Overwhelmed

“Tch,” Derrick cursed, looking at the two boulders which wrecked the spinning wires. “I did not consider this.”

The goblins noticed the gap instantly, climbing over the boulders with shrill screeches of insanity.

“I’ll have to reinforce my wires with either plasma so that they can cut through rock, or add in high frequency oscillation—”

Voidborn leapt forward to one of the breach points, sword drawn, slicing enemies in half.

“Shut up and stop them already,” Rei grumbled. “Who cares if we’re dead.”

“I need help with the other breach point,” Voidborn said, plunging his sword straight downwards through a charging goblin’s spine. “I can’t be at two places at once.”

“I got it,” Derrick said, summoning his Tear units again.

This time, they pooled right in front of the other breach point, focusing their blue beams at the goblins climbing over the boulder.

“Incoming!” Jimin shouted.

Three boulders flew through the air.

Rei raised her hands and stretched her palms outwards. Her tome glowed red. Three orbs condensed above her and morphed.

“Burst Nails.”

The nails shot towards each incoming boulder, sharp ends piercing into the hard rock. The moment Rei clenched her fist—

Boom.

Each of the boulders exploded and burst into powder, scattering over the goblin horde like ash.

Enraged that their attack failed, the bugbears roared in dissatisfaction. They ran to nearby rocks and dug them up, throwing more boulders towards Derrick’s gadgets.

Explosions filled the air as Rei sent detonating nails one after another, intercepting the incoming aerial assault.

Sweat beaded out of her forehead. The glow in her tome was dimming and her lips were growing pale.

The rock barrage was taking its toll on her.

“Shit—is this never going to end?”

Derrick collapsed to the ground, barely supporting himself upwards as he kneeled on his knee. He was giving it his all trying to maintain the defensive line, and his mental energy was not limitless.

Voidborn looked at the other two.

He grabbed a short sword from the ground and charged forward, slicing goblins with his two blades. Jumping up high, he leapt over the boulder and landed right in the horde.

He began to dice.

Seeing a target appear in their midst, the goblins turned their attention to Voidborn and rushed towards him, temporarily abandoning their advance.

“Fuck—Voidborn!” Derrick shouted. “Get back in here!”

“Kill the bugbears,” Voidborn shouted calmly, swinging his two swords like a human dicer, slicing off seven goblins’ head with a spinning slash.

“And protect Lady Yoo.”

“Derrick! Save him!” Jimin exclaimed, biting her lower lip with panic.

Derrick looked at Voidborn and frowned.

With trembling hands, he stretched his palms outwards and clenched his fist, before pulling towards his chest.

Apart from the two damaged pillars, the rest of Slice n’ Shred were dragged towards Gunrage, condensing the defensive line inwards.

The breaches were fixed.

But Voidborn was left in the chaos.

A huge ripping sound was heard at the back.

The web of electricity flickered, and a few blue lines disappeared.

One of the bugbears had tore out a tree with Derrick’s metal rod embedded into it, snapping the wires that connected to the other rods.

“They’re so fucking irritating,” Rei grumbled.

The bugbear raised the tree and readied its aim, targeting the metal rod stuck in the ground to its right.

Then—

Its head disappeared.

“Flame Hammer.”

Rei muttered, a page tearing off her tome, turning into dust.

A red blunt weapon had smashed the bugbear’s head into nothingness, disappearing into thin air as its lifeless body fell to the ground, crushing several goblins to pulp along with it.

“Flame Hammer.”

Another giant red hammer appeared before the other bugbear, swinging towards its chest.

With a loud explosion, a gaping hole was blasted through its upper torso, obliterating its heart and lungs into blackened tar.

The body fell to the ground, leaving a gigantic hole in the centre that had no blood flowing out. All the flesh and blood vessels around the the circle’s circumference were seared and cauterised.

Rei fell backwards, landing on her bottom.

“I-I only have enough mental energy for one more,” she panted, her hands trembling and shaking uncontrollably. “A-Any more and my Flaw will t-transform me.”