8. Survive

[ Quest Received: Hidden In The Depths ]

[ Details: Survive the upcoming ambush. ]

[ Time Remaining: 15 minutes. ]

Nathanial cursed at the golden screen that appeared out of nowhere. This damn system knew that something was bound to happen. It knew they were going to get ambushed and had prepared the perfect mission for him.

But as the screen appeared, Nathanial couldn’t help but wonder what would happen if he failed.

[ Death. ]

Ah, there it is… you sick bastard…

Nathanial resisted the urge to smack his face with the palm of his hand as another arrow ripped through the air. He gritted his teeth, ducking to the side as the projectile whistled past him. He felt a sharp pain across his face and a warm sensation trickle down.

His eyes scanned the battlefield. Fredrick and Richard were close by with their backs toward each other. The Empire’s men were emerging from the forest line, and the archer who had taken out one of their men was still in hiding.

Now was the time for Chris to give orders. To direct the men and lead them out of this predicament before it was too late. But as the twigs snapped, and another bowstring tore loose—Nathanial could see the sheer fear in their patrol leader’s eyes. The same fear that was reflected in his comrades.

“What do we do?!” Fredrick screamed.

The men close to Chris stared at him, only for silence to return. Nathanial worriedly focused on the crimson tabards rushing him. The chilly spring air pushed the sweat that trickled down his chin to the grass floor. He roughly visualized the patrol’s formation.

They were far too spread out from each other. Richard and Fredrick could support him because they were close, but the same couldn’t be said about the rest. And right now, someone needed to take the initiative and lead the men while they still had breathing room.

Nathanial steadied his trembling hands and roared at the top of his lungs. “Gather around me!”

The Everheart soldiers immediately responded to the call and sprinted toward Nathanial. But at that moment, as his allies gathered toward him, Nathanial felt a tingle on the back of his neck. A gut-wrenching certainty that was screaming at him that he had made a mistake.

Far from his position, the faintest thrum of a bowstring sang, and in that moment a distinct whistle of a single projectile soaring through the air raced toward him. Nathanial finally understood why the archer didn’t fire again and how the other patrols were wiped out.

It wasn’t because they overwhelmed their forces with strength.

It was because the archer had killed their chain of command whenever the opportunity presented itself.

The only reason they didn’t kill Chris was that his fear and hesitation choked the decision-making of their patrol team. Once someone else who was capable appeared, they would instead take out him and let the chaos engulf their entire group.

How could I have not realized this!

Nathanial immediately dove to the ground as the first aura-clad arrow ripped through the space where his head was. But right before he hit the dirt road, another came from the shadows. Nathanial felt his heart stop. The flash of crimson was inching closer and closer.

He had no way to stop it.

But he couldn’t let it end like this.

His arm desperately swung upward with his blade in hand. The iron sword raced to the crimson flash and a head-on collision was futile. He needed to redirect the projectile with every fiber of his being.

[ Skill Activated: Aura Detection ]

A thin line appeared from the arrowhead to the side of Nathanial’s body.

A line he couldn’t ignore.

Nathanial twisted his hip while using the momentum to launch the strike on the arrowhead several centimeters higher. The force behind the projectile rattled his bones. The muscles in his arm screamed through the shock. His iron sword shattered, with the last bits of silver falling to the ground.

Blood splattered from the gash on the side of Nathanial’s body as he hit the floor. The pain coursed through his limbs, and a desperate urge to scream was building in his chest. But he couldn’t let it out. Not while the Empire’s forces had them by their throats.

Any cry of pain or suffering would break morale even further.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Nathanial rolled to his feet and gritted his teeth. He fought back the instinct to wail in agony and shouted at the men. “Raise your shields and form a defensive perimeter around me!”

The first to stand by his side was Fredrick, then Richard, and soon the rest of the patrol along with Chris. Blades clashed with the sound of metal ringing through the surroundings. Nathanial rose with his half-broken blade and glared at the soldier rushing him.

He swung once, meeting the incoming sword with a spray of sparks as he desperately pushed the crimson tabard footman back. From the corner of his eye, he could see Fredrick struggling against his match and without a shred of hesitation, Nathanial hurled his crumbling blade at the enemy.