Chapter 204: Father, the City Falls!

(This is the battlefield, how cruel it is... more chapters, more chapters!)

"A legend, it is our legend! That black sun must be General Rhodes. I am not sure about the other one, but he must be a hidden powerhouse of the kingdom. This is wonderful!"

"Is this the power of a legendary warrior? It is too overwhelming. No one can stop them, no one can harm them. We still have a chance at victory!"

The defenders of Sewintan had once again been on the verge of despair as the Alestler army closed in on the royal capital.

But upon seeing the two powerful, destructive forces erupting in the midst of the Alestler ranks, sparks of hope were reignited in their hearts. Those were the legendary warriors of Sewintan, the pinnacle of individual strength on this continent.

"Hold the line! They cannot handle our legendary warriors!" the Sewintan defenders roared, their grip on their weapons tightening with newfound strength as they poured their attacks onto the Alestler soldiers with all their might.

Ballistae thundered, alchemical golems hummed as they unleashed explosive shells and beams, or simply crushed and trampled everything in their path. Soldiers charged into the Alestler formation without fear of death, ignoring all incoming strikes, howling and roaring as they inflicted ever-greater damage upon the Alestler ranks.

The situation in Sewintan, which had been on the brink of total collapse, was forcibly stabilized.

The tide of battle shifted from a rout to a stalemate. The Alestler army, having pushed to the very walls of the Sewintan capital, pressed forward ferociously, while the defenders used every means at their disposal to obstruct the siege.

Deep within the rear-center of the Alestler formation, the two legendary warriors from Sewintan were wreaking havoc.

A black sun hung in the sky, dozens of meters high, casting a "black" radiance upon the surroundings. Every Alestler soldier touched by this light felt as if something were being stripped away from within their bodies.

Weakness, fatigue, itching, dullness—a host of negative sensations spread and festered. The very strength required to fight was being drained from their bodies by that black sun.

Their muddled minds struggled to think, their eyelids grew heavy. One moment they were fighting with fervor and boiling blood, the next, everything suddenly turned cold, and they longed only to lie down and sleep.

The black sun seemed to draw fuel from the soldiers it afflicted, its dark radiance growing ever more dazzling, its influence expanding, and its effects becoming increasingly horrifying.

In less than five minutes, a vast swathe of Alestler apprentice knights had fallen beneath that black sun.

The breath, heartbeat, pulse, and body temperature of the fallen—everything that signified life—faded rapidly. It would not be long before these Alestler soldiers were dead.

Soldiers of the formal knight rank struggled on, some raising their internal energy defenses in a vain attempt to prevent the black sun from stripping away their life force.

But it was futile. The internal energy of a legendary knight was not something a formal knight could resist; the only reason they lasted longer was that their physical constitution was far superior to that of the apprentices.

"That sun is too great a threat! It is the internal energy of a legendary knight. Mages, attack!"

Kevin, acting as a squad leader, quickly realized the threat the black sun posed to the Alestler army. If they allowed it to continue absorbing life force and expanding, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Communication devices relayed Kevin’s orders to the mage corps stationed in the rear. The mages had already noted the rising black sun, and several joint spells were released simultaneously, targeting the dark orb.

Howling fireballs, spinning ice saws, and lightning beams that tore through the sky arrived after a brief delay, crashing into the black sun.

Yet, these spells failed to have the intended effect, passing directly through the black sun without causing any disturbance. It was not a physical object, but something akin to a projection.

"Damn it, we have to find a way to deal with the source!"

Kevin gritted his teeth as he watched the black sun, unaffected by the magic, continue to expand. It was his first time witnessing the power of a legendary knight—it was immense, and their internal energy alone was enough to leave them in chaos.

"But even if we find the source, we have almost no way to deal with him."

Kevin’s heart grew heavy. He had spotted the one who released the black sun: a middle-aged man clad in light armor.

He was currently weaving through the Alestler ranks alongside the other legendary knight. His longsword moved like a blur, and wherever he passed, Alestler soldiers fell like harvested crops, blood and gore splattering everywhere—the scene was a living hell.

The other legendary knight’s internal energy seemed to be focused on physical enhancement. The roar of a beast erupted periodically, followed by a spray of blood as several Alestler soldiers were blasted apart, collapsing in pools of gore.

His speed was so extreme that the apprentice knights could not even track his movements. They would see their comrades fall one by one, feel a sharp, agonizing pain, and then find themselves collapsing to the ground.

On wounds where bones and organs were gruesomely exposed, the marks of beastly fangs and claws were clearly visible. This was not something a human could inflict; only a perfect beast, a true, terrifying predator, could do such a thing.

Legendary warriors were called "an army of one" not because they could defeat and kill an entire army in a head-on confrontation, but because of their overwhelming power to slaughter within the ranks, impossible to restrain.

Speed, strength, and defense reached terrifying levels in these legendary warriors. If they wanted to leave, an army could never stop them; if they wanted to kill, an army could never prevent it.

"Damn it, what do we do? We have no means to restrain these legendary warriors unless we use high-level magic, but will it even hit?"

Kevin’s thoughts were in turmoil. Every second, a large number of Alestler soldiers perished.

Although they had brought a massive force for the final assault on Sewintan, if the slaughter continued like this, the losses would reach an unacceptable level, and the tide of battle might even turn.

"There is no other way. We must sacrifice some men. It might be possible to temporarily trap these two legendary warriors with magic!"

Formal knights could barely track the movements of the other legendary warrior; though they only saw a rapidly shifting grey-white shadow, they could roughly judge his position.

The current problem was that the Alestler soldiers could not touch these two legendary warriors. Within the influence of the black sun, soldiers were severely weakened, and to attack the two, one had to enter that very range.

The soldiers, whose strength was already insufficient to harm a legendary warrior, were further weakened upon entering, making these two legends unstoppable forces that could carve through the Alestler army at will.

The only solution now was for the mages to cast a joint spell that would envelop the entire area, creating a zone that would affect the two legends. But this opportunity would have to be bought with the lives of the soldiers.

"Damn it all..."

Kevin cursed viciously, his hand trembling as he pulled a small alchemical device from his waist. It was a contingency plan for the event that Sewintan’s legendary warriors entered the fray. He had thought he would never need it, but he had no other choice.

He twisted the top of the cylindrical metal object, and the internal mechanical structure began to spin and lock into place at high speed. A strange, rhythmic humming sound pierced the chaos of the battlefield, echoing across the field.

The Alestler soldiers still fighting—or rather, being slaughtered—by the legendary warriors paused for a moment upon hearing the distinct sound, their eyes then turning cold and resolute.

Without hesitation, they pulled out a vial that every soldier was equipped with, though few ever used: "Unbound Vitality: Undead Fury (Modified)."

The thumb-sized glass vials, filled with crimson liquid, were tossed directly into their mouths. They bit down hard, swallowing the glass shards along with the potion.

"Ughhh-ahhh!"

The effects of the potion were instantaneous. The soldiers let out painful, feral roars. Their muscles bulged, and the tiny blood vessels in their eyes burst from the sudden spike in blood pressure, turning their eyes a solid, blood-red.

Pain was suppressed, and their bodies began to secrete hormones beyond their limits. Every part of their bodies related to combat was pushed to the brink of a berserk state.

This modified version of the berserker potion was cheaper to produce, had more powerful effects, and carried terrifying side effects equivalent to death. Soldiers usually did not carry such things, but they had been prepared in advance specifically to deal with Sewintan’s legends.

"Charge! Arghhh, hold these legends back!" Blood spewed from their mouths, their vision painted red, as they spat out incoherent, angry words.

Their bodies, pushed beyond their limits by the potion, were hurtling toward destruction. The strength gained in this process allowed these soldiers to leap across ranks: apprentice knights touched the threshold of formal knights, and formal knights gained the strength of grand knights.

The speed of the legendary warriors was no longer completely unreachable. This briefly acquired power allowed these soldiers, who were rapidly approaching death, to gain the ability to hinder the slaughter.

Yes, only to hinder. After all, these were legends; how could strength gained through short-term overdraft compare?

"Stop them!"

"Damn Sewintan scum, I’ll smash your skull!"

The truly blood-crazed Alestler soldiers charged fearlessly toward the two legendary warriors.

The outcome did not change. The blades of aura flicked out by the legendary knights, the powerful sword strikes delivered with a turn of the head—all were fatal and impossible to dodge.

The only difference was that while before they might have been cleaved in two without a chance to react, now, before being killed, these soldiers could block one or two attacks before meeting their end.

Wave after wave of soldiers sacrificed their lives, using their bodies to temporarily restrict the movement of the two legendary warriors to a specific area. This was the preparation for the mages' spell.

"Cackle, cackle...!" Purple electric arcs began to appear in the surrounding space. The concentration of magic in the area climbed rapidly. An invisible force began to crush everything in the zone from all directions, its intensity increasing with every passing moment.

Soldiers still charging forward suddenly collapsed to the ground. Their bones groaned, their muscles were squeezed toward the earth by the invisible force, rupturing and shattering. Their hearts could not withstand the immense pressure and stopped beating; their lungs could no longer expand or contract, and breathing became impossible.

A glimmer of realization appeared in the soldiers' crimson eyes. They had bought enough time; the mages' spell was ready. A hint of relief and release crossed their minds, and in the next instant, their entire bodies were crushed into a paste of bone, blood, and flesh pressed against the ground.

"Pfft!" The sound of bodies bursting under the pressure continued to echo. Within the area where the purple arcs flickered, only the cruel "graffiti" of red remained on the ground, along with the two legendary warriors who were still standing.

Sixth-tier Legion Spell: Gravity Prisoner. It created a zone that exerted a terrifying force directed toward the ground upon everything within its range. It was a forbidden zone for life; even metal armor and weapons twisted and bent under the incomparable force, let alone the flesh and blood of the soldiers.

And this spell was merely to restrict the movements of the two legendary warriors. All the preparation had been for the next spell.

Kevin’s eyes were fixed on the two legendary warriors standing within the influence of the Gravity Prisoner spell. Even they bent slightly under the weight of the invisible force. It was effective; their movements were restricted.

The other legendary warrior, whose speed had been too fast to capture, now revealed his form. He was a being hard to call human; his entire body bore the traces of many different magical beasts: the claws of a giant wolf, the tail of a half-dragon, the wings of a vampire, the scales of a lizardman, and so on.

The immense power of countless magical beasts had been gathered into his body. Internal Energy: Perfect Behemoth. He was the perfect predator, combining the advantages of a vast array of magical beasts. At this moment, he was looking down at the ground—the ground that was shaking continuously.

A low, rumbling thunder shook the earth as the ground fractured and groaned, heat radiating from the fissures until the very air warped and shimmered, pregnant with something poised to erupt from the depths.

A sixth-tier legion spell, Purgatory Magma, ignited a cataclysmic surge of fire and earth elements, a destructive force unparalleled among its peers; even a legendary knight could not withstand the searing heat of lava exceeding a thousand degrees.

The spell’s only flaw was its protracted channeling time, allowing any foe worth targeting to easily flee the blast radius before the strike landed.

Yet now, with the soldiers having bought an opening with their lives and the Gravity Prisoner spell pinning the targets in place, this strike was destined to find its mark.

Kevin’s eyes burned with feverish excitement; the plan had succeeded, and this contingency for legendary-tier threats had proven its worth.

However, in the next heartbeat, Kevin’s pupils contracted to pinpricks as the legendary knight, his body warped by the traits of countless beasts, turned his gaze toward the commander who had been orchestrating the field, a cruel smile curling his lips.

The beast-man’s claws seized a fellow legendary knight—one whose inner potential did not focus on physical augmentation—and with a slight bend of his knees, he launched himself; the ground, hardened by immense gravity, shattered with a boom, and the knight vanished from Kevin’s sight.

How is this possible? The suppression of the Gravity Prisoner! Just how terrifying is this monster’s physical constitution?!

Kevin whispered in disbelief, only to feel a tap on his shoulder; he turned to find both legendary knights standing behind him, the middle-aged one who commanded the black sun smiling as he rested a hand on Kevin’s armor.

As a commander, you have done well, but your strength is insufficient; these mages are a nuisance, so we shall go and clear them away now. The smiling words pierced Kevin’s heart without mercy.

Damn you, how could you! Rage eclipsed his terror, and Kevin drew his sword to strike, knowing full well he faced a legend.

Too slow. Without bothering to kill him, the knight left only those words behind as both figures vanished, leaving Kevin to catch only the blurred, fleeting trajectories of their charge toward the rear mage line.

It is over. Despair flooded Kevin’s mind.

Mages were inherently fragile, stationed in the rear to avoid such breaches, but against two legends, this was meaningless; no one could stop them, and the mages’ defensive wards were a joke before such power.

The two legendary knights had single-handedly sent the Alastair army, once on the verge of victory, into a state of total collapse.

Whoosh! Boom! A blinding, dazzling golden radiance erupted in an instant, a brilliant light that illuminated the heavens and forced Kevin to squeeze his eyes shut against the agony.

What, what is this now! Kevin’s spirit was nearly numb, the sudden upheaval eliciting only a hollow, ragged cry.

As the searing light faded, nothing remained but a massive crater, including, it seemed, the two legends.

Kevin blinked his stinging eyes, realizing the truth: that light belonged to the teacher of Mr. Garcia, the Archbishop of the Church of Light in Alastair, Fang Stuart; he had finally intervened.

Though he knew not what had been done, the two legends were indeed gone, and so…

Charge! The Seiwentan legends have been dealt with, break the city! The desperate, hoarse roar tore from Kevin’s throat.

The news spread like wildfire, Alastair’s morale surged, and the intensity of their assault skyrocketed exponentially.

...

Within a rift of space, a strange realm existed, surrounded by the abyssal blackness of deep space, where fragments of rock, both large and small, drifted in the void.

Upon the largest of these stones stood three figures; Father Fang, his upper body bare, held the heavy, tome-like flail as he watched the two Seiwentan legendary knights standing opposite him.

The two knights watched Father Fang with wary eyes, a black sun slowly manifesting behind them, though its dark radiance failed to touch the priest.

Fang Stuart, you have finally acted; you are indeed powerful, but to think you can handle two legends alone is pure arrogance—release us at once.

The knight whose inner potential was the black sun furrowed his brow, glaring at the Archbishop of the God of Light while issuing his threats.

This space was gifted to me by a friend, likely a blessing from the God of Space; it seems quite effective. I shall not strike you, so please wait here until this unjust war concludes, and then I shall let you out.

Father Fang did not respond to the threat, merely introducing the space and stating his purpose with calm indifference.

Do not joke with me; I will make you taste such agony that you will beg to let us out. To face two legends alone—what arrogance!

As the words fell, the knight with the bestial traits blurred into motion, charging at Father Fang.

Is that so? Then let me put it to the test. Father Fang’s eyes locked onto the rapidly moving knight, his perception perfectly tracking the man’s speed.

Divine Separator. He spoke the words slowly, golden light erupting around him, and to the utter disbelief of the knight who prided himself on his physical might, Fang moved with superior speed, bringing a blinding blade of golden light down upon his head.

...

Rumble!

Kill them all!

Break the city, break the city!

After the two legends were spirited away by the sudden golden light, the Alastair army’s morale soared, while the Seiwentan forces, conversely, lost all will to resist; if the power of legends could not turn the tide, what hope remained for them?

Spells hammered the walls without mercy, and the siege soldiers swung their heavy hammers with brutal force, tearing the thick fortifications apart.

Finally, with a thunderous crash of collapse, the royal city of Seiwentan was trampled underfoot by the armies of Alastair!