Chapter 330: Kargan
During the battle, Sylas had focused on dodging and made use of his telekinesis to keep the water turbulence from getting too great. After silently killing their guardians, there was no one to stand in his way, and there was also no one who had even noticed what was going on here.
Kargan had focused all his elites at the front gate, and that gave Sylas free rein.
Before he had come, he used <Astral Will Fission>. Although he didn't dare to get too close to most here, he had a good understanding of the layout, and he knew where to find his targets.
He slipped onto the dock and killed the two guards in quick succession. They were silently pulled into his Madness Key, and no one was the wiser.
After this, he had an easy stroll into the village.
He moved from home to home, killing those he came across swiftly and silently. Even when there was a slight scuffle, the noise was within reasonable enough limits that it didn't alert many at all.
After a while, he had already killed as much as half the Hobgoblins in the village. They appeared only in groups of two and three, and because they thought their elites were already laying the perfect trap, their guard was down.
None of them would realize that they were being massacred one by one until it was far, far too late.
Sylas cast a glance toward Kargan's abode, but after a while, he shook his head.
'No, this much is enough for now.'
He retreated. It was time for a full frontal attack. But before that...
Sylas silently returned to the dock and cut away the small ships.
These small battle ships were designed for five people at most. There were a half dozen of them; they were robust, and they had a single harpoon unit angled at the front. They were clearly designed to be more fast and agile than they were to be robust defensive vessels. Sylas took them all, left a sudden noise, and then vanished into the night.
...
When Kargan saw that his ships were gone, his fury practically rose to his head and exited his ears as steam. He couldn't remember ever being so completely infuriated in his life. But soon, it was like a bucket of ice-cold water had been dumped onto his head. That was because he had finally noticed... that half his army had vanished right under his nose.
At first, their village was at least 60 strong. But now, they barely had over 20.
Though they hadn't lost a single elite, this sort of loss was something that was enough to make his organs ache.
And it was right then that the sound of a battle's precursor echoed in his ears.
The enemies had suddenly begun their frontal assault.
...
Tam, Rajon, and Bellen took the vanguard, roaring and bashing their shields as though they would be disappointed if the Hobgoblins didn't know that they were coming.
By this point, the hobgoblins had already stopped pretending to fix the gate and were resting and assessing their losses. But that didn't mean that they were any less prepared for a battle.
Until now, they still hadn't gotten any eyes on those that were attacking them, so the moment they did, they saw red.
Their companions and many of their village mates had just vanished, and they were under no illusions. Their own had clearly been killed in droves, and they had been humiliated to the extent that they didn't even know how it had happened.
The hobgoblins unleashed a furious charge, ramming into the three tanks, and a battle erupted.
The elites of the hobgoblins were Level 15 existences, a level above Sylas' team. When they were infuriated like this, they seemed to have unleashed a berserker Skill that increased their strength by an additional 30%.
Sylas, who was in the middle of their formation, noticed this immediately, but it didn't faze him. However, the same couldn't be said for Kargan.
The hobgoblin leader was infuriated by the choice of his men. Their berserker Skill should only be used in the most pressing of situations. Using it at the start of battle like this...
'Comprehension!' It suddenly dawned on the hobgoblin leader, but it was too late. Sylas' Madness had taken hold of his men, and all of them had erupted with their greatest strength at the very onset. Instead of making use of their intelligence and numbers' advantage, they attacked like rabid, wild animals.
Kargan wanted to hurry and support them, to at least crush the three shieldmen and take proper advantage of their berserk Skill. But at that moment, Sylas took advantage of their one-track minds to slip past their periphery.
He appeared in the depths of the village again, blocking Kargan's path forward. Sylas' team took a defensive approach, relying on their equipment to kite the rampaging hobgoblins while Sylas stifled their leader's ability to go and support them.
He exchanged several blows with Kargan in an instant. The latter didn't have the chance to take out a weapon before he was sent stumbling back several steps.
Sylas was at a point where he could hold his own against the likes of Licirius in terms of skill alone. Although he wasn't yet on Licirius' level and still had a ways to go, against the likes of Kargan, a spawn demon who wasn't even using his main weapon, he was too far beyond.
"DAMMIT! ON ME, THE REST OF YOU!" Kargan roared.
The rest of the hobgoblins rushed forward. Kargan realized he had to kill Sylas as quickly as possible, or else everything would be finished.
He waved a hand, and a scimitar appeared in his grip. His aura changed, and he swung a swift three strikes at Sylas. Or so it seemed.
Sylas' eyes saw three swords, but his visualization only saw one supported by two arcs of Aether.
But unlike the illusions he used, these were real strikes.
Sylas' eyes narrowed.