Rebellion 17

Translator: Cinder Translations

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At this moment, Paul felt cold sweat continually bead on his forehead. He dared not make a sound, his gaze constantly flitting between the raging fire outside and the sorceress beside him.

From his perspective, Ladia's current situation did not seem very good.

The sorceress's brows were tightly furrowed, and even veins bulged on her temples as her whole body trembled, seemingly enduring immense pain.

Outside the transparent barrier Ladia had conjured, the fire continued to ravage.

Paul felt both heartache for Ladia and fear for himself, yet he could do nothing to help. All he could do was pretend to be calm beside her, hoping to stabilize the morale of the troops.

Fortunately, Ladia's state lasted only half an hour. After that, the green-haired sorceress returned to her previous condition, no longer displaying the intense tension she had shown earlier.

Paul was very curious about what had happened just now, but he didn't dare to disturb her.

The entire camp spent every second in anxiety.

After an unknown amount of time, a pattering sound suddenly reached everyone's ears.

Paul looked up and was surprised to see raindrops falling from the sky. The raindrops struck Ladia's transparent barrier like they were hitting glass, flowing down from top to bottom and forming thin streams that splashed onto the ground.

"Oh my God! It's raining! And it's quite heavy!"

Paul shouted excitedly. To be honest, he had been very anxious about whether Ladia could hold out until the fire extinguished itself. He had no confidence. However, water extinguishing fire was a long-standing understanding. Now, the heavens had sent this rain to him, deep in a desperate situation.

The guards in the camp also noticed the falling raindrops, and everyone suddenly felt a surge of relief. The tense atmosphere hanging over everyone instantly dissipated.

"Hooray!" "We are saved!" "Merciful Heavenly Father!"

Cheers erupted, people jumped and danced, embraced one another, and used every exaggerated gesture they could muster to express their joy at surviving. Many even knelt on the ground, hands clasped in front of their chests, thanking the divine.

When the rain from the sky met the raging fire that engulfed the forest, a marvelous reaction occurred. At first, the powerful flames quickly vaporized these rain droplets that didn't know their place, turning into vast clouds of white mist that filled the woods, making it feel like they were lost in a mystical realm. But as the raindrops continued to fall, the previous pattering sound began to grow denser, sparse droplets transformed into a heavy downpour. Water began to cascade down Ladia's protective barrier, and soon the heavy rain suppressed the flames that had tried to oppose it. From the moment Paul felt the raindrops fall, it took just over half an hour for the once-rampaging fire to be completely extinguished.

Once Ladia confirmed that the rain could put out the surrounding flames, she no longer maintained her earlier motionless spellcasting posture.

"Master!" she said to Paul, "I just used the fire that broke out to strike at those traitors. I just don't know how effective it was, the distance was too far…"

"What? You attacked them?" Paul couldn't help but be stunned. In such dire straits, could one say that she was indeed worthy of the title of sorceress?

The transparent membrane that had enveloped the entire camp had vanished without a trace, and everyone hurried into the tents still standing to seek shelter from the rain.

Inside the tent at the center of the camp, Ladia sat cross-legged, her chest gently rising and falling as she adjusted her breathing.

Paul discussed the next steps with the guard captain, Victor.

"If the message was successfully delivered, the 8th Infantry Battalion should be nearby. We should immediately meet up with them."

"Master, I just don't know how they view us. Do they think we're finished, or do they believe we're still alive? I fear that after seeing the fire, they might think we've perished, and then…"

Victor hesitated, "If they choose to retreat, it wouldn't be good. So I suggest sending someone to scout in the direction of Babble Village."

Paul nodded, "Alright, let's do as you say…"

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"Bang!" Accompanied by a flash of fire, a crisp sound echoed through the dense forest.

Ferguson, who had once participated in the battle against the pirates, immediately recalled that this was the sound of firearms being discharged.

For a moment, he was taken aback. What? Were there troops from Earl Grayman lying in ambush here? Shouldn't they have perished in the fire? Even if they managed to escape, how could they have set an ambush ahead of them?

Things began to develop in a direction he least wanted to see. That gunshot seemed to be a signal, and on the path they were traversing, gunfire began to erupt from the front, middle, and rear, all coming from the dense forest on their left. Flames flickered from within the woods, rising and falling.

Caught off guard by a lateral barrage, the team immediately descended into chaos. They had been hastily assembled from various families, making coordination between them problematic. After being struck by the fire, they were even more disordered. Most of these people had never seen firearms before and, upon being shot at, couldn't even comprehend what was attacking them.

One after another, members of the team were hit. Some died on the spot, while those who weren't fatally struck fell to the ground, either writhing in agony or helplessly calling for help, their injuries spreading a panic that soon infected the entire group. Everyone desperately fled from the forest that continuously unleashed deadly projectiles, running toward the river.

In just a few minutes, the team that Ferguson had worked so hard to gather had scattered.

From the intensity of the gunfire, Ferguson made a judgment: this definitely wasn't the firepower of just fifty guns; at the very least… at least there had to be more than two hundred.

No doubt, the one using this many firearms must be the regular army of Alden. But Paul Grayman had only brought fifty guards this time—where did these two hundred-plus come from? Until they opened fire, Ferguson hadn't received any reports of a sudden army appearing nearby, meaning this group must have arrived only this evening.

Something was amiss. How did they know that the lord was to be assassinated? Could there be a traitor among those left behind by himself or other prominent families? Did they take the opportunity to report their situation after entering the forest for hunting?

That was highly likely, but… but they had already controlled the nearby signal towers as per Beluga's orders. How had the news spread so quickly to the nearby stationed troops? Based on the travel distance, even on horseback, it shouldn't have been possible.

Ferguson had ruled out methods such as carrier pigeons from the start. They had planned for this operation for a long time and considered various possibilities for leaks. Each of their estates not only guarded against internal traitors but also strictly prohibited the presence of pigeons, which might deliver messages.

But no matter how the leak occurred, Ferguson was clear on one point: with the armed forces he had on hand, facing Alden's regular army was equivalent to a rabble, especially considering the enemy's numbers matched his own.

At that moment, he no longer hesitated. He raised his whip and lashed the horse's hindquarters, trying to take advantage of the current chaos to escape the battlefield.

(End of the Chapter)

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