Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking

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Cedric guessed it right; the Dread Lord was indeed playing with them—or whatever the equivalent of that is to a void creature, at least.

It knew of the people hiding in the cave; it just didn't know how many of them were there or how strong they were. And while it didn't feel any real threat coming from them, the hunter's nature deeply instilled in the Dread Lord made it approach the area carefully. That's why it continued skirting around the area without actually getting into the cave.

However, whatever plan, it has evaporated like fog at the appearance of the reinforcements.

Despite showing signs of intelligence, the Dread Lord is still a Void Creature, a race that is mostly dominated by their instincts. When provoked, all traces of intelligence vanished from it, reverting to its natural state.

However, that doesn't make void creatures weaker. If anything, they're far more dangerous in this state.

Fortunately, the reinforcements were clearly experienced people. They knew, more than anybody, how to deal with creatures like this. They have been hunting them for a long time, after all.

Boom!!

Scylla was the first to move. Her sharp, sword-like claws flashed with a cold light as her figure turned into a piercing streak of light, charging towards the Dread Lord fearlessly.

With a surprising display of flexibility, though, the Dread Lord dodged her attack by bending its body backwards as if it didn't have any bones on its body. It even extended one of its claws to counterattack at the instant of the clash, but this was met by Scylla's claws, and the clash produced a spark and a sharp screeching sound that echoed for miles.

Syclla never expected to take the Dread Lord down in that one attack. That would've been a miracle if it happened. So, she wasn't really disappointed.

She went into a fierce offensive after that, though. Determined to harass the Dread Lord, not giving it any chances or freedom of options.

The Field of Despair didn't affect her that much. She and her team were used to it. This isn't their first encounter with a Dread Lord. They've killed a lot of them in their long tenure that they've already lost count.

This one isn't anything different or special.

Ftoom! Crack!

Scylla's harassment suddenly ended, much to the Dread Lord's confusion. It wasn't until it heard the explosive sounds behind it that it understood why she suddenly disappeared.

A gigantic fist overwhelmed its vision as it turned around. It's as if it was faced with a meteor falling down at the very spot where it stood. Only that meteor was in the shape of a fist.

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This attack came from the leader of the squad, the Titan.

It is a pure fist intent and explosive power, originating from the heritage of the Ancient Titans. No, he didn't revert to his true size, but he was able to manifest a force equivalent to his attack at that state even when he's in manageable form.

The Dread Lord tried to dodge, but to its horror, it found itself bound by some mysterious force, preventing it from moving even a single muscle aside from its eyes.

It hurriedly traced the sensation to one of its enemies and discovered that someone behind that large and bulky person wearing a suit was responsible for this.

Unfortunately, that's its last thought. Because as soon as the Titan's Fist landed, the Dread Lord was eradicated from existence entirely. No trace of it was left.

Scylla didn't even bother staying to see the ending of the Dread Lord because she already knew it was going to die. As soon as she disembarked with it, she flew towards the cave, only to find it empty.

She despaired, thinking that they were too late to rescue them. She did see the Dread Lord standing just outside the cave when they arrived after all.

But before she fell into true despair, She heard a movement in front of her.

Under hers and her team's astonished gaze, the apparent 'end' of the cave gave way, parting like a set of gates, revealing several auras behind.

It turns out that they too have been fooled by the illusory wall that Cedric created. But it's only because of their heightened emotions. If this was any other time, they wouldn't have been fooled easily.

But that doesn't really matter right now, does it?

"Sis!!"

The team leader standing beside Cedric exclaimed in glee and relief. He was overwhelmed to the point that he felt all of his energy leaving his body after enduring all of this tension and fearing for his life.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Scylla unhesitatingly dashed towards her brother. Taking him to her arms and weeping silently.

"You're alive! Heavens, you're alive. That's good! That's really good! I wouldn't have known what I would've done if you died." Her voice was shaky; she too was under a lot of pressure, yet all of it disappeared once she confirmed that her younger brother was alive and relatively well despite the crisis.

Cedric peeled his attention away from the reunion beside him and addressed the other members of the rescue team.

He saluted them and said, "Greetings, Commanders. Thank you for coming to our aid!"

His gesture was subconsciously followed by the people behind him, who're also relieved that they're finally being rescued.

"You've worked hard, Officer." The titan spoke, "Dawnbringer, is it?"

"Yes, sir!" Cedric replied.

"Mn, it was your summoned sword that led us here, saving us time to save you all. Good work. Come, all of you, let's get out of this place. We've made too much noise; it would be bad if the things lurking in the danger zone migrate here because of it."

The titan had this commanding presence that made everybody follow his orders subconsciously. But even if they were given the audacity, none of them would've defied his orders because it was the best course of action to take in this current state.

Nobody had forgotten where they were. The priority is getting out of here lest they become stuck here forever. That's why nobody thought or dared to offer any additional opinions about their course of action.

As they walked out of the cave, the members of the rescue squad finally noticed that there were more than 20 people here. And more than half of them were suffering from minor void infections.

Cedric could sense this, so he took the initiative to report about it.

"Our squad was inside the cave as soon as the Void Shift started, making us rather fortunate. We decided to stay inside to wait it out. If we ended up close to the gates, we will go out and make our way back ourselves. If we ended up farther, we'd wait for rescue."

"During the shift, we discovered and rescued the rest. They all came from other camps, and they're the only ones that survived after being caught unprepared by the Void Shift. I have some experience dealing with Void infections, but without the necessary tools, I can only lessen and slow down the infection. They would need further treatment once we return."

The rescue squad didn't say much, but they did give him a thumbs-up—or at least, whatever the equivalent of that is in their terms.

One of them, the one with femenine features despite their face and figure being obscured by the void suit, faced the weakened officers and released a rainbow-colored brilliance that enveloped them.

When this brilliance made contact with them, the weakened officers immediately felt better. They found their energies returning and the pain disappearing. It's as if they were suddenly cured from the infection.

But before they feel a little too happy, the caster of this light doused their enthusiasm.

"This is only a temporary aid."

Cedric was already convinced that this one's a female, especially after hearing her melodious voice.

"This relief is merely an illusion. You lot are still infected and weak. It will last until we return to the Northwestern Guardian Camp before you get an actual treatment. Don't be too eager and excited; calm down and preserve your energies until we make it back."

After saying this, she turned her back against them and continued leading the way.

While her seemingly cold attitude was rude, nobody dared to complain. How can they when they knew that they're under their mercy? Besides, she took the initiative to give them aid. She didn't need to, but she did it in the end. What they felt was just gratitude and no dissatisfaction.

It's already good that they're alive and being rescued.

The return trip was peaceful. Sure, a fight between them and the roaming void creatures did happen every now and then, but under the lead of the rescue team, nobody was hurt and all of the enemies had been taken care of.

And as they walked out of the gate and saw the familiar sight of those towering metal giants, relief overwhelmed their bodies. Some even collapsed entirely because of it.

They're back. They made it back alive.

And none of this would've been possible without Cedric.