An increasing number of soldiers emerged into You’er’s sight, some blocking their path ahead, others giving chase from behind.
Yet, each was swiftly dispatched by Noelle Noah’s magnificent and potent ice magic.
“If we persist like this, we might truly…”
Noelle Noah’s immense power, or perhaps, more accurately, the sheer might of her magic, imbued You’er with a flicker of confidence, allowing him to glimpse a fragile hope of escape.
Nevertheless, Noelle Noah’s condition appeared to be steadily worsening.
From You’er’s vantage point, he could distinctly perceive the fine beads of sweat coalescing on her pristine forehead, and he could also discern her increasingly labored breathing.
At this very moment, even the simple act of taking a step seemed to demand an immense effort from her.
‘If only I could be of some use!’
Having inadvertently shifted the entire burden and pressure onto the young woman beside him, You’er felt a profound pang of remorse, silently chastising himself for his own helplessness.
He gritted his teeth, and to the girl’s astonished gaze, he swept her up horizontally into his arms.
“Entrust the escape to me. You, in turn, concentrate on regulating your breath and recuperating your stamina.”
Noelle Noah’s frame was not particularly heavy, and moreover, with the awakening of his divine soul power, You’er’s physical prowess had significantly improved.
Thus, even as he sprinted while carrying her, his speed remained largely unhindered.
“Mm.”
The girl’s luminous eyes fluttered twice, and she offered a silent nod.
With such a clear division of labor established, the two finally reached the city’s ultimate checkpoint.
At the city gate, hundreds of soldiers stood poised, already arrayed in full battle formation!
The instant they both set foot upon that place, it ignited a chain reaction, much like a fuse reaching gunpowder.
Whoosh, whoosh!
Countless sharp whistles rent the air, emanating from both above and below the city walls.
These were innumerable arrows, their tips pulsating with the glow of mana, descending like an overwhelming deluge!
“Ice Shield!”
In that crucial moment, Noelle Noah swiftly conjured a formidable shield wall of ice magic, encircling their immediate vicinity.
Thump-thump-thump-thump…
The dense, mana-infused arrows hammered relentlessly against the ice shield, steadily eroding its outer shell, puncturing it inch by agonizing inch.
The shield’s ultimate shattering, it seemed, was but moments away.
Yet, Noelle Noah was far from resigned to her fate.
You’er could distinctly perceive the surging, boundless ice elemental energy radiating from the young woman in his embrace—an endless tide of ice mana, akin to loyal subjects awaiting their queen’s command to serve.
A silent incantation unfolded, a colossal and awe-inspiring magic that You’er had never before witnessed—a force akin to a natural calamity.
“Ice, bloom forth with fervent intensity! Spirit Magic — Frostblaze!”
With the city gate as its epicenter, within a hundred-meter radius both above and below, every soldier was instantly frozen solid in place, much like fish caught in a frigid winter stream.
From You’er’s horrified perspective, he could discern a colossal ice lotus, which had utterly encased the city gate, a substantial section of the wall, and all hundreds of soldiers within that expanse, in an unbreakable grip of ice.
The moment Noelle Noah severed the flow of magical energy, the ice lotus, sculpted from mana, swiftly dissolved.
That isolated section of the gate wall, along with the hundreds of soldiers it had encompassed, vanished entirely, as if they were mere pencil marks wiped clean from a page, eradicated forever!
Despite the profound shock reverberating within him, You’er did not for an instant lose sight of their objective.
Rather than standing dumbfounded, he cradled Noelle Noah tightly and sprinted with unparalleled speed towards the gaping breach in the city wall.
It was precisely then that a series of dull, rhythmic hoofbeats resonated through the air.
Thump-thump… thump-thump…
The sound seemed to echo directly within You’er’s very soul, instantly sending his spirits plummeting into the abyss of despair.
This particular horse, these specific hoofbeats, brought back a memory that made his teeth clench in visceral hatred.
The Black Knight Captain, Mecaphes. This was the name You’er had only come to know following his capture.
“Remarkable, truly remarkable.
To have endured such torment and yet still be scrambling so far, so full of life… you genuinely astonish me, little wretch.”
In a disorienting blink, the Black Knight Captain Mecaphes had already materialized, effectively barring their only escape route.
“Ice Thorns!”
Without a single superfluous word, as if by sheer reflex, Noelle Noah unleashed her attack.
Despite having just expended herself on such a terrifying, large-scale spell, her beautiful face was etched with pallor and exhaustion.
Nevertheless, she fought fiercely to seize any possible advantage.
“A half-elf merely a step away from ascending to Archmage status, hmph.
Such potent Spirit Magic is indeed not to be trifled with.
A true pity, however, that for one like myself, who stands within the realm of the Sword Emperor, it holds absolutely no meaning.”
The very same ice thorns that had previously showcased such formidable power abruptly dissipated a mere meter from Mecaphes.
The two-word title, ‘Sword Emperor,’ a designation signifying a peak powerhouse of the continent, instantly made Noelle Noah feel as though she stood before an insurmountable foe.
“Sword… Emperor?”
A choked, guttural groan escaped You’er’s throat.
They had managed to carve a breach in the city wall, fully convinced they would finally behold the dawn of hope.
Alas, what awaited them beyond that breached wall was an even profounder, more crushing despair.