Knight and Wand

Chapter 279 Return of the Avengers

The atmosphere in the room of Kilmerton Fortress was heavy and depressing.

The dim candlelight flickered, distorting the figures of everyone in the room.

Count Elliver stood by the bed with a serious expression, looking at his old friend who was seriously injured and unconscious on the bed, his eyes filled with deep worry and concern.

The scarred Baron Balfe lying on the bed looked sickly pale, with his eyes closed. His usually strong face was now slightly distorted by pain, as if he was struggling in a nightmare.

The huge wound on his chest was shocking, as if telling of the cruelty of the battle. If it weren't for the guards who risked their lives to save him, the old knight would have died on the battlefield long ago.

Warlock advisor Harvey and several military doctors gathered around the bed, brows furrowed, examining Balfe's injuries intently.

The young warlock master's eyes revealed confusion. He sometimes examined the wound carefully, and sometimes shook his head and sighed, as if he was in a difficult situation.

After a long while, Harvey turned around and faced Elifer and Ines with a serious look. "My Lord, Princess, Baron Balf's injuries are so severe that if he were an ordinary person, he would have died long ago. Given his current condition, it is a miracle that he was brought back to the fortress alive."

Harvey said, confusion on his face. "Although I am not a sorcerer who specializes in healing, I know a thing or two about medicine. However, I cannot use magic to transfer magic to activate Baron Balfe's own vitality to promote the healing of his wounds. Every time my power enters his body, it is like a stone sinking into the sea. His body does not even have a trace of life source reaction."

Hearing this, Ines sighed softly and interrupted the other party's long speech: "Harvey, this is not your tower, nor is it a seminar at the Northern College. Please get to the point."

The young warlock came to his senses, bowed and apologized, and succinctly concluded: "Your Highness, judging from Baron Balfe's current condition, his heart is still beating and supplying blood, and his breathing is weak but stable. He is not in danger of life in the short term.

After my examination, I found no signs of voodoo or curse in his body, but the conditions here are too simple, and I am not a mage who is good at life magic, so it is difficult to cure Lord Balfe's injuries. I heard that Sir Corvis in the coalition is proficient in life magic, maybe he can treat him. "

When Earl Earl Elliver heard that his old friend was not in danger for the time being, his tense nerves relaxed a little, he took a long breath, and nodded calmly: "Everyone has his own specialty. Balf's injury is so serious that it is reasonable even if he had an accident. But Master Harvey, please take care of my old friend."

Warlock Harvey bowed and said, "I will do my best."

Then, Elifer and Ines left the room.

The dim candlelight in the corridor made Count Thornflower's face look even gloomier.

He said to the princess beside him, "The defeat in the south was too sudden. The fortress only gathered less than a thousand defeated soldiers. Most of Lord Kantadar's troops who went south may have been wiped out. Less than a quarter of Balf's two thousand men returned."

More than a thousand elite soldiers were wiped out, which was undoubtedly a heavy blow to the Thorn Flower Family.

Ines looked worried: "Did those soldiers who escaped back explain why the South suffered such a disastrous defeat?"

Of the fifteen sorcerer apprentices she sent to assist the army, less than half survived, and all were frightened by the bloody scenes they muttered.

"The soldiers who escaped back all looked distraught. According to them, the undead that attacked the southwest of Baldim were very terrifying.

The allied soldiers have been fighting against the undead until now, and those who followed the army deep into the dark clouds are all experienced warriors, but the undead they encountered are stronger than ever before.
The army was defeated in a night attack. A group of strange monsters took advantage of the cover of darkness and sneaked into the town where the army was stationed, killing almost all the generals who were still resting.

They somehow managed to sneak past the night watchmen, and Balf's army was caught off guard and fell into chaos during the surprise attack. In the end, they were slaughtered by the undead who attacked in full force in the chaos.

Ines frowned as she listened to what Elifer described about what the defeated soldiers saw:

"Then this undead army will most likely quickly approach Kilmerton Pass. We must learn from this lesson and keep the lights on in various parts of the fortress day and night. The entire army will increase the number of people on duty and be on guard at all times. I will let Harvey lead the warlocks to maintain early warning magic around the fortress as much as possible."

Elliver nodded. The sudden and tragic defeat forced the coalition forces to shrink their defenses and hold the fortress.

"I have sent people to gather the surrounding troops to withdraw to the pass immediately. Earl Runaf's reinforcements are also being transferred from the rear. The enemy is so hard to defend. Even if we want to return the land we just captured, we can't give them the opportunity to defeat them one by one."

Ines couldn't help but ask, "Is there any news from Lord Leon?"

Elifer replied, "Sir Tiger has returned. He said that Leon has destroyed all the undead strongholds on the border of the Southeast County Territory and is on his way back with his army."

After saying this, he said helplessly: "But the scouts sent out in other directions to investigate the undead army have not received any news in the past two days.

I'm worried that the enemy may arrive faster than we expected."

The two men quickened their pace and hurried to gather the generals to discuss defensive countermeasures.

South of Kilmerton Pass.

The cold moonlight falls on the quiet Iselin Valley like silver yarn.

The army under Leon's command had already stopped advancing and temporarily camped at the intersection of the valley.

The bonfires illuminated the soldiers' tired but determined faces.

Although the coalition forces have destroyed the undead stronghold in the Iselin Valley, Leon does not dare to take blind risks now. The boulevard in the valley may seem peaceful, but it may be full of dangers.

Not knowing whether there would be more dangers on the way back to the Pass Fortress, he was unwilling to rush overnight and wanted to wait until dawn to continue his journey.

Sitting quietly in front of the military campfire, Leon frowned.

In the battles with the undead, he had seen all kinds of strange corpses. However, the military intelligence brought by Sir Tiger mentioned an unknown enemy that could independently launch night attack and decapitation tactics, which made Leon full of worries.

The strange monsters with a high degree of intelligence were obviously much more troublesome than ordinary undead who relied only on instinct. Especially their elusive night attacks made it impossible for the living army that needed rest to cope with them.

Since the enemy was able to ignore the darkness and launch attacks at night, they had obviously seized the weakness of the living army. The more Leon thought about it, the more he felt that there was almost no solution except to respond passively.

The undead, who have no morale, need no supplies, can fight around the clock and ignore the darkness, can truly be called a perfect army. The only thing they lack seems to be real "officers" who can effectively command the army. And now, an undead army that can actively implement tactics. Does this mean that the coalition forces have encountered the main force controlled by the person behind the disaster?
Could it be that my destruction of countless undead altars in Baldim County over the past month has finally disrupted the enemy's great magic rituals and alarmed them?

Listening to the crackling of the campfire, Leon subconsciously lowered his head while thinking, and his eyes fell on Olivia who was lying on the marching blanket.

The girl rested her head lightly on his leg armor, her hands holding the sword, her eyes closed as if she was dozing.

Leon unconsciously smiled gently, raised his hand and gently stroked her hair, stroking the cute braided bun and earlobes, thinking that this girl didn't mind the leg nails hitting her head.

Of course, he knew that his lover was not asleep. Since he felt that he had enough energy and could stay awake for a whole day and night, he did not plan to sleep and would guard against possible night attacks with the night watchmen.

He couldn't resist Olivia's wish to accompany him, and considering that the little lion was much stronger than himself, he let her work the night shift together.

With the girl's quiet company, the lonely and silent night is at least a little less boring.

suddenly.

The sharp and piercing screams that made one's teeth ache cut through the silence of the night like a sharp blade.

The warning spells deployed in multiple locations of the army were triggered at the same time, and the flashing light was particularly dazzling in the darkness.

Leon instinctively put his hand on his sword, his expression instantly tense. This was definitely not caused by the beast accidentally touching the spell.

The number of wild animals surviving in the area near the human roads in Baldim County had already been greatly reduced due to the influence of the Soul Bell of the Dead. Moreover, there were such consistent alarms from all directions. There was no doubt that this was an enemy attack.

Olivia, who was resting on his thigh, immediately stood up and drew her sword quickly. Leon set out with her to the periphery to dispatch the troops.

The soldiers and knights were quickly awakened by the alarm. The experienced Knights-Rangers reacted most quickly and were the first to prepare for battle. The well-trained Knights of the Holy Lake deployed their troops in an orderly manner. The old soldiers of Avalon were no longer as naive as they were in the past. They got up from the ground and assembled into a neat formation.

The entire army is on high alert.

However, no undead appeared from the darkness as expected.

Leon rode his horse through the periphery of the army, and a group of generals quickly came and gathered around him.

Captain Irem frowned, looking worriedly at the deep forest in the distance, and said in a deep voice: "I'm afraid we have encountered an enemy with brains, Lord Leon."

Corvis looked exhausted from days of running around. He had just woken up from his deep sleep and looked at Leon, asking, "My Lord, do you need me to fly up and scout the surrounding area?"

Greenthorne rode forward and volunteered: "It would be more appropriate to give this task to us. It's late at night, and Sir Corvis is in the sky. I'm afraid it will be difficult for him to see the surrounding situation clearly."

Leon shook his head decisively, his expression solemn. "It's too dangerous. If Captain Irem's speculation is correct, and we follow the enemy's thinking, I'm afraid there will be no end tonight. Not to mention the huge risk of looking for the enemy in the forest at night, this may still be a trap. Even if the enemy retreats and does not actively attack, as long as they harass the army intermittently every once in a while, the entire army will be exhausted and panicked."

The undead do not need sleep, and the Knights of Arms can hold on, but it is impossible for ordinary soldiers in the army to drag their tired bodies to fight against the army of undead.

".The flames will help you find your enemies in the shadows. I hear the call of the elemental spirits. The wind will not blow south tonight."

Miss Prophet's gentle voice sounded in Leon's mind.

Leon nodded slightly, and had something in mind. He turned around and issued an order to the entire army:
"Set fire, burn the forest!"

The army carried fish oil to deal with the undead, and the large trees and dead wood around were undoubtedly the best fuel for burning the mountain.

In this way, the enemy will either retreat, be trapped in the forest and turned into charcoal-grilled ribs, or show up and fight head-on with the knights under his command.

As for the destroyed valley forests, the overall situation is more important at the moment. Sacrificing some environmental resources is better than sacrificing the lives of the soldiers. I believe Count Runaf can understand this.

Following Leon's order.

More than 2,000 soldiers, holding torches and carrying fuel, immediately began to act.

A raging wildfire broke out in the southern part of the Iselin Valley.

The blaze caused by arson spread across the prairie like wildfire. The howling south wind pushed the fire wildly and it spread rapidly. Before long, the inky black night was burned as bright as dusk.

The soldiers formed a defensive formation based on the baggage carts and horses, waiting for the enemy.

Northwest of the camp, on the high ground that had not yet been affected by the fire, the wandering vanguard cavalrymen soon keenly captured a large black shadow emerging from the forest.

Seeing that the fire attack was effective, Leon immediately ordered the entire army to prepare for battle.

The sound of military trumpets pierced the night sky. Knights with torches slanted on their saddles rode their horses between the companies they commanded. Following the instructions of their commander, they ordered the army to slowly adjust its layout to deal with the attack of the army of zombies.

Deep in the darkness, countless ghost eyes flashing with cold light gathered into a gloomy ocean.

The undead marched in the same orderly square formation towards the army of the living with torches standing in the open slope.

In the light of the forest fire in the north of the battlefield, the two armies were getting closer and closer. Leon couldn't help but look at the broken flags that were still standing among the army of the dead.

".NO, NO!!! DAMN IT!!! NO!!!"

Lohak roared in extreme anger, like a terrifying tiger roar. The burly knight's eyes were red as he stared at the zombie army in front of him.
Leon's pupils shrank slightly.

On that military flag, there was a familiar emblem in the original owner's memory.

The pure white sun blade pattern had been stained deep red with blood.

Rows of corpse warriors holding large shields and spears with the Holy Sun emblem revealed their former identities in life.

Rolandar City Guard.

As the memory came to mind, a faint sense of anger also came to my mind.

The scene he least wanted to see finally appeared before his eyes.

Since the undead they faced before included the Kantardar army that invaded Serrian, how could the Serrians who had died before and after the battle of the Holy City be spared?

Rage rose in the chest of the furious Lohak, and his hands clenched tightly around his halberd and axe, making a crackling sound. "Whoever it is, whoever blasphemes the souls of my family, I will kill him!!! I will kill them!!"

(End of this chapter)