The impact sent the Nest King and its water lizard stumbling backward.
Black blood spilled from the King's mouth.
The armor around the place where Azpen's sword had struck was visibly damaged.
For a moment, we thought we had finally created an opening.
The remaining high-ranking lizardmen immediately rushed toward the King and gathered around him.
Some helped him steady himself while others wiped the blood from his mouth.
Azpen and Verken also moved back toward each other.
We regrouped.
But our situation was still far from good.
We were exhausted and injured.
Fortunately, we could see the infantry approaching from behind.
They were finally close enough to provide some cover for us.
Then the Nest King raised its head.
It let out a strange roar.
It was almost as if it had been waiting for this exact moment.
The other high-ranking lizardmen suddenly changed.
Their bodies began absorbing the miasma around them.
Their eyes turned completely black.
Saliva dripped from their mouths.
Then they charged toward us while riding their water lizards.
They looked like madmen.
The first one reached our formation.
A soldier stepped forward to intercept it.
He drove his spear directly into the lizardman's chest.
The spear pierced straight through.
But the lizardman didn't stop.
It continued charging with the spear still embedded in its body.
It swung its weapon and cut the soldier's head off.
Black blood sprayed across the ground.
Then another one charged in.
And another.
They were fighting as if they couldn't feel pain.
I looked toward the Nest King.
It was still recovering from Azpen's attack.
It has already suffered serious damage.
Its body is covered in injuries, and the wound from Azpen's attack must have caused even more damage.
It doesn't have enough strength left to fight us directly.
So it's using its remaining high-ranking lizardmen to buy itself time.
That's what they're doing.
Then we need to kill them before the King recovers.
The normal lizardmen were still surrounding us.
The infantry was getting closer, but there was still a gap between us.
We couldn't afford to stop fighting.
As the berserk lizardmen rushed toward us again, Azpen shouted.
"Disperse! Do not engage them directly! Keep your distance!"
Azpen and Verken immediately rushed toward the recovering Nest King.
But before they could reach it, four lizardmen in a berserk state suddenly charged toward them.
They swung their swords and spears wildly.
Anything within their range was attacked.
They no longer seemed capable of recognizing friend from foe.
At this point, they didn't care whether the person in front of them was a human or another lizardman.
If something was in their way, they attacked it.
Azpen didn't stop.
Neither did Verken.
Verken picked up speed and threw two spears toward the berserk lizardmen.
One was deflected.
The other struck its target.
At the same time, I found myself under attack.
A berserk lizardman riding a water lizard charged toward me.
It held a long spear in both hands.
There was no hesitation in its movements.
It simply kept charging.
I parried its first attack.
At the same time, I pulled the reins and moved Rusty slightly to the left.
The spear passed beside me.
The moment I found an opening, I swung my halberd.
The blade struck its head.
Crack!
Even after taking the blow, the lizardman didn't stop.
It tried to stab me again.
I barely avoided the spear.
The battle continued around me.
I could feel the pressure building.
Normal lizardmen were attacking us at the same time.
We needed to deal with the berserk lizardmen quickly and divert their attention away from the main battlefield.
Several of our soldiers began attacking the berserk lizardmen from different directions.
The berserk lizardmen started killing their own comrades in the chaos.
That gave us another opportunity.
But the fighting still didn't stop.
Then I noticed something else.
Arrows were flying through the battlefield.
They struck the berserk lizardmen and helped keep them away from us.
I couldn't tell where the arrows were coming from.
But whoever was firing them was clearly supporting us.
The battle continued.
Then we heard a loud sound coming from a distance.
A roar.
Azpen and Verken were still fighting the Nest King.
But this time, the King was trying to retreat while attacking them at the same time.
It was becoming slower.
Its movements were becoming weaker.
Every time another lizardman tried to intervene, our soldiers dealt with it.
And whenever one of them managed to get close, an arrow would strike them.
The pressure was finally becoming too much for the Nest King.
It staggered.
Its movements became slower.
Its body was covered in wounds.
I could see it.
The Nest King was about to fall.