The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 206 Bloodbath
Eric twirled his longsword in his hand, reined in his horse, and led a whole squad of church knights into formation, eyeing a group of demon infantry not far away on the flank of the battlefield.

They were the protectors of the demon archers' positions further back, and at this moment they had to focus their main attention on this group of church knights—who occupied a rather threatening position.

"rush!"

Without warning, Eric raised his longsword and led his knights in a charge towards them.

A large group of demon infantry adjusted their formation to meet their charge, but just as they were about to collide, Eric, the leader, turned around, circled in an arc, and led the knights back to their previous positions.

At this moment, the Imperial Army's heavy infantry also pressed forward, forcing the Demon infantry to hastily adjust their formation and once again resist the enemy in front.

Amidst continuous frontal attacks and occasional feints from the flanks, the demon army in this area of ​​the battlefield struggled to make a breakthrough. They had to remain constantly on edge, as the cavalry threatening from the flanks would occasionally turn a feint into a full-scale assault, like a sharp dagger piercing their position.

Another feint attack forced a large group of demon infantry to retreat in disarray and return to a safe position. Eric looked into the distance, but the relaxed expression on his face quickly faded.

The advantage he gained here could not change the overall situation where the main force of the imperial army was at a disadvantage. The number of demon soldiers was simply too great, almost overwhelming. The imperial army resisted quite tenaciously, but the lines were gradually shrinking.

"We need to find a way to alleviate some of the pressure over there."

Eric pointed to the other side of the battlefield, and Edward, looking around, quickly said, "We can only go around from behind, otherwise we'll get stuck."

"I share that view. However, before leaving, we need to find an opportunity to inflict some real damage on the demons' defenses here."

Edward gestured with his eyes to the infantrymen on both sides who were locked in combat, "How about we flank them from the side, help them break through, and then charge out from the right flank?"

“It’s risky; we could easily get caught in the crossfire,” Eric said quickly. “Once the warhorses stop, they’re hard to break free.”

Edward thought for a moment, "Let's feign an attack on the flank first. If the demon infantry shows any weakness during their movement, we'll charge the front-line infantry. If there's no weakness, we'll turn back and wait for the next opportunity."

Eric thought for a moment, then turned to look at him.

"Isn't this exactly what we've been doing all along?"

Edward was taken aback, then realized what was happening and felt a little embarrassed.

“We’ve lingered here for a while… These demons are becoming increasingly wary of us. While our frontline warriors are managing to gain the upper hand, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for us to make any further breakthroughs.”

"Let's go directly to the other side."

Eric gave up decisively, saying, "We can't be greedy for gains. Our greatest advantage is our high mobility. If we're stuck in one place, we'll lose our effectiveness."

"Yes!"

Eric led his knights around from the rear of his own army and rushed to the other side of the battlefield. After several charges, their burst of speed yielded considerable results, and the demons' relentless advance was immediately halted.

With a single sword stroke, Eric severed the head of a demon warrior. Without pausing, he spurred his horse and continued his charge, bursting out from the other side of the demon's lines.

Overwhelmed by the cavalry's power, the demon archers retreated continuously, revealing even greater weaknesses in their movements.

Eric intended to seize this opportunity to launch a counterattack, but suddenly noticed a cavalry unit rapidly approaching them from the flank and rear of the demon's position. He immediately reined in his horse and retreated back to his own camp.

"retreat!"

He instinctively felt that the demon cavalry were coming for them, and judging from their charging posture, they were clearly different from ordinary demon cavalry, like elite cavalry.

However, the knights behind them were already deeply entrenched in the enemy lines, and the obvious weaknesses that had been exposed to them in the demon army's territory suddenly began to shrink.

It really is a trap.

Eric felt a chill run down his spine.

This flaw was deliberately exposed to lure them into charging into battle.

He had no time to regret his oversight. Before the encirclement was completely closed, he turned and charged back into the fray. He couldn't let his knight be left here.

Pfft!

Eric spurred his horse and knocked away a demon infantryman, then cut down two demon warriors charging at him with his sword. He realized that these demon soldiers, who had suddenly become fearless, had probably received orders to forcibly keep them in their place.

On the other side, more demon soldiers charged towards him. Eric glanced at the distance and saw that the elite demon cavalry were getting closer and closer.

when!
Blocking the incoming blade, Eric decapitated himself with a backhand motion, braced himself with one hand, and stood up on his horse, golden light emanating from his face and body.

He leaped forward on his horse, and Edward, who had already broken free of the demon formation, glared at him, "Your Highness!"

As soon as Eric landed, he began to slash around himself. With his power almost at its peak, almost every sword strike sent heads flying or demons falling. The area around him was instantly cleared, but he stopped, and a golden halo resembling a magic circle appeared beneath his feet.

Golden light surged upwards, and suddenly a pair of golden wings unfolded behind him, lifting him into the air.

The fighting nearby seemed to stop for a moment as all eyes turned to this.

The focus of attention was on Eric, who had risen into the air and spread his arms, suddenly releasing a dazzling and intense golden light.

Eclipse of Light!

The holy light released in all directions was like silk threads, or like golden arrows with substance. The demons that came into contact with it all howled in pain, and large areas of burn marks appeared on their skin.

They tried to escape, but after running only a few steps, they all collapsed and couldn't get up.

Meanwhile, the knights who were also bathed in holy light and trapped in the formation felt their wounds healing rapidly.

"Get out of here!" Eric shouted from mid-air.

The once faint hope suddenly expanded, and the knights unleashed an amazing will to survive, charging left and right, constantly breaking through the encirclement, and finally successfully escaped the entangled quagmire.

Eric, having unleashed the Light Erosion spell in mid-air, whistled, his golden wings flapping as he descended from the sky, landing squarely on the charging warhorse.

The ground around him was littered with demons he had slain or those killed by the holy light emanating from the Light Erosion. As he rode out to charge, no one dared to stop him until a furious shout in an incomprehensible demon language came from a distance. Only then did the demon soldiers swarm around him again.

The source of that angry shout was none other than the elite demon knights who had already charged close.

Eric gripped the reins tightly with one hand and held his longsword in the other, swinging it left and right as he tried his best to break through the encirclement.

The knights, who had just been rescued, naturally couldn't just watch him get trapped in the encirclement. They regrouped and prepared their strength. One group charged towards the approaching demon knights, while the other group charged back into the demon territory, attacking from the outside in.

There was a significant disparity in strength between the two sides. Previously, when Eric led his knights in a charge, these demon soldiers often avoided them. However, now, driven by those elite knights, no one dared to retreat, which quickly turned this battleground into the most intense place of fighting.

More and more demon warriors surrounded him, and Eric quickly realized that it would be difficult for him to break through on horseback.

He dismounted again, and upon landing, he swept his way around, killing and repelling seven or eight demon warriors. Without pausing, he continued charging towards the direction closest to his teammates outside, killing anyone who tried to stop him.

"Uh!"

Eric cleaved the throat of the nearest demon soldier with a single sword strike, spraying blood all over his face. He then kicked the soldier, sending it and two other demons behind it flying.

With his other hand gripping the weapon he had snatched from the demon soldiers, he slashed and hacked with both hands, repelling two approaching demon warriors, and then suddenly threw it, the tip of the blade piercing the chest of another man.

"Your Highness!"

An outer church knight reached out his hand to him, and Eric used the momentum to leap onto his horse, only to find that his knights were already completely entangled in battle with the elite demon knights and could not break free.

"Rush over!"

"Yes!"

Accelerating closer, Eric suddenly leaped and knocked a demon knight off his horse.

The two fell to the ground. Eric got up faster, and before he could even pick up his weapon, he saw the other struggling to get up. He then delivered an elbow strike to the other's face, the hard iron armor smashing into its face, leaving it covered in blood and its vision blurred with crimson.

It also lost the chance to see the world clearly again.

Pfft!

Eric plunged the sword through the gap in the demon knight's armor, piercing his neck. Before he could pull the sword out, Eric quickly ducked his head to avoid a slash coming from the side.

He drew his weapon again, and just as he was about to mount the demon knight's snow goat, another blade slashed down, splitting the snow goat's head open.

"fuck your mother!"

The snow sheep screamed and went out of control. Eric cursed and threw his longsword at the clumsy demon knight. He then quickly picked up the demon weapon that had fallen to the ground, and without even mounting his horse, he charged straight at the nearest enemy.

The demon knight's act of killing sheep gave him inspiration. The knights around him were struggling to move and could not charge, so he became more agile on the ground. He poked any white sheep he saw, and for a time, the bleating and screams of sheep were continuous.

With their mounts out of control, the demon knights were immediately at a disadvantage in their battle with the church knights.

Eric ducked to dodge a slash coming from above, then swiftly raised his hand and severed the hand holding the knife.

"what--"

The scream was sharp and piercing. Eric grabbed the fallen weapon, slashed with both swords, and cut the demon knight off his horse. He then slashed at the neck to finish him off.

"Your Highness!"

Edward finally rushed to his side again, "Get on my horse!"

Eric dropped a knife and reached for Edward's hand. Because his hand was covered in blood and extremely slippery, before he could even grasp it, Edward quickly stretched out his hand, and they held wrists together, pulling Eric onto the horse.

"Don't get entangled with them!"

Eric raised his sword to block the incoming attack. "Find a way to retreat!" "I understand, Your Highness! But we're all entangled now!" Edward was also struggling to control his horse, attacking and parrying, unable to move an inch.

Eric glanced back, for they were surrounded, and their own infantry surged forward, charging and fighting recklessly.

"Dismount!" Eric exclaimed immediately. "We're close; we can charge back!"

"Yes!"

Edward shouted, "Dismount and fight! Fight and retreat!"

The knights, surrounded, dismounted. Fighting on the ground was never their weakness; in fact, they were more agile in combat.

Eric also jumped off Edward's horse. Instead of rushing back to his own ranks, he went around slashing and helping the knights who were struggling to break through the encirclement.

He had already seen several knights fall...

"Retreat! Retreat!"

Eric shouted as he killed, his entire body almost completely stained with blood.

"Your Highness... uh!"

A knight who was very close was stabbed from behind by a demon knight who had also dismounted. Eric pushed off with his feet and instantly appeared behind the demon knight, holding his sword with both hands and severing half of its head.

"withdraw!"

Holding the heavily wounded knight, Eric broke through to the outside, and Edward immediately came to his aid, carrying the knight onto a horse on the outer perimeter.

"Your Highness, our men have almost broken through the encirclement. Please mount your horse and retreat quickly!"

Eric turned his head, his gaze passing through the gap between the man's legs and the horse's hooves, and pointed to a church knight who was already lying on the ground.

"He can't be saved! Your Highness, retreat quickly!" Edward anxiously pushed him towards his horse.

Without further hesitation, Eric mounted his horse and carried the seriously wounded knight back to his own lines.

After putting him down, Eric immediately returned to cover the other knights' retreat.

At this moment, the Imperial Army, which had advanced significantly in the vicinity, was already engaged in a fierce battle with the Demon soldiers. With more and more friendly forces around them, the situation was no longer so critical.

Eric saw that the church knight lying on the ground not far away was still moving, so he immediately rushed over and cut down several ordinary demon soldiers nearby with a few strokes, then bent down and dragged his teammate to his feet.

"Uh!"

Just as he bent over, a painful groan came from behind him.

He turned around and saw an Imperial soldier lying straight down behind him, without any fatal wounds.

"..."

Eric had no time to think. He carried the almost unconscious knight on his back and ran wildly back to his own lines.

"Your Highness!" Edward returned and quickly came over to lend a hand.

Eric carried the seriously injured and unconscious knight to his horse. Seeing an empty horse nearby, he immediately mounted it and rode back with Edward.

By this point in the battle, Edward's vision was completely blood-red. He looked at his own positions in front of him, then turned to look beside him, and suddenly reined in his horse to a stop.

"..."

Soon there will be no one.

He turned around and saw Eric lying motionless on the ground, his fate unknown.

Without a second thought, Edward jumped off his horse and galloped back.

"Your Highness, Your Highness!"

He helped Eric up and shook him, but the latter remained motionless.

"Your Highness..."

Edward looked towards the demon formation and saw a demon riding a horse, holding a black staff-like stick high in his direction. When Edward looked at him, a distinctly ferocious smile appeared on his face.

"Mori, girl, silk, gone!"

Despite the constant sounds of battle, he could still clearly hear the demon's stiff, deliberate speech in the Common Language.

He must have done something to His Highness...

"Mori Girl is dead!"

"The Mori Girl is dead!"

A dozen or so demon knights riding snow sheep shouted in unison, raising their weapons and cheering in this direction.

Suppressing his intense anger, Edward carried Eric on his back and ran back until only his allies remained by his side. Suddenly, his legs gave way, and he and Eric fell to the ground.

Even after such a heavy fall, Eric still did not wake up.

Edward struggled to help him up, then checked his heartbeat and breathing, finding them still present. He wondered what the demons meant by the saintess's supposed death.

"Your Highness! Commander!"

"What's wrong, Your Highness?"

Several more knights came over, helped the two onto their horses, and led them to the rear.

Edward glanced at the knights who were gradually gathering around him, then at the few people being carried, and finally looked back at the battlefield where the two armies were clashing.

At least a dozen knights fell there forever.

"Send Her Highness back...back into the city..."

Edward was already exhausted. He gave his last words, then his vision blurred and he fell backward.

"Captain!"

The urgent shouts were drowned out by the increasingly fierce sounds of battle.

"what--"

Eric sat up abruptly, his head throbbing.

He involuntarily touched his head, and a sharp pain continued to throb, as if thousands of needles were piercing his head, but he couldn't feel anything.

"Your Highness! Your Highness——"

The people who had been waiting around him gathered around. Eric covered his head and groaned for a while, then pounded his head a few times. The intangible and inexplicable stinging pain gradually subsided.

He looked up and found himself surrounded by nuns, and he was no longer on the battlefield, but as if he had returned to the monastery in the city.

After a moment, he was finally able to speak: "What happened?"

"The knight who brought Your Highness back said that you collapsed on the battlefield... The priest of light said that Your Highness may have been afflicted by some kind of demonic curse."

Eric quickly checked himself and found that apart from some scabbed knife wounds, he had nothing else on his body.

"What curse?"

“I don’t know…it might just be temporary. Two days later, the curse will be gone,” the nun said again.

Eric jerked his head up. "Two days?"

The nun was startled. "Yes... His Highness has been unconscious for more than two days."

"What's the situation with the battle outside the city?" Eric asked as he got out of bed.

The nuns gathered around to help him dress. "The Empire's warriors held out against the demons' fierce attack for two days, until yesterday evening, when they finally retreated back into the city."

Eric remained silent for a moment.

"Two days..."

When he came outside, Elise was about to visit him. Seeing that he had woken up, she was relieved and then told him about what had happened in the past few days.

"The demon army has surrounded the city of Lutia and temporarily halted its attack... I think they are probably rushing to build siege equipment."

Upon arriving at the East Gate, Eric discovered that the military camps outside the city had been moved inside, occupying the streets and houses, and everywhere he looked, there were Imperial soldiers.

He didn't have time to see his uncle, so he climbed the city wall.

Outside the moat, the demon army stretched as far as the eye could see.

(End of this chapter)