not shaken.
They were frustrated by losing the initial strike, but they could still charge now. They could endure.
With their momentum, they charged into the group of Orc soldiers.
The Orc soldiers, caught off guard by the unknown attack, were unable to respond to the speed of the Goblin Riders and suffered heavy blows.
It was easy.
This was Benimaru's impression.
Without his intervention, the Goblin Riders' charge was sufficient.
This was not interesting. Thinking this,
"Everyone, stop!"
He gave the order.
Losing momentum was unusual. A unit specialized in speed had no reason to give up its advantage...
However, the Goblin Riders, without hesitation, stopped as commanded.
"Ranga, can you shadow move to where the Lizardman Gabil is?"
Benimaru asked. He wondered if Ranga's technique, similar to Soue's shadow move, was possible.
"Possible."
A concise answer.
"Good! You go ahead and protect him. I'll catch up on foot!"
It was an odd statement. This was a battlefield, surrounded by Orc soldiers.
Gabil's group was encircled, and breaking through with a small force would be extremely difficult. He planned to break through on foot, not by speed. This was unthinkable in a normal battle...
"Got it. Walk slowly. I'll go ahead!"
With that, Ranga merged into the shadows.
Benimaru dismounted and did some light stretching.
The Orc soldiers, confused, hesitated to attack.
The Goblins, however, were confident.
Among them,
"Hey? Why did we stop? Shouldn't we charge?
You're not telling us to dismount, right? Walking is tiring!"
One of them complained, but was ignored.
"Alright, you guys. The pigs in front of me, move aside. If you do, I'll let you go!"
Having finished his stretching, Benimaru addressed the Orc soldiers.
None of them moved.
"Don't be ridiculous! If you underestimate us..."
"Then, die!"
Confirming they wouldn't move, Benimaru slowly extended his right hand.
A black flame sphere formed in his hand, expanding to about 1 meter in diameter before accelerating forward.
The Orc soldiers, sensing the danger, panicked and tried to flee. But it was too late.
The black flame sphere, continuously accelerating, reached a speed of about 600 km/h, far beyond what the Orc soldiers could escape.
Those it touched instantly burned to ashes, leaving no trace.
But the black flame sphere's terror didn't end there.
Upon reaching the densely packed Orc soldiers, it released the contained magic power (energy).
A black dome, about 100 meters in radius, covered the area.
A loud boom echoed.
Despite the size, the sound sent a chill down the spines of those who heard it.
A range annihilation attack... "Black Flame Prison"
A skill Benimaru had acquired. The black dome disappeared after a few seconds, leaving only scorched earth.
The wet ground had melted like glass.
The extreme heat was unimaginable.
Naturally, the 2,000 to 5,000 Orc soldiers caught in the dome were annihilated without understanding what had happened.
This occurred within a minute of Benimaru releasing the black flame sphere.
Benimaru showed a wicked smile,
"Clear the way, pigs!"
He repeated.
The Orc soldiers were in a state of fear.
Under the influence of the Unique Skill "Hunger," their fear was heightened.
However, this attack was enough to instill primal fear.
An attack they couldn't withstand no matter what means they used.
A high-output attack they had never seen before. Only high-level forbidden magic could produce such power.
There was no way to resist such an attack, and even eating the corpses to gain resistance was impossible, as the corpses were instantly burned to ashes.
A superior demon, beyond their reach, had appeared, instilling fear.
The terrified Orc soldiers began to retreat.
Maintaining control was now impossible.
Benimaru, observing this, walked forward.
To him, the Orc soldiers were no longer an obstacle.
??????????????????????????
Gabil, prepared to die, felt pain in his side but no pursuit followed.
Thinking something was strange, he cautiously opened his eyes.
What he saw was a black wolf.
He had seen it somewhere before... Yes! The Arang tribe's chief's proxy!
"Oh, oh! Are you the proxy, here to help?"
He asked, without realizing it.
Gabil had no time to observe his surroundings.
He looked around, confused.
A loud commotion was coming from a distance, indicating something had happened.
To Gabil,
"I am neither Arang nor a proxy."
Ranga responded in a deep, resonant voice.
Seemingly uninterested in Gabil, he looked at the Orc General.
The Orc General was also confused. The sudden appearance of a superior demon was unsettling.
More importantly, he felt a massive release of magic power from the front.
Something bad had happened. The Orc General felt this.
Without needing to read the atmosphere,
"What! If you're not from the Arang tribe... Could you be the chief of the Black Wolf tribe?"
Gabil exclaimed in surprise.
Ranga, both amazed and thinking he might be a big catch, sighed,
"Shut up for a while. I am Ranga! A loyal subordinate of Rimuru!!!"
He declared. Then,
"Orcs, if you run, I won't chase you, but if you show your fangs, I won't forgive you!"
He shouted at the Orcs.
The Orc soldiers trembled at his roar but felt no fear.
The Orc General's presence and the influence of the Unique Skill "Hunger" reinforced their resolve.
"Hahaha! Pathetic! You, a mere animal, dare to show your fangs to us!!!"
The Orc General accepted the challenge.
Both entered a battle stance.
Following the Orc General's command, the Orc soldiers quickly formed an encirclement.
They had no intention of playing games with a beast.
Ranga sneered.
A long-forgotten thrill. He unleashed his instincts as a hunting beast.