Volume Five: Return from Beyond the Other Shore - Chapter 427: Counterattack (3)
Royce Weiss, Wright Weiss's younger brother, also participated in the operation. In order to gain merit at the end, when Wright decided to send a total of 200,000 men to blockade and 200,000 men to pursue Nid, he volunteered to be the temporary commander of the 200,000 men. In his view, 150,000 men were no match for 20,000, and with the 200,000 men blocking the perimeter constantly tightening the encirclement, the outcome of the battle was never in doubt from the start. He was already imagining the scene of escorting Nid back to receive the Pope's reward.
But reality slapped him hard in the face.
The Rebel Army force of less than 20,000 men sent to meet Nid appeared shabby, but was actually extremely tenacious; he completely underestimated the fighting ability of some of the individuals within them.
"Lunar Sea plus Lunarquake - Silver Waterfall!"
The ocean of light, suspended in mid-air, immediately became turbulent, as if a tornado had sprung up within it. The deafening roar of the giant waves of light, like a colossal wall, crashed down on the newly arrived group of paladins! After a deafening explosion, not a single paladin was left behind, not even a corpse or a fragment!
"Hey, don't embarrass yourself like that! Aren't there any better guys out there?"
The woman chuckled, and with a flick of her sword, a golden rune exploded into thousands of dazzling Light Gun, densely packed and aimed at the ground. At her command, the Light Gun rained down like a golden downpour, tearing through countless paladins who hadn't had time to dodge. Their mangled corpses hung from the Light Gun like twisted, giant flowers.
From afar, Royce watched in horror. Initially captivated by the woman's beauty, he now only wanted to stay far away from this monster in human form. Of the two hundred thousand men directly attacking, half were held back by her alone. Every swing of her sword claimed dozens, even hundreds! A surging sea of light, small golden moons floating in the air constantly radiating scorching lasers towards the ground, and roaring storms of silver-white light spreading in all directions—like endless Light Gun ... Despite the battle lasting so long, not a single person had managed to get within a hundred meters of her! Even the long-range bombardment from high-level Divine Spellcaster was easily neutralized!
However... Royce wasn't in a hurry.
This woman is incredibly strong, ridiculously so. He even felt she could crush all the Templar Knight except for the Chief, whose background was unknown.
But in the end, there was only one person.
Although no one present could defeat her, or even contend with her, as long as troops were continuously deployed, they could entangle her and restrict her range of movement with heavy sacrifices.
Clearly, Bradwich herself was not in a fighting condition, so among the 20,000 Rebel Army, the only one with truly exceptional combat power was this woman.
After we've tied her down... the remaining troops can then calmly go and capture Bradwich.
They committed 100,000 men to the battle against the women, while the remaining 100,000 were tasked with defeating an enemy force that was only one-fifth their size.
This is the banks of the Is River.
The Rebel Army had always been resisting the Papacy's army with their backs to the river.
The Is River is extremely wide, and every spring it is turbulent. Now, it's more like a small, turbulent lake than a river. The Rebel Army could force their way across, but they wouldn't be foolish enough to do so. After all, if the Divine Spellcaster launched a long-range bombardment during the crossing, they would be finished.
This battlefield had no forests or mountains, only scorched yellow earth in front and a raging river behind. The surrounding area was also sealed off by the Papacy, leaving them nowhere to hide or escape. The Rebel Army had no room for trickery or schemes; all they could do was fight to the death.
"Drink it all!!!!"
A revolutionary fighter roared as he clashed with a paladin. The Spirit Artifact, still damp with blood, pierced the paladin's throat through a gap in his armor, snatched the sword from his hand, and turned to attack three knights surrounding him from behind! But before the attack could land, he was simultaneously pierced through the chest by three of their spears, and in the instant he lost all ability to move—
"I swear to protect Lord Nid with my life!!!"
With his last strength, he crushed the spirit stone bomb hidden in his hand. The violent shockwave engulfed him and the three paladins, leaving only four charred corpses in the smoke.
"Hold on! At least half of them are being held off by Miss Haoyue! We cannot fall!!"
A female official roared to boost morale, her Treasure Artifact- grade battle sword flashing with light and shadow. Her left hand continuously fired fireballs generated by her supernatural abilities, which exploded upon contact with anyone. In total, no fewer than forty paladins had already been turned into corpses by her. However, in the instant she turned her head, an arrow of holy light shot from a hundred meters away shattered her skull.
"Die! Die!!! You lackeys of the Vatican!!!!"
The warriors with Physical Enhancement System tore off the heads of two paladins, their upper bodies instantly reduced to charred remains by divine flames. The next warriors charged over their corpses, roaring, but their Greatsword were swallowed by the wave of paladins charging again before they could even touch their enemies. Arrows of holy light rained down like raindrops. The few defensive ability users in the Revolutionary Army hastily deployed their defenses, constantly squeezing out their remaining strength to hold on. Even so, after each volley of arrows, at least dozens more warriors lay dead on the ground.
Even so, the soldiers did not yield, stubbornly resisting wave after wave of attacks from the Papal army on this desperate riverbank.
If what initially drove them to fight was their sense of responsibility as revolutionary fighters and their reverence for Nid, now it is entirely their innate biological fighting instinct that sustains them.
Deep within the heavily guarded territory of the Revolutionary Army, Nid sat on a rock, surrounded by shields erected by several defensive ability users, watching the distant battle unfold.
Unlike the hundreds of elite warriors who were protecting him with a tragic and resolute expression, Nid's expression was calm. Several times, divine lasers shot from afar flew over their heads, but he didn't even frown.
The light of the spiritual flames reflected in his eyes, swirling and dancing, yet it could not obscure his heterochromatic pupils.
"Lord Nid!"
A female official ran up to Nid, looking extremely anxious.
"The Papacy—the Papacy's cavalry and infantry have broken through the third layer of defense! They're getting closer and closer!"
"Yes, I know."
But Nid remained calm.
But this calmness is not because one believes they can win and therefore feel confident of victory, nor is it because one believes they will lose and therefore feels resigned to defeat; it is simply "calmness."
"Forgive my bluntness, but we must consider the risk of crossing the river--"
"The Divine Spellcaster behind them have been keeping a close eye on the river. Once we're on the water and can't move freely, we're doomed."
In that case--
"And don't even think about using teleportation to get me out of here. The distance you can teleport someone is less than a kilometer. Why do you think they'd seal off this entire area? If I teleport out, I'll inevitably fall into their encirclement."
"But..."
"I know you finally managed to pick me up, but you can't take me back... If that's what you think, that's okay. If the worst happens, it's not your fault."
"Lord Nid..."
The female official shut her mouth with a complicated expression, while Nid continued to watch the distant battle and the paladins' increasingly approaching lines of troops, his eyes slightly narrowed.
(How many of us have died so far? A total of 20,000 came, and now there are probably less than 7,000 left.)
What a pity, such a pity!
If I had a better way, the death toll could have been reduced—no, I should say that if I had obediently gone back instead of insisting on turning against the Papacy's army, those thirteen thousand people wouldn't have died.
However, Nid is more concerned with other things now than those.
My own hands and feet.
My gaze shifted slightly downwards, revealing limbs wrapped in bandages, still struggling to even stand.
But he could sense something different, like a withered tree sprouting new buds, a certain power surging within him.
(I see... So that's what Miss Sin Annihilation meant when she said "some of her own cells got mixed in too"...)
Once fully recovered, the body's strength will likely be even greater.
"Lord Nid, they... they're here!!!!"
"Oh?"
Using them as the origin of the polar coordinates, with the river behind them, a 100-degree range in front of them guarded by the bright moon, and other revolutionary fighters within a 40-degree range to the left and right. Now, to the left, flames soar and shouts of battle continue, while to the right, suddenly, all is quiet.
Looking over there, the warriors who had been guarding the area were now few in number, replaced by a large contingent of nearly a thousand knights clad in blood-stained armor. One by one, the paladins drew their longswords and pointed them at them, while the Divine Spellcaster in the rear had also locked onto their position.
"Have we finally broken through the last line of defense!?"
The hundreds of warriors guarding Nid immediately drew their weapons, surrounding Nid and becoming his last line of defense. The female officer was no exception; she had already silently recited her last words. She had long ago made up her mind that even if she died on the battlefield, she would ensure her leader's safe escape.
The atmosphere was extremely tense; the air seemed to freeze under the murderous intent brewing between the two sides.
For a moment, only the surging sound of the great river could be heard in this space.
The first to speak was the knight with the most ornate armor in the entire knightly contingent. He pushed through the ranks, walked to the very front, and wore a victorious smile.
"Finally, finally caught up with you, Bradwich! Do you know how much trouble we've suffered because of your escape?"
And Nid--
He remained completely calm.
"I'm so sorry, may I ask who you are...?"
"Royce Weiss, the younger brother of Wright Weiss, the commander of the pursuit team. This is the name of the man who will be taking you back to the Cathedral of the True God to claim credit. Remember it well."
Royce grinned smugly, revealing a set of bright white teeth.
"The Pope will be very pleased to see you, and might even appoint me as an Archbishop. I have to thank you for that, young Nid!"
"You bastard! How dare you!"
The lady-in-waiting beside Nid could no longer contain herself and was about to raise her longsword and step forward—
"Get out of my way."
Nid stopped him.
It was just a simple sentence, and Nid's expression didn't change.
But the female official suddenly felt a pang of heart palpitation, without any reason, which left her frozen on the spot.
Ignoring the female official, Nid lowered his head apologetically.
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Royce, 'When the Leader of two armies are talking, their servants must not interrupt'—it seems my men don't even understand this basic etiquette. I've been too lax in their discipline, and you must be ashamed."
"... cut."
Royce was a little confused for a moment.
He observed the young man carefully.
Sitting on a rock, his limbs were wrapped in bandages, and his exposed skin was covered with many unhealed wounds. He didn't look like someone who could fight at all.
But his expression was calm, eerily calm.
"... Tch, what an annoyance, you pretentious brat... I'm not going to waste my breath on you! We've sealed off this area, your main force is over ten kilometers away, this little rescue team only has about a thousand men left, that Qipao Woman is still dealing with our advancing forces, and that troublemaking devil over there can't possibly get here! Just surrender obediently, Bradwich, you have nowhere to run!!!"
"That seems to be the case..." Nid nodded.
Then I asked a strange question.
"What time is it, Mr. Royce?"
"Ha?"
"I want to know what time it is, I need the exact time. Anyway, I'm a dead man, so please grant me this small wish."
"... So what if it's 5:15 in the morning?"
"Um... thank you so much, Mr. Royce-- "
Nid smiled.
This was the first time he had smiled.
"For the sake of telling me about time, I will definitely visit your brother's grave this time next year."
"Hmph, you—what!?"
Just then, Royce's magical communication device beeped.
"Lord Royce? The situation has changed! Wright's rear has been attacked!!!"
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Probability exam this afternoon QAQ