"Thank God!
Now that our ally is here“"
“It's too early to celebrate,” Kuahel interrupted coldly, cutting her off.
Maxi's face fell as his relief dissipated like smoke.
She turned to the Temple Knight.
“We need to bring the holy relic while the army fights the dullahans,” he said with measured calm.
The mysterious monster's ominous prophecy echoed in her mind.
Kuahel was right; they had to repair the barrier as quickly as possible to prevent the dragon from awakening.
Maxi assessed his decreasing mana.
There was very little left to cast a levitation spell.
However, given the desperate circumstances, shouldn't she risk mana exhaustion to ensure escape?
His eyes darted around and settled on a makeshift structure to the right of the shrine.
Carefully walking to the edge of the roof, she suggested, “C-Can we go down here?”
Kuahel assessed the distance before nimbly jumping.
He then stretched out his hands to help her.
When Maxi's feet landed on the precarious structure, she grabbed the ladder propped against the wall.
Although it seemed far from stable, they had no other option.
She began to descend cautiously.
To their relief, no monsters discovered them during their descent.
As they reached the ground, Maxi tried to stabilize her shaking legs.
She surveyed the empty courtyard, the dilapidated warehouse, and the wall beyond.
Although he could vaguely infer that they were at the back of the church, he still had no idea of their exact location.
“W-Where should we go now?”
“Follow me.”
Kuahel surveyed his surroundings before walking towards the arched exit on the opposite side of the garden.
As Maxi ran to catch up, a loud bang echoed in the distance.
She looked up in time to see huge rocks being thrown towards the city.
The coalition army had started using their siege weapons against the walls.
Kuahel quickened his pace, urging her to move faster.
“You must stay close to me at all costs.”
Maxi nodded, his face turning dark.
The deafening noise of war shook the air.
The imposing horse looked like it had galloped straight out of hell.
His vaporous breath came out of his mouth like a volcano, and his powerful legs thumped the ground as he leaped into the air.
The warrior riding on his back swung a six-kevette sword, cutting down five soldiers with lethal precision.
Richard Breston felt the heat radiating from their blood and guts.
In the frenzy of battle, the cavalry had no qualms about trampling over their own fallen comrades to attack the enemy.
For Breston, the chaos was extremely fun.
Adrenaline coursed through his veins as his white claymore sliced through the air.
The Breston family heirloom, said to be forged from the bones of the Black Dragon, effortlessly cut through an armored horse and its undead rider as if they were pieces of paper.
However, instead of splashing onto the ground in pieces, the dullahan's body melted like black sand.
Breston clicked his tongue as he looked at the black stain on the ground.
What a disappointing death.
To add to his frustration, the black pool began to bubble, regaining its headless form.
It was a totally frustrating situation.
Resting his sword on his shoulder, Breston scanned the chaotic battlefield.
Although the number of dullahans had not decreased, the coalition forces were visibly reduced.
The snow was stained with the blood of countless fallen soldiers.
Remnants of destroyed siege weapons and baggage wagons were scattered across the hill, a testament to the destruction caused by the wyverns.
The central unit remained intact, but the flanks had been decimated.
It was evident that they had seriously underestimated the monsters' strengths.
What a problem
, Breston thought with a frown.
Although a coalition defeat would weaken the Reformed faction and its new pope, it would also hinder Heimdall's ambition to abolish the armistice.
Eastern and southern nobles would likely unite to maintain it in order to prevent the dragon's revival, increasing public sentiment in favor of the armistice.
Anyone who tried to sow discord would now be branded an enemy.
Still… can the church lead the Council having lost the trust of the people?Casting his gaze behind him, Breston noticed the rear unit positioned approximately a thradion away.
Even with the mages protecting them, the archer and siege units had not been spared from the wyverns' attack.
But if the army retreated now, it would take a fortune to regroup.
Would the nobles continue to obey the Council and provide the coalition with more men and supplies?
A smile formed on Breston's lips.
The church had already shown its incompetence to the world.
He was certain that the nobles would stop honoring the Council's decisions.
Regardless of how this campaign ended, this ridiculous farce of a peace agreement would end.
Breston turned his gaze to the front line.
Dristan's cavalry and White Dragons were repelling the Dullahan army.
No matter how skillfully Riftan Calypse commanded his troops, he would still be remembered as a failure.
Breston turned his horse around with a satisfied look.
He was signaling the Baltonian soldiers to retreat when someone abruptly blocked his path.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Breston looked at the slender knight on his gray stallion.
It was the young noble of the White Dragons.
Ursuline Ricaydo, right?
The fair-haired knight stared at him with his deep blue eyes as he skillfully blocked the northerner's retreat.
“It is an act of treason to abandon your post without the permission of the supreme commander.”
“If you wish to be slaughtered like a dog, that is your choice,” Breston sneered as he glared at the knights blocking his path.
A large number of Wedonian knights were positioned behind Balto's camp, as if anticipating Balto's defection.
Placing his hand on his sword, Breston gave Ursuline a menacing smile.
"But we would like to be spared that fate.
Only fools would risk their lives to fight a battle they cannot win."
“If the left flank abandons its position, the central unit will be completely surrounded,” Ursuline growled with a menacing expression that seemed out of place on her pretty face.
“Are you trying to betray your allies to save your skin?”
“Allies?”
Breston burst into laughter as if the other knight had said something hilarious.
"You can't be serious.
If you truly considered us an ally, you wouldn't have watched us like a hawk."
“I will say it again: no one is allowed to abandon his post without the permission of the supreme commander,” the knight hissed through clenched teeth.
“Turn your horse around now.”
The smile disappeared from Breston's face.
He was speechless.
How did he end up in a situation where he had to take orders from a fragile Southern Puritan?
Perhaps he had been too tolerant.
He rode up to Ursuline and said in a dangerous tone, "I hate taking orders.
So much so that even my own father gave up trying.
So who are you to“"
Breston stopped abruptly when the sound of a kopel reached them from afar.
He turned his head to look at the chaotic frontline before looking beyond the horizon.
Red flags waved in the wind as a mounted army approached the city.
Will it be Sejuleu Aren?
Breston gritted his teeth.
It would be unwise to retreat now.
He looked toward the top of the hill, but eventually signaled Phil Aaron's Knights to hold their positions.
Then, he spotted the familiar flag flying behind the Livadon Army as they marched down the hill.
It took him a moment to identify the coat of arms“of the Southern Balto Confederacy.
Breston turned to Ursuline, stunned as if he had been hit in the head.
“What the hell did you do?”
“I'm afraid I don't understand,” Ursuline replied coldly.
“Is there something wrong with reinforcements arriving in time?”
After casting a murderous glare at the slender rider, Breston spurred his horse toward the front line.
Approximately two thradions ahead, the Wedonian spearmen were forming a shield wall.
Jumping over them, Breston ran into the center of the fight.
He galloped past hundreds of soldiers before spotting Riftan Calypse facing eight dullahans alone in the vanguard.
Breston cut the dullahan out of his way with a single blow and placed his horse next to Calypse.
He saw the half-breed's eyes blink at him from behind the visor.
“You should be leading the left flank.”“You seem to have done something quite interesting, and I found it impossible to contain my curiosity,” Breston scoffed.
He plunged his sword into one of the infernal warhorses that was attacking him like a buffalo.
His rider fell into the mud.
Pulling on the reins, Breston maneuvered his stallion to trample the dullahan lying beneath his paws.
He redirected his attention to Riftan Calypse with a furious glare.
“How did you get the Southern Balto Confederacy to send reinforcements?”
“Did you think you were the only one capable of machinations?” Calypse replied indifferently as she lowered her halberd.
As the monsters refused to approach them out of apparent fear, the two were able to talk without being interrupted.
"The church did not stand idly by while Heimdall VI rallied opposition to the armistice.
You greatly underestimated the new pope."
“Are you telling me it was the Pope who persuaded the Southern Confederacy?”
When Calypse offered no response, Breston stepped in front of him, effectively blocking his path.
"You must think me a fool.
The church couldn't have acted without us knowing about it."