Chapter 018: The Countermove

The Temple Knights around also seemed to have noticed this. Under such circumstances, the most logical thing for them to do would be to temporarily avoid the enemy’s attacks, but their determination and faith did not allow them to do so.
Although these mad assassins instilled a sense of fear in the usually brave Temple Knights, none of them retreated.
The two sides continued to fight fiercely. Though the entire training ground was filled with cries of battle, it was clear that only the conflict between the Temple Knights and the assassins attracted everyone’s attention…
Perhaps the outcome of this battle could even determine the fate of the entire political situation. The Crown Prince understood this, and Prince Fischer surely understood it as well.
In less than a moment, countless people on both sides had fallen. Blood had almost solidified into a thick layer on the ground, with corpses scattered everywhere, while the surviving warhorses cried out in pain.
Joshua led the Temple Knights to charge at the assassins time and again. He himself didn’t know how many times he had charged, but it seemed that the number of enemies hadn’t decreased at all compared to his side.
In fact, both sides were suffering increasing losses. Given their strengths, the ratio of losses was almost one-to-one… In such a situation, if one person died on each side, it seemed as though the numbers remained unchanged to those involved!
The Crown Prince watched everything quietly, his expression filled with complexity.
At that moment, a group of generals surrounded him. Aside from a few loyal bodyguards he kept by his side, the rest of the imperial guards had been sent to deal with the chaos behind.
After all, only by resolving those issues could the Crown Prince free himself to address the most critical problem. Though confident, fighting on two fronts placed too much pressure on the soldiers and generals. A single mistake could lead to certain defeat, and he absolutely could not allow that to happen.
Just looking at the carnage before him!
The Temple Knights! Hmph!
Those fools!
Although the Crown Prince trusted his assassins greatly, the current situation seemed to indicate that he had underestimated them a bit.
He had thought those fools, having never experienced war over the years, were nothing but useless, but it seemed he had underestimated them after all!

Looking back at those nobles from his own faction not far away!
Hmph!
Each of them had a terrified expression on their face! Had their parents died?
Although the crown prince felt a surge of anger, he understood their feelings—after all, most of the nobles were believers, and the Holy Church was clearly on Prince Fischer’s side. It was only natural for them to worry!
It seemed that even if he won, he would still need to handle relations with those clergymen carefully!
Damn it! Those clergymen had anticipated this—if Prince Fischer won, they would benefit greatly; if he won, they wouldn’t dare really do anything to him. That’s why they were so bold!
So, should he keep all these Templar knights?
Thinking this, the crown prince turned to a general beside him and asked sternly, “How many troops do we still have at our disposal?”
The general quickly bowed and replied, “Your Majesty, there are probably less than a thousand left, and they also need to protect those nobles… So, I’m afraid…”
The crown prince nodded. He knew well that for the stability of future politics, the nobles from his faction couldn’t die. If he deployed his personal guards now, it might be risky…
But if he didn’t…
The crown prince’s gaze fell once again ahead.
There, the Templar knights and the secret guards were fighting fiercely. Both sides had lost more than half of their forces. With corpses covering the ground, it seemed impossible to tell who would win at first glance. But no matter who won, it would likely be a costly victory!
Recalling how he had spent years training these secret guards, only for them to fall like this now, the crown prince felt his heart bleed.
It took years to raise an army—could he really pull them back now?
“Archbishop Aaron…” Prince Fischer watched the scene before him and smiled faintly. “This can’t go on… Since my elder brother has sent his secret guards to fight, the Templar knights will likely suffer heavy losses. Though for the Templars, sacrifice means returning to the Lord’s embrace, but the Roland Continent still needs them to spread the gospel of the God of Light!”

Aaron, who was standing nearby, was already somewhat nervous. He felt sympathy for the Temple Knights, but he had received orders from Anthony to prioritize Prince Fischer above everything else. Moreover, since Prince Fischer was the pope’s godson and likely to become the next pope, he didn’t dare say much without Prince Fischer’s orders…
Hearing Prince Fischer speak like this, Aaron quickly nodded and said, “In that case, should we let the Divine Mage take action?”
Prince Fischer raised his eyebrows slightly and asked, “Oh? The Divine Mage? Who did Archbishop Anthony send this time?”
Aaron replied hastily, “Of course, it’s Saint Nicholas leading the team!”
Nicholas?
Du Fan frowned slightly—so it was him…
Given their relationship, Du Fan should have met him long ago, but fearing suspicion from Anthony, he hadn’t gone to see those who returned from the north. He never expected to meet him in such a situation.
However, though Nicholas was skilled, he was still just an ordinary expert…
What Nicholas could do, that Abraham could probably do as well. Even if a few court mages were sent to assist… the situation would likely still be one-sided.
It seemed that on one hand, Prince Fischer wanted to keep his own loyal followers to protect himself, while on the other hand, he wanted to weaken the power of the Holy Church…
Could it be that this Son of God also had differences with the Holy Church?
But seeing the smile on Prince Fischer’s face, Du Fan didn’t dare express any of these guesses. He simply watched quietly, eager to see what other moves Prince Fischer would have in store.
After hearing Nicholas’s name, Prince Fischer suddenly looked deep in thought. After a moment, he said calmly, “Then let them handle it quickly… Those secret guards, if left behind, will ultimately be a curse to us.”
Archbishop Aaron quickly nodded and said, “Yes, Your Highness!”
Then he raised one hand and pointed sharply toward the sky. A beam of holy light shot out from his fingertip, soaring into the air. Once in the air, it suddenly exploded with a loud noise, forming a huge holy cross!
The Temple Knights, who had been fighting fiercely, saw this holy cross and suddenly retreated toward the platform like a tide!

The Temple Knights were well-trained. Although they retreated under fierce combat, they did so in an orderly manner. As they backed away, they still formed a highly solid defensive line, blocking the relentless assassins. The assassins had no humanity whatsoever and paid no heed to schemes or strategies; they merely followed the eldest prince’s orders to kill enemies. Now, seeing the Temple Knights retreat seemed to unleash their ferocity. With mad intent, they charged forward, their long spears covered in blood, their madness enough to make anyone’s heart tremble at the sight. Seeing the Temple Knights driven back, the eldest prince’s concerns diminished somewhat. Yet he also noticed the Holy Cross symbol in the sky. With his sharp mind, he immediately realized there must be other reasons at play—this was definitely not as simple as his own assassins having repelled the Temple Knights! Sure enough, almost as if in response to the holy light in the sky, dozens of figures radiating holiness suddenly emerged gracefully from the grand hall. Each of them wore white robes, bathed in holy light, almost like descending angels. The leader among them was Saint Nicholas! Having lived in the capital for so long, the eldest prince had certainly seen Nicholas before. Seeing him appear now, he was shocked and immediately cried out, “Bad!” Then Nicholas suddenly raised his hand high in the air and murmured as if chanting, “God says: To those who believe, I grant blessings; to those who are blessed, I grant courage!” Though his words were spoken softly, they seemed to ring in everyone’s ears at the same time. The Temple Knights, who had been retreating, suddenly saw blazing holy flames arise around them. Under these flames, the assassin cavalry began to grow restless. This was clearly a mysterious divine spell, bestowing various blessed attributes upon the Temple Knights at once. In an instant, the momentum of the Temple Knights overwhelmed that of the assassins. The once-even balance had changed significantly due to the appearance of this sorcerer.