Chương 40: Chapter 39 - The Horde Approaches

Eli straightened with a start gripping his spear, only to have Mira wave off his concern." It is no concern of your's Mr. Mercer, 1st Patrol has the situation well in hand, and you are still on light duty until tomorrow. However, this will serve as a fine second lesson, and fortuitous given the decision I will ask you to make tomorrow."" Now tell me Mr. Mercer, you have no doubt heard my Lady and I speak of the path to power, have you heard of such a thing before?"

Eli shook his head, " No, but by the context I've gathered I'm assuming it is some way of building personal power?" Mira nodded, " Close enough, Lady Emberholdt will you answer this question?" Astra gave Mira a distracted nod, observing the patrol's preparation as she spoke, " The path to power in the general name given to the goal of the great System as far as we can tell, as well as the road those who seek out its gifts travel upon.""

The system rewards conflict, personal growth, discovery, and experimentation among many other things, and if you follow its precepts and strive to push beyond your limits it will grant ever greater strength. The right combination of talent, ambition, will, and genuine hard work any woman can rise in stature and power.""

With enough determination and grit even the simplest of commoners can grow in power to surpass the Emperor, and if the old legends are true, a person can even grow strong enough to rival the Ancients themselves." Mira clapped her hand once, " Well said my Lady!"" I would ask that you abstain from the fray until the troops are well and bloodied my Lady. You need not risk death or serious injury, but you must remember that your men will need to face their own trials to grow.""

I expect that refraining until their warleader approaches the battle line should suffice. Thank you my Lady, and please do not let me keep you from your troops any longer." Astra nodded with a stern expression, as she approached the convoy which had already circled the wagons, presenting the broad sides of the larger armored carriages towards the treeline while coaxing the men and women into formation.

The squads appeared to be designed to function as independent units with each having their own mix of melee and ranged specialists, splitting a clearly well practiced formation as they formed a staggered battle line of with a row of shield bearing warriors taking the front line, with a row bearing a mix of polearm bearing warriors offset and a step behind, flanked by a pair of skirmishers carrying mixed small arms anchoring either side of the formation against one of the war wagons.

The remaining ranged specialists joined Astra on top of the wagons, dropping into the recessed area behind each parapet, readying their various weapons. Mira and Astra's mounts had been retrieved by Sasha and led in the middle of the formation and as the preparations continued apace Mira tapped Eli's shoulder before gesturing at the canopy of the narrow treeline separating the wagon track from the river." I heard you are fond of trees Mr.

Mercer, how about we find a good out of the way perch from which to observe the proceedings?" Eli arched a brow before following, " Are you not worried? A horde of goblins sounds dangerous?" Mira scoffed as they reached the treeline, looking up for a good spot." Never fear Mr. Mercer, it is a small horde, and the patrol is well trained.

Besides the mana density in this region typically only supports monsters in the second tier, they might have one of two third tier members since they are coming from the deeper forest, Lady Emberholdt should be able to handle it just fine." Mira spotted a branch she liked, and with a graceful hop leapt thirty feet into the air from a standstill, alighting softly on a broad limb. Eli shook his head before plopping Tia on one shoulder and climbing up after her.

Mira continued once Eli reached the branch and settled in next to her." Unlike young Miss Tiamat, goblins are not natural creatures to this realm. Beasts are natural creatures, they are born, live, grow in strength, have children and die. They may use ambient mana and often have system access, albeit with verified levels of success depending on their sapience, but monsters do not.""

Monsters like goblins are creatures of stagnant mana, they are either introduced by the abyss, leftovers from a dimensional incursion, or spawned in regions of stagnant mana. That lesson is far in the future as it requires a great deal of context, but the relevant portion for today is they do not possess true sapience, they do have a low base cunning of a sort, but are driven by instinct and are ultimately predictable, an easy foe for my Lady."

Eli huffed in disbelief, " Ok that's pretty wild, just don't forget to fill me in when we get to it. So if you didn't want me to learn about goblins what did you want to show me? I would much rather help in the fight honestly. I don't like watching friends in danger when I can help." A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Mira gave Eli a warm smile, " An admirable sentiment indeed, but this is important. Do you remember my lesson on composite skills?"

Eli nodded, " Yeah, the short version is not all skills are equal in potential and power." Mira nodded watching the troops below, hands clasped behind back, perched fully upright as if on flat ground on a bough swaying gently in the wind while Eli crouched next to her."

Skills are not the only parts of this realm that vary in power and potential, as my Lady mentioned earlier the great System allows for the ability to gain power, but what she did not mention is that there are a great many paths to power, and the great system supports them all."" A warrior can walk a path of blood and battle and a mage walks a similar path steeped in arcane knowledge and the skillful application of external mana manipulation instead.

Conflict and strength in battle is not the only path available either, a successful merchant with a flourishing trade conglomerate can tread a successful path by nurturing trade deals, a farmer can excel by developing produce of ever higher levels of nutrition, and a simple fisherman can learn to cut more than just reeds with a single note of a whistle." Mira flicked an eye in Eli's direction to ensure the point landed, satisfied with what she saw she continued."

Tomorrow we will talk about classes, and the path you yourself would like to walk. I will show you how to configure your interface to display rarities to assist you. Just as skills come in a variety, so too do classes, the general ranks in escalating order are common, uncommon, rare, epic, legendary, and mythic."" Old wives tales tell of higher categories, but there has been no written proof of these that I am aware of, the upper tiers are nearly unheard of as it is already. Now Mr.

Mercer, while many focus on these categories when making their choice, and when bereft of other discerning criteria this is not a bad decision, but when you pick your first initiate class you are placing your foot on the first step of the path to power." Mira turned to give Eli her undivided attention, " This is extremely important. As part of repaying my Lady's debt to you I will help you train and develop your skills to attain the class you desire, assuming you have the capability for it.""

You need to be certain in which path you choose. Like a river born from mountain springs, your course will have many branches for you to choose from as you ascend the path, but like the mighty glacier that spawns those streams your foundation is far more difficult to shift."" Fundamental changes are possible, but are very difficult and would require extensive efforts to do so."

Mira gestured towards the assembled soldiers below before turning back towards the patrol, " It is my hope that this battle will allow me to showcase a few examples of the paths others have chosen. Ready yourself Mr Mercer, and watch closely our foes approach."

Eli heard a number of figures approaching the patrol, wasting no effort on stealth as they crashed through the brush, snapping branches and trampling undergrowth in their wake. The small statues of the figures obscured their approach until they were within 50 paces, but with the brush thinning as it approached the treeline Eli watched as numerous short bulky figures sporting hairless moss green hides emerged from the gloom.

The creatures were very similar to the pair Elias had encountered before, sporting the same brutish claws and feral grins. This group was better equipped however, with many of the individuals clutching improvised and primitive clubs, staff, and spears as well as poorly made clothing of untreated beast hides. The clothing was little more than pelts strapped to their bodies, and would hardly provide any protection, but the more intelligent nature of these beasts increased the intimidation level.

Eli snorted, a small horde she says, as he spotted at least three dozen individuals clearing the treeline, with more on the way behind them, but at a glance towards Mira and her relaxed expression, Eli tried to ease his worries with a deep breath. He reached up towards his shoulder to give Tia a reassuring stroke as her claws dug into his shoulder armor with a small squeak and her tail coiled around his bicep rippling in a pattern of anxious kneading.

As the first of the monsters spotted the patrol they let out a series of warbling cries before bolting forward in a disorganized rabble howling for blood. Several goblins further back lifted crudely made horns to their mouths and blew a series of blasts that echoed through the forest with resounding notes, as their vanguard fell upon the battle line unleashing blows upon the soldiers with a savage fury.

The soldier's training was apparent in their calm stoic demeanor and practiced motions, the front line taking the brunt of the attack upon their shields, deflecting any blows that slipped past with a variety of sidearms from maces and hammers to arming swords and short spears, blunting the force of the initial clash.

With a calm measured pace, the midline struck from behind with their polearms, most strikes crushing and severing limbs when they did not outright dispatch their enemy with a spear through the eye or a halberd cleaving a head from a neck. The skirmishers picked up any stragglers that drifted past the front line back into the melee, while also plugging the gap between the battle lines and the armored wagons to protect the flanks.

Once the initial clash was made, Astra directed the back line to begin thinning the ranks of the approaching force. She directed the archers to pick off the horn bearers as well as any that strayed from the main force, funneling the bulk of the monsters towards the battle line, while a trio of mages launched a series of devastating attacks into the crush of bodies grinding against the shield bearers.

Two of the mages were exclusively attacking, one splashing a series of gouts of fire across the approaching ranks panicking the enemies while setting them aflame, the second surrounded in a swirling cloud of dust was alternating between launched sharpened stony projectiles and releasing spiraling arcs of electricity.

The final mage was alternating between spearing into the mass with beaming of brilliant white light, and directing a softer golden version onto the backs of soldiers below, injuries sealing shut in their wake. As the battle unfolded before Eli's eyes, Mira kept up a running commentary, as calm and unhurried as a lecturer in a classroom far from the stink of blood, offal, and the clamor of battle.