This Lich is a Better Landlord

Chapter 135: Another Ambush

Deep in the night, a massive carriage departed from the newly built castle, rushing toward a distant destination.

Even with magic boosting its speed, reaching the destination would require a non-stop run of three hours.

The Dwarven Iron Guard didn't quite understand this act of delivering money to someone in the middle of the night, and inevitably, there was resentment in their hearts. Many felt that because the Hand of the King had lost an arm, he was no longer the general who fought bravely on the battlefield.

Since the chaotic battle in the City of Alchemy began, the Dwarves seemed to be giving money away every day. They had given so much, yet no benefits were seen from it.

But these words could only be thought, not spoken aloud.

Inside the carriage, the Captain of the Guard, transformed into Hoffman Ironfist's appearance, was also a bit puzzled.

It wasn't that he didn't understand the money delivery; after all, not wanting to fight and needing to stabilize rule over the new territory required funneling benefits.

But why choose the middle of the night for this delivery? Sending it sneakily was one thing, but making him transform into the leader to handle the handover seemed a bit unusual, like they were doing something bad.

Although very puzzled, the Captain was absolutely loyal to Hoffman Ironfist. The order was given, and he would just follow it.

The carriage sped forward. Because Antigravity Magic had been applied, it moved incredibly fast. However, roughly halfway through the journey, the warhorses pulling the carriage suddenly became manic. Not only did they make a sudden stop, but they also struggled frantically, ignoring commands, seemingly trying to break free from the reins.

This situation wasn't right. Warhorses underwent strict training; they wouldn't panic or lose control even facing a spear phalanx.

There must be something terrifying nearby to cause such a reaction in the horses.

Before the Dwarves could check, Hellfire ignited all around the carriage.

The roaring flames turned into high walls, sealing all the Dwarves inside. The surrounding space was distorted, making it impossible to use any spatial spells. Hell Gates had been opened. Roaring, screeching monsters rushed out from the flames, charging toward the Dwarves like a tide.

Although the Dwarves didn't understand why they were being ambushed, the Iron Guard reacted quickly. Shields linked together, and magic shields deployed rapidly, blocking those monsters outside.

The seemingly thin and transparent magic shields forcibly held back the impact of thousands of demons.

No matter how those Dretches waved their claws, they couldn't leave a single scratch on the magic shields.

The Dwarven Iron Guard excelled at defense, so when attacked, they were steadier than the Elves.

The Captain originally wanted to lead the charge personally to break through the encirclement of Hellfire, but he suddenly remembered he was playing Hoffman Ironfist. Getting into a fight would likely expose him, so he could only shout the order, "Kill these monsters! Break out to the east!"

The Iron Guards shouted in response, then raised their heavy shields, pushing against the tide of demons as they moved east.

With every step, they let out a shout. Their heavy footsteps brought immense power, forcibly squeezing a path through the demon tide with their magic shields.

Many Dretches were crushed into pulp by the Dwarves and their own kind behind them.

This was a common tactic for Dwarves: deploy a shield with super-strong defense, then squeeze the opponent's living space.

Of course, besides this, they also had means of counterattack.

Protected by the frontline Iron Guard, the Dwarf mages in the back began casting freely.

Fireballs were thrown out, blasting the demons into the sky; lightning bolts flew, turning them into charcoal.

This Dwarf squad numbered less than fifty, but the monsters dead by their hands had already exceeded triple digits.

At this rate, they would soon break through the encirclement of Hellfire. Once they left the range of spatial distortion, leaving here would be just a matter of a Mass Teleportation spell.

But an enemy capable of setting up such a grand ambush wouldn't just release a few Dretches.

Balors made their customary entrance. Several giants of flame blocked the Dwarves' path, wielding flaming whips and greatswords, frantically attacking the Iron Guard's magic shields.

Violent energy collisions exploded on the shields with light more brilliant than fireworks.

Every strike from a Balor caused the shields to tremble violently, forcing the Iron Guards to stop and focus fully on maintaining the shield's effect.

The Dwarf mages began to focus fire on these Balors, wanting to take them down.

But the magic resistance of Balors was unusually high. Even bombarding them with ice spells made it difficult to kill them in a short time. Once the team stopped, the demons' attacks came densely from all directions.

The magic shields were flickering constantly; clearly, they had reached their limit.

Seeing the situation was wrong, the Captain could no longer continue his act. He raised his iron hammer and struck the ground fiercely.

Outside the magic shields, the earth shook and mountains swayed. Countless earth spikes grew from the ground, piercing the bodies of the demons.

One Balor couldn't dodge in time; the soles of its feet were pierced by earth spikes, and it roared in pain.

The Captain was also a powerhouse of the Legendary rank, and his class was Eldritch Knight.

"Buff me! I'll deal with those Balors!"

Following the Captain's order, the mages in the team continuously cast magic on him. Bear's Strength, Cat's Grace, Owl's Wisdom, Stoneskin, Bless... all castable buff effects were thrown onto the Captain, turning him into a multicolored light bulb.

Then he raised his hammer high and summoned his magical mount—a giant Black Goat.

The Black Goat, larger than an ox, leaped over the magic shield in a single bound, carrying the Captain into the midst of the demons.

Just as he landed, the Captain and his mount rapidly blurred, and three identical illusions appeared beside them.

The demons couldn't distinguish which was the main body, and most attacks missed.

The Captain swung his iron hammer, slaughtering freely. The hammer, weighing dozens of pounds, felt weightless in his hands. Not only did he swing it into a blur, but sonic booms could even be heard.

With so many spell buffs, a Legendary warrior swinging a weapon with full force could break the sound barrier.

Moreover, the Eldritch Knight's spellcasting ability was not weak. This Captain wielded a hammer in one hand and magic in the other, throwing out area-of-effect spells like Thunderwave and Burning Hands as if they cost nothing. Any demon that got close was blasted away by his spells. He carved a bloody path through countless demons by himself.

Pushing forward, the Captain soon arrived in front of a Balor.

The size difference between the two was quite obvious. If not for riding the giant Black Goat, the Captain wouldn't even reach the Balor's knees.

But size didn't represent combat power. With the stacking magical protections, the effect of the Fire Aura was completely nullified against him, only creating tiny sparks on the surface of his body.

The war hammer left the Captain's hand, turning into a meteor that smashed into the Balor's head.

The hammer carried immense force and weight, accurately hitting the Balor's skull.

With a muffled sound, a massive wound split open on the Balor's forehead, and lava-like blood flowed down.

But this was just the beginning. The heavy hammer, the instant it hit the target, *whooshed* back into the Captain's hand. This was the exclusive ability of the Eldritch Knight—Weapon Bond.

An Eldritch Knight could choose a weapon to bind with themselves.

The bound weapon would never be dropped or lost; even if thrown, it would quickly return to the Eldritch Knight's hand.

This gave rise to a school of Eldritch Knights—the Throwing Build.

This Captain was obviously a master of the throwing build. His hammer was not only accurate but also imbued with many special damage types. The second throw exploded the Balor's head, leaving no chance for regeneration.

After killing one Balor, he swung the hammer again, throwing it at another Balor. At the same time, he pulled the reins, making the Black Goat charge to dodge a Balor's flame whip.

The Captain dashed left and right through the demon horde. Occasionally he was hit, but thanks to the dozens of buff effects on him, he completely ignored the damage. His hammer throws took down a Balor every two hits. At this rate, the Dwarves would soon break free.

But worldly affairs were rarely so easy.

After the second Balor was killed, three beams of crimson light descended from the sky.

Three beams of Eldritch Blast. The powerful energy accurately hit the Captain, making him tremble all over, shattering several of the protective spells on him.

This was not an ordinary spellcaster, but power of the Legendary rank.

The Captain couldn't help looking up. In the dim sky, a winged shadow swept past.

"That is... a Dragon?!"

The dragon-shaped shadow rushed toward the Captain, opening its mouth to spew a breath of scorching dragon fire.

The Captain only had time to raise his shield to defend. Amidst a crackling sound, most of the protective magic on the Captain shattered again. Even the Black Goat beneath him was burned severely in the dragon breath.

But the Captain didn't sit and wait for death. The hammer was thrown, swift as a shooting star, landing on the dragon's head, scraping against the dense dragon scales to create a large shower of sparks.

The wyvern roared, flapped its wings to fly high, and then continuously cast Eldritch Blast at the Captain.

Beam after beam of energy bombarded down, making the Captain unable to hold on.

Throwing the hammer was useless. Even if the hammer broke the sound barrier, the opponent was high in the sky. By the time the hammer reached its face, it would have lost its initial speed. The dragon dodged it several times.

The Captain instantly fell into a hard battle. He could only take a beating, unable to fight back at all.

While the Captain was entangled by the dragon, the other Dwarves also fell into a desperate struggle.

The demons were endless, chipping away at their magic shields bit by bit. Once the shields were broken, all the Dwarves would die at the hands of the demons. The Captain had no solution for this. Although an Eldritch Knight had spellcasting abilities, they weren't like mages who had many tricks and could handle any situation.

The flying dragon in the sky perfectly countered him, an Eldritch Knight. If time dragged on, the Dwarves would have only one path: defeat and death.

Therefore, the Captain made a heartless choice. He abandoned the other Dwarves, preparing to break out alone.

*At least someone has to go back and report the news!*