Various aerial attacks crisscrossed the sky, like a raging storm tearing across the lakeshore.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Magical power and bolts slammed into one another, setting off earth-shaking explosions. Each collision sprayed dazzling sparks that briefly lit up the surrounding darkness.
The might of the Cuckoo Glintstone was terrifying, smashing through thick trees with ease. In a long-range exchange where one fighter could hold off a hundred, Sellen clearly held the advantage.
Yet this dense rain of fire never converged on the center of the battlefield.
It wasn't that either side's aim was so poor they couldn't hit an enemy right in front of them. Both had their reasons for avoiding it.
"Is a Battlemage only good at running?"
Iron boots pounded against the muddy shore as Nolan sprinted forward, relentlessly pursuing the fleeing Dhurke.
Since arriving here, the two had already traded several blows.
Dhurke wanted nothing more than to withdraw his forces from this dangerous place as quickly as possible, but the Carian Knight was far too troublesome. Shaking him off was simply not an option.
Swish—
Glintstone Pebbles skimmed low across the ground, igniting flames in their wake. Fallen logs caught fire instantly, crackling as they burned.
Nolan tightened his grip on the Claymore, bracing it before his chest. In the next instant, he began to move with blinding speed.
Blade-light intertwined, forming an airtight wall of steel.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sparks flashed and vanished in an instant. Sorceries couldn't break through the barrier, and even the throwing daggers and bolts fired from concealment were knocked aside by the solid wall of swords, scattering in all directions.
Nolan's eyes burned with focus as he swept his gaze across the battlefield, then locked onto a target just ahead.
With a sharp swing of his arm, a radiant Glintstone Arc shot out like a cutting wave of sword energy.
The surging magical power crashed into a towering tree more than ten meters tall. With a dull creak, it toppled over, kicking up a cloud of dust. At the same time, muddy water erupted beneath Dhurke's feet.
Nolan surged forward with Bloodhound's Step, raising his twin swords high before slamming them down.
Shhk!!
A piercing tearing sound rang out as the blades plunged in, ripping apart the Battlemage who stood in his way.
He didn't slow down. Bloodhound's Step carried him forward again, and Nolan's figure vanished. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared right before his enemy.
Dhurke had barely managed to retreat two steps when the Dark Moon Knight appeared once more. Panic flashing across his face, he could only swing his heavy club in a hurried counterattack.
The club carved a wide arc through the air, dragging a fierce gust along with it.
But just before it could strike Nolan, his figure vanished again in a bizarre blur, leaving the blow to hit nothing but air.
As the knight suddenly appeared at his side, the Associate Preceptor of Haima stared in shock and uncertainty.
Years of combat experience screamed a warning, and an ominous premonition quietly took hold.
After a brief, frozen instant, the longsword in the knight's hands erupted with violent light. The pain of torn flesh surged through him, leaving only a single thought in his mind.
I'm dead.
Nolan swung his twin blades, two arcs of sword light flashing as they cut the Associate Professor Haima into three pieces. Then, amid the crowd, his body dissolved into blue particles and vanished.
Miriam's Vanishing!
Two Battlemages who had been about to rush forward in support instinctively looked up when they sensed the disturbance ahead. Their pupils shrank sharply, reflecting a strange and unsettling sight.
Blue particles drifting through the air seemed drawn by an unseen force, rapidly gathering before Sellen. The Claymore shot forward at blinding speed, driving straight toward the Witch's back.
Clang!!
A sharp metallic ring split the air as a figure emerged from the Darkness. The newcomer wore lightweight yet sturdy armor, their face completely hidden behind a pitch-black mask that left no hint of their true features. Only a pair of eyes showed through the narrow slits, chillingly calm, utterly indifferent.
"What did I tell you?"
Nolan stared at the face just inches from his own, the corner of his mouth lifting into a smug grin.
"It's Seluvis's puppet. That bastard really was untrustworthy. So what now?"
Sellen exchanged a brief glance with her apprentice, then turned toward the assassin. Understanding dawned at once.
"Of course we kill him."
Nolan's smile turned feral. That man had dared to spy on his teacher. This loyal disciple had wanted him dead for a long time.
"What about these people?"
Sellen asked, sweeping her gaze across the chaos around them, her brow knitting.
"The Caria army can handle them. We move now. We can't let Seluvis get away."
As he spoke, Nolan slashed again, forcing the assassin puppet back. More closed in almost immediately. Seeing this, he stopped pressing the fight. In perfect coordination, he and Sellen raised Claymore and staff together.
Light flared, and in the next instant, the two shattered into countless tiny particles and vanished from where they stood.
...
The once-prosperous town was now ablaze. Panicked townsfolk rushed through the streets, while sweat-soaked Cuckoo patrolmen shouted themselves hoarse.
"Don't shove!"
"Damn it, get out of the way, or I'll cut you down!"
"You there with the sword! Are you a mercenary? Mercenaries aren't allowed to leave without orders! Stay and help put out the fire and hold back the enemy!"
The air was filled with furious yelling, yet there was little outright refusal. War was a golden chance for mercenaries to make money. Even if it couldn't compare to the Cuckoo in scale, in times like these, even a scrap was worth grabbing.
Gatefront Town was large enough to scrape together over a hundred fighters, though most people simply sat by their windows, watching the chaos unfold.
Amid the surging crowd, Nolan and Sellen stood out as they pushed forward against the flow, seemingly deaf to the clamor around them.
"Hey! What are you two doing? Get over here and help—"
A nearby soldier shouted at them, but the moment his eyes landed on their ornate armor, his face went pale. The rest of his words died in his throat.
It was understandable. Grunts like him earned only a pittance each month. Why throw their lives away for someone else?
Ignoring the shouts entirely, the knight and the Witch pressed on without looking back, disappearing into the sea of people in the blink of an eye.
As Nolan ran, his eyes swept over his surroundings. He even caught sight of the restaurant he often visited. The owner stood by the window, staring out, exhaustion etched deep into his face.
"Is it there?"
A thunderous crash came from a distant rooftop, followed by rolling smoke and dust as tiles and chunks of stone blasted into the air.
A Battlemage was locked in fierce combat with the remaining Cuckoo forces, steadily pushing closer to the final tower.
Almost at the same moment, deafening shouts of battle erupted from the north, tearing away the town's last traces of silence.
Nolan turned his head, his gaze cutting through layers of mist, as if he could still make out the faraway western shore of the Liurnia of the Lakes.
There, Caria's banners snapped in the wind, weaving together with the banners of the Cuckoo as the two forces drew ever closer.