Under the effect of magic, the distance of tens of thousands of kilometers was crossed in an instant. When Roland escaped from the spell, he saw a vast expanse of northern scenery in front of him. The strong wind from the mountain stream caused his gray hair to flutter in the air, and the flying snowflakes seemed to fall like petals one after another. However, the death knight's water-colored pupils just stared into the distance. There.
... Ishutori is there...
Under Bai Xue's description, the originally illusory slim figure is gradually becoming clear in Roland's mind. The beautiful long hair like a waterfall, the crisp and melodious laughter, and the gentle but firm eyes. Although he clearly knew that they were different, in Roland's mind, the distant figure often overlapped with her, becoming an indistinguishable blurred existence.
"Do you regard me as a long-term substitute?" The eyes that once stared at him resurfaced.
Roland shook his head vigorously, telling himself that this is not the time to think about those things. Now that such a choice has been made, the only thing to do at this moment is to rush to the palace immediately and protect the irreplaceable existence with all its strength.
Under the pale golden sunlight, the death knight's originally confused eyes were instantly engraved with indelible firmness.
"This time, I will never lose again~! Absolutely." The swift figure led the ice crystal fragments and the sound of the wind, moving at a high speed like gliding on the mountain road. Under the skilful manipulation of the knight, Nightmare let out a long cry, stepped across the snow lightly, and jumped up the steep rock in one fell swoop.
After breaking through the blockade of the palace gate, the commandos entering the Ice Crown had to face the suffocating powerful magic of the Liches and the oppressive attack of the Shadow Armor that showed no signs of stopping. Huge ice flowers with sharp edges bloomed in the crowd from time to time, and the giant sword of the demon armor was cut down like a gust of wind, and many brave warriors fell forever on the cold and clean marble floor, without even closing their eyes in time. Under the crazy counterattack of the undead, the number of people who tore through the defense and broke through to the second floor was only a handful, and most of these people had to stay and delay.
Reaching the third floor, there are only six people who are responsible for completing the tasks assigned by Luvis—Maisis, the deputy head of the Knights of the Holy Sword, Delicia, the deputy head of the Knights of the Holy Chain, Adis, a member of the Knights of the Holy Grail, High-level mage Antonidas, and two high-level priests, Damia and Dales.
Compared with the grandeur of the first two floors, this one is more refined. Through the glazed glass windows, the aurora mixed with northern sunshine falls into a wide corridor. There are patchwork small flower beds on both sides, and the blooming moon flowers are sticking out of them, and the petals reflect a warm light. Under the floor-to-ceiling curtains, the amethyst-like walls exude a mysterious and noble atmosphere. In this situation, I am afraid that even the majesty of the King's Hall and the beauty of the Luvis Temple cannot be compared with it.
However, for the six uninvited guests who broke into the upper floors of the palace, no matter how beautiful the scenery was, it was just an obstacle to confuse their sight. Not to mention the exquisite fountain statue in front of them, even the fragrance oozing from the flower core could not attract their attention at all. Apart from nervousness, what occupies their inner world is only a noble sense of mission.
As the team approached step by step, the quiet and harmonious sound of the piano gradually became clear, embellishing the scene in front of them into an intoxicating dream. Although no enemies have appeared so far, the six people who were exploring continued to maintain a cautious style until they reached the main hall gate.
The moment the door opened, no matter how ignorant humans resisted, the scene engraved in the pupils still broke through the blockade and conveyed the shock to the depths of their hearts.
The looming multicolored light is like a cool and brilliant waterfall, pouring down through the hollow dome; looking along the pavilion covered with fresh green vines on one side, the endless sea of clouds suddenly occupies the entire line of sight, only occasionally protruding a few small islands , marks the highest peak in the Atre Mountains. The aurora stretching above the head is like an extremely wide river, meandering to the end of the fuzzy sea of clouds.
But the girl in the yellow dress sitting among the flowers and bathed in the curtain of aurora completely made the intruder's eyes lose focus and calmness.
The girl has a delicate yet lively face, but what can be seen from the eyes that are the color of the night sky is an expression of determination that cannot be suppressed. In the silence of the confrontation between the two sides, she nestled silently on the wooden harp, only the ribbon on the dress fluttered in the air with her hair, depicting the figure of the breeze and the long-lasting melody.
As if they had never experienced pain and ecstasy, sadness and happiness, loss and longing, the uncontrollable torrent of emotions suddenly surged up in an instant, violently impacting the hearts of the six people. Even though they clearly know that the image in front of them represents an evil enemy, but in the depths of their souls, there is a voice that cannot be ignored telling them—
This is what man longs for.
Under the eyes that gradually became admiration, a feeling of unreasonable joy suddenly swallowed everything.
"Wait, wait... That must be hypnotism~! We have been deluded~!" The two priests came back to their senses first, and they cried out almost at the same time. The slender fingers finally stopped playing. Several other people also withdrew their slack eyes, looked at each other as if they were just waking up from a dream, and then silently chanted Lu Weisi's name in their hearts.
"Hypnotism? It's obviously a desire from my heart, but I have to be charged with a crime so that I can destroy it with peace of mind... Luvis' believers, don't you think this is ridiculous?" The girl retorted with obvious arrogance, but But it is still as clear as a silver bell, with a pleasant jump. And when her eyes swept across the crowd, that innate but inviolable expression was like a barrier, preventing humans from moving.
"Who are you?" Antonidas concealed his inner wavering, trying to keep his tone as normal as possible. Out of prudent considerations, he quickly set up several magic barriers for his companions, and the priest beside him was also deploying similar defensive measures.
"My name is Ishutoli, the target you are trying to challenge this trip." Ishutoli obviously had no intention of hiding it.
Before the words fell, the pleasant words were like stones thrown into the water, instantly stirring up ripples in the brief calm. Although they had long been prepared for awakening, the soldiers still couldn't hide the feeling of bewilderment in their hearts—compared with the imagined form, almost no one believed that a girl with such temperament would be the source of the power of the undead.
"How... is it possible? You?" The sharp sword in the soldier's hand wavered with the wavering in his heart.
"Just because of her words, you are going to risk your life to face the 'evil' you have never met before," the girl smiled slightly, her eyes swept over the tiny human beings, "What kind of concepts did Louise instill? For people? Ishutori is very curious."
Even though she knew that in this world, Ishutori could not be regarded as a god, her soul was imprisoned in the crystal; even though the flashing sword in her hand contained the power endowed by Luvis; prayed, but Methis still couldn't swing the sword—the strange feeling left in his heart, and the fear of facing God made his hands tremble non-stop.
Killing God... Can such a thing be realized in the hands of a mere mortal like me? It's going to change the world, change history, and presumably change my life, right? The young paladin gripped the hilt of his sword again and again with sweaty palms.
"As followers of Luvis, we are not here to listen to your preaching." Antonidas tried to refute.
"Should you be meeting me for the first time?" Ishutoli's voice was full of indifference and irony, "Even if you know you can't see the truth clearly, do you want to sacrifice your life to become Luvis's sword?"
"This was caused by you first. If it wasn't for the death knights invading the human territory, we wouldn't need to come to this place." As if afraid of the momentum being disintegrated, a priest replied loudly, "Hmph, the justice of the undead is better than imagined." It's even more absurd."
"Many times, reality is not something that can be judged by logic and eyes alone." The girl sighed faintly, "Besides, I have no intention of following the justice laid down by Luvis."
"Then, our crusade against you for the sake of Luvis is definitely not something that violates our own beliefs. Everyone is fighting to protect their homeland, to expel the cold-blooded invaders from the land of Lorendan~!" Anthony once again Opening his mouth, his gaze went deep into the inner side of the hall at the same time—under the cover of the curtain, a huge blue crystal was placed on a lotus-like ice seat, emitting a soft light. And in the core of that crystal, a bright orange flame completely ignores the confinement of the condensed matter, and is dancing lively.
"Look~! That must be Ishutori's soul stone, absolutely right~!" Dilicia murmured and repeated the prophecy that the listener had conveyed.
"Now that the target has been determined, let's stop talking about this phantom and prepare to attack." Methis shook his head vigorously, driving away the wavering and distracting thoughts in his heart, and then finally put on a thrusting posture,
As a knight, I must fulfill my duties, and I must not let my comrades who came here die in vain~! He said so to himself. Now we only need to consider how to complete the mission given by Luvis, and let history judge other things.
"Cover me, destroy the phantom in front of me first, and then smash the soul stone~!" The paladin shouted, shooting at the target like an arrow, the long sword cut a bright line in the air, and the howling wind of the sword flew up and danced petals.
But this thunderous offensive was extinguished in an instant.
A vague figure stood in front of Ishutoli at that moment, and the speed was so fast that it even dragged a trail woven of ice chips behind him. The crisp sound of sharp blades biting overwhelmed the howling wind, freezing the flow of time, and the burning eyes in front of him made Methis shudder. As if he was about to be sucked in by that staring gaze, the paladin felt that his field of vision was dark, his ears were silent, and the only thing he could hear was his own heartbeat.
Consciousness... weightless.
"Roland~!?" Dilicia's voice floated from far behind.
For Methis, who was maintaining a slashing posture, it seemed that centuries had passed, but in fact, the second hand had only moved through a short fraction. I was only distracted for a moment, and the death knight had poured overwhelming power into the blade. Under the tyrannical collision, the paladin's strong body lost its balance and fell backwards.
The death knight took the opportunity to launch a combo attack, and the second sword slashed across the waist, obviously intending to cut the opponent in half, Methis had no choice but to dodge it with a one-handed somersault. In the end, the tip of Frost's Grief missed the target by just a few centimeters—but this was only the beginning, the black shadow didn't have any intention of stopping at all, attacking wave after wave. As soon as the paladin stood firm, his whole body was completely enveloped in the whistling sword wind.
What kind of swordsmanship is this? This kind of speed and reaction nerves cannot be achieved by humans, he is indeed an unprecedented monster~! Every time he took a blow, Methis' hands trembled involuntarily, and the tiger's mouth was already numb from the pain.
The death knight's attack is completely out of common sense in swordsmanship, and the angle is unexpected. Combined with the huge power and the terrible-looking epee, the gust of wind caused the paladin's scalp to tingle, and the chill hidden in his bones could not help it. Inhibited spread.
Is it the "Yunyao" that Lord Usel mentioned? This is not a swordsmanship that I can resist... Methis desperately felt the gap between himself and his opponent. However, just when the paladin felt overwhelmed, two other figures in silver armor joined the battle. The death knight had to allocate his energy to deal with another warrior, and the originally fierce offensive suddenly stalled.
"Steady~!" Dilicia and Adis cut into the cold light of Frost Lament at the same time.
Under the dead net woven by the edge of the long sword, along with the sparks and ice chips bred by the collision of metals, the petals stirred up by the sword wind are flying wildly among the four fighting. In order to seize that flash of opportunity, everyone unreservedly exerted all their strength and fought desperately, not even daring to blink their eyes. But even so, the balance of victory is still swinging leisurely between the two sides, with no intention of stopping at all.
If the stalemate persists, the undead who don't get tired will obviously gain the upper hand. For Antonidas, the chaotic battle situation restricted the use of magic, but—this did not prevent the priests from casting divine spells.
The moment the prayer sounded, the death knight immediately swayed his sword, and then jumped out of the distance of the confrontation. At the same time, a flame soared into the sky in the sea of flowers, raising countless petals, enveloping the three of them in dazzling light. The warm light stream dyed the paladin's armor a light gold color, and the energy consumed in the battle was quickly recovered, and soon filled the whole body of the three of them again.
Although she is in the palace of Ishutoli, as the goddess of this world, Luvis' power can still be exerted through mortals.
The flames dissipated slowly, and the hall returned to silence. Both sides with high fighting spirit stared at each other through the rain of flowers, and the melodious sound of the piano sounded again, flowing through Ishutoli's slender fingers. Under the wonderful melody, the flowers that were blown away and torn by the violent sword wind returned to their original state, as if nothing had ever happened.
"You don't want to pass through here." The death knight finally spoke, a subtle light rippling in the water-colored pupils.
"Roland... how could you be here~!?" the mage said in disbelief.
"Where do you think Olin of Ishutoli should be? In the sea of blood under King Alazea's banner?" Roland replied in a calm voice, but his tone was colder than the cold wind in the Northland. "I really didn't expect the alliance to With this tactic, everything is planned, right? Not only are you using Wendam to lure me, but are you planning to harm Ishutori?"
The death knight showed a disgusted expression, and raised his sword subconsciously, the water-colored light in his pupils rose irresistibly, and the frosty lament between humans and undead exuded a strong cold breath, which not only enveloped the flowers, but also made the fragile and The momentary balance tightens further.
"Wait~! Roland~!" The voice of the female knight was the first to break the tense atmosphere.
"Are you... Delicia?" The death knight's gaze paused without a trace, "I haven't seen you in ten years, and I didn't expect to meet in this situation..."
"That's enough, Roland, wake up quickly. The battle between us is meaningless~!" Dilicia said loudly.
"You didn't hesitate when you swung your sword just now..." Roland's rebuttal was interrupted by a crisp sound at that moment. A sharp long sword slid across the clean ground and was finally stopped among the flowers. Metal friction The piercing sound disturbed the murderous intent hidden under the beautiful scenery——Delicia threw the sword out.
"There can't be any delay in protecting your companions. That's the rule you told me once, haven't you forgotten? But now I want to have a good talk with you. Is this enough?"
"Dilicia, you should understand that I will never negotiate with Luvis' followers." Even though he was surprised for a long time in just a short moment, Roland's pupils still stared at each other unwaveringly.
"That evil god is just using you~! Why did the blade pointing at Wendam end the life of the guide of light? Why is your former comrade in arms standing in front of you now? Roland, don't you understand? ? You are falling~! Stop it~!" The fierce voice immediately overshadowed the beautiful piano sound.
Roland showed a half-smile expression: "You want me to offer my loyalty to Luvis again? Let an undead become Luvis's knight?"
Dilicia was at a loss for words, and Antonidas quickly took her words: "Of course, that's impossible. But please believe in the alliance and the gods. Goddess Luvis will let you rest in real peace. After that wish~!"
"You mean to hand over Wendam to me?" The cold fire in the death knight's eyes suddenly became sensitive.
"We have never had the need to fight for him, and the alliance has no obligation to protect people who have been deprived of their religious status." Anthony's answer was not ambiguous.
"So, this is indeed a good bargaining chip." The death knight's voice gradually lowered, but his pupils were still burning hot, and there was no tendency to waver, "But... don't you think that I am so close at hand? Did you come here under the flag of King Alazea just to show your loyalty to Luvis?"
A cold light flashed in Roland's hand, and he gracefully picked up the long sword on the ground. The long sword that was slowly staying in the air turned over and drew a bright arc, and then accurately inserted into the ground in front of Dilicia.
"The only reason I stand here is to protect Ishutori." Roland's tone was unquestionable, "I'm sorry, Delicia, I reject any conditions proposed by the alliance."
"Since you are obsessed with obsession, there is nothing you can do. Although there is no reason for us to fight personally, but," the female knight replied lightly, but she had no time to hide the sad expression on her face while deliberately being indifferent, "For the people of the alliance , my sword will never hesitate."
"No need to say any more, you can pass only by defeating me~!" Roland nodded, and the blade swayed slightly.
How long has it been forgotten? This feeling of focusing on savoring the battle...
The simple heartbeat seemed to echo in my ears, and the subtle tension was entangled in my heart like vines. Facing the six experienced and well-coordinated enemies in front of him, even Roland, who had gone through countless battles, felt that he was not completely sure—that kind of impenetrable defense cannot be broken through by relying on speed and reaction alone—he had no choice. You can only let the blade stay in the room where it can turn, waiting for the opportunity to move.
Because, at this moment, is he waving a long sword for the belief of guarding? Abandoning the crazy hatred, being trapped by the fetters and making Jianmang unable to attack unrestrainedly, this feeling... It is the same as the memory burned into the depths of my mind ten years ago...
The aurora stretching in the distance seemed to outline a distant silhouette in an instant, shining brightly in front of Roland's eyes.
Methis' long sword turned into a thunderbolt and slashed down. Roland blocked it lightly, and then jumped back to dodge the attacks from both sides. On the peaceful flower sea, the light of death wrapped in the sword wind bloomed again.
The extremely fast patrol turned Roland into a shadow-like existence. Relying on his agility, the death knight shuttled between the three paladins, trying his best to build a watertight defense with one person - he had to support the Lich Before our reinforcements arrived, he could neither disable himself nor allow the humans to advance even a small step.
But even for the mighty Dark Eagle, the goal seemed too heavy. As time goes by, the gray-haired figure in the fierce battle is being sharpened bit by bit-Antonidas' powerful magic makes the swords of the silver paladins powerful and precise, but Roland has to be close While fighting, beware of interference from mages. Although the body given by Ishutoli has tough resistance to magic, the momentary stagnation may lead to fatal failure.
Roland's left shoulder and the waist beyond the protection of the breastplate had been cut into several wounds, and dark red blood was oozing out - the interference caused by the slow technique gave the human long sword a chance to cut into the death knight's body, and the magic Under the effect of the force, the speed of trauma recovery also slowed down significantly. Although he was not disturbed by the pain, the undead's nerves knew very well that the muscle trauma had damaged his strength, and his movement of swinging the great sword became more and more sluggish, and he was gradually unable to dodge.
Exactly the same as that time...
Suddenly the memory came back to life, as if lightning pierced through the sky, illuminating the wound in Roland's heart that would never heal - the high-ranking knights blocking him, and the Luvis Temple behind them, which was undergoing a blood festival. Under the dark background, the huge building seems to be a cave of demons, which looks frightening. Under the downpour, the thunder and lightning across the sky reflected the indelible blood stains on the dagger in the darkness...
Never allow that kind of thing to happen again, absolutely not~! Roland exerted his strength suddenly, and with an extremely powerful move, Methis, who was blocking the head-on attack, immediately collapsed, and Frost Wraith's sharp edge immediately directed towards the opponent's head.
But this attack still failed. The golden flames triggered by the Holy Light suddenly erupted between the two, forming a shield, propped up in front of the paladin, and then slammed down on the undead. The light flowing from Roland's chest distorted Luvis's strength, but the armor that had been cracked in the previous battle could no longer support it. It disintegrated with a crisp sound like glass. into countless fragments.
Enduring the stinging burn, the guardian narrowly escaped the pincer attack of the other two paladins, and then hurriedly retreated again and again.
Defense~! Defense~! Don't attack, delay time, you must support until the liches arrive here~! Roland, you don't have the capital to fight now~! The death knight gritted his teeth and told himself that.
Even if you know Yunyao, it won't work... Is it the limit? Roland was forced to retreat a few meters, and the paladins on the opposite side did not relax at all, and the tacit cross attack pressed forward like a rock, leaving no room for maneuver.
I'm so stupid~! Thinking that gaining power can achieve everything, he hesitates in front of the clear and unmistakable path... If he could have come earlier, maybe this situation would not have happened... Roland gritted his teeth, trying time and time again to get rid of the three things in front of him. The enemy pressed back, but failed again and again.
Obviously, the other party performed some kind of ceremony before departure, and received the power from Luvis—maybe they didn't know it themselves, but the undead felt the breath that didn't belong to human beings, like an invisible chain, Every time the death knight takes a step back, it will tighten a little bit, and now, the stubborn undead may have been tied up so that they can't move at all.
The result... is it still the same as it was ten years ago
But this time, at least I can fight, I can die to protect someone. Thinking of this, the death knight couldn't help showing a smile. He suddenly pointed his sword to the ground, assumed a stabbing posture of killing each other, and then rushed over.
Behind Roland, the rhythm of the soft piano sound is gradually accelerating, and the timbre is rapidly sharpening.
As if something erupted in his heart, the whirlwind-like silence blocked Roland's sight and hearing for an instant, and the darkness that could not be penetrated even by staring drowned everything. But Ishutoli's voice floated up lightly.
"The agreed things will definitely come true. My dear Olin, you don't need to be sad or worry." The slight ripples slowly rippling in Roland's heart, "Olin only needs to listen carefully to the melody of fate and act It’s enough to make the choice you think is right.”
"Ishutori? Ishutori~!"
The sound of the piano covered by the clamor of the battle has become the only existence in the world at this moment. The rhythm is like a torrential rain, falling into the calm sea of thoughts, arousing crystal clear crowns one after another, and accompanied by the heavenly melody, Roland, whose eyes glowed with dark blue light, and his sword made a deadly dance.
The black figure merged with the giant sword reflecting the cold light, turning into a shining bright line, which instantly penetrated the entire hall in front of Ishutoli. The entire space vibrated violently, amidst the roar, even the cold air roared frantically as if boiling. At the same time, the crisp sound of the broken strings swept the entire hall.
The astonishment in his eyes gradually faded away, and Antonidas' dead body just fell down stiffly. From the horrible wound from the left shoulder to the waist, a large amount of blood quickly spread to the ground, immediately staining a large area of flowers red.
Although it was only for a short moment, it undoubtedly belonged to the power of God. At the last moment, Ishutoli used Olin as a carrier to unleash that kind of power, disintegrating the entire chess game that the opponent had worked so hard for at the moment Luvis couldn't catch it. Now, the chess pieces belonging to the goddess Luvis have all lay down on the ground motionless, and the only one standing is Roland, who is standing at the end of the hall at this moment, leaning against Shuanggui in a half-kneeling position, panting heavily .
The skin of the undead showed a deep purple color due to the rupture of a large number of capillaries, and the joints were congested due to the strong impact.
Across the entire hall in an instant, maybe that is the speed of light? A speed faster than Yun Yao... Thinking this way, Roland staggered to prop up his body, and then looked back at everything he had destroyed—the air was distorted by the boiling, and a straight path was opened in the middle of the sea of flowers. The priests had already been decapitated, and the bodies of the three paladins were slowly cooling down. Mysis's flashing sword was even broken into several pieces—according to tradition, even after hundreds of years, "the flashing sword" "A super weapon will never wear out, and now it seems that it is complete nonsense.
Then, the death knight turned his gaze to the figure beside the harp. The moment his four eyes met, his expression suddenly changed, he wanted to subconsciously conceal something, but there was a natural tenderness in his eyes. The opened lips did not make any sound, until the other party's crisp words broke the silence of the Shura field.
"Olin, thank you." Staring at Roland's water-colored pupils, the girl smiled slightly.