At the beginning, Ryan and his team's surprise attack achieved unimaginable success. The Chaos Dwarfs were clearly unprepared for the assault by the Old Guard. Under the leadership of Ryan, Karad, Sulia, and ten Grail Knights, they swiftly charged into the Chaos Dwarfs' camp without lingering in battle. The Old Guard shouted Ryan's slogan and sang songs that Ryan himself had taught them.
"People of the Kingdom, awaken~"
"The glorious moment has arrived~"
"The blood-stained banner is raised~"
"The blood-stained banner is raised~"
Fifty Old Guard soldiers, led by the Grail Knights, charged into the battlefield. Most wielded curved swords and finely crafted long swords forged by the Dwarf workshops, with short firearms holstered at their waists, and some wielded long spears. They rushed towards the Chaos Hellcannons' location.
The Chaos Dwarfs prided themselves on their sturdy armor, but it was not invincible against the swords of the Grail Knights and the finely crafted weapons of the Old Guard. The Chaos Dwarfs, caught off guard, were quickly cut down and felled.
Amidst the black smoke, the Chaos Hellcannons, mounted on demonic steam locomotives, stood out prominently.
"Quick! Destroy those Chaos Hellcannons! We don't have much time!" Bertrand, the commander of the Old Guard, shouted loudly. "Hurry!"
With that, Bertrand drew an arrow from the quiver on his back.
The sound of the bowstring twanged, and the arrow imbued with the power of starlight pierced the night sky, striking a Chaos Dwarf Fireblade Gunner squarely in the left eye. A piercing scream accompanied the sound of the arrow sinking into flesh. The Fireblade Gunner clutched the arrow, slowly collapsing to the ground.
Three consecutive arrows, each a fatal shot.
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
"Protect the machinery!"
The entire Chaos Dwarf camp was thrown into chaos. With the extraordinary abilities of Ryan and his team, they broke through the Chaos Dwarfs' defenses, gaining a temporary advantage for the raiding army. At the same time, Ryan, surrounded by lightning, and Sulia, shining so brightly it was blinding, drew the attention of the Chaos Dwarf army.
This advantage seemed to hold for a while longer, and Bertrand quickly pulled out a round grenade made by the Nuln Armory from his waist.
The Old Guard shouted the names of Ryan and the Lady of the Lake, rushing towards the demonic steam train. They threw the round grenades onto the Chaos Hellcannons' barrels. Seconds later, the sound of explosions and mushroom clouds rising from the Chaos Hellcannons lit up the pitch-black sky, shaking the entire camp.
Two Old Guard soldiers, who were too close to the Chaos Hellcannons, were consumed by the flames from the exploding barrels, their bodies melting into bubbling liquid and twisted, melting bones.
"Protect the machinery!" The Chaos Dwarf Daemonsmith was so heartbroken at the sight of a Chaos Hellcannon exploding that he could barely breathe. He immediately shouted, and the entire Chaos Dwarf transport team quickly responded. A Chaos Dwarf Sorcerer standing on the demonic steam locomotive raised his staff. When a few Old Guard soldiers drew their short firearms to shoot at him, the Sorcerer summoned black and red flames, instantly reducing three nearby Old Guard soldiers to a mass of burning sludge.
"No!" A feminine shout echoed from afar as Sulia, with the cold fury of the Lake God on her face, appeared. The female knight swung the Sword of Leonasse, cutting down two Iron Oath Guardians with blinding speed. In the blink of an eye, she closed in on the Chaos Sorcerer.
"Blazing Torrent!" The Sorcerer screamed, and two streams of burning magma bypassed the nearby Old Guard, heading straight for Sulia.
What happened next left the Sorcerer speechless. As the two streams of Chaos magic-infused flames approached Sulia, her full plate armor, glowing with sunlight-like radiance, flickered slightly, and the torrents simply extinguished and vanished.
Vanished.
Gone.
"???" The Sorcerer couldn't believe his eyes. This was a six-ring spell, capable of inflicting considerable damage even on a Grey Seer like Drazoath, yet now it had simply disappeared into thin air?
Sulia gave the Sorcerer no time to think. She swiftly approached, executing a cross slash that felled two Iron Oath Guardians who tried to rush her. In desperation, the Chaos Dwarf Sorcerer clutched a black skull hanging from his chest. "Father of Darkness, Hashut, grant me strength!"
The skull shattered, unleashing Hellfire that formed an impenetrable black wall of flames. The power of the Dark Father Hashut emanated from the wall, an intense, malicious hatred and blood-red fury that completely separated the Sorcerer from Sulia.
But in the next second, the Sword of Leonasse's blade flashed with brilliant light. Sulia charged forward, chanting the holy name of the Lady of the Lake. Her sword pierced through the Sorcerer's flame wall, driving straight through the Sorcerer's chest.
"You...cut through the flames..." the Sorcerer uttered his last words, then was beheaded by Sulia.
Meanwhile, Ryan had also reached the Chaos Dwarf Daemonsmith. The Daemonsmith's Chaos battle axe clashed with Ryan's Hammer of Thor. The tremendous force from Ryan's wrist almost knocked the Daemonsmith off balance, nearly making him drop his axe. After the first exchange, the Daemonsmith knew he was no match for this human. He took a few steps back, then threw his entire Chaos battle axe at Ryan. The axe, forged in the Hellforge of the Black Fortress, unleashed a burst of red lightning. Ryan quickly swung his hammer to deflect the axe. "Clang!"
"Heh!" This was part of the Daemonsmith's plan. He took another step back and pulled out a loaded shotgun from his waist, aiming it at Ryan while taunting.
"Block this, you weakling!"
Ryan paused, his body surrounded by a vortex of psychic energy. His blue eyes were filled with psychic power. With a flash of light, the Champion of the Lady of the Lake summoned a bolt of lightning from his hammer, instantly reducing the Daemonsmith to several charred chunks.
"Block this, you weakling!"
Ryan sneered, raised his hammer, and moved on to his next target.
Seeing the Daemonsmith dead, the nearby Chaos Dwarfs let out panicked roars, but they couldn't drown out the sound of the Chaos Hellcannons exploding. The Old Guard threw grenades and gunpowder into the Chaos Hellcannons' barrels or bases, causing explosions that lit up the night sky over Pah Ruins as bright as day. Amid the Chaos Dwarfs' angry or despairing howls, multicolored flames spread throughout the camp. By now, a dozen Old Guard soldiers had died in battle, and two Grail Knights were severely injured by the flames.
It seemed that Ryan's plan had achieved unparalleled success.
However, the Chaos Dwarfs launched a counterattack almost immediately. Thousands of Chaos Dwarf warriors were desperately trying to close the camp's gates to trap the intruders inside. In the distance, the sound of chaotic hoofbeats and gunfire grew louder. Ryan knew that Grandmaster Pfizman and Blackheart Rip must have engaged the approaching Kurgan cavalry and Rot Knights. Without hesitation, Ryan raised his hammer and shouted, "Retreat!"
"Retreat!" Bertrand quickly echoed, shouting the order while still firing his bow. Two Fireblade Gunners were shot between the eyes and fell dead on the spot.
Ryan channeled his psychic power, forming a light blue energy shield around himself, instantly deflecting a barrage of bullets fired by the Chaos Dwarfs. He swung his hammer, knocking down an Iron Oath Guardian, and quickly moved towards his wife, shouting, "Sulia, retreat!"
"But the Hellcannons haven't all been destroyed yet..." Sulia hesitated, her perfectionist instincts noting a few remaining Chaos Hellcannons in the camp that hadn't been dealt with.
"No time, the Kurgan cavalry is closing in. Pfizman is leading the cavalry in a delaying action!" Ryan shouted.
"Alright, I understand!" Sulia didn't hesitate any longer. She slashed down a Chaos Dwarf warrior, splitting his shield in half, then rejoined her husband. The female knight took a few deep breaths despite wearing divine armor, the load on her body was immense. The couple quickly fought their way back towards their entry point.
By now, Kurgan cavalry reinforcements had arrived, charging into the Chaos Dwarfs' camp. They shouted praises to Father Nurgle, eager to punish the treacherous attackers. But Ryan had planned for this. Blackheart Rip led a unit of pistol cavalry from a distance, aiming at the Kurgan cavalry who were driven mad by the sight of battle and bloodshed. A dense volley of gunfire unleashed a barrage of bullets, causing many Kurgan riders to fall from their horses. Blackheart Rip and his pistol cavalry then fled in haste, having no time or chance to reload while mounted.
"Karad! Bertrand! Retreat!" Ryan shouted.
"Understood." Karad stood atop a pile of Chaos Dwarf corpses. The Grail Knight Champion was about to respond to Ryan's order when a Chaos Champion roared his name, charging from a distance atop a pus-filled warhorse!
Karad stood his ground, assuming a stance. The blade of his holy sword, Durandal, twisted in the air, catching the moonlight and casting a divine glow under the colorful sky. Then, with a swift motion, Karad sheathed his sword and said, "Understood!"
Behind Karad, the Chaos Champion's body was flung off his warhorse, his head severed from his body midair. The heavy corpse crashed into the ruins of a nearby house, landing in a heap of rubble. The warhorse, now riderless, stumbled and fell, its large head rolling a few times on the ground, still bearing the crazed expression from the charge.
The Old Guard quickly retreated, following the predetermined path out of the village.
Raymond was among them. He had just been fighting two Chaos Dwarf warriors when he heard the retreat order. Gritting his teeth, the former slave of Leonasse pulled out the short-barreled gun from his waist and fired at the Chaos Dwarf warrior in front of him. The bullet from the Nuln-manufactured firearm struck and killed the Chaos Dwarf, allowing Raymond to flee.
He ran unevenly towards the southwest exit, bullets whizzing past his arms and under his armpits. One shot even struck his back, but fortunately, the half-plate armor crafted by the Dwarves along the Chanon River was sturdy enough, and the Chaos Dwarf fire shot from a distance merely scratched the paint and sent sparks flying.
"Damn Chaos Dwarfs!" Raymond cursed as he ran past the wreckage of the demonic steam train, which was in shambles after the explosion. Spotting a pipe-like opening, Raymond remembered that he still had a grenade left. He quickly threw down his long spear, lit the grenade with a Nuln firestarter, and tossed it into the pipe. Picking up his spear, Raymond then mimicked the Dwarves' gruff tone and shouted, "Eat this, you fools!"
"Boom!" A massive explosion erupted from the Chaos Dwarf steam locomotive just as Raymond had taken a few steps away. The blast wave lifted him off the ground, and he screamed in midair, "Aaaaah!"
Just as Raymond was about to hit the ground, he felt himself being grabbed and pulled up.
"Raymond, well done! Now retreat quickly!" It was Ryan. The Duke had a serious expression as he set Raymond back on the ground. "Hurry! I'll cover the rear!"
The Duke remembered me! Raymond was deeply moved, but as a soldier of the Old Guard, he followed orders above all else. He saluted and then quickly retreated.
Ryan and Karad took up the rear guard position themselves. The two legendary warriors fought side by side, slaughtering nearly all of the first wave of Kurgan cavalry that charged at them. Seeing that the situation was under control, Ryan pulled out a magic scroll from his pocket. "Time to go, Karad."
"What's that?" Karad asked as he split a Chaos warrior in two. He was covered in blood, though it was all from Kurgan and Chaos Dwarfs.
"A scroll containing the Banishment Light spell—Veronica gave it to me to bring to Nuln." Ryan tore open the scroll. "It will cover our retreat. Let's move!"
A giant vortex of light formed, enveloped in the magic winds of Hysh. The Kurgan cavalry screamed as they were swept up by the wind, their bodies disintegrating into dust under the purifying light. The blinding radiance forced the Chaos Dwarfs and Kurgan cavalry to retreat, unable to face the terrible power of the spell.
When the vortex of light finally dissipated after a few minutes, the Chaos Dwarfs looked around and saw that there was no trace of the human army left in the ruins of Pah town and the nearby plains.
All that remained was the devastation in the camp after the explosions. The Chaos Dwarfs cursed and shouted in anger throughout the night, tallying their losses. Two demonic steam locomotives were completely destroyed, and another was severely damaged, requiring significant effort to repair.
Of the sixteen Chaos Hellcannons they had brought, twelve were utterly destroyed, and the remaining four were damaged to varying degrees.
That night, the Chaos Dwarfs' curses and blame echoed until dawn.
...I'm the dividing line of powerless rage...
At the same time, in the Old World, Nuln, the Elector's Palace, in Ryan's large suite.
Little Frederick and little Devonshire were being looked after by Emilia. Sylvia sat in the study, discussing Nuln's crisis with her father, Vincent. Only the Dark Elf Olica, dressed in a black-and-white maid outfit with white lace stockings, sat in the hall of the suite. She held a dark blue staff in her hands, inscribing something onto a parchment.
At that moment, the door to the room was pushed open, and a figure dressed in a purple robe and dress, with purple high heels, stepped rudely into the hall. Her skin was extremely pale, and her long gray hair floated in the air.
"Elf, come with me. I need your power."
"I knew you'd come, human," Olica replied, lifting her head. The Dark Elf's amber eyes gleamed with a cold, sinister glint unique to her kind.
"We can sense each other." The newcomer held a large scythe in her hand. "Nuln needs your strength."
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