A Time of Tigers - From Peasant to Emperor

Chapter 217: Distrust - Part 9

As the Gorebeast flew past him, the onlookers caught their breaths. To them, it had merely been an adept display at dodging. It was only Tolsey and Lombard that was able to see what was going on below the surface. Lombard more so than Tolsey.

The two shared a look, before their eyes returned to the battlefield.

Beam could feel his hands tingling, as he turned away from the Gorebeast behind him, to acknowledge the two approaching from the front. He was a bit faster now, that much seemed to be true. But just as his speed was available, there was also a sluggishness to his body – albeit to a much lesser degree than his speed – that he found difficult to navigate.

He created his opportunity with his trusty misdirection skill, that he had spent so long working on. He raised his sword up over his shoulder, feigning an overhead slash on the Gorebeast. The animal clocked the strike long in advance, and adjusted itself so that it would manage to dodge it, and secure a strike of its own.

But at the last second, just as the Gorebeast had committed its entire weight to its own attack, only then did Beam feint his backstep.

It was the fastest feint that he had ever managed to carry out, and the results were just as good to make up for it. The Gorebeast's eyes bulged, and it felt the overwhelming threat of death looming over its head. It hurriedly scrambled to a halt, so that it would be well out of Beam's range.

Yet, that backstep had been a mere feint, after all. Beam's mass had remained almost entirely on his front foot, allowing him to easily transition back into his strike, just as the Gorebeast lined itself up perfectly to receive it.

The blade caught it above the shoulder, and dug straight through, barrelling through the rib cage, piercing lung and heart, and slicing its front paw straight off.

There was a roar of delight from the soldiers, as they witnessed the display.

"GO ON LAD! GET HIM!"

Cheers that he did not expect to hear, for his experience with the soldiers had only been negative ones. Yet, to them, on the frontline as he was now, the stronger he was, the better it was for them. For each and every one of the soldiers on duty was exhausted, and they were only growing more tired still, as each day passed.

They needed something to reverse that momentum, to negate their weakening morale and give them a chance to recover.

Anything that helped in that regard, they would throw their all behind, and praise their Captain for bringing over. Be they a peasant or dog.

Even with one Gorebeast dealt with, Beam was not able to relax. There had been two charging in from the front, after all, and the one that had gone skidding past him was now recovering, though its movements were uncertain. It seemed to be looking between Beam and the pile of meat, trying to decide whether it could make a breakthrough or not.

But with each step it took away from Beam, it could feel an increasing amount of dread. Even though the boy's back was turned away from him, and there was a distance of a few steps between them, it knew that if it showed its back to this enemy, then it would surely die.

Beam's misdirection had an effect on both Gorebeasts. As the first one fell to the floor in a pool of blood, the second one had been similarly tricked by Beam's movements, and it hurried to recover itself, now that it saw where he was truly standing.

With it struggling to get its feet under it so that it might change direction, Beam locked it with a glare, freezing it in place. His sword was primed and ready to take another life – yet a shift in the air informed him of another danger up ahead.

An arrow sprang from the trees, narrowly missing Beam's ear as he lightly tilted his head to the side. Another arrow came towards his chest. He managed to step out of the way of that too.

There was angry chattering amongst the Horned Goblins in response to their foiled attack, but a decision must have been made, for three spear wielders soon made their way out of the trees.

Beam felt a shift in the momentum. It would have been nice to kill the two Gorebeasts at once, after he'd foiled their charge, but now he was forced to take a step back and recover, as he continued to acknowledge the beast that was behind him, as well as taking into account the one to the front and the Horned Goblin's that now moved to support it.

"Reinforcements, Captain?" Tolsey asked just loudly enough for the other sergeants to hear, so that they might put the response to the question into action immediately.

Lombard paused for a moment, considering the situation, with the boy surrounded by monsters on all sides. Of course, there was the risk that he would get injured, and Lombard's investment would have fallen through. He had already proved his worth, after all. Tolsey seemed to understand that.

The Vice-Captain had gulped when he'd seen just how easily the boy had dealt with a Gorebeast. A single effortless strike, to kill it with such sureness, it was as though it was a mere bug to him. It was enough to make him lose confidence in their own abilities.

Tolsey knew with that strike that the boy was as strong as him – if not stronger. For that reason, he knew that the Captain had guessed it as well. When one had such strength at their disposal, he knew the worth in conserving it, and using it effectively. For it was the Captain himself that had taught him that.

Already, they knew that their defence would be far easier with the boy on their side – and yet the Captain seemed to expect even more of him.

Tolsey could only continue to watch, as the hesitancy bit at his heart. But he did not move to interfere. He trusted far too much in his Captain for that.

The monsters settled into a loose formation around Beam. The tension in the air was palpable. Manipulated by the goblins, the group settled into an odd unity, into a single-minded approach. With three spears pointed his way, and the slathering mouths of two Gorebeasts, it was right to call it a rather tricky situation. From anyone else's point of view – it would indeed be a death trap.