Chapter 163: Romans
They were a few miles away from the village when the group of Roman cavalry came charging toward them. The thunderous sound of hooves approaching, and seeing that the riders showed no signs of slowing down, Alan's mind raced through the worst possible scenarios. With urgency in his voice, he bellowed a warning to his comrades, "Watch out!! Raise your shields!!"
The Roman cavalry consisted of two dozen riders, each armed with swords and spears. Their mounted charge not only brought them speed but also an added element of deadly momentum, making their strikes even more perilous.
As the two groups collided, the air was filled with the sound of clashing metal and the heart-wrenching screams of pain. It was a chaotic and brutal melee.
Alan and Singdal displayed remarkable agility and managed to evade the deadly strikes of their adversaries. However, the same could not be said for some of the Saxon warriors. Four of them bore the brunt of the Roman cavalry's charge, and two were struck down, their lives extinguished in an instant.
[Roman Cavalry]
[Type: Human]
[Rank: D]
These were Roman soldiers, incorporated from Samaritan knights of the east, renowned for their bravery and horsemanship. They were known as one of the Roman Empire's most formidable and disciplined units, and their charge demonstrated the deadly efficiency for which they were renowned.
As the chaotic clash continued, Singdal braced himself, ready to fight back against the Roman cavalry. But Alan, sensing the futility and the dire consequences of further violence, made a crucial decision. He raised his voice above the din, shouting,
"Stop this! We do not wish to fight!!"
Hearing these unexpected words, the Roman cavalrymen suprisingly reined in their horses and rode in a circle around Alan and Singdal. Amidst the tension, one of the cavalrymen, who seemed to be their commander, stepped forward, his face contorted with anger.
"You Saxon bastard!"You massacred those villagers! I Dagonet, swore to kill you all!"
Alan couldn't help but release a long, weary sigh. He knew that this was a scenario provided by the game for the players to contend with. Among the Inhumans, there were complex conflicts between the NPC characters that he needed to navigate, and the knight before them was one of the game's champion NPCs.
The Thailand player, Singdal, attempted to explain that he was not responsible for the massacre, emphasizing that they had arrived too late to prevent it. However he Roman cavalrymen were still consumed by rage, and none of them were willing to listen to reason.
As the champion NPC, Dagonet, prepared to pass judgment upon them, Alan seized a crucial moment and shouted, "Wait... it's not the Saxons you should be worried about," all while pointing toward the corpses of the two recently fallen Saxon warriors.
A tense moment of anticipation hung in the air before the fallen Saxons began to rise, reanimated as undead zombie warriors. Dagonet's reaction was swift, and he cried out,
"Black magic!! This is black magic!! Kill them all!!"
Unfortunately, the commander was quick to assume that Alan was the one responsible for this dark sorcery. Alan felt a pang of regret that he didn't possess Vicky's [speechcraft] skill, which might have allowed him to convey the truth.
Realizing that words were not their way out, Alan quickly gave a signal to Singdal while the knight was distracted by the undead. With lightning reflexes and enhanced agility, Alan sprang into action. He lunged towards the closest Roman cavalryman, delivering a powerful punch that sent the rider tumbling to the ground.
As he commandeered the cavalryman's steed, Singdal leaped onto the horse's back behind him. Leaving the remaining Saxon warriors to fend off the Roman cavalry, Alan spurred the horse into a swift descent down the hill.
"Let's go!" he shouted, determined to escape the perilous situation and regroup with their comrades.
Alan and Singdal swiftly rode toward the village, their hope of finding their fellow players and Saxons intact steadily fading as he heard firearms coming from the village. To their dismay, they arrived at a scene of utter chaos, a gruesome battle unfolding on three fronts - the Saxon warriors, the Roman soldiers, and their casualties who had risen as zombies and ghouls.
With uncertainty in his voice, Singdal turned to Alan as they closed in on the village "What should we do, American?" he inquired.
The situation was grim. They were facing a scenario eerily reminiscent of the earlier conflict. About 30 Roman cavalrymen and roughly 50 infantrymen were locked in a fierce battle over the group of players and surviving Saxons.
Arrows were fired, spears were hurled, and on the fringes, the sharp reports of firearms rang out. The Saxon warriors, despite their valor, were overmatched by the Roman cavalry, and some of the players had suffered severe injuries or met their end at the hands of the Romans. Unfortunately, if Alan didn't intervene, it seemed all too likely that the undead would emerge victorious, leaving a trail of death and chaos in their wake.
Alan swiftly made the decision to charge back into the village, his voice ringing out with authority as he shouted, "Stop killing each other, Kill the undead!! Kill the undead!"
His arrival at the scene had an immediate and noticeable impact. The Romans took a few steps back, and the players responded to his command, rushing toward the undead. When Alan and Singdal joined the fray, their combined efforts began to turn the tide. Simultaneously, Dagonet and his two knights reappeared on the battlefield and promptly followed Alan's directive, focusing their efforts on clearing out the undead menace.
In the wake of the fierce battle, the casualties were substantial. Thirty Saxon warriors had fallen, along with six players and a dozen Romans.
With only a dozen Saxon warriors and two dozen players remaining, some of whom were wounded, Alan realized that desperate measures were in order.
He turned to Dagonet, the knight, and stated, "Something sinister has risen on this island. Let me speak with your leader, Artorius"