They are all characters I control.

"Kill!" Karl led his knights in hot pursuit, colliding with the heretics pouring out of the alley.

The sounds of clashing metal, screams, and the neighing of warhorses mingled together on the streets of Grayrock Town.

Eleanor did not rush to the front.

She shielded Mel, positioned in the center of the formation.

Holding a sword in one hand and pressing down on Mel's shoulder with the other, he scanned the surroundings warily.

“Sister Eleanor…” Mel’s voice trembled, her little hands tightly gripping the hem of Eleanor’s clothes.

"Don't be afraid, stay close to me." Eleanor's voice was calm, but the veins on her hand gripping the sword were bulging.

She saw three heretics rush out of the alley to her left, wielding spears, heading straight for the flank of the formation. The knights on the flank were busy dealing with the enemy in front and hadn't noticed the threat from this side.

Eleanor released Mel and rushed forward.

The first sword parried the thrusting spear; the second sword slashed off the wrist of the second heretic; the third sword thrust straight into the heart of the third heretic.

Three swords, three people.

Neat.

She stepped back to Mel's side and continued to protect her.

At this moment, the most conspicuous figure on the battlefield was indeed Knight Commander Will, who stood like a war god in the center of the battlefield.

His swordsmanship had no fancy moves; every strike was precise and deadly. Holy light flowed over him, evaporating the splattered blood into mist. Wherever he passed, heretics fell like wheat being harvested.

"As expected of Knight Commander Will."

A voice came from the front of the street.

It wasn't Old Bart's rough, hoarse male voice, but a woman's voice.

Lazy, alluring, with a hint of morbid pleasure.

Will sheathed his sword and looked up.

Old Bart stood in the middle of the street, his obese body trembling slightly.

No, it's not trembling—it's "changing".

The luxurious fur coat slipped off his body as if shedding its skin, revealing a tight-fitting dark red evening gown underneath.

Her obese body, like a deflated balloon, quickly shrank and deformed, revealing a slender waist, full breasts, and long legs.

That round face was also changing—the fat was disappearing, revealing a delicate jawline, a high nose bridge, and scarlet lips.

Finally, a head of dark red hair cascaded down from the helmet.

Old Bart has disappeared.

The person standing there was a woman.

A woman with an otherworldly beauty.

Her skin was so white it was almost translucent, her long, dark red hair was like congealed blood, her lips were scarlet, and her eyeshadow was heavy.

Although she was undoubtedly the leader of the heretics, her evening gown accentuated her devilish figure, still drawing attention to this dangerous and terrifying woman.

“The Scarlet Witch.” Will’s voice was flat, but his grip on the sword tightened slightly. “Dorothy, the Scarlet Witch, one of the three high priests of the Church of Life.”

"I never expected to run into you here."

"What? Your 'Church of Life' is actually after me this time? You want to bleed me dry?"

“Knight Commander Will, I’ve heard so much about you.” The woman tilted her head, a slight smile curving her crimson lips. “Of course, we are indeed very interested in your blood.”

“Dorothy?” Eleanor murmured the name repeatedly in the center of the formation.

She had never heard of this name.

But she had heard of the title "Three Great Priests".

They were second only to the Pope in the 'Church of Life'. Each possessed terrifying power and an incredibly long lifespan. Legend has it that they had lived for over a hundred years, existing since the very founding of the 'Church of Life'.

“Your disguise is clumsy,” Will said coldly. “The bloodstains on the city gate, the timing of the closing, and the stiff movements of those ‘sentinels.’ Did you deliberately let us discover you?”

"Intentionally?" The Scarlet Witch covered her mouth and chuckled. "I just wanted to see just how powerful the legendary Knight Commander Will really is. He certainly lives up to his reputation."

She clapped her hands.

"Even if you discovered it, you still got in, didn't you? I think you know I have other ways to let you in, and you can't refuse. Now, let me see just how strong Commander Will really is."

As soon as she finished speaking, even more heretics poured out of the alley behind her.

They are not ordinary heretics.

They wore simple leather armor, held standard longswords and battle axes, and had fanatical yet empty eyes.

"Offer your blood! Offer it to the goddess of life!" The Scarlet Witch raised her hands, her voice like a spell.

The heretics simultaneously pulled out a bottle of dark red liquid from their pockets.

That was a potion made from diluted Philosopher's Stone.

After these armed heretics drank the potion, the changes began.

"Gurgle... Ahh ...

Screams echoed throughout the room.

Their bodies began to twist and swell, their skin cracking to reveal dark red muscles beneath. Some arms turned into claws, some grew bone spurs on their backs, and some had their eyes turn pure black, leaving only two blood-red pupils.

demon.

No, it's a monster that went out of control after consuming the Philosopher's Stone.

"Everyone, regroup! Don't scatter!" Knight Will roared, holy light surging on his sword blade.

The first monster had already rushed towards him.

What was once a thin man was now over two meters tall, his body covered in dark red keratin, and his hands had transformed into enormous claws. He opened his mouth, revealing a mouthful of fangs, and lunged at Will.

Will did not back down.

He took a step forward and slashed down with his longsword.

Holy light condensed on the blade, forming a beam that cleaved the monster in two. Dark red blood splattered, landing on Will with a hissing sound, but his armor was protected by the holy light, and the blood evaporated.

But there were too many monsters.

More than a dozen heretics who had consumed the Philosopher's Stone rushed in from all directions. Some were extremely fast, some were incredibly strong, and some could even spew out corrosive liquids.

The formation of the church knights began to crack.

Chapter 132 A Turtle in a Jar

The surrounded church knights were at a disadvantage against the heretics who had drunk the "Philosopher's Stone" potion.

The heretics who hadn't drunk the potion were just farmers who had taken up arms; they could be easily defeated as long as the formation was maintained.

However, the heretics who had drunk the potion were fearless and their fighting power was significantly stronger, and their numbers far exceeded those of the church knights.

Even the highly trained church knights began to suffer casualties. One knight was thrown from his horse, and two heretics immediately pinned him down and pounced on him, tearing at his throat.

The other church knights were all chilled as they watched the heretics sucking the blood of their comrades like they were opening a can.

"Watch out!" Eleanor stood in the center of the formation, responsible for maintaining the position formed by the church knights.

As she watched a heretic who had drunk a potion pounce on a church knight wielding a shield, she rushed over and beheaded the heretic with a single stroke of her sword.

But more infidels flocked to the area.

Eleanor's strength was considerable, but she was clearly already struggling to keep up. Knight Commander Will, who was leading the charge, was now standing at the forefront of the heretics, trying his best to kill one heretic after another, but the number of these heretics seemed endless.

That makes sense, since this town was specifically designed to ambush them.

The town was already fully prepared before the arrival of the church knights, and the number of heretics was naturally not small.

"How is it? Knight Commander Will, you still need to work harder. Look at your subordinates dying one after another." Scarlet Witch Dorothy was sitting leisurely on a high place, looking down at the scene in front of her.

The current situation perfectly matches her expectations and imagination; it's just right for her.

Although many church knights were defeated by these heretics who had taken potions, this was a rare occurrence under normal circumstances, since not all church knights were as outstanding as the subordinates of Knight Commander Will.

But now, the Scarlet Witch only cares about Commander Will.

A decent red wine on a regular day is rubbish compared to a top-tier red wine that's practically a dream come true; nobody cares about those inferior things.

"Scarlet Witch!" Faced with the enemy's taunts, and seeing his knights fall one after another, a flash of anger appeared in Commander Will's eyes.

Continuing to delay was not a solution, so he decided to stop holding back.

Divine magic erupted from his body, burning like tangible flames on his skin.

The legendary knight commander's speed suddenly increased, his longsword transforming into streaks of light and shadow, with each swing bringing down a heretic.

Three.

Five.

Eight.

Eleven.

In less than half a minute, all the dozen or so heretics who had taken the potion fell to Will's sword.

He stood in the center of the pile of corpses, covered in blood, with holy light dancing on his body like an inextinguishable flame.

This attack instantly reduced the pressure on the church knights.

"Brilliant, brilliant!" The Scarlet Witch clapped her hands, her face full of admiration. "As expected of Knight Commander Will. Even the followers enhanced by the Philosopher's Stone are no match for you, so what about these?"

She clapped her hands.

At the end of the street, a group of heretics led out hundreds of civilians.

Men, women, the elderly, and children.

They were bound with ropes, their mouths gagged, and their eyes were filled with terror. A heretic held a knife to a little girl's neck; the girl trembled and tears streamed down her face.

This is the Scarlet Witch's confidence: even if Will doesn't enter the town, she can use the townspeople as hostages to coerce Commander Will.

The moral and religious education that church knights received would become their greatest burden.

Knight Commander Will's face darkened.

"Let them go." His voice was low, but every word was filled with anger.

"Let go?" The Scarlet Witch tilted her head. "Sure. But I have a condition."

"explain."

“I can let your knights leave, along with these commoners,” Scarlet Witch Dorothy said, looking at Commander Will with amusement. “However, you will stay here alone.”

Will fell silent.

"Captain!" Karl cried out urgently, "Don't listen to her! We..."

“Shut up,” Sir Will interrupted him.

His gaze swept over the commoners, over his knights, and finally landed on the Scarlet Witch's face.

“Let them go,” Will said. “I’ll stay alone.”

"team leader!"

"That's an order!" Will's voice brooked no argument. "Karl, take everyone out of Grayrock Town. Leave no one behind."

Karl gritted his teeth, his eyes reddening, but military orders were absolute.

He turned to the other knights and roared, "Fall back! Retreat!"

However, Eleanor remained standing, her gaze fixed on Knight Commander Will.

"Eleanor, take the child and go!" Knight Commander Will looked at Eleanor.

Eleanor hugged Mel, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something. But seeing the serious look in Knight Commander Will's eyes, she said nothing, only nodding vigorously.

The knights quickly retreated, releasing the hostages and handing them over to the church knights. Protecting the "survivors" and Mel, the church knights retreated out of town.

The Scarlet Witch did not stop her.

She simply stood in the middle of the street, smiling at Will like a cat watching a mouse.