NovelOnline Chapter 395: You will get cursed at a lot.
Chapter 395: You will get cursed at a lot.
Salem glared at Iris with eyes that were even more wary than before.“Luna, Ray. I told you to come here. Come back right now!”
The spirits, still seeming reluctant, hesitated for a moment before returning to Salem.
Salem ordered again, glaring at Iris.
“Don’t leave my side. It’s dangerous.”
“Hmm.”
Iris smiled as if she found it amusing.
“You’re going to protect those kids, aren’t you? Normally, it should be the other way around. You’re a strange spirit master after all.”
Salem asked sharply, his face hardening.
“…That’s none of your business. Why are you here?”
“Why do you think?”
But Iris only seemed to be enjoying herself. Overcome with frustration, Salem shouted angrily.
“Do you think I’m joking right now?”
“Calm down for now. There’s no need to get so worked up, is there?”
Iris let out a small laugh and slowly got up.
Salem took a step back. Despite her slender figure, she was quite tall, so much so that Salem had to tilt his head to look up at her.
Iris smiled again, tucking her long flowing hair behind her ear.
“You do know that it’s just you and me here anyway, don’t you?”
“…”
“I know what you came here for. You haven’t achieved your goal yet, have you?”
Salem, about to say something in return, pressed his lips tightly together. He couldn’t find the words to refute her.
“I think I can help you. What do you think?”
Clenching his fists tightly, Salem replied sharply.
“Even so, I have no intention of accepting your help. You have ruined our kingdom. Furthermore, you have harmed so many people, and countless lives are dying because of you. How can you be so shameless?”
“It’s true that we’re in the middle of a war, and that you and I have different intentions.”
Iris, hesitating as if deep in thought, added, “I can’t agree with the statement that it’s my fault. It’s all the will of the higher ups.”
“…”
Salem was momentarily at a loss for words. A hushed voice echoed through the dark hallway.
“That’s the way the times are, and that’s His will. We just follow… I’m just an agent carrying out His will.”
“That’s just an excuse. No matter what you say, it won’t undo the suffering caused by your subordinates’ hands.”
Salem snapped fiercely. Iris was silent for a while in response.
After a few moments, she sighed.
“You’re definitely strange. As a mere creature, it would be easier to just surrender yourself to glory.”
“Yes?”
“No, it’s nothing. It wasn’t something meant for you.”
Iris shook her head as Salem asked in bewilderment.
“By the way, we can’t stay here forever… shall we start moving soon?”
With her eyes still closed, Iris looked down at Salem.
“If you don’t like the word ‘help,’ then maybe we can just call it accompanying each other.”
Salem flinched as he came face to face with a face as white as porcelain.
“I won’t do anything. I promise. There’s not much I can do in the first place. Haven’t you seen what I look like?”
Iris spoke gently.
“Little boy, you have a sharp sword and wonderful spirits who can protect you.”
“…”
“Your spirits may be able to find the exit soon, but it will take some time. The spirits’ senses are somewhat different from those of the living, so something as unfortunate as that may happen again.”
She was talking about the incident where he couldn’t avoid the rotten floor and fell straight down. Salem noticed this and his face hardened.
Her soft voice continued.
“And above all, if you come with me, you’ll get to see some familiar faces.”
“…What are you talking about?”
“It seems like someone has come looking for you. It seems like they’re not too far away…”
Iris raised her head and looked into the darkness.
“There are two of them. Is one of them Arendt von Eckhart? I can feel the Frosty Touch in his hands.”
Momentarily dazed, Salem asked faintly.
“How do you know that? I haven’t felt any movement yet…”
“In the darkness, I can see farther than anyone else, and feel things more vividly. It is all thanks to Lord Chernion’s grace.”
Iris added subtly.
“Are you sure you’re okay? If I’m as evil as you fear, I might harm Sir Arendt in places you can’t see.”
“…”
Salem’s face hardened. Iris burst into a small laugh, finding that sight so amusing.
“Let me ask you one last thing. What is your name?”
A terrifying tremor shook the ground and the pitch-black sky simultaneously.
The fierce magical storm had become so intense that even the elves’ arrows could barely fly straight anymore.
“This…”
Zakar grimaced as he watched the battle unfold.
He shoved the unresponsive communication device back into his pocket with irritation.
Because of the unstable magic power, the communication device had now completely died.
The situation was gradually getting worse.
Elf warriors, ghouls, and priests were fighting among themselves.
Now it was obvious that the warriors were starting to feel exhausted.
It wasn’t time for them to tire from the battle yet, so the cause lay elsewhere.
Zakar’s gaze turned to the sky filled with dark clouds.
“Lord Lexion…”
Between the black magic storm, dark clouds, and the occasional flash of lightning, massive wings could be glimpsed now and then.
Though it was hard to discern with the naked eye, one could sense indescribable beings baring their teeth at each other.
The reason the land remained unharmed was likely because the two dragons still held some measure of mercy.
But the moment they lose their minds and lose their last bit of reason, they will disappear in an instant along with the palace.
‘I won’t even be able to resist.’
The instinctive fear that he felt as a living being stirred, but Zakar forced himself to calm down.
“Instructor Zakar!”
At that moment, an urgent voice was heard. Zakar, who suddenly came to his senses, turned his head.
Before he knew it, Shekhinah was running towards him, having broken through the battlefield.
“Instructor, have you seen what the situation is like?”
She wasn’t in perfect condition either, bleeding from injuries here and there.
“Lady Shekhinah. Your injury…”
“It’s okay. That’s not what’s important right now.”
Shekhinah quickly continued speaking, sweeping her hair back.
“The morale of the warriors is breaking down. The front line is still holding, but honestly, I don’t know how long we can hold out. The reason is…”
Shekhinah, trailing off, glanced up at the sky.
Not long after, Zakar noticed that her complexion had also turned pale.
As expected, it wasn’t just Zakar who felt the pressure.
The situation only got worse.
“…”
Jiklin was still watching the elves while under the protection of the ghouls.
Surrounded by monsters of her own creation, her innocently smiling face was not much different from before she stabbed her father and betrayed the elves.
Zakar, who was looking around with complicated eyes, soon discovered another unusual thing.
“Oh. The barrier…”
Startled by his groan, Shekhinah also raised her head in surprise.
The barrier, which was initially invisible to the naked eye, had become much more opaque than before.
Now, the palace was barely visible.
It was because Lexion’s concentration on keeping the barrier up was disrupted by his battle with Nikephoros.
Meanwhile, the Chernion Cult’s battle priests led by Jiklin continued to attack, and occasionally Nikephoros would intentionally launch attacks on the palace.
In such a situation, no matter how powerful the magic wielded by a dragon was, it was bound to wear out gradually..
“We need to come up with a plan. Right now, Lord Ragnald is leading the warriors at the front lines, but… ugh!”
Shekhinah was unable to finish her words due to the sudden, fierce storm.
For a moment, Zakar lost his balance and staggered, but somehow managed to steady himself and lift his head again.
In the darkness, a golden wing fluttered like a streak of light before quickly disappearing from sight.
Shekhinah groaned and murmured.
“They’re getting closer and closer to the ground. If we’re not careful, we might get caught up in it.”
The place where the elves currently were was directly beneath where the dragons were fighting.
If they were even slightly affected, they risked being wiped out, not by the enemy, but by Lexion.
“I think we should consider retreating for now.”
“…But it won’t be an easy decision to make.”
Zakar replied troubledly.
Jiklin was within arm’s reach.
Not only had they failed to uncover what the Chernion Cult was after, but more importantly…
“Lord Salem, Sir Arendt, and Sir Rider have entered the palace.”
At those words, Shekhinah’s face also hardened.
“What about Captain Laius?”
“He is fighting the enemy alone. I understand that it is not a situation where he can give orders.”
“Then did you receive any separate contact from Sir Arendt? Did he take the communication device with him?”
“Sir Arendt supposedly took the communication device from Sir Glenn, but due to the unstable magical fluctuations, there’s no connection at all.”
Zakar answered calmly.
“I’ve been trying to establish a connection to share our situation, but the communication device isn’t responding at all. The same goes for Sir Arendt and the other members of the Third Knights. The last news was that the two of them followed Salem and headed to the palace.”
“Ah…”
Shekhinah muttered in frustration.
If the enemies invaded the palace, the lives of the three people could no longer be guaranteed.
In such cases, it was usually not worth weighing the lives of a few people against the lives of many.
As cruel as it was, it was also the commander’s job to make such decisions.
But Arendt, unlike the others, was one of the most important figures in the current war.
They couldn’t just leave that person to die.
‘The outcome of this fight also lies in their hands.’
The three of them entered the most dangerous part of the battlefield themselves to prevent further casualties.
Depending on what Arendt and his group discover there, the outcome of the battle in the Lucain Kingdom would change.
To retreat while leaving such people behind was more disgraceful than not dying as a warrior.
Even if it meant losing one’s life, it would be right to live and die together.
Shekhinah made up her mind.
“Okay. Then let’s be together until the end…”
“I became more confident as I spoke.”
But at that moment, Zakar spoke up at the same time.
Staring intently at the weakening barrier, Zakar said firmly.
“It would be best to retreat now. Please convey this to Lord Ragnald as well. We must withdraw our troops immediately.”
Shekhinah became momentarily dumbfounded by his unexpected words.