Way of the Knights

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"Damn it! There no end to these things! So irritating." Logan complained once the team went inside the Formation. 

It's been more than a month since they moved on from their previous position. They still haven't seen the next Trial Gate but it doesn't mean that they've been idle like before. 

"Is there a nest nearby? Or a Lair perhaps? I can't be that these things just show up out of nowhere right?" Theo said while looking around. 

"Didn't we already scout ahead earlier? We didn't find any so that might just be the case." Henry said as he sat down on the table. 

"I guess Mount Olympus is truly one of a kind." Charles commented. 

'I wonder about that...' Raven inwardly said. With him knowing what truly happens whenever the climate changes around them, he can't whole-heartedly agree with what Charles said. 

'Well, I guess that's true for this world.' He thought after considering it for a moment. 

As he was in deep thought, he was also preparing some food for them to consume. He didn't prepare too many since they weren't truly tired. 

Fighting against waves of Salamanders and Flame Elementals didn't really pose an extreme challenge to them. Raven was accompanied by four War Gods. Each of them could end the whole ecosystem of an entire planet should they want to. If anything, it was just irritating since the battles were stalling them. 

Thankfully, they could conceal themselves from them with Raven's formation. This allows them to have some moments of peace here and there. Thinking what might happen without it or Raven for that matter, stresses out the War Gods to no end. Thankfully, he's here with them. 

The team decided to rest for a while. They've been moving for three whole days without any rest just to cover more ground, unfortunately the Trial Gate is still nowhere to be seen which really bummed them out. 

Speaking of these troublesome beasts, the team eventually reached an agreement. Since Raven had little to no trouble dealing with them, he was the one to take them on. The War Gods will only provide help at the barest minimum but for the most part, Raven would handle thing on his own. 

This is in order for the War Gods to not consume as much energy that they'll need for the upcoming trials. 

At first, the War Gods didn't agree to this. Raven had already done so much to make this hike easier for them, only in battles and Trials could they contribute. But Raven told them that it's fine. 

'To be honest, this trip has been relatively boring for me. I mostly just stayed put and waited until you guys come out. Now that these things appeared, I think they'll give me a good exercise. Don't worry, I won't overdo it. You can still expect that I'll be here waiting until you guys cleared all the trials.'

That's what he told them back then. And since Raven already insisted, the War Gods could only leave it to him. 

Now, Raven was at least having some fun. He'd get to slay some beasts which allows him to test the techniques he had been refining for quite some time. Sometimes, he'd use his absurd physical strength to rip them apart, other times he won't even let them get close to them thanks to the Brush of Wisdom. 

However, Raven's favorite method to kill these Salamanders and Flame Elementals is to summon enormous shards of Ice Spears to pierce them. Watching them writhe in agony greatly satisfied him. 

This is why everything is covered with a thick fog whenever Raven was at work. 

The War Gods would sometimes join in the action as well but they won't move unless they're surrounded. Still, even if that's the case, they were completely safe thanks to Raven protection. 

Raven and the team rested for a whole day within the formation. Raven would occasionally go outside to clear some beasts while the War Gods enjoyed their peace and quiet as if they were on vacation.

After resting, the team continued on their way with Raven leading them this time. As usual, there are still waves of Salamanders and Flame Elementals but all was cleared by Raven in no time. The more he fights, the faster he's refining his moves and the faster he's able to deal with these pesky beasts. 

This trend continued until...

"Oh! Damn, finally! The Trial Gate is there!" Henry said as he saw the blossoming light ahead of them. 

The War Gods sighed and immediately wore a serious expression once they saw they the trial gate as well. Their time has come once more. 

Raven saw the Trial Gate as well, he too was somewhat relieved. They've been moving forward for nearly 2 months now. It was plainly obvious that the distance between each trial gates are getting further and further. If it wasn't for that, then this trip would've went much faster. 

Now that the 2nd Trial Gate towards the 7th Checkpoint is visible, the team hurried onwards and approached the gate as fast as they could. Once they entered its vicinity, the War Gods didn't waste time and immediately entered the trial gate. They didn't even said a word to Raven at all. 

Well, it's not like there's anything to say anyway. They've already told them everything that he needs to know and they already fell under a routine. 

As soon as they entered, the Trial Gate closed shut and Raven was left all alone once more. 

He was originally planning to set up the formation when all of a sudden, the environment changed around him.

Raven didn't even had the time to anticipate it. He was sent on another parallel world with him barely reacting. Before he knew it, the blazing heat was gone and was replaced with soul-chilling breeze. He found himself standing within a vast blanket of white snow. The skies above were gloomy yet it's also strangely lit up. 

The visibility of his surroundings lessened, replaced by uncaring and lofty hail of snow. Raven could feel the shivers all over his body. The temperature was dangerously low that it was really affecting him. 

If this cold had a great effect on Raven, then it's very likely that it'll be terrible for War Gods. 

"Well, it wouldn't be troublesome if it's just on this level...but that's not all there is too it, right?" Raven murmured as a rainbow colored light blossomed in his pupils. 

Thanks to his ocular technique, he could see into great distances. This allows him to see what's hiding beyond the ferocious hail. 

Beasts with blue-ish skin, extremely unpleasant faces and bulky figures sporting an enormous club was slowly making their way towards him. 

"Ice Trolls." Raven clicked his tongue upon seeing them. And to make things worse, it wasn't just Ice Trolls too...

Looking at his left, he could see a half human and half-bird creatures flapping their wings. Their human half appeared to be women with ridiculous body proportions. They have wings for arms which also had extremely sharp claws. Their eyes were bright red and there's visible drool on the corners of their lips as they searched around whilst in the air. 

"Snow Harpies and..." Raven looked at his right and saw another type of beast. 

This one is a land creature that favors diving in the snow, making it look like it was going underwater. It takes on a form of a human but very far from it. They have an upper body of a shark with a prominent dorsal fin on its back, it has a lower body of a human and was holding a trident. Raven could hear that it's releasing some hymns, which might be a form of echolocation as well. These creatures moved in packs with most of them hiding beneath the blanket of snow. 

"...Northern Merfolk huh? This is going to be a pain in the ass for sure." Raven murmured as he finished his initial preparation of the formation. 

Once he's done, he unhesitatingly entered it and avoided the creatures he just saw for now. Within the formation, he didn't need to worry about ambushes, this will enable him to take it easy and plan his next course of action. 

"Ice Trolls, Snow Harpies and Northern Merfolk huh?" Raven murmured as he observed the creatures within the safety of his formation. 

"The Salamanders and Flame Elementals already stalled is greatly. Now you're telling me that we have to deal with more of these things? If it's like before, then their numbers might as well be virtually endless. That'll really slow us down."

"Plus, it's really troublesome to deal with them." Raven said while in deep thought. "If this was all then I alone would be sufficient to deal with them, however we can never be too sure."

"Ice Trolls boast tough defense and are extremely aggressive. It's also very tenacious that the only way to truly kill it, is by beheading it. Snow Harpies are slightly more troublesome since they could fly, however they are frail. They make up for that weakness by mobbing."

"And finally, we have the Northern Merfolk. Sharks, huh? Once they dive in the snow, their speed reaches an absurd level. They like mobbing their prey too..."

"Now, how do I deal with these?"