Bang!
The loud noise did not come from just one place.
Almost simultaneously with the continuous explosions of fireballs in the front courtyard of the Roswaal Mansion, the allied forces of the various camps coming to provide support on the road to the territory also encountered a thunderous attack.
Rolling smoke, accompanied by three invisible attacks, erupted without warning from the wilderness on both sides of the road, instantly cutting off the front and rear visibility of the troops and splitting the originally orderly marching formation.
The ground shattered, and soil and rubble, mixed with the remains of soldiers and mounts that could not dodge in time, shot into the sky.
The originally coherent formation was split into three pieces by these three destructive attacks, leaving the front and rear unable to look after each other.
"Steady the formation! Defend back-to-back!"
Amidst the thick smoke, Julius's voice rang out in the section where the Knights were located.
His body lit up with a soft magical radiance. Like a pillar of strength, he quickly organized the Knights who had fallen into brief chaos around him. They stood back-to-back, longswords drawn, shields raised, and in the smoke screen with extremely low visibility, they barely managed to hold off the first wave of black-robed Witch Cultists that surged from the shadows like a tide.
However, the backbone of everyone, Reinhard, hailed as the absolute combat power, was not in the chaotic battlefield shrouded in thick smoke at this moment. He stood on a relatively open piece of ground about a hundred meters away from the edge of the thick smoke.
He had not drawn his sword, he simply stood calmly, his eyes fixed on the front.
Standing opposite him was a man. His hair was fully white, and he was dressed in a pure white overcoat, his face currently twisted with anger.
The Sin Archbishop of Greed—Regulus Corneas.
Reinhard's gaze swept over him, then glanced back at the allied forces engulfed in thick smoke and shouts of battle, his brows furrowing.
"To think that even the Sin Archbishop of Greed has come in person... The situation seems even less optimistic than expected."
"Don't look down on me!"
Regulus's voice rose, interrupting Reinhard's thoughts.
His face was flushed red with rage as he pointed at Reinhard, his fingers trembling.
"How dare you ignore what I said?! I am asking you! What is the meaning of that outfit of yours?! And your eyes! What kind of look is that?! Kneel! Immediately! Right now!"
His roar was devoid of logic, filled with a morbid and childish arrogance.
Reinhard did not respond to his questioning but simply returned his gaze to him, then slightly clenched his left fist, gathering strength as he moved toward him.
—
Meanwhile, in another separated area—the combat zone where Subaru, Rem, and the Iron Fang mercenaries were located.
Even with the support of Rem's Morning Star, Subaru's powerful fists, and the valiant combat skills of the Iron Fang mercenaries, they were barely able to hold their formation against the numerous, fearless Witch Cultists.
But...
"I am the Sin Archbishop of Gluttony—Lye Batenkaitos!"
A voice abruptly pierced through the thick smoke and sounds of slaughter, ringing out in the center of the combat zone.
In the clearing where the smoke had slightly dispersed, a skinny figure appeared, standing only as tall as an average person's waist, wearing tattered leather armor, and looking like a dwarf.
He grinned, revealing uneven white teeth, his eyes flashing with greed and cruelty.
Before the words had even faded—
Whoosh!
Rem's Morning Star tore through the smoke screen, smashing toward Lye's head.
Clang!
Lye flipped his right hand, and an exceptionally sharp dagger emerged, striking the side edge of Morning Star, and with a clever flick of force, he deflected it.
At the same time, another dagger in his left hand slashed upward like lightning.
Clang!
That inconspicuous dagger forcibly blocked the battle axe swing from Ricardo, the captain of Iron Fang, who had lunged from the side.
Lye's dwarf-like, skinny body did not even bend his knees when taking these two heavy blows.
"Heh... Truly delicious. Still just an appetizer."
Lye let out a weird laugh, and the dagger in his left hand, which was holding back the battle axe, suddenly pushed with force.
Ricardo felt a force that was on par with his own brute strength, or perhaps even more concentrated and violent, transmitted from the axe blade. His hand shook, and his body could not help but stagger backward.
Lye seized this fleeting gap, his right foot kicking out at a speed invisible to an ordinary person.
Bang!
This kick landed solidly on Ricardo's chest armor.
Ricardo's burly body was thrown, flying backward and knocking down three or four Witch Cultists who couldn't dodge in time, before landing heavily and kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Captain!"
Exclamations rang out from the Iron Fang mercenaries.
Just at the moment Lye kicked Ricardo away, three figures suddenly leaped from different angles above the thick smoke. They were the vice-captains of Iron Fang—the cat-eared trio, Mimi, Hetaro, and Tivey.
"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!"
The sound waves emitted by the three in unison converged and overlapped in the air, turning into a visible, air-distorting oscillation ripple, enveloping Lye below.
This was their joint technique—Roaring Wave!
Lye's pupils dilated for an instant, his movements showed an extremely slight lag, and the greedy smile on his face froze for a moment. This joint sonic attack obviously caused him a brief pause.
Now is the time!
Divergent Fist!
Subaru appeared behind Lye through the smoke. She had long been ready, seizing this fleeting opening, and charged out from Lye's blind spot.
Just at the moment before Subaru's Divergent Fist, which had gathered all her strength and momentum, was about to land solidly on Lye's back—
That dwarf-like, skinny body reacted instantly, suddenly twisting to the side, barely avoiding the vital point of his back.
Subaru's fist, carrying a whistling wind, grazed the edge of Lye's tattered leather armor and missed.
However, Subaru's combat skills had long been tempered by Tsukasa and were no longer what they used to be.
The attack missed?
No! It was already within his expectations!
Facing an enemy of the Sin Archbishop level, the chance of the first strike succeeding was minimal. What she wanted was the moment the opponent made a dodging motion and shifted their center of gravity.
"Hah!"
A low roar burst from Subaru's throat.
The momentum of her charge not only did not stop, but instead, using her inertia, she stomped her right foot on the ground and her whole body sprang upward.
In the air, her waist twisted with astonishing flexibility, causing her upper body to lean backward, while her legs whipped upward and backward like a lash.
This series of actions was as fast as lightning, seamlessly connected.
Her legs, reinforced by mana, traced a sharp semi-circular arc, tearing through the air, and with a dull sound of wind breaking, they smashed down toward Lye below, who had just finished dodging and was unsteady on his feet.