Berserk, Total War: Second Son of Nobles

Chapter 732 Fierce Battle of the Inner Fortress

"This is it. The captain went in by himself."

At the entrance to the inner fortress, Gaston pointed to the tightly closed gate, his gaze fixed on Griffith, and explained the situation before him.

"I see."

Griffith nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the crowd lined up behind him, and he made the arrangements in a calm tone.

"You all stay where you are and guard the area. Do not approach without permission. I will take my team in to check the situation."

“Griffiths, it would be safer if we went in together.”

Casca stepped forward, leaning slightly forward, her voice filled with obvious worry. She looked at Griffith's back, not wanting him to bear the unknown risks alone.

"Need not."

Griffiths raised his hand and waved it slightly, without turning around, maintaining his calm tone.

“The inner fortress has limited space and is not suitable for large numbers of people to enter. Moving in there will only hinder each other. Moreover, the level of danger inside is unknown. If even Gus and I cannot handle it, your efforts in rushing in will not be of any real use.”

After hearing this, everyone stopped talking and stood still, gripping their weapons tightly to guard the entrance to the inner fortress.

Inside the fortress, the torchlight cast flickering shadows on the stone walls. Guts leaned against the cold stone wall, his chest heaving violently, each breath heavy and labored, his muscles trembling slightly. He used all his strength to support himself, his gaze fixed on Zod opposite him, not daring to relax for a moment.

Zod stood a few steps away from Guts, his scarlet eyes fixed on Guts. His face was expressionless, and the oppressive aura emanating from him was like a heavy boulder, making it almost impossible for Guts to breathe.

"That's truly rare."

Zuo De's voice was deep and resonant, spreading slowly through the empty passage without causing the slightest ripple.

"The last person who could fight me to this level was fifty years ago."

Gus's breathing was still labored, his lungs felt like they were being scorched by fire, each breath accompanied by a sharp pain. His mind raced, filled only with utter shock at the person before him.

This person is not a normal human being at all. His strength, speed, and resilience far exceed the limits of human beings. It is impossible for anyone in the world to possess such terrifying power. Fighting against him is like using flesh and blood to crash into hard steel. There is no chance of winning from the very beginning.

Gus's gaze slowly moved down, finally landing on the huge cleaver in Zod's hand. The blade was thick and sharp, with a cold, hard metallic sheen. He stared intently at the weapon, quickly calculating the advantages and disadvantages of both sides in his mind.

Although the opponent's cleaver was powerful, its attack range was far less than that of his greatsword. If he could seize the opportunity, gather all his strength, and unleash a full-force slash, he might be able to break the stalemate and find the only way to defeat his opponent.

The thought formed instantly in his mind. Without hesitation, Guts gripped the hilt of his greatsword tightly with both hands, took a powerful step forward, and swung the greatsword behind him backward. His body was tense to the extreme, and all his strength was gathered in his arms and back, ready to launch this desperate attack.

Zod's gaze flickered slightly, instantly seeing through Gus's intentions. He looked at Gus's poised posture, his scarlet eyes showing no fear, but rather a hint of amusement.

"You want to end the battle with a single all-out attack?"

Zuo De's voice remained low and indifferent.

"Okay, I accept your challenge."

Guss didn't respond, but let out a deafening roar. All the power in his body exploded at that moment. He gripped his greatsword and slashed fiercely towards Zod. The blade sliced ​​through the air with a whistling sound, so fast that it left only a blurry afterimage.

The next second, the two enormous weapons collided violently, the deafening sound of metal clashing exploded instantly, the ear-piercing noise echoing through the passage, making people's eardrums ache. The enormous impact spread in all directions, even causing the ground beneath their feet to tremble slightly.

Zuo De's pupils suddenly contracted, and his face showed extreme shock. He could clearly feel that at the moment of impact, fine cracks instantly appeared on the surface of the machete in his hand. Those cracks spread and expanded at an extremely fast speed, covering the blade like a spider web. A short while later, the upper part of the machete broke off directly and, with tremendous force, slammed into the stone pillar next to him. Half of the blade was deeply embedded in the stone and did not move at all.

It's now!

The thought flashed through Guss's mind in an instant. He seized the fleeting opportunity, suddenly crouched down to avoid Zod's defenses, gripped his greatsword tightly with both hands, and with all his might, thrust it fiercely into Zod's left chest, near his heart.

The sharp sword tip pierced through Zod's skin and flesh in an instant, and scalding blood gushed out from the blade, splashing onto Guts's body and face. With a warm touch, Guts could clearly feel the sword tip piercing into his opponent's body. He thought this strike would be enough to severely injure his opponent, or even end the battle directly.

But what happened next left Gus's mind blank, and all his thoughts came to an abrupt halt.

Despite being stabbed in a vital spot, Zod showed no sign of pain or weakness. Instead, he threw his head back and burst into a wild, unrestrained laugh, a loud and deafening sound that echoed through the empty passageway.

"Hahaha, you are the first person in three hundred years who can hurt me."

Guts remained frozen in place, his greatsword thrusting out, his gaze fixed on Zod, his eyes filled with disbelief and shock. His mind was in chaos, unable to comprehend the scene before him, and his heart pounded wildly, almost bursting out of his chest.

Just as Gus was stunned into immobility, Zod's body began to undergo a dramatic change. His figure grew taller and expanded at a visible speed, and his originally well-proportioned body instantly became incredibly huge, several times taller than Gus. His muscles bulged wildly, full of explosive power.

Brown fur grew rapidly from under his skin, densely covering his entire body. It was rough and hard. On the top of his head, two huge horns slowly protruded, growing longer and thicker, with a hard texture. His facial features also completely deviated from human form, twisting and changing until he became a ferocious beast. His scarlet eyes were still locked on Guts, but now they had a more ferocious look.

"This...this is impossible."

Gus's voice trembled violently. He had completely stopped thinking. The scene before him had utterly overturned his understanding. He could not imagine that a human who had been confronting him could transform into such a huge monster in an instant. This illogical change filled him with an irresistible fear from the bottom of his heart.

Zod, in his monster form, lowered his head and looked at the greatsword stuck in his left chest. His huge hand slowly rose, gripped the sword firmly, and with a little force, pulled the greatsword that Guts had stabbed into him out. The sword was pulled out of his body with blood on it, and the blood from the wound was still flowing, but it did not affect his movements at all.

"Come on, let's fight to our hearts' content."

Zod let out a low roar, and his massive body charged toward Gus. His heavy footsteps pounded the ground, each step causing a slight tremor. His movements were devoid of any skill, purely a brutal charge. His huge fists and body slammed and crashed toward Gus with enough force to easily shatter hard rocks.

Gus could only dodge with all his might, his body constantly retreating and leaping to the side. With each evasion, he could feel the violent airflow behind him. His stamina was rapidly depleting, his wounds were constantly tearing open due to the violent movements, and blood was constantly seeping out. His vision was also beginning to blur, but he dared not stop for the slightest. If he were hit, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Even though Guts tried his best, he still couldn't completely avoid Zod's attack. Zod's savage charge slammed into Guts, and the enormous force instantly sent Guts flying. Guts' body drew an arc in the air and crashed heavily onto a pile of rubble. Debris and dust instantly rose up. He lay in the rubble, as if all the bones in his body had been shattered. He no longer had the strength to stand up and could only slump on the ground, his consciousness beginning to blur.

Zod walked heavily to Gus, stretched out his huge hand, grabbed Gus who was slumped in the ruins, and lifted him up in mid-air. He looked down at Gus's unresponsive body, his scarlet eyes devoid of any emotion.

"Can't fight anymore?"

Gus felt as if every bone in his body was shattering, every inch of his skin was bleeding, and excruciating pain was constantly sweeping over his body like a tidal wave, almost completely engulfing his consciousness.

He used his last bit of strength to open his eyes with difficulty, his eyes surging with extreme anger and resentment. He stared intently at Zuo De in front of him, his voice broken and intermittent, each word filled with extreme pain.

"How could anyone possibly defeat a monster like you?"

Zod looked at the anger in Guts' eyes, his face unchanged. His huge hands grabbed Guts' shoulders, his fingertips tightening, ready to tear Guts' body to pieces.

"Ahhhh!"

Intense pain instantly swept through Gus's entire body. The cracking sound of his bones being squeezed was clearly audible. He could no longer bear it and let out a heart-wrenching scream, filled with pain and despair, that echoed through the passage.

"Whizzing!"

At this critical moment, dozens of arrows rained down on Zuo De's body, piercing deep into his skin and flesh. Although they did not cause fatal damage, they brought Zuo De to an abrupt halt.

Zod abruptly turned his head, his massive body facing the direction from which the arrows had come. His crimson eyes looked towards the spot where Griffiths and his men stood not far away, all of them raising their crossbows, the bolts aimed at him, ready to launch a new round of fire at any moment.