Gunpowder Plate Armor and the Magic Revolution

"Dr. William?"

Upon hearing that familiar name, Lucas looked at Andrew. "You're not the person you just mentioned, are you...?"

"What are you all standing there for! Help!"

Nozer was the first to react, drawing his scimitar and charging forward.

The battle not far away was exceptionally fierce.

"Are there any survivors?"

A mournful roar came from the mouths of the surviving guards, but apart from a few who were standing, there was no further response.

The remaining five guards, their eyes bloodshot, drew their straight-bladed swords from their waists and charged at the oncoming assassin.

The assassin's swift sword is thin and sharp, making it very effective against unarmored targets.

The cold blue light flashing from the sword streaked past in the sunlight. Every strike was aimed at the guard's throat and heart, a vicious and cunning move, clearly the work of a professional assassin who had received specialized assassination training.

The guards fought desperately to block, but the explosion cost them most of their men. The assassins, outnumbered, quickly gained the upper hand.

With a few muffled "thuds," the two guards in the front row were unable to dodge in time and were pierced through the chest by the swift sword. Blood gushed out, and they fell straight down on the dock.

The remaining three men swung their swords with all their might, but they still couldn't stop the assassins from surrounding them. In just a few breaths, another man's carotid artery was slashed open, and hot blood splattered all over the ground.

"Let's go! Doctor! Miss Sophie! Hurry!"

The two remaining guards stood side by side, using their bodies to desperately block the assassins' attacks. One of them, despite having his arm pierced by a sword, swung his blade and felled one of the assassins, screaming hoarsely, "Run west! There are people in military uniforms over there!"

Although Dr. William was somewhat startled by the sudden attack, he was not completely terrified like a fool; at least he could still walk on his own.

Sophie protected Dr. William and quickly retreated towards the west side of the dock, where the Goldship was docked and where the officers of Nozer's group were located.

"Stop them! Don't let the target get away!"

Upon seeing this, the assassin leader roared angrily and immediately dispatched seven or eight of his most skilled assassins, who shook off the guards and chased after William and Sophie.

As the assassins drew closer, even drawing their throwing knives, Sophie gritted her teeth, shoved Dr. William forward, and shielded the assassins with her own body. "Father, run!"

With that, she turned and stopped, then drew a silver short sword from her waist and slashed horizontally at the flying knife.

With two clangs, she deflected the flying knife, but two assassins who followed closely behind had already closed in on her, attacking from both sides. Their two swift swords, one above and one below, forced her to retreat repeatedly.

Clearly, Sophie's melee combat skills were practically nonexistent, while the assassins opposite her were highly experienced. Furthermore, she was fighting two opponents at once, so she was practically doomed.

Before two rounds had even passed, Sophie was wide open, and the assassin's swift sword flew towards her neck.

With nowhere to retreat and nowhere to defend herself, Sophie closed her eyes, seemingly resigned to death.

"Be careful!"

Nozer's voice suddenly rang in her ear.

At the critical moment, he finally arrived at the battlefield, reached out and half-wrapped Sophie around her waist, and suddenly pulled her behind him.

Sophie was pulled so hard that she stumbled and fell backward.

The swift sword's sharp blade grazed the top of her head, cutting through the veil in front of her, but did not harm her.

The scarf floated down slowly and landed on the ground.

Noze's gaze unconsciously swept over Sophie, his breath hitched, and everything around him seemed to slow down.

The girl's left half of her face was covered by an exquisitely crafted silver mask without any eye openings. The cold and intricate carvings extended from her upper lip to her forehead, completely obscuring most of her face.

However, the right half of her face was extremely beautiful, with cool-toned porcelain white skin, and her almond-shaped eyes, slightly upturned at the corners, were still full of surprise.

Beneath her straight, upturned nose were thin lips of a pale color, which, even when tightly pursed, could not conceal their breathtaking brilliance.

Half of it is cold metal, and the other half is soft skin. The strong contrast creates a unique aesthetic.

Konoze had no time to wonder, nor any interest in appreciating.

The moment he pulled Sophie back, the assassin who had missed his attack had already turned his sword around, the swift blade whistling as it pierced the air, heading straight for Noze's heart.

"Run!"

Noze watched the assassin's attack, neither advancing nor retreating. Instead, he took a step forward, shielding Sophie behind him, and slashed down fiercely with his right-hand scimitar to meet the assassin's blade.

"when!"

The heavy scimitar clashed with the slender, swift sword, sparks flying.

The assassin's wrist went numb from the shock, and his sword tip went awry. Taking advantage of the opponent's wide-open defenses, Noze slashed down the assassin in front of him with a single blow.

But another assassin, who had been following closely behind, had already circled around to the side, his throwing knife aimed straight at the unsuspecting Sophie.

Noze had no time to block, and in desperation, he had no choice but to take a gamble.

Magic surged from his fingertips, instantly applying an upward lateral force along the trajectory of the throwing knife—the [Deflection Technique] that Monet had taught him.

With a "whoosh," the throwing knife instantly deviated from its original trajectory, soaring straight into the air and embedding itself in the wooden beam of the nearby warehouse.

The assassin was stunned for a moment, clearly not expecting his sure-fire strike to fail in this way.

In that brief moment of hesitation, Noze rushed forward, his scimitar whistling as it slashed fiercely at the assassin's wrist, which was gripping the swift sword.

With a "splatter" sound, blood splattered everywhere.

The assassin's wrist was severed cleanly at the root. He let out a heart-wrenching scream, staggering backward as he clutched his bleeding wrist. The ferocity in his eyes was instantly replaced by excruciating pain and terror.

Without pausing, Norze kicked him hard in the chest, sending the assassin flying backward like a rag doll, crashing into his two companions who were rushing up. The three of them rolled around in a heap.

But five or six more assassins surrounded them, clearly not taking Noze, the young Orentia officer, seriously.

Upon seeing their companion fall to the ground, the assassins immediately dispatched three to surround and subdue Nozer, allowing the remaining two to bypass him and continue their assassination mission.

The assassin at the front swung his sword at Norze, the swift blade's narrow blade striking Norze like a viper's tongue, aiming straight for his waist and abdomen.

Noze shifted his feet, dodging the sword's edge, and at the same time, his magic instantly activated, wrapping around the assassin's sword on the left and pulling it sharply to the right.

The two swords clashed instantly, producing a piercing sound, and the two assassins' attacks faltered for a moment.

Although Norze could fight the group of assassins in front of him to a standstill with the aid of magic, he was powerless against the assassins who bypassed him and continued to carry out their assassinations.

Just then, Lucas and Andrew arrived with their scimitars, shielding Dr. William and Sophie behind them.