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nThe monsters crashed into the line of Layn's men.

nStanding at the very front, Layn couldn't help but admire his brothers in arms. Even for him, the sight of something that could only be called an abomination rushing to rip him apart was enough to feel his courage waver.

nEven when the archmage knew that those monsters had no chance of ever hurting him.

n'But if those can scare even me, just what the rest of the folks is thinking?' he thought, covering his hands in dense and extremely hot, magical fire.

nThe monsters crashed into the line of Layn's men. Yet, not a single one of them faltered.

nLayn allowed the monster to jump at him. Once the wolf-like monster was above him, he simply struck forward in the simplest manner possible. With a culling strike from his right, he sent the crushed body of the monster to his left, disturbing the line of the attack.

nTo his right, Markus took the brunt of the other flank, pulling out the same pendulum that Layn saw him use several times.

nContrary to the ax he preferred to use in real tough combat, Markus opted for this fast-moving weapon with long reach in situations like the one when the enemy swarmed them from all sides.

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"Stay strong!

" Layn shouted, throwing punches and kicking at the monsters whenever they entered his range. Yet, no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to take care of the entire battlefield on his own.

nAnd the thing was... He couldn't use too much of his strength either.

n'Keep calm,' Layn thought, lowering the intensity of the flames around his fists. The monsters were dying way too quickly for his liking, especially given the next part of the plan.

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"Hold your ground!

" Markus shouted from a few meters away, infusing a hint of panic in his voice. Yet, if someone were to look closely, they would see that he continued to reap the monsters as if they were wheat on a harvest day by swinging his pendulum.

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"Don't let them break through your line!

" Layn shouted, joining in the act.

nDuring the clash, Layn and his people used a pretty simple tactic.

nWith Layn and Markus at the very front, roughly five meters ahead of everyone else, they took the brunt of the attack, splitting the monsters into effectively three groups.

nMonsters to the left and to the right would clash right into the line of Layn's men. Yet, as more and more of them would continue to pour to the flanks, they would ultimately end up gravitating towards the center, right between Layn and Markus.

nThe unlucky part of the monsters that would rush right between the two men were the ones that turned into the necessary offering for the battlefield's bloodthirsty ground.

nStuck between Layn's fiery attacks and Markus swinging pendulum, they could only attempt to break through the center of the line. It was also the place where the weakest of Layn's warriors were located, given how resilient their flanks had to be.

nAfter all, the flanks had to both fight the monsters ahead of them while continuously pushing the monsters to the center!

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"Keep the line!

" Layn shouted, taking the leisure to glance to the back.

nAs expected, his people didn't falter in the face of the monsters. For how diabolical and demonic they looked, they didn't have much in terms of firepower to offer.

nSure, their claws and teeth could easily snap a human in half... But this wasn't something that those seasoned adventurers, mercenaries, and cultivators were unused to.

n'In a sense, this fight is easier than what we fought with back at the desert,' Layn thought, finally whipping out his firelance and proceeding to the second stage of the plan.

nRight now was the time to create some heroes.

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"Markus!

" Layn shouted, leaning his head to the back only to shoot it forward, pushing his firelance right through the open jaws of the monsters that attacked him.

nThe monster bit down, attempting to take Layn's arm with him, only for its teeth to be stuck at the thin, magic barrier that Layn surrounded his entire body with.

nIt was a technique that not only consumed a lot of energy but also required a god-like focus to maintain. Yet, for Layn, it was as simple as keeping water in the pot from boiling out of the cauldron.

n'Go!' Layn thought, releasing the binds that shackled the flames of his spell into the shape of a lance. He pulled his hand back, allowing the raging inferno to consume the monster from within before kicking its corpse towards the next enemy.

nOnce the flames reached the monster's core, the violent magic overload caused it to explode, creating a small clearing in the dense crowd of the attacking monsters.

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"NOW!

" Layn shouted, taking a step forward.

nAt the same time, his men stepped back, giving ground to the attackers.

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"We stand as one!

" Markus shouted, his lips trembling from the uneasy feeling of uttering such cringe lines.

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"We die like one!

" Layn followed with his own shout, wishing to bury his face deep in the ground.

nTheir men took another step back, allowing the monsters to pay more attention to the two.

nIn a few moments, the situation on the battlefield changed.

nThe efficient mill that continued to grind monsters into dust suddenly broke apart, allowing monsters to fully surround both of the designated heroes.

n'Just a little bit more,' Layn thought, stopping his attacks now and then to throw a quick glance and assess how far his men managed to retreat.

n'Just a few more seconds!' he thought, slamming his open palms into the ears of the nearest monsters before kicking it away and summoning a firelance in each of his hands.

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"NOW!

" he shouted, placing both of his weapons straight on his chest, kneeling down, and turning a full circle.

nFor the first time since the fight started, Layn used the full extent of the power of his spell, turning his burning weapons of his into sticks of plasma. With how hot they became, any matter opposing them would simply melt on the spot, not giving any resistance.

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"RETREAT!

" Layn shouted from the bottom of his lungs, using the moment when all the monsters near him died to the attack.

"Draw them away from the generals! Pull them away from them!

" he continued to shout as he turned around and leaped out of the encirclement.

nOnce the momentum of his jump started to die off, making him fall towards the ground, he simply dropped the firelances below his feet and released the binding spell.

nOnce released, there was nothing insulating the scorching heat of his spell from the surrounding air. As it started to rapidly expand in a shockwave, Layn used the violent movement of the air to hover a few meters further, finally reaching the end of the monster's group.

nHis feet touched the ground. With no monsters around, he could finally confirm that his men picked the direction of their retreat just like he wanted.

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"RETREAT!

" he shouted, not wasting any time to confirm Markus's safety. Given his old friend's physical strength and versatility, it was possible that he would escape the encirclement even quicker than the archmage did!

nFor the next few moments, Layn simply ran towards his people. With his back exposed, there was a chance that some of the monsters would attempt pursuit...

nBut none of that happened.

n'How did it go?' Layn asked himself, stealing a glance at what was going on behind him.

nBut there wasn't a single monster in sight.

nFull of hopes, he turned his head to the side, right in the direction where the Slavian party escaped several moments earlier.

n'They there are,' he thought, noticing the dust kicked up by the remnants of the horde.

n'They fell for it!'

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