Breston looked at the half-breed's face, hidden by the visor.
“I know you sent your knights to Balto,” Breston said with absolute conviction.
“You made us believe they were heading to Hoover Sound to recover the seized ships from Anatol, when that was their goal all along.”
“I don’t see why you would need my answer when you already seem convinced,” Calypse replied sarcastically before leading her horse to the right.
As if noticing the arrival of new troops, the dullahans at the gate began to scatter left and right.
His movements seemed less like a coordinated strategy under someone's instruction and more like a reflex upon sighting an enemy.
After carefully observing the confused cavalry, Calypse signaled her knights to advance.
It probably wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to attack and break through the gate.
Breston moved quickly to block him.
The damn monsters were the least of his worries when his long-held ambition was about to crumble.
“Why choose to be the pope’s dog?” he growled.
"I can understand why Leon or Aren might cling to the old conventions, but why you?
Are you so content with being King Reuben's lapdog?"
“Aren’t you doing the same?” Calypse replied coldly.
“If you were against this kind of life, you should never have become a knight.”
"Heimdall is nothing like your spineless king!
We will bring back the glory of the Roem Empire."
“The glory of the Roem Empire?” Calypse's black eyes slowly moved from the battlefield to Breston.
There was mockery in his voice as he added, "Aren't you ignoring some history?
Maybe you should start with the Ancient States Era."
Breston's face contorted as he understood the implication.
“The southern territories of Balto were once part of Guinea,” Calypse continued mockingly.
"If you want to break the armistice, even at the cost of tearing your kingdom apart, be my guest.
Start a new era of war.
We'll see which side comes to ruin first."
Was the half-breed suggesting that their path would lead to civil war on Balto?
Breston clenched his fist until his knuckles turned white.
He watched the Southern Confederate flag approaching.
When the unpleasant shock of being surpassed passed, several possibilities began to form in his mind.
If Guinea's former territories decided to support the armistice, it would be dangerous to dissolve the peace agreement now.
One reckless move could trigger a civil war on Balto.
And if Wedon, Livadon, and Osiriya used the opportunity to unite and invade Balto, the North would not escape unscathed.
Coming to a reluctant conclusion, Breston pursed his lips.
"You're right.
Maybe I was a little too confident."
As they worked to start a war in the South, it appeared that armistice supporters were not idle either.
Breston gritted his teeth as he looked at the reinforcements marching right in front of them.
The ground shook as thousands of warhorses clashed with the Dullahan army.
Soon, the deafening noise of war echoed across the battlefield.
This time, Breston felt no excitement.
Burning with cold rage, he kept his gaze fixed on Calypse's back.
He was reluctant to admit that he had been outdone.
Maxi tried to remain calm despite the flying rocks.
She desperately tried to keep up with Kuahel, who was charging ahead.
The undead monsters that roamed the city rushed to defend the wall from the coalition's attack, allowing her and Kuahel to pass through the streets unnoticed.
However, this also meant that the wall was full of enemies.
Standing close to the Temple Knight, his gaze fixed on the walls.
Between the cramped houses, she saw a wooden staircase leading to a castle tower.
Guarding their base were a bunch of skeletal soldiers.
Kuahel, pressed against the wall, assessed the route ahead.
“Thirty seconds.”
When Maxi looked at him questioningly, his green eyes looked at her calmly.
“Do you have enough mana to maintain a shield for thirty seconds?”
“Y-Yes, but…” Maxi hesitated.
With no idea what he was planning, she felt incredibly nervous.“Call upon your shield and stand still,” the Temple Knight said, drawing his sword.
“I won’t be long.”
Without waiting for her response, he disappeared from the alley, fast as the wind, eliminating a wandering skeleton in his path.
Maxi stared in astonishment before seeing the band of skeletal soldiers attacking the Temple Knight.
She promptly threw a shield.
Although Kuahel ensured that no monsters approached the alley, he could not block all the arrows and fireballs thrown at them from atop the wall.
Squinting her eyes, Maxi circulated her mana, slowly counting the seconds in her head.
Suddenly, the sound of clanging steel and the skeletons' screams stopped.
Maxi peeked around the corner, coming face to face with Kuahel.
He examined her pale expression before straightening up.
“Follow me,” he said, tilting his chin toward the walls.
They quickly crossed the bone-strewn street and climbed the wooden stairs to the castle tower.
The interior of the tall building was as dark as night.
Kuahel summoned a flame into his hand.
“We should lower the drawbridge first.”
"T-The mechanism used to raise it is usually installed high on the wall.
We need to climb it."
Wasting no time, Maxi began climbing the spiral staircase.
When they reached the rope room on the second floor, they found the pulley connected to the drawbridge.
Kuahel cut the pulley chain, and the bridge fell into the moat with a crash.
Maxi looked out the small window.
The knights and dullahans were far away, fighting in a huddle on the field.
Dusk was fast approaching around them.
Some knights quickly redirected their horses when they saw the drawbridge lowered.
Maxi turned around.
"T-They know the bridge is down.
We need to open the gate now."
“This way,” Kuahel said, turning toward the door.
He quickly descended the stairs with Maxi close behind.
When he saw the horde of ghouls at the tower's entrance, he pushed Maxi back and summoned divine flames.
Maxi leaned against the wall as the flames burned before obediently following the force pulling his arm.
When they hurriedly left the tower, they found dozens of ghouls and skeletons guarding the gate.
Kuahel quickly split the nearest ghoul in half, then immediately pushed her into a wall.
The Temple Knight stood in front of him like a shield and ruthlessly shot down the advancing monsters.
Maxi cowered behind him and desperately waited for the fight to end.
Finally, when all the monsters were defeated, Kuahel held his arm and headed towards the gate.
Marching quickly, they stepped over trembling bodies until they reached the mechanism holding the grate in place.
Fortunately, it was not difficult to operate.
When Maxi pulled the lever, the iron gate rose with a screeching noise.
The twilight battlefield filled his vision.
Maxi recoiled at the sight.
All around, allies and enemies clashed with spears and swords.
Flames lit up the sky above them“probably the coalition mages fighting the wyverns with magical devices.
“Step aside.”
Kuahel pulled Maxi's arm and made her stand near the gate house, away from the entrance.
The ghouls had started to gather again.
With a quick kick, Kuahel destroyed the device that raised and lowered the gate.
He then used the blade's aura to attack the advancing horde of ghouls, to no avail.
Where had all these bodies come from?
Maxi's desperate scream was interrupted by thundering hooves behind her.
A black warhorse was galloping across the drawbridge towards the entrance.
Soon, the sickening sound of bones breaking echoed in the air as the stallion ruthlessly crushed a group of skeletons beneath his iron horseshoes.
“What are you doing inside the city?” an icy voice sounded above his head.
Maxi tensed and looked up, seeing Riftan watching her coldly from above Talon.
“W-Well…” she began, managing an awkward smile.
She looked to Kuahel Leon for help.
The cleric sighed and stepped in front of him.
"Now is not the time for interrogations.
We must retake the city and purify the Sanctuary with all haste."
Riftan's gaze was full of thorns as he turned his attention to Kuahel.
After a moment of suffocating silence, he gave his order to Elliot, who mounted behind him.“Take my wife back to the rear unit immediately.”
“That won't be necessary,” Kuahel said, supporting Maxi by his forearm.
“I can take you back, so you“”
He was about to turn towards the gate when he quickly raised his sword above his head.
Riftan had brought his halberd upon him.
Having narrowly blocked the attack, Kuahel looked at the other knight with an incredulous expression.
“What does that mean?”
“Take your hand off my wife immediately,” Riftan growled, pressing the sharp tip of the halberd against the cleric’s Adam’s apple.
“If you touch her again, I will crush your head.”
Realizing he was furious, Maxi quickly broke free of Kuahel's grip and rushed to Elliot's side.
She stood next to the knight's horse and deliberately put on a subservient expression.
"I-I'll take myself to safety with Sir Elliot, so...
don't worry about me.
Just be careful."
Riftan watched her silently for a long moment through his visor.
When he spoke, it was in a gentle voice that sent shivers up her spine.
"Very well.
We can talk when this battle is over."
With that, he turned his horse towards the approaching dullahans.
Maxi nervously watched her husband before impatiently gesturing Kuahel away with her eyes.
The cleric frowned, but eventually turned toward the drawbridge with apparent indifference.
Thinking he was about to cross the battlefield, Maxi's first reaction was to dissuade him, but he soon changed his mind.
She had done everything she could.
She turned to Elliot and extended her hand to the knight.
“L-Let’s get out of here already.”
“Excuse me, ma’am.”
Jumping off the horse, Elliot grabbed Maxi's waist and lifted her into the saddle.
He then mounted the horse behind her and took the reins.
Before he knew it, they were moving away from the battlefield.
Maxi used his cloak to cover his face from the biting wind as he watched the thousands of flags fluttering.
The coalition army had surrounded the monsters.