Death Knight

Chapter 17: Demon swarm

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Roland walked slowly on the street until the water-colored eyes were reflected in the shrine of spirits at the end of the stone slab. Only then did he realize that he was embarking on a journey full of memories. The death knight stopped in front of the building and stood silently. The serene and familiar atmosphere looked around him, once again igniting everything that happened seventeen years ago in his gradually icy soul—the tender and happy time, as well as the unforgettable hatred.

However, everything is over. The me at this moment is just an undead that exists to fulfill the promise. Roland told himself this, and examined the ring on his left middle finger. "Sincere deception" allows him to walk on the streets of humans without any worries, but even if he regains the human form, what burns in that shell is still the soul of the deceased.

"If I arrive at the capital of stars, how should I speak to Flora?" Roland sighed, his eyes dimmed.

The dim sun sank rapidly, and the death knight's shadow gradually lengthened, finally blending into the surrounding darkness. He hesitated for a moment, then walked slowly towards the other side of the street - the Old Oak Bar was there.

After forcibly taking the defense map of the alliance border, Roland has been acting carefully and quickly. In just one week, he crossed the border. But this time, the death knight planned to stop his steps and take a rest.

The Old Oak Bar is very lively today, a man half made of iron is spitting and telling the past events to the travelers sitting around him. Roland immediately remembered the name of this person—his right arm and right leg are so eye-catching—the captain of the defense team Bill seventeen years ago. When they rushed back to the village, the young paladin happened to see him fall down, smoking all over.

After seventeen years, no one should recognize him. Under the washing of time, even the clearest impression will definitely become blurred and gradually squeezed into the corner of memory. But even so, Roland still kept himself out of the warm atmosphere.

Only the hotel owner noticed the guest standing in the corner, so he moved his fat body and walked over.

"Excuse me, guest, what do you want?" the boss asked, but his tone contained surprise that couldn't be concealed—the traveler in front of him had a more elegant appearance than an elf, and he looked like a noble boy in trouble.

"One room is enough. I'm tired and need to rest." Roland handed the other party an alliance gold coin.

"Yes, sir. I'll ask the waiter to bring the dinner." Considering the heavy feeling in his hand, the boss became more convinced of his guess.

"No need, I brought my own food." The guest shook his head, "I want the one on the far left, it seems to be quieter."

"I'm sorry, sir, that room is already occupied, how about I arrange the one next to you?" It was the first time the boss had heard a strange request for a designated room in these years, but he still patiently explained.

"Alright, then I'll leave it to you." The young man smiled to hide his disappointment.

Everything seemed to go back to seventeen years ago, that day, after the battle with the devil, I lived in this room. However, Jiu Yuan is no longer next door. Even if you poke your head out of the window, no one will chat with you from the other side.

Is this also fate? Roland lay on the bed, staring at the old ceiling silently.

Without warning, a stern roar suddenly penetrated the wooden wall and pierced the death knight's eardrum. The warrior's instinct made Roland jump up reflexively, and drew out the big sword beside him. The scene outside the window immediately burned into his eyes.

"That's... Balrog?" Roland couldn't believe it. The scorching figure with a height of more than two floors is brandishing a huge weapon in its hand, splitting a wide road among the trembling buildings. The dazzling flames engulfed everything behind him, leaving only shocking ruins and scorched black and smelly corpses. The eyes of the young traveler ignited flames at that moment, he silently clenched Shuangwai, and jumped out of the window.

Balrogs have superb fighting skills, even high-level death knights have very little chance of winning in the face of them. But Roland is well aware of the weakness of these guys—sluggish sensation—if he sneaks up from behind and decapitates his head with one blow, the battle will be decided in an instant.

Why is the devil here? Roland cautiously followed the target in front of him, but his thoughts flowed back to seventeen years ago.

The ancient blood contains mysterious power, which can not only lift the curse on Wendam, but also be coveted by demons. During the journey back from the Star Capital, Roland and his party encountered numerous attacks from the Twisting Nether. Belial Village was the last battle before returning to the Luvis Alliance, and the nightmarish battle was not eliminated until entering the realm of the gods.

The scene in front of me is like a reappearance of memory, but what is the reason this time? The death knight's mind was full of doubts, but he quickly came back to his senses and focused his energy on the scene in front of him—the target was already in sight.

The Balrog stopped in its tracks and was roaring towards the street with its teeth and claws open, because there was a person standing in front of it.

Is it a soldier of the garrison? Taking advantage of the height, Roland looked over Balrog's shoulder and turned to the sword-wielding warrior. However, when his eyes met the slim figure of the other party, he could no longer move away.

The girl's lively short black hair fluttered in the hot wind, while her emerald green eyes reflected a mysterious light in the light of the fire. Even in the face of the powerful force from the Twisting Nether, she still assumed an attacking posture—for Roland, it was a very familiar posture, because that swift attack had cost him one hand, Get a chance to fight back.

What is she doing here? The death knight's thoughts turned rapidly.

Guessed my route based on the map, come to intercept? The envoys sent by the alliance to lobby all over the world to build a stronger anti-dead force? Or…

"You and I have the same mission? Are you also the one who came to find the World Tree?" Roland whispered to himself, and subconsciously clenched the hilt in his hand.

The Balrog roared again, and approached the tiny human in front of him. The flames that were originally flowing all over his body burned violently like an erupting volcano. With the dazzling light, Roland clearly saw the uncontrollable wavering on the girl's expression.

It is the first time to confront a legendary demon, no matter how good a fighter is, it is impossible to remain calm. Even running away is reasonable. Seventeen years later, the death knight can still recall the feeling of cold sweat running down his back. But the girl's posture didn't change, and she didn't seem to retreat at all.

"Are you going to protect this village?" Looking at the girl who was going to confront the Balrog with a dagger, Roland smiled, "You and I seem to have mutually exclusive beliefs... But this time, the goal of protecting this place is the same Yes. Therefore, my sword will also help you."

Before the words fell, the vigorous figure shot towards the flame in front of him like a sharp arrow.

"You... who are you?" Katoli finally came back to her senses, staring at the man in front of her with wide eyes.

If the opponent's appearance is an enviable talent, then his behavior of beheading the Balrog with one blow is beyond human~! The hot wind around made the girl's skin tingle, and Katoli was sure that she was not in a dream.

"I'm a demon hunter." Roland replied briefly, and the other's emerald eyes gave him a strange sense of familiarity.

"Witcher?" The girl mechanically repeated the other party's answer.

"It's a very uncommon profession, but that's not the point." He pointed to the charred black slate in front of him, "I don't know why demons appear here, but if you can't defeat them, then you have no chance to go Find out the real reason."

"So what to do?"

"I hope you can ensure the safety of the villagers and bring them to the Shrine of the Spirits, where the power of the spirit world will stop the demons. And this place can be handed over to me."

"You want to deal with the demon group alone~!?" Katoli was a little surprised.

"I'm very familiar with their weaknesses and action methods. And if the sneak attack fails, I have enough experience to deal with it, and nothing will happen." Despite Roland's proposal, he was not sure that the other party would accept it. . Would a proud girl with the identity of a high-ranking paladin admit her helplessness against demons and accept the advice of a "hunter" like him

"In that case, then I will accept your suggestion." Katoli's answer without thinking greatly exceeded the expectations of the death knight. Fortunately, the other party did not see his gaffe for a moment.

"The original intention of the battle is also to protect the villagers. After all, although the short sword can deal with hellhounds, it is a bit reluctant to deal with Balrogs." The girl smiled helplessly, "'A real warrior should be able to fight against the strife. In the vortex, find your own path', this is the famous saying of Uther, the guide of light."

But she immediately remembered something, looked up at Roland, and said in a word: "But, I definitely didn't accept such a proposal because I was afraid of fighting~!"

"I know this very well." Roland also replied word by word, and at the same time couldn't help but feel a little guilty about his previous guess.

"Then, let's just say that, my companion and I will protect the villagers, and the task of attacking will be left to Mr. Demon Hunter."

Roland nodded: "The Balrog will send three hellhounds as the vanguard, so even if you encounter those low-level demons, you must avoid getting into a fight. If you are confronting the Balrog, never attack from the front, their perception Low, you can let one person be in charge, and the others attack from behind, just like what I did just now. If there are mages among your companions, using sandstorm will be more effective than water magic."

"I will keep it in mind, and I will never let the villagers get hurt." Katoli subconsciously took the oath gesture of a paladin.

"please."

"Don't worry." The girl smiled.

"'Everything can only be said to be an irresistible fate.' This is another famous saying of the master..." Watching Katoli go away, Roland shook his head slightly. But the death knight only paused for a few seconds before leaping onto the roof through the ruins again, and the figure wrapped in chain mail quickly merged into the darkness of the night.

The sharp ice arrows buried deep into the demon's body, and then spun out from the other side. When Xiu Yin's spell eliminated the third hellhound, Ren shouted: "She's back~!"

"Katori, are you okay?" He looked at the girl worriedly.

"Why do you only know how to greet me with this sentence?" The other party frowned elegantly in dissatisfaction, "I'm not so easy to get into trouble~!"

"Sorry." Although he was blamed, Ren's mood relaxed a lot.

"The situation is very bad now. Cerberus dogs are everywhere, but the Balrog is still in the outlying buildings." Josephine shouted from the roof, "They don't seem to understand that walking along the street is faster, as long as the obstacles in front of them are Destroy all."

"Where are the villagers?"

"The soldiers of the garrison are protecting them, but they probably won't last long. There are too many hell dogs..." Ranger shook his head, "What should we do?"

"Let's go too~!" Katoli judged.

"Four people alone can't form a defensive formation, and it will disperse the strength of the team." Xiuyin retorted, but the young female captain just waved her hand.

"You don't need to do that, let the defense team back up, and we will be responsible for opening a path in front." Katoli quickly arranged a new tactic, "There are quite a few hellhounds here, but as long as we can reach that tower The Temple of the Spirit, the advantage is on our side."

"Why do you say that?" The mage felt very strange.

"The power of the Shrine of Spirits will protect us, that's what that person said."

"Who is 'that person' referring to?" Ren didn't think the King's Hall would send reinforcements to follow them.

"A trustworthy warrior. He has gone to contain the Balrogs on the periphery." When Katoli said this, Roland's gesture of killing the Balrogs with one blow appeared in front of Katoli's eyes, even if he had to face the demons alone. , his expression is still calm and calm. The corner of the girl's mouth raised slightly involuntarily.

"And we are responsible for protecting the villagers here, so that they are not threatened by demons~! Let's take action, comrades~!"

As a buffer zone between the two major forces, Belial Village has solid defense facilities. But to the demons, human city walls and stone bunkers are like children's sand sculptures, completely vulnerable. At this moment, the surrounding buildings of the entire village have been severely damaged. The bright red fire is rising from the ground, greedily licking the dark sky.

But all this has no effect on Roland. He can walk through flames without difficulty—undead don't need to breathe. And even if the surrounding buildings were burned to the point that only the scorched and fragile skeleton remained, the death knight could still jump lightly and swiftly on top of it.

So far, he has dealt with three Balrogs. However, during this time, more Balrogs were heading towards the center of the village, and even experienced demon hunters couldn't stop the situation from deteriorating. Now if one observes from the height of the third floor, anyone can easily spot more than ten hell dogs, and each one is wandering on the street swaggeringly.

Maybe leaving like this is the best choice? This thought flashed through Roland's mind.

The scale of the demons' attack is no less than that of seventeen years ago, but now there is no magical power behind them, no matter how strong the frost in hand is, it can't restrain such an attack—from a certain In this sense, demons are more difficult opponents than dragons. They not only act in groups, but also fight crazily—if the situation is out of their control, then there may be no chance to escape.

However, even after seriously considering the feasibility of this option, the death knight has no intention of adopting it.

Seventeen years ago, Jiu Yuan hoped that I could guard this village. Now, even if everything becomes a memory, I will still guard this place. Ishutori will definitely understand... Roland thought, showing a casual smile.

Another Balrog entered the pursuit range, and the death knight lowered his posture immediately. The insensitive big man didn't notice that the hunter was hiding in the thick smoke on the roof, and just walked past him. Roland quickly followed, carefully using the thick ash in the air to cover his figure, and holding the hilt of the epee. The swordsman is confident that no matter what happens, he has the ability to strike first.

After tracking for a while, Roland found a suitable place to attack: a crossroads, where the Balrog would inevitably slow down, and the Death Knight would take advantage of that opportunity to chop off its head. However, the moment the Predator emerged from the darkness, a deafening roar interrupted the well-planned attack.

Roland turned his head, his water-colored pupils dilated uncontrollably in an instant. Even the battle-hardened death knight couldn't keep his composure after recognizing the howling comer. And the Balrog who also turned around found angrily that there was a human being following behind him~!

The swordsman quickly jumped to one side, and at the same moment, the four-meter-long flame knife accurately cut into the position where he was standing just now. Under the impact of this brute force, the ruins that had already been in a half-collapsed state collapsed immediately. The death knight had already adjusted his posture the moment he fell, he landed lightly on the stone path, and quickly took a defensive posture. But this does not mean that he is out of danger, on the contrary, the frontal battle has just begun.

The five nearby hellhounds hurried over in agitation, and they surrounded Roland in the center of the intersection. The Balrog's nine-headed whip fluttered in the air, drawing dazzling trajectories. Under the provocation of the fiery snake, the surrounding air boiled like a hoarse cry.

The original hunting ground has now become a cage for hunters.

The Balrog attacked first, and the nine-headed whip's attacks poured down like a torrential rain, but the death knight unloaded all of its attacks precisely. Under his control, the big sword wove a big net shining with blue light, repelling the fire snakes attacking from all angles again and again.

Now I can't even attack? I didn't expect that the result of not touching the sword for seven years would be reflected at this time... Roland thought bitterly.

Whether it is body shape, weapons, quantity or environment, at this moment I am at an extreme disadvantage. The death knight knew full well that this would be a tough fight. More importantly, he couldn't imagine what kind of damage that new demon would do to the village if he was trapped here.

However, maybe there is still hope... For some reason, those emerald eyes suddenly broke into the swordsman's mind. Maybe the paladin can stop this dark tide... Will she make a deal with me

There were about 2,000 people in the entire village. Under the night attack of the demon, many villagers died on their beds before waking up from their sleep. Only about 1,500 people survived and assembled. However, for the Belial defense team with only sixty members, a team of this size has greatly exceeded its defensive limit. In order to avoid large-scale casualties, the only way Katoli could think of was to eliminate all enemies that came into sight as soon as possible.

Although protected by the fire barrier, Renn, who was in charge of the raid, still had his hair scorched by the flames of the Balrog. And the three people who were baptized by the nine-headed whip were also disheartened. Fortunately, although it is the first cooperation of four people, the team members have a good understanding with each other, no injuries have occurred, and the record is also very remarkable - from the beginning of the team to the present, they have solved a total of six hells A dog and two Balrogs.

"It'll be there soon~!" Ren wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Seeing the Shrine of Spirits in front of them, the villagers who had been suppressed by fear until now finally breathed a sigh of relief, and subconsciously stepped up a lot. The crowd quickly crossed the last street and came to the ancestral hall.

This building is not big, only big enough to accommodate two or three hundred people. The whole team paused for a moment, and then dispersed to both sides in an orderly manner. The men stepped aside one after another, while the women and children entered the Shrine of Spirits.

"Everyone, don't be afraid, we beat these monsters back to their lair seventeen years ago, and this time it's the same~! And this time there are five travelers to help, one more than last time~!" Blacksmith Bill With a smile on his face, he shouted loudly to the crowd, but Katoli found that his legs were trembling uncontrollably.

What is it that supports these ordinary people? The girl finds it unbelievable. Under such circumstances, maybe even the citizens of the holy capital can't keep calm, right? But these people in front of them, despite the same fear, have never lost their reason.

"This is Belial's tradition. If it weren't for such unity, it would be impossible for the village located between the two major forces to still be free." The village chief seemed to have seen through Katoli's mind. With a beard and excellent actual combat equipment, this middle-aged man who is also the captain of the garrison looks very dignified, "We are proud of this, and we plan to defend our homeland with our lives, but you young Travelers, there is no need to stay."

"Do you think we are in the way?" Katoli asked with a smile.

"To be honest, the few of you are stronger than the entire defense team." The village chief understood what the other party meant.

"Since we have such power, if we just run away like this and leave unarmed people here to fight against the devil, then all our years of practice will be in vain." The girl's expression gradually became serious, "When there is a real need for people to When you go to protect, I have no way to turn a blind eye. Compared to some selfish and empty reasons, such as revenge... This is the way to use the sword without confusion, I think so."

"Well said~!" Xiu Yin stepped in, his staff lit on the ground, which was a way for the mage to express his full approval. Although Ren on the side maintained a resting posture, the expression on his face was that of "that's needless to say". The ranger didn't hear the captain's small speech, the vigorous figure was still perched on the roof under the night, silently guarding the place as if tireless.

"Besides, I also made an appointment with someone," Katoli elegantly stroked her short hair that was blown by the wind, "No matter how many demons come, I will never leave this place alone~!"

Josephine gestured to her companions, and another Balrog approached.

"What should we do now?" the village chief asked.

"The demon hunter said that the power from the spirit world will stop the demons from advancing," Katoli recalled the conversation just now, "I don't know the details, anyway, first deploy the soldiers of the garrison, and let you go Deal with the Cerberus while we stop the Balrog. But try not to leave the Shrine of Spirits, maybe here, our strength will be improved."

As soon as the defense team set up their defensive formation, the opponent had already entered the line of sight. The demon's body occupied the entire cross section of the street, like a moving wall, gradually pressing towards the end of the street. The light emanating from the eyes like copper bells shrouded the pale-faced people's heads with glaring blood.

Now the Balrog was standing in front of Katoli, so close that the girl could even clearly see the veins of the flame flowing all over its body. As long as the opponent takes another step forward, the paladin standing at the forefront of the formation will become the target of the Nine-Headed Whip's attack range.

The huge volcano stepped forward without any scruples, and raised a thick long whip. At the same time, Katoli also clenched the weapon in her hand, tensed all the nerves in her body, and waited for the moment when the fire came.

However, the strong wind howling past the girl's ears washed away all fighting spirit.

A ray of light oozes from the sky above the Shrine of Spirits, like a thin and sharp blade, cutting through the solid darkness of the night sky in an instant. White stardust gushed out of it like a spring, and quickly revolved around the ancestral hall, like silver threads. These filaments of light quickly converged to form a dazzling stream of light, which rhythmically spread out round after round, and finally submerged everything around them into the vortex of light centered on the ancestral hall.

"This is the power of the spirit world?" Katoli murmured to herself, the flow of light shuttled through her flying short hair, and she could even feel the warmth contained in it. Not only that, the feather spirits that originally only existed in the spirit world are now flying faintly before people's eyes.

The moment the Balrog came into contact with the silver water, half of the flames in its body were extinguished. It immediately roared miserably, and jumped away with astonishing strength. However, even so, the side that lost its light still quickly cracked, and the fragments turned into countless ashes and scattered away, and the huge body also fell to the ground.

As if the ability to speak was taken away, everyone just watched everything happening in front of their eyes in silence, motionless, the instinct of thinking stopped functioning at this moment.

"Li magic~! It's the power of this~!" Xiu Yin, who was the first to come back to his senses, shouted incoherently.

Others began to try to touch the Guangliu and Feather Essence with their hands. The scene in front of me is like a dream, but the feeling that surrounds me is irresistible reality—it is a distant and peaceful atmosphere that makes my heart feel peaceful.

"It seems that the situation has turned around." Ren put the long sword in its sheath and walked slowly to Katori's side.

But before the girl opened her mouth, there was a sudden roar without warning, and the group of feather spirits flying in the air became commotion at that moment.

"It's just the beginning..." Then, a deep voice penetrated the curtain of light, bypassed people's eardrums, and directly implanted the fear of the unknown in the depths of the soul, "I have been waiting for such an opportunity for a long time No matter what, I won't let you escape."

The owner of that voice walked unhurriedly into the trembling sight. The earth was corroding under his feet, and the air was boiling around him. Even the Balrog was wailing and struggling to crawl to the other side with his half-damaged body at this moment. However, a huge and sharp trident mercilessly chopped it into pieces.

The stable lower body has strong limbs, the burly upper body is covered with thick armor, and a pair of hard wings are tucked behind. The halberd in his hand was covered with the lingering flames of the Balrog, and the dazzling green flames shot out from all over the ugly head. The blood red and the miserable green reflected each other, and finally mixed into the endless darkness in the depths of hell.

The abyss lord from the lowest level of the twisting void is standing in front of Katori at this moment.