Aid, Heal, Defend, May the Blossoms Last Forever!

Chapter 17: Aid, Heal, Defend, May the Blossoms Last Forever!

Linton and Iris hid under a tree off to the side, quietly watching the two sides clash.

A warrior severed a knight's arm with a longsword, and a knight drove a spear into a warrior's chest. Neither side seemed to have any intention of leaving the battlefield intact.

Although their battle was fierce, the number of participants wasn't actually decreasing. Every time someone died, they would respawn like players and rejoin the fray.

"Why is it... a loop?" Iris asked Linton with confusion.

Even though their time together was still relatively short, she had gradually developed the excellent habit of directly asking Linton whenever she encountered something she didn't understand.

Linton placed his hands behind his back and slowly said, "About five hundred years ago, a dark kingdom appeared on the Calvi Continent. You know about it, right?"

Iris nodded. "The Kingdom of Palenke. I saw some of its history in the Knights Order's library before, but most of the information was vague, with very few specific records."

There were definitely records, and for no other reason than the nation's power was so immense that it waged war against all other nations on the continent single-handedly.

As for the scarcity of details, perhaps it was because the war had engulfed the entire continent, causing everyone to focus on defending their homeland and having no inclination to record the deeds of this aggressor.

Although the Kingdom of Blossoms had one of the longest histories among existing nations, its national strength was relatively weak due to the gods' laissez-faire attitude. It was naturally caught up in the conflict. There was even a saying that the Kingdom of Palenke once pushed close to the walls of Falasong, the capital of the Kingdom of Blossoms, nearly annihilating it.

"Those warriors with shields and swords are the royal guards of the Kingdom of Palenke, and those fighting them are the elite knights of the Flower Knights."

"But after so many years, why do they still exist? Even residual will should have been worn away by now."

"You're right," Linton said. "They indeed perished long ago. The people we see now, including the warriors of Palenke, are no longer their original selves but rather fakes summoned by a Grand Summoner."

"And the name of this Grand Summoner is Bobby Wendell."

"Master Wendell?!"

Iris finally couldn't help but exclaim.

Bobby Wendell was the most renowned summoning mage in the court of the Kingdom of Blossoms. Many summoning techniques passed down to this day were said to have been continuously improved based on his magic.

According to the level classification provided by the system, a Grand Summoner was equivalent to a super-tier combatant of level eighty or above.

If it was such a super NPC, it wasn't entirely surprising that their will could still linger here after five hundred years.

But Iris still found it hard to believe. "Is it who I think it is? I remember in the Knights Order's records, Master Wendell indeed went missing during the war with Palenke. I didn't expect it was due to an encounter battle with the enemy here... So, are the surrounding anomalies because of him?"

"Something like that," Linton replied ambiguously.

"This Master Wendell used Forbidden Secret Arts, causing his soul to be tainted by the filth from the Abyss. Even his most fundamental summoning magic transformed into summoning undead creatures."

"Due to his soul being corrupted, his consciousness gradually became blurred, his memories chaotic, and he even forgot why he came here. The fundamental reason why he continuously summons knights and warriors to fight each other is that this was the last scene he witnessed when he still had a clear consciousness. After that, his consciousness fell into a hazy state, and he entered an infinite loop until his power completely dissipated."

"Of course, if it weren't for the Abyss's filth allowing him to touch the boundary of the Spirit of Life and Death, even as a renowned Grand Summoner, he couldn't have existed for five hundred years. Even so, time has eventually worn away most of his power. The strength of these knights is even less than yours now."

"Hey! Am I that weak?" Iris retorted indignantly, then continued her question, "So, why are we here?"

"To retrieve his relics," Linton said. "Wendell was a great summoning mage, and I'm also half of one. His relics can greatly enhance my strength."

"As for how to proceed... let's join the battlefield first! Only when one side temporarily gains the upper hand in the struggle can we hear the concluding remarks of the person behind the scenes."

"I understand!"

Iris raised her knight sword, about to charge forward, but Linton raised his hand to stop her.

"Don't be so hasty. If you rush forward like this, you'll be seen as a pebble disturbing the calm water, disrupting the balance of the scene, and then be focused-fired and instantly killed by both the knights and warriors."

Iris's beautiful brows furrowed slightly. "Then what should I do?"

Linton pointed to the battlefield and said, "Observe those knights carefully."

The puppet girl followed his gaze and looked closely.

The knights' desire to attack didn't seem very high. Although they were charging, they were mostly focused on defensive counter-attacks, maneuvering with apparent ease. The knight leading them, while fighting, would occasionally glance towards the mountain pass, as if expecting something.

"Their combat power should be stronger than their opponents, but why aren't they directly breaking through? And they look like... they're waiting for reinforcements?"

"You're half right," Linton's voice sounded somewhat ethereal. "The knights know they might be the stronger side on the frontal battlefield, but simply appearing stronger doesn't guarantee victory. When a commander realizes they absolutely cannot defeat the enemy, they have two choices—retreat, or hold their ground and await support."

"But behind them lies an endless plain and small towns where ordinary people live. The only city with defenses is called Falasong. So they have no retreat, and can only hope for reinforcements to arrive."

"They didn't get them, did they?" A touch of sadness suddenly welled up in Iris's heart.

Once the flames of war were ignited, there were no winners between the two sides.

"Unfortunately, you are correct."

Linton snapped his fingers, and points of starlight immediately appeared around them, coalescing into knights with solemn expressions.

"In hundreds of years of endless cycles, their hope was never answered, yet they never gave up. So, Miss Knight, do you think we can become their reinforcements?"

"Of course!"

Iris gripped her knight sword and softly recited the slogan she had chanted since childhood.

"Aid, Heal, Defend, May the Blossoms Last Forever!"

The eyes of the knights summoned by Linton suddenly became lively, like roses that had endured hardship welcoming the warm spring breeze, transforming into moving piety.

"May the Blossoms Last Forever!"