Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking

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Cedric was amused by how this all started.

He really wasn't expecting someone to just outright kill themselves as soon as the battle started. He thought that there might've been some disagreements between them, but what that dude said before he blew himself up wasn't quite fitting for that scenario.

Then, he sensed all the remaining fighters becoming stronger somehow, and that's when the idea struck him.

'Oh, so the power of self-sacrifice then? Interesting.'

And it didn't end there.

As soon as the empowerment flowed through their veins, the rest of the top 25 began unleashing their prior arrangements to contain him.

Mrs. Caster raised her staff and summoned runic arrays that expanded to cover the entire battlefield. Others also began influencing the battlefield in their own ways in tandem with her efforts.

Cedric could feel a weight pressing down on him; he could also feel bindings restricting his movements.

The rest of the combatants were wary. Their hands gripped their respective weapons, alert to any movement their enemy could suddenly make and ready to respond.

However, to their confusion, Cedric remained standing still.

Even as slowly but surely, the battlefield turned hostile against him due to the influence of his enemies, Cedric just stared and watched it all happen. He doesn't seem all too concerned or worried about what's happening around him.

It's as if he's waiting for them to complete their arrangements before starting this show.

Was this a display of confidence? Or just sheer arrogance? Honestly, nobody could tell. And now is not the time to deliberate. If he's bent on letting them win, then they'd take their chances. It's like they told him to act this way.

The shift in the battlefield continued. Soon, the very concept of laws that formerly existed here will have been rewritten.

This world now favored the top 25 and was completely hostile towards Cedric. Even as he stood still and did nothing but breathe, he could feel that this place was greatly rejecting his existence.

The skies darkened above him; it roared with thunder and hissed with lightning. It's as if the heavens were trying to intimidate him. It even sent a bolt of lightning down. None of it hit him directly, but they came very close.

Yet even with the entire world seeming to deny him and standing against him, Cedric was unbothered.

The indifferent calm he exuded was unshaken, and that's what made everybody uneasy.

Because by all means, Cedric must be suffering by now. This world was rejecting his very existence. The combined efforts of multiple Immortal Level experts to rewrite the very laws of this battlefield wasn't something to scoff at.

He shouldn't even be breathing easily, yet somehow, he still could. It's as if he really couldn't care less about what the world thought of him. And that's just terrifying.

"Well, it's not like we're expecting this to be easy anyway," someone from the top 25 muttered loud enough for everybody to hear.

And well...he was right. None of them came here thinking that they'd be able to easily take him down. They all knew that they're in for a difficult fight.

It's just that they held some hope of weakening him before this all started. That's the plan they formed earlier, and that's the reason why they felt hopeful before arriving here.

But as they say, 'No plan survives the first contact with the enemy,' and this very clearly applies to their current situation. So, what else can they do other than improvise?

"So? Attack?"

"Uh-huh! Attack!"

"Alright. RAAAGGH!!!"

With a rallying roar, the assault of the top 25 against Dawnbringer started.

They charged and released their respective techniques. Soon, Cedric's vision swam in an explosion of colorful projectiles and a few scattered bodies crashing in his direction.

The corners of his lips raised a bit.

Boom!

And soon, the first impact reached him. Cedric was ready for it. He raised his sword and sliced through it. His move was clean, swift, and extremely efficient, and so were the rest that followed afterwards.

His sword sliced through the projectiles like a hot knife through butter. There was no resistance at all. Every single one was sliced cleanly as it passed through him, leaving him intact and uninjured.

Then came the melee.

The top 25 finalists were no joke, especially those who liked getting up close and personal against their enemies. Their attacks are heavy and laced with killing intent. They're aimed at Cedric's vulnerabilities, and they're not showing him even the slightest bit of mercy.

But it wasn't until their steel clashed that these melee fighters realized just how horrible it felt to face Dawnbringer directly.

No, it's not because his hits were heavy or domineering. Hell, they would've preferred that, actually. At least that way, they could easily accept how he's untouchable.

But no, Dawnbringer's sword wasn't heavy. It was swift, agile, and elusive. Their hits felt like they were sliding off of him, failing to reach him at all. It doesn't seem like it due to how simple and unpretentious Dawnbringer's technique was, but that's how it felt anyway.

And it didn't matter how heavy their hits were. In fact, the heavier they hit him, the easier he swerves it off.

Hitting him felt like hitting a really elastic and durable rubber for them. It was frustrating and demoralizing.

And it's not like they weren't trying. With the stakes on the line, how can they not treat this seriously? Besides, there were many of them. Even those who didn't specialize in melee were also helping here and there.

Alas, it didn't matter. Be it a direct hit from a melee or a projectile coming from a mile away aimed at tricky angles, Dawnbringer easily dealt with them the same way.

Mind you, Dawnbringer wasn't just fighting the top 25 right now; this entire battlefield was also working against him. In truth, his luck should be the worst right now. He should've been burdened with misfortune; the timing of his parries should be off, and even if it somehow succeeds, he should be injured in the process too because luck doesn't favor him.

All sorts of unluckiness, ranging from inconvenience to outright disasters, should've been punishing him greatly.

And yet, Dawnbringer remained completely unbothered and uncaring of it.

Mrs. Caster and the rest of the group in charge of overwriting reality to their favor were very puzzled by this. Because in their perspective, it should be working. Dawnbringer should be having a difficult time right now.

All the signs were correct; their spell was taking place, and they could see its effects imposed upon the enemy. So, with all of this, how is he still fine? That's the most puzzling part.

Cedric could sense their confusion from where he stood. He could explain, but he's not really in the mood to do so right now.

Instead, he's having a great time playing with the boys.

He finds their insistence really adorable. So much so that they remind him of his children. He used to play around with them like this; he adored their frustrated faces whenever they realized that nothing they did worked. The same scenario is happening right now.

It's not their fault though; well...maybe it is.

They telegraphed, at least in Cedric's eyes. Their basics are horrible, and their intent was clearly written in their faces. All of these allowed Cedric to know when and where they'd strike next, which makes parrying their attacks a breeze for him.

The effects of their respective attacks are different, obviously. And they would be dangerous if they hit. That...that is where this all comes down to, the assumption that their attacks will hit. Because if it doesn't, then it's no different from a strong gust of wind.

Since their intentions were all too clear for him to see, parrying their attacks was easy, and since he parried them, they're effectively neutralized. Therefore, nothing they did had any effect on him.

The basis was this simple, really. It's a shame that their vision was too clouded to see that.

And so, the assault continued.

The top 25 tirelessly worked to find something that could work against him. The reality warpers are trying to eliminate him their own way. The spellcasters are pelting him from a distance with deadly projectiles, and the melee fighters are keeping him occupied, trying to overwhelm him, forcing him to make a mistake.

Their teamwork was awful at the start, but as the flow of battle went on for longer, the patches in their performance were being filled.

Had it been someone else, the top 25 would've won by now. Alas, they're up against the unreasonable existence known as Dawnbringer.

Clang!

Suddenly, there was a pause.

It's been a few hours since the battle started. The top 25 were exhausted, especially the melee fighters. Some of them were panting with hands on their knees, glaring resentfully at Dawnbringer and cursing his monstrous stamina.

Meanwhile, Dawnbringer himself looked fine. He stood as tall and as fresh as the moment he came here, still standing at the very same spot where he appeared. All their efforts were ultimately for nothing since they aren't even capable of pushing him back.

And to make matters worse, a foreboding sense of crisis dawned on them, especially when they heard Dawnbringer say:

"Brace yourselves, it's my turn now."