Chapter 427: A Stalemate

Zakriel’s sudden appearance shattered the tense atmosphere in the hall. He caught everyone by surprise.

Stake frowned deeply. The assassins’ gazes wavered. Yodel continued to remain silent as a response.

To Thales, however, this was the greatest surprise of the day.

He endured the bloody and peculiar stench coming Zakriel’s body, and did not pay much attention to the man’s current condition. “Zakriel, erm, sir, do you understand the situation that we are currently facing? They are—”

“Ah.” Zakriel snorted gently. He shook his head and shifted his attention from his left hand which ached because of his own doing, to the person in front of him.

“Shadow Shield, huh?” The Knight of Judgement enunciated clearly, his voice was gloomy. “They are an unforgettable presence.”

Zakriel shook his head. The hair on his forehead was split into two sides. Stake could finally see the brand on the man’s forehead clearly.

At that moment, Stake’s expression became incredibly unpleasant. He had suddenly realized who this person was.

“Sh*t,” the leader of the assassins muttered. He signaled for his subordinates to retreat slowly. Even Yodel, who was bound by them, moved with them.

When he remembered Zakriel’s former identity and fame, Stake became even more alert. Luck was not in their favor. He secretly darted Thales a look.

In comparison, Thales was in high spirits. He felt relieved by his good fortune at that moment. “Then you—”

But Zakriel jolted violently afterwards. He looked like he was suffering. He lowered his head swiftly, covered his face in pain, and shuddered.

“AAAAAHHHH!! ENOUGH!” Zakriel stared at an empty corner by his side with a ferocious expression. His tone was unpleasant. “I know what should be done!”

Thales was shocked.

The Knight of Judgement panted hurriedly as he stared at the corner, his face serious. It was as if there really was someone there talking to him.

“I will try to be… more careful. I will cherish the limited time I have out of the prison. God damn it, I’m really hungry.” The veins on the back of the hand Zakriel hand used to cover his forehead showed. He gritted his teeth while he communicated with a non-existent person.

When he saw Zakriel suddenly behave abnormally, Thales’ heart sank. He subconsciously took a small step back, but then forced himself to stop.

‘No.’ He could not move back, Yodel was still in danger.

Thales then looked at Yodel who was far away from him. He still held on to the Supreme Sword as he struggled with his limbs. He never gave up. But strangely, he shook his head in a barely noticeable manner at Thales.

Stake observed all these on the other side. He quirked his eyebrows, and seemed to be deep in thought.

Thales took a deep breath, and attempted to ask the long-faced man beside him, “Are you okay? Is it the other world again?”

Zakriel sucked in a few deep breaths. His face turned from pale to red. He became normal again.

“I am fine.” the Knight of Judgement closed both of his eyes tightly. He pushed his head hard against his palm. Every single time he said a phrase, his hand would twitch.

“It’s just like the training in the past. When you try to withstand Tony’s blows, the damn trainer will still shout in your ears like you’re not flustered enough…”

‘You’re fine?’ Thales watched him worriedly. He suppressed what he wanted to say in his heart. ‘Is he really okay in this condition…?’

He cast Yodel another look, then tried hard to dispel his doubts and fears. He had no choice.

“Well then, could you…” Thales entered used hell’s senses once more, and tried to find a weakness in his enemies’ formation. The prince looked at Yodel firmly. “…save him?”

Zakriel’ breathing slowly became stable. He opened his eyes and looked ahead while his body was still burdened by fatigue and injury. His gaze moved past the assassins, and past the bound Yodel as well.

“Killing is easy, but saving? That is another thing.” The Knight of Judgement seemed like he had regained lucidity. As he spoke, he panted in between words. Thales’ eyes turned gloomy.

Stake pulled out his awl and dagger again. A shrewd sparkle shone in his eyes. No one knew what he was thinking about.

“And they have many men, boy.” Zakriel frowned. He lowered his head to look at Thales, and coldly said, “Once we fight, I cannot protect you.”

The bound Yodel jolted. He shook his head firmly. Thales was a little startled, and then immediately smiled.

“No need to worry about me, Sir Zakriel.” Thales’ eyes were firm. He raised his weapon at the assassins. “You just need to save him. I can protect myself.”

At that moment, he suddenly felt that the sword in his hands was no longer as heavy as before. Zakriel narrowed his eyes slightly.

On the other side, Stake suddenly shouted, “Your Highness! Are you sure that this is a good idea?” He put on that friendly smile again. “Trust me, we can solve this through negotiation.”

Thales sneered gently.

“Are we not negotiating right now?” The prince took a step back and brandished Ricky’s longsword. He took his position in the Iron Body Style and said coldly, “With swords instead of words.”

Stake’s face sank. Zakriel was still silent. He looked at Thales, and then at Yodel. The Knight of Judgement asked calmly,

“How important is he to you? Is he worth throwing your life away?”

Thales lifted the corners of his lips. “Zakriel, are your brothers in the Royal Guards important to you?” the prince asked with a smile.

Zakriel was silent for an instant. The brand on his face shook slightly in the waning light.

The Knight of Judgement looked at the enemies ahead. He brought the shortsword in his left hand to his mouth and coldly bit down on it again. In an indistinct manner, he said, “Do not die, prince whose name I do not know.”

At that moment, Stake’s expression changed drastically!

When the word “know” came out of his mouth, Zakriel moved, and he lunged forward. The wind howled. He went straight for the four men who were detaining Yodel!

Zakriel was not fast since he had weapons all over his body, but his momentum and agility was still not to be taken lightly.

The Shadow Shield assassins reacted extremely quickly since they were prepared for this long ago. Five people immediately shot out of the darkness and went straight for the long-faced man.

At that moment, Thales saw a scattered glowing of orange-red light spreading out of Zakriel’s body with his hell’s senses. Arracca, Sonia, and Nicholas’ surging Powers of Eradication filled their entire bodies and were connected in a stream. Compared to theirs, this man’s Power of Eradication seemed interrupted and unfocused, like the meager drops of rain that scattered here and there in the desert.

There was no order in him, but Thales’ thoughts immediately changed.

‘No. It’s not that there’s no order.’ Thales watched the orange-red glow changing its trajectory, a thought struck him.

First, they gathered in his waist and left hand.

*Shick!*

Ther sound of something flying through the wind arose!

Once Zakriel took his first step, he turned and narrowly missed an arrow that grazed his nose. It was as though he had foreseen the attack.

He swung his left hand, the throwing axe on his back was seized and subsequently thrown. It went straight towards the ceiling, to his upper left.

*Swipe!*

There was a dull thud. An assassin holding a crossbow fell to the ground in the dark.

‘First… a useless trash who can’t aim properly.’ Zakriel counted in his heart.

Once the Knight of Judgement’s momentum stopped, three assassins closed in on him. They flanked him, one on the left and two on the right, then they attacked.

The fourth assassin charged at Zakriel head-on. There were four hiltless daggers clamped between the fingers of his right hand!

When he saw that Zakriel was surrounded and attacked by four people, Thales’ breathing tensed as he watched from the side.

He saw the orange-red glow alternating between degrees of brightness as they shone inside him. They filled the Knight of Judgement’s calves, right hand, and spine in a disjointed fashion.

At that moment, Zakriel stopped moving in a relaxed fashion, and then stomped the ground! He spun agilely on his feet, and avoided the enemies by his sides.

There was an instant where Thales thought that he saw the Kingdom’s Wrath charge into the enemy’s formation alone. But the Knight of Judgement did not charge forward in anger, neither did he try to break through the enemy formation at all costs. He did not kill his enemies at the risk of getting injured either.

The middle-aged man shook his shoulders violently, and the quiver on his back and the two swords in his right hand were instantly flung out. The quiver went straight towards the enemy coming at him, and the longswords shot towards the two assassins by his right.

*Shick!*

A soft sound rose. The quiver crashed against the daggers flying towards him. It was torn. A bundle of arrows spread out in the air.

*Thud!*

*Chink!*

The two swords pierced the ground, and it just so happened that they blocked the path of the two assassins aiming to charge at him from his right. They were forced to either readjust their positions or leap over the swords.

The second the three assassins were stunned, Zakriel attacked the assassin to his left.

The Knight of Judgement turned around in an astonishing manner and pressed into the arms of the assassin to his left at an angle that made attacking him difficult. Then, he accurately grabbed hold of the enemy’s dagger-wielding arm!

Zakriel moved his head to the assassin’s neck, as if he was hugging his lover. The shortsword in his mouth quivered slightly.

*Bang!*

The assassin moaned in pain. He watched in disbelief as the shortsword in Zakriel’s mouth slit his throat.

‘Second.

‘A dimwit who reacts a bit too slowly.’

Zakriel thought indifferently.

He released the shortsword in his mouth and licked his lacerated lips. He grabbed the assassin’s dagger-wielding arm, turned, and thrust forward!

*Splat!*

On his right, an assassin who was forced to leap due to the longsword on the ground found, much to his disbelief, that his companion’s dagger had sank into his chest, and he had no way to avoid it.

‘Third.

‘A blind idiot.’

Zakriel had no time to rest. He secretly evaluated his enemies and stretched out his right arm. With the momentum of his turn, he pushed against the poor soul who had his chest stabbed, and he pushed forward, using the assassin as his shield!

The second assassin to Zakriel’s right gritted his teeth. He was prepared to push away his partner’s body, but against his expectations, a bloody straight sword pierced through the corpse’s back, and it inevitably stabbed his throat!

‘Fourth.

‘A brainless twat.’

Zakriel still had a calm expression on his face.

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He released the sword that pierced through two men, then touched his back. His left hand went to grab an arrow falling through the air, and he threw it at the assassin who was charging head-on at him!

*Clang!*

A soft noise rose. The assassin blocked the incoming arrow, but found to his shock that at that instance, a claw hammer had already arrived before his eyes.

*Bang!*

A crisp sound rang. It sounded like an egg being crushed.

Even Thales shuddered involuntarily.

‘Fifth.

‘A hesitant coward.’

Under the terrified gazes of the remaining assassins, Zakriel retracted his hammer, and pulled out a dagger that pierced into his arm. It was his only injury. He finished his evaluation of the situation in his mind.

*Clack.*

The last arrow in the quiver fell to the ground. It bore testimony to the brief scuffle.

Thales subconsciously stopped breathing while he watched.

‘This man…’

He flung his axe to his his enemy, used his longswords to block them, pierced an assassin’s neck with a shortsword, pierced another’s heart with a dagger, pressed in against an assassin with the sword, and struck a head with the hammer in the end. All of these practically happened at the same time.

Thales suddenly had a feeling that when his Power of Eradication surged in his body like scattered sand at the moment he had to face the five assassins, Zakriel was not fighting alone against many.

He was split into five people, and he faced these five opponents with these five parts of himself.

No matter which side they came from, it was easy for him to handle one to one.

His palms, his shoulders, his waist, and his legs; every part of him, even the weapons on his body that were like burdens, all seemed to have a consciousness of their own. At the moment his Power of Eradication was released, these individual parts were all awakened, and they all danced independently to receive the enemies from different sides.

Some blocked the enemy’s path, some baited the enemy, some defended his weakness, some counterattacked at opportune moments, and some determined the result of his battle.

There was an even more prominent feature. When Thales watched Zakriel stab an assassin with the dagger he stole from his companion, as well as the arrows scattered all over the ground, Thales thought that all the things that constantly happened on the battlefield, be it accidents or coincidences, could turn into Zakriel’s weapons, leverages, and his pieces which would help him achieve victory.

Thales stared blankly at Zakriel. ‘This man… he doesn’t fight “alone”. He’s practically… an awe-inspiring battalion, a battle formation with flawless teamwork, a well-trained army.

‘No matter how many enemies he faces, he has victory in his hands. He is fearless and calm when facing his enemies.’

Zakriel did not stop. He charged towards Yodel.

‘No.’

Stake’s brow was twitching. He could not believe that there was such an existence of a single person who could single-handedly win against five people in a head-on confrontation. These were Shadow Shield assassins whom had received brutal training since they were orphans, and were ruthless when they attacked. Their attacks never missed.

‘How could this be…?’ The similarly shocked Stake gritted his teeth. He shouted to a spot in the distance,

“Quick! The boy!”

As he gave his orders, two assassins who avoided the battle took the opportunity to swiftly move past him and head for the prince when Zakriel was too preoccupied!

‘Here they come.’ Thales was nervous and fearful. He looked at his enemies to his sides and attacked with his longsword. The Sin of Hell’s River surged into his body like a tide, and time slowed down again.

*Clank!*

Thales managed to withstand the first incredibly aggressive blow from his enemy. He was about to get out of the sword’s area of attack when his second enemy threw a chain from his hand. Its movements caused the wind to roar, and it came next to Thales’ ears.

‘Damn it!’

Thales had difficulty handling the situation. He first avoided the tip of the sword, and then painfully withstood the blow from the chain. He could not even organize a presentable counterattack, and his longsword nearly slipped out of his grasp.

It was just like facing the orcs in the Great Desert. Attacks came from all fronts. He might be able to withstand one orc, but he could not defend against two…

‘Damn it. Earlier, Zakriel made it look so easy when he fought alone against a crowd. He could even turn his enemies’ charge into his own advantage.’

But when the time came for Thales to face the enemies himself… Thales sucked in a deep breath. A thought suddenly occurred in his mind.

‘Wait… One against many. Zakriel… turning the enemies’ attacks into his own advantage?’

With time slowed down, Thales had time to think.

‘The enemy to the left is holding a shortsword. It’s clear that he wants to have a close-range fight so that I’ll have difficulty advancing and retreating since I’m equipped with a longsword, and would be forced to widen the distance between us.

‘The enemy to the right is wielding a chain. He must be thinking about capturing me alive the moment I’m forced to constantly retreat while flustered.

‘One long, one short. Then…’

On the other side, the bound Yodel no longer stayed quiet. He frantically shouted to the Knight of Judgement, who was getting closer to him. “Zakriel!”

But their distance was too great. No matter what they did, it was too late.

However, Thales moved at that moment. The Sin of Hell’s River surged to the prince’s shoulders and waist, making him lower his body skillfully. He swung his longsword horizontally using Cold Strike, and parried the enemy’s sword.

*Clang!*

The shortsword-wielding enemy’s eyes moved. He took his chance to attack! But to his surprise, the force Thales used on his sword was feeble. There was no strength in it.

‘This is—’

Before he reacted to it, Thales retreated in the next second using his momentum, bringing the enemy forward to receive the fierce metal chain coming at them!

When he saw his companion and target enter his attack range simultaneously, the chain-bearing assassin stopped his attack at once. The roar beside Thales’ ears was no longer as fierce.

‘Now!’

Without the threat of the chain, Thales gritted his teeth. The Sin of Hell’s River disappeared instantly, and the Twist of Fate, which had become his most proficient skill due to imitating the original over the past six years, surged inside him from his bones!

*Shick!*

The longsword the prince withdrew took a shocking turn and pierced forward. It avoided the blade in front of it, and then pierced into the assassin’s chest while the assassin stared at Thales in shock and surprise!

‘Damn it.’ Thales clenched his teeth hard. He had felt the enemy’s shortsword stab into his shoulder, and it was incredibly painful.

The assassin’s eyes quivered. He met Thales’ gaze. In the end, he fell feebly to the ground.

While Stake watched, he felt his eyebrows rise.

‘Something’s wrong. The unique Power of Eradication, and the decisiveness in battle… The prince’s combat ability…’

This did not tally with what the Northlanders gave him! He was not a “somewhat intelligent but frail boy”.

Stake gritted his teeth. ‘Damn those brainless Northlanders!’

The sound of the metal chains moving through the air rose again.

Thales did not have time to rest. With both of his hands stained with fresh blood, he held the body of his enemy. With all his strength, he turned and pushed!

*Bang!*

The second enemy’s metal chain struck the ‘shield’ Thales had pushed forward. It wrapped a few loops around the ‘shield’, then retreated without success.

Thales, however, took the opportunity to roll out of the danger zone while he cradled his shoulder. He endured the pain and raised his sword once more.

The enemy was incredibly shocked by his partner’s sudden death. In his anger and surprise, he flung his weapon again. But he had no more chances to do that.

*Shiing!* A crisp sound.

The chain-bearing enemy shuddered. A crossbow arrow pierced through his neck. The blood-stained Thales turned his head in amazement.

On the other side was Zakriel, who once again defeated another man. He released his grip and threw away the crossbow which had just fired its arrow. The last crossbow arrow which had landed by his feet earlier was already gone.

The Knight of Judgement said coldly to the prince, “You put up a good fight.”

Thales was instantly stunned.

‘Seven.’ Zakriel darted a look at the chain-bearing assassin and thought in his heart, ‘A careless idiot, trash, a dumbass, a blind idiot, a twat, a coward, an idiot…’

Zakriel continued to charge at his enemies, but could not help letting his thoughts wander as he sneered at a particular person in his mind. ‘That Far Easterner’s underlings, the Shadow Shield assassins are supposed to be quite terrifying… But have they become so weak during the years I was in prison?’

His thoughts raced in his mind. Zakriel plowed his way through without any obstacle. The only people before his eyes right then were the four holding Yodel.

When he saw that success was at hand and that he was unharmed, Thales could not help but feel relieved.

That was until Stake, who had almost used up all his cards, roared in anger. He moved past his subordinates and charged forward!

And at that moment, the bound Yodel struggled and cried out, “No!”

Something unexpected happened.

The unstoppable Zakriel saw Stake charge forward without regard for his own safety. When they were a foot away from each other, they both stopped…

Silence returned.

Zakriel and Stake stared at each other quietly. One of them had a serious look on his face, and the other had a fierce expression.

‘Huh?’

“Zakriel?” Thales leaned against his sword. He wiped the blood stain on his face, bore the pain, and walked forward. “How—”

In the next second, Thales was also stunned.

Zakriel stood in front of Stake. His body was tense, and there was a tight frown on his face. As for Stake, he appeared rather disheveled, but there was a savage look on his face. He had his right hand raised high in the air.

‘That is…’ Thales saw the thing in Stake’s hand clearly: It was a metallic ball with an intricate carving.

The prince understood something. He looked around at the space—not too big—and instantly felt a chill down his spine.

“Alchemy Ball.” Zakriel slowly lowered the saber in his left hand. He said with disgust, “This is why I hate the wizards the most, along with their eternally restless heritage.”

Before him, Stake laughed. “Yes.” The leader of the assassins shrugged.

“Six years ago when Teng saw it, he said the same thing.”