Chapter 368: The Clash of Knights

The nameless castle of Mane City is located on a low hill overlooking the area, at some distance from the city. According to Baron Morray’s plan, while the Black Knights assault the nameless castle, they would quietly assemble within the city walls and then charge out in one fell swoop, coordinating with the castle for an internal and external attack.

Perhaps there really is a chance to break through the Black Knights’ defenses.

The reason knights are so formidable is that during a charge, their collective mana merges into one, unleashing tremendous force.

It is nearly unstoppable.

This is what makes knights such formidable rulers.

Of course, with Hiddleston as his trump card, Liszt isn’t worried about Baron Morray’s ambush plan. It’s possible that before they even finish gathering, Hiddleston’s instant-cast magic will have already torn down the nameless castle.

On the other hand.

Now that Parris has uncovered the enemy’s plan, Liszt immediately decides to turn the tables, pretending to attack the castle while using a telescope to observe Baron Morray’s ambush in advance. Before the enemy can even begin their charge, the Black Knights will strike first.

A direct confrontation to hone their blades!

Maximizing the kill!

Lest any knights attempt to flee and need to be pursued.

……

The night passes peacefully, with no enemy attacks detected by the knights on duty.

Before dawn the next day, fires are lit for cooking, and by the time the first light of dawn appears, the Black Knights have already gathered. Donning steel armor, Liszt draws his Red Blood Sword and points to the sky: “Let’s move out!”

With a thunderous roar!

The armored horses, carrying the knights, charge forward like a wave of tanks.

They gallop toward the nameless castle with a force that seems to crush the earth beneath them, raising huge clouds of dust that darken the sky. With such commotion, by the time they approach the hill, they have naturally been spotted.

Through his telescope, Liszt observes the castle’s response: the gates are shut, windows closed, and armored knights have taken positions as archers behind the battlements, aiming at the Black Knights.

This is the stance of a castle preparing for a siege.

Even a nameless castle, with its defensive advantages, is hard to breach quickly without siege equipment.

However, after using his Magic Eye, Liszt clearly sees that the magic power within these archers is weak—they are not Earth Knights at all.

Just a group of squires.

“The Earth Knights aren’t defending, but instead, squires are on duty. Their arrows, lacking infused mana, pose no threat to Earth Knights... It looks like Baron Morray is trying to deceive me, while he himself is quite decisive, already assembling for an ambush through the underground tunnels.”

Liszt is taken aback; he expected the enemy to at least hold their ground for a bit, gauge their strength, feign defense, repel a few attacks, and then launch an ambush.

After all, no one would expect an ambush before even testing the waters.

Unfortunately for them, Liszt is no ordinary person, and he immediately gives the order: “Archers, step forward for a feigned attack!”

Skilled archers immediately step forward, led by Captain Leiden, and begin suppressing fire around the castle. Earth Knights can already infuse their arrows with mana, making them quite powerful, capable of knocking large chunks of stone from the castle walls. But this is just a feint, so the speed, force, and frequency of the shots are low.

On the walls of the nameless castle, the squire archers counter secretly, but their shots are weaker and pose no real threat.

Riding his Black Dragon, Liszt quietly watches this staged battle, enjoying the sight of arrows hitting the castle walls and shattering stones, finding it particularly satisfying.

Hiddleston panted.

It was as if he was stimulated by the battle scene, as he barked twice at Liszt.

Liszt patted Hiddleston's large head: "Take it easy, Hiddleston, we’re not in a hurry to tear down the castle."

On the other side.

Marcus continued to hold the telescope, observing every move in Mane City. Thanks to Parris providing the location at the end of the path, he could easily monitor the activities inside Mane City.

"My lord, I've spotted knights gathering inside Mane City!"

"Keep me updated on any movements in Mane City," Liszt instructed, then turned to the other knight squad leaders, ordering, "Stay in formation, be ready to charge at any moment!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Liszt didn't have to wait long.

A moment later, Marcus shouted, "Sir, almost a hundred knights are charging out of Mane City, heading straight for us!"

A hundred knights—that was nearly all the elite Earth Knights in the nameless castle.

Liszt suddenly raised his knight's lance and shouted: "Full charge, follow me!" Without another word, the Black Knights, already in formation, charged down the hillside with a roar.

He himself was also in the charging knight formation. According to the initial plan, he wasn't supposed to charge with the knights but only command Hiddleston to assist the knight squad's charge and use Hiddleston's magic to obstruct the opponents. However, the atmosphere on the battlefield at that moment affected his emotions.

With blood rushing to his head, he charged with the knights, bringing Hiddleston along.

When the warhorse galloped at a speed of 60 kilometers per hour, his body rose and fell with the horse's gait, his mana flowing like blood, accelerating. The knight's lance tightly held in his hand became an extension of his body, and Liszt unleashed the violent mana of an elite Earth Knight.

The Black Knights charged down the hillside, while at the same time, the knights initiating the ambush had just started their charge.

The ones caught off guard were no longer the Black Knights being ambushed, but the Mane City knights who were now being counter-ambushed. However, the charges had already begun, and no one could stop. Expressions under the visors couldn't be seen clearly. Two high-speed rushing torrents were about to collide.

Countless bursts of mana lit up, blending and intertwining, merging into a single force that enveloped all the knights.

In this whole, Liszt became an arrowhead, with violent fire-attribute mana permeating, as if bathed in flames.

Amidst the flames, he kept his wits about him, carefully judging the distance between the two knight groups about to crash into each other.

When the enemy entered this distance, he bellowed, "Hiddleston, Rock Spikes Barrage! Keep it coming!"

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

Hiddleston continuously spat out magic, and countless rock spikes, as if they had eyes, accurately shot up from directly under each knight. On level ground, an alert Earth Knight might dodge a single spike, but this was a full-on charge.

"Ah!"

"Ah!"

Several knights were thrown from their horses as the spikes skewered them mid-charge. The knights following closely wanted to dodge but couldn't complete the maneuver swiftly. They could only trample over their comrades' bodies and continue charging.

The relentless barrage of rock spikes showed no signs of letting up. Although they could only cause minor damage, they greatly disrupted the knights' charging formation.

Without giving them time to adjust, the Black Knights, led by Liszt, rushed forward recklessly.

Liszt thrust his lance, infused with raging fire energy, striking an Earth Knight who couldn’t dodge in time. Before the Earth Knight could raise his shield, Liszt’s strike pierced his chest.

The steel armor barely slowed the lance, which pierced through in an instant, driving through the Earth Knight’s body and lifting him off the ground, sending him flying.

In one fluid motion, Liszt had secured the first kill of the battle.