Chapter 150: Screaming Bell

"Boom!"

Sinuoli was also adjusting the focus of his telescope, trying to see more clearly. Soon, by the green, ghostly light of the Screaming Bell, he saw the Grey Seer, who was dancing about while brandishing a staff.

As it cast its spell, a fissure cracked open in the ground before the back door of the Sigmar Temple. The Warrior Priest was clearly the primary target of this spell; he and the few warriors around him were caught off guard and fell into the crevice, their fates unknown.

"A Grey Seer of the Ruin school!" Sinuoli judged the magical affinity of the grey-furred rat after seeing that earth-shattering spell.

There are three main basic types of Skaven magic, each serving as an independent system: Plague, Stealth, and Ruin. Among these, the Ruin school is the most common and the most versatile.

Of course, a small number of rat spellcasters choose to devote themselves to Siling Mohua and the embrace of other Chaos gods, but such cases are almost always immediately strangled from within by the Skaven, making them extremely rare.

The Human defenders were clearly intimidated. The power of magic was already enough to inspire awe in mortals, and it had only been a mere hundred years since mages in the Empire of Man were legalized.

Before Teclis convinced Magnus the Pious to stop the persecution and exclusion of potential magic users in the Empire, they would be handed over to the Witch Hunter of the Sigmar Temple and burned at the stake the moment they were caught.

Although Humans have gradually accepted that spellcasters are among them now, how to resist magic remains a problem for them.

Furthermore, the unique magic driven by Warpstone used by the Skaven does not fall within the Eight Winds of magic. They do not even know of the existence of the Skaven, let alone have any understanding of their magic.

"Move! Move!"

Seeing this scene, the morale of the Skaven soared even higher, and they shrieked as they charged toward the breach in the collapsed temple. In contrast, although Viscount Thompson kept shouting orders, the soldiers under his command continued to retreat.

"It's time for us to enter the fray!" Sinuoli drained the beer in his bottle and smashed the empty container on the ground. "Clansmen, form up! Let us go and rescue our Human friends!"

Under the protection of the Anvil Guard, Sinuoli walked down from the small building. His melee troops had already finished forming ranks, and his ranged units were also rapidly pouring out of the buildings.

"We will strike the Skaven's flank directly!" Sinuoli did not intend to pass through the temple to defend alongside the Humans; once the numbers grew, the lines would not be able to spread out, leading to a war of attrition. Doing so would certainly result in greater losses for him than a direct rout.

That Grey Seer Lord was neither blind nor stupid. Sinuoli and the hundreds of Dwarfs under his command were entrenched in a complex of buildings only a few hundred meters from the main battlefield; even a war pig would know these fellows were up to no good.

Although the arrow was on the string and had to be released, the Grey Seer still made some targeted preparations. Sinuoli saw that the Skaven had deployed quite a few additional forces on the flank of his battle formation.

The Skaven Warlord who had slipped away after the unfavorable sniping battle in front of the Dwarf settlement earlier appeared once again, and beside it was a rat spellcaster also wearing grey robes.

"Rat-things! Hold, hold the line for me!" the Skaven Warlord clamored, brandishing the war blade in its hand. This time, the forces at its disposal were much more abundant and of higher quality than before.

It was clear that the Grey Seer Lord driving the Screaming Bell was a sensible rat; upon realizing that the newly arrived Dwarfs were not a rabble that could be easily blocked, it had shifted its forces accordingly, which made the Skaven Warlord feel very good.

A large group of shield-bearing Clanrats stood in the center of the street, interspersed with some black-furred Stormvermin acting as the anchors of the defensive line. Behind them were dense ranks of Skaven ranged forces.

"Wait, wait until Warlord Krodlu kills the Human-things! You, we, all, can have fun!" the rat Warlord encouraged its subordinates. Despite the increased strength, it still felt a bit of trepidation when facing the Dwarfs' superior weapons.

"Yes, yes! Kill, kill the beard-things, you all get rewards! Those who, who dare to run, will all be, be slaves mining for me!" the Grey Seer also chimed in from the side; it chose to use threats to give the Skaven the desire to fight bravely.

For Clanrats and Stormvermin, being demoted to the lowliest Slave Rat is a punishment second only to death; it is essentially a suspended death sentence, and one that involves suffering before the end.

"Brothers, push forward, these rats cannot stop us!" Sinuoli commanded, brandishing his Warhammer.

The Dwarf troops marched forward quickly, and the front ranks soon engaged the Skaven. Although the Clanrats were numerous, they could barely inflict any damage; all they could do was use their own flesh to block the Dwarf axes for their stronger black-furred kin.

The portion of Stormvermin equipped with single-handed swords and Shield could not break through the gromril armor of the Ironbreaker—this special unit was formed specifically to counter the Skaven.

Only some black-furred rats using two-handed heavy weapons could inflict some damage on the Dwarfs through the shock of a Heavy Strike, but they had no chance to use a Shield to parry the damage, and could only crowd the Clanrats in front of them to protect themselves with this wall of rat-flesh.

Seeing that even with increased Strength, they still could not hold back the Dwarf assault, the Skaven Warlord grew anxious again. The Grey Seer tasked with the blocking mission pulled two polished Warpstone coins from its robes and swallowed them.

After a brief convulsion, it unleashed several streaks of dark green warp-lightning. However, because the power of this magic was not great to begin with and the young apprentice Grey Seer's casting ability was poor, this round of spells caused almost no damage to the Dwarfs.

Just as the Skaven line was retreating and their Resistance grew weaker, Sinuoli suddenly heard a shout from the front ranks: "Careful! Poison-gas rats!"

Sinuoli looked up, and sure enough, clusters of greenish mist appeared at the front lines where the Dwarfs and Skaven were clashing; this must have been caused by the Poison Wind Globadiers.

"Grungni's beard, they are truly selfish and insane!" Sinuoli cursed. Poison Wind Globadiers are a specialized unit developed by the Skaven to counter the Dwarf Ironbreaker.

They are suited for fighting in narrow, windless underground tunnels, but using them in such an open, outdoor environment is like a double-edged sword.

The poison gas globes they throw are spheres made of glass or crystal, filled with lethal Warpstone gas. After being thrown, the shell shatters, releasing the billowing smoke inside.

Compared to the hardy Dwarfs, the Skaven troops have a worse resistance to the poison gas, and many Clanrats had already begun to convulse in agony.

Thanks to Cherry Rain and Little Cat Paw for the monthly tickets.