Chapter 1295: Arrival of Reinforcements
「That’s… the banner of the North Conquest Duke!」
Huh? So the last duke finally reveals himself?
「And those are the Vermilion Eye Knights behind him!」
Sibylla had apparently lost contact with the last Red Knight division earlier, and now they arrive on the battlefield alongside the duke.
Are they really allies though?
Pwon! Pwon! Pwooooooon!
At the forefront, a knight with a large flag at his back blew a golden trumpet rhythmically. Must be some kind of charge fanfare.
Then, without a word, the knights began advancing towards the Evil God Fragments.
The orderly formation galloping across the land was almost mesmerizing.
Moreover, I could tell their mounts weren’t ordinary horses because of their extraordinary speed.
There was a steady flow of mana emanating from the horses’ bodies, enveloping them in light. In other words, every single one of these thousands of horses were magical beasts.
What’s more, they were not the only ones who appeared on the battlefield.
「…! Look, the sky!」
「A bunch of blackish things are flying toward us?」
『Huh?』
Indeed, the western sky was dotted with countless black shadows. All of them were fluttering around with bat-like wings.
And they were clearly getting closer.
Both Fran and I knew that this was no enemy, since we recognized their identities immediately.
Judging by their ominous appearance and sinister mana, they were all demons, making them the forces of Phyllius. I could even sense the mana of Flut and Satia.
They were closely accompanied by a demonic presence more powerful than any I had ever seen before. There must be another member of Phyllius’s royal family among them.
「…! And over there too!」
『Yeah!』
This time, Fran turned towards the east. There was yet another approaching army, and we recognized some of the mana signatures.
「I think I sense Carna?」
『Yeah. And there are some adventurers and academy teachers too!』
The timing was almost too perfect, as if it had been planned. Were they actually coordinating together? Or perhaps they had been waiting for an opportunity to strike, which revealed itself when the capital got nuked to the ground.
The army from the north ended up being the first to reach the Evil God Fragments.
The fragments had rained down several waves of projectiles, but the knights evaded with minimal casualties. It seems the horses had some way of sensing the danger zones and dodging accordingly.
A few knights got caught by the shockwaves, but that should be survivable as long as they avoid a direct hit. I saw the Red Knights in the rear retrieving them.
「That one in the front is…」
Sibylla was staring at the group standing out at the forefront of the knights. Unlike the others, they didn’t wear matching armor.
While their gear also appeared to be forged from mithril, there were subtle differences in the details. Essentially, the common knights wore mass produced armor while these individuals had it customized.
Judging by their more powerful auras, they were likely commanders or officers.
「The North Conquest Duke himself…」
「…! The one with the big horse at the front?」
「Yeah. I’m sure of it. That’s the North Conquest Duke and his elite guard.」
Many of the knights at the front weren’t wearing full-face helmets, making their faces visible. Well, maybe not to ordinary people, but Sibylla apparently had vision as good as mine.
And according to her, they were the North Conquest Duke and his closest subordinates.
As we watched the charge of the Northern Knights in amazement, the fragments decided to unleash another wave. This time, it took the form of a pulse of evil energy, focused on area of effect.
In other words, dodging was no longer an option.
However, the knights refused to pause their advance. A white light radiated from their armor, and they simply passed through the evil energy unfazed. Certainly, this pulse was not all that powerful, but how could they ignore it so easily…?
Was their mithril armor also some kind of magical tool? But that would mean every single knight was equipped with magical horses and tools. In the first place, none of the knights themselves could actually be called weak.
I’d say they’re on par with the Red Knights, making them Rank D at the minimum in adventurer terms. The majority of the 3,000 or so knights appeared to be Rank C or higher.
What a ridiculous army.
That said, I was skeptical they could really do anything to a fragment of the Evil God. They were definitely strong, enough to conquer a small country even.
But not a full-fledged Evil God Fragment. Defeating a fragment is not a matter of how many men you can throw at it. You need at least one person with exceptional strength.
However, it seems the strength of the Northern Knights went far beyond my expectations.
「This is the culmination of everything we have practiced! We will not let the efforts of our ancestors and predecessors go to waste! Today, we annihilate the Evil God! Charge!」
「Nyahahaha! Forward, nya!」
Following the North Duke’s rally, a member of his guard activated some sort of skill that radiated a majestic light.
Then, the rest of the knights began glowing in the same manner.
The effect of this skill became apparent immediately, as the knights accelerated their advance. It must be similar to the March of the Valkyrie title that Fran has.
With this newfound speed, the knights had reached the fragments in no time at all. Now what? Did they have some method of damaging them?
The knights all drew their weapons simultaneously, revealing magical swords enveloped in a white light. The next moment, countless light bullets rained down on the Evil God Fragments.
OROOOOOORH!
The fragments were evidently displeased, which means…
「Evil Crusher.」
As Fran pointed on, they had invoked a power similar to our Evil Crusher. The surprising part was that every single knight was equipped with this sword.
Such a powerful anti-evil sword, and they have a copy for everyone? Just how much would that cost?
「…Huh? They aren’t using ice?」
「What do you mean?」
「The North Duke’s subordinates are famous in Raydoss for using ice-enchanted magic swords and armor, which was apparently due to his relic… But it seems he can produce gear with other attributes too.」
So he has a relic capable of bestowing elementally-enchanted gear to his subordinates? I guess Chariot already proved its ability to manipulate multiple elements, so such a power is not too far-fetched.
That said, powerful equipment would be rendered useless if the wielders are weak. In that sense, gathering such skilled knights might be more difficult than acquiring tons of magical horses or enchanted gear.
『Incredible…』
「That knight at the front is a black cat.」
Huh? Wait, she really is a black cat! There were clearly black cat ears on the one who used the skill for enhancing their army speed! To think we would find such a powerful black cat at a place like this…!
I could also see fishkin and insectkin among their ranks, so they apparently employ demihumans regardless of race. They must be running something similar to a meritocracy.
In sync with the valiant efforts of the Northern Knights, magic came flying in from the forces to the east. They had bombarded the fragments with a spell containing an anti-evil power similar to the knights.
This seemed to be a ritual spell performed by over 100 magicians. As expected from the elite graduates from the Academy of Magic.
I doubt it inflicted much lasting damage, but it definitely served as a deterrent. Not to mention the other 1,000 mages keeping up the pressure with an endless rain of spells.
That’s when the demons dove into action.
They had blasted the fragments with countless black explosions, pushing them back. Again, this seemed to be intended as suppressing fire rather than for inflicting damage.
「I’ll head in to support them.」
「But Fran, your sword is still covered in cracks. Do you have a spare or something?」
（…Master?）
『I’m good to go. No problem at all.』
（Really? You’re not pushing yourself?）
『Yeah, I’m completely fine.』
I’ll push myself as much as it takes for Fran. I am her sword, after all. My repair has progressed quite a bit, and I’ve regained most of my sensing and control abilities. I’m ready to go.
『Let’s get going!』
「Nn!」
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