Chapter 253 — Encounter
Blade of Dawn · Page 2 of 4
This squad was one of the infiltration units that had entered the Dark Mountains at the same time as Suojilin's squad. They had chosen a route closer to the northern side of the range to operate, with two low-tier knights and one low-tier mage anchoring the team. They had spotted the patrol early on, but the peculiar terrain of the mountain path made an encounter unavoidable, so they decided to use the blind spots in their line of sight to ambush and annihilate that oddly equipped patrol. In the Typhon soldiers' initial estimation, this was no problem at all: with the advantage of ambush, they could use the first volley of crossbow bolts to take out the patrol leader and two or three of his men, then the mage would bombard the disorganized patrol with fireballs or arcane missiles while they were in chaos, and finally the knights would lead the soldiers in to finish the job. It was a sure thing.
But before they could even launch their attack, that Ansu patrol had already reacted—swiftly changing formation and seeking favorable positions as if they had rehearsed it in advance. It was impossible to tell how they had even communicated!
The Typhon soldiers had no choice but to attack in haste—yet after the first volley of crossbow bolts, every shot was blocked by a magic shield.
Blocked by a magic shield!
That patrol leader, dressed in infantry armor and by every appearance a warrior—could he actually be a mage capable of instantly casting a force-field shield?
In the instant the Typhon soldiers stood stunned, they saw the enemy launch a counterattack: several strange metal lumps came flying toward their hiding place.
They did not know what those metal lumps were, but years of training and combat had at least produced the proper reflexes. The mage in the squad threw up a mana shield at the last critical moment, and an instant later, an explosion like a thunderclap burst forth outside the mana shield.
After all, human arm strength is limited; the thrown crystal grenades did not reach the most lethal positions, and most of the blasts occurred farther off. Only two crystal grenades struck close to the Imperial soldiers' mana shield. With the powerful magical explosion, the mana shield shattered into pieces and the mountain rock serving as cover collapsed along with it—but because of the shield's obstruction, the force of the blast was greatly weakened, and the soldiers sheltered within emerged unscathed.
Amid the smoke and dust, one of the Typhon knights leading the squad drew his longsword. Cloaked in the radiance of magic power, he was the first to charge out of the now-useless hiding place, rushing at the Ansu soldiers who could throw "explosive magic devices."
"Charge with me!"
At the knight's command, the remaining Typhon soldiers also rushed out from their cover, preparing to settle the fight in close combat on this narrow mountain path.
This was nothing like the plan—yet these battle-hardened Typhon elites remained full of confidence. They were certain no nation's soldiers could defeat them in a blade-to-blade fight. That patrol leader might indeed be a mage with somewhat peculiar taste in dress, but surely he could not have brought along a whole patrol of transcendents?
The enemy came rushing out of their hiding place. Seeing this, the patrol leader's heart settled at once, and he shouted, "Concentrate fire on that knight in front!"
Streak after streak of searing rays pierced the billowing smoke thrown up by the crystal grenade blasts. The Imperial knight charging at the fore was struck again and again in quick succession. The protective aura around him flickered violently, held out for a moment, then swiftly dissipated.
Only then did the knight realize what folly it had been to charge out—but on the narrow mountain path there was nowhere to dodge. With a faint sound of steel armor being pierced through, he fell on the path of his charge.