Chapter 174: A War That Barely Deserved the Name (4)

Raion swung his sword with satisfaction, severing the giants’ arms.

Swaak! Kwoom!

The bodies of the giants—made only of iron and various ores—could not withstand the sword imbued with adamantium, blue mithril, and aura.

“This should be enough.”

“You think just changing your sword means you’ve already won against me?”

A derisive laugh burst from his opponent’s mouth.

The armless giants vanished like smoke.

“Bangun, anjeun anu haus kana gelap sareng pati (Arise, ye who crave darkness and death).”

This incantation carried an even more sinister energy than the previous two.

“Bangkit, anjeun anu nyandak pedang dina wates antara kahirupan sareng pati (Arise, ye who hold a blade on the boundary between life and death).”

This time, the valley’s ground and cliffs were silent.

Instead, the magic that flowed from Malphas’s fingertips turned into smoke that began to gather in midair, gradually shaping into human-sized forms.

As the smoke cleared, pitch-black full armor appeared.

Clank, clank.

The boundary between life and death—beings that longed for darkness and death.

Knights radiating pitch-black aura revealed themselves.

The ground beneath their feet seemed to rot away, blackening where they stood.

“Think you can handle these? I’d suggest you not mistake them for ordinary Death Knights.”

The strongest knights among the undead—the Death Knights.

Cursed beings who retained their full strength from life, turned undead, unable to die.

It was only natural they were called invincible.

Of course, since they possessed darkness and death as life force, holy power was their one and only weakness.

And Raion could wield aura imbued with the light of Zigasis—White Lightning Flash.

There was no way Malphas didn’t know that.

Clank! Clank, clank—!

The twenty fully-formed Death Knights drew the heavy, double-edged swords hanging at their waists.

“Kuhuhu! Now, prepare yourself!”

What kind of trick had he pulled to make him so confident?

Raion soon understood why.

“…Specific Analysis.”

[Target Information]

Name: Death Knight

Rank: S

Life: 0 / 0

Stamina: 0 / 0

Mana: ∞ / ∞

Abilities:

Aura Level 10

Blessing of Terrasion

Most of the information was as expected.

But Raion’s gaze stopped at the last line.

“Blessing of Terrasion? Is that the name of a god?”

As he pondered, the Death Knights charged forward, exuding crimson death aura.

Their eerie sword trails slashed toward him.

Raion swung his newly-forged sword, channeling the aura of White Lightning Flash.

Swaaaaak—!

A blinding white light carved a long horizontal arc.

Normally, the leading Death Knights should have disintegrated into dust.

Yet only white lines were etched across their torsos—they stood unharmed.

Instead, they emitted an even denser aura of death.

“What…?”

The outcome was far from what he had expected. Startled, Raion leapt back swiftly.

The emboldened Death Knights quickened their pace, closing the distance.

Papapapapak!

“Kuhahaha! Did you think my Death Knights would fall so easily? Keep struggling! Let’s see how long you can cling to life!”

Malphas looked on, amused, as if watching a trapped rat.

How long could the rat survive against the cat?

At the same time, Raion recalled the information he’d seen.

“Could it be… because of the Blessing of Terrasion? What even is that?”

Even with his life on the line, the question only deepened.

Then, just like when he had wondered about Grapheos, an alert sounded.

[Tip: Terrasion is the name of a Demon God.]

“A Demon God? You mean like Zigasis?”

[Tip: The ‘Wheel of Altered Fate’ is turning.]

[Tip: You are advised to overcome the ‘Blessing of Terrasion’.]

A strange alert briefly clouded his vision.

Through it, a Death Knight’s blade shot forward.

Shuaaa! Kang—! Cha-cheng!

Raion parried the sword hastily and countered, his blade slicing across their bodies in swift arcs.

The aura of White Lightning Flash continued to shimmer.

And yet, instead of weakening, the Death Knights’ death aura grew stronger.

“What am I supposed to do?”

The tip provided no further guidance beyond ‘overcome it.’

At least he now knew Terrasion was a Demon God.

And both Malphas and Decarsen had called the aura of White Lightning Flash the light of Zigasis.

Then the Blessing of Terrasion must indeed be a power opposing it.

“How exactly am I supposed to overcome it? Should I pour in stronger power?”

Raion focused his White Lightning Flash aura even further—

what had once been a broad surface condensed into a razor-thin line.

The aura condensed along the blade was unleashed toward the Death Knights.

Swaaaa…!

One Death Knight’s arm and waist were sliced cleanly through.

As the severed parts fell, another Death Knight’s strike lunged in.

Cha-cheng! Swaak!

“Focusing like this drains my strength too quickly.”

The aura output required extreme precision and concentration.

Meanwhile, Malphas’s expression—watching from a short distance—hardened.

“You cut down my children, blessed by Him?”

“If that ‘Him’ you speak of is a Demon God, then his blessing must be fading.”

“How dare you insult Him!”

The ever-grinning Malphas, for the first time, erupted in fury.

During that time, I struck down the Death Knights who had tried to thrust their swords into me.

Chwaaaak!

I had figured out the trick.

Because of that, six of the Death Knights had already turned to dust and vanished.

Now, fourteen Death Knights remained.

At the camp set up above the valley.

Inside his tent, Rasfer couldn’t hide the anxious expression on his face.

“What on earth is going on right now…”

It had already been quite some time since they had used the mages to rain down Lightning Lance into the valley below.

By now, there should have been a message from the Huffo Territory troops lying in ambush.

All they had to do was confirm the body of Harlan Mineta.

However, even after all that time, there was no news whatsoever.

Then, Spessen Akraden, who had gone out to check the situation, entered the tent.

“You’re back? What happened?”

“Well… the situation is strange. The forces we stationed in ambush within the valley are nowhere to be seen, and the troops sent toward the valley entrance are reportedly retreating toward Huffo Territory.”

“What? Why? Didn’t Marquis Drusar Huffo himself go to the valley entrance?”

He had made his move, judging it to be the perfect opportunity to claim the credit.

The trap and ambush had been flawlessly arranged.

Even if Harlan was a Sword Master, how could he possibly survive in that situation?

“It seems there was an ambush that we didn’t know about.”

“You mean Harlan Mineta already knew of our plan?”

“Even if he did, it wouldn’t matter. Besides, we have the Huffo Territory’s troops and the Lord of Conforta’s soldiers here with us.”

“That’s true… We’ll have to reorganize for now. But by the way, I haven’t seen Malphas for a while.”

Among the envoys, he was the one who had given them information about Turklan from the Kingdom of Mineta.

He was skilled at moving in secrecy—serving as both an informant and Rasfer’s right-hand man.

“I haven’t seen Malphas either.”

“Where on earth did he go?”

What Rasfer needed most at that moment was information about the battle’s progress.

Without Malphas, who usually handled such matters, it felt suffocating.

“For now, send the soldiers toward the valley entrance—”

He couldn’t finish the sentence.

A sudden commotion erupted outside.

“What’s going on?”

Spessen immediately lifted the tent flap to check.

A massive torrent of water was swirling through the center of the camp, sweeping everything around like waves.

It was clearly not a natural phenomenon.

“Your Highness! We’re under attack! The enemy seems to have launched an assault!”

No other forms of attack were visible.

But that alone was wreaking massive damage on their troops.

“Enemy? Could it be Harlan Mineta?”

“We’re not certain.”

The plan had been perfect—Harlan Mineta had taken the bait so easily.

Naturally, the rest of the operation should have gone just as smoothly.

Yet, looking at the situation now, it felt as if they had fallen into a trap instead.

“We must get you to safety, Your Highness.”

The magic tearing through the center of the camp was clearly of the highest tier.

At least a 5th-circle master—someone of royal court magician level. But where had such a person come from?

Even within the Kingdom of Mineta, there wasn’t a single 5th-circle mage.

So Rasfer didn’t believe Harlan Mineta had summoned reinforcements.

“Where the hell did that come from!”

“Perhaps returning to our own lands would be wiser.”

“I can’t do that!”

This was his one and only chance to repay the years of humiliation he had endured under the Kingdom of Moratz.

If he retreated now, not only might the kingdom brand him a coward or a traitor, but he would also lose any future chance to rise.

As his mind wavered, the Lord of Conforta, Marquis Derein Conforta, burst into the tent.

“Prince! What do we do? The troops are being swallowed by the magic!”

“I’m trying to find a solution! But aren’t you a mage yourself, my lord? Isn’t there something you can do?”

Indeed, Derein Conforta was also a mage— a 4th-circle master, hardly lacking in skill.

“Do you think that’s something I can handle? That’s not magic—it’s a calamity!”

The storm of water continued to swallow their troops whole.

Terrified soldiers threw down their weapons and fled.

The knights tried to maintain order, but against the relentless waves and chaos, it was nearly impossible.

“…For now, let’s retreat to the nearest Huffo Territory! Once we regroup there, we’ll strike at the royal capital again! Spessen, go and bring the princess immediately!”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

Princess Deborah was a crucial key in their bid to seize control of the Kingdom of Mineta.

The Lord of Conforta had been one of the central figures of the former royal faction and had allied with Prince Rasfer under the condition that she would become queen.

Without her, it wouldn’t be strange for him to switch sides at any moment.

“I’ll go to the princess.”

“No. You must take command of the mage division, my lord.”

Perhaps because they knew each other’s intentions too well, Spessen stepped forward, blocking Derein Conforta’s path.

“Very well.”

“A wise choice.”

For a moment, it seemed like tension might flare between them—but Derein backed down first.

Spessen immediately made his way toward the tent where Deborah was being held.

When he arrived, the guards had already fled.

Chwaruk—!

He pulled open the tent flap and entered.

Inside, Princess Deborah was imprisoned in an iron cell.

“What in the world is happening out there!”

Unable to see what was going on outside, Deborah’s irritation only grew as the cacophony echoed all around her.

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