Chapter 565: If You Run Now, You Can Survive (2)

The priest whose arm bones had been completely shattered screamed as he was flung backward. 

The priest next to him could not conceal his shock. Before he could even process what had happened to his comrade, the massive mace was already closing in on him, its speed completely undiminished.

This priest had better instincts and tried to dodge rather than block. However, his reaction was slightly delayed due to his panic.

Thwack!

"Ughhh!"

Crunch!

The mace struck his side, shattering his ribs and sending him flying.

Parniel stopped herself from delivering another blow to the priests. Mounted cavalry were charging toward her at full speed.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

With unrelenting momentum, the Salvation Church cavalry bore down on her, but Parniel charged forward to meet them.

If the Salvation Church's superhumans could shatter the allied forces' formations, then she could just as easily dismantle the Artrode forces.

"Haaaah!"

The veins on Parniel's arms bulged as she pushed her strength to its limit. Her mace radiated a blinding light, crackling with raw power.

She brought the massive weapon crashing down onto the ground.

Boom!

The earth shook violently and split apart. The force was so overwhelming that even those who witnessed it struggled to believe their eyes.

Neigh!

"Arghhh!"

The charging cavalry tumbled, horses and riders alike. The ones behind them tripped over the fallen, creating a chaotic pileup.

Count Defroden's jaw dropped as he witnessed the scene.

He knew exactly who that woman was.

"The Saintess of War? Why is she here?!"

The Saintess was supposed to be with the Lutania main army. What was she doing here?

Count Defroden quickly turned his head, hoping the priests of the 10th Corps could salvage the situation.

The priests of the 10th Corps, who had departed slightly later, gritted their teeth and advanced with all their might, sensing the crisis unfolding ahead.

Whoosh!

But someone emerged from the flank.

"One-armed…?"

It was a masked one-armed man. The priests quickly searched their memories for any information on him.

A masked man with one arm—a widely known figure.

A man ashamed of his past failures to protect his lord, who had committed many sins and wore a mask to hide his face.

"It's Tenant!"

Whoosh!

Tenant's sword flared with blue mana as he charged. Thanks to Ghislain, he had reached the level of a superhuman and had grown even stronger through countless battles.

Boom!

"Ugh!"

A priest who blocked Tenant's sword was pushed back. Another priest used the opening to attack, but Tenant easily parried it.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A fierce battle erupted between Tenant and the two priests.

Tenant's talent and honed skills were exceptional. While he couldn't overpower them as quickly as Parniel, he was more than capable of holding his own against two high-ranking priests.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

In the distance, cavalry from the 10th Corps were charging in. But Tenant paid them no mind.

Suddenly, the cavalry standing on both sides of the allied forces reached for bows at their waists.

They were the Lutania archer cavalry.

Lumina, an elf, gauged the distance and gave the order.

"Fire."

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A rain of arrows fell upon the charging cavalry.

Ordinary arrows wouldn't usually harm cavalry much. They could be deflected by armor or shields, or the cavalry could close the distance quickly to neutralize the threat.

The Artrode cavalry, confident in their skills, attempted to deflect the arrows.

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

But the arrows pierced through their shields and breastplates.

Neigh!

"Arghhh!"

Cavalrymen were thrown from their horses as they fell to the ground, pierced by arrows. Their faces showed confusion even as they collapsed.

They understood that their armor was lightweight as they were light cavalry, but the arrows were far too powerful.

It was as if the entire squadron had been armed with crossbows and were firing from close range.

"Don't stop! Keep riding! Hurry!"

The cavalry in the rear tried to leap over their fallen comrades and close the distance before the next volley of arrows struck.

But before the first rain of arrows had even fully landed, another wave of arrows darkened the sky.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

"What the—?!"

The rate of fire was astonishing.

The Artrode forces had only heard rumors of the Lutania archer cavalry's prowess, dismissing them as merely skilled bowmen.

They had never encountered the overwhelming firepower and rapid-fire capabilities of the new bows crafted by Ghislain's forces.

These bows, forged with the utmost care and resources, had turned the Lutania archers into the terror of the battlefield.

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

Arrow after arrow rained down, skewering cavalrymen. They couldn't even get close and were swept away by the relentless barrage.

And the attacks didn't end there.

Among the Lutania forces was a 6th-circle mage, as well as multiple 5th and 4th-circle mages.

While the Artrode forces had mages to counter magic attacks, their focus was primarily on suppressing magic. They couldn't fully neutralize the overwhelming spells of the Lutania mages.

Boom!

Pillars of fire erupted among the fallen cavalry. The Lutania mages had broken through the Artrode suppression and cast several devastating spells.

Boom! Boom!

Though few in number, the spells targeted the already incapacitated cavalry, causing catastrophic damage.

Meanwhile, Parniel had returned to engaging the Salvation Church's priests. Despite their superhuman abilities, the priests struggled to withstand her relentless assault.

The cavalry was nearly wiped out, and the superhumans were on the brink of collapse.

Tenant, locked in combat with the priests, shouted loudly.

"Advance!"

Clink! Clink! Clink!

Shield and spear-wielding soldiers moved in orderly formation, bypassing the superhuman battles and charging forward.

They easily dispatched the fallen cavalry with their spears.

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

The Artrode cavalry were slaughtered without ever putting up a proper fight.

Simultaneously, the archer cavalry spread out further.

Whoosh!

Encircling the disoriented enemy, they unleashed another deadly volley. The few remaining Artrode cavalrymen were helpless against them.

Count Defroden watched the scene unfold in horror, trembling.

"Th-that army…"

Their numbers and equipment were leagues ahead. Such overwhelming power wasn't something just any army could possess.

This was the unparalleled strength of the Lutania forces.

"Why are the Lutania forces here…? Could this be… a trap?"

Two possible explanations came to mind.

Either their planted traitor had betrayed them, or Duke Fenris had turned the traitor against them.

The former seemed unlikely. The traitor was a devout follower of the Salvation Church. If betrayal was their intent, they would have done so before the allied forces suffered losses.

This meant the traitor's identity had been discovered, and Duke Fenris had exploited it to set a counter-trap.

"I… I have to warn the others."

If Duke Fenris was indeed using the traitor to feed false information, the other Artrode corps would also be acting on faulty intelligence.

Count Defroden immediately turned his horse around. The 9th and 10th Corps were finished. While some infantry remained, they were powerless in this situation.

The priests alone wouldn't be able to hold off the Lutania forces and their superhumans.

"Move! We must inform the other corps!"

Count Defroden and his escort knights began their retreat.

Behind them, the Lutania archer cavalry were in pursuit. Although the Count had made a quick decision, the distance wasn't as great as he had hoped.

And the Lutania cavalry were exceptionally skilled riders.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

The gap between them narrowed rapidly. Count Defroden and his knights urged their horses to the limit.

Lumina, bow in hand, squinted slightly.

"I don't like causing unnecessary pain to animals…"

She understood what needed to be done.

Whoosh!

Her arrow flew true, striking the flank of Defroden's horse.

Neigh!

The horse screamed and collapsed, throwing Count Defroden to the ground.

"Ugh!"

"Count!"

The escort knights halted their horses and rushed to assist Count Defroden. But by then, the Lutania archer cavalry had caught up.

"Hurry, escort the Count away!"

The knights attempted to carry Count Defroden to safety while some charged at the approaching cavalry.

The archers immediately unleashed their arrows at the knights.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The knights deflected the arrows with bursts of mana, but the sheer number of arrows was overwhelming.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Arrows began piercing their armor and bodies. Although the knights fought valiantly, parrying as many arrows as they could, they were not superhumans.

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

One by one, the knights fell, their bodies riddled with arrows until they resembled porcupines.

The knights carrying Count Defroden met the same fate.

Thud!

Eventually, even Count Defroden was struck in the calf by an arrow and collapsed. The cavalry had aimed to capture him alive rather than kill him outright.

"Ugh… you bastards…"

Count Defroden bit his lip in frustration.

He had been so confident of victory, yet now he was utterly defeated. He never imagined that Duke Fenris would uncover the traitor so quickly and respond so effectively.

'No matter how suspicious someone was, this shouldn't have been possible…'

Identifying a high-ranking traitor was notoriously difficult. A single wrong move could lead to catastrophic losses. 

But Duke Fenris had pinpointed the traitor with precision, evidence that he had suspected the culprit for some time.

'Still, it won't be easy for them. Some corps are standing by, ready to respond to unexpected developments.'

Count Defroden clenched his teeth.

The Artrode army had corps stationed to monitor the situation and react to unforeseen events. These were the ones truly in control of the war.

If no regular reports arrived, they would soon realize what was happening.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

As Count Defroden was captured, the two priests battling Parniel were being reduced to tatters.

Though they had held out as superhumans, managing to land a few blows on Parniel, that was all they could do.

Parniel had taken their attacks head-on and retaliated with relentless strikes from her mace.

Boom!

Crunch.

"Ugh…"

One priest, his spine shattered, succumbed and collapsed. Even the energy sustaining him had reached its limit.

"Please… stop…"

The other priest was in a similar state, barely able to stand. If he took one more hit, he was certain he would die. Trembling, he held out his hand.

"I… I surrender."

Parniel looked at him with a blank expression and asked coldly.

"Will you repent for your heresy?"

"Y-yes, I will repent. Please, just spare me…"

"First, atone with your death."

Boom!

Parniel brought her mace crashing down on the priest's head.

Too exhausted to defend himself, the priest's head was obliterated, and he died instantly.

The sheer display of overwhelming power sent waves of fear through the remaining enemies. The sight of two superhumans being beaten to death left them utterly shaken.

Unfazed by their stares, Parniel turned her attention elsewhere. Nearby, the battle was taking longer to conclude.

Slash!

"Ugh! You scum!"

Tenant's sword slashed across one priest's chest. Though Tenant had the upper hand, he had yet to fully subdue his two opponents.

Tenant's superior skill and relentless attacks had pushed the priests to the brink, but he hadn't completely overwhelmed them.

Given time, Tenant would undoubtedly emerge victorious. But it was a waste of both time and energy. Parniel had no intention of standing idly by.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

She stormed toward the priests battling Tenant and swung her mace at one of them.

Boom!

"Guhah!"

The priest staggered, barely managing to shield himself with mana, but the impact was immense.

Parniel grabbed the priest by the collar and grinned savagely.

"Goddess, I send you another."

Boom!

She slammed the priest into the ground, holding him by the neck.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

She pummeled the priest with her mace, driving it repeatedly into the earth.

"Ugh! Gah!"

Already weakened from his fight with Tenant, the priest couldn't withstand the continuous blows and began to lose consciousness.

Crunch! Crack! Snap!

His bones shattered under the relentless assault. Even as he tried to gather his strength, the holy power radiating from Parniel disrupted his energy flow.

"Guhh…"

The last thing the priest saw before his vision went dark was Parniel's terrifying gaze as she raised her mace for the final strike.

Boom!

Parniel's mace crushed the priest's skull, killing him instantly.

Straightening up, Parniel glanced to her side.

Slash!

Tenant's sword severed the neck of the remaining priest. Already weakened and distracted by Parniel's presence, the priest couldn't block the final blow.

"Phew, thank you," Tenant said, nodding slightly toward Parniel. She returned the gesture with a calm smile.

"You're welcome."

"Victory!"

The soldiers erupted in cheers. Parniel's immense strength and dominance on the battlefield always stirred their blood.

With such overwhelming power, the Lutania forces had annihilated two entire corps of the Artrode army. There was no question this victory would boost morale.

Tenant mounted his horse and addressed the soldiers.

"There's no need to clean the battlefield. We're moving to the next location immediately."

Having secured their victory, the Lutania forces began marching toward their next target.

***

Meanwhile, Count Srowk, commander of the 6th Corps of the Artrode army, was pillaging a town when he received new information.

"Hmm, is that so? The allied forces' positions have changed?"

The allied forces, after suffering significant losses, had devised a new strategy upon realizing their intelligence had been compromised.

The strategy involved positioning two corps close to each other for mutual support—similar to the Artrode forces' tactics.

Of course, while the Artrode forces were attacking, the allied forces were defending.

"Hmm…"

Count Srowk pondered. Excluding the Lutania forces, the allied army had four corps in total.

One was compromised by the traitor, and two had been destroyed and scattered. This left only one remaining.

"That's not within my area of operation."

The allied forces on the move would likely be dealt with by the 9th and 10th Corps. Even without direct communication, such decisions could be made independently.

His task was elsewhere.

"It's time to target the supply routes and reinforcements."

If reinforcements were allowed to gather, things would get troublesome. Even the scattered allied soldiers would regroup.

The original plan was to sever the supply lines and intercept reinforcements in this region.

"We've reduced the allied forces faster than expected."

The goal of the Artrode army was to weaken the allied army and establish defensive positions in key areas, isolating the Lutania army.

Since Duke Fenris had intentionally left supply routes exposed, it was clear there would be minimal defenses—or just a token force at best.

Now, they simply needed to prevent reinforcements from reaching the allied forces.

"Since Duke Fenris and the Prince of Turian are on the move, let's get out of this area quickly. Contact the 5th Corps as well."

The routes of the reinforcements were already known. Since they were arriving separately, intercepting them wouldn't be difficult.

The 6th Corps of the Artrode army began to mobilize again.

But Count Srowk failed to notice something.

High above, a lone raven circled in the sky.

The raven soon flew off in a particular direction. After traveling for some time, it reached a group of soldiers.

The raven landed on the shoulder of the man at the forefront and spoke.

"I've found them. They're moving in the expected direction."

The man, Yulian, nodded coldly in response.

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