Chapter 012: The Battle Begins

“Remember this, Abraham! I will definitely return!”
Amper, inside the Holy Flame, suddenly roared. The sacred flames on his body vanished without warning, and his wings had detached. Clearly, at the last moment, this forbidden magic master had destroyed the very magic he had painstakingly cultivated, sparing only his own life.
Furious, he wanted to tear Abraham to pieces, but he knew full well that he was no match for Abraham at this moment.
“Remember this!”
Amper sneered, then flicked his right hand—immediately, a magic scroll appeared out of thin air: a teleportation spell!
Before Abraham could react, Amper stepped forward quickly. Though he didn’t know what lay beyond the door, it was better than staying there and waiting to die!
Seeing his figure disappear, Abraham shook his head slightly. “Do all orthodox magicians look down on us court magicians like this? Don’t you understand that although we follow our own path, we are still magicians!”
With a wave of his hand, Abraham sent a chain of lightning into the portal. Blood splattered from within, and when the chain retracted, it carried a bloody, mutilated head.
Amper sneered and shook his hand lightly—the head turned to dust mid-air, and the remaining trace of soul vanished quickly into the air.
Abraham’s gaze dimmed slightly. He swiftly returned to the platform and bowed to Prince Fischer. “Your Highness, it seems I’ve resolved the biggest problem.”
Prince Fischer nodded. “What about the others?”
Abraham nodded and rushed toward the magicians and warriors fighting in the air.
Chaos reigned everywhere. The fall of a great magician went unnoticed by most, except for Oscar in the distance, whose expression changed slightly.
He quietly drew his sword from his waist and said calmly, “It seems I can’t just watch now.”
Duke Belinger hurriedly interjected, “Young master, think carefully… Although Amper has been defeated, Abraham is surely in trouble too. I believe our men can hold their ground.”
Oscar shook his head. “It’s not that… If we don’t act now, it might be too late!”

With that, Oscar gave a slight gesture, and indeed, the army of the Bauhinia Dynasty, though managing to hold the situation in check, was met with cries of resistance everywhere. Both sides were fighting fiercely, exchanging lives at every turn, and the situation was even worse against the cavalry of the Temple Knights.

Duke Belinger followed Oscar’s gesture and looked on in silence.

Oscar smiled lightly and said, “Although I know that if things continue like this, we may not necessarily lose, I can no longer watch. As an emperor, I cannot stand by and watch my elite troops be so depleted… Your Highness, please wait a moment. Let me go and cut off Austin III’s head to boost our troops’ morale!”

With that, Oscar waved his hand slightly and said, “Follow me!”

Then he floated toward the platform, with his dozen or so guards following closely behind.

Prince Fischer watched Oscar’s approach and suddenly smiled lightly, saying, “This Oscar is truly extraordinary. Even now, he’s willing to charge in personally. It seems… he intends to cut off my head to boost his troops’ morale.”

Du Fan frowned and said, “Your Highness, it’s better if you step back for now… Leave this place to me and the other lords!”

With that, Du Fan stepped forward a few steps, holding his Sacred Radiance Staff.

The nobles behind him exchanged glances and also waved their hands, drawing weapons from the training ground.

The Roland Continent valued martial prowess, and these nobles all had some skill. With no court magicians to protect them and a different opponent, they naturally didn’t think the enemy would refrain from attacking them.

Unexpectedly, Prince Fischer smiled faintly and said, “Du Fan, you’re joking again. How could I retreat in such a situation? If Oscar is willing to charge in personally, how can I step back? I must stand here without moving an inch, otherwise, the morale we’ve worked so hard to build will crumble… Oscar must understand this too. Even if he can’t kill me, forcing me to retreat will yield the same result. So, I cannot retreat!”

Du Fan knew it was pointless to say more at this moment, so he simply sighed lightly and said, “Then, Your Highness, stay right where you are. Let me earn another merit for you!”

Before he could finish speaking, Oscar and his dozen guards had already reached the platform, stepping over the corpses below. Although some soldiers tried to block them, they were overwhelmed by Oscar’s unstoppable force.

Du Fan sneered and said nothing more. He dived downward, waving his Sacred Radiance Staff lightly as several wind blades shot toward Oscar. Seeing Du Fan approaching, Oscar’s expression turned peculiar, and he said softly, “Lord Du Fan… why must we fight? Step aside, and I won’t harm you at all!” Before he could finish speaking, two wind blades reached him. Two guards appeared behind Oscar, swinging their long swords to block the blades. “Who dares touch the young master?” Du Fan halted mid-air, sneering once before glancing at Oscar. “Lord Oscar, let bygones be bygones. Today, we each follow our own masters… where’s the excuse not to fight? I’m sorry, Lord Oscar!” On the platform, Prince Fischer laughed upon hearing Du Fan’s words. “Well said! Bring them here! Attack!!!” At his command, more than a dozen figures suddenly emerged from among the nobles around the platform and rushed toward Oscar. Clearly, these people had been secretly arranged by Prince Fischer among the nobles—whether to spy on them or protect them was unclear… but they had already taken action! Their battle cries blended with the surrounding shouts, making them almost inaudible. The dozen guards beside Oscar immediately confronted the sudden attackers. Both sides were skilled, and a fierce fight ensued. Oscar gently held his long sword, sighing, “Lord Du Fan… know that I mean no harm to you. I even freed your men to bring you news… I hope you’ll leave. I just don’t want to face this situation. If you lay down your arms now, we can end this.” Du Fan shook his head lightly. “Lord Oscar, back in the North, when we were attacked, you risked your life to save me. I, Du Fan, am deeply grateful… I shouldn’t have opposed you in the first place. But the situation now isn’t just about me. The fate of my entire family depends on Prince Fischer. So, I absolutely cannot lay down my arms!” Oscar sighed deeply. “Is there really no chance left?” Du Fan smiled. “Even if I wanted to, do you think my father would agree?” After thinking for a moment, Oscar said, “Lord Du Fan makes a good point… I was being rude. Though I also don’t want to fight you, I’m afraid if I don’t overcome this obstacle, you won’t let me cut off your old emperor’s head, will you?”

Du Fan shook his head and said, “You’re wrong, Lord Oscar. Even if you pass this test, you still won’t have a chance.”
Oscar smiled faintly and said, “Whether there is a chance or not, one has to try to find out… Well then, let’s not waste time. Let’s begin!”
Du Fan smiled and said, “Then go ahead!”
Oscar nodded and whispered, “I’m sure Lord Du Fan knows that I’m good at martial arts… As for what method Lord Du Fan intends to use, I won’t ask! So, go ahead and try!”
Without waiting for Du Fan’s reply, Oscar’s figure flashed, and he was already behind Du Fan. A surge of combat energy appeared on his long sword as he swung it at Du Fan’s neck!
Oscar spoke politely, but he was utterly merciless in action, aiming to take Du Fan’s life with just one strike.
Du Fan let out a muffled groan. Without wasting words, he turned slightly, and a flash of combat energy appeared on his Holy Radiance Staff as he blocked with it!
With a “boom,” Oscar’s sword struck firmly against Du Fan’s Holy Radiance Staff. What seemed like a devastating blow was easily blocked by Du Fan.
Yet beneath the surface, Du Fan was inwardly suffering. At that moment, he was relying only on a small amount of combat energy restored by magic potions, and the reserves in his Holy Radiance Staff had long been exhausted. After blocking, he felt numbness in his palms. If it came to true strength, it seemed Oscar was superior to him.
On the surface, Du Fan acted as if nothing had happened, but beneath his feet, there were several “crack” sounds—the originally solid ground had split apart under his feet.
Seeing that his strike hadn’t succeeded, a strange look flashed in Oscar’s eyes. He had never seen Du Fan fight fiercely before and had assumed Du Fan still had his previous strength—no wonder. On the Roland Continent, aside from this freak like Du Fan, who else could see such a dramatic improvement in strength within just a few months?
Now that he saw his sword blocked by Du Fan, Oscar inwardly sighed in regret, but his long sword didn’t stop. He immediately began swinging it wildly, sending waves of sword energy down at Du Fan like a storm.