Novel Full Chapter 665: The Crown Prince’s Reckless Entry into Battle
Chapter 665: Chapter 665: The Crown Prince’s Reckless Entry into Battle
Harbor didn’t show the slightest surprise when he heard Charles’s voice.
He only turned his head slowly, a faint sneer tugging at the corner of his lips as he looked toward Charles.
“You’re slower than I expected.”
Charles gave a short laugh. “Funny.”
Without another word, he gripped the Black Gold Long Knife and charged straight at Harbor with all his speed. He wasn’t about to give his enemy any chance to prepare. If Harbor managed to seize control of the Gem of Light, the whole situation would spiral out of control.
The two weren’t far apart to begin with. At Charles’s fastest pace, it only took an instant for them to almost clash face-to-face.
Harbor, however, still wore that calm smile. He made no move to block Charles’s strike with a weapon. Instead, just as Charles’s blade was about to land, he summoned the Frost Giant King.
The enormous beast stepped between them, cutting Charles off. Charles’s strike landed, but it wasn’t nearly enough to bring down such a massive mystical beast.
The Frost Giant King let out a pained howl, its eyes glowing blood-red as it flew into a rage. It went all out, hurling itself at Charles with murderous intent.
Charles had no choice but to dodge for now. Harbor used the opening to slip into the chamber where the Gem of Light rested. The Angel of Light followed closely at his heels.
Seeing this, Charles grew even more anxious. He wasted no time and summoned his Twin-Winged Savage Gold-Eater Beast.
“Keep it busy here! I don’t have time to fight this dumb beast myself.”
After giving the order, Charles dashed into the Gem’s chamber at full speed. But even with his fast reaction, by the time he got there, the Gem of Light was already in Harbor’s hands.
Harbor pressed his left palm against the gem. His eyes began to glow with a golden light. That meant the Gem’s power was already flowing into his body.
It was dangerous—possibly fatal—but the advantage was clear. By using his own body as a conduit, Harbor could quickly channel the Gem’s power straight into the Angel of Light.
And once that happened, the Angel of Light would grow far stronger than before. With such a sudden surge in strength, it might even be able to suppress every single one of Charles’s mystical beasts on its own.
Charles’s mind raced as he faced the growing crisis.
What he lacked most now was time. And if he wanted to buy more of it, the only choice was to rely on the Chrono Rabbit.
“Come out! Slow down the flow of time in this room!”
The Chrono Rabbit suddenly leapt out from the void. In an instant, it created a swirling vortex of time around itself.
This vortex was different from chaotic time currents.
Time currents made the flow of time wildly unstable, often used as a form of defense. But a time vortex only slowed the flow of time in its surroundings.
That meant the vortex was nothing more than a support skill—useful in both attack and defense, but never decisive on its own. Yet in this moment, that support skill was exactly what mattered most.
Harbor only sneered.
“So what if you slowed time? You can’t stop the Gem of Light’s power from being drained. The Angel of Light will soon grow strong enough to break through your vortex anyway.”
As a sixth-tier Beast Master, Harbor wasn’t immediately affected. He could resist certain mystical beast skills.
Charles knew Harbor wasn’t wrong. But there was no way he would admit it or let Harbor gain confidence. He only let out a cold snort.
“Just watch! You haven’t won yet!”
With that, Charles abruptly withdrew from the chamber.
The move made Harbor pause in surprise. He had expected Charles to fight to the very end for control over the Gem of Light. The time vortex did slow his absorption of the Gem’s power, but it wasn’t enough reason for Charles to simply flee.
At that moment, Harbor completely misread his opponent. He thought Charles was running away.
But Charles wasn’t fleeing at all. He knew staying near Harbor wouldn’t solve the problem. Instead, he rushed toward the outer walls of the Withered Tree Fortress to trigger the traps he had secretly set there.
In a flash of light, Charles appeared atop the fortress wall. His sudden arrival instantly drew the attention of everyone nearby.
The crown prince of the Stellar Empire, who had been watching the battle the whole time, immediately recognized Charles.
Right then and there, the crown prince decided—he would personally enter the fight.
“You finally crawled out of your shell! I thought you’d keep hiding in the shadows like a rat. Since you’ve shown yourself, let me get to know you better.”
Muttering to himself, the crown prince of the Stellar Empire leapt straight into the battle.
His sudden move threw the other Stellar generals into confusion. The crown prince was supposed to be the supreme commander of this fight. As commander, he should never have rushed into the thick of battle. And worse, before joining the fight, he hadn’t even named someone to take over his command.
After a round of heated arguments, the generals finally agreed to direct the battle together.
Behind them, the governor stationed in the Atacama Desert slowly shook his head. He was completely disappointed. In his mind, this attack could no longer succeed. The reality before him was nothing like the plan they had carefully drawn up. The crown prince had been reckless—far too reckless.
The prince was fast, but not fast enough. Before he could reach Charles, Charles had already triggered the device.
That device was the activator tied directly to the Gem of Light’s defensive array.
The moment it was triggered, the entire Withered Tree Fortress began to shake violently.
General Sost, already gravely wounded but not yet dead, and Azka, locked in a life-or-death struggle with Aldany, both showed looks of sheer terror. They could feel it—the fortress was about to collapse.
Their enemy, Aldany, however, was overjoyed. He didn’t yet understand exactly what had happened, but as long as the fortress fell, the battle would end—and he would emerge the final victor.
“No matter how you struggle, you can’t change your fate. The Serpent Empire is finished! Resisting me any longer is meaningless!”
Aldany’s cold words struck at Azka. But they weren’t meant as mere mockery. In truth, he hoped these words would make Azka face reality—and join him.
Azka was, in truth, one of the stronger figures within the Serpent Empire.
If Aldany could win him over, the power he held would grow even greater. Even if he could never fully earn the Stellar crown prince’s trust, with such strength under his command, Aldany could still secure his own position.
Azka glared hard at him after hearing those words.
“Even if the Serpent Empire can no longer be saved, I’ll fight to the very last! I’m not like you—I’m not some traitor who sells out his own people!”
With that, Azka launched a full-force attack on Aldany.
Aldany was furious, but also confused. He believed he had laid out the situation clearly. He couldn’t understand why Azka still refused to join him.
“If you side with me, your strength will grow even more. And I won’t treat you like a mere subordinate—I’ll see you as a partner.”
Even as he fought, Aldany kept trying to persuade him. He knew very well that Azka was the only one he had even the slightest chance of winning over.
The others—General Sost, High Priest Kent, Zara—they would never turn to his side.
And as for Charles, Aldany didn’t even dare to approach him. He knew the moment they met, Charles would strike to kill without hesitation.
But no matter what he said, Azka would never betray his people. They were simply too different at their core.
Meanwhile, Charles’s actions had not only caused the Withered Tree Fortress to begin collapsing—they also triggered something else.
Across the Atacama Desert, mystical beasts fell into a frenzy. It was as if they all sensed the surge of different elemental powers, driving them into a wild state where all reason was erased.
Deep within the fortress, Harbor finally understood Charles’s true aim.
“So you want to ruin my plans by throwing everything into chaos? I’ll admit it—you caught me off guard. I never thought you’d dare use the Withered Tree Fortress, such a crucial stronghold, as a mere pawn in your gamble.”
Harbor muttered through gritted teeth.
He had considered many possible outcomes, but he had still underestimated Charles.
Now, though, regret was useless. Harbor wasn’t one to linger on the past. His mind was already shifting to his next move.