Kingdom Bloodline

Chapter 217 A big problem
“Don’t move, madam,” Nikolai said coldly to Cassan in front of him. “I’m nervous and afraid you’ll pull out some special alchemical orb—so I’m prepared to open your throat at any moment.”

He tapped the back of the knife with his index finger.

Upon hearing this, the Scarlet Witch slumped her shoulders and fell silent.

Thales looked at the suddenly appearing Nicolai in surprise, then glanced at the other guards with melee weapons.

"Nikolai?"

He looked at the Meteorite who was holding the Scarlet Witch hostage with suspicion: "Why would you..."

But Thales couldn't continue—Tuleha's grip on his shoulder suddenly tightened, and Thales hissed in pain.

When Wyatt saw the prince's condition, he gripped his sword tightly in anger.

Tuleha dragged the back of his knife around Thales' neck, forcing Thales to raise his head as high as possible.

Thales watched the situation with a pained expression: Tuleha and he were standing in the innermost cell, with the little rascal behind them.

The people of Xingchen stood in front of them, watching the kidnapped prince with bated breath.

Meanwhile, Nikolai held the Scarlet Witch at bay, standing behind the Star People.

Behind Nicolai were the White-Blade Guards, who stood guard tightly by the thick door, watching the soldiers outside warily.

“A brilliant move, Meteorite,” the Fire Knight of Black Sands calmly said to Nikolai. “But don’t forget, I have an even more important bargaining chip.”

The Meteorite turned his head and glanced at Tuleha with disdain.

“Then let’s do it and kill this prince,” Nikolai scoffed. “Anyway, I’ve disliked him for a long time.”

Thales' eyes widened.

What—what?
Tuleha frowned.

“After you’ve taken care of things,” Nikolai said, the Soul-Severing Blade in his hand flickering slightly against Cassan’s neck, reflecting the light of the inextinguishable lamp, before he smiled faintly, “maybe they can give you a different nickname, like…”

The Meteorite's gaze swept over Thales, then he gave the Fire Knight a slight, smirking look:

"The second generation of the Meteorite?"

Tuleha stared fiercely at Nikolai, his eyes almost spitting fire.

“That’s our prince,” Cohen observed the stalemate, exchanged a worried look with Wyman, and whispered, “Are we just going to watch?”

“Otherwise?” Miranda looked at Raphael beside Nicolai, then at Tuleha and Thales behind him, and glanced at the opposing White Blade Guards and the enemies. She sighed slightly. “This is no longer our battle.”

Just then, the Scarlet Witch, who had been taken hostage, spoke up.

“The White Blade Guard, Exter’s Dragon Guard,” she said softly.

“You’ve chosen the wrong side,” Cassan said with a natural, fluent smile, seemingly oblivious to the fact that a blade was pressed against her carotid artery. “Your opponents are those behind you, those Imperials.”

Nicolai raised his eyebrows slightly.

The Scarlet Witch sighed softly, seemingly filled with regret: "It was their secret society that orchestrated all of this—such as the disasters and the death of the king."

The Star People, including Thales, also changed their expressions.

Well… Cassan wasn’t wrong—Thales thought anxiously.

The second prince glanced worriedly at the guards with white blades present, but their expressions were all hidden behind their masks, leaving only a pair of cold eyes visible.

Raphael, standing beside Nikolai, sighed softly: "Oh, this problem—it's quite complicated."

“But now…” He walked up to the two of them, looking intently at Nicolai, at the blade in his hand that was pressing against Cassan: “Shouldn’t we try to get away first?”

Nikolai suddenly turned to look at the young man from the Secret Service, his eyes cold.

Raphael endured the piercing gaze, but forced a relaxed smile: "You know, Walton's heir is here too."

"Perhaps this is not a good time to chat—especially with the Red Witch who is full of lies."

Nikolai looked towards the innermost part of the cell.

The little rascal was slightly taken aback, and then realized that the person was talking about him, causing his face to turn pale.

“If you really want to help, Secret Society kid,” Nicolai’s eyes flashed coldly, his voice serious, “then don’t block my way.”

Raphael sighed softly.

“Otherwise,” the Meteorite continued sharply, “do you want to be trapped here? Perhaps they will bury your ashes under the city gate.”

Raphael paused for a second, glanced at Tuleha and Thales behind him, then at Nikolai and the Scarlet Witch in front of him, and raised an eyebrow slightly: "I understand."

Just then, Thales raised an eyebrow.

He saw Rolf make a subtle sign language gesture toward him.

[Step back.]

Thales was slightly taken aback.

“For the sake of His Majesty the late King, Lord Nicolai,” the Scarlet Witch said slowly, “don’t do anything foolish.”

Nikolai glanced around the room, his gaze lingering on Raphael and the Scarlet Witch for a second each.

“You don’t need to tell us what to do, Ms. Cassan,” the Meteorite sneered, a fierce glint in his eyes. “The humiliation of being drawn swords can only be washed away with blood.”

The sound of palms rubbing against handles could be heard simultaneously from the hands of the guards.

Cassan's eyes flashed with anger, and she snapped, "So what are you doing now?"

The Scarlet Witch's words carried an unusual chill: "After the King's unfortunate death, Exter suffered an unprecedented catastrophe—you should stand with the Kingdom, with the Northlanders!"

"Instead of colluding with our enemies and engaging in petty and despicable acts!"

Cassan's words echoed in the cell.

Thales let out a trembling breath under Tuleha's blade.

Nikolai suddenly laughed.

His laughter was cold and sarcastic.

"The disaster of Exter? Our enemy?" The Meteorite gritted her teeth, her eyes filled with chilling intent. "Don't pretend to be so righteous, you hypocritical old woman."

"You betrayed His Majesty the moment your people started spreading false information about the so-called Sword of Calamity and diverted His Majesty's attention for Lumba's actions!"

The Scarlet Witch squinted her eyes.

“You and your informants, you colluded with His Majesty’s enemies, you turned a deaf ear to the actions of Black Sand Territory until His Majesty died in a shameful assassination, until they stood here,” Nicolai said coldly in Cassan’s ear, “who do you think these brothers of the White Blade Guard escaped with their lives?”

tread!
The White Blade Guard soldiers shifted their stance in unison, turning to face the enemy. This sudden movement made the soldiers of Black Sand Territory even more nervous.

Cassan sighed.

"Regarding this, if you'd like," the Scarlet Witch said calmly, looking at the blade at her neck, "I swear in the name of the Dark Chamber, I can explain."

Nikolai made an ambiguous nasal sound.

"Why don't you go and explain to His Majesty?" The Meteorite narrowed his eyes.
"Oh, I forgot—he was killed by you and Rumba."

These words made the atmosphere in the cell even more tense.

“Don’t be so narrow-minded, Lord Nicolai,” the Scarlet Witch said with a mournful expression, her gaze sweeping over Tuleha and Thales. “The White Blade Guard has never been anyone’s personal weapon. You should be loyal to all of Exter, loyal to the North…”

Nikolai interrupted her.

I am not a narrow-minded person.

The Meteorite's tone was icy: "If you and your Darkroom can't even be loyal to one person..."

"Don't hypocritically claim that you are loyal to Exter."

Ms. Cassan frowned slightly: "You..."

At this moment, a sudden change occurred!
Nikolai then placed his left hand on Cassan's back and shoved her away!
Tuleha's pupils constricted instantly.

how……

Raphael, who was standing in the middle, suddenly pushed Miranda, Cohen, Wyman and others aside with both hands, just in time to avoid the path that the Scarlet Witch was pushed in!
The shocked Scarlet Witch was pushed towards Tuleha and Thales, who were in the innermost layer.

As Thales watched Ms. Cassan stagger toward them and the Star People dodging to either side, a sudden realization dawned on him: he remembered the conversation between Raphael and Nicolai.

That was their planned exchange: "If you really want to help... then don't block my way."

Tuleha watched in astonishment as the figures of the Star People separated, and as the figure of the Scarlet Witch drew ever closer.

He hesitated for a moment.

Until Nicole, with her cold expression, appeared behind Cassan.

"call--"

The Meteorite's weapon whipped up a gust of wind, without any restraint, and slashed down towards the Scarlet Witch's head!

It was as if her life was taken right here.

Tuleha did not hesitate any longer.

He still held tightly to Thales, heading towards Nikolai and the Scarlet Witch.

"clang!"

The Fire Knight's left hand held Thales firmly in place, while his right hand blocked the Meteorite's deadly slash aimed at the Scarlet Witch.

At this moment, the Scarlet Witch, with a furrowed brow, finally managed to stand firmly beside him.

But the next moment, Nikolai's eyes suddenly shone with an unprecedented brilliance!
"Ah!" the Meteorite roared, unleashing tremendous power from his hands.

The Fiery Knight's golden saber immediately emitted a sharp metallic scraping sound!

Tuleha, who was defending himself with one hand, changed his expression.

In that instant, he decisively released Thales, gripped the hilt of the knife with both hands, and resisted the immense force unleashed by Nikolai.

Once freed from control, Thales ignored everything and, following the signal Rolf had given him, gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and rolled backward!

He bumped into the sly little guy who came up behind him to help him up, and the two of them crashed into the wall together.

The disheveled Thales ignored the situation on the field and was thinking about the conversation between Raphael and Nicolai.

They said more than just that one sentence.

Do you want to get stuck here?

Are we stuck here?

The moment that thought crossed his mind, Thales felt a jolt beneath him!
"What's wrong?" the little rascal asked in surprise, hugging him.

He didn't know how to answer.

There was no chance to answer.

"boom!"

Another loud explosion of earth and rocks followed.

The ground beneath Thales and the little rascal suddenly sank and then abruptly cracked open.

One more time?
The thought popped into Thales' mind.

The next second, they both sank into the crumbling underground.

Whether it was Rolf's supernatural ability or the effect of the explosion, the air inside the room began to howl again, dust rose, and obscured the view.

Thales held the little rascal tightly, his eyes closed.

"boom!"

He only felt a sharp pain in his buttocks, and then he and the little rascal fell into a pile of soft sand.

There was darkness all around.

Thales struggled to sit up, the little rascal's coughing echoing around him.

The sounds of fierce fighting came from the cell above them—the one they had just been in.

They weren't the only ones who fell.

"Your Highness!" A figure pulled him up, and Wyman's anxious voice came through: "Are you alright?"

Before Thales could answer, more than a dozen figures fell from the sky and crashed onto the sand.

Amidst the swirling dust, Thales covered his mouth and nose, enduring the excruciating pain in his buttocks as he pulled up Little Sly, feeling annoyed: Why do these people like playing this so much!
"According to plan, let's go!"

Nikolai's voice came from the darkness: "There will be someone waiting at the end of the secret passage!"

"Our men will cover our retreat!"

Before Thales could even complain, he and the little rascal were picked up by a tall, strong figure, one in each arm and one around the waist.

The little rascal exclaimed in surprise.

"Damn it!"

Cohen's exasperated voice rang out above Thales's head: "It's too dark, I can't see the road!"

Amidst the chaos, the sounds of people falling and the clash of weapons echoed overhead.

Soon, the sounds grew closer and closer.

"The Meteorite!"

With another loud crash as they plummeted, the Fiery Knight Tulehana's furious roar came from behind: "Stop them!"

A loud clang of metal clashing rang out.

"Throw down a few torches!" It was the Scarlet Witch's voice. Despite the great accident, she calmly gave the order: "Until then—anyone who tries to move is an enemy!"

Thales felt a chill run down his spine: the pursuers were coming.

"Follow that masked mute!" Amidst the darkness and chaos, Nikolai roared as he fought his enemies in the shadows. "He can sense the wind direction towards the exit!"

"That mute?"

The guard took two steps forward and said impatiently, "I can't even see where he is!"

In the darkness, Thales felt as if Cohen's arm was about to strangle him to death.

His sin of the River of Hell was unleashed without warning.

A surge of light welled up in Thales' eyes, and a strange array of colors suddenly appeared around him.

“Shut up, big guy!” Thales gritted his teeth and angrily smacked Cohen’s arm. “Listen to me!” The guard holding him immediately paused.

Thales forced himself to calm down. In the cluttered field of vision, he found Rolf—the figure emitting a faint blue glow—and said to Cohen, “Five steps forward—no, two steps, in your opinion—then turn left!”

"Hurry up!" Thales urged anxiously, not sensing any movement. "Don't stand still!"

Cohen seemed to snap out of his daze and followed Thales's lead.

"Wow," the guard cautiously took a step, feeling the solid ground beneath his feet, and asked in surprise, "You—you can see?"

Thales was slightly taken aback.

“Go straight ahead—just eat lots of animal liver and fruit,” Thales lied without batting an eye, in the sight of the River of Sin.
Even in darkness, you can find light!

In the pitch black, Cohen nodded with a hint of disbelief.

Amidst the astonishment, Cohen followed the path pointed out by Thales and ran after Rolf.

The sounds of fighting behind me grew increasingly intense.

In Thales' view, a dozen or so of them followed Rolf, running into a narrow tunnel in the darkness.

"Nikolai!" Tuleha roared again, "Don't even think about it!"

The next moment, a bright light suddenly shone from behind them, illuminating their surroundings clearly.

Thales squinted and took in his surroundings.

The tunnel they were in was very narrow, dusty, and the ground was an uneven dirt road.

Rolf took the lead, moving like the wind, with Thales and the little rascal carried by Cohen, and Miranda and Wyman following closely behind. Everyone was running nervously.

The guards with blades stood close behind him.

Only the Meteorite and Raphael were nowhere to be found.

The light behind them grew brighter and brighter.

Thales couldn't help but grab Cohen's arm and turn around.

Then he froze.

There was nothing behind them.

There was only a blazing fire.

Like an invisible, gigantic serpent of fire, it rushed into the small earthen tunnel, devouring them.

The surrounding temperature suddenly rose.

"That's the Rising Sun Saber!" came the roar of the Meteorite from behind. "Damn it, you secret agents, get out of the way if you don't want to be roasted alive!"

In the firelight, two figures appeared in Thales' eyes, which had been transformed by the Sin of the River of Hell.

One of the figures emitted light that radiated outwards like countless needles.

He shoved aside another gray figure.

Then, the hedgehog-like humanoid figure—probably Nikolai—suddenly swung his knife towards the back of the tunnel.

The next moment, the fire serpent seemed to have crashed into an invisible barrier, and was firmly blocked in front of the two of them.

It resembled a vertical wall of fire.

This reminded Thales of the air wall created by the air mage.

But he could see it clearly in his field of vision: what was blocking those flames was another strange, invisible barrier emitting a yellow light.

It was connected to Nikolai's Soulbreaker Blade, which also emitted a yellow light.

"You can't escape!" came the angry roar of the Fire Knight from behind the flames.

"Do you still have alchemical orbs? The explosive kind?"

Before the firelight, the gray figure turned around and asked Nikolai beside him, "You can't hold them off for long. They'll catch up sooner or later!"

Thales recognized the voice: it was Raphael.

"That was the last of the guard's stock. Every one we use is one less!" In the River of Sin's vision, Nikolai, who looked like a glowing hedgehog, held up the Soulbreaker Blade and firmly blocked the increasingly intense flames.

"Really none left?" Raphael's voice came through.

"Do you think those are snowballs that can be rolled out?" Nikolai turned around and angrily shouted at the Secret Service personnel, "You think you can just pull one out casually?"

Raphael said nothing.

He turned abruptly and raised his left hand toward the firelight.

He flung a spherical object out.

"Damn it!" Upon seeing the ball, Nicolai shouted angrily, "Why the hell didn't you say so sooner?!"

Then he and Raphael turned around and rushed out.

The moment the meteorite turned around, the raging flames surged forth as if their barrier had been removed.

next second.

"boom!"

With a loud explosion, Thales felt his vision suddenly blur!
There was another burst of dust.

Everyone couldn't help but cough, and their steps faltered.

"boom--"

A series of loud explosions, accompanied by the sound of countless rocks and soil being hurled, echoed continuously.

Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to look behind them.

The flames gradually diminished until they disappeared completely.

The two figures disappeared along with them.

Thales squinted, his mouth agape in surprise. He knew: the tunnel behind him had collapsed.

Darkness and silence returned to the surroundings.

Only the panting of the crowd remained, rising and falling.

"Oh my God!"

This was Wyman's panicked voice: "They...they..."

"Don't stop. No matter what happens next, don't stop." It was an unfamiliar voice, probably that of a melee guard, his words filled with long-suppressed anger.

"You go!"

Miranda's resolute voice rang out in the darkness: "I'm going to find them!"

Cohen paused, then said, "But—"

The next second, Miranda's light footsteps had already faded into the distance.

"Don't be stunned!"

One of the guards, wielding a blade, said coldly, "We're not out of danger yet!"

Cohen let out a reluctant sigh, and Thales could feel him turning his head to stare into the darkness behind him.

“If you’re worried,” Thales sighed, “then go and check it out.”

Thales felt Cohen's arm tighten.

“Let me lead His Highness,” Wyatt gasped. “He can’t be stuck here.”

Cohen was slightly taken aback.

A few seconds later.

"Damn it!" the guard cursed.

The next second, Cohen stomped his foot hard, then turned around and started walking.

The group followed Rolf, traveling in silence.

They kept running.

In the seemingly endless tunnel.

In seemingly endless danger.

In the unfathomable darkness.

Heading towards the only way to survive.

Thales stared blankly into the darkness behind him, the Sin of the River of Hell gathering in his eyes.

Several minutes passed.

Finally, Thales' eyes twitched.

From the deep darkness behind him, a porcupine-like glowing figure appeared.

Then came a gray, hazy figure.

And a figure emitting white light.

“Since there’s only one, we have to be careful,” Raphael’s voice faintly came from the darkness. “I don’t have the habit of wandering around with the alchemy orb.”

Nicolai, Rafael, and Miranda caught up.

"Good heavens! Oh!" Cohen heard Raphael's voice, turned his head, not even noticing that he had tripped over his own feet: "I thought you were really buried in there!"

Beside Raphael, the Meteorite muttered something under his breath.

His voice, clear amidst the chaotic footsteps, reached Thales' ears—it sounded like "the miser."

Thales finally breathed a sigh of relief.

They escaped.

“Alright,” came Nikolai’s voice, much calmer than before: “There should be no danger now.”

"After all, we're in a secret passage."

The group of people probably knew they had escaped danger, so they slowed their pace and started walking.

Thales and the little rascal were put down.

Thales leaned against the wall, unconsciously patting his chest, his mind blank, feeling as if he had just passed another hurdle.

“Speaking of which…” Cohen’s puzzled voice came from the darkness.

"Why don't you light a fire?"

"Do you really want to run around like a blind man?" the guard said impatiently.

“The ventilation here isn’t very good,” Nikolai said casually. “If you want to suffocate, of course you can.”

Cohen fell silent.

“By the way,” Wyman said, leaning against the wall in the darkness, slightly out of breath, “this city gate is supposed to be part of the defenses protecting Valhalla… how could there be… a secret passage that could be infiltrated?”

There was a moment of silence in the tunnel.

“The Third Continental War,” Nikolai’s voice drifted over, “The Nightwing King has taken over the other districts, leaving only the Axe District and Valhalla here.”

"With Valhalla isolated, surrounded, and cut off from supplies—this was the last chance for survival that the people of the North had dug out."

"Phew," Cohen exhaled, his voice filled with relief at escaping a terrible ordeal:
"Thank you, Nightwing King—you are truly great."

Everyone fell silent.

Even though he couldn't see, Cohen felt the murderous gazes of the people of the North all at that moment.

The sound of Miranda's elbow strike came from the darkness.

And there was Cohen's cry of pain.

"Uh, I just..." A few seconds later, the guard's embarrassed voice rang out: "Just kidding?"

“After the war, this secret passage became top secret, and even the hidden room had to be kept secret,” Nikolai scoffed disdainfully. “Only the commanders of the White Blade Guards throughout the ages knew about it.”

In the darkness, the footsteps of the Star People suddenly stopped in unison.

Even the White Blade Guards stopped in their tracks.

Thales was stunned.

"and many more!"

The prince looked up at the piercing figure in his field of vision, his tone full of surprise and doubt: "You mean, the commanders of the White Blade Guards throughout the ages?"

Nikolai replied nonchalantly, "Yes, so what?"

Cohen gasped.

Miranda sighed.

“All the commanders, all the commanders,” Thales exhaled painfully, “was the one before you considered ‘all the commanders’?”

Nicolai's breath hitched: "Huh?"

Raphael sensed something was wrong, and his questioning voice sounded behind him:
"Any questions?"

Thales turned his head and looked ahead at the tunnel in the view given to him by the Sin of the River of Hell.

Ahead, pitch black and seemingly endless.

As their only way out.

"Have."

In the darkness, Thales could be heard saying weakly, "And..."

"It's a huge problem."

The chargeable word count is 5800, but the actual word count is 6800—please feel free to ask!

P.S.: NieR: Automata is so much fun! It suddenly gave me the idea to write a post-apocalyptic science fiction book.

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(End of this chapter)