Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 42 (Part 1)
The battle had started thirty minutes before Hedler and Lant’s party arrived.
Although the knights were mostly exhausted from the prolonged fight, Weidman was also not in top shape.
‘What if?’
Hedler took out the dagger tied to his leg and threw it.
He wasn’t aiming for a major impact. He simply wanted to make Weidman waste more energy by dodging it, since he looked quite tired.
Thunk!
However, Weidman couldn’t dodge the dagger that was thoughtlessly thrown. His eyes showed signs of surprise.
The dagger Hedler threw pierced Weidman’s right chest.
It wasn’t the side where the heart was. It wasn’t a wound severe enough to kill him instantly.
But it was enough to disrupt the flow of his magic.
Moreover, it interrupted the spell Weidman was preparing.
“Hedler!”
“Good job!”
“Hooah!”
“Blink. Thud!”
Lant rushed at the exhausted Weidman and swung his sword. The other knights followed suit, converging on Weidman.
Weidman used magic to teleport again.
But as soon as the spell was completed, he coughed up blood. It was the recoil from overexerting his mana.
Thunk!
At that moment, a sword protruded from Weidman’s back. It was the sword of Deputy Commander Cliff, who had circled around the battlefield.
“Now!”
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Slice!
Deputy Commander Cliff’s blow finished off Weidman.
Weidman, who had lost the strength to resist, accepted his death with a dazed expression, multiple swords piercing his body.
“Blake, let’s assist the commander. Sir Raki, gather the injured and get them on horses. Other knights, help your comrades!”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
With Weidman, a potential game-changer, dead, the outcome was essentially decided. Now, it was only a matter of wrapping things up quickly and leaving the area.
Hedler and Lant joined the fierce battle where many knights were fighting intensely.
In a situation where they were already overwhelming in numbers, about 40 additional knights joined.
The guards of Count Bahas, who were barely holding on, collapsed in an instant.
Count Preiss also seized the advantage. He was slightly at a disadvantage in a one-on-one fight, but the situation changed with the intervention of 5th-class knights like Cliff and Blake.
That wasn’t all. The knights who finished off the guards began throwing daggers.
Count Bahas, who was already struggling against three people, including Count Preiss, was further overwhelmed.
Thunk!
“Ugh!”
After being hit by a few sword strikes, Count Bahas soon became covered in blood.
Staggering, Count Bahas was eventually finished off by Count Preiss.
Slice!
With Count Bahas’s head falling, the battle ended.
Count Preiss immediately sheathed his sword and ran to his horse.
“Everyone! Mount your horses! Return at maximum speed!”
“Yes.”
The elite knights collectively headed south. Hedler and Lant tightly gripped the reins and followed the knights.
“Did you get hit?”
“This much is nothing.”
Drok, who had come out of the special forces training center with them, had a thigh soaked in blood. It wasn’t a severe injury, but it required about a month of rest.
Tory had burns on his arm. It seemed to be from Weidman’s magic.
“How about you?”
“I’m fine. Just a slight burn.”
“Any aftereffects?”
“I wouldn’t know. I’m not a healer or a magician. But it doesn’t affect my movements.”
Hedler, Lant, and Darren were uninjured. Drok and Tory also didn’t have serious injuries.
The three instructors, too, roughly bandaged their wounds and rode their horses. They didn’t seem to be in immediate danger.
“But what about Commissioner Albrecht?”
“Over there. Lying down.”
“Is that Commissioner Albrecht draped over the horse like laundry?”
“Don’t call him ‘sir.’ He couldn’t even defeat a 4th-class knight and got properly hit.”
Commissioner Albrecht hadn’t trained in a long time. Ever since he became a commissioner of the special forces training center, he had put down his sword for over ten years.
Due to prolonged idleness, his waistline had doubled. He had gotten so fat that it looked like his head was placed directly on his shoulders without a neck.
“If Commissioner Albrecht is like that, wouldn’t other commissioners be similar?”
“Don’t say such things. Even if you talk about it, not here.”
“Got it.”
Everyone had anticipated that Commissioner Albrecht wouldn’t be able to fight properly.
During the ride to this place, the only knight who got tired as quickly as the magicians was Commissioner Albrecht.
Physically, he was already in a state where he could hardly be called a knight.
In less than a day, they were pursued.
Boyle, the military magician, discovered through familiar magic that thousands of pursuers were following.
“There will be problems at the border.”
“Yes. They will be blocking us in advance.”
“Avoid battles as much as possible. Magician Boyle, focus on reconnaissance.”
“Yes, I will do my best.”
* * *
Cory appeared after three days. He was behind the same rock where he had previously hidden.
“Rodin.”
“You’re safe. Thank goodness.”
“Hehe, I’m a spirit summoner. It’s not easy to catch me unless they’re determined to find me.”
For three days, Cory monitored the commissioners’ movements and tried to listen to their conversations.
Thanks to that, he managed to gather some important information.
“Did you find out?”
“Roughly. But strangely enough, I couldn’t see it no matter how much I searched.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I heard Commissioner Kser talking to Commissioner Habinon about adding a lock to the basement.”
Cory no longer added the honorific “sir” when referring to the commissioners who had tried to kill him. He didn’t want to honor them.
“The basement? The central building?”
“Yes. So I searched the central building last night but found nothing.”
“Hmm, it seems to be magically concealed. Good job. You can step back now.”
“Are you okay? I can investigate further.”
“No, it’s fine. You said you’re heading to the central continent.”
“Hehe. So, it’s farewell now?”
“Yes. Let’s believe we’ll meet again someday.”
Rodin was 14 years old this year. He had spent almost ten years in this place. The time he spent with Cory was also about ten years.
It was the day his friend, with whom he had spent most of his life, was leaving. Although he felt sad, he didn’t want to think of today as a final farewell.
“Yes. Rodin, thank you for everything. I wish I had completely resolved the slave rod issue.”
“It’s okay. You’ve done your part. I’m satisfied with that.”
“I’m leaving.”
Cory’s figure disappeared.