Chapter 278: The Black Knight in Pursuit.

Who were the Black Knights?

Also known as the Hemon Knights, they had once been knights of the Hodehe Temple, serving the dark forces. After the temple was struck down by the forces of light, the Hemon Knights claimed to have severed their ties with it. They became a renowned independent order of knights on the Austin Continent, operating under the banner of justice and specializing in hunting down criminals wanted by various nations.

However, as far as Shu Li knew, the Hemon Knights secretly served the Kingdom of Cecilia.

Whenever Cecilia invaded another country, members of its royal family would be declared wanted criminals and hunted by the Black Knights.

Seriu and Nasha were both among their targets.

Eighteen years ago, Seriu had fled into the Faerie Forest under Halis's desperate protection, only to nearly lose his life to the Black Knights. Fortunately, Shu Li had been there. When the Elven King came to find him, he had wiped out the invaders in a single stroke.

Seriu had subsequently gone to the Central Court, where he had remained ever since, never once setting foot outside its boundaries for fear of the Black Knights.

If he hadn't joined the Light Squad and considered how little time their assignment would take, he might never have risked coming to the Magical Beast Forest.

Eight years ago, Nasha had fled Pedam Kingdom, escorted at great personal risk by the Great Swordsman Senluo. With the help of a traveling performance troupe, they had successfully deceived their pursuers and reached Adilan, the royal capital of the Dalia Empire, where Nasha met the king and queen.

At the time, Shu Li had been suffering from a curse. He and Ilio had disguised themselves as humans and were seeking the Dalia king and queen's help in lifting it when they encountered the Hemon Knights.

They had nearly been mistaken for Nasha and Senluo. Fortunately, Ilio had thought quickly and disguised himself as a musician in the performance troupe, allowing them to bluff their way through.

Now, surrounded by more than twenty Black Knights, Shu Li found those memories coming back to him.

The knights radiated an evil aura of death. As they approached, the temperature plummeted, and the power of darkness surged, rapidly devouring the surrounding elements of light.

In the past, Shu Li had been too weak to face the Black Knights without trembling in fear.

Now that he was an Intermediate Grand Mage, however, he remained perfectly composed. His mind raced as he considered possible strategies and calculated their chances of victory.

They had even fought a Demon Lord of Hell. Why should they be afraid of Black Knights who were merely human?

And if things went badly, he could always release Falm.

The creature had been catching up on sleep inside the Fire God's Mark all day. Surely he ought to be awake by now.

"So these are the Black Knights?" Kumandi surveyed their enemies and calmly assessed the situation. "Twenty-five in total. Their commander is a Grand Swordmaster, and the rest are Great Swordsmen. Nothing we can't handle."

"Don't overlook the power of darkness within them," Ace cautioned.

The power of darkness acted as an enhancement, multiplying its wielder's combat strength. The more they absorbed, the stronger they became.

These Black Knights had spent years immersed in the Dark Pool of the Hodehe Temple. The power of darkness accumulated within their bodies was dozens of times greater than that of an ordinary person. Combined with their extensive combat experience, it allowed them to fight at a level comparable to a Sword Saint.

They were not to be underestimated.

"Who cares whether they have the power of darkness? If they're lackeys of the Dark God, we'll kill every last one of them!" Dixio raised his magic staff and pointed it at the Black Knights.

"That's right! Kill them! Kill them all!" Budno and Amanda shouted together.

Angel turned to Ace, Hector, Xidi, and Nasha.

"Stay close to me. I'm going to activate a defensive magical formation."

The four of them were Mage Apprentices and no match for the Black Knights. He would protect them.

Seriu stared coldly at the Black Knight commander.

"They're here for me," he told the others. "None of you need to interfere."

"Your Highness!" Halis stepped forward anxiously.

Although the prince's strength had increased dramatically of late, Halis was his magic instructor. There was no way he could allow Seriu to face the Black Knights alone.

He had been stuck at the Junior Magic Instructor rank for a long time. Perhaps this was the perfect opportunity to awaken his potential and break through his limits.

"Seriu... perhaps they're here for me..." Nasha bit her lip.

She, too, was on the Black Knights' wanted list. Only the protection of the Dalia queen had allowed her to grow up safely over the years.

When Nasha left the Dalia Empire, the queen had feared that the Black Knights would pursue her and arranged for Ximu's performance troupe to escort her to the Central Court.

Interestingly, Princess Cecil, who traveled under the alias Ximu, was also on their wanted list. Yet she had spent years moving freely between countries without coming to harm.

Her courage was extraordinary, her methods ingenious, and her talent for disguise nothing short of astonishing. She traveled brazenly beneath the Black Knights' noses, coming and going as she pleased.

It was impossible not to admire her.

"All of you... will die!"

The Black Knight commander sat high upon his horse, looking down at Seriu and the others with contempt.

Without waiting for an order, the remaining Black Knights surrounded the Light Squad, radiating murderous intent.

With battle about to erupt, Seriu struck first.

He swung his longsword.

Boom!

A trench several meters long split open in the ground, blocking the Black Knights' advance.

"Gesam! I'm your opponent!"

Seriu fixed the commander with a piercing stare.

Puzzled, Shu Li quietly asked Halis, "You know him?"

The Black Knight was wearing a helmet that completely concealed his face. How could they possibly tell who he was?

Halis sighed.

"He's the commander of the Kingdom of Cecilia's Royal Knights. He was once the prince's swordsmanship instructor."

"What?"

The others were stunned.

Even the commander of the Royal Knights had fallen so far as to become a lackey of the dark forces?

"He's one of Danton's men," Halis said coldly.

If Gesam hadn't betrayed the king and queen, Danton's coup would never have succeeded so easily.

Gesam sneered at Seriu.

"You're no match for me."

He had been monitoring Seriu for eighteen years. How could he not know the prince's abilities?

People praised Seriu as a genius proficient in both magic and swordsmanship, but in reality, he was nothing more than a delicate flower raised in a greenhouse.

Even if he had recently made a name for himself in the arena, he could never withstand Black Knights empowered by the Dark God.

The last time Seriu had left the Central Court for the Woba Grand Canyon, his trip had been too brief, allowing him to escape their grasp.

This time, the moment they received word of his movements, they had immediately pursued him.

They had positioned themselves well in advance along the only road connecting the Magical Beast Forest to Diha Village.

Even if Seriu sprouted wings, he wouldn't escape.

As for the adventurers accompanying him, they had only their own bad luck and poor judgment to blame.

They had chosen to associate with a wanted criminal. Now they could accompany him straight to hell!

Gesam raised his sharp spear and aimed it at Seriu's chest.

"If you'd behaved yourself and spent your entire life hiding in the Central Court, you might have lived to a ripe old age. Unfortunately, you were foolish enough to leave. Don't blame me for disregarding our past relationship."

"Our past relationship?" Seriu repeated mockingly. "The moment you led the rebels into the royal palace and slaughtered everyone inside, whatever bond we once had ceased to exist!"

His eyes burned with fury.

"Gesam, don't let your arrogance and ignorance blind you! Today, you will become the first stepping stone on my path to vengeance!"

Seriu raised the silver longsword in his hand and unleashed the true power of a Sword Saint.

In an instant, the Black Knights found themselves struggling to breathe beneath the overwhelming pressure of his sword energy.

Gesam's pupils contracted.

"You... you've actually reached the Sword Saint rank? Impossible!"

A thirty-two-year-old Sword Saint?

Such a thing was unheard of!

Even the greatest swordsmanship geniuses in history had only reached the Sword Saint rank after turning fifty.

Besides, Seriu had never been a genius.

As the prince's former swordsmanship instructor, Gesam knew his abilities better than anyone.

Before the age of ten, Seriu had shown mediocre aptitude. Even after beginning swordsmanship training, he had been only slightly better than an ordinary person.

After turning ten, however, he had begun displaying surprisingly promising talent with the sword.

Unfortunately, by then, Gesam's attention had already shifted away from the prince. Naturally, he had made little effort to teach him properly.

"Hmph. An empty bluff," Gesam scoffed. "Do you think you can frighten us away by disguising yourself with magic? How naive!"

"Is that so?" Seriu sneered. "Then I'll show you which one of us is truly naive."

He swung his sword.

"Cross Slash!"

A Sword Saint's Cross Slash erupted with tremendous force, carrying an overwhelming aura of lethal intent as it tore toward the Black Knights.

Gesam's eyes widened in disbelief.

He didn't even have time to react before the terrifying attack struck.

BOOM!

The Black Knights were thrown into chaos.

Men and horses toppled, their formation collapsing in an instant.

Those with quick reflexes and exceptional agility managed to evade the attack. Those paralyzed by the pressure of Seriu's sword energy were instantly reduced to ashes.

"AAAAAAAH!"

Piercing screams rang out.

Then silence fell.

Of the twenty-five Black Knights, five had been killed instantly and ten wounded.

Gesam, who had stood at the very front and borne the brunt of the attack, had managed to dodge just in time to save his life.

But his right arm had been severed by the sword energy.

It lay on the ground, drenched in blood.

The severed hand still gripped his sharp spear, twitching uncontrollably as blood seeped from the wound.

After recovering from their initial shock, the other members of the Light Squad broke into expressions of excitement.

Wow! Seriu is amazing!

They had learned the previous week that he had awakened the Sword of Carlos and grown considerably stronger, but they had never witnessed such a direct demonstration of his power.

During this week's intensive training, Ilio had instructed Seriu separately, so none of them had been able to gauge his true strength.

Now, watching him annihilate Black Knights with a single attack, they were utterly astonished.

Shu Li closed his gaping mouth and silently recited an incantation, conjuring a defensive barrier of light around the teammates standing beside him.

It seemed Seriu could handle these Black Knights on his own.

After all, he was currently wielding nothing more than a seventh-rank longsword. He hadn't even unleashed the full power of the Sword of Carlos!

The Sword of Carlos was the foremost of the Five Swords and the absolute nemesis of the power of darkness.

For Black Knights to challenge the Sword of Carlos was like trying to smash a rock with an egg.

"Sperien, aren't we going to help?" Nasha asked anxiously.

"There's no need. Seriu can handle them himself," Shu Li replied. "We'll watch how things develop and be ready to lend him a hand at any moment."

"All right!"

The others agreed, remaining prepared for battle and not daring to lower their guard.

Gesam lay on the ground, clutching the stump of his severed arm as blood poured from it.

His helmet had been split in two, its broken halves scattered across the ground, revealing a gloomy, aged face.

"Impossible! Impossible! You... you've really become a Sword Saint?"

The wounded Black Knights lay in pools of blood, missing arms or legs, their agonized wails filling the air.

"There's nothing impossible about it."

Seriu gripped his sword with both hands and assumed an offensive stance, staring coldly at Gesam.

"I told you. Arrogance and ignorance have blinded you, while greed and desire have corrupted your soul. Those who serve the Dark God will ultimately fall into hell."

Gesam's face twisted hideously.

"Kill him!" he shrieked. "Kill him!"

At his command, black flames erupted across the bodies of every Black Knight.

Even the corpses lying on the ground struggled to their feet, their limbs twisting at unnatural angles.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

Like mindless puppets, the Black Knights repeated the same word over and over as they lunged viciously at Seriu.

Seriu's expression turned solemn.

He unleashed a torrent of razor-sharp sword energy.

Here they come!

These are the true Black Knights!

They felt no pain, possessed no emotions, and had no consciousness.

Even death could not stop them.

Eighteen years ago, the guards who had protected Seriu had been brutally slaughtered by Black Knights just like these.

The sight had left deep psychological scars on him as a child.

But he had grown stronger.

He no longer feared these seemingly indestructible monsters.

"I, Seriu, swear upon the Sword of Carlos that I will put an end to your souls for all eternity!"

As his declaration rang out, the young man wielding the longsword transformed into a streak of lightning and charged straight toward the Black Knights.