The Emperor Class

The smithy was located in the richer section which was built on a higher elevation than most of the town. Dreu used this height advantage to get a clear look at the developing situation. Many sections of the town were engulfed in flames with smoke limiting visibility of many of the streets and alleyways. Shortly after the bell rang earlier, the demons had poured into the streets like a tsunami. Screams of humans could be heard everywhere. The fires illuminated the soldiers who rushed to intercept the demons. Outnumbered and lacking a defensive advantage, the soldiers were easily slaughtered as they did little to slow down the demon advances.

While the main bulk of the demon forces were slaughtering all the humans at a leisurely rate, numerous small demons had made their way deeper into the town. Dreu had lost count on how many times he braced himself against the demon claws but his shield was holding. Dreu clumsily brought the sword down and sliced another small demon in half. Despite coming on top in all the combat thus far, Dreu didn’t feel he was winning. Even he knew the small demons were weak and were usually just scouts for the demon forces. For ordinary unarmed humans, even the small demons were deadly. A few unarmed humans stood behind Dreu while he fended off the small demons one at a time.

He was just far enough away from the gates to not feel the brunt of the attack yet. However, the fights with the small demons had slowed him down. In addition to no end to the number of small demons, the rest of the demons had finished their slaughters in other parts of the town and made their way towards rest of the town. At the sight of heavily armed demon soldiers and larger demons approaching his position, fear gripped Dreu forcing him to flee from the terrors that had befallen Berkton. An untrained swordsman like him stood no chance against the horror before him.

Human and small demon corpses littered the streets. The few remaining human soldiers tried their best but they were easily overwhelmed by the sheer number of demons. As the fire spread from building to building, the remaining survivors had the choice of dying by fire or at the hands of the demons. Dreu ran desperately with his eyes scanning for anything that could save him. His body was already screaming for him to stop. Fatigue steadily settled in and he forced himself to keep going. A part of him also registered that he was now alone on the streets.

The young man was so focused on looking for a way out that he failed to notice a demon charging out of an alleyway into him. The two of them flew into a nearby burning building. As the demon raised its claw, Dreu swung his shield into the demon’s head. The impact sent it flying a few meters into the fire. He then grimaced as he raised his other arm. The demon left a nasty gash on his sword arm during the charge resulting in his sword being basically useless until his arm was healed. With a curse, he backed away from the street due to the multiple demons gathering there. As he prepared for his final stand, he felt the ground give out under him.

Dreu landed awkwardly and the impact knocked the breath out of him. Once he recovered, the young man searched for his sword and shield in the darkness. Upon getting his bearings, Dreu blindly headed in a random direction and was rewarded by an intersection. Turning the corner, he could see a handful of torches and a couple of silhouettes in the distance. With no other choice, he approached the torches.

“Illuminate,” said a female voice.

Dreu instinctively raised his shield to put it between his face and the unexpected light.

“It’s a fellow human,” said the same voice from earlier.

Dreu let out his breath and lowered his shield. While his vision was recovering, a man approached him.

“We’re fleeing to the outskirts of the town through these tunnels. Keep up if you want to live.”

Dreu merely nodded and followed the group. He sneaked glances at his new travel companions. There were a dozen humans with half of them dressed as civilians and the other half he suspected to be adventurers.

“Demons to the left!” shouted a voice.

The civilians fled at the mention of demons while the adventurers readied themselves.

“I will hold them off as long as I can.” The tallest man of the group stood out. “Run and that’s an order!”

Dreu saw a brief hesitation from the other adventurers but they chased after the civilians. He muttered a quick thanks before leaving the man to fight against impossible odds. They then spent what seemed like forever running down the tunnel. Eventually, all of them collapsed onto the ground to catch their breath. The civilians were already sound asleep while the adventurers struggled to keep their eyes open. While fatigue settled in for Dreu, the nasty gash from earlier pained him too much to fall asleep. As he tried to see if any of the adventurers was a healer, the hair on the back of his neck stood up.

“Humans are such weak creatures. To think we thought they were a threat. I will enjoy tearing you all apart and listening to your screams!”

Dreu and the adventurers turned towards the source of the voice and saw a pair of violet eyes staring at them from the darkness. Two adventurers, both in heavy armor, rushed to intercept the demon. Someone behind the two adventurers began chanting a spell while Dreu turned to see another notching an arrow.

“Illuminate!”

Dreu turned his head and was shocked to see a humanoid demon with grotesque horns and claws. The demon easily towered over them and had to hunch slightly to avoid hitting the tunnel ceiling with its head. The smile on the demon’s face was the most disturbing thing he had ever seen. Dreu felt his heart beat rapidly as he began hyperventilating. The adventurers' activities woke up the civilians who cowered in the back.

“Please keep this fight interesting at least. I don’t mind a little entertainment before I head towards York.”