Chapter 312 - 307: Bonebreak Clan

Chapter 312: Chapter 307: Bonebreak Clan

Unas’s tribe advanced no further.

The behemoths stopped in the waters five kilometers from the coast.

Giant lobsters carried the tribe into the deep sea, and the Warriors of the Bonebreak Clan vanished with them.

They regrouped in a deep-sea trench. The valley floor here was wide and flat, with no coral reefs that would allow the enemy to repeat their old tricks.

Their last crushing defeat had made these ocean predators a little more cautious.

Night fell.

Scout Captain Cash surfaced from the sea without a sound.

His mission was to survey the terrain around Minas Tirith Port.

First was the outer side of the port, facing the North Sea.

He swam along the base of the massive mountain cliff, the waves crashing against the rocks with a roar.

Cash faced the cliff face, the wooden fortress at his back. He tried to use his tentacles to dig into the rock wall, searching for a handhold to climb.

But... not only was the rock smooth...

He looked up. ’It’s too high.’

In the darkness, the sheer cliff soared into the clouds. Any Warrior who tried to climb it would only exhaust themselves midway, ultimately to be dashed to pieces on the reefs and waves below.

’A dead end.’

Cash sank back into the water, his limbs propelling him toward the side of the port facing the Gray Sea.

As he neared the shore, the water grew murky and warm, and the seabed beneath him rose steadily.

Thick mud clung to his tentacles. Every step he took sank him deep into the sludge.

He tried to pick up the pace but could barely move, as clumsy as a dazed young crab.

He could easily imagine it: if the Sea Beasts were to charge here, this seemingly flat, wide tidal flat would become a massive mire trap.

’And those cunning land-dwellers have probably buried even more things in the mud.’

Finally, from a distance, he spied the two fortresses that seemed to "grow" out of the sea.

In the darkness, they were like two silent behemoths with menacing silhouettes.

By the faint torchlight on the walls, he could vaguely make out the countless black holes on the fortresses—the land-dwellers’ heavy crossbows. They were like more than a hundred single eyes staring into the deep, brimming with killing intent.

Everything here—the cliffs, the tidal flats, the fortresses... it was all a challenge. Every step of an assault would be a death trap.

Cash slipped silently beneath the waves and, burdened with this heavy intelligence, swam toward the imposing Skeleton Throne in the deep-sea trench.

He had to report all of this to the great Shipbreaker.

...

Before the Skeleton Throne, several Scout Captains were prostrated on the ground.

"Scouting report complete. Chief, I recommend we concentrate all our siege behemoths and launch a full-frontal assault through the main deep-water channel. Their port cannot withstand the impact."

A low rumble emanated from the Skeleton Throne. It was Unas’s laughter.

"Cash, those land-crawling insects have scared you witless."

Cash lowered his head. He didn’t deny it. Ever since escaping this sea of death with the vanguard last time, his opinion of the land-dwellers’ strength had changed drastically.

"I just don’t want to see our people sacrificed for nothing again."

"Sacrifice?" Unas stood up. "That is glory. Schemes and tricks are worthless in the face of absolute power. Grash’s failure was due to his foolishness, not our weakness."

Unas turned in the direction of the port.

"I will crush their bones, and I will crush their will."

He pointed toward the surface of the sea.

"Send a hundred Warriors up there. Let them clear our path before we launch the main assault."

Unas’s voice turned icy.

"Show those land-crawling insects what the fury of the sea looks like."

...

「At dawn.」

Cash led the first group of Multi-Armed Race Warriors onto the beach.

The seawater receded from knee-deep to ankle-deep.

Underfoot was no longer hard seabed and reef, but soft, yielding sand.

Every time he lifted his feet, he kicked up clumps of wet sand, his gait clumsy and strange.

Without the embrace of the sea, the dry wind blew across his carapace, making him uncomfortable.

He looked up. The city embedded in the mountain rock far in the distance was much larger than it had appeared when he spied on it from underwater.

The high, gray-white walls were covered in countless black dots—human soldiers.

There were no war drums, no shouts of defiance.

Only silence.

His comrades beside him had clearly sensed that something was wrong, and their pace slowed.

Cash knew his chief’s intention.

They had a mission, and the mission had to be carried out.

Up on the city wall, Barrett let out a soft snort.

"Is that all?"

He turned his head and ordered the archer Centurion behind him.

"Prepare the ’gifts’."

The Centurion nodded, turned, and relayed the order in a low voice.

Behind the crenellations, rows of archers stood up, their movements synchronized.

They drew arrows from their quivers and dipped the tips into a large cauldron filled with a thick, black liquid.

On another section of the wall, Ola paced back and forth in frustration, his battle-axe dragging across the stone pavers, leaving a glaring white scratch.

The sea breeze blew his beard about. He looked down at the slow-moving "targets" below, then at the unhurried archers beside him preparing flaming arrows, and finally lost his patience.

"Why won’t you let me go?" his roar exploded across the wall.

"I could take on ten of those jelly-legged crabs by myself! What is Lord Velin thinking? Is he having my Knights sunbathe up here?"

The surrounding soldiers were startled by his shout and stopped what they were doing, their gazes turning toward him.

A cool voice spoke up from behind him.

"Baron."

Ola’s breath hitched. He spun around, the tense muscles in his neck making him look like an angry bull.

Diana was standing a few steps behind him, though he hadn’t noticed her approach. She wore a suit of Scale Armor that was both practical and elegant.

Her long, golden hair was braided. The sea wind gusted over the wall, making the Dawn family banner behind her snap and flutter.

"Are you questioning the orders of a superior officer?" Diana’s tone was flat.

"I am not!" Ola retorted, craning his neck stubbornly. "I just think..."

"You just think your personal honor is more important than this entire war?"

Diana took a step forward, her eyes looking down on the Dwarf, who was several heads shorter than her.

Ola was choked by the question.

Diana’s gaze went past him, sweeping over the equally eager Knights behind him.

"Though these Knights are your subordinates, in Minas Tirith, they are soldiers." She enunciated each word clearly. "A soldier’s duty is to obey orders, not to satisfy their commander’s vanity."

"You..." Ola’s face flushed crimson.

"Quiet," Diana cut him off, her voice laced with authority. "Or take your Knights and go back to your Shiyan Town."

With that, she turned and walked toward the third level without giving Ola another glance.

Ola stood frozen in place, his chest heaving.

He watched Diana’s retreating back, then looked down at the Multi-Armed Race Warriors drawing ever closer below. Finally, he slammed his battle-axe down on the ground.

CLANG! The deafening sound was accompanied by a shower of sparks, and a shallow crater was smashed into the stone pavers.

"Damn it!"