FL - Chapter 48: Covered in Treasure

Weir watched the unfolding battle with mounting anxiety, his heart tight with worry for the fighting knights.

By now, the Ice-Armored Bear had fully descended into its berserk state. The very world around it seemed to freeze under the weight of its fury.

Three enormous crystalline spikes jutted from its back, radiating a scorching blue light.

Heat warped the air so violently that the surrounding knights could barely keep their footing.

The archers' arrows couldn't even reach the bear's hide anymore. The ice-flame in the air was enough to evaporate them mid-flight.

"Phase two. Begin!" Louis shouted the order.

The commander swept his banner, and the signal rippled outward.

The knights split rapidly into multiple small squads and began circling the Ice-Armored Bears.

They wove through the bears' blind spots in swift bursts, each provocation driving the creatures further into madness.

The bears' hexagonal eyes blazed with furious red light as cold flame bled uncontrollably from their bodies.

"Keep baiting them! Don't let them close in!" Lambert roared, directing the action from the field.

With every approach, the knights veered sharply away, slipping clean past the bears' strikes with practiced precision.

The beasts swung their colossal claws in frenzied arcs. And hit nothing but air.

Roars of impotent rage tore through the mountain silence.

And the crystalline spikes flared ever more violently, hurling waves of heat with such force that the air itself seemed to crack with sonic booms.

"Their energy is about to detonate!" Lilia cried, her eyes filled with worry.

"Stay patient. Don't let them rest!" Louis stared at the Ice-Armored Bears, watching the crystals on their backs.

At a moment like this, a single detail could decide victory or defeat.

The knights' movements grew ever more precise. Every provocation pushed the bears' berserk energy another notch higher.

The relentless kiting drove all nine Ice-Armored Bears into a state of ultimate frenzy.

The energy in their bodies began to spill out of control. Its surging currents nearly flattened the surrounding trees and boulders.

Stones tumbled down the slopes. The tremor could be felt in distant mountain ranges.

"Now!" Lambert's eyes lit up. He'd caught the moment.

Lambert led six Elite Knights and twenty-three Formal Knights in a rapid split, each group lunging toward a different berserk bear.

Every Ice-Armored Bear was still spewing cold flame with desperate fury. Turbulent blasts scoured the battlefield.

The temperature spiked violently. Icy wind and scorching heat wove together into a lethal barrier.

Lambert gripped his longsword and drove his team forward. Their target was clear. The core on the back of the spent, post-berserk bear.

*Shlunk.*

His longsword stabbed deep into the core of one rampaging Ice-Armored Bear's back.

The other knights were right behind him, rapidly concentrating their attacks in coordinated volleys.

As the knights struck, the crystalline spikes on the bears' backs flickered madly and shuddered with violent convulsions. The pent-up energy poured out like a torrential downpour.

The shockwave detonated, nearly tearing the battlefield apart. Cold flame coalesced into a massive vortex that consumed everything in its path.

"Retreat! Retreat now!" Lambert's voice was nearly swallowed by the roar of the explosions.

The knights pulled back at speed, evading the uncontrollable blast.

Smoke blanketed the battlefield. Flames scattered in every direction.

The simultaneous energy eruption of nine Ice-Armored Bears formed a terrible cataclysm. The explosions warped the air itself.

Ice-crystal shells shattered in the inferno. Fragments sprayed through the sky.

When the smoke cleared, at the center of the ravaged battlefield, the bodies of the nine Ice-Armored Bears lay still.

Though the force of their berserk detonations had been powerful enough to tear apart everything around them, the bears' ice-crystal shells had kept their corpses from turning to ash.

Their crystalline spikes remained intact. Some had been partially shattered, but the dreadful power within them could still be felt.

It was over. Louis stood at the edge of the battlefield, sweeping his eyes across the scene. At last, he let out a breath of relief.

A fierce battle. And yet not a single one of his men was wounded. Not even a warhorse had been harmed.

Weir and Lilia stood to the side, their eyes shimmering with yearning.

They watched the knights on the battlefield, their hearts filling with the dream that one day, they too could stand where those knights stood.

Could stand on a battlefield and cut down such mighty foes for Lord Louis.

"We'll be able to do it too, right?" Lilia asked softly.

Weir said nothing. He only nodded, hard.

With the battle concluded, the knights began the methodical work of collecting the spoils.

These titanic beasts that had once struck fear into every heart now lay silent on the ground. Spoils of war.

And every single Ice-Armored Bear was practically a treasure vault.

Knights carefully carved away the bear meat. The flesh was firm and springy to the touch, giving off a unique, rich aroma.

Ice-Armored Bear meat was considered an exceptional tonic. In the south, it could sell for exorbitant prices.

It could effectively strengthen a knight's flesh and blood, expanding their Battle Aura reserves.

Every cut of meat could provide massive benefits to the knights.

Other knights were assigned specifically to extract the crystalline formations from the bears' backs.

In the hands of an alchemist, those crystals could be refined into potent elixirs or magical artifacts. Items beyond price, with no fixed market at all.

Louis looked at the carcasses with regret.

If Ice-Armored Bears weren't so dangerous, so unstable, he would have started his own breeding operation long ago.

These behemoths were worth using down to the last inch.

The meat, the crystals, the ice armor, even the claws and fangs held immense value. They were nature's own resource vaults.

But he could only daydream. If he actually tried to raise them, Crimson Tide Territory would probably be blasted into the sky within two days.

He swept his eyes across the busy knights and the heaps of spoils, and a smile broke across his face.

This was, in truth, a great victory. And he was going to reward these knights for it.

"Alright, everyone. Stop what you're doing!" he called out.

The knights ceased their work and turned to face Louis.

"I've decided. Tonight, we hold a feast with the meat of these Ice-Armored Bears!" Louis announced.

The words had barely left his mouth before the knights erupted in cheers.

The tension lingering from battle was swept away in an instant.

"Lord Louis, this is too generous!" one knight was the first to roar in delight.

"Truly! This bear meat is precious. It's a warrior's blessing!" Another knight's eyes glittered.

The knights around them raised their fists and roared in unison: "Glory to the great Lord!"

Hearing the cheers and laughter around him, Louis felt a deep sense of satisfaction.

After all, these knights had not been raised by his own hand. Only sufficient rewards and resources could make them truly loyal to him.

With sufficient rewards, a knight could swing a sword not six times per second, but more.

Besides, danger was looming. The Ice-Armored Bear meat would give his forces an extra edge in strength, and give him that much more confidence heading into the coming campaign against the insurgents.