By comparison, taking the initiative while the situation was still under control was undoubtedly the wiser course. If they could capture one or two key figures, they might be able to torture some intelligence out of them.
"Thank you for your guidance, Lord Antioch." After pondering it carefully, Priest Aaron bowed respectfully.
"Everything is the Lord's will!" Antioch said smoothly. Then, as though he had sensed something, several dazzling arrows of light appeared in midair without any movement from him. In an instant, they nailed four gray crows that were about to take flight to the trees.
Three seconds later, a blazing fireball shot out from the distant manor, and the explosion lit up the sky.
Antioch raised his head. His divinely enhanced vision crossed several hundred meters, allowing him to see Lynn and the others looking outside through the open window on the third floor.
Brown hair, medium build, handsome features...
That was the wizard named Carl, the one who had killed Blainey!
"Everyone, advance at full speed!" Antioch ordered without hesitation.
Since they had already been discovered, there was no need to hide any longer. The guards who had been advancing at a slow march immediately broke into a run. The clatter of armor rang out without end, like surging waves converging upon the fortress at the center from every direction...
After seven years, the manor gates were once again violently forced open. Guards armed with swords and shields formed squads of ten and methodically surrounded the entire castle.
Aaron charged ahead, leading several squads of guards through the main hall and toward the direction where Lynn and the others had been earlier.
After crossing the long, broad corridor, the guards in the front had barely entered the antechamber when they retreated one after another, their faces pale with terror.
Unfortunately, they were still one step too late. Several scorching fireballs fell from above like meteors and crashed into the crowd.
A violent series of explosions followed. The fireballs rapidly expanded and burst apart, turning the once orderly and tightly packed formation into a chaotic sea of people.
"Ah—"
Miserable screams accompanied the spray of blood and flying corpses. A thick stench of blood filled the air.
Although everyone participating in this operation was an elite selected from the armies of Nordland Territory and fully armed, they still lost their composure in an instant when faced with such powerful wizardry.
"Everyone fall back, form up, archers and crossbowmen, fire together!" Aaron, the only one who remained calm, raised his staff and shouted.
"Do not panic. Ella is with us!"
The disorderly troops immediately steadied themselves and regained their formation. White light glowed in everyone's eyes, their fear gradually faded, and an inexplicable courage filled their minds.
This was a first-circle divine spell—Remove Fear!
Under Aaron's command, the shield-bearing guards held their sturdy shields before them and advanced in large strides, while the guards behind them drew their bows and crossbows in perfect unison.
A coordinated long-range volley had always been the best way to deal with Wizard Apprentices!
The turtle-shell-like shield formation greatly reduced the power of ordinary wizardry. Magic Missile could not penetrate their defenses, and even powerful fireball spells could not achieve much.
The dense rain of arrows forced the Wizard Apprentices back again and again. They could only hide behind the walls, while Barton, the slowest to react, was struck in the back by a crossbow bolt and fell to the ground in a heap.
"Barton—!" Buck cried out anxiously, throwing himself forward and desperately trying to help his brother up.
Aaron, who had been waiting for this opportunity, gave another order. Dozens of heavy crossbows aimed at the two of them at once. As the triggers were pulled, a dense barrage of feathered arrows poured down like a meteor shower.
First-Circle Superior Spell—Ice Curtain
Joanne stepped in front of them without hesitation and raised her hand. A translucent curtain of water appeared in the air before her, then instantly froze into a wall of ice crystals.
Bang! Bang! Bang...
A series of dense impacts rang out. Ice crystal shards filled with frosty air scattered across the ground. In just two seconds, the unending arrow barrage shattered the Ice Curtain, and three stray arrows flew straight toward Joanne!
Having just used Magic Hand to complete an overclocked casting, Joanne had no time to create a second wall of ice. Behind her stood Buck and Barton...
I can't dodge!
Joanne bit down hard on her lips and forcibly stopped herself from evading. Her right hand gripped the sword hilt, yet she had no confidence that she could deflect every incoming arrow.
At that moment, three Magic Missiles flew in from the side and struck down the arrows with remarkable precision.
Joanne froze for a moment. Before she could feel any joy at surviving the ordeal, she saw seven more Magic Missiles fly past her from the side. Strangely, these magical constructs did not travel in straight lines, but in bizarre arcs that easily bypassed the shield wall and directly attacked the crossbowmen behind it.
The brief chaos temporarily stopped the ceaseless rain of arrows. Joanne, Buck, and Barton took the opportunity to hide behind a low wall, staring in surprise at Lynn and White Dove nearby as a thought sprang into their minds.
When had White Dove become so powerful?
But they quickly realized that White Dove was not the one acting, because in the next moment, twelve Magic Missiles condensed in midair and hovered beside Lynn.
Magic—Barrage!
With a thought from Lynn, more than a dozen missiles streaked toward the guards.
Having witnessed the strange nature of this spell, Aaron hurriedly directed the shield-bearing guards to gather together and stack their shields layer upon layer without leaving the slightest gap, forming a semicircle to protect the crossbowmen behind them.
However, to everyone's surprise, the dozen or so missiles all curved around the stacked shield wall and flew farther to the rear.
Had they missed?
Aaron considered it to himself, but quickly dismissed the possibility. If only one or two Magic Missiles had missed, that might have been possible. But if every single one had deviated from its path, it could only mean that their target had never been here in the first place!
Aaron abruptly turned his head. The twelve missiles struck the weathered pillars behind them almost simultaneously. Amid the billowing dust, the seven-meter-tall pillar toppled straight down.
"Scatter! Everyone, scatter!" Aaron shouted himself hoarse, raising his staff high as he cast the only protective divine spell he had mastered—Holy Word: Shield!
But it was clearly like trying to stop a chariot with a praying mantis's arms. The white light shield was crushed instantly the moment it formed beneath the enormous stone pillar. More than a dozen shield-bearers and crossbowmen who had gathered together were buried beneath it before they could escape.
When Aaron turned back again, Lynn and the others had already vanished.
After hesitating repeatedly and looking at the bloodied guards pinned beneath the pillar, crying out for help, Aaron gritted his teeth and said,
"Leave half the men behind to save them! The rest, follow me!"
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