Elden Ring, building a legion of ashes

Chapter 54 Dawn

At the top of the tower in Moen City.

Lord Edgar stood sorrowfully at the edge of the city wall, gazing at the dark sea in the distance by the cold moonlight.

The sea breeze at night, carrying a salty, fishy smell, intensely stimulated his nasal passages, clearing his already somewhat drowsy mind.

Edgar's arms and abdomen were wrapped in thick bandages, especially his left arm, from which blood was constantly seeping out and staining the white cloth red.

The food supply on the top floor has completely run out.

They can have one last full meal tonight, and tomorrow, regardless of success or failure, they will launch a final, desperate charge.

However, harsh reality told Edgar that the hope of breaking through was not great.

"If only I could see Elena one more time... I hope she's still alive."

Edgar gazed at the distant sea and let out a soft sigh.

"The moon is so round tonight..."

Just then, a soldier stumbled over.

"Lord City Lord! For some reason, the bastards downstairs who were holding us off have suddenly started to panic and retreat!"

"And the sounds of fierce fighting can be faintly heard coming up!"

"Reinforcements must have arrived!"

"Reinforcements?"

Edgar paused for a moment, then his eyes blazed with fury.

"That damned Greck, he's finally finally sent people! Once we drive off that bastard, I'm going to settle this score with him!"

Edgar had figured it out by then.

Greck is a tyrannical and incompetent ruler, a complete bastard!

To defend this city, he almost sacrificed the entire elite force of Moen City, and may even have lost his own daughter, Elena!

He couldn't swallow this insult!

"Pass on my order! Gather the remaining seventy or eighty brothers! Launch a general offensive!"

"Fine, I'll gather them myself!"

As he spoke, Edgar grabbed the heavy halberd that was placed on top of the city wall—the Lost Knight's Halberd.

He had this halberd reinforced eight times by a master blacksmith!

God knows how much effort and sweat he put in to collect all those forging stones!

Not only is it incredibly sharp, but it also possesses astonishing weight and destructive power, making a significant contribution to the defense of Moen City.

The blade of the halberd still bore traces of dried, blackened mixed-race blood.

If it weren't for this Lost Knight's Halberd, Edgar would probably have died countless times already!

The soldiers of Moen City behind him, seeing the city lord's solid and tall back, couldn't help but feel their hope rekindled.

Finally, I don't have to hold on anymore.

Finally, reinforcements have arrived!

……

It hurts, it hurts so much!

Xia Tong leaned against the cold stone wall, breathing heavily.

His lungs were making a "whooshing" sound like a bellows, and every wound on his body seemed to be bleeding.

Ahead of him were just a dozen or so steps to the top platform of the main building of Moen City.

Through the gaps in the densely packed mixed-race group in front of her, Xia Tong could even see the bright moon in the sky.

But he had no time to appreciate it at the moment, because the Ashes Battle Group had reached its limit.

Of the three lone wolves, only one remained; the other two had been hacked to pieces and disappeared.

The last one was also unable to maintain its complete spirit form; a large chunk of its hind leg was missing, and it lay on the ground groaning.

The two fanged little devils have also been forcibly recalled by Xia Tong.

The frequent manifestation of the magic pots has completely depleted their spiritual power, and in order to prevent their bodies from disintegrating, they must be put away for now.

The jellyfish Kurala also lost almost half of its tentacles, and there were several obvious cracks from the machete cuts on its originally rounded umbrella-shaped body.

However, thanks to its desperate protection, Elena was unharmed except for her long cotton dress being stained with blood and dirt.

The soldier with the crossbow who had been protecting her was also not seriously injured because he was positioned at the back.

As for the Garric soldier who had been holding the line at the front, wielding a large shield, he had long since succumbed to excessive damage and disintegrated into specks of light.

He was just an ordinary soldier's ashes, and it was truly remarkable that he was able to stay with Xia Tong for so long.

Only the headless knight Ruthel was far more powerful than Xia Tong had imagined.

Since the start of the battle, not a single hybrid has been able to cross her defenses.

She was like a solid reef, firmly guarding the rear of Xia Tong's entire ash-burning battle group!

Whenever any troublesome mixed-race creatures tried to charge, they would be pierced through by her knight's lance imbued with a death curse.

With each piercing, those tenacious, scaled hybrids would often suddenly sprout black, gnarled, and menacing tree roots from their bodies.

That's the effect of sudden death.

Once triggered, it will instantly kill.

Xia Tong tried to sense Ruthel's current spiritual strength through the mental connection, and it was still at seventy percent!

That's incredibly tanky! And its stamina is amazing!

"They're much stronger than me... I feel so tired! I think I'm a bit too weak!"

Xia Tong thought to herself in a daze.

It was only then that he realized with great distress that he had never had any stamina!

Yes, ever since he first met Melina, he has never used runes to enhance "Endurance" even once.

Not even once!

"I regret it!"

Xia Tong wailed inwardly.

Just then, Melina's figure materialized beside him.

She didn't speak, but simply made a hand gesture.

A small, slender golden tree, about two meters tall, rose up from the ground at Xia Tong's feet.

The golden tree radiated a warm and gentle light, continuously nourishing and restoring Xia Tong's overdrawn body.

Not enough, still not enough.

Xia Tong picked up the Red Dewdrop Holy Grail bottle again and took a big gulp.

This is the last bite.

With the combined blessings of the Golden Tree Prayer and the Red Dew Grail Bottle, Xia Tong's strength began to recover rapidly, and her wounds gradually stopped bleeding and scabbed over.

In front of Xia Tong, not a single hybrid dared to attack rashly anymore.

They pushed and shoved each other, trembling, none of them daring to take another step forward.

I'm terrified of being killed!

The human and the headless monster in front of us are like a meat grinder.

The situation was similar on the headless knight Ruthel's side; the hybrids below were also terrified and stopped their attack.

"In that case, I'll have to take another sip."

Taking advantage of the standoff, Xia Tong took out the Blue Dew Holy Grail bottle and took a big gulp.

The loss of focus points caused by frequently using the "Lion Slash" combat skill is being rapidly recovered.

Seeing Xia Tong's complexion improving and the greatsword in her hand shining again, the hybrids dared not attack any further.

The fear of death overwhelmed the madness of instinct.

For a moment, they even missed the days when they were enslaved.

At least being enslaved doesn't mean you have to die.

Rebellion may bring freedom, but if the rebellion fails, it will lead to a cruel death.

"Waaaaah—waaaah—!"

Just then, a loud horn sounded from the distant tower.

The sound of this horn was uniquely rhythmic, stirring, high-pitched, and orderly, completely different from the savage horn sounds of the mixed-race people blowing indiscriminately.

Immediately following was a unified shout of battle cries:

"Ah! Charge! Charge!"

"Kill them!"

"Kill these bastards!"

"Warriors of Moen City, charge!"