Chapter 168
Chapter 168
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 168
Chapter Title: 56. Capital Bombardment (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Kuh!”
The one stifling a groan of pain was Blood Sword Akiden.
In the brief moment he had turned his gaze, Richard had ambushed him from behind. In less than a second, they had exchanged dozens of lethal sword strikes. In the end, Akiden couldn't fully defend against them all and took a hit.
Fortunately, the injury was minor—just a graze on his left shoulder.
“Is that all there is to the Blood Sword?”
“Childish taunts like that won't work on me! You fool!”
“No, I mean it sincerely.”
Richard replied in a calm voice. He truly did. Akiden's skill was far from ordinary, yet Richard couldn't shake the feeling that his own prowess had surpassed it by a wide margin.
“Damn it all!”
Akiden, however, took Richard's words as even greater provocation, spitting out curses in a rough voice.
He withdrew his sword, now infused with crimson aura, and swiftly retreated.
“Knight Order! Forward!”
The captain of the elite knight order, composed of high-ranking knights, shouted sharply. To buy Akiden a moment to regroup, the remaining ten high-ranking knights charged at Richard.
“Knights of this level are no more than flies to me now.”
Richard said coldly. As he swung his sword, dispersing aura, the bodies of the charging high knights were sliced apart.
In the meantime, Shadow Emperor Darkrein had slipped a dagger into the throat of Highfel Empire's grand archmage, who was locked in a magical duel with Silvers.
“Gurgle...”
Silvers's skill was no joke either. The grand archmage opposing him was already exhausted, and he fell victim to Darkrein's covert strike from the shadows.
Red blood sprayed out as the grand archmage's body collapsed limply. For one who had reached transcendence, it was a pitiful and undignified end.
“H-How can this be...”
In an instant, two grand archmages had lost their lives. Suddenly, Akiden found himself surrounded by three transcendents.
“Lord Akiden... We'll buy you time. Retreat into the capital and link up with the other sword saints.”
One of the high knights suggested quietly. The enemy had more forces and three transcendents at that.
It was only natural to preserve the sword saint forces even at the cost of the high knights, but Blood Sword Akiden's expression soured.
“Lord Akiden! You must go now!”
“Damn it! I'll remember you all!”
“Long live the Highfel Empire!”
The high knights charged the enemy in unison. Richard swung his sword lightly, and blood erupted from their bodies. As they fell powerlessly, buying time, Akiden slipped into the capital.
“Capture him! Don't let him escape!”
Silvers screamed, unleashing a barrage of magic at Akiden. Powerful spells mixing advanced and supreme tiers battered the gates.
“Block them!”
Highfel Empire's elite from the Ice Tower appeared atop the walls. A fierce storm of magic raged.
It was an ice storm so lethal that hundreds of Doomsday Association fighters charging the capital's walls froze solid in an instant.
“Silvers.”
“I was already planning to step in.”
At Richard's quiet call, the Doomsday Association's grand archmage, Silvers, moved forward. He pressed his staff into the air, completing a magic circle. With a massive boom!, the Ice Tower mages staggered violently.
“M-Magic...”
“Our mana flows are disrupted!”
All the Ice Tower mages on the walls were advanced or higher, but none could withstand a grand archmage's deliberate interference magic.
“The enemy is advancing!”
“Knight Order, forward!”
The knights waiting atop the walls stepped up. Armed fighters scaled the walls, clashing with the knights.
“The knight order will buy time! Mages, retreat and join the garrison!”
“We need to cover the mages' withdrawal!”
Shouts echoed urgently amid the chaos. While the knights held the line, the mages hurriedly fell back toward the palace.
“They're trying to preserve their mage forces.”
“I think so too.”
Silvers nodded slowly in agreement with Richard. Mages were far more valuable resources than knights—a plain fact.
Their actions weren't incomprehensible. But Richard had no intention of letting them have their way.
“We should break the gates in one push, even if it takes extra effort. At this rate, our casualties will mount.”
Richard said. The capital's walls and gates were inscribed with powerful defensive magic, and the path to them was riddled with trap spells.
Without proper siege equipment, sustained attacks on the gates and walls would inevitably rack up fighter losses.
“Even I would struggle to destroy Highfel Empire's gate, layered as it is with defensive magic.”
“It's not impossible, is it? I'll assign two high executives as escorts. Handle the gate.”
“If you weren't my friend, I'd refuse outright.”
Silvers grumbled but stepped toward the gates. Richard silently pointed out two high executives and signaled them to escort him.
The two Doomsday Association high executives moved to guard Silvers. Confirming their presence, Silvers began drawing a massive magic circle with his staff.
The surrounding mana churned violently. Manipulating such overwhelming mana was a heavy burden even for a grand archmage. Silvers's face twisted harshly.
“Mana fluctuations are abnormal!”
“They're targeting the gates!”
The mages detected the surging mana and reported frantically. The wall commander, after deep thought, spoke with a hardened expression.
“Deploy the Ice Assassins.”
“Understood!”
Highfel Empire's elite assassins were called Ice Assassins. They matched the Hashashin in skill, but befitting the vast Highfel Empire, their numbers dwarfed Edriger Kingdom's Hashashin forces.
“How many?”
“Send every one assembled at the walls! We'll cover them with magic and arrows!”
The Ice Assassins scaled the walls. Over a thousand strong. Their sole objective: stop Silvers from preparing his gate-destroying spell.
Icy blades infused with blue chill rained from the sky like a shower. Doomsday Association fighters guarding Silvers fell powerlessly.
The snow-covered white ground stained red with their blood, but the two high-executive escorts shielded Silvers perfectly with defensive magic and shields.
“Charge!”
“For the Highfel Empire!”
The Ice Assassins closed the distance in a flash, targeting Silvers, but breaching the wall of escorts including the two high executives was no easy feat.
“Argh!”
“Aaaagh!”
Ice Assassins fell, spraying blood. As the escorts held them off, more Doomsday fighters joined, turning the tide further against the assassins. They fought bravely like knights.
Even in disadvantage, they pressed the attack without retreat, but the Doomsday counterattack proved fiercer than expected.
“Lord Darkrein. Isn't it about time you stopped spectating?”
Richard said coldly to Darkrein, who had fallen back after killing the grand archmage and was watching the battlefield.
“Very well. I'll step in.”
As Darkrein waved his hand, the sky turned black.
“M-My god...”
“What the hell is that?!”
“It's not magic!”
The mages and knights on the walls panicked. Darkrein grinned at them.
“Lord Richard. Do you know why the Shadow Emperor is called that?”
“Because he wields the power of shadows?”
“Exactly. Mastering shadows opens many possibilities.”
The blackness staining the sky deepened.
“For example, this.”
With those words, Darkrein summoned dark energy. Hundreds of shadow blades poured from the sky, while the white snow on the ground turned black, sprouting hundreds of ebony spears.
“Argh!”
“Aaaagh!”
Screams of agony erupted everywhere. In a moment, the Ice Assassins were annihilated, and the walls suffered heavy damage.
With the interference gone, Silvers focused on his circle, completing it swiftly. A fireball larger than the gates plummeted from the sky.
Kaboom!
The explosion swept the ground with a thunderous roar. Silvers manipulated mana to shield allies from the blast.
The gates were shattered, and over half the front walls collapsed. Casualties were beyond imagination.
The Ice Tower mages had withdrawn early, but thirty palace garrison mages perished, along with two knight orders of two hundred and two thousand soldiers to Darkrein and Silvers's combined assault. It happened so fast, it was like they evaporated.
“Advance.”
“The gates are down! Charge!”
At Richard's cold command, the executives echoed it, leading their subordinates.
“Plant the banner.”
“Yes, Lord Richard!”
One executive climbed the ruined gate tower and planted the Doomsday Association's banner. A pitch-black flag with no emblem.
It was just the beginning. The capital defense forces from the outer city moved late to reinforce, but Doomsday forces under another executive blocked them.
Only two thousand strong, but all knight-level fighters.
The capital defenders unleashed fierce attacks, but the fearless Doomsday elites refused to yield ground.
While they clashed, Richard's forces pressed toward the palace.
The palace was guarded by Highfel Empire's renowned elite, the Imperial Guard, plus three sword saints and two grand archmages.
The Imperial Guard alone numbered ten thousand. A force not to be underestimated, but Richard ordered the assault without waiting for reinforcements.
He needed decisive results to approach the High Council.
“Richard. The Imperial Guard's resistance is fiercer than expected.”
Silvers said quietly. Having expended most of his mana breaching the gates, he focused on recovery from the rear.
“I anticipated this level of resistance, Silvers.”
“Good, then.”
Silvers shrugged at Richard's reply. The Doomsday Association knew of the ten thousand Imperial Guards.
They had prepared ample fighters, but the issue was Richard's refusal to coordinate with other high executives.
“The Imperial Guard's blocking us. Any plans?”
Silvers asked quietly. Drained of mana and recovering, he wasn't fighting directly, so frustration prompted the question.
“We'll use it.”
“Did you get Association approval?”
Silvers questioned Richard's answer again. He knew what 'it' was.
“I did.”
“Approval doesn't make it wise, though. Can your body handle it?”
“It has to. No other choice.”
He had to destroy the Highfel palace and take the emperor's head without aid from other forces, no matter what. Only then would he and Silvers get a solo audience with the Doomsday High Council.
“I won't argue anymore.”
Silvers raised his hands. Richard grinned, though his mask hid it.
A man hurried down the corridor—none other than Count Potas, head of the Philius Central Intelligence Agency.
“What's the matter? His Majesty the Emperor has retired for the night.”
Marquis Blizzard blocked him coldly at the emperor's bedroom. It was late, so the reaction was expected, but Potas carried urgent news and couldn't wait till morning.
“I have critical intelligence. Wake His Majesty.”
“Hm... Understood. Please wait.”
The Royal Guards and even Marquis Blizzard weren't mindless loyalists. They had flexibility, so after a moment's thought, Blizzard entered to rouse the emperor.
“You may enter.”
Raymond's voice drifted through the slightly open door. Count Potas rushed in and spoke.
“Your Majesty! Highfel Empire's capital has fallen, and Emperor Dylon is dead!”
Raymond was left speechless by the report.