Chapter 519
Chapter 519: The Civil War Has Ended. (3)
The assault troops charged towards the remaining enemies, high on their victory.
The tide had already begun to shift in favor of the Northern Army, and now the biggest threat, the priests, had been slain. Victory was all but assured.
Gathros could only watch with bloodshot eyes.
Ereness was maintaining a defensive stance, merely buying time without actively engaging in battle.
“You brat! How dare you!”
Boom!
Gathros desperately sought a way out of this situation, hoping that while he had Ereness occupied, the other priests could make their move.
But it backfired spectacularly.
Bang! Bang! Boom!
The black energy Gathros unleashed spread out mercilessly around him. It was clear he intended to inflict damage on the troops pushing through.
Ereness calmly emitted her own aura, focusing solely on blocking Gathros’ attacks.
In fact, her orders were not to engage but to protect her allies. Therefore, things were not going to unfold as Gathros wished.
Boom!
Gathros, in frustration, tried to take down Ereness but found it far from easy.
“Ugh… Guardian of the World Tree. Does this mean you have no intention of fighting me?”
“No.”
Ereness replied flatly.
Her goal was the extermination of the Salvation Society. To achieve that, she had to win this war.
For her, personal combat held no value or thrill.
Bang! Bang! Boom!
The prowess of both fighters was evenly matched.
Facing Ereness, the strongest of the Northern Army, was no small feat, proving that Gathros was indeed a formidable opponent.
But as long as Ereness had no desire for a duel, any continued struggle was futile.
“I made a mistake. I should have gone for the opposite side first.”
Ereness scoffed at Gathros, who ground his teeth.
“It’s pointless. The Saint has received the same orders as I.”
“What?”
“Our mission is merely to protect our allies and hinder the superhumans. We intended to rely solely on the strength of the soldiers and knights.”
Ereness straightened up, her voice as arrogant as ever.
“With the formation already in disarray, there was no way you could win this battle.”
“Shut up!”
Boom!
Angry, Gathros reached out again toward Ereness. The black energy collided with the green light, spreading out in all directions.
Ereness’ energy was steadily waning, as she had exerted herself heavily protecting her allies using spirits in the beginning.
Yet she still spoke with a relaxed tone.
“It seems the wizards’ battle has come to an end as well.”
“What?”
Gathros looked to the sky, feeling the magical barrier above him weakening.
That indicated troubles for his side’s magical forces.
*
The forces from the Saint’s side, who had flanked around, had finally surged near the center. The Delphine Army was doing their best to hold them back.
“Hold the line!”
“Protect the wizards!”
“We must endure!”
At that moment, a few soldiers from the Northern Army moved like ghosts and swiftly entered the center. It was none other than Caleb, the leader of the Lynx Smuggling Group, along with his assassins.
They had been lying in wait among the soldiers to strike at the wizards.
Whoosh!
The assassins approached their targets with fervor, launching their attacks against the wizards.
“Ugh! What the—!”
The wizards were focusing all their strength on magic suppression, leaving them no room to react. One by one, they fell to the assassins’ blades.
The remaining wizards also lost their focus.
“Done! Fall back!”
Caleb and the assassins killed only a few wizards before retreating. They didn’t need to wipe them all out. Their purpose was merely to disrupt the balance.
The troops from both the left and right flanks of the Northern Army that had pushed into the center suddenly withdrew like the tide, following a predetermined pact.
And the wizards from the Northern Army didn’t miss this brief disruption.
From the very back of the Northern Army, where all the wizards were being commanded, Vanessa quietly uttered,
“Fire Pillar.”
Boom!
A colossal pillar of fire began to rise at the center of the Delphine Army’s formation. Following that, various spells erupted from all directions.
The Northern Army wizards, freed from the magic suppression, surveyed the battlefield carefully and unleashed their magic.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Uaaah!”
“They failed the magic suppression!”
“The barrier’s breached! Get out of the way!”
Delphine Army wizards screamed as they collapsed. The surrounding soldiers met the same fate.
With allied troops penetrated deep into enemy lines, the Northern Army’s magical assault didn’t cover a wide area. But with the center collapsing, the battle was essentially resolved.
A significant number of Delphine Army wizards vanished after just a few attacks.
As the inner ranks fell to magic, the outer ranks faltered against the Northern Army, causing the Delphine Army to rapidly disintegrate.
Gathros retreated from his fight with Ereness, his face filled with despair.
“W-what, how, is this…?”
The so-called elite army of the kingdom, the Delphine Army, was crumbling in utter futility. With their magical forces breached, they couldn’t hold their ground with soldiers alone.
Gathros glared at Ereness with an expression of fury.
“All because of you…”
From the start, the magical forces of the Delphine Army had been inferior to those of the Northern Army. The Northern Army had wizards from the North, West, and East, including a 7-Circle Mage, Vanessa, so it was only natural.
The gaps were filled in by the High Priests of the Salvation Society. Their area attacks had to be countered by the wizards.
But once the priests were captured, the magical prowess of the Delphine Army was bound to reveal its limits.
No matter how hard they tried, they could only be overwhelmed.
“Waaaah!”
“Let’s keep pushing forward!”
“Don’t stop attacking!”
Now the only sounds around were the cheers of the Northern Army, completely ignoring Gathros.
‘The formation has collapsed!’
If only they had broken through to the center, they might have had a chance to turn the tide, but due to insufficient troops, they hadn’t even managed that.
Now the enemy forces were pushing forward with shields at the front.
Gathros’ head spun. Even in such a disorganized fight, being pushed back so pathetically felt surreal.
‘How could this result have emerged? Who’s in command here?’
The enemy had arranged their forces so appropriately, ruthlessly exploiting the slightest vulnerability in their ranks. It seemed they had meticulously planned how to deal with him and the priests.
He had been thoroughly outmaneuvered.
‘Is it Gillian?’
Gathros immediately thought of the strategist who had been commanding the Northern Army. However, he quickly dismissed that notion. The White Lion, Gillian, was also engaged in battle himself.
Then who could it be? There was someone capable of executing such a strategy among the Northern and Kingdom Armies, and that realization was deeply unsettling.
Gathros took a deep breath and turned to Ereness.
“Who is it?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, who is currently commanding and strategizing this great army?”
“Cough, cough, cough…”
Ereness chuckled for a moment.
Even she thought this battle was truly remarkable. Although the absence of the Kingdom’s Greatest Sword played a part, still, overwhelming the mighty Delphine Army was no small feat.
Recognizing the enemy’s weakness and acting immediately, combined with the wise deployment of her troops, one could call her nothing short of an exceptional strategist.
With a calm voice, Ereness replied.
“It’s Count Raybold. He was also the one who held you back and stalled for time at the last fortress. I must admit, I was a little surprised this time.”
“……!!!”
Gathros’ eyes widened in shock, and he trembled.
“T-that traitorous woman…”
He couldn’t help but feel an even greater shock than others.
When they had conspired against Raybold long ago, it was he and Raoul who had chosen Amelia.
With her low rank in succession, they thought she would crumble easily under surrounding pressure. In fact, wasn’t it the case that some of the Northern Lords had allied against her?
She had repeatedly caused difficulties for them. Still, given her weakened forces and considerably small army, they believed they could soon deal with her. Besides, she would have grown even weaker by relocating east.
And yet, here she was, causing this amount of damage in such a crucial battle!
“That gal has the audacity!”
Gathros could barely contain his rage. Being bitten by a dog he raised wouldn’t even breach the depth of his fury.
Truly, neither Giselle, Amelia, nor those two fools from the North had managed to completely ruin their grand plans.
Ereness gathered her strength and spoke.
“No need for your fury. You will die here too.”
At her words, Gathros flinched and glanced around. His allies were nowhere to be seen.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The ground shook as the Saint approached. Other powerful figures would undoubtedly come here once the battlefield was settled.
No matter how strong he was, it would be impossible for him to face the Saint. He was already barely managing to keep up with just Ereness.
“Hehehe…”
Gathros let out a hollow laugh. Ever since he had been ambushed by the Shadow Knight Group, he had been cautious in his movements, yet he found himself in this predicament again.
Even if Count Bazzak managed to capture Count Penris, this war was already headed towards defeat.
With the Kingdom Army and the Perdium Army closing in, the Duke would eventually be trampled.
Gathros glared at Ereness, his eyes bloodshot.
“Do you think this is the end?”
“It certainly isn’t the end. But your faction was the strongest, wasn’t it?”
“……”
“All of the Salvation Society spread across the continent will be destroyed. The united forces of Ruthania will methodically liberate the other kingdoms. I did not come to Ruthania Kingdom without reason.”
“Ha, haha…”
Indeed, it was true that the most substantial forces had been dispatched from the Ruthania side. However, the power of the Salvation Society was far beyond that.
The Salvation Society scattered across the continent, when united, could not be underestimated. Moreover, Executor Aiden had his own plans underway.
Gathros wore a faint smile.
“Revel in your momentary victory. Though you may have failed to seize the Ruthania Kingdom… you will ultimately fail to defend this place.”
“……”
“As soon as we find our king and sacred relic! All the divine descendants scattered across this continent will trample this kingdom mercilessly! You shall not withstand our wrath!”
The answer did not come from Ereness but from beside her.
“Shut it, you blasphemer.”
Parniel’s massive mace fell toward Gathros.
Boom!
Gathros raised his hands to block but was instantly pushed back. He felt as though his arm might shatter from the sheer force.
Zing—! Zing—! Zing—!
Suddenly, dozens of magic circles appeared around him. Gathros realized a 7-Circle Mage from the enemy had acted.
Vanessa had laid countless magic circles around, ensuring Gathros could not escape easily.
Now, should Gathros attempt anything foolish, her powerful spells would rain down upon him.
He was perfectly trapped. It seemed Gathros had nowhere to run.
Ereness raised her green energy again. If she, the Saint, and Vanessa joined forces, they could easily kill Gathros.
“Leave your desires here and die. The Salvation Society will fail.”
Even if Giselle had been killed by Kaien, the united force of Ruthania would be more than enough.
Many heroes from other kingdoms were fighting against the Salvation Society as well.
Gathros, still grinning maniacally, pulled a single jewel from his pocket.
“Wait for it… I will surely bring down this place into ruin.”
What he produced was a Life Gem. Sensing the potential for some kind of plot, Ereness and Parniel immediately sprang into action, even as magic erupted from Vanessa’s magic circles.
But Gathros was faster.
Crackle!
Boom!
From the shattered gem, darkness poured out instantly, engulfing Gathros.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The three attacks missed their mark. The black energy distorted and crumpled but not before Gathros vanished.
“What the…?”
Ereness clicked her tongue. She hadn’t anticipated such a technique. She had never seen that method in their previous battles.
It seemed that the Salvation Society had developed various techniques as time passed.
“I’ve missed the most crucial target. Had he come my way, I would have ground him into fine paste long ago.”
Parniel spoke with an indifferent expression. Then Ereness undid her armor and gazed at Parniel.
A peculiar tension hung in the air. The two began to silently glare at each other.
