On the gravel path of Khyprian road, heavy footsteps made the ground tremble slightly.
Bone Tree, bare-chested, carried a rough iron axe half his height on his shoulder, its blade still stained with iron filings from last night's sharpening.
Behind him, 100 Orc Boyz wore crude armor newly forged in Stonewatch—their breastplates were hammered from single iron plates, with jagged, uneven edges, and their shoulder plates were riveted to the breastplates, clanging as they walked; 50 hobgoblin Boyz, meanwhile, wore lighter leather armor, gripping iron spears, and followed behind the Orc Boyz, their short legs churning rapidly.
"WAAAGH!! Charge!!"
Bone Tree suddenly let out a roar, his voice echoing through the forest like a clap of thunder.
The Orc Boyz immediately roared in response, raising their iron axes and round shields, taking bigger strides, and running mightily towards the Defias Brotherhood's camp.
They deliberately made their armor clang loudly enough to shake the heavens and shouted until their voices pierced eardrums, startling even the roadside birds into flapping their wings and flying away—this was the "feint" that Kurzadh had ordered, to make a grand show, to ensure the Defias Brotherhood saw them at first glance.
"Let those human bandits see! The might of our Blackrock Clan!" an Orc Boyz shouted to his companion, raising his round shield.
"When we charge up, I'm going to chop ten!" another Orc Boyz roared, brandishing his iron axe, his eyes full of fierce light.
Although the hobgoblin Boys were timid, they were infected by this momentum, howling along, their iron spears swaying in their hands as if to bolster their courage.
At this moment, the Defias Brotherhood's camp was in utter chaos.
A few bandits had just finished snatching a bag of bread and were squatting on the ground dividing the spoils when they suddenly saw a group of green figures charging from the end of Khyprian road, scaring them so much that the bread in their hands fell to the ground.
"Green-skins! It's the greenskins!" a rogue shrieked, his voice full of terror.
The bandits in the camp immediately erupted into a frenzy; some threw down what they were holding and scrambled into tents, others frantically grabbed their weapons, and a few quick-witted ones took the opportunity to snatch up goods from the ground and run towards the swamp's edge—they thought the green-skins were coming to steal, and wanted to hide their loot first.
"Everyone stop! Form ranks! Form ranks!" a small leader in leather armor roared, brandishing his scimitar, trying to restore order, but no one listened to him—bandits were a disorganized rabble to begin with, and when danger struck, their first thought was always for themselves.
Edward, hearing the commotion outside, suddenly stood up in his tent, shoved the Man in Gray Cloak in front of him, and burst out through the tent flap.
The moment he emerged, he saw a dark mass of green-skins charging towards the camp from Khyprian road, and his face immediately turned ashen with rage.
"Where are the sentries?! Where did they die?!" Edward roared, grabbing a panicked rogue beside him, "The green-skins are at our doorstep, and you only just noticed?! A bunch of freeloading good-for-nothings!"
The rogue trembled with fear, stammering, "Le... leader, the bro... brothers at the outpost... didn't come back to report... we didn't know the green-skins were coming..."
Edward shoved him away, drew the longsword from his waist, and roared at the chaotic camp, "Everyone shut up! If you want to live, pick up your weapons! Hold the high ground!"
His roar indeed carried some deterrent power.
The bandits looked at the charging green-skins, then at Edward's fierce eyes, and slowly began to calm down—they knew there was no escaping, they could only fight.
Under the shouts of the small leaders, the bandits grabbed their weapons and ran towards the edge of the high ground where the camp was located.
The Brotherhood's camp was built on a high ground by the swamp, nearly ten meters higher than Khyprian road, a strategically important position. The edge of the high ground had natural earthen slopes that served as barriers; although the bandits were poorly equipped, they had many archers and crossbowmen—about two hundred strong, some with homemade longbows, others with rusty crossbows, now lying prone on the slopes, nocking arrows and drawing bows, aiming at the charging green-skins.
"Hold steady! Shoot when the green-skins get closer!" Edward stood in the center of the high ground, shouting and brandishing his longsword.
He was calculating in his mind—the high ground was easy to defend and hard to attack; though the green-skins looked fierce, they were all mindless brutes. As long as the archers and crossbowmen could hold the line and keep the green-skins at bay below the slope, it wouldn't be long before these green-skins retreated on their own.
The cloaked man also emerged from the tent, standing behind Edward, still wearing his hood, his expression unreadable, simply watching the charging green-skins in silence, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the edge of his cloak.
Soon, Bone Tree led the green-skins to the flat ground below the high ground. When they were still fifty paces from the high ground, Edward suddenly swung down his longsword: "Shoot!"
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"
Over two hundred arrows flew like a black cloud towards the green-skins.
The arrow rain was dense; some arrows whistled through the air, heading straight for the Orc Boyz' chests; others targeted the smaller hobgoblin Boys, moving with astonishing speed.
"Shields up!" Bone Tree roared, raising his round shield first—this shield was hammered from thick iron plates by Stonewatch, with iron rims riveted around the edge; though heavy, it was exceptionally sturdy.
The Orc Boyz immediately raised their shields in unison, 100 round shields lined up side by side, forming an iron wall in front; the hobgoblin Boys quickly ducked behind the Orc Boyz, extending their iron spears through the shield gaps, their small bodies almost completely hidden.
"Bang bang bang!"
The arrow rain struck the round shields, making a dense clattering sound. Some arrows ricocheted off the shield surfaces and fell to the ground; others hit the gaps between shields but were blocked by the Orc Boyz' iron armor, leaving only shallow dents.
Only a few arrows flew over the round shields, hitting the hobgoblin Boys hiding behind—one hobgoblin boy was hit in the arm by an arrow, screaming in pain, but he stubbornly didn't retreat, instead thrusting his iron spear forward; another Orc Boyz had his leg grazed by an arrow, and blood flowed out, but he grinned, wiped away the blood, and roared at the bandits on the high ground, "Is that all the strength you've got? Just tickling!"
Green-skins were a race that grew fiercer the more they fought; these minor injuries not only failed to deter them but instead ignited the savagery in their bones.
The Orc Boyz slapped their round shields, roaring at the bandits on the high ground: "Come down! If you dare, come down and fight!" "I'm going to break your arrows and shove them up your arses!"
Edward stood on the high ground, watching the green-skins actually block the arrow rain, his face growing even uglier. He hadn't expected these green-skins' armor to be so sturdy, that arrows couldn't injure them.
"Keep shooting! Don't stop!" Edward roared at the archers and crossbowmen, "Shoot their legs! Shoot their eyes!"
The archers and crossbowmen quickly adjusted their angles, nocked arrows, drew bows again, and the arrow rain once more flew towards the green-skins.
But this time, the Orc Boyz held their round shields even lower, covering their legs, and the arrow rain still failed to inflict much damage.
Bone Tree watched the bandits on the high ground still firing arrows, a flicker of impatience in his eyes.
He turned and roared at the green-skins behind him, "Listen up, all of you! Form up! Charge with me! Chop these human bandits into meat paste!"
The Orc Boyz responded in unison and began to adjust their formation—the front-row Orc Boyz held their round shields, forming a tight shield wall; the back-row Orc Boyz held their iron axes, ready to hack through the shield gaps at any moment; the hobgoblin Boys still hid in the middle, their iron spears poised for action.
"Charge! WAAAGH!"
At Bone Tree's command, the shield wall began to advance slowly.
Heavy footsteps resounded again, charging towards the earthen slope of the high ground.
The green-skins' roars were deafening, even frightening the bandits on the high ground, whose arrow-shooting hands began to tremble.
Edward gripped his longsword tightly, his palms slick with cold sweat.
He watched the slowly approaching green-skin shield wall, and for the first time, a hint of unease arose in his heart—these green-skins seemed different from the ones he had encountered before; they had discipline, armor, and a ruthless courage that feared no death.
The cloaked man stood behind Edward, the corners of his mouth curving into a barely perceptible smile.
He raised his head and looked towards the distant dense forest—it was silent, without a single movement, but he always felt that something was hiding in the shadows, watching this high ground, waiting to deliver a fatal blow to the Defias Brotherhood.
The green-skin shield wall drew closer and closer, now only twenty paces from the earthen slope.
The Orc Boyz could already see the frightened faces of the bandits on the high ground; some Orc Boyz even began to wave their iron axes, making faces at the bandits.
Bone Tree walked at the very front of the shield wall, his eyes fixed on Edward on the high ground, with only one thought in his mind—according to the boss' plan, lure these bandits out, then drive them into the Pine Forest, waiting for Keziaz's ambush!
The arrow rain from the high ground continued, but it grew sparser.
The bandits were running out of arrows, and the green-skin shield wall had already reached the foot of the earthen slope.