Blood Emperor Throne

Page 29

Martell's pupils constricted, his heart pounded, and he swung his sword to parry! The sharp, cold, blood-stained blade flashed across the night!

"clang--!"

A crisp, ear-piercing metallic clang echoed through the night, and tiny, dazzling pale orange sparks exploded before Martell's eyes, the shockwaves blowing open the curtains of the cleaved tent!

Martell, holding his trembling longsword, was horrified as he was slashed back more than ten steps, each step his boots took sinking deep into the mud and leaving deep footprints!

From behind the ripped curtain, Martell's narrowed, furious eyes saw the heads of several Dornish knights piled up inside the tent, their severed heads, and the knight squire holding a sword before him!

The panic and horror in the eyes of the count's guard who came to deliver the message had vanished, replaced by a deep, indifferent indifference as cold and icy as death.

"Who are you?!" Martell roared, but Asmodie gave him no chance to catch his breath. Almost as Martell retreated, Asmodie drew his longsword and charged forward!

Before Martell could regain his footing, his longsword slashed down with overwhelming force! The power of this strike was enough to shatter a raging horned beast from head to toe! Martell was forced to raise his sword to parry.

"clang--!"

Another burst of fine, blinding sparks exploded before Martell's eyes. He groaned, feeling as if his sword-wielding hand was being struck by the claws of a giant dragon! It almost shattered!

But just as he was about to retreat again with his sword drawn, Asmodian's strong figure pressed forward once more, and his iron fist, wrapped with black chains, swung in a half-circle and slammed hard into his plate-armored chest!

"Pfft-!"

Martell felt as if a raging bull had rammed into his chest! His tall, muscular frame, clad in plate armor and weighing over 300 pounds, was sent flying by this iron fist, crashing into the stone wall behind him! The impact cracked the stone wall!

But Asmodée didn't give him a chance to stand up and catch his breath. He took another step forward and slammed his blood-stained iron chain fist down toward Martell's head, which was stuck in the wall!

"Crack——!"

A dull, eerie cracking sound, accompanied by the sound of cracks opening in the stone wall, came from his fist.

Martell's sword-wielding hand fell limply to his side, and he remained silent.

Chapter 41 Lancers, Piercing the Enemy's Formation!

The commotion lasted only a very short time; less than a minute passed between when Martell noticed something was wrong and when Asmodie smashed his skull.

Asmodai walked out of the camp with his blood-stained longsword, looking completely at ease. Behind him, thirteen Dornish knights, including Martell, lay helplessly in pools of blood, their bodies hacked to pieces, their heads torn off by bare hands, and their chests dented by heavy hammer blows.

The Dornish army stationed there was completely unaware that their command center had been easily beheaded by Asmodie.

Completely unaware that from the shadows of the woods surrounding them, a dense and frenzied sound of animal hooves was converging on the town of Catorus.

"Hmm? What's the sound?"

On the outskirts of the thicket, two sentries, riding swift horses and dressed as scouts in light chainmail, frowned slightly at the frantic hoofbeats echoing through the forest, their hands resting on the warning horns behind them.

However, the dense and frantic cries of wild beasts soon changed direction and went further and further away, causing the two sentries to shrug and relax their vigilance.

“Annoying beastmen.” One of them yawned and muttered angrily, “I should be enjoying fine wine and dancers from the Western Regions in the tavern right now. If it weren’t for these Castarians and beastmen, I wouldn’t be standing guard for the beastmen in the middle of the night.”

"You should be content. I heard that the lord's castle was captured by the beastmen," another person shrugged, seemingly unconcerned.

"If you hadn't come with the army, you'd probably be lying in your own blood by now, watching those savage, filthy beastmen toy with and ravage your favorite dancers. Isn't this just perfect?"

As he spoke, he let out a lewd laugh: "I heard that Castella has gathered about seventy female knights this time. Maybe we can get a few female knights to try out on this expedition?"

"I'm so annoyed by these sluts. Every day they wear those high-heeled silver boots, with that haughty, aloof face, swaying their big boobs in front of me. I really need to..."

"You're overthinking it. These female knights are either the female knights' lackeys of the Dornish knights, or they've been taken away by nobles. We lowly people will probably be..."

The man waved his hand casually, but the next second, he suddenly stopped. His trembling and terrified gaze swept with extreme fear behind the other person, and his throat seemed to be choked by fear, only able to utter gurgling sounds of extreme panic.

"What's wrong?" the other person asked, frowning in confusion.

“Run…” The man’s pupils constricted and trembled, his bloodless lips moved, and he almost shuddered as he squeezed out the hysterical word, which was filled with extreme fear, from his dry throat.

"Run!!!"

Having said this, the scout frantically pulled on the reins of his horse, but the next second, two blood-red, terrifying jaws of hounds shot out from behind the bushes like meat grinders suddenly appearing! They tore him and his horse apart right before the other man's eyes, like fresh chunks of meat in a meat grinder! They were dragged into the bushes together!

"Wh-what the hell?!" The other man was stunned by the terrifying scene that suddenly appeared in front of him. He quickly turned his head to look behind him, but what he saw was a bloody mouth that suddenly peeked down from above!

"Crack——!"

With a crisp, chilling sound of bones cracking, the scout's upper body was severed from his body by the bloodthirsty maw of the hound! His skull and bones were chewed up along with it!

Before the scout could even utter a panicked scream, all that remained was his lower body, which had lost its balance and fallen from its horse. His steaming pink entrails spilled out like a cauldron of blood and flesh overturned.

Before the half-corpse could collapse to the ground, several bloody, fanged mouths shot out, tearing apart the fleeing horse and the remaining pieces of flesh of the scout, dragging them into the bushes and disappearing, leaving only a blinding crimson.

The blood feast of the two scouts, like the clown opening act in a theatrical troupe, slowly drew back the true bloody curtain of Catorus.

The dense and heavy sound of animal hooves suddenly rang out in the forest, and the rough breathing of wild beasts mixed with bloodthirsty and ferocious roars echoed through the forest for a long time.

Nearly three hundred horned beasts, led by more than one hundred bloodthirsty and ferocious horned beasts, wielding crude machetes and iron-tipped spears, transformed into a dark horde of beasts, roaring as they charged toward the unsuspecting Dornish army in the town center!

"It's...it's the Beastmen!! Enemy attack! Enemy attack!!"

A dozen soldiers stationed on the edge of town, who were roasting their midnight snack and food by a campfire, only belatedly realized that the beast tide had surged out of the woods. They hurriedly picked up the spears and swords hanging from the campfire.

The soldiers on the outskirts, who were completely unprepared, didn't even have time to panic and question why the scouts in the forest hadn't sounded the alarm. Amidst the roars of their officers, they hurriedly formed a chaotic gun formation with spears and swords, attempting to defend against the beast tide.

But the Dorn soldiers, who had just formed a chaotic spear formation, immediately heard a series of dense and crisp bowstring twangs coming from the woods, which terrified them!

"Crack——!"

The dense, crisp sound of light hooves, mixed with a rain of arrows flashing with a cold, eerie light and carrying a sharp whooshing sound, streaked out from every corner of the forest shadows like silver meteors streaking across the hazy night sky in the rain! In the terrified, trembling eyes of these Dornish soldiers, these beautiful silver streaks, accompanied by rapid and sharp whistling sounds, pierced through their bodies and heads!

The outermost thirty-odd Dornish soldiers, armed with spears and swords, were pierced and pinned to death by this sudden and rapid rain of arrows.

Nearly a hundred centaur archers, armed with finely crafted cedar shortbows and crossbows, emerged swiftly and lightly from the shadows of the forest. The crisp twang of their bowstrings echoed as they rained down deadly arrows upon the hastily assembled Dornish soldiers.

"Ughhhh!! My leg! My leg!"

"Crossbows! Shields! Quickly! Shields!"

"Why do these beastmen have crossbows! And shortbows too!"

"Beastman... Beastman is charging! Raise your guns! Raise them now—Ughhhhhh!!"

The Dornish army, caught off guard by a sudden night attack and an unexpected barrage of arrows, was thrown into chaos and its morale was severely damaged.

Before they could regain their footing amidst the barrage of arrows, the bloodthirsty beast horde, with its savage and brutal ferocity, shoved its way into the weak lines hastily assembled by the Dornish army like a herd of enraged bulls!

The Dornish army, which was in a comfortable state just a moment ago, watched as their comrades were torn apart and shredded into pieces of rotten flesh by the savage teeth and rusty cleavers of the Beastmen. Their already low morale plummeted almost precipitously!

The hastily assembled spear formation of the Dornish army couldn't even slow down the advance of the beast horde. Under the charge of nearly a hundred Angry Horned Beasts clad in chainmail and wielding blood-stained fanged double axes, they were almost instantly hacked and shattered by the savage and ferocious beast horde!

"Roar--!!"

The savage and imposing horned beasts wielded their fanged double axes, like meat grinders at full power, carving their way into the already crumbling lines of the Dornish army with the aid of their powerful hooves! Blood splattered everywhere!

The Angry Horned Beast's fanged axe, carrying a pungent, bloody stench, cleaved several Dornish soldiers who hadn't yet donned their armor into chunks of raw flesh with each swing! Pink, writhing entrails splattered everywhere, blood gushing forth, further shattering the Dornish army's lines!

In the past, well-trained and armored human armies, even elite units among beastmen like the Angry Horned Beasts, would not dare to charge recklessly. If they were to run headlong into a formation of spears, even a Minotaur could be turned into a pincushion by the dense steel spearheads.

The well-armored and orderly human army formation was simply not something that these beastmen, who relied entirely on brute force and barbarity to launch waves of flesh and blood attacks, could possibly break through. In the past, when facing regular human armies, the beastmen only dared to ambush them in the forest by taking advantage of their mobility.

The Dornish army was now in complete silence at its command center. Moreover, it had been attacked at night, with no scouts sounding the alarm. They hadn't even had time to put on their armor, and were relying entirely on the basic military skills of the lower ranks to form ranks on their own. The lines were in disarray, and morale was low.

Following the horned beasts that tore open the gap and surged into the battle line, the horned beasts roared and brandished their spears and cleavers, tearing apart the gap in the battle line bit by bit, slicing and tearing apart the living flesh and blood of the Dornish army!

The numerous horded beasts, armed with spears and round shields, formed a crude shield wall, roaring as they thrust out sharp spears, gradually eroding and breaking down the Dornish army's fragile lines!

"Maintain the line! Those who don't want to die! Maintain the line!" Several Dornish knights, riding tall horses and hastily donning armor without even putting on their helmets, raised their longswords and beheaded a furious horned beast that had carved into the line, roaring to maintain morale.

"Those who don't want to be devoured and turned into food by the beastmen! Raise your guns! Raise your swords! Kill!!"

The knights' roars salvaged the morale of the Dornish army from the brink of collapse, but in the next instant, the sudden, rapid sound of hooves echoing from the woods shattered the Dornish lines' morale once again!

Nearly a hundred centaur rangers, clad in chainmail, some even wearing expensive breastplates and helmets, held their steel-tipped lances, which gleamed with a chilling light, level! Led by a wild and proud centaur in bright silver, fitted plate armor, they transformed into a fierce and untamed centaur lances, leaping out of the shadows and piercing the weak lines of the Dornish army!

"Click—click—"

Another cold, crisp bowstring twang emerged from the shadows of the forest, transforming into a dense stream of light. The Dornish soldiers, already on the verge of collapse, were being reaped in droves by these chilling arrows amidst their shrill screams.

At this point, even with the knights threatening to kill them, no one in Dorne's army dared to raise their lances to defend against the centaur rangers charging with their lances held high with steel tips.

Courage and honor, mixed with their original ambitions, swiftly fled the battlefield, fled Catorus, seeking only to save their own lives.

The already demoralized Dornish army lines collapsed completely before the arrival of the lance phalanx of centaur rangers. With their morale shattered, no Dornish soldier could raise their lances high in the face of the centaur rangers clad in chainmail and wielding steel-tipped lances amidst the thunderous roar of galloping hooves.

The centaur rangers' spears tore through and sliced ​​the entire Dornish army line as easily as a hot knife through butter. This line consisted of three hundred well-trained noble private soldiers equipped with prism shields, leather armor, and longswords, and twenty elite Dornish knights in full plate armor.

Several Dornish knights, who had been pierced and torn apart by the sharp lances of the centaurs, were lifted off their horses by the lances of the charging centaurs. Their robust, plate-armored corpses were carried high above the heads of the Dornish soldiers as they were pierced by several sharp lances of the centaurs.

When the last Dornish knight was pierced through the chest by Claudia's steel lance, the Dornish army of Catorus was utterly annihilated.

Chapter 42 Heavy Cavalry from the Wilderness

On the banks of the Rue River, the moonlight was like a veil, cool and slightly chilly.

The rapid, dense sound of horses' hooves drowned out the thunderous roar of the surging river.

The dark clouds in the sky, like ink stains, dampened and blurred the bright moonlight, turning it gray and hazy.

On the banks of the Rue River, where the terrain is flat and the vegetation is lush, an elite knightly order clad in silver armor is marching rapidly along the riverbank toward Dorne Castle.

This short stretch of road was overgrown with vegetation and the ground was muddy, making it difficult to walk, but it was still much better than the two forests along the Ruva River.

Walking onto the main road that cuts through the woods at night can easily attract the ambush of wild beastmen.

Although the Knights of Dorne didn't care about the Beastmen's troubles, Casleyt chose the fastest route to reach Dorne Castle as quickly as possible to aid the fat Count and prevent the entire castle from falling.

The Dornish Knights, marching at full speed, were somewhat disorganized, and both the squires leading the way and the elite Dornish knights behind them showed signs of fatigue in their eyes.

At this point, the Knights of Dorne were already a weary force due to their daytime march, the clearing out of the Catorus Beastmen, the setting up of their camp, and now, with Castlelight accompanying them to aid Dorne Castle.

Caslett, his hand on the longsword at his waist, rode his white horse quietly ahead, clearing the way. He glanced at the exhausted Knights of Dorne behind him and frowned slightly.

In order to achieve rapid speed and be able to join the battle as soon as they arrive at Dorne Castle, and also to avoid unnecessary losses caused by a nighttime raid by the Beastmen, the Dorne Knights he led were almost all in armor during the march, which further aggravated the fatigue of the knights.

"Pass down the order." He raised his hand and looked at another adjutant of the knights behind him, speaking calmly.

"After we cross the bridge, let the knights rest for half an hour before continuing our march."

"Yes." (The rest of the text appears to be a jumbled collection of characters and symbols, possibly indicating a corrupted or incomplete message.)

Caslett's orders were quickly relayed, much to the relief of the Dornish knights and their squires, who relaxed somewhat.

However, the moment the knights' hooves touched the bridge, several crisp bowstring twangs abruptly shattered the tranquility of the summer night!

"Crack——!"

Several arrows, emitting a poisonous, emerald-green glow, streaked through the tranquil night sky from the forest like swift streaks of light! In the blink of an eye, they disappeared into the gaps beneath the helmets of the three knights at the forefront!

The three knights suddenly let out a muffled groan, clutching their necks as they fell from their horses, crimson blood gushing out from between their gauntlets!

The three fallen knights and their horses, their necks pierced and neighing as they collapsed, blocked the bridge, forcing the vanguard of the Knights of Dorne to tighten their reins and turn their horses around.

"Archers! Assassins!!"

The knight's adjutant immediately drew his longsword and roared in the direction from which the arrows came, but it was too late!

In the dark and cold shadows of the forest, nearly a hundred archers, wearing woolen animal skin hats and adorned with colorful feathers on their heads, emerged from the shadows, carrying cedar longbows as tall as a person.

They nocked their armor-piercing arrows, which gleamed with a chilling light like a desolate forest, onto the sinewy bowstrings, and bent their longbows into dangerous full moons.

"put!"

The longbowmen's bowstrings trembled slightly in the cool summer night breeze, and nearly a hundred longbow arrows, gleaming with a sharp, cold light, pierced the hazy night sky, transforming into chilling streaks of light that swept towards the exhausted knights with a sharp, piercing sound!

The already exhausted Knights of Dorne never expected to be ambushed within Dorne territory!

"Raise shields! Shift formation! Maintain the line! Raise spears!"

Their excellent military discipline enabled the Knights of Dorne to raise their shields and turn around immediately even when ambushed. Their eyes, hidden under their helmets, watched as a chilling rain of arrows grew larger before them. These sharp arrows did not target the knights, but rather their warhorses!

In an instant, the mournful neighing of warhorses filled the air! The exhausted warhorses were riddled with arrows from longbows that had been specifically targeted at them, turning them into pincushions. Dozens of Dornish knights and their squires fell from their horses on the spot, and the already somewhat chaotic formation of the knightly order was thrown into complete disarray!

"Hold the line! No chaos allowed!" Caslett raised his hand, grabbed a longbow arrow that had been shot at him, casually snapped it in half and tossed it aside, then pulled on the reins, his cold and indifferent voice echoing throughout the entire knightly order.

"Raise shields! Turn your horses around! Those who have lost their horses shall fight on foot with swords! The rear guard becomes the front, squires flanking the enemy on the left and right, and the knights in the center of the formation!!"

Caslett's cold, indifferent voice quickly stabilized the chaotic knightly order. His knight adjutant immediately raised the saddled oak shield slung across his horse, leveled his lance, and pulled on the reins to charge towards the longbowmen lying in ambush behind him!

"Knights of Dorne! Break through the lines!" The knight's lieutenant roared, raising his longsword high. The spearhead thundered, transforming into a sharp, pointed prong!

"Longbow! Nock it!"

A cold, clear shout rang out from the forest. Behind the captain of the archers, the princess knight Sera, clad in fitted silver armor, raised her longsword. Her noble, golden beauty, hidden beneath her visor, quietly watched the Dornish knights charge forward.

"put--!"

With the synchronized twang of bowstrings, the captain's archer skillfully drew his arrows, nocked them, and with a flick of his index finger, nearly a hundred chilling streaks of light flew once again toward the charging knights!

The neighing of warhorses and the cries of fallen knights rose and fell. The muddy, grassy ground limited the cavalry's advantage in charging, and the longbowmen's target was not the fully armed knights, but the warhorses that were simply draped in cloaks.