Chapter 74: Kingdom of Caerleon (11)

The soldiers and mages bombarded us with attacks. Those soldiers swung their blades, but those swords bent as soon as they came into contact with the shield. And those mages fired their spells, but none of them went through. The ice, fire, and rocks coating the walls were enough to stop their attacks, protecting us from doing nothing at all. It was as if she made this barrier with unique elements…. which was actually the truth.

As soon as the cloud disappeared, the king and his fellow pawns widened their eyes in disbelief. It was their first time seeing such an overpowered spell that negated almost every attack.

However, that shield came with a price, and it all showed on Merleen's face. Since she was the mage who controlled the spell, that girl also poured her arcane onto the barrier. I did not know the amount she used, but I knew Merleen gave a lot of her arcane.

"Do you want me to pour my arcane too?" I asked.

But Merleen shook her head and replied, "No. Besides, you don't have any mana to help me...."

Although Merleen's words hit the nail, those words felt like an attack directed towards my brain. It was my first time regretting my class. I was a knight and not a mage. And knights did not have any arcane to spare, considering that we use swords instead of staves.

It would be odd if a soldier cast spells like a mage. I would even describe them as a wizard and not someone who would want to join our chivalry.

Merleen slowly lost her strength as she fell to the ground. Those blizzards she created outside finally worn out, leaving us with only a few layers left before those attacks could reach us.

"It's going to be alright, Merleen... I need your support. When I dash towards that entrance, I want your magic protecting me, okay?"

Merleen nodded at my suggestion and readied her magic circles once more. She had a determined look on her face while adding her light element around the rock. Instead of using the elements I introduced to her, Merleen uses her light as a shield. She coated the rock and formed a barrier that would block anything but darkness.

The light emerged within seconds and protected us. The dazzling yellow colour gave us hope, which made my heart pound twice as fast as before.

My plan had a simple layout. Merleen and I had to work together without the help of Fenrir and Merchant. Those two were just dead weight in our plan that we also needed to protect and escape from this citadel.

I would play the vanguard and tank all those spells in our direction. Since I gained an immediate boost from Clarent, I had to use my power and bring the soldiers down without killing them.

My sword granted me the power to cut down a barrage of arrows and even slashes from other knights. But I did not know when this power would leave my presence, which became a double-edge sword for this scheme.

I told Merleen to support my back and cast defensive magic around me. She would also use her light magic to pierce through any attacks from those mages who wanted to attack my figure.

We only had one rule for this fight.

"Kill no one but knights and mages who would hurt civilians."

That sentence was my golden rule. If I had to resort to killing these people, I would do it for the sake of protecting the weak… But if there was a way to defend them taking no lives, that would be better.

"Are you sure about this, Arthur?" Merleen asked. "Will you be alright on your own out there?"

"I don't have a choice…. If I stay inside here, you're the one who's going to fall. And if you fall, I'll be the only one to defend all of you. Working together is better than working alone," I answered, while gripping my sword tighter in my hands.

Merleen twirled her fingers and opened up an entrance for me to walk outside. After a few seconds, I met the soldier's gaze, together with the mages waiting for me to attack.

I launched myself forward and swung my sword at everyone who deemed me as an enemy. Those knights who blocked my way did not stand a chance.

Every time those soldiers struck me with their swords, Clarent blocked them. My enhanced attack and defence protected me from danger. But the worst finally came to me.

The mages discharged their blitz and aimed at Merleen and me. Merleen used her light magic and coated the two of us with the golden luminance. After taking a hit from those spells, the yellow light faded away, leaving Merleen more exhausted.

She used up most of her arcane to shield everyone. And if Merleen planned on pushing herself for more, she would end up unconscious with the rest of them! If I had to guess, Merleen only had one chance to protect me and the rock. But I did not want that to happen.

"Merleen, protect yourself! Just leave me be if those mages direct their attacks at me!" I said, while turning my face in her direction.

"But, Arthur!" Merleen retorted.

After a few seconds, arrows came raining down towards us. Those rocks that Merleen prepared shielded everyone except for me. Since I was outside that barrier, those arrows would definitely hit me.

I launched myself forward and spun my blade in every direction. Thanks to Clarent, one swing of my sword destroyed all the arrows. Those darts turned into millions of shredded woods that hit the knights from below. Those twigs entered their uniforms, forcing them to take those plates off to save themselves from minor cuts.

Those soldiers revealed their faces to me while brushing off all the wooden contents that entered their skin. Their actions bought us enough time to exit the place.

However, the king finally made his move and stopped us using his magic.

The kings in this game were the strongest characters that players wanted to avoid. But they refused to fight anyone except a strong opponent in a duel. Some players who tried facing them in a duel…. ultimately lost those fights. I never clashed against them and gauged their powers, considering how busy I was before. But if there was one thing that I remembered, every king had stupidly powerful abilities.

And right now, Merleen and I were up against one! The King of Caerleon stood behind our back as he launched his magic spell in our direction.

"Merleen, whatever you do, don't cast any defensive spells!" I ordered, and flew towards her behind.

We were already near the exit, but this happened. The only thing that we had to do now was to flee from this place without clashing swords with this king. But since the occurrence had already escalated, we had no choice but to ward off the crown.

The magic that the king cast was a dark spell disguised as an element of terra. The king gave it away since the stone's shadows bulged from the ground. Only a few knew how, so the king had the confidence to use it in front of a crowd. If these people knew he could wield shadow arts, they would have burned him to a stake. He must have also thought that I was a worthless adventurer who did not do my homework.

But little did the king know that I already understood the form of his magic. And the only way to counter the arcane was a steel heart… That was the problem of this game. Shadow arts were the most overpowered thing that the game developers created.

When used in the wrong hands, dark magic could become a powerful weapon in this world.

Mages were the only ones who could use magic. Roughly only 2% of the player's population (mages) unlocked the shadow arts. Those players got this as a raffle event from the game. Like any other gacha, the chances were slimmer than a model.

I duelled a player before who used dark magic. It was not a pretty memory for me to remember. That girl played with the world's shadow, restraining me with a darkened force that I could not witness.

But I eventually trampled my opponent with my extraordinary strength. Since knights had more health points than others, I tanked almost all the mage's spells before I could die. Hence, my victory over the duel.

However, that event only happened when I used my main account. Now that the game forcefully placed me inside this smurf account, I had no other choice but to rely on luck.

"You're using dark magic," I exclaimed, as I charged forward with my Clarent.

The king widened his eyes upon hearing my statement. He lost his focus and missed his attack, inviting me to come one step closer to his fore. Now that I had the upper hand, I finally slashed him using my sword while avoiding his vital organs.