Greazht was surprised because in front of him stood a sizeable army of almost 1000 lizardmen.
He had not heard any information about them from the scouts who were inspecting the field ahead of them, but the resolute looks and strong stances of the soldiers in front of him were too realistic to be illusions.
As a species the toadmen were weaker than the lizardmen since they were shorter and their arms were less developed, so in a fair fight they would most definitely lose.
However the current toadmen army was over double the number of the opposing lizardmen, and the war beasts within their ranks gave them an overwhelming tactical advantage.
Rather than a fight this would likely be just a one sided slaughter.
With confidence in his heart Greazht ordered the frontline to advance.
The toadmen's war beasts were composed of two races: that was because these were the strongest ones who could be affected by their hypnotic songs and with the best tactical advantage.
The first species was a kyut, an herbivorous species with an appearance similar to a a giant pangolin with three horns on their head who were normally quite docile and used their prensile tongue to reach the leaves of the trees above their heads.
That said their plaques granted them protection from arrows, while their sturdy horned head served as a potent weapon comparable to a battering ram and their backs were large enough to house a turret from which an elite team oof 3 toadmen were able to shoot arrows and spears, so they were deadly living war engines when employed in combat.
The toadmen had managed to ammass 369 of them in the last days, so now they were able to have the entire front row composed of these beasts.
By having them trample the lizardmen the kyuts would create holes from which the second line formed by toadmen armed by spears would slip in and divide the lizardmen in single cells of few individuals who could then be overwhelmed easily.
It was a simple plan made effective by the toadmen's good resources.
When the huge beasts started moving the lizardmen seemed to be in total disarray, with only the frontline that was steadily holding up while the backrow was moving in a confused manner.
Probably they intended to use themselves as meat shields to slow down the living war engines while the rest of the lizardmen run to save their own lives.
It was most likely the only thing they could do to at least save some of them after seeing this overwhelming power...
However once the kyuts reached the opposing front line something Greazht could never expect happened: the lizardmen directly behind the front lines throwed ignited torches to the beasts.
While the damage done was basically null the atavic fear for fire scared them and made them slow down.
Other warriors profited from the chance to jump on them and start puncturing between the plaques with spears coated in venom.
While the wounds would not stop them the pain from the poison made the creatures go crazy and completely override the control the toadmen had on them.
The frenzied animals were then directed towards the toadmen's own ranks by again exploiting their fear of the fire since they would obey their instincts and not go where they sensed danger.
The result was disastrous: the fate that should have been reserved to the lizardmen was now completely reversed and the toadmen were suffering massive losses.
The situation was extremely dire, so as the current chief of the united effort against the lizardmen Greazht had to do something.
He had never seen such a strategy to fight war mounts, and in a different situation he would give ample praises to the commander who thought of it.
He silently gave thanks to his grandfather who had warned him to not underestimate the lizardmen, while he gave order to unleash the other beasts they had tamed.
These were coatl, reptiles similar to 6 m long blue and green serpents with bat-like wings.
This species was extremely dangerous because unlike the kyuts they were very aggressive, and even against bigger foes they could triumph thanks to their venomous fangs and spear-like tail.
The toadmen had lost many hunters to capture the 94 specimen they currently had, but it seemed it was not wasted effort.
Unlike the kyuts coatls were immune to poison, so they would not be brought down by those venomous spears the lizardmen possessed.
Each of those reptiles was mounted by an elite toadmen knight armed with a set of long spears, which could skewer entire lines with their weapons while the beasts did swift aerial attacks then retreat safely in the sky.
The lethality of this team was leagues above the kyut corps since they were more mobile and could quickly reach wherever their presence was needed and hit strategic points of the opposing army with surgical precision.
The coatls took flight towards the lizardmen who again were in apparent disarray, but once they reached them out of seemingly nowhere the lizardmen threw out giant nets who stopped them mid-flight.
The traps were linked to cords held by a dedicated group of lizardmen who all pulled at the same time, exploiting the force and weight of the captured beasts to use them as giant hammers to crash them in the toadmen's lines.
Like what happened with the kyuts this caused many hundred of losses on the toadmen's army.
Greazht was looking in disbelief as the strategy was simply too perfect: the lizardmen seemed to have the exact knowledge and tools needed to counter everything the toadmen had.
However to both think such a plan and to obtain all the resources would be impossible in the short time between the creation of the ice wall and when the battle began...
Or did they already have those traps set up beforehand and the barrier was made to lower the toadmen's guard?
How long did the lizardmen know of the plan to exterminate them?
Greazht's mind continued to formulate one question after another as he was trying to rationalize what he was seeing.
The battle was basically over...
Or maybe not: he could still plead for his King to use his might to turn the tables.
Knowing the tyrant's temper this would be the end of him, even after he was miraculously spared once.
Still, he had to ensure his people's prosperity so he had no choice.
The fact that he was about to face death a second time made it even more terrifying, it was enough to make all his body shudder uncontrollably.
Probably if he had to move his own legs he would not be able to do it, but thankfully he was transported by his mount.
He left the battlefield to go to the lake, then he dived once more to the Toad King's cave.
After he surfaced he hopped to where the ruler was sitting, then genuflected while once more waiting to obtain the permission to speak.
While time was short he had to make sure to not spoil the king's mood by being rude to him.
"My king, the lizardmen have mounted a formidable resistence and are currently holding their own".
He could not admit to his king that they were on the verge of defeat, otherwise he would probably just execute him and ignore the rest of his people.
"We need your majestic power to break their morale and tilt the balance in our favour!"
The king replied in a surprisingly calm tone:
"It seems that if one wants something done right, they have to do it themselves.
I was wrong to put my expectations on you...
Whatever, it's time to fix this mistake!"
shouted the Toad King, with a roar who came from behind him immediately after he finished.
Greazht expected to have to travel again by foot the voyage towards the battlefield, but with the protection from the Toad King's beast they were able to directly swam on the lake's surface.
Despite the waters of the deeper part of the lake being infested by numerous aquatic monsters none of them dared to attack the group who was quickly moving over them since they sensed that only death awaited whoever would dare cross the path with that supreme manifestation of power.
Cocytus was pleased with how the battle was going on: the lizardmen had thus far suffered minimal losses, while the toadmen were slowly retreating.
Training an army to do complex maneuvers required years of extensive exercices, but if one already knew what the opponent would do then simple actions were more than enough to overturn the result completely.
That was the true value of information gathering during battles, which was something Cocytus neglected in his first skirmish against the lizardmen, but that now understood fully.
He used the Mirror of Remote Viewing to observe the opposing army, then divided the lizardmen in different teams each of which was trained to do one task that would counter a specyfic foe.
After seeing that army composition he knew the toadmen would most likely not begin the attack themselves due to their inferior height and would instead send their beasts to weaken the lizardmen, so he just kept 2 lines of lizardmen whose apparent duty was to act as front row, but in fact were mainly there to ensure the toadmen would have no choice but to use their beasts to break the formation, while keeping the specialized troops safe from the main toadmen forces and to hide their movement behind their brethren.
He had mainly taken in consideration 2 cases after looking at those forces: the toadmen could have either began the attack with the land or the air forces, so depending on the resource the enemy used first different lizardmen would be needed.
The answer he found was that instead of dividing his army in few different blocks who would take too much time to move he divided the counters in various cells of a few individuals spreaded behind the front row.
That way they were able to more quickly activate themselves depending on the threat faced and could quickly jump in the fray to act at any time they found their presence was needed.
As for the weapons he had instructed the lizardmen who remained in the village to ready the spears and nets, which reduced the use of Nazarick's technology and resources to a minimum and instead relied on plain optimization of the manpower at his disposal by using to great effect even the non-combatants.
Having dedicated troops to act against single threats significantly limited their versatility for handling multiple enemies, but in this case where he knew exactly what to expect from the opponents it had devastating effects obtained through a comparatively short training time.
If things continued that way the end would be near.
His only worry was the powerful individual that destroyed his barrier, which he could not even locate with the Mirror of Remote Viewing.
As he expected it was not among the frontlines but had been kept somewhere in the reserves.
Even though that meant the fight had an element of uncertainty it was fine since his own two trump cards were getting more time to prepare for...
While he was thinking to himself a roar shook the entire battlefield, stopping everyone who was fighting.
In the ensuing silence a series of heavy footsteps was heard, then a giant figure showed itself from the battlefield: its 10 meter tall humanoid form was similar to a giant, however that would be like comparing a boar to a pig.
The beast's grey fur was very long and thick which shielded it from cold temperatures and doubled as a very effective natural armor, while the hand's fingers were as big as a lizardman.
It was a sasquatch, a subspecies of the frost giants.
Unlike the latter it was a solitary predator which only gathered with others of its species for mating seasons, and its sightings were so rare its own existence had been considered as nothing more than a myth.
The truth to the scarce information about it however was because it was an incredibly lethal apex predator thanks to its aggressiveness and thick fur which provided it with unmatched protection.
It was a creature which typically inhabited the frozen mountains where its grey color granted it an excellent camouflage for ambushes, the reason why it was currently on the plains and in control of a much weaker species was a mystery for Cocytus, but his own next course of action was not: it had to recall immediately Zaryusu and Zenberu, otherwise this creature could very well turn the tides of the war by itself.
The Toad King was very satisfied to see all the awed looks of the people below him while he displayed his power from the throne over the head of his beast.
Normally a creature on the level of a sasquatch would be well beyond his species' hypnotic ability, however the individual who would then become the Toad King has been incredibly lucky, because he had found it as an infant.
Probably the mother had been recently slain by an adventurer group because her spawn was left alone to fend for itself.
Without someone to feed it the destiny of the creature was certain, but the toadman had found it before death could claim its life.
He then spent the following years nurturing it and exposing it to its hypnotic voice, until it became a formidable weapon unmatched by anything the toadmen ever had.
With its might the Toad King had managed to acquire complete control over his species, then he kept its exact appearance a secret by hiding it and himself in that subterranean cave and executing everyone who had previously seen it.
The reason why he had left his incompetent subordinate live after he brought news of his failures was because there was no need to waste effort in killing just him when the Toad King had in mind to simply slaughter everyone who was currently on that battlefield.
That way his trump card's identity would remain a secret from the rest of his subjects and he could reign over the entire lake with the surviving toadmen.
It was a perfect plan to reap the max benefits with the least effort.
He ordered the sasquatch to crush everyone and the beast started flailing its enormous punches mindlessly.
Greazht saw what could only be descrived as a falling meteor hitting him before his life was abruptly ended.
Resisting that fury was impossible for anything that was unlucky enough to be the its target, whether they be toadmen, lizardmen or beasts.
That was until it found an unexpected resistence in a trio of individuals: two lizardmen and an hydra were not running away from the colossal monster in front of them despite being insignificant in comparison.
Their defiant attitude angered the Toad King who ordered his creature to crush them.
The sasquatch raised its gigantic punch, then threw a fully powered fist towards them.
The only possible outcome when an object greater than oneself with the strength of a sling reach its target can only be complete annyhilation, however this time the result was different.
One of the two lizardmen revealed a spear made of ice and shouted [Icy Burst!], releasing a wave of ice that hit the punch.
While the sasquatch was immune to cold thanks to its fur the attack had been able to freeze the air around the fist and block it to the ground through the ice.
Even though the Toad King had been surprised by this act he still ordered his beast to use the other hand to squash the trio, but the other lizardman who had one arm significantly bigger than the other screamed [Fortress!] and against all odds managed to stop the strike with his bare hands.
The first lizardmen then used the hydra's long necks as a ramp to jump over the arm who had been just immobilized and climb until the head, where he used his spear to pierce one of the eyes.
Despite the damage this was not a lethal hit due to how big the sasquatch is, so the lizardman shouted once more [Icy Burst!], releasing the power of his weapon inside the creature's skull where the fur could not protect it, thus killing it instantly.
Once the two lizardmen heroes defeated the sasquatch the battle was over.
Zaryusu had been initially shaken by the creature's sheer size, but thanks to the hours of training in Nazarick's 6th floor against Aura sama's huge magical beasts he had been able to overcome it with relative ease: all he had to do when fighting a single bigger enemy was to restrict the limbs, then strike them in a weak point.
It was a simple yet effective strategy, but the frightening thing was that this astonishing result against a foe who previously devastated the lizardmen was obtained exclusively with their own strengths.
Even the tools who had such a devastating effect on the enemy were not complicated artifacts or arcane orbs, but plain sticks imbued with venom from the plants who grew up in the forest and nets not dissimilar to the ones used to keep the fishes in his farm.
If the new Master of the Lake was able to achieve this much without even relying on the godlike power and resources of the Tomb of Nazarick, then what were the limits of the one that such an outstanding individual addressed as his Master?
Zaryusu keenly felt the abyss that separated him from the Supreme Being called Ainz Ooal Gown, and knew there still much that he needed to learn in order to become someone able to protect his people.
When the beast fell heavily the impact threw the Toad King out of his seat making him land painfully to the ground.
He managed to raise his head with a lot of effort to look at the two lizardmen with a pleading look:
"I beg of you, do not kill me... I can be of use! Please, I can..."
Zenberu looked at Zaryusu near him while flexing his bigger left arm which was still lightly numbed from the punch it received from the sasquatch.
"What do you want to do with this fat frog? It might taste great if grilled due to that lard it's packing..."
"It's probably best to just end him quickly... It also looks quite sick with that pallor, you would probably get a stomachache if you actually eated it..."
Hearing his end was near made the Toad King frantic to survive, but before he could further beg the two lizardmen a frosty mist gathered in front of him.
From the haze a nightmarish figure appeared: it was a gigantic insect with pale blue shell and four arms who towered even over the already tall lizardmen.
Cocytus looked with disrespect at the defeated commander below him, then his irritation made him release a buff of freezing air from his mouth before speaking.
"Your. Actions. As. A. Leader. Were. Very. Disappointing. When. Faced. With. An. Unknown. Enemy. You. Did. Not. Retreat. To. Acquire. Information. And. Instead. Sent. Your. People. To. Their. Deaths. And. Even. Started. Attacking. Them. Along. With. Your. Enemies. Someone. Incompetent. Like. You. Is. Unneeded. For. The. Great. Tomb. Of. Nazarick. Begone!" concluded him before extending an arm towards the screaming toadman and saying [Piercing Icicle!], summoning multiple arrows of ice who riddled the screaming tyrant with holes.
The battle had been a good training for Cocytus.
He was pleased to see that Zaryusu and Zenberu were able to execute his strategy flawlessly despite the short time they had to train.
He was sure that it was largely due to their talents which enabled them to achieve such a result.
Despite their species not being strong per se their potential was vast.
It would be interesting to see how far will they be able to go under Nazarick's guidance...
While he was thinking about the future Cocytus was interrupted by an elder lich who appeared near him.
"I'm sorry to interrupt Cocytus-sama, but I bring a message from your fellow Guardian Mare-sama..."
Cocytus worringly turned himself towards the newly arrived undead: it had to be something very important if it had to be relayed by a Guardian, perhaps something Ainz-related.
'It seems the future is now' Cocytus thought while a new task awaited him on the horizon.
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Uff, I've finally corrected a few plotholes the story had in chapter 3.5 and chapter 4, and edited chapter 1 so that it looked less "wall-like" lol. And the big battle has began...Aaand it's already over. Pure Nazarick curbstomping style. However I tried to have the battle won through the use of tactics rather than the usual over-the-top magic. How did you find this story? Any comment are appreciated, because I think that stories are meant to provoke emotions in the reader. This is why knowing what the people felt when they read this story is very helpful and interesting to me since it makes me understand what is good and what needs improvement, so don't hold back :)
