White Harbor, Manderly Family Castle
The Monster Dragon's corpse, which had just been lying on the ground near the castle walls, suddenly jumped up and charged towards Blood Cyclops, Goth, with incredible speed.
The upper half of the Monster Dragon's mangled body suddenly came to life. Starting from the broken neck, it was like a blooming chrysanthemum, sprouting countless fleshy, grotesque hands.
Then, they wrapped around Goth's waist with astonishing speed, slowly constricting, as if trying to swallow him whole.
Although Bloodhand, Blackstone, had warned Goth in time, the Monster Dragon's corpse was faster. Those fleshy hands were as agile as serpents, and incredibly resilient.
The Monster Dragon's disgusting, fleshy hands began to erode Goth's body bit by bit, while he struggled desperately, trying to tear the Monster Dragon apart.
However, the Monster Dragon, having ambushed from behind, didn't give Goth a chance. The fleshy tentacles on its body tightly bound Goth's back, and they specifically targeted the armpits and the groin, sapping his strength little by little.
Goth wanted to roll on the ground, but found he couldn't exert any force. The power binding him from behind grew stronger, and the pain intensified.
"Roar..."
Just as the Abyssal Hydra and the others were preparing to attack to help Blood Cyclops, Goth, two Judgment Swords burning with flames descended from the sky, piercing the Monster Dragon's body, one on each side.
The blue holy flames seemed to be the Monster Dragon's natural nemesis. After the attack, the creature recoiled as if it had been electrocuted.
Subsequently, the two archangels wielding the Judgment Swords continued their assault. The Monster Dragon retreated step by step, only to find itself at the city wall.
Just as the Monster Dragon was trying to escape towards the river, a giant sword of light descended from the sky and struck it directly.
"Boom... Hiss..."
The light sword formed by "Holy Vengeance" exploded instantly. After the attack, the fleshy appendages on the Monster Dragon's body emitted strange roars, and the energy sound waves, as if they were real, sent the surrounding soldiers and monsters flying backward.
After the Monster Dragon made this sound, the fleshy dragon breath it had previously spewed out underwent a change. Under the pull of a subtle energy, they began to fly back towards the Monster Dragon.
Some of the corpses that had turned into monsters seemed to be drawn towards the Monster Dragon by some kind of force, while the possessed human soldiers around them all collapsed to the ground, drained of energy.
Subsequently, this flesh-formed energy entered the Monster Dragon's body. After gaining this energy, the Monster Dragon also gained the strength to contend with the power of "Holy Vengeance."
Boom..
At this moment, a larger "Holy Vengeance" lightsaber suddenly appeared in the sky, crashing down with an unstoppable momentum.
Boom... Bang..
Two lightsabers, one large and one small, exploded within the Monster Dragon's body. The terrifying power and force of the explosion directly eliminated two-thirds of the Monster Dragon's fleshy, monstrous hands.
Although this explosion looked terrifying, it only affected the Monster Dragon. It seemed as if this power was specifically designed to counter it.
After the intense light dissipated, broken spots of light appeared above the Monster Dragon's body. They flickered, looking very beautiful, but the Monster Dragon beneath the fragments of light did not share the same sentiment.
Because at this moment, the remaining flesh-hand of the Monster Dragon was writhing in pain. That soul-piercing agony caused the flesh on the Monster Dragon's body to writhe as well.
It once again emitted that eerie shriek, but this time, it didn't summon any flesh energy. Its body seemed to have shrunk a bit.
Then, the broken light spots on the Monster Dragon began to fall down little by little, and their target was the Monster Dragon. Those broken light spots quickly merged into the Monster Dragon's body.
After these light spots merged into the Monster Dragon's body, they began to corrode the Monster Dragon's black and red scales like acid. Its body continuously melted and decomposed, looking very miserable. This final blow completely deprived the Monster Dragon of its fighting ability.
With the disappearance of the fragmented light spots, the Monster Dragon's twisted body twitched on the ground, and it seemed that it was not far from death. At this moment, the battle on the outer perimeter of the battlefield by the human soldiers was nearing its end.
The large number of fleeing and surrendering allied soldiers made the already loose front line precarious, especially the battle between the Monster Dragon and the Blood Cyclops, Goth, which caused the allied soldiers' front line to completely collapse.
Although the Monster Dragon had retracted its influence on the soldiers in the recent battle, most of the soldiers who had returned to normal had exhausted their stamina and were unable to fight.
As for the soldiers of the Valyrian Empire, they were less affected. In the recent melee, Goth had been intentionally or unintentionally running towards the defending soldiers.
Just moments ago, upon witnessing the Monster Dragon's defeat, Bloodhand, Blackstone, immediately ordered his troops to attack. The allied soldiers defending near the castle were slowly being devoured, and the main force of the Valyrian Empire army had already broken through to the Manderly Family's ancestral castle gates.
The Maintainers soldiers' combat prowess was undeniable, especially with the enhancement of hero skills; their combat effectiveness reached its peak, making them unstoppable on the battlefield.
Furthermore, due to the chaotic situation, a large number of retreating soldiers poured into the gates, making it easy for the Maintainers soldiers to seize them.
Their offensive split the allied soldiers' formation in two, preventing the soldiers on the left and right from helping each other, and they were completely surrounded by the Valyrian Empire army soldiers.
This situation caused many soldiers to surrender immediately. After capturing the city gates, the main tasks for the Valyrian Empire army soldiers became the encirclement and annihilation of the soldiers outside the city and accepting their surrender.
Especially for the soldiers on the north side of the castle, the surrender was incredibly swift. It wasn't that the soldiers on this side were tougher.
Instead, because the strongest forces of the Valyrian Empire were gathered on the north side. The Dragon was already terrifying, but the monsters and giants on the ground were even more frightening.
Therefore, most of the defending soldiers on the north side chose to surrender. Many of them had survived the battle between the Monster Dragon and Goth.
"Ugh…"
The Monster Dragon, half-dead, let out a series of whimpers, as if it were afraid of something. It was no surprise, really, as Marco, along with his wives and several high-level system soldiers, had surrounded it.
The terrifying pressure was completely beyond what it, on the brink of death, could withstand – or rather, it no longer had the strength to bear it.
Blood Cyclops, Goth, was staring at the monster with a face full of fury, wanting nothing more than to tear it to shreds. In Goth's eyes, this was a disgrace, but he wouldn't attack without Marco's orders.
Watching the Monster Dragon, whose head had been ripped off but was still using its body to attack, the women were all somewhat curious. Mu, on the other hand, was quietly sensing the power within its body.
Finally, Goth grew angrier and angrier, and directly addressed Marco:
"Your Majesty! Goth wants to eat it. This disgusting demon might have other abilities. Once it's in Goth's belly, it definitely won't be able to revive."
"Hiss… Roar…"
It was unclear how the Monster Dragon understood the meaning of Goth's words, but it immediately let out a frenzied roar. Goth, not to be outdone, roared back, a terrifying sound that made the Monster Dragon cower.
"Leaving it alive is just asking for trouble. Let's kill it and I'll purify it directly!"
With those words, Maeve manifested the Judgment Sword and swung it towards the Monster Dragon. However, Marco stopped her, as he had seen something interesting inside the creature's body.
Marco then used "Magic Purification" on the Monster Dragon. The high-level light magic directly purified the magic within the Monster Dragon, causing its body to slowly shrink.
Next, a dazzling light appeared before everyone. The powerful light magic energy purified the remaining energy in the Monster Dragon's body. After the light dissipated, a headless male corpse appeared before them.
Mu lowered her head and spat, then launched a "Chain Fireball", turning the corpse to ashes. And just like that, the infamous Stannis Baratheon was reduced to dust.
At that moment, a chorus of shouts and cries erupted from the castle gates. The Onion Knight, Davos Seaworth, led a troop of soldiers out of the castle.
Under his command, the soldiers who had already scattered throughout the castle regained their confidence and began to attack the castle gates. They seemed determined to stop the Valyrian Empire soldiers from entering the castle.
After consolidating the troops, Davos led his trusted bodyguards to search the castle for Stannis.
After a long search, Davos and his men finally broke through the obstructing rubble and reached the devastated Mermaid Palace.
"Go."
Marco looked at the chaos at the castle gate and waved his hand, signaling Goth and the others to charge forward. He himself took the strange dagger from a Wind Dragon Guard soldier's hand. He didn't know that the Monster Dragon was Stannis; he was simply interested in the dagger.
After taking the dagger, Marco examined it carefully. After a while, he found that the inscriptions on it were in the Eling People's script. It seemed the dagger was a magical artifact left behind by the Eling People's civilization.
Just now, when Marco used his magic control skill to examine the Monster Dragon, he discovered that everything was actually related to the dagger, which also made Marco very interested in it.
While Marco was examining the dagger, Davos, who was in the Mermaid Palace, learned what had happened from a bodyguard who had narrowly escaped death. After listening to the guard's description, his heart immediately sank.
Then, Stannis learned from some fleeing soldiers that the Monster Dragon was dead. Just as he was about to order a retreat, a dragon's roar came from the sky.
Then, several soldiers scrambled to him, and one of the older soldiers suddenly said to him:
"Your Grace! The dragon... the dragon went to attack our fleet, I... what should we do?"
"What are you saying? Didn't I already order the fleet to retreat? Leaving only three longships? How did this happen? How is Princess Shireen?"
"I... I don't know, it... it seems like the Queen..."
Hearing the answers from his subordinates, Davos immediately felt his mood sink to the bottom. When he came to rescue Stannis, he had already arranged everything.
Davos's fleet was divided into two parts. He used the flagship, "Lightbringer," as a decoy, heading towards a small island west of Claw Isle, while another group of warships headed towards a small island to the east.
Davos had also left behind a longship. He had already thought it through: after finding Stannis, one of his guards would pretend to be Stannis, and they would pretend to escape with Stannis.
But now, all of this was ruined. Just as Davos was still in a daze, shouts of killing and footsteps entered his ears.
"Charge!"
At this moment, a large group of soldiers suddenly rushed from the corner of the stairs. Judging by the crests on their shields, they seemed to be knights from various families on the Two Rivers Plain. Leading them was Ser Marlon Manderly, the captain of the White Harbor garrison.
Ser Marlon Manderly was a distant relative of the Manderly Family. Due to his superb swordsmanship and rich combat experience, he was chosen by Wyman Manderly to be the captain of the White Harbor garrison.
Under the leadership of Ser Marlon Manderly, these knights surrounded Davos and his men. Davos's guards drew their swords, confronting these former "allies."
"Dear Ser Marlon! What do you mean by this? Are you going to betray the oath you swore?"
Davos steadied himself and asked Ser Marlon Manderly.
Davos had patrolled the city defenses with him before, and the two had even discussed military strategies together at a gathering, so they were quite familiar with each other.
"My Lord Prime Minister, I'm very sorry, but White Harbor can no longer bear the burden of war, and the Manderly Family is on the brink of life and death. I can only do this now. You may not know, but those monster-like异族 have already invaded!"
Davos sighed helplessly, then unfastened the weapon hanging at his waist and threw it on the ground. The guards around him, seeing this, also reluctantly dropped their weapons.
Due to Marco's influence, many things and events had changed significantly. During the "War of the Five Kings," most of the heirs and patriarchs of the Northern families in the expeditionary forces died at the "Red Wedding." The Manderly Family was no exception; both heirs were dead.
Now, with the death of Lord Wyman Manderly, the Manderly Family was left with only three orphans and a widow. Ser Marlon Manderly, although a distant relative of the Manderly Family, now in charge of the army, had other thoughts.
Three hours later, Mermaid Palace
Marco was sitting on the main seat in front of the hall fireplace. Sitting beside him were Yueying and the others. Standing before him were a large group of noble captives.
These people were divided into two groups. Those on the left were Stannis's wife and daughter, along with some of his former royal ministers. These were all captured by Aegon and Brynden with the help of the dragons.
When the dragons appeared, the Royal Fleet of Stannis, which had not withdrawn in time, immediately dared not move. Two warships, in order to escape, directly performed a new style of "water and fire burial."
After that, Brynden ordered this small fleet to surrender. Many pirate sailors had ulterior motives, and a mutiny occurred on the ship. Stannis's queen and daughter were offered up by the rebels.
On the right stood numerous nobles from the Two Rivers Plain, each of them somewhat apprehensive. Many of them were followers of the "Faith of the Seven."
Their fierce resistance stemmed from their fear that Marco would seize their faith and military power, perhaps influenced by the Manderly Family.
The nobles of the Two Rivers Plain were extremely extravagant and greedy. Their desire for land fueled their constant fear of Marco's arrival.
The nobles of the Two Rivers Plain were primarily led by the Manderly Family of White Harbor. Since all the male members of the Manderly Family had died, Wymann Manderly's daughter-in-law and two granddaughters were pushed to the forefront.
Marco, holding a dagger, turned his gaze towards the famed "Onion Knight," Davos. He sized him up for a moment before speaking.
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