Chapter 326
Chapter 326: It’s Not Easy, Even If You Know. (2)
Chwaaaak!
Belinda pierced through Grex, who was rushing at her, and spoke in a weary tone.
“Master, do you think we can reach our fortress?”
“Of course, don’t worry. We can definitely make it. Having the two of you here has greatly improved our chances. Ah, of course, I could have managed on my own, but having two people has made it easier, that’s for sure.”
At Ghislaine’s innocent reply, Belinda’s temperature soared.
“Why are you always so confident! We can’t even move forward properly!”
Both she and Gillian were significantly exhausted. Grex seemed to have increased in number since the beginning. There didn’t seem to be any way to break through.
Nonetheless, Ghislaine wielded his sword with a smile.
“Let’s hold on just a little longer. We’re almost there, right?”
“I’m completely out of strength! We haven’t made any progress! I will find a way, so you should go ahead!”
“No, we’ve come this far. Piote will help us.”
“What do you mean?”
Belinda forgot to wield her dagger for a moment, astonished by the unexpected response. Gillian was startled enough to take a sharp breath.
Piote was a priest. He was likely tending to the injured even now. He wouldn’t have the skill or ability to come this far and assist in combat.
Yet Ghislaine continued to smile.
“Now’s the time to trust our allies. There’s a reason he’s called a saint. Oh, or is it a saintess?”
Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaang!
There was no more time for chatter. The three fought against the Grex with gritted teeth. Their stamina had fallen to a point where even breathe carelessly would lead to a downfall.
In the fortress, there were ten priests excluding Piote.
These priests had come along with the army of investment victims from the previous war, but they had gotten stuck here after being captured by Ghislaine.
He had sent a letter to Bishop Porisco to receive a temporary assignment.
Those who had been dragged into the Forest of Monsters against their will were diligently using divine power to support the soldiers from behind.
Piote, who was busily running around with them, witnessed the knights preparing for deployment.
‘I have to help.’
Though he was also receiving combat training from Ghislaine, he still hadn’t been much of a help in an actual fight.
Piote looked over the battlefield again.
“Don’t retreat! If you do, it’s all over!”
“Push them back! Get those who are clinging on off!”
“Lord is coming! Quick, defend!”
Everyone was fighting in a frenzy. Seeing the overwhelming number of monsters charging at them made Piote dizzy.
He had never seen a scene of such slaughter in person. His stomach churned as if he might throw up.
Yet he couldn’t turn away. Battling the wicked was also a divine mission. Scriptures defined monsters as aberrations in the world.
The wizards were still steadfastly keeping their positions, clearly preparing for something as they didn’t cast magic.
And Piote realized that it was something that the lord should arrive to use.
While he glanced around, his eyes fell upon Alfoy, who was lying and gasping for breath.
‘…He’s not dead yet.’
An unexpected thought shot through Piote, and he shook his head in disbelief.
How could a priest of the goddess harbor such personal grudges!?
Despite being a detestable fellow, Piote resolved to forgive him and took a deep breath, closing his eyes.
“Oh, Goddess…”
Since receiving the revelation, Piote’s body had undergone unknown changes. The flow of divine power had become much smoother, and the quantity of that divine power increased rapidly the more he used it.
At first, he was puzzled, but he soon realized it was the blessing granted by the goddess. He thought there would surely be a corresponding responsibility for such power bestowed upon him.
Divine power began to surge from Piote’s body.
Guuuuuuung!
He didn’t know much about warfare. He was oblivious to when and how to fight.
But now the lord was isolated, and wizards were lurking for an opportunity. The knights were trying to clear a path.
Before starting the operation, the lord had called him separately to speak.
– This operation is quite dangerous. There might be a moment when the rescue team does not arrive in time. Your power will be needed then.
– Me? What should I do?
– There will come a moment when the rescue team or the fortress’s troops are in danger. You must help then. When I’m not around, you’ll have to make your own judgment.
– I-I can’t see those kinds of things. Please tell me when and how to act.
At this, Ghislaine shook his head.
– I don’t know when it will happen either. The situation on the battlefield keeps changing. However, you’ll get a feeling for it. If you keep a close watch on the flow of battle, you’ll know when to use your power.
He realized that now was exactly the moment Ghislaine had spoken of. It was indeed right to use his strength now.
As Piote stretched out his hands toward the sky with closed eyes, brilliant light began to emanate from his hands.
And from his mouth flowed the verses of the scriptures in a beautiful voice.
“Behold, you shall be strengthened in that power within the goddess. Put on the armor given to you, so you can resist the wicked.”
Paaaat!
The bright light began to spread in all directions. That light was expansive enough to envelop the entire area around the fortress.
“The goddess declares: I have given you the power to trample them and to command all abilities of your enemies; no one shall harm you.”
“Oh Goddess… please protect them.”
The moment Piote opened his eyes.
Jjeoong!
The spreading light suddenly vanished, leaving only a dazzling flash behind.
And right after the light disappeared…
“Uwaaaaa! What is this!”
“I feel so powerful!”
“My wounds are all healed!”
The soldiers engaged in battle realized their condition and shouted in horror.
They felt an overflow of strength. Minor injuries healed instantly. Even the injured who had been moved to the back sprang up.
The assertion that they felt powerful didn’t just mean they had regained stamina.
Puuurrrrkk!
“What? Why is this happening?”
A soldier who had hit Grex with his spear was shocked after realizing he had done it so easily, thinking he had become a Swordmaster. Grex’s head had shattered with just a single thrust.
This phenomenon occurred to everyone present in the fortress. The soldiers’ spears grew more powerful, and arrows flew with enough strength to pierce through multiple targets.
But that wasn’t all. A faint light began to emanate from everyone’s bodies.
“Kyyeeeek!”
Kang!
“…?”
The soldier who had come up against Grex’s claws wore a bewildered expression.
If those powerful claws dug into flesh, tearing should be the norm. Many soldiers had already suffered severe injuries from the same attack.
Yet Grex’s assault was blocked by the light emanating from the soldier’s body. The soldier sustained no injury.
“Ah, ha ha ha!”
The soldier laughed heartily as he went ahead and smashed Grex’s head with his spear. This changed the game. The numerous Grex no longer seemed scary at all.
With the overflow of strength, their attack speeds naturally increased.
Pppurpppppppp!
“Kyyeeeek!”
Empowered by newfound confidence, the soldiers frantically swung their spears without caring for their bodies. The arrows rained down on the battlefield even faster than before.
At first, they were bewildered, but they quickly realized who had performed such a miracle.
“The saintess performed another miracle!”
“The goddess is protecting us!”
“Waaaaaa! Let’s kill them all!”
The morale of the soldiers soared to an unrecognizable degree.
Seeing this, Piote smiled and wobbled. Blood streamed from his nose, but he didn’t care.
“That’s it… Now we can save the lord.”
Piote muttered to himself and then closed his eyes, collapsing on the spot.
There was no way he could use such immense power and remain unharmed. Piote had indeed used all his strength without leaving even a bit for his own protection.
And the dispatched priests, watching him collapse, trembled.
“Wh-What is this…?”
“How could a lowly priest possess such power…?”
“Is it really true that the rumors were accurate?”
They had heard the rumors about Piote being a saintess. Of course, those priests who knew Piote was male scoffed and dismissed the rumors.
They figured that the peasantry from the North were just getting overly pretentious after encountering divine power.
After all, even the ones captured by Ghislaine were held in high regard by the ignorant folk.
But now it became apparent that such power could not simply be dismissed as mere rumors.
“I-I need to report this…”
“Will they believe it? I don’t think they would…”
“I don’t know…”
The power shown by Piote wasn’t something an ordinary priest could wield. They had never seen a saintess, but surely one would need to possess such power to demonstrate feats like that.
The priests wore complicated expressions. They felt both jealous and empty to see the nameless priest they always dismissed wield such power.
‘Regardless of how unfair divine power is… Isn’t this just too unfair?!’
While the priests simmered with jealousy, the miraculous power shown by Piote temporarily altered the tide of battle.
“Kyyeeeek!”
The oncoming Grex momentum waned. The number of Grex going down outweighed those that were rushing in.
And that brief gap wasn’t missed by Kaor.
“Now.”
The knights were already prepared to charge. Though they hesitated a moment in shock, it actually worked to their advantage.
Divine power surged through the knights’ bodies. They concentrated all the mana that would have been used for defense into their legs.
“Let’s go!”
Kaor and 400 knights leaped down from the fortress.
The charge of the Knights of Penris could break through even thousands of soldiers in formation.
Though there were no words exchanged, a power even greater than that radiated from their legs, exploding into action.
Kwaaang!
“Kyyeeeek!”
Nothing could stop them as they charged forward, each Grex that tried to tackle them met with instant destruction.
The knights didn’t look sideways. They charged directly, piercing through the red wall that stood before them.
On the other side, the situation of the three was similar to that of those in the fortress.
Ghislaine’s eyes shone redder as he smiled.
“See? I knew Piote could do it.”
Belinda and Gillian also smiled, gripping their weapons tightly.
“Indeed, Master had it all planned out.”
“I will take the lead, my Lord.”
The stamina of the three had fully returned. Although their mana hadn’t replenished, they felt a greater strength than before.
The attacks from the Grex couldn’t inflict wounds on Belinda and Gillian. All they needed to do was charge forward.
“Alright, let’s go. This strength won’t last long.”
Kwaaang!
Ghislaine swung his sword and broke through the wall of Grex once more. The other two disregarded defense and ran ahead.
Focusing all their strength on attack, the earlier sluggish breakthrough was achieved once again.
Kagggggggggg!
“Kyyeeeek!”
As if they were enveloping the Grex on both sides, the knights led by Kaor closed in on Ghislaine’s group.
The Grex caught in between were torn apart as the overpowered knights charged without reserve, a level of strength they simply could not contend with.
Even as new Grex surged to fill the gaps, thanks to the support pouring down from the fortress, the knights and Ghislaine’s group steadily advanced.
And finally, the knights and Ghislaine’s group met.
Kwaaang!
Ghislaine blew away the Grex blocking their path and laughed menacingly.
“Hey, you guys were supposed to keep guard over the fortress.”
Kaor and the knights chuckled in response.
“We don’t listen well, just like the lord.”
“Yeah, yeah, but thanks to that, we can go faster. Let’s go!”
Ghislaine, Gillian, and Kaor took the lead. The knights followed behind. Belinda snuck in the middle and said.
“Ugh, I’m tired. I really need a break now.”
Kwaaaaanng!
The Penris Knights led by Ghislaine boasted a breakthrough ability that could easily be considered the best in the kingdom.
They displayed astonishing power that matched their acquired skills and reputation.
The Grex couldn’t even cling on properly and were mercilessly torn apart.
The active attacks from the fortress made it easy for Ghislaine and the knights to break through.
“Stop any approach from the rear!”
Galbarik shouted directions from the fortress. In alignment with his words, the catapults were repositioned.
Kwaang! Kwaang! Kwaaaang!
Dozens of stones flew at once, concentrating their fire on the Grex chasing behind the knights. Simultaneously, arrows rained down from the towers built within the fortress.
Thanks to this, Ghislaine and the knights were able to reach the front of the fortress safely.
Then a roar echoed from the fortress as if the sky would break.
“The lord has arrived!”
“Hold on just a little longer!”
“Waaaaaah!”
Cheered on by the soldiers, Ghislaine and the knights climbed up the fortress. Thanks to the ropes they had set beforehand, they managed to ascend with just a few running starts.
Covered in blood, Ghislaine shouted as he decapitated a Grex climbing up after him.
“Are there any stragglers?”
“There are none!”
The knights shouted back heartily and hurriedly spread out to assist the soldiers.
With Ghislaine’s return, the morale of the soldiers skyrocketed.
But still, the number of Grex remained vast. Despite all their fighting, the red tide roaring through the forest and ground had yet to end.
Piote’s blessing seemed to have lost its strength now, for the light emanating from the soldiers’ bodies flickered dimly.
It was time to show their prepared finishing blow.
“Vanessa!”
As Ghislaine shouted, Vanessa, who had been conserving her strength, stepped forward.
Guuuuuuung!
At the same time, an enormous amount of mana began to press down around the fortress.
