Heroes of Might and Magic: Grand Consul

Chapter 185: More danger than good
Wayne led the Silver Snow Bandits to the eastern region for reconnaissance.

He had previously placed reconnaissance sentries in this area to closely monitor the ancient ruins.

But after the last battle at Bearhold, the undead seemed to have vanished and never appeared on the plains again.

Su Mu felt it was best to double-check before going into battle, since compared to Isildur's grand ambitions, Stuart genuinely wanted to find the beacon tower and break free from the seal of the ancient ruins.

Moreover, this undead Grand Duke's abilities are a strong counter to governance, making him an even more troublesome opponent.

"Search thoroughly for any trace of corpses or spirits! Don't overlook any corner."

"Boss, no problem. The sentries didn't find any undead. This area is safe."

The Silver Snow Bandits are experts at reconnaissance; no trace in the snow can escape their eyes. But the undead are also masters of concealment; they can hide in the snow for days or even weeks before launching a sudden attack.

In terms of fighting, the number of bandits is too small. Even with Wayne's powerful skills, he cannot defeat the undead army.

He wasn't here to fight the undead this time; his main purpose was reconnaissance, and he would retreat quickly if he encountered any enemies.

Wayne found no trace of the enemy here. He looked towards the eastern area and saw that the snow was gradually disappearing, revealing barren and decaying mud, which was already close to the ancient ruins.

"What should we do, boss? If we go any further, we'll be approaching the muddy area, and the brothers' movement will slow down."

Wayne pondered for a moment, looking at the vast white earth, and subconsciously felt that something was wrong; he seemed to have forgotten something.

"Let's explore further. It's the lord's mission, so we should investigate more thoroughly. The undead army is cunning and evil, we must be on guard!"

The Silver Snow bandits had a lot of faith in this bandit, and they carried out Wayne's orders without question.

After all, although Wayne's laws were strict, the rewards were generous and no one would withhold any rewards. Everyone was used to being bandits, so they cherished the opportunity to become a regular army.

The bandits continued their advance, reaching the edge of the snowy land, but still found no trace of the undead.

Wayne's unease grew stronger; he felt he had forgotten crucial information, and this feeling became more real as the troops advanced deeper into the territory.

"Stop!"

Just as the troops were about to step into the muddy ground, Wayne suddenly called a halt, and the bandits looked at their commander in confusion.

He finally realized what was wrong. The Silver Snow Bandits only searched the snowfields, which were indeed areas of human activity, but not the main place where the undead stayed.

The dead can hide much deeper, buried several meters underground, requiring digging to detect them.

Of course, those with reconnaissance skills can directly investigate the earth, utilizing spell magic.

With Wayne's expertise in reconnaissance, the Silver Snow Bandits should have been able to easily complete the mission, but now they haven't found any undead or anything else.

It's too peaceful. Even if there are no resurrected spirits in the ancient ruins, there should still be skeletons and corpses. The bandits shouldn't have found nothing.

This can only mean one thing: the reconnaissance techniques failed, the bandits were deceived by their senses, and they were unable to detect any activity underground.

Wayne stared at the calm snowfield, sweat pouring down his back. He had heard the lord mention a theory about the undead duke's special abilities, which he had found unbelievable at the time, but now it seemed very likely to apply to him.

To verify his idea, he focused his eyes on the muddy forest a kilometer away. With his original reconnaissance skills, he could see the fine veins on the leaves.

For the first moment their eyes met, Wayne did see the leaves clearly, but soon the leaf veins disappeared, the ground a kilometer away became blurry, and he became like an ordinary person.

"My reconnaissance magic failed me! Someone has cast a special spell on me!"

"Go! Get out of here quickly and head towards Bear Fortress!"

Although the reconnaissance technique failed, Wayne's logistics skills still worked. The Silver Snow bandits moved with incredible speed, running faster than horses.

But at that moment, there was a sudden commotion in the snow. A large number of ghostly spirits emerged from the soil and surrounded the Silver Snow Bandits.

Not only that, the ruins of the borderlands were ablaze with ghostly flames, and a group of blood-red skeletons, clad in tattered robes and wielding human-headed staffs, stared menacingly at the bandits. [Lich King (Necropolis Tier 5, Tier 2 Unit): Attack 13, Defense 10, Ammo 24, Damage 11-15, Health 40, Speed ​​7, Large Size]

Element: None. Ranged unit, undead unit.

Death Cloud: Dense black mist of death corrodes life, causing area damage (but does not damage friendly undead units).

Assessment: The Lich King's powerful death cloud caused all life to wither and die.

A dozen, dozens, and more and more—the Lich King was awakening from the ruins, and undead appeared from all directions, surrounding Wayne and the others.

"Go! Charge out!"

"Rapid Acceleration!"

Without a second thought, Wayne unleashed a speed-boosting spell and led his thieves straight out.

The Silver Snow Bandits were the main force, but this time he also brought wandering thieves, bringing his total to nearly 300 men. Losing his skills meant his men no longer possessed the explosive power they needed, so he had no intention of engaging in a direct confrontation; his goal was simply to break through the blockade and retreat quickly.

Fortunately, Wayne noticed it early and didn't fall completely into the enemy's trap. There weren't many undead surrounding him; they were mostly wraiths and skeletons.

The thieves clashed with the undead army, and thanks to Wayne's high attack power, they fought their way through with great ferocity.

Fortunately, the offensive attributes inherited from the Governing Arts were not lost, and Wayne still possesses extremely strong offensive capabilities.

But after a fierce battle, the Lich King in the distance had also accumulated enough death energy, and he aimed his human-headed staff at the bandit army, launching a fatal attack.

"rumble!"

A death cloud loomed over the battlefield, as wave after wave of chilling, sinister curses claimed the lives of the thieves.

Some people were attacking with daggers one moment, and the next moment they were eroded by the dark clouds, their flesh and blood rotted away, leaving only a skeleton standing there blankly, which would turn into powder when blown by the wind.

In an instant, hundreds of people were taken by the shadow of death, without even a chance to resist.

Ordinary thieves have too little health to withstand the Lich King's attacks, and their formation is also quite dense, making them ideal for area-of-effect attacks by the enemy.

"Run! Scatter and flee! Report the situation here to the lord!"

Wayne wanted to contact Sumu directly to request reinforcements, but the area was affected by magic and communication was impossible.

He himself seemed to have forgotten something, his senses deceived.

The remaining hundred or so Silver Snow Bandits and wandering thieves scattered the ghostly procession and began to flee. However, hundreds of bats took flight from the snow behind them, giving chase.

Another wave of death loomed, and most of the remaining thieves were wiped out. Those who barely survived were all covered in wounds, but the will to live kept them going as they headed toward the Bear Fortress territory.

Wayne was in relatively good condition, but the vampires behind him were chasing faster and faster, like sharks that had smelled blood, keeping a close eye on them.

Just as he continued his westward advance, a line of terrifying and sinister knights suddenly appeared in the snow, wielding massive swords several meters long and riding ghostly warhorses, having waited for some time. A terrifying aura emanated from them, freezing even the air itself.

"Don't go west! There's an ambush."

With the fighting strength of these subordinates, they simply cannot defeat the undead troops in front of them.

Wayne glanced to the northwest, gritted his teeth, and led his remaining troops in that direction.

He had previously seen the path the lord had shown Orling, and if he was lucky, he might be saved.

But that's on the condition that they can outrun the four-legged ghost warhorses.

This time, the odds are really against us!

(End of this chapter)