Chapter 575: In The Fray [PART 4]
Jeci watched him out of the corner of her eye, her respect for his skill mingled with a lingering irritation at his ego.
She fought alongside him, her spear stabbing forward with renewed ferocity, their movements complementing each other in a rugged, boorish harmony.
Where Lynus was cold and precise, Jeci was raw and forceful, the two of them forging a path through the swarm with a synergy that surprised even them.
A particularly hulking beast, with a back covered in bony protrusions and a mouth dripping with foul-smelling saliva, barreled toward them.
Jeci took a step back, bracing herself, but Lynus moved in without hesitation.
He sidestepped the creature's wild swipe, his short sword slicing across its exposed belly.
As it stumbled, Jeci lunged forward, thrusting her spear into its chest with all the strength she could muster.
The creature gurgled, staggering as blood pooled from the wound, and Lynus finished it with a swift, merciless strike to the neck.
Both of them did not look at each other; if anything, they seemed to not want to. Things were slightly awkward, but it did not seem to affect the synergy that they produced.
If anything, it seemed like being taught the same basics of swordsmanship, art, and act of killing had come to create a common ground for both of them to coexist-however, only on the battlefield.
This was a different kind of fight than they'd ever known, a battle where their finely tuned techniques were forced to adapt to survive.
And yet, in this raw, brutal setting, they found a strange rhythm, a deadly dance born out of necessity and honed by sheer force of each of their wills, however vastly different they may be.
For every creature that came at them, there was only one outcome: a swift, merciless death. Amidst the relentless tide of abominations, Dante's subordinates-Rafel, Shane, and Hansel -held their ground with steadfast determination.
Even though they lagged behind, each of them brought unique prowess to the battlefield. Their combined skills formed a bulwark against the encroaching horrors.
Hansel stood like a fortress, his bulky stature imposing amongst the Rabid Rots.
Clad in reinforced armor that blended well with his full helmet and full arm gauntlet, he gleamed with a soft silvery radiance.
With every swing of his massive fists, the very air crackled. A creature lunged at him, its maw wide and dripping with venom.
Hansel met it head-on, his gauntleted fist connecting with a thunderous impact that echoed across the battlefield.
The monster's skull caved in under the force, its body hurtling backward and crashing into others, toppling them like grotesque dominoes.
He laughed a deep, booming sound that seemed out of place amid the carnage but spoke volumes of his indomitable spirit.
"Is that all you've got?" he roared, slamming his fists together.
For some reason, all of them could feel a strange and unexplainable adrenaline surging through their veins. Everyone had thought this would be a battle where they'd be fighting for their lives.
But strangely, that didn't seem to be the case; everyone seemed to be so deep into the fray that no one seemed to care about dying compared to when the battle had just started.
Sparks flew from his gauntlets, and he charged into a cluster of beasts, each punch sending shockwaves that shattered bones and ruptured organs.
Hansel was a living battering ram, his sheer physicality a devastating weapon against the horde.
Rafel moved in stark contrast-a blur of motion weaving through the chaos with uncanny agility.
His twin daggers flashed like silver streaks, each precise strike finding gaps in the monsters' defenses.
Where Hansel was force, Rafel was finesse. A beast swiped at him with a gnarled claw, but he slid beneath the attack, slicing the tendons in its leg as he passed.
The creature collapsed, and without breaking stride, Rafel leaped onto its back, driving his daggers into the base of its skull.
His movements were almost dance-like, each step calculated, each strike deliberate.
Rafel's eyes were sharp, constantly assessing, anticipating the flow of battle.
He darted between monsters, his lithe form untouchable as he delivered death with every flick of his blades.
At times, he seemed to vanish entirely, only to reappear behind an enemy, his daggers already biting into flesh.
Shane fought nearby, her sword a whirlwind of steel and fury.
In this battlefield, she embodied a balance between Hansel's brute strength and Rafel's swift precision.
Her blade sang as it cut through the air, each swing powered by honed skill and relentless drive.
A monstrous creature with elongated limbs and razor-like claws descended upon her.
She met it with a parry, the clash of metal against bone ringing out. Sparks flew as she deflected its strikes, her footwork precise as she maneuvered into an opening.
With a swift motion, she sliced across its abdomen, the blade cutting deep. The beast howled, and she silenced it with a thrust through its heart.
Sweat mingled with blood on her brow, but her gaze remained unyielding, boiling with pain
and disgust.
Shane pushed forward, her sword an extension of herself.
When two more beasts charged her, she spun gracefully, her blade tracing a lethal arc that severed limbs and opened throats.
She was a tempest on the battlefield, her resolve as unbreakable as the steel she wielded.
The three of them, though different in their approaches, moved with an unspoken coordination forged through countless battles together.
Hansel would draw the brunt of the assault, his imposing presence and devastating punches
creating openings.
Rafel capitalized on these, slipping into the fray to eliminate threats before they could
regroup.
Shane anchored their formation, her swordplay maintaining the rhythm of their assault and ensuring no creature breached their defenses.
A particularly massive Rabid Rot-a writhing mass of tentacles plunging out of its mammalian body-loomed over Hansel.
It struck with unnatural speed, tentacles whipping toward him. Hansel crossed his gauntlets,
blocking the initial impact but getting pushed back by the force.
"A little help here!" he barked, digging his heels into the ground.
Rafel appeared at the creature's flank, his daggers slicing through the tentacles with surgical
precision.
"Keep it steady!" he shouted.
The beast recoiled, its tentacles flailing wildly. Seizing the moment, Shane dashed forward,
her sword glowing with a soft red luminescence.
She leaped, channeling all her strength into a downward strike that cleaved the creature's
central mass.
However, the creature was faster than she had calculated; with blurring speed, the
abomination collided with her, both of them reeling through the battlefield with a trembling
impact.
Everyone else was attracted by the noise, but to give two fucks was to lose one's head.
They were all engaged in dangerous moments of their own, fighting earnestly to survive the next second while at the same time enjoying it.