Chapter 16: Nightmare
As the aftermath of the two powerful blasts slowly faded, the Allied forces were forced to endure another fierce assault from the magic-powered cannons. Nearly a hundred warriors at the two circular blast points turned to ashes once again. Although the mages quickly regained control of the situation and the priests healed the wounded soldiers as fast as possible, there was no doubt that the morale of the Allied forces had taken a severe hit. It was no exaggeration to say that if this trend continued, the situation would worsen further.
Yet the mages were already well-prepared. Continuous waves of magical attacks surrounded the two locations where the magic-powered cannons stood. Surging magical elements exploded incessantly, and the relentless bursts of lightning nearly destroyed Homer’s weak magical defenses in an instant. Without a doubt, the two magic-powered cannons turned into piles of broken scrap metal. The mages of the Light Church could finally breathe a sigh of relief—it was now the turn of those crude barbarians to suffer the remaining magical attacks.
Komer gritted his teeth as he watched these scenes unfold. He had expected the two magic-powered cannons to be reduced to ruins, but the fact that his own painstakingly crafted weapons were destroyed after just two shots was unbearably painful. Those arrogant Light mages even floated in mid-air and launched magical attacks at his infantry forces, completely ignoring the threat posed by their own assault troops. Of course, they relied on the Light Knights lurking behind them for support.
Komer’s eyes burned with fury as he glared at the mages floating in the air and the Light Knights ready below. He clenched his fists so tightly it seemed water might squeeze out. Good, you Light mages—don’t you claim to possess boundless magic power and dominate the world? Then let me show you what it means to have someone even greater than you. All grudges can be settled in this battle!
With a subtle gesture from Komer, the flag officer beside him immediately signaled the flag bearers hiding in the back to arrange large red flags into a special symbolic shape. Even if outsiders were present, they would never understand why the Homerians suddenly performed such a display at this moment. But they would soon realize that this was nothing short of a complete massacre!
The Thunder Roc knights crawling on the soaring Thunder Roc immediately used special whistles to communicate upon detecting the ground signal, quickly forming a triangular assault formation. With a wingspan of over five meters, the Thunder Roc riders took advantage of the air currents to fly outward. They needed distance to launch lightning attacks. Meanwhile, the Homer knights on the ground also rushed out of their formation first—they had to use their own strength to draw the attention of the Light Knights and create an opportunity for the aerial assault.
The joint effort by Leclerc and Sorenberg did not make Trajan and Kent take it lightly. To be honest, a battle initiated by the Homer side suited Trajan and Kent’s preferences. But this was not just a war between knights; behind both sides were thousands of troops, which were the real key to the war. The duel between the strong was merely a spectacle.
Leclerc and Sorenberg’s joint challenge led Kent to send only his two deputies into battle. The Homer knights behind them were met by the impatient Rema knights. A fierce close-quarters battle ensued between the two groups of knights. The Rema knights needed to prove through victory that their status and dignity could not be challenged, while the Homer knights wanted to prove that ordinary knights could overcome the mighty Church knights with their own strength.
From the first moment of combat, strange howls of combat energy echoed across the battlefield. Turbulent dust and magical energy, sparks flying, shockwaves spreading everywhere, and even slightly distorted space—all served as warnings to the infantry soldiers following behind: stay away from this area. This was not their territory. It was a true battle of the strong, and those who approached recklessly would surely die.
Douglas and Iso’s eyes shone brightly. Their knight lances emitted a dazzling white light from the start, with the radiant Light Combat Energy resembling a magnificent silver armor covering them. The floating light made them appear like gods descending from heaven. At this moment, neither of them hid any intentions—they wanted to prove themselves by defeating their enemies perfectly.
Douglas and Aesop both understood that this was no ordinary battle—it was a life-or-death, decisive fight for both the Light Church internally and the secular forces in Nicosia and across the entire northern part of the Azure Continent. If they could deal heavy blows to their enemies under such special circumstances, it would undoubtedly boost their status and reputation, providing a significant advantage in future competition for the position of leader of the Rema Knights. Although the enemy had shown formidable strength from the start, for knights, the stronger the opponent, the more it fueled their fighting spirit. Only in a life-and-death struggle could they truly experience the thrill of triumph, and only by defeating the strong could they demonstrate their growing dominance.
Unpredictable air currents and various complex elements constantly swirled above Homer’s battle formation. Soldiers from both the Stormtrooper Corps and the Rockbound Corps felt the oppressive force descending from the heavens. Yet, rigorous training and numerous battles had forged in them an iron will and discipline. Even if their comrades turned to ashes right beside them, as long as they themselves still had a breath left, they must unswervingly carry out orders. This was the result of Fran’s painstaking training—only in this way could the army achieve ultimate victory in war!
Homer’s Caucasus Allied Mage Corps also took action. While continuously activating large magic arrays to enhance the defensive strength of their massive central formation—this being the most crucial task—they also began deploying effective offensive spells against the enemy camp. Faced with the overwhelming power of the enemy mages, Rebrí ultimately chose a defensive strategy. As long as they could preserve their infantry forces, victory in the final battle would surely belong to them, provided that their infantry units survived this magical confrontation.
The six massive thunderbirds, under the careful control of the knights on their backs, carefully restrained the thunder magic energy they carried. This was their innate power, but at this moment, it risked being detected by the enemy mages early on, thereby undermining the effectiveness of their surprise attack. What they needed now was time, nothing else.
Like six silent, giant ghosts, amidst the swirling winds, thunder, clouds, and mist in the air, the six massive figures silently descended to low altitudes just over ten meters behind the allied forces. The powerful airflow from their wings scattered dry grass and leaves on the ground, but at that moment, everyone’s attention was drawn to the intense battles ahead. Even strong warriors like Trajan, Kent, and Lorenzo waited without exception for the Homeric army to be completely shattered by the fierce magical attacks.
It seemed nothing could reverse the situation anymore. Even though Komer had sent in his best dark knights as a last resort, it still didn’t change the outcome. Kent alone took on the challenges of three dark knights, including Vladkov, while the four fallen knights were tightly contained at the edge of the battlefield by a triangular formation of three Pegasus knights.
Trajan could even observe everything in a relaxed manner, with dozens of vigilant Ram and Pegasus knights waiting behind him for his order to attack. If it weren’t for Kent’s eagerness to fight, he wouldn’t have had to get involved—those damned dark scum could have been sent to hell without his intervention. It seemed nothing could change what was happening now. Trajan sighed. Although the enemy still seemed to have some strength left, such as that beautiful knight and that strange necromancer, he was convinced the enemy had used up most of their cards. Compared to the dozens of battle-hardened Light Knights behind him, the enemy had far too few options.
But he had underestimated things. They forgot that their opponent was never one who would settle for passively fighting back.
A shrill howling wind swept overhead, and the strong airflow nearly knocked off the helmets of the allied soldiers. Though they knew not to look up was an iron rule on the battlefield, the soldiers still instinctively raised their heads to look.
Six huge shadows passed right above the heads of the allied soldiers, from back to front. The soldiers only saw darkness before the shadows flashed by in an instant. The suddenly ascending Thunder Pegasuses, like drawn swords, headed straight for their targets—the Light mages floating in the air, concentrating their magic to launch attacks.
The eagle claws of the giant ship, like iron anchors, swept through the air like razors, while its wings, resembling steel whiskers, swept everything in their path. Accompanied by the roar of massive thunderstorms, the Thunder Roc’s long-repressed lightning magic was finally unleashed at this moment through its claws and wings. Misfortune finally descended upon the complacent light mages.
Mournful screams echoed in the air along with blood showers, as the mages’ torn bodies fell to the ground, splashing onto the stunned knights and soldiers below. It was all like a nightmare from hell!