The Vastness of Magical Destiny
Chapter 629: Volume Seventeen: Dark Descends on Earth - One: Seizing the City (1)

Chapter 629: Volume Seventeen: Dark Descends on Earth - One: Seizing the City (1)

Viscount Saliman only felt a splitting headache, as the dispute between Carl Libukneisi and Bronin had reached a boiling point. The two were locked in fierce debate over what strategy to adopt to deal with the Half-beast Army lying in wait to the south of the Floating Bridge. In truth, there was only one Mage left, namely the recently promoted Mejernov, who had just advanced from Magician to Mage. The Mage Corps, originally composed of nine Mages, was now down to a single individual. No wonder Bronin was firmly opposed to marching out from Bruce Fortress onto the land of Leon.

"Viscount Saliman, you should be well aware of the losses my knights suffered on the Greenland Forest Plank Road. We were not afraid, however; knights hold fast to valor and the readiness to sacrifice when facing the enemy. But this does not mean that we knights are brainless fools. It’s clear that the Caucasians were fully prepared, even plotting how to strike at us to weaken our forces before we had even set foot out of Cyprus. And indeed, they used despicable means to slaughter a great number of our brave knights on the Greenland Forest Plank Road. Moreover, they obviously possess a formidable Mage power, launching horrific attacks with magic, and that is of primary concern. As for us, we are left with but a single Mage in the Mage Corps, to expose these innocent knights and soldiers to Mages who can summon unlimited magic power, without any significant Mage of our own to offer protection, is a crime, a massacre, it’s a squandering of the lives of Homer’s people! I will not agree to such a course of action!"

Bronin, his face flushed red, was close to losing the composure of a knight. Although he constantly reminded himself to maintain a calm demeanor, on this critical issue, he found it impossible to stay cool.

"Mr. Bronin, please stay calm; there’s no need to get so worked up, alright? The enemy may have magical strength, but we all know that the outcome of a war will never be decided by Mages, otherwise, an army would be meaningless and without purpose. The Caucasians merely have a three-thousand-strong, barely trained Army. We still have over ten thousand Regular Army troops. With just one battle, we could send them fleeing in hasty retreat, shedding their gear along the way. Even if they are assisted by Mages, all our troops have undergone Anti-magic training. Ordinary magic spells cannot inflict significant harm on my soldiers. And if we just sit here meekly waiting for news from Cyprus, it’ll only demoralize the Army. Sir Duke is already out of magical might, where do you expect him to recruit Mages in such urgency? What are we supposed to do if Homer can’t provide us with Mages to bolster our ranks? Are we supposed to turn tail and go home, or even give up Bruce Fortress to those Half-beasts?"

By comparison, Carl Libukneisi was a lot calmer, but his words clearly communicated to the other party that this war must go on, and that this decision could not be changed.

"Mr. Libukneisi, no matter how eloquently you speak, I will not agree. The soldiers of the Storm Infantry Corps are children of Homer, not your private property. You may not care for their lives, but as a person of Homer, I must be responsible for them. Just like Viscount Saliman would. You lowly Nebuchadnezzar, I don’t know why the Duke would let you rule over the lives of our noble Homer people!"

With some venom, Bronin squeezed out a few sentences filled with an icy chill from between his teeth, his reasoning all too well-founded and confident. Libukneisi’s muscles began to twitch slightly; no one dared insult him like this, even though the man before him was a so-called noble, but he knew that this noble was nothing of the sort!

"Enough, Bronin, be mindful of your station and words. Carl is the Corps Commander of the Storm Infantry Corps, personally appointed by the Duke himself. He certainly has the right to make suggestions to me. This is war, not a leisurely sightseeing trip. Since it is war, there will inevitably be sacrifices. There is no need for complaints here. Knights are born to fight for their faith. Would you have them shrink back in the face of difficulty?" Saliman’s words, though seemingly harsh, took on a different taste in Carl’s ears; the man appeared to side with him, but the reality was quite the opposite. He was laying the groundwork for what was to come.

"Of course, we also need to carefully assess the situation between us and the enemy. Mr. Bronin also has a point; we have lost our Mage power while the enemy possesses it. This change was unexpected. Leon is those Half-beasts’ territory. What if we rashly intrude and they use hit-and-run tactics against us? Moreover, their Mages could unabashedly take advantage of their home ground to launch attacks on us. Carl, do you think we stand a chance of victory?"

As expected, Saliman’s latter words took a turn, stirring a bitter anger within Carl Libukneisi. It was torture to campaign with these fools, who despite their appointment, spoke with such an even-handed, eloquent assertiveness. Breathing heavily, just as Carl Libukneisi was about to respond, a wave of panicked cries came from outside the room.

"What’s the matter?" Both Saliman and Bronin rose to their feet, startled by the alarm cries from within the fortress. They had already been so battered by various blows that they were jumpy, unable to withstand any more setbacks. Their unsettled gazes were a reflection of their fearful hearts.

Carl Libukneisi rose and quickly left the room, his Combat Knife firmly in his grasp. Although he did not know what exactly had happened, he was sure that it was definitely another major problem. He knew his soldiers well; the cries were filled with terror and dismay. If it were an enemy attack, it would not have prompted such a call from them.

Soldiers lined up in orderly ranks atop the city wall with the sound of their footsteps echoing in unison as they charged out, while within the fortress, the sounds of drawn swords and spears filled the air. Bronin, who followed closely behind Carl, felt a hint of fear in his heart as a knight, but he couldn’t show any sign of it on the surface, for it was a matter of knightly dignity and honor.

"What’s going on? Why hasn’t the alarm been sounded?" Carl’s heart skipped a beat when he saw a subordinate with a panicked face rushing towards him. Nevertheless, he maintained his calm and gravity.

"Sir, it’s bad news. A large number of skeleton knights and zombie warriors have been discovered within the fortress, attacking our post. Our soldiers have never encountered such a phenomenon, so there’s some confusion," the officer reported, managing to stabilize his emotions slightly upon seeing his superior’s composed face and saluted before swiftly answering.

"Skeleton knights? Zombie warriors?" Carl’s heart sank. This was not the enemy raid he had anticipated, but an attack by undead creatures. Could Bruce Fortress be a land of the undead cursed by the God of Darkness? No, that’s impossible. Bruce Fortress had stood for hundreds of years without any reports of undead presence. Why would undead creatures appear precisely at this time?

Both Saliman and Bronin who had caught up heard the officer’s report. Saliman’s face immediately turned pale. How could there be undead creatures lurking within the fortress? No, no, this was too horrifying. He had to leave this place. Saliman once again cursed himself for coming to command such a war in this dirty and dark wilderness. It was nothing but trouble. The thought of being charged by skeletons held up by bony frames and the cold bodies of zombies made Saliman feel like he was going to vomit from dizziness.

Bronin’s face also changed color. However, for a Light Knight, slaying these undead creatures was his innate duty. What he needed to ascertain was how many of these undead there were and how they had emerged.

When Saliman, Bronin, and Carl stood atop the fortress wall and saw the streets below filled with teeming skeleton soldiers, they were all stunned. What was going on? Where had all these skeletons come from? The innate fear of the undead significantly reduced the fighting capacity of the Storm Infantry soldiers, especially when their swords and spears were useless against stopping the advancing foe, nearly causing their will to collapse.

This was the moment for Bronin to finally display the valor of the Light Knights before the enemy. The Light Knights, arranged in neat rows, drew their gleaming spears under the torchlight. The sole Magician, Mejernov, was blessing them with the Holy Light Spell, allowing them to more effectively exert the power of the Light Knights. A faint Holy Light enveloped the knights, and though it seemed thin, it brought a fear from the depths of their souls to the dark creatures.

The knights finally showed their formidable side. The coordinated thrusts of their lances created dazzling streaks of light, and the skeleton warriors menacing the soldiers in front of them were shattered into countless fragments in an instant. Without any extra movement, the skeleton warriors were reduced to pieces, scattering in the air due to the powerful lance thrust and the Holy Light that covered their entire bodies, rendering the skeletons utterly defenseless.

Even the relatively stronger zombies appeared frail in front of the knights. Perhaps the damage from blades was more bearable for zombies, but the Holy Light was their nemesis. Particularly when the Light Knights continued to unleash the explosion of Holy Light from their bodies, the zombies could only awkwardly dodge the touch of the Holy Light. Each time the Holy Light spread, it caused zombies to howl in pain, as if they were being scorched by flames, with the luminance cleansing the dark energy deep within their zombie bodies.

(To be continued. For further developments, please log in to WWW.CMFU.COM. There are more Chapters, support the author, support authorized reading!)