The Stranded Barbarian

AN: Hello there, my faithful reader! I bring you the second to last chapter of this fanfiction. Yes, this story is coming to a close soon, and this is the chapter where the battle finally begins. I hope that it delivers on expectations.

Now to reviews.

Dracus6: Yes it is. And they teamed up before in this story.

Wow, not too many reviews this time around. But I suppose that's expected considering the last chapter was just a simple prelude to the battle.


28 The Serpent's Head

Conan stared at the approaching across the other side of the huge plane where they were located. The numbers of Thugra Khotan's forces seemed to be roughly equal to their own. Conan's eyes were hardly able to make out what the army was consisted of exactly, with how many mixed species of humans and monsters it had, and almost all dressed in different garb. However, the constant in the army was the green snake banner they carried, their symbol of worship of the Stygian serpent god Set.

However, he was able to make out at least the appearance of Zaporavo who stood in the front, dressed in this time in more armored clothing with some plating over chainmail and helmet, his scimitar already drawn. Conan's gaze narrowed at the former pirate, remembering all the harm he had done to him and the Adventurer's Guild, but he knew he shouldn't focus on Zaporavo too much as he wasn't Conan's biggest concern.

Instead, he tried to focus on finding Thugra Khotan, the wizard he thought he killed years ago and the one instigating this attack, however, he seemed harder to track down. Then Conan saw him, appearing over his army riding on a winged horse that looked like it was straight from Hell, his green robes fluttering in the wind.

"A bit dramatic, wouldn't you think so?" asked the golden-armored general as he rode beside Conan, also seeing Khotan on his flying mount.

"I couldn't care less," Conan said. "By Crom, I'll send him and his army straight to Hell. If not today, then tomorrow. This time I'll make sure to kill a snake properly. By cutting off its head."

"Quite a speech you got there," said the Female General behind Conan. "I hope you're right about his battle tactics, otherwise we'll be the ones going to Hell."

"Trust me, I'd be an idiot to come all this way just to die," Conan said before drawing his enchanted blade. "If I'm right, Khotan should be the one to attack first."

After a bit of waiting, the sound of a war horn came from the Khotan's army and his troops began to march forward, all of their weapons drawn and shields raised.

"This is it!" the Female General exclaimed. "Ready the pikemen at the front, bowmen at the back!"

"And make sure we have mages on standby!" Conan ordered. "We must be prepared if Khotan decides to use his magic! Once their position breaks hit them fast and hit them hard!"

Conan and the generals then rode to join their troops.

High Elf Archer stood ready with her bow in hand with other elven archers. She gazed at the approaching army, seeing it was only those who traveled on foot. Looks like they wanted to use their mounts for later.

"Archers ready!" came a command from an elven officer.

And the archers readied their weapons. High Elf Archer took one of her arrows, put on the string, aimed and notched the string until it was near her ear. She began to sweat as she heard the sound of numerous footsteps approaching. She needed to make her shots count. And she hoped that those of the others will.

"LOOSE!"

The fingers let go of the arrows, a large volley of arrows was sent at the army at high speeds. Many hit their mark, downing dozens of soldiers, but many also missed or reflected off the armor.

"AGAIN!"

Once again, the archers notched their arrows.

"LOOSE!"

And once again the arrows flew across the battlefield; however, the effect was now better due to the shorter distance between the opposing sides.

The action was repeated yet again, unfortunately, there was not to be a next time as the soldiers came really close so the archers had to back away. The spearmen were ready with their shields up and their spears pointed, feet firmly on the ground.

Dwarf Shaman stood in a row of other mages who specialized in Earth magic as they had their hands extended. He had a determined look on his face as he saw the army clear the distance.

"Come on, just a little closer you bastards," he muttered under his breath, his eyes narrow in anticipation and his muscles tense.

And just as the opposing army closed the distance the mages quickly activated their Earth magic. The ground beneath the soldiers at the front exploded, shocking the army for a bit as some of them got caught in the blast. The attack caused a small crater that was about two meters wide and went the length of the army.

The spearmen came to action. Their enemy was in shock so they capitalized on it by thrusting their spears, catching quite a few of them, some still inside the small crater. The enemy troops then regain their senses and once again charged.

With a mighty roar, the foot soldiers of the King's army met them head-on. The clashes of iron, steel, obsidian and all kids of metal now made a deadly song of death between the two opposing forces. They hacked, stabbed, slashed, smashed, many falling on each side. Corpses already began littering the grass, spraying it with blood; people fell with body parts missing, mangled faces, armor parts caved in.

The monsters on the other side ranged from imps, to trolls, even demons. However, many powerful adventurers and warriors who came to the service of their kings and leaders stood up to them, making the usual monster advantage mute.

Goblin Slayer fought alongside many foot soldiers as he also pressed on the attack. He was in the process of bisecting one of the goblins before he made a sidestep to the side to avoid an axe strike from a hobgoblin. As the monster tried to get its axe out of the ground he quickly stepped on its fist and hurled himself to the hob's head, and pierced it through the neck. The hob let go of the sword before grabbing his throat but soon collapsed, joining among the many dead.

Then another enemy came at Goblin Slayer, but this time it was a man dressed in chainmail wearing a simple helmet and armed with an axe. He tried to attack Goblin Slayer with his axe but it was blocked by the adventurer's shield. Goblin Slayer then grabbed him by the arm and twisting it at the elbow. The man screamed in pain before Goblin Slayer shoved the tip of his saber through his eye and into his brain.

Goblin Slayer threw the dead man off of him before engaging another one. This fight definitely felt different than any other he was engaged in. This one was on a much grander scale, somewhere where he felt wasn't his place. But he knew what he needed to do, the times where he was indifferent to these things were behind him.

He cut another man down as he tried a sneak attack. Goblin Slayer thought of using his other weapons like his throwing knives but decided to keep them for later, feeling that he might need to.

Lizard Priest swung his mighty blade and cut off a head of a troll, blood spurting from the place his head used to be before collapsing. Several former bandits tried to attack him at the same time but with great speed he swung his blade, cutting them down.

He then pierced another troll that was about to attack another adventurer from behind. He then picked up the troll with his great strength and hurled it at some of the enemy soldiers, incapacitating them at the very least.

Lizard Priest also watched as his other kinsmen fought, taking down many enemies but also saw some of them lying on the ground. He didn't look for too long before attacking another enemy.

Spearman roared as he jumped up and thrust the tip of his spear through the head of a black-furred demon, it dropped dead quickly. He then swung wildly at his enemies, man and monster alike, a frown etched on his scarred face.

He was letting a lot of his pent up anger out on this battlefield. After everything that they did to his comrades, to his friends, it was finally time for some payback. Three more fell to his spear in an instant. Spearman knew that he may not be able to take out the major players of this war, but he was going to make sure he took as many of their minions as he could, the less for them the better.

He once again made heavy swings, blood splattering around him, some even landing on his armor and face, which he quickly wiped off before finding some other opponents to take out his anger on.

Amazon Warrior was in a similar boat that Spearman was, using her axe to take out her anger on her enemies. She yelled before swinging down her axe at another enemy warrior, a female this time, who tried to block it with her sword but the axe cut straight through the blade before striking the helmet and digging halfway into her head.

Amazon Warrior kicked the body away, before running at another warrior who wasn't able to do anything before meeting his end as the axe struck him in the face.

This battle was far from over and there were still a lot of enemies to kill.

Despite the adventurers' success, the enemy was still as effective as they were, killing many soldiers on the side of the King.

Away from the battle, Thugra Khotan watched as the two armies clashed, which has been going on for a while now. He was honestly surprised to see their numbers were almost as great as his own were. He was under the impression that he prepared himself quickly enough so that the Kingdom could not properly prepare for his assault. And he had to admit the trick they pulled was somewhat clever.

The battle down there seemed to be a stalemate. No side gained any significant advantage over the other and that was beginning to bother Khotan. He wanted to be in control even on the battlefield. He needed to do something to turn the odds in his favor.

"Zaporavo!" the mighty wizard called out which was quickly answered as Zaporavo rode next to him. "Take the mounts around the battlefield and attack them from the side. Make sure to use diversionary tactics to make it seem like you are providing reinforcements to the foot soldiers before making a quick turn."

Zaporavo nodded before riding off and commanding the mounted soldiers to follow him.

Thugra Khotan then watched his strategy unfold. Zaporavo did as he was told, and rode towards the foot soldiers as seeming reinforcements; the sounds of galloping horses joined the battle cries of soldiers and clashes of metal.

And once he made that turn, with his troops, which consisted not just of people on horseback, but also things like black hounds, or huge lizards, serpents and such. However, he saw something that caught him by surprise. The enemy forces were retaliating with their own horsemen, who rode to meet Zaporavo and his own forces. That itself wasn't a surprising part, he did indeed expect them to make a counteroffensive. The thing that didn't make sense was them responding so soon, almost immediately in fact.

The mounts from the King's army clashed with Khotan's, paralleling the event that happened with the foot soldiers, meeting each other head-on. The millennia-old wizard wondered how this could be, it is like they were expecting such a diversionary tactic considering how fast they responded.

Then something peculiar came to Khotan's attention. Using magic to enhance his eyes, making them glow yellow and causing vertical slits to appear on them, he focused on one figure among the many horsemen in the King's army. And that is where he saw… Conan.

His eyes widened in shock at what he saw. He didn't expect to see Conan here. He knew that Conan would fight back against him, but from what he was seeing the Cimmerian was dressed in high-quality armor, similar to which the generals of the army were wearing. The question that came to Khotan's mind was how on Earth the barbarian became a general, especially since not too long ago he was only a silver-ranked adventurer. What stroke of luck came to the northman to make him such a high-ranking individual?

However, that did explain how his attack was countered so quickly. Conan has led troops against him years ago and most likely remembered some of the battle strategies he employed. Khotan let out some curses in an ancient language. This was the worst luck he could possibly have. The King already had the numbers to rival his own but with Conan leading the charge the odds just might be against him.

Thing about Khotan, he wasn't good at improvising on the spot as he always relied on the more careful planning but he wouldn't be able to do that if his plans could be countered.

He then paid more attention to the attack to see how well his army fared. It could only be described by one word… badly.


Conan cut off a head of an orc that riding a giant war hound before the orc fell off his mount. The said mount snarled, saliva coming down his mouth, and jumped at Conan, ready to tear him apart with its sharp teeth but Conan just hit him with the pommel of his sword and sent him flying away.

Conan grinned at the strength this enchanted armor provided him. Combining that with the sword and he was able to cut through enemies like paper. It was a sight that was somewhat different yet the same one he was used to, riding through hordes of enemies and hacking them to pieces.

A serpent rider tried to attack him but Conan cut off the serpent's head in one quick move, causing the body to double over and crush its rider.

Zaporavo cut through one of the horseback knights that tried to attack him, his eyes seeming on fire from how angry he was feeling. His troops were caught completely off guard by such a quick response and began falling quicker than his enemies. And now he was seeing that damned barbarian leading them as if Fate wanted to mock him.

So he set out to ride to confront him, the scimitar that was enhanced by his master's magic ready in his hand. He quickly rode his horse, trying to avoid other soldiers, not wanting any pointless distractions. Some came to stop him but he dealt with them quickly.

Conan slashed another man off his horse before seeing Zaporavo riding towards him with his blade ready to strike. The two clashed with their sword, both enchanted blades causing sparks to come as they came in contact.

"You aren't escaping me this time, savage!" the former pirate captain proclaimed as the two swung at each other, their horses circling as they did.

"You are an idiot for not retreating," Conan said he parried the scimitar strike. "Your troops are at a serious disadvantage. Is your pride really more important to you than your life?"

"Don't flatter yourself!" Zaporavo said through grit teeth as he blocked Conan's sword strike. "Once I deal with you I'll reorganize my troops and destroy this pathetic army of yours!"

"Heh, you never change," Conan said as he once again parried a strike. "But unfortunately for you, I have more important business to attend!"

Before Zaporavo could yell out his frustration over what Conan said he noticed something came in his field of vision. When he slightly turned he was met with the familiar figure of Female Knight who flew through the air right at him. He didn't have time to react as the woman tackled him causing him to grunt and fall off his horse, with both of them landing on the ground below.

Conan smirked at the situation and rode away to deal with other soldiers.

Zaporavo stood up with a grumble, recovering his sword which fell away from him after the tackle. He saw Female Knight standing in front of him, sword and shield drawn, and anger that surpassed his adorning her beautiful face.

"You must have a death wish if you want to fight me," Zaporavo mockingly said as he pointed his scimitar at her.

"You are the only one dying today," Female Knight said as she readied herself for a fight. "I'll make sure to send you to Hell personally for what you did."

Zaporavo chuckled at that. "Oh really? You are going to send me to Hell? I'm the best swordsman in the world. Why else do you think master Khotan resurrected me?" The two of them began circling each other. "The barbarian left you to die. Soon you'll be nothing more than another corpse to be trampled on this battlefield!"

Zaporavo then charged at her, swinging his sword to strike which was blocked by the woman's shield. She went for a counter which was blocked by Zaporavo's own sword before he made a counter. They stood like that for a while, an exchange of counters, blocks, and slashes as the bigger battle was happening around them.

However, when their swords locked once again, Zaporavo made a twisting motion that disarmed Female Knight of her sword. She gasped when she looked at her now empty hand backed away as Zaporavo moved closer towards her, his face morphed in a mocking grin and his scimitar pointed at her head.

"You should have heeded the savage's warning from before and stayed away from me," Zaporavo gloated as he readied to strike at her once again.

However, something happened that caught the towering pirate off guard. Female Knight loosened the grip on her shield and threw it at Zaporavo, whose eyes widened at the action but he quickly put up his sword and blocked the incoming projectile. Female Knight was quickly upon him, using the distraction to her advantage. She made a chop with her hand on the man's wrist which caused him to grunt in pain as he let dropped his sword. Female Knight then landed a gauntleted punch at the man's face, making him bleed from his nose. She thanked Goblin Slayer in her mind for teaching her that maneuver.

She then once again tackled him, both landing on the ground with her on top of him. Female Knight then began punching away at his face, landing several blows before Zaporavo caught her hands. His bleeding face was enraged; he threw her off him with a mighty shove.

But before any of them could get up a shadow landed on then, as they saw a horse standing up on its rear legs, letting out pained neighs as a spear was sticking into its neck. The horse was about to fall on them, and they quickly rolled out of the way as it fell.

Female Knight didn't want to waste any time. She saw Zaporavo's scimitar lying next to her and quickly went to pick it up. She then saw Zaporavo rising behind the corpse of the horse and she quickly charged at him. Zaporavo noticed her too late, his eyes wide in shock as she thrust the scimitar, piercing him through his neck.

Her eyes were narrowed in anger while Zaporavo's were still wide in shock. Female Knight then quickly pulled out the blade out of his neck, and he quickly tried to cover his wound. But it was to no avail. His lungs were beginning to fill with blood, his vision darkened as he looked in the eyes of his killer. He couldn't believe it, once again he was struck down, but instead of in a straight fight it was thanks to a distraction, making this death even more shameful in his opinion. Even Conan wasn't the one who killed him.

Fate really mocks me, were his last thoughts before his vision went completely dark and he fell on the ground, his corpse lying alongside the horse's corpse.

Female Knight glared at the man's corpse before looking at the sword in her hand. She scoffed before throwing it on Zaporavo's body. But a small smile was forming on her face, thoughts of finally being able to avenge her love became more prominent.

But she regained her focus. She quickly went to pick up her sword and shield before finding herself a riderless horse. There was still a battle that needed finishing.


Thugra Khotan clenched his fist in anger as he watched Zaporavo die. He was one of the more valuable servants, though a very prideful one. The rest of the army was slowly being overwhelmed by the King's forces. That wasn't good.

He quickly turned towards one of the officers. "Send an order to retreat! Now!" the servant quickly bowed and mounted his horse to give the order.

Khotan then glared back at the battlefield. This attack was going poorly. He was supposed to storm the land, plunder it of resources, kill the opposition, and set himself as the ruler. But this twist of fate wasn't in his favor. Conan leading the enemy army turned the odds around, now the King's army was superior on the battlefield.

He thought about using his magic, but he restrained himself since they would obviously expect such a tactic which is why their mages were still in position. He wished he could have gotten more mages into his army but it would appear that these lands kept a tight leash on them, and creatures like Goblin Shamans weren't really all that creative when it came to using magic, at least most of the time. His power over portals wouldn't be all that helpful either since he can only open one at a time and only in limited size, not to mention they stay open for a little while out of his control so enemies could use it for a limited time. In other words, his options were limited.

His troops then began pulling back and retreating back to their previous position, however, they were of course followed by the enemies but not too long so it doesn't just turn into a chase, even archers could help only a little.

After a while of retreating tactics, the position of the Sun showed that it was almost dusk. It would be dark soon, so the troops needed rest. Khotan then got an idea about what to do. It was risky but it was a gamble he was willing to take.


Once the dark fell the soldiers went back to camp to rest, but not before the wounded were treated by the healers. The leaders of the army also went to their individual tents where they rested for the night, unaware of the plot that Thugra Khotan was planning.

Shevatas walked silently through the enemy camp, his hand on the handle of his blade, ready to be drawn at the moment's notice. He was cloaked by his master's magic, making his moves even more silent. With him were several other assassins that were cloaked by magic, and they were given a single mission by Thugra Khotan, to eliminate the leaders of the opposing army, especially Conan.

Khotan's magic also cloaked them from sight, making them capable of passing by some sentries without them noticing. Shevatas almost laughed at that, passing right in front of them with them being none the wiser.

But he was still a cautious man and made sure to be careful when sneaking through the camp. His eyes landed on of the tents, one where Conan slept in. This was pointed out to him by his master when he watched Conan enter the tent.

He then hurried his step a bit, not seeing anything in the noticeable in the way. He grinned as he moved closer to the tent, ready to make a giant blow to the King and his army. Zaporavo may have fallen, but Shevatas was confident that discreet actions were the right way to deal with this.

Then his instincts came in, hearing something suddenly coming from behind him made him quickly unsheathe his sword and turn around. His blade was met with yet another in a clang of steel. Shevatas backed away and saw his attacker. While he wore a different set of armor he recognized the stance and the saber he was using. It was Goblin Slayer.

"How did you find me?" Shevatas asked as his eyes narrowed, the cloaking spell wearing off and revealing his full form.

"I couldn't see you or hear you, but I was able to spot some irregular movement of the grass as you walked by me," Goblin Slayer explained.

Shevatas then recalled that he actually did pass someone who looked like Goblin Slayer, and the man's head was turned in his direction, but from the way he was laying on the ground, he assumed the person was asleep.

"What is going on here?!" came a voice of someone else as two elven sentries came into view and saw the two men with their weapons drawn.

"He was using some sort of cloaking magic to sneak into the camp. There are more than likely more of them," Goblin Slayer explained to the two sentries, not taking his eyes off Shevatas even for a moment.

Shevatas cursed under his breath. He has been found out, and now the others are more than likely to be tracked when these two warn the rest of the camp, and he couldn't fight all three of them without getting attention. There was only one thing that he could do in this situation.

Shevatas quickly turned to the side and began running away, with Goblin Slayer immediately following after him.

"Leave him to me! You help others find the rest of them!" Goblin Slayer exclaimed as he followed after the Zamoran thief. Despite the seeming logical reasoning of them needing to find other people cloaked by magic, Goblin Slayer's reason for chasing the man was selfish. This man was one of the main reasons why all this turned out the way it did, it was he who kidnapped Cow Girl and almost got her killed, he who helped Khotan finish his ritual. He didn't think anyone besides goblins would piss him off so much, and his minds went back to when Conan told him that humans could be worse than goblins, and he experienced it recently. Right now, Goblin Slayer was out for blood.

The two of them ran into the forest, Shevatas trying to escape with Goblin Slayer high on his heels, the fact that he was armored didn't make him slower during the chase. Shevatas briefly looked behind him seeing that only Goblin Slayer was chasing him before focusing his attention on the path in front of him. The dark made it hard to navigate through the woods but he managed.

He jumped over some of the bushes into a clearer space and was about to continue running but after making a step his foot was grabbed by Goblin Slayer after leaping after him, making him lose his balance as both of them fell on the ground.

"No more running away," Goblin Slayer growled out as he took out his weapons, his red eyes seemingly glowing in the night.

Shevatas got up with a grunt, his own weapon drawn. He knew that Goblin Slayer was right, there was no retreating now. "Then let us settle this."

Goblin Slayer attacked first with his saber, making some quick slashing motions to which Shevatas responded by blocking and countering. Shevatas avoided one of the slashes before striking at Goblin Slayer's legs but the attack was blocked by his shield.

After avoiding another swing, Goblin Slayer backed away and quickly reached for the small sheaths on his belt, taking out his throwing knives and hurling them at Shevatas who quickly went to deflect them with his sword but one was able to hit him on the shoulder, making the master thief moan in pain before taking it out.

Goblin Slayer then once again went on the offensive with several quick slashes, which Shevatas had a harder time blocking, but the thief was able to seize the opportunity as he struck with his sword at Goblin Slayer's saber near the handle and causing the adventurer to let go of his blade. Not wanting to stop his offensive Shevatas made a downward slash Goblin Slayer who raised his shield to block but his new swordless swiftly went behind his back, grabbing the shortsword he was carrying.

As Shevatas for what he thought was an opening Goblin Slayer swung his shortsword and cut through Shevatas' hand, literally disarming him, and making blood flow from the stump to the ground. Goblin Slayer then followed up by a shield bash to Shevatas' chest stunning him before putting his sword up for a mighty strike and slashing down, his sword splitting skull luck a melon.

The body of Khotan's servant stood still as Goblin Slayer's blade dug through it to the neck. Goblin Slayer pulled out his sword, letting the corpse fall unceremoniously to the floor, copious amounts of blood spilling out of his split skull. Tat Shevatas, the master thief of Zamora, lay dead once again.

Goblin Slayer stood over the fallen Zamoran, glaring as he did so. "Good riddance," was all he said before turning away and leaving for the camp. Someone else will pick up the corpse.


While this was going on, Thugra Khotan watched the events unfold through his crystal ball. He wanted to see how his servants were progressing. And once again, what he saw made him mad.

After the bad luck of Shevatas being discovered his other servants were also discovered soon after and weren't able to deal any significant damage. The last image that was in the crystal ball he was holding was of Shevatas' corpse lying on the grass.

The grip on the object tightened so hard that it began to crack. Khotan let out a yell of anger and frustration before the ball shattered in his hand from his grip, a thousand small pieces dropping on the floor.


The next day, the battle resumed. The green plains were once again being colored by blood and corpses as the two armies clashed. However, the advantage was clearer this time.

Conan and Young General rode side by side as they slaughtered the enemy forces, with the Young General letting out a laugh as he did so, his golden armor gleaming in the Sun.

"This becoming a piece of cake!" he shouted as he relieved a horseman of his head. "We countered these bastards at every turn! Victory will surely be ours by the end of this day!"

"I hope you're right!" Conan said as he cut down hobgoblin. "I'm more concerned that Khotan hasn't gotten himself involved! We should watch out for what he is planning!"

"I think you're being paranoid! He's probably planning a surrender! Especially after that failed assassination!"

"I honestly doubt it! Khotan didn't seem the type to surrender!"

The said wizard was watching the battle with a frown on his face. This battle once again wasn't in his favor. His numbers were declining rapidly and any counter offense he made was predicted and countered. His army was being slaughtered and there was no immediate way he could see for an advantage.

So he had no choice. He needed to go there himself.

Witch and Arc Mage were fighting side by side among other mages. During the duration of the battle, they mostly stayed back, using their fire magic to mostly serve as assistance to other soldiers. Now the mages served a more active role, being more on the offensive after the enemy numbers reduced.

"I must say, I'm glad!" Arc Mage said to her friend as she shot a fireball at the enemy lines. "I don't remember the last time we fought side by side!"

"You're mostly… a recluse. I'm more… active, so it's… no surprise," Witch said as she shot her own fire magic at the enemies.

"Oh, come on! You're making it sounds worse than it actually is!" Arc Mage whined with a pout on her face causing Witch to laugh.

However, almost everyone suddenly felt something ominous in the air. A strange sense of dread came upon both Khotan's and the King's army. Dark clouds suddenly gathered together, almost as if purposely put above the armies, something that everyone on the battlefield noticed.

However, the mages could feel what that was, their years of training making them feel what was going on.

"This is…" Arc Mage began, suddenly losing any jovial tone and her face becoming serious.

"Magic," Witch finished, her smile dropped as she stared upwards, feeling dark energies gathering in those clouds.

Up on top of a hill, away from his army, Khotan stood in front of a large stone that served as a makeshift altar. Upon this altar lay over a dozen small animals, most of which were rabbits, birds or frogs, all cut at the belly, their blood spilling out unto the stone.

Khotan finished cutting another rabbit with his sacrificial dagger before throwing the rabbit on the pile of animal bodies. He then spread his arms wide.

"O mighty Set, god of chaos, hear thy servant," he began chanting as the clouds gathered above the armies. "I offer this sacrifice in thy name, o mighty serpent. Give me your blessing."

Thunder then began appearing in the gathered clouds, which got everyone's attention and made many nervous.

"Give me the power to vanquish my enemies. Let the blood of these creatures and my prayers show my loyalty!"

Thunder then became visible in the clouds making many to be slowly overcome by panic.

On the battlefield, Conan watched what was going on, and gave an annoyed snarl. Of course, now of all time would Khotan decide to join in.

"Get the mages to prepare! We need to have shields for what is to come!" he roared the order.

Khotan's eyes became serpentine before beginning to glow red.

"O mighty Set, let those infidels feel thy wrath!"

Then suddenly, lightning bolts came from the clouds, descending down upon the King's army. However, over the army a bright dome appeared, radiating divine light. The storm of lightning bolts rained down on the shield.

Thunderous cracks and booms could be heard for many kilometers, the ground shook from the power struggle.

Inside the shield, many mages grunted in pain as the lighting storm continued to pound on the shield, some barely holding on. Priestess was among those mages, holding her staff in the air as it emitted holy light. Sweat was dripping down her brow as her body shook from the constant thunder strikes. She looked around slightly, seeing that others were in a similar state while others outright collapsed, honestly she thought it was a miracle that she was even able to keep this shield up. And since the shield wasn't placed all that high above them, the lighting made quite an intimidating sight.

More and more mages began collapsing from the strain of maintaining the protective barrier, causing it to get weaker and weaker. But they didn't panic considering that Khotan's spell seemingly began to weaken as well, with the lighting strikes becoming less and less frequent.

Soon, the lighting storm stopped, and the thunder clouds began spreading apart, revealing the Sun behind them. Priestess and the mages began smiling of joy as they were able to last long enough, many soldiers even cheering.

But then, something else happened. Above the still active shield a portal suddenly appeared, and out of it came a horse dark as night with demonic wings, Thugra Khotan himself being carried in the chariot carried by the flying horse. And in his hand, he held a jar decorated with a green serpent.

Then he opened the jar, and out of it flew many of his explosive seeds and fell atop of the shield. Many explosions appeared on the top of the barrier, and it wasn't long before too many fell from exhaustion, unable to keep going under the added strain. The shield was gone, and some seeds fell on top of the army, explosions killing many soldiers and knights.

Priestess was actually thrown back by one of the explosions happening near her. When she landed on the ground, she was bruised and adorned with dirt, a cut appearing on her forehead. She rose to her feet, though barely, and gasped when she saw the damage that was done by the explosions, many people heavily injured, some even blown to pieces.

Goblin Slayer, Spearman, Witch and others were also shocked at what happened, but luckily they didn't suffer any serious injuries. However, that attack put quite a dent in their numbers.

Conan glared at Thugra Khotan as he flew on that hellspawn of a steed. "By Crom, this is the last mistake you'll ever make, wizard," Conan growled out, having enough of this. He then turned to a silver-haired elf. "You there!" The Elf quickly turned as he heard Conan call out. "I saw you using wind magic! I'm going to jump and I need you to propel me high up!"

Khotan grinned at his handiwork, seeing the damage he caused to the King's army, small pillars of smoke rising among the ranks of soldiers and many blackened spots. This plan was quite effective. He knew that they probably had some way to counter his magic, so he needed to use something big to show what exactly they had. When he saw the shield and how much they struggled to keep it up he knew that there was still a final push to be made so he used the jar filled with all of his explosive seeds and made them rain down upon their greatly weakened barrier.

Now that their numbers have been reduced he got ready to go back to his army and lead them to a more assured victory.

Then he heard something hit the chariot he was riding which also caused it to shake rather violently for a moment, making him grip tighter on the reins so he didn't fall off. Feeling some extra weight on the back of the carriage he looked there and saw a bronze-skinned hand gripping the edge. Then came a sound of grunt and a figure climbed on the chariot and Khotan looked surprised to see it was Conan, who wasn't looking very happy.

"You! How-?!" he didn't get to finish his proclamation before Conan swung at him with his sword, but Khotan quickly dodged which caused the sword to actually cut through the wood of the chariot.

Khotan then grabbed Conan by the sword hand as the sword was briefly stuck in the wood, and took out a dagger under his cloak so he could strike at Conan, but the Cimmerian didn't give him a chance to use it as he grabbed the wizard's arm in turn. This turned into a contest of strength as the two let out several grunts while trying to get out of the other's grip. The demon horse, having no one ordering it at the moment flew in a single direction.

The King and his generals watched as Conan and Thugra Khotan flew away from the battlefield in the carriage.

"Just what is that idiot doing?" Female General asked as she watched them fly off.

The King then came to a realization. "Don't you see, this is our chance! Without Khotan, they won't be as coordinated as they are. Our numbers may be decreased but Conan was only one of the main commanders while Khotan doesn't appear to have any anymore. They won't be coordinated as well without him, and will more than likely be confused on what to do."

Female General then grinned at that. "Well then, I'll take my knights and hit them fast and hard. They won't see it coming!" Then she rode off.

The King then once again looked at the direction where the two flew off. He hoped that Conan will triumph.

Back on the flying chariot, the two continued their struggle as they flew, their hair blowing violently in the wind. Conan began winning as Khotan was pushed back and losing his grip. Khotan then took a deep breath, and Conan's barbarian instincts kicked, quickly ducking his head as Khotan spit out fire from his mouth. Conan then pulled his head back up and headbutted Khotan in the chin making him grunt in pain and stopped his fire.

Khotan then punched wizard in the face, almost throwing him off the chariot but Khotan gripped the edge just in time. Conan went for a thrust, however, the high priest of Set was quick to avoid, and thinking quickly, grabbed Conan by the exposed chainmail and pulled, using the barbarian's momentum against him and throwing him off the chariot.

But Conan was able to grab the wheel of the chariot to prevent himself from falling, his weight tilting it slightly. Khotan then moved his dagger to stab Conan, not wanting to use magic and risk damage to the chariot, but Conan spun out of the way with a grunt and stabbing through the wooden side with his sword to prevent him from falling. Knowing the wizard would go after him again and moved away, this time grabbing the rope that connected the horse to the chariot. Once he pulled out the sword, the robe took his full weight making it pull on the horse who neighed in annoyance as it was slightly pulled to the side but also making the chariot shake with Khotan once again hanging on so he doesn't fall. Seeing the horse was close to him, Conan readied his sword to strike.

Seeing what Conan was intending to do, Khotan cried out. "No, you idiot, stop!"

His pleas falling on deaf ears, Conan made a mighty swing with his blade, cutting through the monster's belly and cutting off one of its hind legs. The demon horse cried out in pain as copious amounts of blood and some of its guts spilled out in a gory fashion. Flailed savagely around in the air, the chariot it was carrying moving violently as Khotan gripped on it for dear life while Conan still hung on the rope. Conan looked down to see that they were now over an area that was filled with green hills, a stone tower located on top of one.

The horse then stopped flying as any spark of life left it, falling down along with the chariot and the passengers he was carrying, both of whom still holding tightly. They spun in the air as they fell before crash-landing near the tower with a loud crash.

Khotan was lying on his back. He let out several painful moans before getting up and rubbing his head to get rid of the dizziness along with a headache he felt. He opened his eyes to see the wreckage of his chariot with the corpse of the demon horse next to it. He then also noticed the stone tower on the hill they were on, simple in design with a wooden door at the bottom and several windows leading to the top, probably some sort of old lookout.

He quickly turned his head when he heard several grunts coming from the other side of the wreckage and seeing Conan rise up. Thinking that facing the barbarian head-on was a bad idea he rose up to his feet and quickly ran towards the tower.

Conan, seeing Thugra Khotan running towards the tower snarled as his eyes narrowed in anger. "Get back here, sorcerer!" he yelled out before running after him, his sword drawn.

Khotan just quickly entered through the front door, closed it and sealed it with a wooden bolt that was near it before running up the circular staircase.

Conan quickly slammed through the wooden door, smashing it to pieces. He then also began running up the staircase. "You can't escape me! I'll chase you to the ends of the earth if I have to!" Conan yelled out as he came to the first floor of the tower. The place was pretty old considering how many cobwebs and dust were located in there, but Conan paid it no mind as he began running up the staircase again. However, the stone stairs above him suddenly collapsed on top of him, burying him in a pile of stone before he could make a sound in response. That didn't stop him for long as he rose out of the rubble relatively unharmed and only angrier after looking at the hole that was now present in the staircase above, knowing it was the sorcerer's doing.

Khotan opened the door that led to the top of the tower. He quickly closed the door before moving slightly away and extending his hands. That trick he pulled with the staircase slowed Conan down long enough so he could prepare, ready to attack him with his magic the moment he got out.

He then heard some clanking sound behind him, startling him and making him quickly turn only to be met with a sword pointed at his chest. His eyes widened in shock, his gaze following the length of the sword and seeing the familiar girl with long red hair. It was the Hero.

"Surprised to see me?" she asked with a smirk. She moved closer, causing Khotan to back away in fear of the blade. "I must admit, that was a clever stunt you pulled back that temple. Too bad there is no repeating it."

"How did you find me?" Khotan asked in a low tone, but still loud enough to be heard.

"My friends and I planned to join the battle, but after we saw you flying away I decided to follow. I have to say, you really need to work on your landing skills," she joked. "This time I'm sure I'll put an end to you."

Then much to her surprise, Khotan began to chuckle. He began moving his fingers in a subtle motion that was unnoticed by Hero.

"You think you can threaten me... when you're holding a venomous serpent in your hand?" the wizard said.

Hero raised an eyebrow at that but then she suddenly saw the blade of her sword morph into a snake which turned back to bite her. Letting out a yelp she tossed her sword aside and the sword landed on the ground but the snake became the blade again, showing that it was an illusion.

She turned back at Khotan but he already had his hands extended. A beam of green energy shot out of his hands as Hero gasped before she was sent flying through stone and off the tower.

Turning back towards the door Khotan saw Conan emerging from it. Not having time to prepare a good spell he jumped at Conan and tackled him, both of them land on the ground with Conan's sword falling out of his hand. Khotan then put his hands on the shocked barbarian's neck and began squeezing. Conan brought his hands to lessen the grip but the wizard wasn't about to let go anytime soon.

"To think of how much trouble you've caused me, barbarian," Khotan said angrily. "Now you also ruined my plan of conquest, my righteous crusade for lord Set. I'll kill you with my own two hands."

"You…" Conan said through the choking. "Talk… too much." Conan then brought his feet to Khotan's chest and with a mighty shove, he threw the wizard off him as he flew several meters. Conan let out a few coughs before quickly reaching for his sword and rising up, with Khotan doing the same thing.

"Why you cursed jackal, I'll reduce you to-"

"Hiya!" Khotan suddenly heard the voice of Hero behind him but he couldn't react before he was hit by a metal boot in the back that sent him hurtling towards Conan.

The barbarian gripped the sword tightly with both hands, let out a Cimmerian roar and swung his blade at the wizard. And in one swift motion, Thugra Khotan's head was separated from his neck. His eyes were wide, his mouth opened in a scream that can never come out as his head flew through the air. The lack of lungs made it impossible for him to repeat the incantation that sent his spirit.

Khotan's head then rolled on the stone floor several times before stopping, the wizard's last thoughts on how he failed once again as his spirit was lost to the void. Thugra Khotan, the high priest of Set, the sorcerer of Kutchemes, has been forever vanquished.

Conan looked at the dismembered wizard's body before spitting. "Don't bother coming back again," Conan said hoping that whatever Hell he has crawled out of would keep him this time.


Up in the Heavenly Plane, a certain god of chaos looked at the scene in anger. The conflict was represented by wooden figures placed on the table, with Conan's figure standing up straight while Khotan's was downed.

"Damn that fool!" Set yelled out as he slammed his fist on the table, shaking the figures but not moving them. "For him to lose after getting another chance at this pathetic life!"

Mitra only smiled while looking proudly at Conan's figurine, felling joy in knowing that his rival's plans were thwarted.

Several other gods stood around the table, but the main ones, Truth and Illusion spoke about the situation.

"Well, the wager has been settled," Illusion said. "And Mitra has won."

Truth groaned. "And here I was hoping that things would get spicier."

Illusion just shook her head at his antics before looking at Set. "As per our agreement, you are no longer allowed to set foot on this continent until its very destruction, so leave."

Set's form began to disappear, but before it did he let out one last yell of anger the shook the Heavenly Plane.

Mitra then turned away from the table. "My job here is done," he said before he vanished as well.

"So…" Truth began before pulling up some dice to his longtime friend. "Shall we play again?"

Illusion only shrugged. "Heh, I'm not in the mood, maybe some other time. I really want to see this play out," she said causing Truth to groan.


Back on the battlefield, the King, the generals, the knights, adventurers, every single other soldier was laying waste Thugra Khotan's army. Without the proper chain of command, they were unprepared, easily falling before the more organized army and many breaking ranks the more the battle went on. Some leaders that were under Khotan's spell broke off, retreated and took their men with them. The appearance of Sword Saint and Sage, who recovered from her mana exhaustion, from the Hero's party also increased the chances for their allies.

Spearman skewered through one of the wolf riders by going through both the rider and the mount with his spear, a grin spread on his scarred face before he pulled out his signature weapon.

Amazon Warrior was in a similar situation as she cut a man in half with her axe.

"Looks like these bitches are losing!" she said as she swung her axe to flick the blood off it.

"You can say that again!" Spearman said before piercing through a hobgoblin.

"I wouldn't celebrate just yet, my friends!" Lizard Priest joined the fray as he pierced through the neck of a giant snake. "The fight still isn't over!"

"Oh, relax a bit scaly!" Dwarf Shaman said before ducking under a sword swipe and piercing the enemy through the stomach.

"Glad to see you all alive!" High Elf Archer exclaimed as she fired two arrows at once, both hitting their targets perfectly.

"Speaking of which, where is Beard Cutter?"

As if on cue, several dead goblins were suddenly thrown near them, joining the number of piling corpses, soon followed by Goblin Slayer coming there himself.

"You called?" Goblin Slayer said, his armor covered in blood.

"Hah, I knew you couldn't resist," High Elf Archer commented while looking at the dead goblins.

"How long do you think this battle will last?" Goblin Slayer asked.

"Not too long it seems, milord Goblin Slayer," Lizard Priest said before pointing.

When the others saw where he was pointing at they saw that the rest of the army, or what remained of it began running away, scattering in many directions, some even leaving behind weapons, armor or both.

"Wow, look at them run," Amazon Warrior said jokingly.

The only soldiers who were left on the battlefield were those of the King's army, and those then began cheering in victory, the members of the Adventurer's Guild joining in.

High Elf Archer then kicked away a bloody helmet that was at her feet. "By the gods, what a mess," she commented as she looked around to see many corpses, weapons, and armor sprawled upon the grassy ground.

"Yeah, we did quite a number on each other. Luckily we came out on top," Spearman said as he rested his spear on his shoulder. "But there is still someone who has to show up."

The King met with Female General and Young General, all three on their mounts.

"We achieved victory!" Female General exclaimed.

"I underestimated that man, Conan," Young General said with a smile as he watched the fleeing forces of Thugra Khotan. "When he returns I'll treat him for a drink."

"A drink?! We should have a feast!"

The King felt happy that they won, and while their numbers also suffered heavy losses it wasn't nearly as bad as the opposing side. However, one thing still lingered on his mind. "That is... if Conan comes back."

The two generals then stopped their celebratory thoughts as they realized their King was right. There still wasn't any word of Conan or if he won against the crazed wizard. Though from what they've seen the Hero went to join him in defeating Khotan so their worries were eased.

Then they saw someone appear in the distance on a horse that began galloping down a hill towards the battlefield. The three of them could make out two shapes on the horse, one huge and one small. Smiles spread on their faces knowing who these two were.

Hero dismounted early as she went to greet her two best friends as they talked over what happened while Conan rode towards the King and the generals.

"You made our victory complete, my friend!" Young General spoke.

"Indeed I have," Conan said before reaching towards the back of the saddle. The three wondered what he was doing until he hefted up the head of Thugra Khotan, holding it by the hair. The head still had its mouth open and its eyes rolled at the back of the head.

"Ugh, did you really have to do that?" Female General asked, more in frustration than in disgust.

"I burned the body. The head is much easier to carry," Conan said before throwing the head down on the ground as it rolled unceremoniously for a few moments.

"It hardly matters, we have rid the world of yet another dangerous threat," the King spoke before smiling at Conan. "And I think there are people who want to see you." The King made a gesture towards the side and Conan saw that it was his allies from Adventurer's Guild coming towards. "I think you meet them. It's the least that can be done after the battle we had."

Conan chuckled. "Well isn't that the truth?" He then dismounted his horse and walked to greet his friends.


AN: And that is it for today! The long-awaited battle has finally happened and Conan and his allies came out victorious! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter and I would very much like to hear your thoughts on it. I have to admit I'm not a military expert by any means so I'm sorry if some of the strategies make no sense but I tried.

And the next chapter will be the last one, where I'll be pretty much wrapping up the story. I'll work on it immediately so you don't have to wait for too long.

And I hope that you check out my other stories. And remember, leave a review, they are great motivators.

That is all for now. See you next time!