"Physician!" Jon bellowed, rushing to the wounded men in three long strides.
The part-time physician hurried over and knelt down. After a brief examination, he stood back up and gave a slight, somber shake of his head.
"Dammit! Where is Machno? Did he incite them to do this?" Jon was fuming with helpless rage, only to realize that Machno and his eight companions were already nowhere to be found.
A gentle breeze swept through the courtyard, bringing with it the rustling sound of swaying leaves from above.
"If anyone wishes to stay behind, there is still time," Machno said at the head of the line, never looking back. "I won't deny it—the chances of a successful breakout are slim."
He crossed the courtyard and leaped onto the crest of the wall. Beside him, a series of footfalls landed on the stone—eight times in total.
"Regardless of who makes it through, you must deliver the message that the Golden Dynasty is preparing to attack the Deeproot. Tell our compatriots to detonate the tunnels immediately." Machno's Raptor Talons snapped out from his wrists as he kicked off the wall with all his might. "The freedom of the Deeproot is in our hands."
The wind whistled past his ears as his arms spread wide like wings. In that moment, he felt as though he had returned to that distant afternoon when he officially became an assassin of Ravenmount. His master had led him in a leap from the highest cliff of the mountain; he had become a Deathbird, no longer bound by the gravity of the earth or reality.
The sensation of weightlessness was fleeting, for the gravity of reality eventually pulled him back to the ground. The moment his feet touched the earth, Machno let out a defiant roar.
"We are the Wings of Death!"
The Confessor leader responsible for guarding the eastern wall lowered his telescope.
"Commendable courage," he said flatly. Then, he blew his Redwhistle. "Take them alive."
The Confessors unslung their shields, and their line began to shift. The horsemen on the flanks accelerated to outflank the group, while those in the center advanced at a steady pace, forming a "pocket" formation that pressed toward Machno's nine-man squad.
The Redwhistle leader led the charge. Using the momentum of his horse, he slammed his shield into one of the warriors, the air filling with the sickening crunch of multiple bone fractures. He pointed his sword, and several Confessors immediately leaped from their saddles, pulling out shackles as they surrounded the fallen Deeproot warrior.
With a bored huff, the leader turned his horse to seek his next opponent, only for a shockwave to blast him from behind, senting both man and horse flying.
Boom!
A massive explosion rocked the area, drawing the eyes of every Confessor surrounding the manor toward the east.
"I'll go on ahead!" a Deeproot warrior with a mangled leg roared. The explosive stone at his waist suddenly flared with light. Before the surrounding Confessors could retreat, they were swallowed by a violent storm of fire and shockwaves.
With one explosion after another, the line of Confessors blocking the escape path began to waver. The flankers drew their crossbows to fire, but the battlefield was choked with smoke. In the chaos, they failed to hit the remaining Deeproot warriors and instead accidentally wounded many of their own comrades' horses.
After eight thunderous booms, everything fell into a deathly silence.
Seeing a group of Confessors give chase into the residential district, Raven withdrew his gaze and looked at Klepps with an expressionless face.
"What are you trying to do?" Klepps asked, his voice sharp but lacking conviction. "I told you, those Confessors aren't under my command."
"I think I finally understand how you managed to become the head of the Capital's Confessors." Raven moved the dagger away and turned to leave. "Get out of here. And next time, try not to let yourself be used as someone else's pawn."
Klepps's face contorted, his lips trembling as if to hurl a threat, but he ultimately didn't dare. He looked around at his subordinates and barked, "What are you staring at? Help me get these crystal blocks off my hands!"
The Confessors on either side steered their horses away, leaving Klepps alone on the street, fuming with indignation.
Dropping to his knees and slamming the crystals against the cobblestones until they shattered, Klepps finally freed his hands. He shot a glance at the Ancient Dragon in the courtyard and pulled up his hood. "To claim this manor had no significant defense... No one makes a fool of me."
Raven used several Bloodhound's Steps, flickering through the air until he entered the manor. He questioned his staff, quickly grasped the situation, and told Lansseax to allow the Confessors inside to collect their things.
"Sir Tyrion, go to the Erdtree Sanctuary immediately. Request a group of priests to treat the wounded. Have the Royalist faction organize it; they will agree." Raven's face was grim as he watched three shrouded bodies being carried out. "It was my responsibility for failing to anticipate this attack."
"Your Highness need not blame yourself. With the Ancient Dragon's help, none of our own were lost. It is a resounding victory," Knight Commander Jon said. "It is only that we failed to protect our guests from the Deeproot. Three were so heavily wounded they could not retreat; they chose suicide to protect their secrets."
"I will find the person responsible for this and settle the bill."
"We should have the priests perform the holy rites for them," Knight Buser interjected. He was moving between the bodies, lifting the shrouds to place a Golden Rune over each of the deceased's eyes. "Otherwise, the souls of the self-slain cannot return to the Erdtree. they will wander forever without peace."
Raven pursed his lips. Having witnessed Rykard devouring the Minor Erdtree, he knew exactly what "returning to the Erdtree" actually meant. However, the Golden Order's teachings were deeply ingrained in the people's hearts. If he spoke the truth, he would only be viewed as a heretic spreading blasphemy.
Perhaps people truly did need the comfort of an afterlife. And yet, if it weren't for these false promises, how many would have refused to throw themselves onto the battlefield to die by the sword?
He walked to the window and looked down. Confessors were moving in and out of the courtyard, carrying the bodies of their fallen comrades. Following tradition, they too were placing a Golden Rune over the eyes of each dead man. Some remains had been so badly mangled by Dragonbolt that they had to be shoveled into body bags along with the soil.
"Your Highness, a Confessor leader wishes to see you," Knight Jon reported.
"Let him in."
The Redwhistle Confessor leader pushed open the door and gave a cold, perfunctory bow.
"Prince Raven, we shall proceed with a search of your residence—"
The leader caught a glimpse of the window, where Lansseax had rested her massive head on the terrace to peer inside. He withdrew his gaze and added stiffly, "We ask for your understanding."
"Be my guest," Raven said with a wave of his hand. All evidence of the explosive stones sent to the Deeproot had long been destroyed, and not a single member of Machno's group had fallen into the Confessors' hands. No matter how they searched, they would find nothing.
"Even if no physical evidence is found, it remains a fact that Your Highness has close ties with the Deeproot. You claim to have no knowledge of their rebellion and that you only fought back because the Confessors attacked your home—we find such excuses impossible to believe."
"The Deeproot has existed for three years, yet I have been back in the Capital for less than a fortnight. So many in Leyndell have dealings with them; if you were to draw up a list of suspects, I doubt I would even be near the top," Raven said calmly. The Confessors could use torture on commoners, but as a Demigod, they could do nothing to him without hard evidence.
"The Dynasty has already decided to deploy troops to the Deeproot. When that time comes, it will become clear who is truly allied with them," the Redwhistle leader said before turning to leave.
"Who is in charge of the army? Godwyn?" Raven called out from behind him.
"Due to the Scarlet Rot attack from the Deeproot, the Golden Prince has unfortunately been critically injured and is in a coma," the leader said, pausing at the door. "Someone else will be responsible for suppressing the Deeproot rebellion."
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Elden Ring: The Unborn One's Journey Through Elden Ring(174 Chapter - Ongoing)
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