The Villain Carries the Holy Sword – Chapter 103.1

Chapter 103.1: Spring When Stars Fall (2)
Beyond the barrier, one could see the vibrant forest village.

Thump━.

Olivia frowned at the strange sound ringing in her ears.

Her intuition screamed that it was not a sound to be ignored, but no matter how much she looked around, there was nothing that could have made such a noise.

Moreover, before her eyes lay the heart of the ‘Deep Forest,’ a place no Airian had ever set foot in before.

Thump━.

Such a sound was insignificant now.

Olivia raised her flag high.

“All troops! Advance!”

Clatter clatter clatter clatter━!

The earth trembled.

300 years of Airian resentment and sorrow.

The verdant great wall that had never once fallen crumbled beneath the overwhelming invasion of the expedition.

Thump━.

The elves were few in number.

Although not widely known, the theory that their weak constitution made childbirth dangerous and rare seemed to be true.

There wasn’t a single child in the Northern Elf village.

“The resentment of our ancestors runs deep! Capture the Elf Queen!”

Far in the distance, one could see Queen Glumiêm, who was being escorted by the Elders, attempting to escape.

Olivia urgently kicked off the ground and ran.

The knights of the Marquis McLoud followed behind her.

As she ran through the blood-soaked forest, leaping over intricately intertwined vines, Olivia felt something was amiss.

Thump━, thump━.

“Does anyone else hear that sound?”

If it were any other sound, she would have dismissed it as an auditory hallucination or tinnitus.

However, what she heard sounded distinctly like a knight clad in leather armor collapsing and hitting the ground.

So, she questioned the knights around her.

“The sound, you mean?”

But it seemed she was the only one who could hear it.

Fwooosh━.

The fog grew thicker for some reason.

Olivia, who had been pondering the sound, pushed the thought from her mind and, gathering her mana, dashed off to capture the fleeing Glumiêm.

Besides, she felt reassured, for she wasn’t alone.

She had Marquis McLeod, who was always a pillar of strength, and Marquis Ross, who, although not overly forthcoming with answers, provided her with strength, running beside her.

“Huh…?”

Suddenly, she glanced back.

The aged Marquis McLoud was there.

But Marquis Ross, with his distinctive emblem emblazoned on his chest, was nowhere to be seen.

A strangely handsome knight beside her spoke.

“Didn’t Lord Marquis Ross decide to circle around and execute a pincer attack?”

Olivia staggered.

Thump━.

Was that really the case?

She distinctly remembered discussing with Marquis McLoud about keeping an eye on Marquis Ross, so how could she have sent him off on his own?

“He said he had no other choice━.”

The knight’s words continued.

Fog seemed to seep into Olivia’s ears. Her vision blurred for a moment.

“Ah, right. I don’t know why I forgot such an important detail.”

Far in the distance, she could see Glumiêm running away.

The way she kept glancing back made her look like a herbivore being chased by a predator.

Casting trivial matters like the ‘noise’ or ‘Marquis Ross’ behind her, Olivia once again dug her heels into the earth.

Unlike the outer forest, even the soil in the ‘Deep Forest’ felt soft and springy.

Shhh━.

One of the knights running alongside her was struck by an arrow. Watching him instantly perish, Olivia bit her lip.

She harbored no illusions that everyone would live through the war.

Nevertheless, she briefly mourned the loss of a precious knight and charged ahead.

The fog grew even denser.

Pitter-patter━.

And raindrops began to fall intermittently.

Olivia was filled with the dream of becoming the first to conquer the ‘Deep Forest’ and the Queen of Airian.

🔹🔹🔹

“I am…… a knight of Airian…”

The fog was thick.

The white mist that formed the ‘Barrier of the Great Forest’ surged forward like a wave, swallowing the expeditionary force in an instant.

“This much……”

Thump.

Expert-level knights possessed considerable mental fortitude against curses and magic.

However, most of the knights in the expeditionary force collapsed onto the ground, swept away by the first wave of fog.

“Damn it.”

Thump━.

Even the strong knights who had managed to endure began to collapse one by one.

“Aren’t you going to exempt your own knights?”

The Elder, Faye MacGeraghty.

With Sigma lying down and Rhys gone, the third Elder elf sent by Glumiêm questioned Marquis Ross.

Heatherward, who had been observing the battlefield with cold eyes, opened his mouth.

“No need. However, it would be good to spare those wearing orange bands on their arms.”

The knights of Ross, 〈Ross de Kaerot〉.

As if preparing for this day, they all wore orange bands on their arms.

Faye MacGeraghty nodded.

“Consider it done. But don’t get your hopes up.”

It’s not like they couldn’t distinguish the color.

It was just a precaution, knowing the younger elves were prone to going overboard.

“Understood.”

A cold response, unconcerned even by the deaths of his own knights.

Faye MacGeraghty observed him briefly before turning her gaze back to the battlefield where hundreds of knights lay sprawled on the ground.

Swish━ Swish━.

The elves who had been observing the situation within the ‘Deep Forest’ walked amongst them.

They kicked the unconscious knights, still trapped in the illusion of the barrier.

Plunge━.

Stabbing their hearts with knives.

Slice━.

Dismembering their arms and legs, just as Rhys had done.

They carried out their slaughter without a care, even upon seeing the orange of 〈Ross de Kaerot〉.

“The Queen said to keep half of them alive, correct?”

Faye MacGeraghty asked dryly.

Unlike the proactive Sigma and the constantly critical and sarcastic Rhys, she was the type to simply carry out her assigned tasks.

“We’ll wake them up and send them back after three days.”

Some elves dragged the bodies of the knights away, stripping them of their clothes and equipment.

Woooosh━.

Using their magic, they concealed their ears, altered their appearances to resemble humans, and donned the knights’ attire.

It was a scene of elves seamlessly infiltrating the human world.

Faye MacGeraghty watched this spectacle with an impassive expression before her eyes suddenly gleamed.

In the distance, an old man, kneeling on one knee, was staring at her and Marquis Ross with furious eyes.

Marquis Ross, sensing his gaze, turned his head.

“R……Ross, you little……”

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