Golden Mage - Chapter 83

Chapter 3 Episode 23

At that moment, Duke Diard was taken aback by an unexpected event. To be sure, he asked Calio, the Vice-Marshal.

“Is it true, Vice-Marshal?”

Calio nodded his head.

“Yes, Your Grace. All the rescued Holy Knights have suffered severe injuries. They will need at least a month to recover. Moreover, due to some unknown phenomenon, their divine powers are sealed. If we attempt to treat them with divine power, the recovery period will likely exceed a month.”

“Hmm!”

Duke Diard groaned.

He had thought he could easily get the captured Holy Knights to surrender. But as it turned out, they were severely injured before being handed over.

External injuries wouldn’t be a problem; divine powers showed exceptional healing abilities and could fully recover everything in a matter of days. But internal injuries were different. Wounds within the body couldn’t be healed instantly with divine power. Opening someone up and treating them was possible, but it wasn’t without risk. And if they couldn’t even properly use their divine powers due to some unknown phenomenon, it was undoubtedly a very serious matter.

“Unbelievable!”

Duke Diard ground his teeth in frustration. All of this was undoubtedly El’s doing.

Since the Holy Knights were injured, they needed to be treated.

Given that they had lost half of their forces, it would be wise to seek support from the Holy Kingdom immediately. Duke Diard said to Count Corone.

“Send a message to the Holy Kingdom immediately. Inform them of everything we’ve experienced.”

Count Corone nodded heavily.

“I understand.”

The report from Count Corone left the Pope speechless. He was shocked because the content of the report was too unbelievable to be believed. Half of the Silver Cross Knights, the Holy Kingdom’s strongest order, had suffered injuries. Moreover, they were significant injuries that would require at least a month of recovery.

And that wasn’t the only shocking news. It was reported that Duke Diard, who possessed the three sacred relics filled with the blessings of the great god, was unable to overwhelm the Golems and mages in the Tower of Maha.

To the Pope, this news was overwhelmingly shocking.

A single Tower resisting the combined power of a Grand Master, ten Masters, and a hundred Experts? It surpassed the level that could be resolved by simply sending an expeditionary force.

Although pressure had come from the Fifth Empire, the Pope was unaware of it. How could they oppose those who sought to venerate the chosen Saint by the Goddess? It was not more important than following the Goddess’s will.

The failure of Duke Diard was a clear sign, and the Pope finally made up his mind. He addressed the Vice-Marshals.

“The Gold Tower in Tolyan Empire, Troll Valley. Deploy 200,000 Crusaders there.”

“Yes, Your Holiness?”

The Pope’s decision surprised all the Vice-Marshals.

Crusaders!

For decades, the Holy Kingdom had never deployed its Crusaders. The wars the Crusaders fought were called Holy Wars, where hundreds of thousands of lives were lost, and the enemies were completely annihilated. They were the army of God, who did not retreat until all their enemies or themselves were dead. A force that would never retreat.

“The Holy Kingdom will obey Your Holiness’s command!”

With that, the matter was settled. With their strong faith, it was easy for them to unite and come to a unanimous decision in such matters. And especially when it involved following the Goddess’s will.

“Those who disobey the Goddess’s command will be purged by their own blood.”

Chapter 8 – Warning to the Holy Kingdom

El was startled by the news that came from the Holy Kingdom.

“Deploying the Crusaders?”

He had thought that the information he obtained, about exerting pressure on the Holy Kingdom with the excuse of Troll blood, was enough. But this information was like a bolt from the blue. It was equivalent to a heavenly punishment.

No matter how powerful the Holy Kingdom was, wasn’t it difficult to ignore the opinions of the Five Empires? But wait… Now that he thought about it, El realized that there was one thing he had overlooked.

El chuckled at his own oversight.

“Haha, I underestimated their devotion, indeed.”

For the faithful, devotion was everything. El had underestimated their devotion.

The news of 200,000 Crusaders preparing to come here made El clench his fist. This was an unexpected turn of events. Moreover, the sheer number of Crusaders was daunting. They were easily twice as strong as any elite force of any kingdom. These fanatics wouldn’t even fear death; they were willing to embrace it. Fighting against such an army was an obvious mismatch for El, no matter how skilled he was.

Currently, El’s forces consisted of himself, a Class 7 Master, the Grand Master-level Knight, Golden Knight, three Master-level Golems, and twelve Sword Expert Knights.

In contrast, the Holy Kingdom had a Grand Master, over 50 Masters, and tens of thousands of Expert-level Holy Knights, along with hundreds of thousands of Crusaders.

He was at a disadvantage no matter how you looked at it.

Therefore, El pondered deeply and made up his mind. He left his office and headed to where Serena was asleep.

Serena, who looked so pale that she seemed transparent, was breathing calmly as if in a deep slumber. Her occasional frowns added to her captivating appearance, and a faint divine power circulated around her disheveled silver hair.

On each of Serena’s arms, there were multiple bracelets, about ten each. They were artifacts that El developed to seal her divine power. When all the mana within her tried to dissipate, El forcibly sealed Serena’s divine power within her body. As a result, Serena could preserve the mana that existed deep within her body. If the entire body was filled with divine power, she would be baptized by the gods and become a Saint. To prevent Serena from becoming a Saint, El had forcibly sealed her divine power. El watched sleeping Serena in silence. Then he leaned forward and kissed her cold lips gently.

“Serena, love is an act of taking without reservation. So I’ll take you in order to love you. The happiness of all beings who will find peace through your existence… I’ll take it for myself and to protect you from the continent.”

With a resolute gleam in his eyes, El made up his mind. Then he left Serena sleeping and went to find Sylvie and Kaina. They met him with anxious expressions.

“Don’t worry too much,” El comforted them. “I will definitely protect Serena from the Holy Kingdom.”

Sylvie opened her mouth, looking concerned.

“But…”

El shook his head.

“Don’t worry. Even the so-called Silver Cross Knights, the Holy Kingdom’s greatest order, couldn’t break through the barrier. This place is safe.”

He then turned his attention to Kaina. Kaina’s ruby-like eyes gazed at him intensely, and El spoke to her in a gentle and warm tone.

“Don’t worry, Kaina. The things you’re concerned about won’t happen. Just trust me.”

El then moved closer to Kaina and hugged her.

“Master?”

Taken aback by the sudden embrace, Kaina looked bewildered, but El chuckled and released the hug.

“Once everything with Serena is over… the three of us will celebrate together.”