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Before, I had never imagined that the **Radiant Temple** would employ a forbidden spell. The main reason was that the **Temple** had always rejected the existence of forbidden spell casters. Although the **Twelve Sages** had always maintained good relations with the **Temple** and were also the heroes who helped humanity dominate the **Mainland**, on the other hand, forbidden spells were a power that the gods frowned upon, and a force that threatened secular theocracy. In many places, forbidden spell casters often had more influence than the **Temple** itself. The **Yellow Dragon Empire**, the **Mercenary Empire** of the desert, and the southern kingdoms dared to resist the **Temple** because they possessed forbidden spell casters. Therefore, for the **Temple**, which carries out the will of the Light God, forbidden spells were a huge obstacle. Yet, the **Temple** could not overtly show hostility towards forbidden spell casters because it still needed this strategic-level power to deter elves and orcs. As a result, a very peculiar situation arose in the human world: of the five great human forbidden spell casters on the **Mainland**, three were in the south, one was in the desert, and one was in the **Yellow Dragon Empire**, while the **Temple**, which had the closest relationship with the **Twelve Sages**, had none.

Influenced by the **Temple’s** consistent stance, I had subconsciously ruled out the possibility of the **Temple** launching a forbidden spell operation. However, upon careful consideration now, the **Temple** retains the most research materials of the **Twelve Sages**, and many mages are fanatics who would risk their lives for the truth. It was not impossible for the **Temple** to use the secrets of forbidden spells as bait to recruit one or two dedicated mages. There is a saying from my previous life: "To hear the truth in the morning and die in the evening," which reflects that many mages' lifelong ambition is to ignite a forbidden spell with their lives. Although the vast majority of them, even under the direct guidance of the **Twelve Sages**, would not be able to master forbidden spells, with the **Temple’s** vast reach across the **Mainland**, nothing is absolutely impossible.

With this speculation, I immediately began my investigation. After the death of Icewind, the magic it shared with me disappeared. As a magic idiot, I had no way to investigate the background of a potential forbidden spell caster. The artificial human **Li Jia**, who possessed the knowledge of the **Twelve Sages**, was still wandering in the human world and could not help me either. However, I had a reliable ally, a millennium-old dragon who was proficient in magic. Through our communication, I learned that although **Winter Night** had just come of age among dragons, unlike ordinary dragons, he had been diligently enhancing his strength and learning magic since he was aware of his own origins. When the **Twelve Sages** rose to power, he was still a young dragon and could not leave the Arctic tundra. But by the time of the glorious **"Battle of Twilight"** four hundred years ago, he had grown to the point where he could freely soar. During the outbreak of **"Ragnarok"**, he had watched the entire event from the peak of the **Sun Tribe** mountains from afar, so he was not completely ignorant of forbidden spells.

After repeated investigations by **Winter Night**, the white dragon, he finally confirmed two things with great certainty: first, the target had enough magical power to cast a forbidden spell; second, the target possessed a powerful epic-level magical artifact.

That was enough. I didn’t need to investigate further. The only thing left to do was to inform the **Orc Alliance** about this matter. Defecting to the human camp to report the information would be the worst option. The **Temple** would definitely change its plan. The existence of a forbidden spell that had not yet been unleashed would be a huge variable in the war. The best approach was to let the forbidden spell destroy **Hurricane Fortress** as planned, while the orcs could avoid or suffer minimal damage. As for how to achieve this goal, I had already drafted a plan after quietly consulting **Winter Night** about some details of the forbidden spell.

The next morning, I went to the command headquarters of the **Temple’s** army. At this time, **Hein**, the leader of the **Sacred Sword Knights**, had already left **Hurricane Fortress** with his troops. The acting commander was **Apu**, a seasoned knight. Recently, the situation with the barbarians had become increasingly tense. The total number of barbarians who managed to break through the orc blockade and enter **Hurricane Fortress** was only 200,000. This meant that at least 100,000 barbarians were still within the orc-occupied areas, facing either capture or annihilation.

In the past few days, the two remaining **Sword Empresses** of the barbarians, **Zha** and her father, had each led their troops to engage the orc army, attempting to rescue the besieged barbarian tribes and escort them back to **Hurricane Fortress**. However, the orc army of hundreds of thousands was not for show. As the war progressed, the encirclement of **Hurricane Fortress** gradually tightened. In recent attempts, the barbarian army had been unable to break through the orc blockade to rescue their compatriots.

In order to quickly accommodate their clansmen before the final battle and send them back to the rear tundra to avoid the war, the barbarian military began requesting assistance from the **Temple**, and the **Temple** had dispatched elite forces centered around the **Sacred Sword Knights** to assist. However, this assistance had not produced significant results. **Zha**, the **Sword Empress**, had her eyes set on the **Holy Grail Knight**, especially me, a **Dragon Knight** who had the power to change the course of the battle. However, her repeated requests were rejected by **Apu** Knight.

At that moment in the command headquarters, **Zha** was arguing with **Apu** Knight.

"**Apu** Knight, when will you send out the **Dragon Knight**? Must we wait until our people are all dead?" **Zha’s** voice came from inside the headquarters, and I heard it from afar.

"**Zha**, please understand my predicament. The orders of the **Temple** are the guiding principles that the **Holy Grail Knight** must follow. The **Holy Grail Knight** was not on the list of reinforcements and was only dispatched for another reason. To ask us to abandon our post would be an unreasonable demand," **Apu** Knight’s troubled voice followed.

"Is it the spirit of a knight to stand by and do nothing?" **Zha’s** angry shout, accompanied by the constant banging of her fist on the table, echoed.

I knew the opportunity had come, so I quickly walked into the hall and said to **Apu** Knight, "**Apu** Knight, I believe helping the barbarians is also a means to protect our objective. Although our mission is to prevent a surprise attack by orc experts, if there is no one to divert the orcs' attention on the battlefield, they might directly assault **Hurricane Fortress** with a large force, putting us in a passive position. It would be better if I accompany the **Valkyrie clan’s** army on a few missions. It won’t take much time and will prevent the orcs from figuring out our strength distribution, making this place safer. Moreover, the friendship between the **Temple** and the **Valkyrie clan** is very important."

Amid **Zha’s** surprised and eager gaze, **Apu** Knight finally nodded in agreement to my proposal to launch an attack.