Bloodhound’s Regression Instinct

Chapter 224

As Aquinas ascended to the Sky Castle, he frowned as Yan continued to fend off the bombardment.

“So, you have a trick up your sleeve too.”

Just as they seemed to know nothing about the Sky Castle, he couldn’t fathom how Yan was able to block the bombardment.

Aquinas’s lips curled into a smile.

“But, because of you, breaking you all will be even more meaningful.”

* * *

Yan blocked the bombardment from the Sky Castle with Ascalon, his eyes narrowing.

‘Based on what has happened so far, if I summarize the information I can gather…’

The Sky Castle and Aquinas, who is connected to it, possess a power that somehow nullifies mana.

Although not certain, Aquinas seems to prefer attacking using the Sky Castle rather than directly.

However, there were still many unknowns about the Sky Castle. So, for now, he decided to move in a way that would allow him to observe its abilities as much as possible.

With a swift motion, Yan launched himself backward. Aquinas immediately saw through Yan’s intentions.

“Pathetic tricks!”

Moving like that meant he was trying to understand the Sky Castle’s abilities.

‘There’s no need for me to play along with your plan.’

With a rumble, the Sky Castle began moving in the opposite direction of Yan’s movement, towards where the Imperial Army and the Revolutionary Army were clashing.

Yan bit his lip as the Sky Castle moved away from him.

‘He’s deliberately drawing me in!’

Without giving him a chance to explore, Aquinas was trying to force him to move according to his will. Even though his intentions were clear, Yan had no choice but to follow.

‘If the power of the White Flame Jade is still effective, the souls of all those people will become Aquinas’s strength.’

As soon as he finished calculating, Yan turned his body sharply and shouted with mana.

“Sir Merriott! Theo! The commander intends to kill both the Revolutionary Army and the Imperial Army. Stop him!”

“Damn it!”

At Yan’s booming shout, Merriott cursed, something he rarely did, and launched himself towards the indicated direction. Theo clicked his tongue and followed Merriott.

Arriving at their destination with incredible speed, Merriott ground his teeth.

‘There are too many people.’

Nearly tens of thousands of soldiers, not just a few. It was difficult to break through them with just the two of them, and even if they managed to, it would already be too late.

Then Theo suddenly spoke.

“I will create a giant wall.”

“A giant wall? You’re not a mage, are you? Wait, don’t tell me…!”

There was only one way for a knight who wielded a sword to create such a magical phenomenon: by creating a ‘domain’ that could wield god-like power. This was a skill that only a second-rank knight like the Duke could use.

Seeing Merriott’s shocked expression, Theo smiled bitterly and shook his head.

“I haven’t reached that level yet. It’s thanks to the great family’s vision and a modest realization.”

Merriott looked at Theo quietly. It would be better to discuss what kind of ability it was and how to block it, but there was no time.

‘We have to rely on Theo’s improvisation.’

Before joining the Revolutionary Army, Theo was known as the greatest talent in the North, so he was worth trusting.

As Merriott nodded, Theo gripped his sword and stepped forward. As his immense aura spread, the Imperial and Revolutionary soldiers turned their heads. They were shocked to see the approaching Sky Castle.

“What is that?!”

“A castle is flying in the sky!”

“…I have a bad feeling about this.”

Despite the large number of people, they were strangely unaware of the Sky Castle. It was partly due to the madness of war, but also because of the immense mana the Sky Castle was emitting. When the realm of perception is exceeded, the senses ignore the target.

The senses of those who were not superhuman were forcibly ignoring the Sky Castle until it was right in front of them.

“…Sir Merriott’s expression is strange.”

The Imperial soldiers noticed that something was wrong when they saw their strongest warrior, Merriott, looking tense. A noble hurriedly approached and asked.

“Sir Merriott! What is that?”

“I don’t know.”

“…What?”

“But I do know that it can kill us all.”

“Kill us all?”

The noble repeated, and Merriott closed his mouth. He didn’t know the exact nature of the strange castle either.

With a hum, the Sky Castle, which had closed the distance to the army, began gathering mana in its cannons again. It wasn’t the first time they had experienced this, but the problem was the number.

Theo quickly rolled his eyes and sighed.

‘…Fifty?’

Merriott had almost lost his life to just ten beams, and now there were more than five times that number! The speed of the projectiles was insanely fast, making it impossible to block them by sight alone.

To protect the people, the only way was to create a wall-like structure around them, even if it meant overexerting himself. That meant he had to go all out from the start.

Theo bit his lip and plunged his sword into the ground.

With a thud, he began pouring all the mana from his dantian into the sword.

As the ground trembled,

“Ice?”

“Is this… the power of a superhuman?”

Bright blue ice began to rise from the ground, encircling the Revolutionary and Imperial armies. The ice walls shot up at an incredible speed, forming a large, circular dome. Though transparent enough to see through, the walls were several meters thick, providing a formidable barrier.

Seolhon – Modified Version.

Ice Age.

The beams from the Sky Castle struck the ice dome directly.

Boom! Boom!

Though the beams were thin, their power was beyond imagination.

“Cough!”

Theo, channeling mana into his sword, coughed up blood with each collision between the beams and the ice wall. Yet, his ice dome held firm, enduring the relentless assault. The people cheered, oblivious to Theo’s condition, grateful for the protection.

But Merriott gritted his teeth.

“Is this still not enough?”

The Sky Castle had undergone a transformation. The cannons that had been scattered across its windows disappeared, and a massive cannon began to form at the front. Merriott watched the change, his frustration growing.

“Block one, and another appears. This is maddening.”

The completed cannon was terrifying to behold. Painted in gold and white, it exuded a holy aura, but the swirling mana at its muzzle was pure destruction. Merriott instinctively knew that if it fired, Theo’s ice wall would shatter.

‘And few would survive.’

He had no choice but to act.

Srrng!

Drawing his sword, Merriott poured all his mana into it. The ice wall created by Theo began to melt, and the sudden heat caused people to faint. Normally, Merriott would control his power, but with the impending bombardment, restraint was suicidal.

“Theo, lower the ice wall!”

“What?! Now?”

Theo shouted in disbelief, but Merriott’s expression hardened.

“If my Blazing Sword Style and your Seolhon clash, their opposing attributes will cancel each other out!”

“We could all die!”

“Can your ice wall stop that?”

Only then did Theo look towards the Sky Castle.

“…!”

The sunlight had vanished, replaced by swirling dark clouds centered around the Sky Castle. It was a bizarre sight, and Theo could sense the massive flow of mana above.

‘We can’t block that.’

Understanding Merriott’s words, Theo quickly pulled his sword from the ground. The ice dome began to collapse and melt. As the last of the ice wall disappeared, Merriott’s eyes flashed.

Blazing Sword Style, Final Form.

Black Spot.

Intense heat was drawn into Merriott’s sword. The red-hot energy focused upwards, concentrating at the tip of the blade. The very end of the sword began to blacken.

Theo swallowed hard as he watched. Others might not feel it, but as a third-rank superhuman like Merriott, he could sense the overwhelming heat at the sword’s tip. The mana passing by the blade screamed in agony.

“If this fails, warn the Sun Duke to prepare.”

With those words, Merriott launched himself forward. At the same time, the Sky Castle’s massive cannon fired a beam of mana towards them. The beam was enormous, incomparable to the previous ones.

Merriott thrust his sword forward, slicing through the giant beam and pushing ahead. The sight made many clench their fists.

“Yes, as expected!”

“The Blazing Knight! He won’t lose to such a monstrous attack!”

But unlike their cheers, Theo’s face was grim.

‘It’s not enough.’

The Black Spot, which concentrated all of Merriott’s power, was weakening over time. In contrast, the giant beam’s power remained constant. This meant the Sky Castle still had reserves, while Merriott had exhausted his strength.

Theo quickly turned and shouted with mana.

“Everyone, run! Staying here means death!”

At Theo’s thunderous voice, the Revolutionary and Imperial soldiers hesitated, then began to scatter. Theo watched Merriott, who had finally split the beam but was now falling, and stomped his foot.

“Damn it… Where is Yan?”

Yan, who seemed to be running towards them, was nowhere to be seen. If he didn’t arrive soon, Merriott’s sacrifice would be in vain. Protecting the entire army alone was impossible.

At that moment, a water droplet caught the falling Merriott. Theo’s eyes widened as he looked around. A familiar voice reached his ears.

“Everyone looks like they’re about to die! Kid!”

Theo’s face lit up at the voice. Blocking the Sky Castle’s attack was difficult with just him and Merriott, but with this new arrival, the situation could change.

She was none other than the formidable pirate queen, second only to the Duke.

“The Pirate Empress?!”

The Pirate Empress, Mei Valentine, had arrived.