Not long afterward, news arrived that Vortigern had appeared on one front and Arthur had personally led an expedition there, accompanied by Merlin.
Beneath the radiance of this towering tree, you felt a faint sense of foreboding. Moreover, the soldiers on this front had gradually begun to dwindle.
Not long after those two pieces of news arrived, three more followed. Vortigern's soldiers seemed to have been disappearing recently, with no one knowing where they had gone. Then came the news that Vortigern and Arthur had met, and Vortigern had defeated Arthur single-handedly.
You were stunned for quite a while upon receiving the news. How long had it even been? Vortigern had already defeated Arthur?
You knew it absolutely had something to do with that towering tree. Soon afterward, you received word that Arthur was summoning the Knights of the Round Table.
It just so happened that Vortigern's soldiers on this front seemed to have encountered some sort of problem recently and had not made any movements. You handed command over to Gareth, then set off with three thousand knights, Kay, and Mordred.
When you arrived, you discovered that fewer than ten Knights of the Round Table had come. The others had reported being held up by Phantasmal Species. As for the many Phantasmal Species that had suddenly appeared in Britain, there was no need to say who was behind them—it had to be the work of that towering tree.
The only Knights of the Round Table to arrive in the end were Kay, Gawain, Lancelot, Bedivere, Tristan, Agravain, Mordred, Percival, and the others.
Yet when you arrived, you were told that King Arthur and Merlin had set out to search for something. Before leaving, they had assigned you the task of holding Vortigern back, with you serving as commander.
Most of the Knights of the Round Table knew you well and understood your strength, so there was little dissatisfaction. However, it was as though Vortigern had calculated exactly when you would arrive. Before you could formulate a plan, word came that Vortigern was alone on the battlefield, demanding that you come out and fight him.
Left with no choice, you led the Knights of the Round Table to the battlefield. Seeing that Vortigern had brought no soldiers, you knew that bringing more knights would be useless. Thus, you only brought several Knights of the Round Table to the front lines and faced Vortigern in the distance.
Vortigern stood there in black armor, a sword in hand. You could sense that the aura he exuded was incomparably stronger than it had been three years ago. Furthermore, you could feel that he was giving off the same aura as that tree.
Vortigern showed no surprise at your arrival. He gazed at you from afar with a calm expression, showing not the slightest trace of urgency.
Just as you were about to say something, Vortigern suddenly vanished from where he stood.
All of you immediately became alert.
Clang!
The sharp sound of steel striking steel suddenly rang out beside you. Vortigern had appeared before you with his sword in hand. Fortunately, you had reacted in time; otherwise, there was no way you would still be standing here unscathed.
If it had been you from three years ago, you might truly have failed to react and been struck by Vortigern's attack. But you were no longer who you had been three years ago.
In an instant, all of you prepared for battle, while Vortigern launched his assault without another word.
Under Vortigern's offensive, only you, Gawain, and Lancelot were able to withstand his attacks. Everyone else looked as though they were barely managing.
You could clearly feel that Vortigern had not even used his full strength, yet he had already forced you into such a state. If he went all out, perhaps none of you would be his match.
Moreover, you could sense that Vortigern was far stronger than he had been three years ago. It was as though someone had blessed him.
A blessing?
For a moment, you thought of the towering tree. Yet Vortigern seized the opening caused by your hesitation and slashed a wound across your arm. You quickly came back to your senses and focused on dealing with him.
His figure moved continuously, occasionally turning into an afterimage and appearing beside someone else. You could only barely withstand his fierce offensive.
The Knights of the Round Table, once undefeated and comprised entirely of elites, had become hesitant under Vortigern's assault, completely suppressed. That alone was enough to prove just how powerful Vortigern was.
Taking advantage of an opening, you slowly gathered magical energy upon your blade, charging up before Vortigern's next attack and striking out.
Soon, seizing the chance when Vortigern appeared before you, you suddenly launched an attack at him, completely ignoring his own attack. It was a move that inflicted a thousand points of damage on the enemy while dealing eight hundred to yourself. Yet Vortigern seemed unfazed by it. He took your attack head-on and landed his own attack on you as well.
Both of you were sent flying backward. Vortigern only retreated a dozen or so steps before stopping, while you staggered back more than thirty.
You did not dare relax in the slightest and quickly said during that opening, "That tree behind him has blessed him. He is incredibly strong now, so be careful."
You could clearly sense the tree's aura on Vortigern, and Vortigern's strength was extraordinarily great. Thus, only a blessing could explain why he had become so powerful. Just as Gawain had received the sun's blessing, Vortigern had received the blessing of that mysterious tree behind him.
Only then did the Knights of the Round Table understand. No wonder they could only be relentlessly suppressed even when fighting together. It turned out that Vortigern had received that tree's blessing.
Vortigern, however, denied your words. "White Knight Pantaleon, you are mostly right. The tree behind me has given me a blessing, but my blessing also contains the blessing of Britain's land! As long as the tree behind me does not fall, and Britain does not perish, I will forever possess my current strength! I may even become stronger!"
Facing Vortigern's words, every one of you wore a grave expression. No one doubted him, because Vortigern had no reason to deceive you.
If what Vortigern said was true, then you might truly be in for a difficult battle against him.
The sun was about to set, and Gawain's blessing was about to disappear. The situation was far from favorable, yet none of you retreated.
Because you were the Knights of the Round Table!
You carried the honor of King Arthur!
A knight's honor did not permit you to retreat even half a step!
A knight's courage did not permit you to shrink back!
If you perished in this battle, future generations would sing of your deeds and praise your actions!
All of you stood together, swords and bows in hand, staring at Vortigern without fear.
For some reason, Vortigern suddenly laughed as he looked at you. You seemed to hear something within that laughter, and a trace of confusion appeared in your gaze as you looked at him.
But Vortigern gave you no chance to voice your question and directly launched an attack against you.
Innate Skill: Unyielding White Dragon activated!
Your strength became noticeably greater than before. Holding the Sword of the Holy Knight, you continuously clashed with Vortigern. At this moment, the Knights of the Round Table behind you did not interfere. It was not that they did not want to, but because before the battle, you had told them that no one was to interfere when you fought Vortigern.
They were knights as well, so they naturally understood the meaning behind your words.
If they interfered, it would be disrespectful to him—disrespectful to a knight!
Talent: Chivalric Spirit evolved! Obtained Innate Skill "Perfect Knight" Innate Skill: Perfect Knight activated! Talent: Sword Heart Clarity evolved! Obtained Innate Skill "Holder of the Sword" Talent: Holder of the Sword activated!
At this moment, you actually fought Vortigern to a standstill by yourself, even faintly gaining the upper hand over him.
But you knew that against the battle-hardened Vortigern, your sudden surge in strength had merely caught him off guard. Your fighting style was also too straightforward. Sooner or later, Vortigern would see through it and return the battle to its previous state, suppressing you once more.
However, after the appearance of this big tree, you had discovered that your bloodline seemed to have undergone some sort of change. Your physique and endurance had been strengthened like never before. Fighting Vortigern in a drawn-out battle for an entire day would not be a problem.
The Knights of the Round Table watched your battle against Vortigern, and they were astonished by your strength.
However, at that very moment, an enormous number of Phantasmal Species suddenly appeared around you for some unknown reason, catching you all off guard.
Yet the Knights of the Round Table quickly reacted. As you looked at those Phantasmal Species, a moment of carelessness allowed Vortigern to slash a wound into you. But you also noticed that the Phantasmal Species were not approaching your side. You knew this was Vortigern's doing.
The battle began. The Knights of the Round Table worked together seamlessly and handled the enormous number of Phantasmal Species with ease. However, you gradually began to fall into a disadvantage against Vortigern. Fortunately, your physical abilities and vast reserves of magical energy allowed you to temporarily fight him evenly.
Your battle, along with that of the Knights of the Round Table, lasted for two days and two nights. Several times, you had wanted to release your Noble Phantasm, but Vortigern interrupted you each time. Whenever you tried to widen the distance between you, he closed in again, completely denying you any opportunity to release your Noble Phantasm.
During the battle, a question also arose in your heart. Why did Vortigern not release his Noble Phantasm?
Did he not have a Noble Phantasm?
Impossible. Someone as powerful as Vortigern should not lack a Noble Phantasm.
Was he unable to release it?
That should not be the case either.
Had he already released his Noble Phantasm?
You felt that possibility was more likely, but you did not know what form Vortigern's Noble Phantasm took, nor did you know whether it was still active.
Although the other Knights of the Round Table continued fighting, apart from Mordred and Gawain, all the other knights had begun to show signs of fatigue on their faces. After all, they were different from the three of you.
Both you and Mordred seemed to have been affected by that tree, while Gawain showed no fatigue because it was daytime and the sun was dazzlingly bright.
The Phantasmal Species only grew more numerous. Your knights had already joined the battlefield when the Phantasmal Species first appeared, but they could do nothing against the endless tide. Even when Mordred and the others released their Noble Phantasms, the gaps were swiftly filled by the Phantasmal Species that came afterward.
You roughly understood something. If that enormous towering tree was not brought down, the Phantasmal Species would likely continue appearing across Britain without end.
But at this moment, none of you could break free. You were all entangled by the enemies around you and naturally could not make your way to that tree.