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"How are our soldiers? Have they recovered?" Lucia turned to look at Joshua beside her and asked.
"Your Majesty, after the priests' baptism of divine magic, they have overcome their fear of witchcraft," Joshua replied.
"In that case, let's set off tonight!" Lucia said firmly.
The pillar of light that pierced through the sky and earth at noon left a very deep impression on her. Although Lucia had figured out the principle of this magic and had found a way to deal with it, the most sensible approach was naturally to avoid the enemy's strengths and not give the other side the opportunity to use them.
Chapter 414: The Vatican's surprise attack and the defeated defenders
At midnight, in Lord Mist, fifty thousand imperial expeditionary forces arrived silently at the city under the cover of the legendary magic - the Realm of Illusion.
"It seems that these wizards are really capable!" Joshua muttered to himself as he looked at the towering city wall in front of him.
The last time they came here, there was only a low wall less than three meters high in this small border town, but now what appeared before them was a seven-meter-high solid wall.
The wizards used magic to accomplish such a miracle in just half a day!
On top of the city wall, a bonfire was burning, and more than 1,500 guards could be vaguely seen stationed on the city wall. It seemed that no trace of them had been found yet.
The number of guards was much smaller than Joshua had expected, but considering that the Musketeers had also suffered heavy casualties in the previous battle, most of them should be recuperating and receiving treatment now. Add to that the Musketeers guarding the rest of the city and those stationed in the city, the number was not much different.
Joshua raised a sneer. Those wizards probably couldn't imagine that they had restored the combat effectiveness of the imperial guards in just ten hours and launched a surprise attack overnight.
"Your Highness Lucia, Lord Judge, do you want to launch the attack now?" Silide asked respectfully.
A distance of seven hundred meters is already the limit. If they get any closer, even if they are in a virtual realm, they will notice that something is wrong!
As for the lava dragon, Sirid let it stay ten miles away and wait until the battle started before flying over to avoid being sensed by the wizards.
Lucia stretched out her right hand, and boundless divine light gathered in the palm of her hand, shrinking into a thumb-sized ball, and then flew straight to the towering city wall seven hundred meters away.
The soldiers on the city wall could only see a bright firefly floating towards them in the dim night. It was moving at an extremely fast speed, and the distance of 700 meters could be reached in an instant!
Before they could even shout, the fluorescent light quickly expanded and then exploded!
Boom... The deafening sound of the explosion resounded throughout the entire castle. The tall walls were shattered under the impact of the strong explosion, and the city gate was directly blown open. The rubble flew everywhere, forming a mist like mist and rain in the sky.
Dozens of patrolling guards on the city wall were knocked to the ground by the aftermath of the explosion, blood splattered everywhere, screams and wails resounded continuously...
The moment Lucia made her move, the [Realm - Realm of Illusion] was instantly broken, and more than ten thousand Divine Punishment Knights shouted "For the glory of the Lord!", and rushed into the open city gate on horseback. With their raised scimitars and long swords, they chopped down the guards in the city one after another!
Perhaps it was because they attacked too suddenly and the enemies had not yet reacted, or perhaps their morale had already been crushed in the midday battle and they had not yet recovered. During this assault, they did not encounter any obstacles and the Vatican's expeditionary force had already entered the city!
It was too smooth... Joshua felt a deep sense of uneasiness in his heart. After they entered the city, they found that there were torches placed on every street and many guards deployed, but they did not encounter any effective resistance!
No rows of muskets firing, no cannons, and no wizards!
The whole city was silent, with only the sounds of the guards running away and shouting in fear.
So weird that it's terrifying!
"What is going on?" Silide was confused and really had no idea what was going on.
What about their enemies? What about the wizards?
Just when everyone was wondering, a team of brave Divine Punishment Knights captured the leader of the guards.
He was a middle-aged man in his thirties, slightly thin, with fat cheeks. He knelt on the ground with a look of fear on his face, kowtowed repeatedly, and spoke with a trembling voice.
"My Lord Bishop, I surrender... I surrender! I beg you to forgive my sins. It was those damned wizards who cast a spell on us and forced us to help them guard this town..."
"Enough!" Joshua interrupted the man's defense and asked coldly, "Tell me, where are those wizards?"
"They...they left fifteen minutes ago in a flying house." The thin middle-aged man answered timidly.
"You mean they have escaped?" Joshua frowned and said in surprise.
This is not impossible. After all, the power of the Empire and the Church is far beyond the reach of these evil minions. The wizards have just experienced a defeat and are carrying many wounded soldiers. It is normal for them to flee at the sight of the enemy.
It was just a coincidence that the timing happened just fifteen minutes before they arrived.
Their luck can only be described as bad!
"Do you know which direction those wizards went?" Lucia suddenly asked.
"Yes...it's the north!" the middle-aged man answered hesitantly.
When these words were spoken, the bishops present were all shocked, because the kingdom was to the west of them!
If you want to evacuate, you can't fly north no matter what!
"Is there anything to the north?" Lucia asked puzzledly.
"It's kerosene!" Joshua's expression was very solemn. After searching the memories of those captives, he had some doubts about this.
Because the wizards' first goal in launching this counterattack should be to recover the kingdom's lost territory, the fact that the other two legions had been stranded in the kingdom before can prove this point.
The legion they encountered was the only exception. It took the initiative to break into the empire and its target was the Mist Territory. It was most likely there for kerosene.
"These wizards must want to seize or destroy the empire's weapons of war!" Sirid said indignantly.
The importance of kerosene is self-evident. It has played a huge role in the wars against barbarians and demons in recent years, reducing a large number of casualties.
Lucia shook her head and did not agree with Sirid's guess.
Kerosene is useful, but it is nothing compared to the artillery that the wizards have.
"The Wizard Council must have found other uses for kerosene," Lucia guessed.
In the last campaign against the kingdom, the Griffin Knights led by Avidel brought a lot of kerosene, which was most likely seized.
Those wizards must have discovered some secrets after studying this thing, so they are very eager to get it, and even think that it can affect the outcome of the war to a certain extent, so they suddenly went to look for kerosene at such a critical moment...
Chapter 415: Conspiracy, Lin En's foresight
Just as a few people were wondering what secrets were hidden in the kerosene, more Divine Punishment Cavalrymen came in an endless stream, reporting the news they had discovered in the city.
Just as the captain of the guards said, there were no enemies left in the entire town. All wizards had already evacuated, and those responsible for the defense were guards who had been assembled on short notice.
It is said that each of them is under an evil curse, and if they do not obey orders, pus will flow all over their bodies and they will fester and die!
The so-called tight defense and heavy garrison are all illusions!
The wizards actually relied on an empty city as a deterrent, wanting to delay them all here. They even built a solid high wall only on the side facing the kerosene city, and the other three sides were just for show.
"No wonder..." Joshua said in a cold tone. He had always thought that it would be impossible to reinforce the city walls on all four sides in just a few hours.
Apparently they were all fooled!
"Wait, if all those wizards have evacuated, then what is this magic I feel?" Lucia paused and suddenly thought of this.
Before entering the city, she felt a strong fluctuation of magical power in the city, so she thought that the wizards were still gathered in the town.
That should be the direction of the manor!
"Now, immediately, go and call back all the people who are heading to the manor!" A hint of warning emerged in Lucia's mind, and then without waiting for the bishops to act, she closed her eyes and used divine magic to communicate.
Unfortunately, he was still a step too late. Just as he finished speaking, a violent explosion was heard and a thick flame appeared in the direction of the manor...
This was exactly the gift that Lynn left for them before leaving - a large amount of gunpowder!
The manor is equipped with a magic device that can sense vibrations. It will detonate three minutes after detecting a large number of people entering the manor!
Judging from the intensity of the explosion, the large number of elite soldiers who went to search the manor were probably in great danger!
Joshua's expression was extremely ugly, and Lucia's face was also cold as ice.
"They have only been walking for more than ten minutes, and they have to carry more than 8,000 people and heavy artillery with them. It is impossible for them to maintain full speed. It may still be in time to catch up with them now..." Riddle reminded in a low voice.
Moreover, kerosene is very important to the empire, so there are a large number of people stationed at the mining site, which should be able to delay the situation for a while.
When the captain of the guards saw Riddle suggesting leaving, he burst into tears and cried out, "Your Excellency the Judge, Your Majesty the Saint, I am the most devout believer of the Lord. I go to the church every week to listen to the teachings. Please, please save me!"
Joshua rushed forward and put his hand on the captain's head. After three or five seconds, his expression became even uglier. "Idiot, there is no spell on you!"
The captain of the guard was completely dumbfounded, but he clearly saw a colleague who disobeyed the wizard's orders and melted into a pool of blood in pain and screams.
"That's just an illusion, a little trick played by wizards to scare you." Joshua explained, and then, regardless of whether the other party believed it or not, he turned to look at Lucia and asked her to give chase immediately and wipe out these despicable wizards!
Once they get the kerosene, something unexpected might happen again and other incidents might arise.
"Riddle, you will be the vanguard and go to stop those airships. There is no need for a strong attack. It will be enough to slow down their speed!" Lucia suppressed her anger and ordered in a deep voice.
"I understand, Your Majesty. I will never let those wizards take away the empire's weapon." Riddle knelt on one knee and responded firmly.
A huge lava dragon had descended from the sky, and its heavy body crushed the hard bricks and stones, causing them to collapse. Its red eyes stared at the bishops in front of it with hatred, but its body and consciousness were still firmly bound by the divine magic.
After Riddle cast a protective magic on himself, he jumped onto the dragon's back and controlled the dragon's body to fly into the sky.
There are hundreds of griffin knights following behind!
……
At the same time, Redel and others who were hiding outside the city also saw the giant dragon rising into the sky.
"Tsk tsk, what kind of monster is this? It's so big?" Ham said in astonishment.
"It should be a dragon?" Redel said uncertainly. Although they had never seen a dragon, it was a frequent character in many operas and bards' stories. It was synonymous with cruelty and power!
"It seems that what Lord Lin En said is right. These people have indeed gone in pursuit!" Redel looked at the expeditionary army that had just rushed into the city and rushed out again in a mighty force heading north, and he was extremely impressed.
This was exactly as Lynn expected!
"So shall we take action now?" Ham rubbed his hands and said excitedly.
"No, wait a little longer." Redel shook his head and said cautiously. "Wait until they are farther away. Anyway, let's send a message first!"
"Sorry to trouble you, Lord Anthony!" Redel turned his head and looked at Anthony beside him.
The latter nodded, closed his eyes, attracted the surrounding electromagnetic field, and sent out electromagnetic wave signals!
Since it has only been about twenty minutes since the airship took off, the distance is not far, so there is no need for a transfer station, and its speed is extremely fast.
The next moment after Anthony cast the spell, Lynn and others on the airship received the message.
"Very good, now that they have caught up, the next battlefield will be decided by us!" Beside him, Harof raised a smile.
Before, they had been racking their brains to think of how to deliberately lure the other party out and provide a suitable place to cast new magic.
However, Lynn proposed another idea, which is to choose to attack a location where the opponent must be defending!