Fierce winds swept across the city gates, and mist spread in all directions.
The literal translation of Stormveil Castle is exactly that—a castle surrounded by a storm veil. It is enveloped by storms all year round, creating a unique climate.
The towering walls protected the castle completely. To enter the city, one had to go through the main gate, unless they grew wings and flew in.
Speaking of wings, Xia Yu had been coveting the Crucible Knight's Aspects of the Crucible: Wings for a long time. In the game, players could only learn and use Aspects of the Crucible: Tail, Horn, and Throat Pouch.
The Aspects of the Crucible: Wings, which allowed the Crucible Knight to fly, was unlearnable due to gameplay mechanics, but in reality, he was determined to get his hands on it.
Even if he could fly by riding a sword in the future, who wouldn't want a pair of cool, impressive wings?
"Tsk, quite a lot of people."
Looking at the patrolling soldiers wandering at the city gate, Xia Yu felt a bit annoyed.
There were chevaux-de-frise at the city gate to stop cavalry charges, and several squads of ordinary soldiers were patrolling nearby without any signs of fatigue.
Xia Yu wasn't sure if these enemies were as blind as they were in the game, so he lay low in the bushes within the forest, not making any rash moves.
These soldiers seemed like they would never tire, patrolling back and forth like robots. The withered faces beneath their helmets seemed to indicate that they too suffered from the blight spreading through The Lands Between.
After observing for a moment and determining the positions of all enemies, Xia Yu pulled out his two staves.
Having played melee for so long, he had almost forgotten he was a mage.
No, he was a dual practitioner of magic and martial arts.
This kind of scenario, which only appeared in web novels from over a decade ago, made Xia Yu exclaim that his youth had returned!
Wielding his dual staves, Xia Yu strode out. Almost as soon as he appeared, the soldiers spotted him; there was none of the blindness found in the game.
"Tsk, a game is just a game after all."
Xia Yu muttered unhappily and flicked his hands. Two Great glintstone Shards were instantly fired. This was a type of glintstone Sorcery from the Raya Lucaria Academy, which releases large magical pebbles from the tip of a staff.
This was a new spell he had learned from Sellen. Teacher Sellen wasn't like her in-game counterpart, who could only teach a handful of spells.
However, because he was still in the learning process, he hadn't learned too many—only a few relatively simple glintstone Sorceries.
The Great glintstone Shards trailed blue light, leaving a brilliant luminescence in the air!
The mindless soldiers had no intention of dodging. Seeing the meteor-like shards approaching, they actually charged straight ahead. In the next moment—
With a loud bang, the head of the soldier who was hit exploded, and he fell to the ground in a very clean and natural death.
This scene caused the soldiers preparing to surround the enemy to pause, but a low and melodious horn blast suddenly rang out. The moment they heard the sound, the hesitant soldiers stepped forward resolutely once more.
They were soldiers under the command of the Golden Sovereign, having once followed Godrick to war in all directions, even if their sovereign was a cowardly man.
But the sovereign had once promised to lead them back home and was working toward that goal, so what reason did they have to retreat!
Even though they had lost their minds to the blight, the moment they heard the horn, the soldiers regained their indomitable momentum and attacked the enemy ahead.
Looking at the determined expressions on the soldiers' withered faces, Xia Yu shook his head gently and said, "In the end, we just stand on different sides. Let me grant you release."
Clang—!
Several sword hums rang out abruptly as several flying swords flew out from behind Xia Yu. They sliced through the air, heading straight for the surrounding soldiers.
Heads, hearts, throats... any vital spot was a target for the flying swords. Despite their meager resistance, those ordinary soldiers were killed instantly by the swords.
The brass shields in their hands were simply unable to block the unpredictable flying swords. Only a few knights were able to withstand the onslaught.
Knights were beings stronger than soldiers; thus, when facing the flying swords, they flicked their spears.
Clang—!
Upon impact, the flying swords were knocked away. But the flying swords were only a distraction for Xia Yu; he only devoted thirty percent of his focus to them. His true attack was still magic!
glintstone Machine Gun!
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—!
Swift glintstone Shards, even faster than the standard glintstone Shards, were fired continuously by Xia Yu. Although their power was slightly weaker, the casting speed had almost no interval.
The glintstone attacks, like machine-gun fire, pelted the knights incessantly, but the shields in the knights' hands were not just for show.
As knights, their combat power was stronger and their equipment better. Even the brass shields used for defense had been replaced with Lordsworn's Greatshields.
Though made of wood, under the blessing of holy incantations, the damage negation and guard boost of these wooden greatshields were excellent. However, facing the continuous glintstone fire, their charging forms were still held back.
In the next instant, the shield-bearing knights had their guards broken one after another. The rain-like glintstone struck their armor mercilessly.
Their bodies swayed under the barrage, and they could barely keep their footing.
Xia Yu took the opportunity to close in, following the trailing light of the shards. He seamlessly switched his dual staves for two straight swords.
Spinning Slash!
Lowering his center of gravity, Xia Yu's right leg suddenly exerted force, and his body spun instantly. The swords in his hands, like extensions of his limbs, sliced through the hardened obstacles.
A flash of cold light followed. The two knights closest to him froze abruptly, then their helmeted heads rolled to the ground, and their bodies collapsed with a thud.
After slaying the two knights, the muscles in Xia Yu's arms bulged, and he violently hurled his hands toward the other two knights whose guards were broken!
With a bang, the air exploded. The two straight swords flew straight out, piercing into the gaps of the other two knights' helmets in the blink of an eye, the tips finally emerging from the back of the helmets.
In an instant, four of the five knights were gone. The remaining knight looked at his dead companions and let out a sorrowful, angry roar.
He discarded his shield, gripped his spear tightly, and charged forward with a suicidal momentum. Even knowing he was no match, he did not hesitate in the slightest.
Seeing this, Xia Yu hooked his toe, flipping up the spear of a fallen knight nearby, and then reached out to catch it in his hand.
Watching the charging knight, Xia Yu weighed the spear in one hand, stepped out with one foot into a lunge, and held the spear high over his shoulder.
Then, using his waist for power, he channeled his entire body's strength into his right arm. In the next moment—
Boom!
The spear was thrown instantly. The burst of speed even created a sonic boom, and spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the ground beneath his feet.
The knight on the other side didn't even have time to dodge before the spear pierced his chest, sending his body flying backward.
He was then pinned straight into the ground behind him. The knight clutched the spear in his chest unwillingly, his body finally going limp.
"My apologies."
Looking at the dead soldiers scattered across the ground, Xia Yu spoke softly. Then, without looking back, he walked toward the city gate, where the small soldiers manning the ballistae had already perished under the assault of the flying swords.
And behind that city gate was the omen clone of Morgott the Grace-Given, Margit, the Fell Omen—the first boss guarding Stormveil Castle.
I've been a bit busy the last day or two; I just barely managed to finish this chapter on time. Wait a bit longer, and I'll try to restore the previous update schedule.