Lord: I Grind EXP with Warband Panel

Chapter 208: Chapter 175: Bloody Battle at Thermopylae (7)

Wood could still see a squad of Extraordinary Beastmen on the ramparts not far away, having successfully gained a foothold on the wall.

In the past, Wood would have unleashed a torrent of abuse for such slow progress.

But now, Wood was filled with nothing but respect. He had experienced the struggle firsthand and knew just how difficult it was to establish a foothold. At times, Wood even felt as if he were facing an Extraordinary Corps.

And not just any Extraordinary Corps. ’At least, normal Extraordinary warriors are full of arrogance,’ he thought. ’Which of them would ever submit to such discipline?’

Of course, they were on the city walls, which was why advancing was so difficult. ’Once we break through, no amount of elite training or discipline will matter in the face of sheer strength.’ he reasoned.

Just as Wood resolved to continue the charge, he heard a griffin’s cry, followed by a thunderous crash against the ground.

"The Lord! The Lord is here!"

"To formations! Hold your formations!"

To achieve the element of surprise, Robson had finally experienced the thrill of riding a Griffin.

He’d had a Griffin Knight carry him, then dive straight out of the sky.

The main reason was the Beastmen’s terrifyingly swift advance. ’I can’t really blame my Soldiers,’ Robson thought. ’They’re up against a Silver Sixth Tier, and all of them are Extraordinary. What chance do they have?’

Ever since the Beastmen had broken through this section, Robson’s status panel had been flooded with red notifications. The sight made him feel as if his own heart were bleeding.

’These are all men I, Lord Robson, personally trained!’ he lamented. ’All Tier Five and Tier Six Soldiers. I poured immense effort into every single one! Many of them have been with me since I left my homeland.’

Robson had originally planned to wait for his Knights to arrive, but he’d had no choice. This wave of Beastmen was charging too ferociously. If he didn’t intervene, they might actually break the line.

Once they broke through, the endless stream of Beastmen that would follow would cause Lord Robson an unbearable headache. For that reason, Robson had no choice but to descend like a Celestial God from the heavens.

Of course, Robson had the confidence to charge down so recklessly. His earlier observation confirmed that there were no Gold-tier warriors among this group of Extraordinary Beastmen. Furthermore, his own Soldiers were constantly rallying, and the Extraordinary Knights from below would be charging up the wall any moment.

Robson wasn’t worried about being surrounded and overwhelmed.

’Perfect,’ he thought. ’I, Lord Robson, could use some experience packs to level up anyway!’

"The Lord?" Wood turned his head.

A noble! A human noble!

Normally, seeing a human noble in a human army would be commonplace. After all, on the Western Front, the human forces were predominantly composed of the Noble Alliance Army.

Yet Wood was surprised. After fighting for so long, a human noble had finally shown himself.

Moreover, ever since this human had charged down, the human Soldiers had become like men possessed.

No matter how elite these Soldiers were, they were still only human. A Soldier’s duty commanded them to fight to the death, but their survival instincts drove them to retreat.

Wood had already been making progress. The human reinforcements arriving from the flanks had only moved to assist after seeing the line begin to falter. But now, with the appearance of their so-called Lord, the morale of the entire unit surged once more.

’A Lord?’ Wood’s expression grew grim. ’Anyone capable of building an army like this is no ordinary individual.’

Wood called over his few Silver Fourth and Fifth-Tier subordinates, intending to surround the newcomer. To his surprise, the man charged straight at them instead.

Hearing the cheers of his Soldiers, Robson said nothing. He raised his greatsword, and his fighting aura erupted. His entire being was instantly enveloped in a pure, sacred light, and a phantom figure of that same aura began to solidify behind him.

"Gold-tier!" Wood cried out in shock, stumbling back half a step. He never imagined that the noble behind this mortal army would be a Gold-tier warrior.

’No wonder,’ Wood realized. ’That explains it. To reach the Gold tier, he must be a Count.’

The Beastman Empire also had its own form of specialized education, particularly when it came to their sworn enemy, the Frank Kingdom. Their knowledge was especially thorough on this subject.

"Charge! Take him down first! The rest of you, hold back those human Soldiers!" Wood ordered his men.

With that, Wood grabbed his scimitar and charged. Nearby Beastman Infantry heard the order and swarmed forward as well.

’I don’t know the true strength of this Gold-tier warrior,’ Wood thought, ’but one thing is certain: all Extraordinary beings have a fighting aura. The moment his aura is depleted, even a Gold-tier can be killed by a weaker foe.’

Coincidentally, Robson also intended to stall for time. He held back his killing blows, simply using his Knight’s Sword, wreathed in aura, to send out one wave of energy after another.

The aura unleashed from his Knight’s Sword formed a brilliant wave, instantly cleaving an approaching Bronze-tier Extraordinary in two at the waist. By the time the wave reached the Silver-tier Extraordinary behind, it was only strong enough to shear off the Silver Beastman Warrior’s left arm.

"ROAR!" The wounded Silver Beastman bellowed, raising the scimitar in his right hand and continuing his charge toward Robson.

These elite Beastmen had made the same choice as Robson’s army moments before—to fight without fear, even when facing a far stronger foe.

Unfortunately, they now faced the same predicament as the human Soldiers had, only their situation was even more dire.

With a single swing of his aura-wreathed blade, Robson sent the Silver Beastman’s head flying. It tumbled through the air and landed right in front of Wood.

Wood caught his comrade’s head and stared at it in shock. The man’s face was still frozen in the rage of his final moment.