The sound of clashing metal rang out as they engaged once more!
Hilda only hoped she could buy a little more time so that Bishop Lola and Minister Augus, who had already slipped out of the Temple, could reach the North Gate and head for Dragon City as quickly as possible.
Once they reached Dragon City, whether it was Lancelot or Ligeia, either of them would be enough to protect them.
Behind her, only eighteen of the knightesses loyal to the Temple remained.
Minister Augus had said it before leaving.
In the current Brilliant City, there were fewer than five hundred knights who could be trusted.
The rest of the knights had to hold the four gates to prevent other armies from entering from the outside.
As for her, she only had fifty knightesses plus herself.
In the entire Kingdom of the Moon, there were no more than five thousand knights from commoner backgrounds.
Yuna had taken two thousand with her when she left.
Another portion had joined the Dragon Knight Corps.
Therefore, the current Brilliant City was almost entirely guarded by knights from noble families.
Under such circumstances, unless it could be absolutely determined that the other party was loyal to Her Highness, they could not be used.
Even Nar Alvin had been reassigned because he was not trusted.
Hilda knew very well that today would likely be the day she died.
But she believed even more that Her Highness would definitely return, leading the Kingdom of the Moon toward that long-dreamed-of brilliance!
She suddenly raised her greatsword, blocking the longsword swinging down at her.
At the same time, using the opponent's strength, she lunged backward!
She would not stay locked in combat with any single person; they were simply too numerous.
Once she was entangled, she would be swarmed from all sides.
Swoosh!
The sound of rushing wind approached from afar. Relying on her combat experience, Hilda could tell exactly what it was.
An arrow!
The greatsword in her left hand swung backward. The tactile feedback through the hilt told her that she had not completely parried it.
Just as she suspected, although the greatsword had touched the arrow and altered its trajectory to some extent, it did not miss her entirely.
A wound was instantly sliced into her waist.
This arrow actually carried the wind attribute!?
Tear!
The wound at her waist made Hilda's brow furrow, but she had no time to check the injury as the greatsword in her right hand slashed forward horizontally!
Across from her, a powerful opponent appeared.
From the Lion-Tiger tribe, a tiger-man!!
He held a massive blade in his hands.
The moment their weapons collided, Hilda felt the immense force traveling through her sword.
While it was not as great as the Rhinoceros-man from before, the impact was still significant, even making her grip feel numb!
However... he was still too green!
To think he could take her life with only this much was a grand joke!
Technique — Holy Power!!
Light elements surged into her right arm in an instant. Where her strength swelled, the veins in her muscles bulged and throbbed.
"Ha!"
With a sharp shout, her surging strength allowed the greatsword in Hilda's hand to knock the opponent's massive blade away like a horizontal sweep across a thousand soldiers.
Simultaneously, she pulled the greatsword in her left hand back from behind her and swung it down from above!
The tiger-man stared up blankly, looking at the falling greatsword in disbelief.
Hilda truly hoped this strike would eliminate one enemy, but unfortunately, she was not facing one person.
She was facing a mob!
Swoosh!
Once again, the sound of rushing wind echoed, but this was not the sound of an arrow.
As her left greatsword was still swinging down, Hilda could only barely raise her right hand to block.
At the same time, she turned her gaze in that direction.
Fire element magic!!
Dammit!
There was no time to dodge. Just as the thought crossed her mind, the flash of fire was already before her.
Boom!!
The exploding flames incinerated everything in an instant as thick smoke rose into the air. The girl in bright silver armor was sent flying like she had been hit by a speeding truck, tumbling across the ground.
Feeling the scorching heat on her cheek, the intense pain almost made Hilda scream out loud.
But she forcibly endured the agony. The moment she hit the ground, she twisted her waist and planted her feet, forcibly stopping her momentum.
The pain made her body momentarily stiff, and her gaze instinctively fell upon her right arm.
The bright silver arm guard was now a faint red where it had been hit.
Despite its powerful defensive capabilities, the power of the fire magic still scorched her right arm through the armor.
Hilda could even smell the scent of scorched meat wafting from inside her arm guard.
Even the bangs on the right side of her face had been singed and were now stuck to her skin.
At this moment, the pain made it impossible for her to move.
However, the enemy would show no mercy.
In such a situation, kicking someone while they were down was the true reality of combat!
"Moo!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
The ground suddenly trembled, and the voice of the Rhinoceros-man from before came from ahead.
The moment Hilda raised her head, her vision was occupied by a one-eyed rhinoceros head.
Boom!!
Before she could even stand up, a massive force slammed into her entire body.
With no way to resist, Hilda only remembered to grip her greatswords tightly as her chest was flattened by the massive impact. She could even hear the crisp sound of bones breaking inside her body.
"Moo!!!"
Everything around her blurred past. Accompanied by a dizzying spin, she felt her body skip and bounce as it rolled across the ground.
Skid, bounce, skid, bounce.
After rolling several times, she forced herself to endure the dizziness and slammed her greatsword into the ground.
Clang!
Her body jerked to a halt. A sweet taste filled her throat, and before her feet could even stabilize, a mouthful of blood surged up.
"Pfft! Cough, cough..."
She forced her eyes open, knowing that she could not afford even a moment of laxity.
Otherwise, the following attacks would be relentless.
Waves of sharp pain radiated from inside her body. She did not know the extent of her internal injuries.
But she still did not intend to lie down.
It wasn't enough. Not enough time had passed!
She struggled to stand up, not even having the time to wipe the blood from the corner of her mouth.
As she twitched her eyelid, she could feel the pain of the skin near her right eye being forcibly pulled.
It seemed the side of her face had been charred.
"I say, just stay down. You've done enough by lasting this long under the siege of so many experts of the same level."
The Rhinoceros-man stood not far from Hilda.
Even though he knew she was an enemy, he could not help but feel a sliver of respect in his heart.
At this moment, the right side of the knightess's face was completely charred.
Even her right ear was fragmented and incomplete.
Her once beautiful long hair had been burned into a scorched mass, sticking tightly to her scalp.
The pink marks of burnt flesh were clearly visible beneath the blackened clumps of hair.
The armor on her chest and abdomen was caved in, the depth of the indentation clearly showing that it had sunk deep into her chest.
The bright silver armor on her right arm had long since turned pitch black, and the scent of roasted meat lingered in the air.
Most of the cape on her back had been shredded, and a steady stream of blood seeped from the gaps in her leg guards.
In terms of quality, any one of the twenty-odd level 50 experts on their side would not be her match in a fair fight.
Even if three of them attacked at once, as long as she was willing to trade wounds, she could kill them on the spot.
But now, she was facing twenty people attacking simultaneously.
Even with six arms, she could not block the endless stream of attacks coming from every direction.
Even though his own pride, his rhinoceros horn, had been severed and one of his eyes had been blinded, the Rhinoceros-man, as a member of the beastmen, still held respect for the strong.
"Just fall. At least this way, you might survive."
The Rhinoceros-man's voice was very muffled, carrying a heavy nasal tone as he looked at the knightess.
A trace of pity surfaced in his gaze.
It was truly a shame for such a powerhouse to die in a mob attack.
"Cough, cough, pfft!"
Hilda struggled to stand straight. At this point, she basically understood that she had no chance left.
However, as a Guardian Knight, her duty was to protect!
The Temple, Her Highness—all of these were things she needed to protect.
She no longer had the strength to say much. Her ribs had likely punctured her lungs, and with every breath, she could feel blood foam surging from her throat.
She couldn't even speak properly anymore.
But if speaking could buy a little more time, she would not hesitate.
She raised her head. Though she was in such a pathetic state, a deep sense of pride still remained in her eyes.
"Temple... knights... never retreat."
Hilda's gaze swept across the people before her.
"You rebels... will surely die in the judgment."
The Rhinoceros-man's brow furrowed, and he let out a long sigh.
"It seems I've wasted my breath."
The Rhinoceros-man's strength was among the highest in this group, making him something of a minor leader.
"Do it!"
Swoosh!
A figure suddenly charged out. It was the tiger-man whose weapon had been knocked away earlier.
However, he had already retrieved his massive blade and was now before the knightess.
"Why waste words on a stubborn fool? This should have been done long ago!!"
The massive blade was raised high, while Hilda no longer had the strength to even lift her greatsword.
The Rhinoceros-man's charge had unexpectedly caused massive damage.
Her internal injuries made it so that even if she wanted to resist, she could no longer do so.
She couldn't even raise her arm.
Yet she still felt no fear. Facing the cold glint of the massive blade reflected in her pupils, the girl's gaze held only the conviction of someone prepared to die.
But just as Hilda was ready for death, the sound of rushing wind suddenly came from the distance.
Swoosh!!
The tiger-man didn't even have time to react before a massive conical lance instantly skewered his body from the side.
The immense force tore through half of the tiger-man's limbs, sending the other half of his body flying instantly.
No one had time to react.
When their gazes followed the marks on the ground to the tiger-man, they found that his body had been pinned firmly to a wall by the conical lance.
The massive impact had killed him instantly.
For a moment, the entire square fell into a dead silence.
Although this tiger-man's strength was not considered top-tier among these experts, even a lower-tier one was still a powerhouse above level 50!
To be killed in a single strike!?
Everyone's gaze instinctively turned toward the direction from which the lance had flown.
In the distance, at the edge of their vision.
On East Main Street.
Accompanied by the thunderous sound of hooves and a slight trembling of the ground, the figure of a youth slowly came into view.
"Guardian Knight, Nar Alvin is here! Who dares harm my Temple knights before the Temple!"
The slightly raspy voice of the youth traveled from afar.
Everyone present could not help but be stunned.
Boom!
The sound of cavalry hooves vibrated across the earth.
The Rhinoceros-man instinctively turned his gaze toward Elmer Cromwell behind him.
The other experts also instinctively looked over.
Everyone was well aware of the nature of this rebellion.
They knew who had started it and who was responsible.
Nar Alvin was the biological son of Lord Alvin.
How was this supposed to be handled?
Should they fight or not?
If they killed him, what would happen if the Alvin family settled the score later?
If they didn't kill him, how were they supposed to handle the current situation?
Elmer was also staring at the young knight in the distance, dumbfounded.
He never expected that the son of Lord Alvin, the man who had spearheaded the rebellion, would actually side with the Temple.
But now, he had no room to retreat.
Since ancient times, rebellion carried the highest cost and the greatest rewards.
If they retreated now, that woman would never forgive them again.
Elmer knew very well that if this failed, regardless of anything else, he would certainly be dead.
At that thought, and then thinking of that woman, Elmer gritted his teeth and made his decision.
"Ignore him! Kill Hilda first!!"
The Rhinoceros-man's remaining eye instantly turned sharp as he turned back to look at the girl who could barely stand straight.
"Forgive me! Do it!!"
Among the nearby experts, the quickest to react was the archer who had already notched an arrow.
Following the Rhinoceros-man's shout, the bowstring in his hand instantly let out a hum.
Swoosh!
The arrow carrying the wind attribute tore through the air, speeding toward its target!
"You dare!!!"
Seeing that the other party actually dared to ignore him and strike at Hilda directly, Nar felt a surge of rage ignite in his heart.
He suddenly drew the longsword from his waist and pointed it toward the distant Hilda.
"Guardian!!"
The skill was released instantly. Right before Hilda, a thick light barrier suddenly manifested.
In the next second, the arrow and the light barrier collided violently, the impact between the elements triggering a massive shockwave.
The resulting blast sent Hilda tumbling to the ground.
Seeing this, Nar's killing intent flared as he raised his longsword high:
"War Skill — Spiral Charge!!"
"Ha!"
A spiral of light elements continuously appeared around all the knights. With Nar as the tip of the spear, a massive spiral lance faintly manifested.
The speed of the entire troop surged several times over.
Boom!
In the blink of an eye, the massive spiral lance charged past Hilda.
The knight's lances blocked everyone's path, shielding the Temple entrance and the eight remaining knightesses behind them.
The remaining distance of over two hundred meters was covered in less than a second.
The knight regiment came to a halt, the wild winds kicking up dust from the ground.
Everything fell silent.
It was now almost impossible to take Hilda's life.
Because the person standing in their way was the Guardian Knight with the greatest talent in the history of the Kingdom of the Moon.
A mere fifteen-year-old youth.
Nar Alvin!
Rate on N.U.
