Chapter 266: Breaking Evil

Chapter 266: Breaking Evil



As Rain led Kraya to the carriage, he felt her delicate hand slip from his grasp, perhaps due to the presence of the head maid, Shadiya, inside. Kraya slightly tugged her hand away as she opened the carriage door.

Inside the carriage, the head maid, Shadiya, greeted them with excitement, "Sir Rain, that was so satisfying! Seeing you teach Lord Rodlin and his ungrateful son a lesson they won't soon forget, I feel sweeter than honey!"

Rain smiled at the maid's compliment, "Thank you, it's what I should do, isn't it? I am now Lady Kraya's Guardian Knight."

Hearing Rain mention 'Guardian Knight' again, Kraya's pretty face flushed slightly.

The team continued their rapid journey towards Meyster County, and as night fell, the knights seemed unaffected, but the cavalry's faces showed signs of fatigue.

The cavalry, being well-trained commoners, were indeed tired after a day of tense travel.

Kraya, inside the carriage, asked the elderly steward outside the window, "Where are we now?"

"Miss, we've passed Colma Town, and now we're roughly halfway between Colma and Ez Towns," replied Jordel, the elderly steward riding outside.

"Then let's camp nearby, and don't forget to inform Viscount Selir."

"As you wish, Miss Kraya."

Rain, nearby, didn't offer any comments.

Earlier, Kraya had told him that to save time, they would camp outdoors as planned.

After a night in the wild, they would continue their journey the next morning and should arrive in Meyster by two or three in the afternoon.

Hearing that they could camp and rest, the cavalry breathed a sigh of relief, and smiles appeared on their faces.

Soon, in a clearing by the road, bonfires were lit, and everyone started roasting various jerky.

Meanwhile, in a hidden valley not far from the temporary camp.

A massive force, several times larger than Rain's team, was rapidly approaching them!

Leading the way was a luxurious carriage without any emblem, surrounded by a group of people. The most numerous among them were over a hundred people wearing identical gray robes with hoods, and on their sleeves or collars was the pattern of a burning black flame, indicating that these gray-robed individuals were likely the new cultists that Galina had mentioned, trained in Wales County.

At the rear of the group was a sixteen-horse-drawn giant cart, pulling an extremely heavy object, slowly following the procession.

The cart was covered with thick tarpaulin, making it hard to discern its contents, but it seemed to have a giant human-shaped outline.

Although the cart had wide wheels to prevent it from sinking into the ground, it left behind deep tracks, about ten centimeters in depth!

"High Priestess, the weather is in our favor! Look, there's no need to cast Fog Magic, as mist is already rising." A black-robed cultist bowed slightly and spoke to Galina inside the carriage.

Galina glanced out the window, tapped her long fingernails, and said, "Don't be complacent. Send a few people to release some Fog Magic."

"Oh, and any news from Bidars?"

"Bidars is leading a group to flank them from the direction of Colma Town. They should arrive at the enemy camp around the same time as us. High Priestess, if the enemy wants to retreat, it's too late; we've blocked their front and rear."

"Of course, High Priestess. Don't worry, I've brought the materials for the Dark Magic Array. They'll soon learn that in the face of our dark magic, all battle formations are like fragile clay." The black-robed cultist's face lit up with satisfaction.

"Excellent."

Temporary Camp, Clearing.

Rain was about to invite Kraya to continue practicing Arcadia Sword Technique when a sudden scenario unfolded if Rain and Kraya encountered a group of cultists while camping outdoors, and Rain wanted to assess the situation:

Arriving at the temporary camp in the clearing, Rain was about to invite Kraya to continue their Arcadia Sword Technique training when a loud screech from a bird of prey pierced the sky. Immediately after, a giant bird with blue-purple feathers descended from the sky in a spiral.

This sudden appearance startled the cavalry, and they drew their weapons in preparation.

"Don't worry, this is my pet," Rain said, waving his hand.

Bloodfeather landed on Rain's arm, flapping its massive wings and creating a gust of wind.

Rain was puzzled as to why Bloodfeather had landed on him, but he soon noticed a pigeon in its claws.

The pigeon was alive but seemed terrified of Bloodfeather, not daring to struggle vigorously. Its tiny eyes conveyed fear.

A pigeon?

Rain immediately understood the situation.

After a quick exchange of gestures with Bloodfeather, Rain learned what had happened.

"Bloodfeather, you found a small bird like this one flying out from our team every now and then, didn't you?" Rain asked, and Bloodfeather nodded vigorously.

Rain took the small bamboo tube from the pigeon's leg, removing a piece of paper from inside.

On the paper was written: "The team has set up camp, located between Colma Town and Ez Town."

Rain's eyes flashed with understanding, and he appeared thoughtful, confirming his initial guess.

Clearly, this was not the communication style used by Rain's family, and the frequent messages and the choice of words indicated an enemy informant.

Rain quickly found Kraya in the carriage and handed her the note, saying, "Miss Kraya, I think you should see this."

Kraya glanced at the note, her delicate features hardening. "This is not our family's communication style, Sir Rain. It seems we have an enemy informant."

"Indeed," Rain agreed.

Kraya and Rain stepped down from the carriage, and Rain called out, "Cookie!" Soon, a small horse, no larger than a pony, trotted over to Rain, wagging its tail excitedly.

Rain held the bamboo tube to Cookie's nose, allowing it to sniff.

"Cookie quickly sniffed each person, starting with the one closest to him, and soon enough, as he searched around, he barked at a panicked cavalryman near a bonfire not far away."

"Miss Kraya, it seems we've found our insider," Rain said with a smile, turning to Kraya beside him.

Butler Jordel quickly recognized the cavalryman as one he had brought from Myester.

"Mochi, why did you do this?"

"Miss Kraya, I'm sorry," Butler Jordel said, both angry and remorseful.

This greatly relieved Viscount Seril, who was standing nearby.

Fortunately, this insider, or spy, was not from his team, otherwise, it would have been difficult for him to explain the situation.

"Speak up! Who are you working for?" Viscount Seril stepped forward and asked.

The insider, named Mochi, cried out, "Your Excellency, I really don't know who I'm working for. I only know that I can get a generous reward by reporting the team's situation and specific itinerary."

"Miss Kraya, please forgive me."

"It seems we've been targeted by an opposing force, Rain. Who do you think it is?" Kraya ignored the traitor and turned to Rain for an answer.

"I think I know who it is," Rain said after a moment's thought.

"The Black Flame Cult," the two said almost in unison.

If it wasn't a political rival, there was no reason for anyone to risk attacking the Habsburg family, who were already engaged in a battle with a cult, especially when it could jeopardize their relationship with the Dragon Empire.

With the Sea God Cult primarily fighting along the coastline against the Dragon Empire's land and naval forces, it was reasonable to believe that the Black Flame Cult, which had seriously injured Count Habsburg and intended to destabilize the Empire's rule in Meyster County, was the most likely culprit.

The three immediately returned to the carriage to discuss the matter.

"Miss Kraya, do we need to break camp and hide right now?" Viscount Seril also realized the seriousness of the situation and asked.

Viscount Seril's question made Kraya pause in thought.

"Send people to scout the surrounding area immediately."

"The fog is getting thicker and thicker," Rain suddenly said.

Indeed, Kraya and Viscount Seril opened the carriage curtains and saw that as night fell, a thin mist began to rise around them.

Rain had just used his core skill, 'Beast Eye,' to see from the sky through the eyes of Bloodfeather, but unfortunately, the fog made it impossible for him to see the ground clearly from a hundred meters in the air.

After all, even with Bloodfeather's excellent vision, it couldn't see through the fog.

Seeing the thickening fog, Kraya's expression turned solemn. "It might be too late. Viscount Seril, the fog is getting denser too quickly! Everyone, be on high alert. The enemy is probably already here."

"Hmm, they're probably already here," Rain said, raising his eyebrows.

"Hmm?" Kraya and Viscount Seril looked at Rain.

"Get ready for battle!" Rain was the first to step out of the carriage.

The next second, screams erupted from all around.

Kraya and Viscount Seril immediately followed Rain out of the carriage.

"Gather around the carriage!"

"Form a defensive formation!" Kraya shouted.

As a student of the Imperial Royal Academy and the daughter of an Imperial fiefdom's Earl, Kraya had undergone battle formation training since childhood and immediately took command.

Hearing Kraya's voice, both the knights and cavalry felt reassured.

The group quickly gathered around the carriage, with the shield-bearing cavalry forming a circular defensive formation, while those with bows or crossbows took up the inner layer, and Viscount Seril and Rain were in the innermost layer.

Facing the rapidly formed defensive formation, over a hundred novice cultists, though unable to see the specific situation in the distance, could still discern the general outline of the formation. They knew that charging head-on would result in significant losses.

A faint smile appeared on Galina's face. "I heard that Countess Kraya, the daughter of Count Habsburg, is a top student at the Imperial Royal Academy. It seems she's living up to her reputation."

"High Priestess, this is something we anticipated. The enemy's response to our surprise attack is as we expected," said a tall, thin Black Flame Cultivator beside her with a smile.

"Kurban, let's go," said the Black Flame Cultivator named Kurban.

Kurban and five other Black Flame Cultivators walked to a distant spot and began arranging materials on the ground.

Soon, under Kurban's command, a complex black-lined Dark Magic Array was set up, and five Black Flame Cultivators, including Kurban, stood at the five corners of the inverted pentagram array. Kurban, however, stood at the foremost vertex. Simultaneously, they began chanting incantations.

Four black flame snakes coiled around the other four Black Flame Cultivators, while Kurban raised his hands, palms upright, and a fist-sized black flame fireball formed a meter in front of him.

In an instant, the four black flame snakes merged into the fireball, which rapidly expanded at a visible rate, releasing a powerful energy wave.

Rain, in the formation, immediately frowned as he sensed the strong energy wave from a distance.

Furthermore, the wave's characteristics suggested that multiple people were performing a joint ritual attack, indicating an impending powerful sorcery assault.

"Damn, it's a joint sorcery, no, a dark magic attack!" Kraya's face paled.

She instantly realized that the enemy was even more formidable than she had anticipated.

Just as they had formed their defensive formation, the enemy responded with a dark magic array, and judging by the energy wave, a powerful dark magic attack was imminent!

"Archers and crossbowmen, maximum distance attack to the northeast!" Kraya quickly commanded.

A rain of arrows fell, but it was like raindrops on an umbrella, failing to even slow down the enemy's ritual.

However, disbanding the formation was not an option, as it would not only take too much time but also deal a devastating blow to their morale.

Kraya was faced with a difficult decision.

"Leave it to me," a familiar, steady voice said in Kraya's ear.

Rachel?

Kraya looked up in surprise.

As soon as Rachel finished speaking, he stomped heavily on the ground, leaving a clear indentation of his plate armor boots. With this, he leaped high into the air, and in the blink of an eye, he had jumped over the shield-bearing cavalry in front of him and reached the very front of the battle formation.

Immediately after, he rushed towards the direction of the energy disturbance!

"Rachel, your weapon!" Kraya exclaimed in surprise as she saw him charging forward unarmed.

On the dark magic array, they saw a figure suddenly leap out from the enemy formation and charge towards them!

This scene startled Kurban and the other Black Flame Cultivators.

Is he here to die?

At this moment, they had almost finished their incantation, and in the next second, they would release a dark magic spell far more powerful than a first-level sorcery—Black Flame Blast!

Charging straight towards them was nothing short of suicidal!

Wait!

The opponent could dodge!

But if he did, his battle formation behind him would suffer!

"Aim at this guy who jumped out. Let's see if he can dodge it!" Kurban said with a sinister smile.

"Huff!"

Instantly, a black fireball nearly half a meter in diameter, trailing a long tail of flame, shot towards the straight line connecting the battle formation and the Black Flame Cultivators.

"Rachel, be careful!" Kraya's eyes widened in alarm.

The power of the fireball was overwhelming. Facing the massive black flame fireball, Rachel roared, and his Great Strength Talent awakened!

In an instant, the hardened steel covering his plate gauntlets transformed into a massive square tower shield!

"Iron Wall!"

Rachel's tower shield glowed with elemental force, and it trembled slightly.

The moment the fireball made contact with the tower shield, it exploded!

The mist surrounding them formed a circular shockwave, and the scattered black flames with strong corrosive properties ignited instantly. Of course, the most lethal aspect was the powerful blast's impact, no less than that of a modern medium-caliber mortar!

At this moment, Rachel's left arm, holding the shield, bulged with muscles, and his entire body seemed like a giant. His plate boots sank deep into the ground, carving out two deep trenches, and the tower shield bore a significant dent.

However, the powerful 'Black Flame Blast' was forcefully blocked by Rachel!

This scene left Kurban and the other four Black Flame Cultivators stunned, their eyes bulging.

"How... How could he block it?!" Kurban exclaimed in disbelief.

The next second, his face contorted with rage, and he began incanting another spell. "I don't believe you can block it again!"

"Whoosh!"

A black short spear, swift as lightning, shot towards him.

"Boom!!!"

The black energy membrane was struck by the swiftly approaching spear, creating a basin-sized dent but managing to block it, preventing the spear from piercing through. However, this attack weakened the black membrane significantly, as the intense collision with the spear had consumed a substantial amount of its energy.

Before Kurban and the others could catch their breath,

"Pop!" A sound like a bursting bubble echoed.

A faint silver figure with sharp metal vambraces pierced the weakened energy membrane, and with a powerful twist of their hands, they effortlessly tore through it.

Rachel stepped into the breach. This sight startled Kurban and the other four, who quickly dodged.

"Sizzle!"

Dozens of black blade arcs flashed through the air above the dark magic array.

Rachel was using the Intermediate Secret Technique of Kadarr Fist Technique, 'Rapid Slash'!

Two seconds later, the entire dark magic array returned to calm, and the five Black Flame Cultivators stood motionless, their faces and bodies crisscrossed with bloodlines.

"Pat! Pat!"

The sound of falling objects filled the air.

The five Black Flame Cultivators, once cloaked in black robes, had disappeared, and in their place, five pools of blood and flesh littered the ground at the corners of the dark magic array.

Each piece was almost uniformly cut, roughly the size of an adult male's fist, a mixture of blood, organs, and brain matter piled together.

Rachel slowly straightened his body, shaking the bloodstains off his Blade Tiger gauntlets. His calm gaze fell upon the Black Flame Cult's main force.

The Black Flame Cultists were stunned by this sight, and the numerous novice cultists exchanged bewildered glances. They didn't understand why the female high priestess from Welles County had brought them here to witness this battle.

Wasn't this supposed to be a practical combat lesson?

But it seemed like the tables had turned, and the situation didn't appear favorable. Or perhaps, although the female high priestess hadn't taken action yet, the first battle had been lost.

Galina's expression became pensive.

It wasn't that she didn't want to provide assistance; it was just that by the time she got off the carriage, Rachel had already broken through the dark magic array, and it was too late for her to intervene.

Additionally, she was curious about something else.

If she wasn't mistaken, the opponent had just displayed at least two secret techniques, one defensive involving a shield, and another offensive, similar to a short blade or dagger.

One for offense and one for defense—this made Galina even more wary.

Apparently, this person was the Golden Rank Swordbearer who had sent the signal earlier.

If her observation was correct, and he had indeed displayed at least two secret techniques, one for offense and one for defense, she would first send the giant behind her to deal with him. That way, she could deliver the finishing blow later if needed.

Otherwise, this matter would require a more careful plan.

After all, this wasn't a task assigned by the church but a request for assistance from her predecessor, Lord Laksur.

There was one more thing that puzzled her.

When he blocked the 'Black Flame Blast' empowered by the dark magic array, he seemed to be holding a shield, but later, the shield disappeared. Did he throw it away? Galina wondered.

Shaking her head slightly, Galina decided not to dwell on this for now. She turned to the Black Flame Cultivator beside her and instructed, "Go! Activate the Giant Axe Golem Guardian!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end