Dungeon Predator (WN)
chapter-203

The Troll Army appeared on the plains bordering Nigel Forest.

The army consisted of Troll Riders, a squad of Troll Shamans, and a squad of spear throwers. The Troll Riders rode on warthogs the size of bears, while the Troll Shamans wore skull masks and were capable of casting a variety of spells! The spear throwers obviously carried several javelins on their backs.

Aside from them, there were countless other trolls there that were armed with all sorts of weapons.

The army was composed of 100,000 trolls!

This was the full power of the Ingrit Trolls, which was considered the most powerful tribe within the west. Obviously, the army was incredibly imposing as well.

The Troll Great Chieftain, Razul, rode upon a giant rhino and scanned Nigel Forest.

Orc and elf skulls hung around his neck, clattering as they bumped into each other.

"Nergal, Turkavan, Angol!" Razul yelled.

"Yes, Great Chieftain."

"You called?"

The Troll Champions, Nergal, Turkavan, and Angol approached him.

"You'll lead the vanguard."

Each Troll Champion commanded 10,000 trolls. Which meant that the vanguard would possess a gigantic force of 30,000 strong.

"Thank you very much." The Troll Champions bowed their heads.

"Nergal. My bravest warrior."

"Yes, Great Chieftain." Nergal raised his head, which was riddled with scars, and stared at Razul.

"Take command of the vanguard."

"It's an honor!"

"Go! Rip those elves to pieces!"

"We won't disappoint you."

A short while later...

The vanguard was formed quickly.

Nergal was situated in the middle, riding a black warthog. Turkavan and his subordinates were on the right, while Angol was on the left.

The 30,000 Troll Warriors smacked their weapons on the floor.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The ground cried out, and the troops were ready for war.

"Vanguard!" Nergal's voice rang out.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

They replied by pounding their weapons onto the floor.

"Attack!" Nergal was the first to charge forward.

"Uwaaaaaaah!" the troops cried out.

A dust cloud formed as 30,000 troops charged at full speed.

It was both a tremendous and fearsome sight.

* * *

The Nigel Elves had finished constructing the 1st barricade, which lay at the outermost edge of the forest.

20,000 elves were stationed there.

Their full force was about 40,000 men, but the other 20,000 were stationed at the 2nd and 3rd barricades.

"They're coming," an Elvish Warrior, Kuyol, said from beside him.

Doran calmly watched the trolls approach the forest.

"Ready," Doran calmly said.

"Ready!" Kuyol repeated loudly.

Elves were incredibly talented archers, so every single soldier here had a bow. They were also armed with melee weapons as well.

Notch, notch, notch.

20,000 elves notched their arrows and drew their bowstrings. That too was a grand spectacle.

"Infuse the spirits' power," Doran said.

"Infuse the spirits' power!" Kuyol repeated loudly.

Whir.

The elves' arrows began shining with several colors.

Doran raised his right hand. Once his hand fell, 20,000 arrows would fill the sky.

"Steady." Doran waited until they got in firing range.

"Steady!" Kuyol yelled.

Rat-a-tat-tat.

The ground shook as 30,000 trolls charged towards them. The closer they got to the forest, the more tense it became.

'Now!' Doran's eyes gleamed. "Fire!" he yelled. Kuyol didn't need to repeat the order. Doran's hand, which had been raised in the air, now pointed at the trolls.

Whizz, whizz, whizz!

20,000 arrows flew into the sky simultaneously. In an instant, the sky was filled with arrows. Moreover, these arrows were infused with the spirits' power!

"Raise your shields!" Nergal saw the incoming arrows and yelled.

Those chosen to join the vanguard were all equipped with oval-shaped shields. The Troll Warriors quickly raised their shields, protecting them from the arrows.

Bam, bam, bam, bam!

Arrows struck both the ground and their shields.

Bam! Thwock! Bam!

However, these arrows were infused with the spirits' power. Fire, water, wind, lightning, etc. went everywhere.

"Kuahk."

"Damn it!"

Those injured by the arrows themselves or the destruction caused by the spirits' power toppled onto the ground.

However, they hadn't sustained as many casualties as they'd anticipated. They also had no reason to stop their advance.

"Don't stop. Forward!" Nergal yelled.

"Oooh!" the Troll Warriors exclaimed, boosting the morale of their forces.

"Ready!" Doran yelled.

Notch, notch, notch.

"Infuse the spirits' power!"

Whir.

"Fire!"

Whizz, whizz, whizz!

The elves unleashed a second wave of arrows, and the trolls raised their shields once more.

Bam, bam, bam, bam!

"Kuheok."

"Kyaahk!"

The trolls struck by the arrows and/or the spirits' power fell to the floor.

However, their casualties remained low, despite it being a barrage of 20,000 spirit arrows.

"Keep going!" Negal yelled once more.

"Obey the commander!"

"We're the Ingrit Trolls!"

Turkavan and Angol yelled simultaneously.

The trolls didn't stop their advance.

* * *

"This is strange. They're not taking much damage," Angol said.

"It's because of their shields," Doran said. He'd been calmly assessing the battle.

"Their shields?"

"Yeah. Their shields are weakening the spirits' power. That's why none of our arrows have pierced through them."

"Damn it. Are they custom shields?"

"The Troll Chieftain, Razul, must've prepared those to use against us. So let's use our own secret weapon. We have to cut down their numbers here no matter what."

The trolls weren't the only ones that had been preparing themselves.

The elves knew that the trolls would return someday, so they had prepared themselves and created a secret weapon of their own.

"Yes, sir."

"Ready the drill arrows!" Doran yelled.

"Ready the drill arrows!" Kuyol repeated.

The Elvish Warriors pulled out their drill arrows; the arrowheads were made of a beast's teeth.

"Fire homing arrows!"

"Fire homing arrows!"

Doran and Kuyol yelled.

Whizz!

Whir!

The drill arrows emitted a strange sound akin to a cicada's cry.

"Shields!"

Once they saw the third round of arrows, the Troll Warriors raised their shields.

However...!

"Kuhahk!"

"Shit!"

"They've gotten through our shields!"

"Guaaahk!"

Spurt!

The drill arrows, which were imbued with the 'Homing' skill, pierced through the trolls' shields and embedded themselves into their bodies.

The trolls sustained a huge amount of casualties this time.

"It definitely worked this time." Kuyol clenched his fist.

"Mm." Doran nodded his head.

The drill arrows were created by using the teeth of the Tooth Tooth monster; their teeth could bite through anything.

These arrows specialized in penetration.

But there were a couple downsides to them; they couldn't contain the spirits' power, and they were extremely difficult to procure. Thus, they weren't able to make a lot of them.

As a result, the elves had only been able to make 40,000 of them. The 20,000 elves at the first barricade had used all of the ones they'd brought with them.

By using them, they were able to kill several trolls in one fell swoop, so they didn't go to waste.

"Shall we shoot again?" Kuyol asked.

"No. The trolls have gotten too close. Get ready for melee combat." Doran pulled out his sword. It was a legendary elvish sword called the 'Spirit's Sword', and was obviously SS-rank.

"Protectors of Nigel, ready your weapons! Kill all the trolls! Don't let a single one escape!"

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

The elvish warriors raised their weapons.

At that moment...

Nergal, who was the forefront of his troops, charged into the Nigel Forest atop his warthog.

"You tree loving cowards! I, Nergal, have come!" Nergal pulled out his sword and charged!

Swish!

Whenever he swung his sword, shards of light would burst from the Elvish Warriors' bodies.

"Kuyol."

"Understood." Kuyol drew his spear and charged at Nergal.

Generals should fight generals, not low-rank soldiers.

"I'm the Elvish Warrior, Kuyol."

"C'mon kid, attack!"

Sword and spear clashed.

"Is that all you got!?" Nergal provoked him.

"Hmph. Let's see if you can keep talking after I've cut through that mouth of yours." Kuyol's eyes blazed with killing intent.

Sword and spear clashed once more.

"Kill all of the elves!"

"Ingrit, Ingrit!"

The surviving trolls pushed through the forest.

"Die!"

"Eat this!"

"Protect our forest!"

The Troll and Elvish Warriors clashed head-on.

The battlefield was filled with the metallic clang of their weapons colliding, as well as their screams, curses, and death.

The intense battle went on for quite some time.

Razul watched as the vanguard entered Nigel Forest. 'The shield squadron got through their arrows. I guess it's time.'

The shields that the three Troll Champions' men carried were specifically designed to protect them against the elves' arrows.

They'd broken through the barrage of arrows, so now it was time to move their main force and slaughter the elves in one go.

"Ursac!"

"You called?" Ursac replied. His head was larger than the average troll's and he possessed a huge physique.

"Keep your special forces here."

"Understood." Though he was disappointed that he wouldn't be able to participate in the battle, he complied with the order.

"You'll play a huge part in the battle against the orcs, so just wait a little longer."

"Yes, sir."

"Everyone aside from Ursac's squad, follow me! We're going to reinforce the vanguard!" Razul yelled.

"Razul! Razul!"

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The trolls all yelled Razul's name, and pounded their weapons onto the ground.

"Charge!"

Excluding Ursac's squad, 60,000 trolls marched towards Nigel Forest.

* * *

The Mercenary Association had gathered all of its gold rank mercenaries.

"Is that all of us?" Balduk asked. He was the president of the Mercenary Association.

He was an oxman, who possessed large, beautiful golden horns.

Balduk was over 3 meters tall, and he emanated an aura of power.

"We've gathered twelve of our gold rank mercenaries, but we don't know where the last four are," a worker said. His skin, fur, and eyes were all completely white. He was Balduk's right-hand man.

Kang Oh was here too. The other human gold rank mercenary, Bart, was absent.

"Hmm, then let's begin the meeting. You all have some idea as to what's happening right now, right?" Balduk said.

The mercenaries nodded their heads. Kang Oh stood with his arms crossed.

"But I'd still like a detailed explanation of what's going on," Balduk said to the cold faced Cetion, who was leaning on the wall.

Cetion nodded his head and said, "The Ingrit Trolls have invaded Nigel Forest. Our greatest warrior, Lord Doran, was elected commander in chief, and has created several barricades to slow the trolls down."

"Barricades? So he's chosen to spread out his firepower, rather than concentrate it in a single spot?" a mercenary asked.

"Yes. Lord Doran said that it would be a war of attrition. If we can prolong this war, then victory will be ours," Cetion said.

"The Ingrit Trolls are trying to end this as quickly as possible. They're not giving us time to gather our strength," Balduk added.

"I see. Then will the Mercenary Association form a mercenary squadron, and participate in the war like last time?" a panther faced mercenary asked. He had participated in the previous war.

"That's right. It'd be hard for us to make much of an impact by ourselves," Balduk said.

"I agree. It'd be hard to find work when the trolls are making such a ruckus. Of course, you have to make sure we're paid properly," the panther faced mercenary said.

"You don't have to worry about that. We will pay you handsomely," Cetrion said.

"Then it's fine."

None of the mercenaries disagreed or opposed the proposition. Kang Oh didn't really have any complaints either. All he cared about was being able to step onto the battlefield after all.

"Alright then, I assume you all agree, so we'll be forming a mercenary squad."

"Alright."

At that moment...

Bam. The door to the Mercenary Association opened and in came the female elf, Vanessa.

"What's the matter?" Balduk asked.

"The first barricade... has fallen," Vanessa said, looking regretful.