Chapter 11: Being Optimistic.
"They’re many ways for a man to die, most don’t like the sound of that, but that’s the unfiltered truth... If you were to ask me. Damien, how would you like to die?... I’d say, in a million dollar mansion, in the heart of the city of angels, right in-between the thighs of a super model... That’s the dream, isn’t that right priesty?".
Priesty stared blankly for a moment, before it growled softly.
The tunnel shook violently as sand rained down from above. The Eidolon army was finally approaching.
They didn’t take long.
In fact. Damien and the others barely had enough space to mentally accept what was coming.
"Seris, hide in one of the rooms," Chad said as he moved forward, taking position at the front. Beside him stood the two undead Eidolons, still ever the loyalist.
Yuri wasn’t built for prolonged combat. She was precise, explosive, the kind of fighter that ended things quickly or didn’t last at all. Surviving this would mean using her ability in simple hit and run tactics.
In Damien’s words, the best way to win wasn’t with brutish strength, it was making the enemy hate your existence enough to mess up.
Damien and Priesty were the last line of defense. Well, Priesty was mostly just there to protect Damien.
Damien spotted a black bow with a quiver of pitch-black arrows nearby. He picked it up without hesitation.
He had to admit something, he had no talent for swords, spears, or anything that required looking heroic up close. But if there was one thing he was good at, it was shooting things from a very safe distance.
Some people might call that cowardly.
Damien preferred the term: survival strategy.
Because in his experience, there was a very thin line between stupidity and innovation, and most people liked sprinting straight past it, luckily for them, he wasn’t like most people.
"Here, you can have this back." Damien passed the ritual staff back to Priesty, and it took it without complaint.
The Eidolons were a rowdy bunch, but they weren’t as stupid as they looked. Damien didn’t have enough time to form a proper strategy, but even Yuri had to admit... they might just survive this.
Chad, on the other hand, was less optimistic.
Damien had told him to make his whole body obscure and imperceptible, but after a brief back-and-forth, it was clarified again that his ability is heavily limited and works mostly on weapons. When he had fought earlier, he hadn’t even made his hand invisible, just the cuff on his right wrist.
Even if Damien’s idea was possible, what difference would it make? The Eidolons would still crush him the moment they got a clean hit.
Damien nocked an arrow and drew the string back. It was strong, but manageable.
The plan was simple: wear them down.
The narrow entrance worked in their favor, limiting movement and stopping the Eidolons from surrounding or stampeding through all at once.
Damien sighed melancholically. "From this day onward, this strategy shall be known as the Glorified Meat Grinder."
The cave shook the moment Chad collided with the first Eidolon to force its way through the entrance.
The two locked together immediately.
Muscle strained against beastly muscle as neither side gave ground. For a few seconds, they remained deadlocked, its hooves grinded against the stone floor. Chad’s strength began to show itself, and the Eidolon was slowly forced backwards.
Unfortunately, there was never just one.
More Eidolons were already pushing through the narrow passage behind it.
The two undead supporting Chad had armed themselves with heavy maces they found inside the chamber. Against the crude spiked clubs wielded by the Eidolons, the advantage was obvious. A single swing shattered wood and bent iron spikes. A clean hit was even worse, breaking bone and sending bodies crashing into the tunnel walls.
The problem was that the Eidolons simply didn’t care. They kept coming like an endless tide, but Yuri refused to let the pressure build.
The moment she spotted an opening, electricity surged through her body and she shot forward in a white blur. Her blade traced a diagonal arc through the air, slicing cleanly through the necks of two Eidolons that were focused entirely on the undead.
Both bodies collapsed before they even realized they were dead.
The quick success filled Yuri with confidence.
Without slowing down, she pushed deeper into the melee and aimed for the Eidolon currently wrestling with Chad.
Chad was having more trouble than he expected. The spear gave him reach, but in the cramped entrance, it also restricted his movements. He couldn’t fully commit to an attack, yet abandoning the weapon entirely wasn’t an option. Meeting a spiked club with his bare arms would be suicidal.
As a result, he found himself caught between offense and defense.
The Eidolon sensed it too.
With an angry roar, it raised its spiked club and swung straight toward Chad’s head.
Before the blow could land, Yuri’s katana flashed across the battlefield.
Her sword’s steel met the Eidolons’ wooden club. The club shattered in two.
For a brief moment, the Eidolon simply stared at the broken handle still clutched in its hand. Then an outraged roar exploded through the cave.
Yuri was already retreating, She couldn’t afford to linger.
More footsteps were echoing through the tunnel, and judging by the furious growls that accompanied them, the next wave was already on its way.
Damien was waiting for them.
The moment the first ram-faced Eidolon poked its head through the entrance, he released the string.
The pitch-black arrow shot forward like a streak of darkness and buried itself deep in the creature’s skull.
The Eidolon barely had time to react before its body went limp and collapsed back into the tunnel.
A dark grin spread across Damien’s face.
"Oh, that’s satisfying."
Yuri’s brows twitched faintly.
Damien sounded entirely too pleased with their current situation. They were trapped underground, surrounded by an army of Eidolons, and somehow he seemed to be enjoying himself.
For a brief moment, Yuri wondered if it had something to do with the large section of missing brain matter.
Then she shook her head and pushed the thought aside. That would imply he was normal before.