Chapter 144
Daniel's spells were rapidly dwindling, depleted by the relentless pursuit and the sleepless night of running. At this point, a mage without spells was practically powerless, and the judiciary officials were closing in, tightening their grip on the fleeing group.
A fully-equipped fourth-level mage differed greatly from one who had exhausted all spells. While the latter could be easily defeated by a level 1 warrior, the former posed a formidable challenge, even against a group of knights in formation.
"Go quickly!"
Captain Barnes wasted no time and forcefully pushed Daniel away. He then turned to Garrett, torn by hesitation. According to protocol, spellcasters had the right to evacuate first when situations became dire. Garrett should leave, but the question of whether the barbarian could join the formation lingered.
Although the barbarian was the team's powerhouse, enhancing their overall strength, the customary practice dictated that followers were only responsible for their protectees. If Garrett chose to leave, the barbarian had no obligation to stay.
Captain Barnes pondered, wavering. Garrett, however, turned to Daniel, the mage:
"Yes, you go quickly! While walking, cast an illusion spell, make it seem like we're still escaping, catch them off guard!"
Daniel bit his lip, turned his horse, and with the thundering sound of hooves, created the illusion of a group of people on the road, echoing in the distance.
Meanwhile, Garrett had already opened his pouch, distributing healing potions to everyone. "Take it. I might not be able to attend to you later; remember to drink it yourselves!"
"Garrett, you go too!" Captain Barnes finally made a decision. The young priest should not die here—risking great danger to confront the Radiant Church, such a valuable young priest should not meet his end in this predicament.
The judiciary's pursuit team was formidable. Even if the barbarian escorted the young priest away, survival chances were slim. However, if Garrett stayed, even that slim chance might evaporate.
"Go quickly! Let Bernard take you!"
Captain Barnes shouted, urging Garrett to leave. However, Garrett hesitated, taking two steps back and looking at the barbarian with a pleading expression:
"Bernard, can you... hold them off?"
"The warriors of the North don't abandon their comrades!" Bernard replied loudly, raising his bone club and striding forward.
With his imposing stature and long legs, Bernard covered the distance of two steps in one. He joined the formation, standing shoulder to shoulder with two shield warriors. The barbarian, gripping the bone club with both hands, slightly bowed, pointing it forward. Then, he turned to Garrett:
"You're good! Bernard will follow you all the way!"
"Good!"
Garrett nodded heavily. After removing the stopper, he swiftly drank an energy potion, feeling a refreshing surge in his mind. Clenching a vial of oxygen, he confidently stepped forward:
"I still have spells! The one you saw—I'm with you!"
"What's the range?" Captain Barnes turned abruptly. Without hesitation, Garrett replied, "30 feet!"
"Go behind Bernard! Bernard, protect the young priest!"
The sound of hooves thundered as the pursuers closed in.
Garrett felt his heart trembling along with the ground. Dada dada dada, dada dada dada. This wasn't good, he thought, trying hard to regulate his breathing—
This heartbeat should not give the opposing cavalry a rhythm to follow! If they discovered later that the rhythm was induced by fear, not actual damage to the heart, it would be a source of amusement for the emergency room staff!
Moreover, those observing from the sidelines could also mock him...
Garrett's thoughts were a jumble, and his breath became more rapid. At the turning point on the other side, however, the knights of the judiciary slightly slowed their pace, organizing their rhythm. The sound of hooves gradually became uniform, and the knights' prayers grew louder:
"Our Lord, our Lord, you are divine in heaven;
Our Lord, our Lord, you are the law on earth;
May your radiance shine on the earth, as it does in heaven;
And we shall become your sharpest blades—"
A dazzling, bright white light gradually illuminated from the other side of the bend, piercing through the mountain walls. The cold sword lifted the horse's corpse, slashing it horizontally and vertically, splitting the heavy horse carcass into four pieces, rolling towards Garrett!
"Take action!"
Captain Barnes shouted. York raised his shield, two shield warriors raised their shields beside him, and Bernard roared while thrusting his bone club upwards. Simultaneously, the opposing knight's warhorse neighed, and a great sword, carrying wings of white light, slashed down heavily.
Boom!
The earth shook.
Garrett stood behind Bernard, five steps away, feeling as if he was standing on an exploded bomb, swaying back and forth. In front of him, the tall figure of the barbarian bent, his legs and belt burst open simultaneously, and blood spurted from his mouth.
On both sides, the shield warriors, led by York, staggered and fell backward.
"Again!" Bernard roared, his eyes turning red, muscles bulging one after another. He tore off the beast skin on his shoulder, gripping the bone club with both hands, and took a step forward. On the opposite side, the dismounted knight, wielding a sword in both hands, charged forward:
"Come again!"
The light was blinding. Garrett vaguely saw a radiant glow rising from the barbarian's bone club. He raised his head and howled, like some ancient giant beast; while the leader of the radiant knights on the opposite side had an angelic phantom above his head, swinging a long sword just like the knight—
Another colossal explosion!
The knight's sword collided with the bone club. The glow of the giant beast disappeared in a flash, and Bernard sprayed blood all over, flying backward, crashing into the mountain wall. Cracks spread across the massive bone club, shockwaves sweeping around, and the surrounding shield warriors fell in a radial pattern, shields haphazardly covering themselves—
Even Garrett, lifted off the ground, rolled several times in a row.
In the terrified eyes of everyone, the knight who had fought with the barbarian staggered but stood steady, lifting the sword forward.
"Surrender." The man ignored the chaos on the ground, steadily advancing. He lowered his face mask, the icy sword and the cold gaze both pointed at Garrett:
"Young priest, you can't escape now. Surrender, swear allegiance to the Radiant Lord, and in the name of the judiciary, I, Gordon Menewa, promise you won't die!"
Gordon took step by step forward. The young priest's robe had only one leaf, and at the tip of the oak staff in his hand, there was only one leaf fluttering— a level one priest couldn't display much. Even if given one hand, he could be easily dealt with—
"Don't hurt him—cough, cough, cough, don't hurt him—"
The barbarian roared, struggling, using the bone club to laboriously climb up. Standing up, spitting blood, falling down, spitting blood, standing up again—Gordon glanced indifferently and turned his head.
Then, he saw the young priest climb up in a sorry state from the ground, his left hand reaching
into his pouch, his right palm pushing forward flatly, making a somewhat familiar and somewhat unfamiliar gesture.
"#￥@%—"
A blazing white torrent of flames surged forward.
---------------
- Your invaluable feedback and ratings mean the world to me. Please take a moment to rate this novel at Novelupdate.
- If you come across any mistakes within this chapter, kindly notify me in the comments below, so that I can make the necessary corrections.
Follow current novels on ALL NOVEL BOOK
