The Lord of the Rings: Lords of Middle-earth.

Chapter 523 The Calamity of the Undead!

"Beard above! I guarantee that if we keep fighting, those scum will be torn to shreds!" Dvalin said proudly, raising his long beard.

"Well, of course, if you're willing to suffer heavy casualties..." The centurion shrugged noncommittally.

Dwarves are indeed the natural counter to these dark forces. The evil energy that has a deadly effect on humans and elves is basically harmless to dwarves. Perhaps it is because they spend all their time in caves that dwarves have a high resistance to those strange things. However, quantity will eventually change quality. As it turns out, even a bunch of skeletons can overwhelm the bravest dwarves if there are enough of them!
“Something’s not right here! I suggest we leave as soon as possible!” Maple Leaf Purple said with a grim expression. Although his soldiers were mostly fine after some simple treatment, he still wanted to take them back to the kingdom’s wizards as soon as possible, since no one knew whether the power of death would leave them with any aftereffects.

“Of course, of course!” Dvalin said, shaking his head and his large beard, clearly agreeing with leaving this troublesome place.

“Then let’s get out of here before we suffer any losses!” The Lagrange centurion nodded.

"However, I'm afraid we'll have to slow down a bit!" Maple Leaf Purple's expression remained grim.

Upon hearing this, everyone looked over and discovered that the unfortunate cavalrymen and knights of the Akvia Kingdom's cavalry had their horses covered in gray, bruised wounds, and were teetering on the brink of collapse, making the others very worried about whether they could continue running.

"Damn it! These bastards' death aura has infected and corrupted the warhorses!" The Lagrange centurion's pupils contracted. As a knight, he knew that his second life was his warhorse, which he regarded as his partner. Knights always had a special affection for their horses, so when he saw these warhorses infected by death aura, he was instantly enraged.

"Damn it! Does anyone have fire, water, or light battle aura? Come down and help!" the centurion shouted. Although the hope was slim, it was better than doing nothing!
"Use your battle aura to cleanse their bodies and try to force out the death aura!" the centurion commanded.

Soon, more than a dozen knights dismounted and extended their hands to channel their battle energy into the wounded warhorses.

……

"What a pity, these excellent Northern horses...sigh!" Everyone sighed.

After a long day of work, the caravan moved along the way, stopping frequently. In the end, dozens of northern horses perished. The grieving crowd had no choice but to burn them, otherwise they might be transformed into skeletal horses. In just a short period of time, the Akvia Kingdom's cavalry was reduced by more than half, with most of the cavalrymen being converted into infantry...

Fortunately, the knights of the Kingdom of Lagrand are all magical beast warhorses, which have strong resistance to death energy, so they can carry two people on one horse for a short time. These Wind Chasers are still able to carry enough weight.

"We need to leave here quickly, we've been wasting too much time!" Dvalin said worriedly, looking at the sky that was about to darken. As everyone knows, the night is the best cover for evil!
“Perhaps we need reinforcements!” The centurion nodded firmly. The current situation was beyond their control. Originally, the situation was still manageable, since everyone was traveling on all fours. Now… their marching speed had been greatly reduced, and they could not tell whether they had escaped their predicament.

"Support? Where are we supposed to get support?" Maple Leaf Purple's face darkened. He did want support, but he wished he could immediately fly to White Wing's face and tell him that his cavalry was almost wiped out (the horses were almost gone, but cavalry without horses was no different from being wiped out... Knights without horses were still invincible on foot, but what's the difference between cavalry without horses and light infantry?).
"Lord Dvalin, where are your Dragonhawk Knights now?" The centurion ignored Maple Leaf Purple's question and turned to ask Dvalin.

“Well, maybe they should rest in Irubor…” Dvalin scratched his head, finally managing to utter a sentence after a long pause.

"...You don't even deploy air knights to scout around the territory?" The centurion's eyes widened. Could someone please tell him that the dwarves are always this carefree?
“Um…” Dvalin hesitated. “Never mind, let’s wait for the kingdom’s griffon knights!” The centurion sighed, deciding not to count on the dwarves. Perhaps the sky knights of the Kingdom of Lagrange were the only air force currently active in the North.

……

"Hey! Why are you all gathered together?" A questioning voice rang out, accompanied by the flapping of a griffin's wings.

The newcomer was none other than Hollin! He was the one who came to patrol this area. He followed the firelight to find the group's campsite, but today the campsite was several times larger than usual, and there were more campfires. Hollin easily noticed the increase in the number of people.

"Lord Hollin, we're in trouble!" The centurion rushed forward.

"Oh? Tell me, are there any tough orc tribes you need to deal with? Do you need my air support?" Hollin said nonchalantly while feeding the griffin some jerky. A few orcs? He could easily handle them!

“It’s even worse than that! We need instructions from His Highness or the generals!” The centurion glanced north and paused.

"We've encountered an army of the undead! They've ambushed us along the way! And it's us! All three cavalry units have been ambushed! The people of the Kingdom of Akvia almost stayed there and joined them!" The centurion waved his hands and feet exaggeratedly, showing his shock and fear.

"Huh? Undead! You have to take responsibility for what you said! Are you really one of those blasphemous creatures? Or a wretched half-orc so dark that even his own mother wouldn't recognize him?" Hollin was clearly knowledgeable; he understood the significance of the word "undead."

"Damn it!" Hollin stared at the centurion for a long time. Seeing the centurion's unwavering gaze, Hollin realized this wasn't April Fool's Day! The undead had damn well gone out!

"Hey! Brother, bring everyone back! Try to get as close to the kingdom as possible, and if... please hold on! The kingdom will not abandon its people!" Hollin hurriedly climbed onto the griffin saddle, not even bothering to feed the griffin. Ignoring the griffin's dissatisfaction, he soared into the sky and flew back the way he came.

The North is about to change. The undead have resurrected since the plague, and even more absurdly, they've marched south! King Roland, who must be contemplating a peaceful spring, must be overjoyed. This year is destined to be extraordinary for the North…

……

“Go back and tell His Highness! Tell him all that damned news about those bastards heading south, and give him a headache!” Ajax said, rubbing her face in anguish.

“Then you!” Hollin asked, having encountered Ajax along the way.

"I'm going to help those poor knights; the kingdom can't lose them!" Ajax sighed. She really never has a moment's rest! Before, Caslo was the only one running around, but now even she has to go.

(End of this chapter)