Amidst the chaos of battle, all the soldiers still fighting heard the heavy footsteps.
"Thud~ Thud~ Thud!" The giant lizard walked step by step, its movements as heavy as a thousand pounds. The radiance of a demigod enveloped this ancient beast, empowered by the spirit of the Holy Infant—or perhaps the mark of the Old Ones. Its muscular frame, bulging like marble, exuded a sense of raw beauty. The surface of the giant lizard's body was covered in countless scars, each one a testament to Nakai's military achievements.
"Ding~ Ding~ Ding." Alongside the heavy footsteps, there was also the crisp sound of dozens of golden artifacts hanging from Nakai's body, swaying with its movements. These were the efforts of the Lizard Priests, who held Nakai in the highest regard and adorned its massive, scarred body with blessed relics.
The Chaos army was stunned. Many Chaos demons trembled uncontrollably upon seeing Nakai.
It was as if they were reminded of the scene thousands of years ago, when Nakai alone stood at the Itza Starlight Bridge, single-handedly annihilating five full demon legions.
The original Demon Prince Be'lakor had already been banished, and its elite guard, the Legion of the Damned, had completely dissipated on the land of Albion. The Chaos demon legions had begun to fracture internally.
The first to be targeted was the Tzeentch legion. The Tzeentch Greater Demon had already been slain by Ryan, and the Nurgle demons quickly turned their attention to these cowardly enemies. Exploiting weakness and avoiding strength was a hallmark of Nurgle—take it or leave it.
The Slaanesh Greater Demon, Kole the Debaucher, was locked in combat with François. The old man's unicorn sword clashed repeatedly with Kole's curved blade and crab-like claws. The Slaanesh demon's movements were swift and agile. Although François was a peak-level saint, he was not particularly skilled in offensive combat. However, this was precisely why Ryan had chosen him to lead the left flank's defense.
A true master of war does not seek glory. François was not suited for surprise attacks or sieges, but when it came to field battles, attrition warfare, and defensive combat, he was an expert.
On the other side, Calard was still engaged in a duel with Ulfric. The two were evenly matched. Calard wielded the divine sword Durandal, while Ulfric possessed his own divine blade, Frostbite. Calard's Grail Knight constitution made him nearly immune to fatigue, and Ulfric was blessed by the Chaos Gods. Calard's early life of hardship had forged an unyielding will, while Ulfric's gift of a silver tongue from Tzeentch proved less effective in this situation.
Even so, the chivalric army was nearing its limit.
Surprisingly, the center army was in the worst condition. The Empire soldiers and militiamen of Newland had completely collapsed after hours of intense fighting.
Thousands of Empire deserters fled in all directions, shouting, "Sigmar protect us!" "Retreat!" "The battle is lost!" Wave after wave of soldiers raised white flags and ran.
Count Hex of Devon and Baron Juan of Biocari, who were in charge of holding the center camp, did not blame these Empire soldiers and militiamen. Most of them were not professional soldiers and had come to Newland simply to make a living. The fact that they had held out for hours, maintaining their courage against the relentless assault of Chaos and barbarians, earned them a thumbs-up from Hex.
This was no joke. Hex, now in his forties, had traveled the Old World and studied in the Empire. He knew that if a Bretonnian settlement had raised a militia, they would be lucky to last 40 minutes, let alone hours. The Empire militiamen had done well to hold out this long.
Yes, peasant militias were just that unreliable.
The desertion of the Empire soldiers created massive gaps in the center defense line. The barbarians surged like a tide, crashing against the rear defenses. The curses and roars made Hex's scalp tingle. On the front lines, the Khorne demons had breached the walls. The Mousilon Coldstream Guards, originally over a thousand strong, had lost nearly 400 men. Even the musketeers and crossbowmen had joined the fray.
Yet, despite being so close, the Khorne demon army could not link up with the barbarians inside.
Because the Bretonnians did not break.
With the dual morale boost from the Sun King and the Lady of the Lake, not a single Bretonnian lost their courage.
More importantly, the Old Guard held their ground. Though few in number, their presence alone inspired the remaining soldiers. The veterans barked orders, rallying the troops to fill the gaps in the line. Led by the Grail Knights, they launched a counterattack, once again pushing the enemy back beyond the walls.
The Khorne Greater Demon, Kuris the Blood Hound, was consumed by uncontrollable rage. Victory was so close, the Bretonnians were on the brink of collapse. The demon knew that fragile mortals could not endure prolonged combat.
So close! So close!
But then, the footsteps from behind grew louder.
"Boom!" With a single swing of its golden sun-spiked disc, Nakai sent two Khorne Heralds and six Khorne Flesh Hounds flying, their blood and flesh splattering around the demigod lizard. Nakai advanced coldly, and with every move, Khorne demons fell like rain from the sky.
Nakai possessed agility far beyond what a beast of its size should have, yet it chose the simplest and most brutal methods to solve problems. The demigod lizard charged straight toward Kuris the Blood Hound. Though not highly intelligent, Nakai fully understood the divine command of Sotek: to slaughter these ancient enemies of the Old Ones and drive all Chaos creations from the mortal world!
The Khorne demons were slaughtered in fear, and the pressure on the faltering human center line was greatly reduced, allowing it to stabilize once more.
The Khorne Greater Demon was consumed by extreme rage. Kuris roared, "So close! So close!"
"Ahhh! For Khorne! For the Skull Throne!" the Greater Demon bellowed, raising its axe and charging straight at Nakai.
The demigod lizard roared in response, effortlessly sidestepping a skull cannon shot that exploded harmlessly behind it. With a swing of its sun-spiked disc, the entire skull cannon and the Khorne demons manning it were crushed into a pulp.
Then, Nakai turned its attention to the Khorne Greater Demon, tilting its head slightly.
"For Khorne!" the Greater Demon swung its bloodied axe in an upward arc from the lower right, aiming for Nakai's chest. Nakai easily dodged backward, and as the demon's axe spun around for another strike, Nakai leaned back calmly.
"Uwaaaah!" Kuris the Blood Hound pressed forward, thrusting its brass claw toward Nakai's heart with its other hand.
The demigod lizard remained expressionless. It reached out with its free hand, catching the brass claw mid-air and crushing it with a single squeeze.
The claw, forged in the bloody furnaces of Khorne's Brass Citadel, shattered with a loud "crack."
The sun-spiked disc hammer came down heavily on the Khorne Greater Demon, sending it flying over a dozen meters with a scream. Boiling blood splattered across the ground. Before the demon could catch its breath, Nakai was already in front of it. Behind the demigod lizard, dozens of Khorne demon corpses were still suspended in mid-air.
The Greater Demon's neck was seized by an immense force. It struggled in agony as Nakai lifted it into the air, then slammed it down into the ground.
"Boom!" The entire battlefield shook.
The Khorne Greater Demon's body was embedded in the ground, its wings shattered. Kuris the Blood Hound could only gasp for breath: "Ugh... Ha..."
Nakai moved swiftly. The demigod lizard tilted its head slightly, then delivered a powerful punch straight to the demon's face!
"Boom!" Nakai's massive fist sank deep into the Greater Demon's skull, splattering boiling demon blood everywhere. Kuris's face was completely caved in, and the Khorne Greater Demon was knocked unconscious on the spot.
But it didn't end there. Nakai grabbed the Greater Demon's face and, with a single motion, ripped its head off along with its entire spine!
Holding Kuris the Blood Hound's head in one hand, Nakai examined the bloody, mangled bull-like face and the spine covered in shredded flesh, as if admiring its trophy. But it quickly lost interest and tossed the head aside.
With the banishment of the Khorne Greater Demon, the entire Khorne demon army dissipated from the battlefield.
This scene shocked everyone. Not just the chivalric army, but even the Chaos warriors and Calard and Ulfric, locked in their champion's duel, were stunned.
But Nakai seemed oblivious. Its small, crocodile-like eyes scanned the battlefield for its next prey.
The Tzeentch and Khorne Greater Demons were dead, and the Nurgle Greater Demon had been reduced to a puddle of sludge by relentless volleys of fire. After a quick search, Nakai's gaze fell on Kole the Debaucher, who was still fighting François.
A warm-blooded creature?
Hmm, seems uncorrupted.
Kill the Chaos first!
Nakai gestured at François with a wave of its arm, signaling him to get out of the way—or else it would kill him too.
Having witnessed the previous events, François quickly disengaged from the Slaanesh demon and retreated from the battlefield.
"What? You think I'm some weakling? I am a Greater Demon of the Prince of Pleasure! I am the 89th-ranked champion of the Dark Prince! I am Kole the Debaucher!" The Slaanesh demon realized it was being targeted and screamed in rage, turning to taunt Nakai: "If you want my love, come and get it!"
The demigod lizard showed no mercy, charging straight at the Slaanesh demon. Despite its massive size, Nakai moved with incredible speed, rivaling even the Slaanesh demon's agility.
Two seconds later, the two collided.
With a dull thud, the Slaanesh demon was sent flying like a broken kite.
Nakai pursued at breakneck speed, closing the distance to Kole the Debaucher in an instant. The sun-spiked disc hammer came down, but the Debaucher rolled away just in time.
Not done yet, the Debaucher performed another clumsy roll, narrowly avoiding Nakai's stomp. Only those on the battlefield could feel the sheer force of that stomp, which shook the ground violently.
As a Slaanesh demon, Kole was highly agile. After several rolls, it sprang to its feet, chanting the name of Slaanesh: "Slaanesh, grant me power! Endless magic, Slaanesh's visage!"
Three twisted faces, each half a meter in diameter, materialized in the air and shot toward Nakai at Kole's command.
The demigod lizard paused its pursuit, deciding to deal with the spell first.
It sidestepped to the left, dodging the first face, then shifted its right shoulder to avoid the second. The third face was too close to dodge, so Nakai simply swung its sun-spiked disc hammer, smashing the spell into nothingness.
Huh?
The Debaucher had vanished. Nakai realized it had lost track of its target.
Before it could react, Kole reappeared beside Nakai, its curved blade slashing toward the lizard's throat!
Purple mist filled the air as Nakai jerked its head back. The blade's serrated edge only grazed the lizard's chest, leaving a faint white mark that healed instantly. Nakai then used its hammer to block the blade, leveraging its strength to twist the Debaucher's wrist and disarm it.
The curved blade flew into the air, breaking into two pieces.
A massive hand gripped the Debaucher's shoulder. Nakai adjusted its aim slightly, then brought its spiked head down like a hammer.
"Thud!"
The Slaanesh demon's body went limp, its limbs hanging uselessly. Kole the Debaucher collapsed to its knees, its skull cracked open by the blow. Thick purple blood poured from the wound, leaving it completely incapacitated.
The demigod lizard dropped its hammer and grabbed the Debaucher's neck with one hand, while the other formed into a massive palm.
After half a second of preparation, Nakai swung its palm with full force.
Kole the Debaucher's head was sent flying from its body, soaring into the distant sky like a brilliant meteor. The headless demon's corpse gushed fountains of blood before Nakai released its grip, letting the body collapse onto the soil of Albion. Within seconds, the corpse dissolved into a gust of Chaos wind, returning to the warp.
"Rooooar!" Nakai let out a triumphant roar. Around it, even the mightiest Chaos Champions fled in terror.
Everyone in the chivalric army, including Ryan, who was being supported by the Lady of the Lake and cradling Olica, stared in awe.
This was the ancient lizard, Nakai the Wanderer, who had once single-handedly annihilated five Chaos legions.
The demigod lizard was truly terrifying!
Nakai roared for a while longer, seemingly unsatisfied, before turning its gaze to the Nurgle Greater Demon, Black Death, who had lost a leg to cannon fire and was riddled with bullet holes and cannon wounds.
"No... no more. Grandfather Nurgle, it's not that we didn't try, but... but they have Nakai!" The Nurgle demon immediately decided to retreat, dissolving into ash and vanishing into the air.
With that, Be'lakor's Chaos army completely collapsed.
"Damn it! I'm done with this! Be'lakor, you're useless!" Ulfric, seeing Nakai's gaze turn toward him, was terrified. He desperately swung his sword to push Calard back, then shouted, "Retreat! Retreat!"
Without a second thought for his troops, Ulfric summoned the Sea Hawk and grabbed the rope dangling from the flying ship, making his escape.
The Wanderer Ulfric could thank the other Wanderer for not being able to fly. Nakai could only watch as Ulfric fled, then turned its attention to hunting down the World Walkers legion.
With that, the Chaos army and barbarian reinforcements outside the city were completely routed.
All eyes turned to the remaining defenders of Kongquata Fortress.
Within minutes, the entire chivalric army redirected its focus inward, driving the barbarians back into the fortress.
This time, the defenders would receive no reinforcements.
Harold, the King of Albion, sensed the dire situation. Gritting his teeth against the pain of his wounds, he turned and called out, "Zanek, use your wisdom! Think of something!"
There was no response. Harold called again, "Zanek? You're the chosen champion of the Raven God!"
Zanek???
Still no response. The King of Albion turned to look.
Huh? Where is he?
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