Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 242 - 235: Heresy Tribunal Army

Chapter 242: Chapter 235: Heresy Tribunal Army

After returning to the city, Cheng Ziang continued to lay low. Approximately three days later, after his last communication with Luo’er, the Heresy Tribunal Army finally arrived.

A formidable cavalry, clad in resplendent silver armor etched with fine runes, appeared outside the city.

Luo’er, along with Tangmo and Hu Daoke, found a roadside observation point and began observing the cavalry with binoculars.

The Heresy Tribunal Army was vast, with at least five hundred members, among them not only heavily armed knights, but also numerous deputies. Most of these individuals donned light armor and long swords, serving as aides to the knights.

The core of the troop comprised a dozen or more horse-drawn carriages. According to Tangmo’s observation, without exception, these carriages were all imprinted with level four or above defense runes, just like those they had encountered on Melia’s convoy in Masya. Melia only had one such carriage, while this group had over a dozen, demonstrating the immense strength of the Church Court.

Most of the occupants of the carriages were mages. Considering the demographic of mages in the Otherworld, there were far more women than men because women naturally have a higher affinity for magic. Thus, the ratio of male to female mages in the army maintained a relative balance.

"With so many runes, will our weapons still be effective?" Hu Daoke asked, worried upon seeing the defense runes on the knight’s armor and the carriages.

"Don’t even think about it, they certainly won’t!" Tangmo replied while observing the caravan, "A rocket launcher probably wouldn’t even break through those carriages right now."

"So, what do we do?" For the first time, Hu Daoke lost confidence in his firearms and turned anxiously towards Luo’er.

"We’ll see. If necessary, fall back. We don’t even have enough bullets to kill five hundred pigs, let alone fully armed soldiers." Luo’er comforted him.

"Should we evacuate the people in the city?" Hu Daoke asked, remembering Cheng Ziang.

"No need, the people in the city are only there for reconnaissance. As long as they pull out in time, everything will be fine." Luo’er replied.

As he watched the passing procession, he suddenly stiffened and reached out to Tangmo, "Moumou, hand me the binoculars!"

"Oh!" Tangmo responded, passing him the binoculars.

Luo’er took the binoculars and immediately focused on a fully-armed knight leading the troops not far away. His armor was more elaborate than the others’, clearly indicating his importance.

"That man..." Luo’er furrowed his brows, muttering under his breath as he stared at the knight.

"What about that man?" Tangmo asked, edging closer.

"Dina Varail, the commander of the Heresy Tribunal Army!" The knight was not wearing a helmet, so Luo’er could easily identify him.

"How do you know him?" Hu Daoke couldn’t help but ask.

"Didn’t you read the pre-war intel from the headquarters?" Luo’er asked.

"Err, I didn’t notice!" Hu Daoke replied, scratching his head.

"This guy is a devoted follower of the Church and a master swordsman; his skills are reputedly third-best on the continent." Luo’er continued.

"Should we just take him out now?" Hu Daoke suggested, patting his nearby RPK machine gun.

"No, let’s not provoke all these people!" Luo’er dismissed the idea, after all, they didn’t hold any deep grudge against the Church and it wasn’t worth the risk to assassinate its commander.

"There’s also a woman, wait, that attire... She’s a mage!" Luo’er noticed a mature woman beside Dina. She wore a lavish, fitted mage’s robe and a wide-brimmed wizard’s hat, adorned with a long feather.

"If I’m not mistaken, she should be their top mage and the leader of the mage team, Hillna Fuyiros. According to the intel from the headquarters, this woman graduated top of her class from Magic Academy. She’s a powerful mage." Luo’er added.

"Let me see!" On hearing the word ’mage’, Tangmo instantly became interested and snatched the binoculars from Luo’er to get a glimpse of the woman leading the formation.

Hillna, seemingly sensing something, turned her head towards Luo’er and his team’s direction but was unable to see anything due to the distance.

"Tch!" Tangmo suddenly let out a disdainful sound. When Hillna turned around, Tangmo had caught sight of her cleavage, so formidable that she felt completely outclassed.

"What’s the matter?" Luo’er asked, concerned.

"Nothing," Tangmo withdrew her gaze and gnashed her teeth, mumbling "Old hag!" under her breath.

Luo’er and Hu Daoke exchanged glances, clueless about why Tangmo was suddenly upset.

"Too bad this isn’t Earth, otherwise a few cruise missiles would suffice. Forget the Heresy Tribunal Army, even if their Otherworld army came along, they’d still be smashed to smithereens!" Hu Daoke couldn’t help but lament.

"It seems like getting Arya’s Blade is out of the question now. Currently, all we can do is observe them from a distance and hope for action from other factions." said Luo’er.

"So, what’s our mission now?" asked Hu Daoke.

"The main task is to follow the whereabouts of Arya’s Blade, and the side task is to try to take Arya’s Blade back." said Luo’er.

"So, are we just waiting for Old Cheng’s situation now?" asked Hu Daoke.

"That’s all we can do, hopefully they won’t mess up!" Luo’er sighed.

In Saint Bava City, Baiyue had already sneaked into the tallest stone tower in the city the night before the Judgement Legion arrived. This stone tower was located on the edge of the city for monitoring the situation of ships entering the city. But, with the arrival of the Heresy Tribunal Army, the stone tower was currently not in operation.

From the top of the stone tower, one has an expansive view of the Uptown District. Combined with a telescope, one can easily see the situation at the palace gate in the city center.

After noticing the vanguard of the Heresy Tribunal Army entering the city, Cheng Ziang left the inn. Avoiding the patrol of the guards, he made his way to the stone tower to meet up with Baiyue.

"What’s the situation?" Upon reaching the top of the stone tower, Cheng Ziang saw Baiyue holding a sniper scope.

"They’ve arrived!" Baiyue answered tersely.

"Is that so!" Cheng Ziang nodded, picked up the telescope next to her, and together, they looked towards the city center.

In the small square at the palace gate, the army of Saint Basaya had already assembled, waiting for the arrival of the Judgement Legion. Among them, a dark-skinned elder dressed in splendid armor together with a few accompanying soldiers awaited the arrival of the Judgement Legion leaders.

"That’s supposed to be the king!" Baiyue said, indicating the elder.

"It looks like they plan to complete the handover ceremony in the Uptown District, right?" Looking at the leader of the Judgement Legion who was dismounting not far away, Cheng Ziang couldn’t help but ask.

"Not necessarily. They are probably just meeting here!" Baiyue analysed.

The members of the Heresy Tribunal Army made contact with the army of Saint Basaya. The three leading figures dismounted and approached the king.

"Dina Varail, the leader of the Judgement Legion; Hillna Fuyiros, the leader of the Mages; Kroell Kneibar, the executor of the Heresy Tribunal Army. These three are the leading trio of the Heresy Tribunal Army!" said Baiyue, listing their details as if enumerating precious gems.

"It seems that the headquarters’ information is correct. The Church Court does take this handover ceremony very seriously and hopes that nothing goes awry with Arya’s Blade." Cheng Ziang nodded.

After meeting with the king of Saint Basaya, the three exchanged a few pleasantries. Then, the king extended his hand to invite them into a carriage, which then headed towards the Lower Town District on the south bank.

"It seems the handover ceremony will indeed take place in the Lower Town District. As expected, Arya’s Blade is indeed kept in the palace there."

"Should we take action?" Baiyue asked him.

"There’s no need," Cheng Ziang laughed and said, "Luo’er has basically given up on this mission. We’re just here to do the bare minimum."

Baiyue glanced at him, retracted her gaze and pursed her lips slightly, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

After crossing the stone bridge to the Lower Town District, the party went directly into the palace. The main force of the Heresy Tribunal Army entering the city and most of the Saint Bava Guard remained in the Uptown District on the north bank.

Suddenly, Cheng Ziang remembered the Aud people who had entered the city some days ago. He subconsciously looked towards the inn in the Uptown District. The Saint Bava soldiers who had been guarding the corner were nowhere to be seen, he wondered whether they had been pulled away.

He was somewhat restless, feeling that something was about to happen. So he closed his eyes and began to simulate if he were the commander of that group, how he would disrupt the handover ceremony.

Now that the main forces of the Judgement Legion and the Saint Bava Guard were in the Uptown District, to disrupt the handover ceremony, or even to seize Arya’s Blade, all they had to do was to control these five stone bridges. This would effectively divide Saint Bava into north and south, making it difficult for the troops on the north bank to support the south. Then, with superior firepower, they might be able to take out the remaining personnel and seize Arya’s Blade.

Thinking along these lines, Cheng Ziang couldn’t help but direct his telescope at the five bridges. They were tightly controlled by Saint Bava’s soldiers, obviously impossible to capture all at once as their manpower wasn’t sufficient. If he were to arrange it, he would simply blow up these five bridges. This way, no matter how many guards were on the bridges, it would be pointless.

Then, Cheng Ziang brought his gaze towards the area under the bridge. Suddenly, it seemed as if he had seen something; his face changed instantly and he began to look tense.

"Yue’er, the situation has changed, someone has started to make their move." he said to Baiyue.