Chapter 19 : Chapter 19
Chapter 19: The Beastfolk’s Cunning, Fina Takes the Field
The battle was raging fiercely.
Everyone’s attention was focused entirely on the Beastfolk in front of them.
So much so that no one noticed several tall shadows appearing in the forest at the side of the town.
Ryan, like everyone else, was concentrating on his shooting.
With every burst Ryan fired, the number of Beastfolk kept dropping.
At this point, the Beastfolk had already lost half their number. By rough estimate, only fifteen remained, and that number was still falling rapidly.
Just as everyone thought the battle was about to end,
a spear suddenly shot out from the forest beside the town!
Whoosh!
The spear flew at incredible speed and, in the blink of an eye, reached a male townsman.
Thud!
The spear pierced straight through the man’s chest and nailed him viciously to the ground.
“Urgh!”
Only then did everyone react.
“Watch out for an ambush!!”
“There are more enemies!”
“Over there, in the forest!!”
Panic broke out among the crowd.
Amid the confusion, someone noticed many tall figures appearing in the nearby forest.
“They’re Beastfolk!”
“There are Beastfolk in the forest, and they’re very close!!”
The moment they realized the ambushers were Beastfolk, everyone instantly fell into alarm.
They had thought there was only the group of Beastfolk in the distance.
Who would have thought these Beastfolk were so cunning?
They actually knew how to use a feint from the front and an ambush from the side.
“Quiet!”
Fina shouted sharply.
In the next second, everyone stopped crying out and turned to look at her.
“Leave this side to Ryan. A few of you come with me into the forest. Who among you can see better at night?”
Everyone looked at each other, and then three men stepped forward.
Fina glanced at Ryan.
Ryan nodded and said softly, “Be careful of traps. Protect yourself. Once I finish off these Beastfolk, I’ll come support you right away!”
“Mhm.”
Fina answered, then took the three men and ran toward the forest.
Ryan watched Fina’s retreating figure and pressed his lips together.
Then he turned to look at the distant Beastfolk, and his gaze grew even colder and fiercer.
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!
The bullets carried Ryan’s boundless fury as they rained down upon the Beastfolk before him.
At this moment, Ryan had only one thought in his mind.
Finish off the Beastfolk in front of him as fast as possible, then go protect Fina.
...
Meanwhile,
Fina had already led the three men deep into the forest.
The darkness had no effect on Fina’s eyesight.
So it was easy for her to make out the figures in the woods.
There was no surprise at all.
Those figures were Beastfolk.
Fina counted them. There were fifteen Beastfolk.
That number was equal to half the force attacking from the front.
And they were already very close to the town.
If the Beastfolk on the front line had not suffered such devastating losses,
these ones probably would not have exposed themselves so early.
Fina guessed they had originally planned to coordinate with the Beastfolk attacking from the front and strike the town together.
It was just that they had not expected someone like Ryan to be in the town.
A single person, standing dozens of meters away, had been able to inflict that much damage.
Out of the original thirty Beastfolk, the ones on the front had nearly been wiped out before they even reached the gates of the town.
That, in turn, had forced the Beastfolk hiding in the forest to reveal themselves early.
They had no choice.
If they waited any longer, the Beastfolk on the front line would all be dead.
The moment they made their move, they could at least draw some attention away from the front line.
From that perspective, they had succeeded.
Fina had personally come to deal with them.
When the Beastfolk saw Fina appear before them, they immediately came to a halt.
But soon after, they realized that only four people had come to stop them.
That discovery infuriated them at once.
They were powerful Beastfolk. To think these people wanted to kill fifteen of them with only four humans was nothing but a dream.
Fifteen against four!
This advantage is ours!
“GRAAAH!”
With a roar from the Beastfolk at the front, the entire group charged at Fina.
Fina observed them carefully.
Of the fifteen Beastfolk, most carried melee weapons such as blades and clubs.
Only two of them stayed at the back, holding bows.
So in that instant, Fina made her decision.
She would kill the two Beastfolk with bows first, the ones capable of ranged attacks.
Then Fina said to the three men beside her, “Kill the Beastfolk with bows first. Cover me!”
Without waiting for their reply, she looked up at the large tree beside her.
In a few quick movements, Fina climbed up into the tree.
The three men hurried over as well, pressing their backs against the trunk and staring fixedly at the charging Beastfolk.
When Fina reached the top of the tree, her field of vision broadened.
From there, she could clearly see the two Beastfolk at the rear.
At that moment, the two Beastfolk were holding their bows and drawing into firing position.
Fina did not give them the chance to attack. She immediately raised the Desert Eagle and aimed at one of them.
By sheer coincidence, those two Beastfolk had also chosen Fina as their target.
It was just that their vision had been hampered by the darkness, so they had not locked onto her right away.
The outcome was obvious.
Fina fired first.
Bang!
Then, after an interval of one second, she fired again.
Bang!
After the two shots rang out, the two Beastfolk holding bows collapsed.
Fina saw them open their mouths wide, but the distance was too great, and she could not hear what they were saying.
Even if she had known what they were saying,
Fina would not have cared.
These Beastfolk had come to attack the town. She would never pity them.
“GRAAAH!”
The charging Beastfolk heard the dying cries of their companions behind them.
But they did not look back.
Or rather, the Beastfolk race never looked back. They only charged ahead relentlessly.
Fina did not hold back either.
Using the remaining bullets in the Desert Eagle, she aimed one by one at the charging Beastfolk.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
After several consecutive shots, the Desert Eagle’s magazine was emptied.
At this point, only seven Beastfolk remained in the forest.
“Ice Magic — Ice Blades!”
In the gap while changing magazines, Fina cast the spell she was most familiar with.
Seven blades of ice appeared before her.
With a sweep of her arm,
all the Ice Blades shot toward the Beastfolk.
The Beastfolk had strong defenses, so these Ice Blades could not deal them much real damage.
But Fina’s goal was not to kill them. It was to buy time.
Against monsters like Beastfolk,
the Desert Eagle in her hands was undoubtedly the most effective weapon.
It was just that once the bullets ran out, she had to reload.
So while she was changing magazines, these Ice Blades only needed to slow the Beastfolk down.
Click! Click!
Fina’s reloading technique was extremely practiced, and she finished in the blink of an eye.
However, just as she raised the gun again and prepared to fire,
a sharp sound tore through the air from the distance.
Fina instinctively twisted aside to dodge.
Rip!
A spear brushed past Fina’s side.
Although the spear had not pierced her body, it still scraped her wrist.
“Hngh!”
The intense pain made Fina let out a muffled groan.
She had not expected there to be such a formidable Beastfolk among them.
If she had reacted even a little slower just now, she would already have been impaled.
Fina looked down at the group of Beastfolk below.
One of them, clearly taller and larger than the others, was now staring back at her.
The moment their eyes met, both of them knew the other was powerful.
Fina’s delicate brows drew together.
Now that her wrist had been grazed, she could no longer aim the Desert Eagle properly. She could only switch to using magic against them.
Fina guessed they must already have learned the weakness of firearms just now.
That was, once the bullets were used up, they needed to be replaced.
And that brief process of reloading was the perfect chance to strike.
That meant this group of Beastfolk had likely been lying in ambush in the forest for quite some time, waiting for the Beastfolk on the front line to push up to the gates of the town so they could attack together.
It was just that an unexpected development had forced them to reveal themselves early.
Now the enemy had seven Beastfolk, while Fina’s side had only four people including herself.
Not to mention that in a one-on-one fight, Beastfolk completely outclassed humans.
So on the surface, Fina’s group of four had no chance of victory at all.
But Fina was not worried in the slightest.
Her purpose in coming here was to buy time.
As long as she could stall them long enough,
then once Ryan killed all the Beastfolk on the front line, he would come support her.
And when that happened, these seven Beastfolk in front of her would not be able to stir up even the slightest wave.
“GRAAAH!”
That towering Beastfolk let out an angry roar, then charged forward.
The other six Beastfolk followed close behind.
At this moment, the three men beneath the tree were terrified, but not one of them ran.
All three of them knew that if they stayed together, they might still survive.
If they fled, then these Beastfolk would inevitably pick them off one by one.
Moreover, the mayor had chosen them because they already possessed a certain amount of combat ability.
“Ice Magic — Ice Shield!!”
At the same time, Fina cast a spell from the top of the tree.
A transparent Ice Shield appeared in front of the three men.
That Ice Shield could provide them with some protection.
“Ice Magic — Ice Spear!”
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Several spears made of ice appeared before Fina.
Every one of them radiated a chilling cold.
“Go!”
With Fina’s command,
all the Ice Spears instantly shot toward the Beastfolk.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Fina’s mana now could not be compared to what it had been back then.
After years of training, her strength had improved enormously.
She was no longer the rookie Mage who would run out of mana after casting only one or two spells.
Now, with a wave of her hand, she could summon several Ice Blades or several spears at once. Their power was tremendous, displaying the might of a Mage in full.
That was also why Mages held such high status in this world.
As long as they made it past the difficult early stage,
the destruction a Mage could unleash was catastrophic.
Even a young Mage like Fina was already this powerful.
As for veteran Mages who had trained for who knew how many years, they would be even more terrifying.
That was also the reason Ryan had never sold firearms.
Once firearms spread everywhere, Mages would definitely come looking for trouble with him.
Thud! Thud!
Four Beastfolk failed to dodge in time and were pierced through the chest by the Ice Spears, dying on the spot.
Only three Beastfolk remained.
And now, they had already charged up to the tree.
In the next instant,
they swung their weapons at Fina atop the tree.
But just as their attacks were about to land, delight appeared on Fina’s face.
Because she heard that familiar sound.
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!
“Urghhh—! GRAAAH—!”
The last three Beastfolk died beneath a storm of bullets.