Chapter 1134: Myriad Blades
「Ioneth-sama!」
「d.a.m.n you!」
We defeated Ioneth, the vice-captain of the Carmine Flame Knights. The nearby Red Knights immediately flew into a rage.
However, the loss of one leader certainly disrupted their coordination. We didn’t miss the opportunity.
I secretly cast a spell to take down some of the knights while they were still panicking. Meanwhile, Forrund was now freed from his duel with Ioneth.
Eliminating the threat from the Red Knights helped out our allies throughout the battlefield.
The adventurers were now free to focus on the undead, which gave the n.o.ble division time to regroup. The battle suddenly s.h.i.+fted in favor of Kranzel.
However, Raydoss was not content to leave things this way.
After about 30 Red Knights fell in combat, they decided defeat was inevitable. A trumpet sounded from the fort.
That was apparently the signal to retreat, and the Red Knights started falling back to the fort in formation. Such would normally be the perfect opportunity to chase, but the knights launched a barrage of flame magic to seal our pursuit.
Thus, the adventurers could no longer follow.
That said, opening some distance actually made things easier, since we could now cast magic without worrying about hitting our allies.
『Fran, Urus.h.i.+! Let’s do it!』
「Nn!」
『Ekato Keraunos!』
「Thunderbolt!」
「Awoooooo!」
Our thunder magic rained down on the retreating Red Knights along with Urus.h.i.+’s black magic. That said, our spells never reached their targets. They had deployed some sort of barrier to protect themselves.
Still, that’s well within our expectations.
People with overwhelming power exist in this world, so strength in numbers isn’t always enough to win. A single sorcerer might be all it takes to decimate an army.
Thus, it’s only natural to invent tools or spells for preventing such an outcome. In fact, one of our strongest spells got blocked by a battles.h.i.+p a while back.
Such tools exist in Kranzel, so I expected Raydoss to have something similar, especially since we’re invading their territory.
Avenger actually informed us on this subject too. The forts defending important areas are apparently equipped with both anti-physical and anti-magic barriers.
However, they require immense amounts of mana to deploy both at the same time, so it only lasts for about 30 minutes of continuous usage. Since the battle has been raging for a while, they probably only have enough mana to deploy the anti-magic barrier temporarily.
We continued firing spells and forcing them to maintain the anti-magic barrier. In the meantime, Forrund finished his preparations.
『About ready to go?』
（Yeah. Leave it to me!）
Forrund replied to me with a confident nod.
『Fran, Urus.h.i.+, finish it with a big one!』
「Nn!」
「Wooooof!」
We fired off yet another wave of spells to make them activate the anti-magic barrier. Just as we expected, they put up the barrier and blocked us.
Meanwhile, Forrund took a step forward and held his right hand to the sky.
The swords in the hands of nearby adventurers melted away into the air.
Even without the power of Forrund’s swords, they’re protected by Donadrond’s white mana. They shouldn’t be in trouble yet.
We watched as a huge amount of mana returned to Forrund. While materializing and maintaining a sword consumes tons of mana, it seems the mana making up each sword can be recovered when they dissolve.
「Come forth, swords born from my flesh and blood. Tear them asunder, Myriad Blades.」
Forrund’s voice was practically a whisper like usual. Yet for some reason, the sound resonated within our ears, perhaps due to the sheer power behind them.
The next moment, countless swords appeared in the sky and flew down at the earth, as if swung by invisible hands.
Forrund did not simply launch these blades randomly. Each of the over a hundred blades he summoned was aimed with absolute precision.
The majority of them cleaved off the heads of the knights, like a ruthless guillotine. Even the knights who managed to avoid a lethal hit still took heavy damage.
Moreover, these swords were all enchanted. They had additional effects such as igniting the target’s wounds, poisoning them, or paralyzing them with thunder magic.
Simply terrifying to watch. Whether he uses it against an army or a single person, it’s bound to be incredibly deadly.
『Alright! Now we can deal with the undead without worrying about our backs!』
「Nn!」
「Yeah.」
I’m sure they still have forces remaining in the fort, but they won’t be able to launch an attack with the Red Knight squad decimated.
『Forrund, hang in there a little longer.』
（I’m fine.）
Forrund had expended the majority of his mana. Such a powerful attack must have equally nasty repercussions.
That said, we can’t let Forrund collapse until we distance ourselves from the fort. His existence is a powerful deterrent as long as our enemies still think he’s in the fight.
We planned to have him continue a little bit longer before discreetly evacuating the battlefield on Urus.h.i.+.
（I leave the rest to you.）
『Roger that!』