Chapter 308: Clementine Appears. Departure!
Tang Zheng's gaze didn't linger on the people at the conference table for long. After a quick glance, he turned and walked toward Gagaran's position.
He had only taken two steps.
*Swoosh!*
A sharp sound of something slicing through the air came from behind him.
"Magic Armor!" the Green Leaf Witch shouted coldly.
*Clang—Thud—*
A sharp stiletto accurately struck the Green Leaf Witch's chest but was blocked by a translucent layer of magic armor, making a crisp sound.
Then, the force behind the stiletto increased, causing the armor to emit a dull thud, yet it was still held back by the magic armor!
The sudden development stunned everyone in the hall. Or rather, the attacker had moved so quickly that they were only discovered at the moment of the strike!
Inside the meeting room.
The members of the Holy Knight Order standing guard all drew their longswords in unison.
The weapon aimed at the Green Leaf Witch was a stiletto, a specialized piercing weapon that was not easy to wield.
Conversely, anyone who could use such a weapon was bound to be extremely proficient with it.
"Oh my~, you blocked it."
A light, deliberately drawn-out voice came from the person who had launched the attack.
She was a striking woman with fluffy, golden hair that covered her forehead. Her purple eyes, filled with mirth, gave her cute, feline face the dangerous aura of a predator.
When Tang Zheng turned to look.
"Yo, cute little brother."
The golden-haired woman continued to apply pressure with the stiletto in one hand, while raising the other to greet Tang Zheng as if they were old friends.
Tang Zheng's apparent age was indeed young, looking to be around seventeen. The golden-haired woman opposite him was clearly older, in her twenties.
"Corrosion Break..."
Faced with the sudden sneak attack, the Green Leaf Witch was clearly enraged and began coldly chanting a spell.
If not for the power from the "Wild Transformation Ritual" granted by her master, which provided a certain boost even without transforming, she feared she would not have been able to dodge that sneak attack!
"Stop," Tang Zheng said.
The fury in the Green Leaf Witch's eyes subsided, and her motion to cast a spell halted immediately. She merely glared fiercely at the golden-haired woman.
Seeing the Green Leaf Witch, a demi-human according to their intelligence, behaving so obediently, the eyes of everyone present flickered slightly.
"I want to know what this is all about!" Tang Zheng's tone was serious and cold, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.
Clementine!
Why was Clementine here?
Tang Zheng was a little surprised and bewildered. She was a member of the Black Scripture; the implications of that were quite intriguing.
Judging by her appearance, has she not defected yet?
"No need to be so tense."
"I was just saying a little hello to your demi-human teammate. Really, truly."
Clementine also retracted her stiletto, putting on a cute act. Her eyes, however, swept over the gold plate hanging from Tang Zheng's waist as she puffed her cheeks slightly.
"What's this? Just a gold-rank plate."
Hearing this lighthearted complaint, Tang Zheng's thoughts stirred.
*Tsk~*
Clementine licked the corner of her mouth.
*The magical defense is quite strong. A martial skill should be able to break it,* Clementine quickly analyzed the information she had gathered from that single strike.
The Green Leaf Witch exposed her lie without hesitation. "I don't consider that a way of saying hello!"
*Bang—*
"Enough!"
Remedios slammed her hand on the table and stood up, her sharp eyes glinting like drawn blades.
"Is a squad with a demi-human the only one with any guts the Adventurer's Guild can send?!"
"And you, some woman who popped out of nowhere, what do you think you're doing, barging into a war council? Do you not have even basic etiquette or the fundamental discipline to obey orders?!"
Remedios loudly and bluntly rebuked them, expressing her dissatisfaction.
With those words, the atmosphere froze.
Kelart's outstretched arm froze in mid-air; she had noticed Remedios starting to rise and was about to pull her back.
This sudden conflict was a matter between the adventurer team "Free Will" and the Slane Theocracy; their Holy Kingdom could just watch from the sidelines. Better yet, they could use this to gather information on both parties—all gain and no loss.
In the end, she was a step too slow.
After all, a magic caster's reactions could never match the speed of a warrior.
"How adorable," Clementine said, tilting her head. Her eyes were full of amusement, and her tone lilted upwards.
Her fiery gaze was fixed unabashedly on the weapon hanging at Remedios's waist—a national treasure of the Holy Kingdom, one of the Four Great Holy Swords.
"Clementine, what are you doing? Weren't you uninterested in this meeting?" Captain Nigun frowned and spoke for the first time.
He knew Clementine wouldn't obediently follow his arrangements. Given his status, he naturally understood Clementine's situation.
Members of the Black Scripture were primarily selected from the other five scriptures. As the Captain of the Sunlight Scripture, he was also one of the candidates.
However, Nigun knew very well that neither his strength nor his talent could compare to these true monsters.
For that very reason, Nigun was extremely surprised that Clementine was involved in this incident, and that the Cardinals above had actually agreed to it.
"I already told you."
"Just saying hello. This Kalinxia fortress is so boring," Clementine said with a shrug.
This nonchalant attitude caused Kelart's expression to change abruptly as she looked at Clementine with new seriousness.
Watching this scene unfold.
"So," Tang Zheng lifted his head, his usual calm expression completely gone, a hint of indifference in his eyes. "That's not an explanation, is it?"
"Then let me say hello as well."
Tang Zheng's back straightened. He suddenly smiled, and the sleeve of his naturally hanging, pristine white cleric robe moved.
*Bang—*
*Bang—*
In an instant, a dazzling, sacred white light converged in the hall, and a powerful aura suddenly emerged.
The faces of Kelart, Captain Nigun, and the others changed.
The air vibrated.
A Monitoring Dominion and a Serenity Dominion, two fourth-tier angels, appeared simultaneously above Tang Zheng's head, scattering specks of white light.
"Dual Angel Summoning?"
Captain Nigun's eyes widened. With his power, he could only summon a single fourth-tier angel.
Kelart leaned forward, her slender hands pressed against the table, her eyes equally astonished.
The information provided by the Adventurer's Guild was not very detailed. She only knew that this squad possessed the strength of adamantite-rank adventurers. Even among the adamantite rank, there are differences in strength, not to mention the rumor that he was also a genius alchemist.
One of the important reasons for inviting "Free Will" to participate was to make use of the Potion of Regeneration in their possession.
And now, before her eyes!
Two fourth-tier angels—this was power on par with the Heroic Realm!
*Boom!*
The Monitoring Dominion flapped its wings, its massive form appearing as if teleporting in front of Clementine, who was already close by.
A silver mace appeared and swung down heavily!
A look of stunned surprise, followed by excitement, flashed in Clementine's eyes. Her movements were not the least bit slow as she raised her stiletto and swung it out as well. "Unyielding Fortress!"
However!
The mace swung by the Monitoring Dominion didn't crash down. It suddenly stopped halfway, causing Clementine's defensive martial skill to miss its mark.
*Swoosh!*
The Serenity Dominion flew out from behind the Monitoring Dominion, a spear-like staff materializing in its hand, which it swung down in quick succession.
「Strike Against Evil」
Clementine's expression changed. Having just used "Unyielding Fortress," she had no time to dodge and could only manage to turn her stiletto to block horizontally in front of her chest.
*Bang!*
With a heavy, muffled thud, Clementine's body was sent flying out of the war council room, soaring towards the courtyard outside.
Tang Zheng watched this scene calmly. Clementine's sudden sneak attack had contained clear killing intent, an intent directed not only at the Green Leaf Witch but also at him.
"Is this related to the Alliance Leader?"
"At this point in time, has Clementine already secretly joined Zuranon?"
This thought flashed through Tang Zheng's mind as he raised his arm and waved.
The Serenity Dominion and the Monitoring Dominion flapped their wings in unison, flying out of the war council room and charging toward the freshly ejected Clementine.
Immediately after, the astonished cries from the resting elite troops of the Holy Knight Order and others, as well as the fierce clashes of Clementine battling the two fourth-tier angels, came from outside.
Tang Zheng ignored the now silent and strange atmosphere in the room, leading the Green Leaf Witch and Enri to the conference table.
Under Gagaran's watchful gaze, he sat down beside him.
"Can the meeting begin now?"
Tang Zheng calmly swept his gaze over the people at the table, each with a different expression.
Remedios had one hand on the hilt of the sword at her waist and was just about to speak.
"Remedios, sit down first."
Kelart kicked Remedios under the table, then stood up, the corners of her eyes curving slightly as she smiled gently.
"This is the captain of the Holy Knight Order, Remedios. She has been troubled by the matter of the undead in the hilly region lately, so she is a bit anxious and emotional."
"On behalf of the Holy Kingdom, I thank you all for your support!"
Her simple words glossed over Remedios's earlier remarks that had offended both parties, and at the same time, she regained the initiative.
Remedios glanced at her sister's fake smile and sat down in silence. She knew her words had caused a negative impact; in this regard, she was indeed not as adept at handling things as her sister.
"Your Excellency Nigun, on your side...?" Kelart asked with a smile.
"Let the meeting begin."
Captain Nigun glanced at Tang Zheng but made no other move. He simply nodded and replied calmly.
"Is that so."
Kelart was a bit surprised. The earlier conflict and the ongoing battle outside seemed to have no effect on this Captain Nigun. Or rather, his reaction was what was surprising.
Several thoughts flashed through Kelart's mind before she sat down again, her expression turning serious.
"Then the meeting will begin!"
She had a feeling that the behavior of these people was somewhat different from what she had expected.
Tang Zheng leaned back in his chair, his gaze lingering briefly on Remedios and Captain Nigun.
This version of Remedios wasn't showing the extreme, prickly paranoia from the original story. This had something to do with the fact that Holy Queen Calca and her sister Kelart had not died, but Captain Nigun's behavior was strange.
"The legendary undead, the Death Knight. Its estimated difficulty is over one hundred. It can create follower zombies, and through them, create even more undead."
"Based on current intelligence, we speculate that the number of undead in the hilly region has likely surpassed thirty thousand."
"Faced with such a large number of undead and the terrifying ability of the Death Knight, ordinary troops are useless. On the contrary, if killed, they will become one of the undead."
"Therefore, we must rely on an absolute elite force to quickly clear out and eliminate these undead."
Pieces of intelligence were rapidly laid out, causing the expressions on everyone's faces to grow more and more solemn.
The strength of ordinary undead was not high, but when their numbers reached the tens of thousands, they became terrifying. The undead do not tire, but humans do!
"Additionally, a large gathering of undead can trigger the natural birth of even stronger undead," Captain Nigun said in a cold, serious tone.
"The Holy Knight Order has 300 members, the Cleric Corps has 200, and the Sunlight Scripture has 80, for a total of less than six hundred people."
Kelart spoke thoughtfully, "The other issues are manageable, but the key is supplies. Kalinxia, as our nation's fortress city, does have a considerable amount of supplies."
"But without logistical support, the amount of supplies each person can carry is very limited."
The Abelion Hills cover a vast area. Annihilating the undead would likely take more than a few days. Without logistical support, food would become the biggest problem. Relying on foraging would introduce too many variables.
"Heh."
Gagaran, whose presence had been low as everyone pretended to ignore him, suddenly let out a cold laugh in a strange tone.
The next moment, the gazes of Kelart and the others all turned to him.
Gagaran felt the undisguised disgust and hostility in their gazes. He sighed inwardly and glanced at Tang Zheng, who was seated beside him.
He truly hadn't liked this black-haired kid before.
But after interacting with this group of humans, he found them even more detestable!
"The issue of food is not a concern."
Gagaran's rough voice sounded as he said flatly, "A while ago, we demi-humans just traded a large batch of grain with you humans. Have you forgotten?"
The air fell silent!
Looks of embarrassment appeared on the faces of everyone from the Holy Kingdom.
"Oh, did such a thing happen?" Tang Zheng feigned surprise, raising a hand to pat Gagaran's shoulder as he spoke with an unexpected smile.
"Mm," Gagaran grunted in affirmation.
Captain Nigun's face darkened, and he cursed without reservation, "Fools!"
No one had expected that the grain transaction from back then would now become their most crucial supply, but this, in turn, made the people of the Holy Kingdom feel even more embarrassed.
Remedios's face was flushed with anger as she stared daggers at Gagaran.
"In that case, the matter of supplies is resolved. We will have to trouble Your Excellency Gagaran once we reach the hills." Kelart placed a hand on Remedios's arm, her expression still a gentle smile as she spoke.
"Next is the other problem, concerning the terrifying magic caster behind the scenes who is capable of controlling the Death Knight."
The discussion during the meeting proceeded quickly.
Aside from exchanging intelligence, it was mostly about anticipating and planning the operation. There were no disputes throughout the process; it was clear that both the Holy Kingdom and the Slane Theocracy had prepared plans in advance.
*Smack!*
"Well then, everyone!" Kelart pressed her hands on the table, stood up, and said seriously, "To prevent the emergence of more powerful undead and unforeseen circumstances, we depart immediately!"
"Does anyone have any objections?"
No one responded.
"Then—we move out!" Kelart declared.
(end of chapter)