The heater shield and his Vagabond Knight armor blocked the vast majority of the incoming arrows. Nidhogg moved quickly and managed to retreat onto the bridge completely unscathed.
The crossbowmen gave chase and fired a few more bolts at Nidhogg, but they all missed.
One crossbowman shouted to soldiers in the other towers, signaling that an enemy had climbed the tower and telling them to split up and surround him.
Nidhogg knew he couldn't delay any longer, or he would soon be heavily surrounded, and not even a god could save him.
He blocked a few more bolts, quickened his pace, crossed the bridge, passed through a porch, and quickly ducked behind a wall. This way, the pursuers' arrows couldn't hit him for the time being.
Taking advantage of this window, he immediately ran to a door and opened it, revealing a downward staircase and a long corridor stretching forward at the bottom.
He leaped down the stairs and sprinted along the corridor. He was met head-on by two soldiers holding spears and shields. Seeing him, they charged forward, clearly intending to complete the encirclement.
Nidhogg didn't dare be careless. He slowed his pace, stabilized his stance, brought the heater shield in front of him, and tucked his longsword behind the shield, entering a Ready Stance.
The two soldiers shouted and thrust their spears together, but Nidhogg swung his heater shield and used the Parry Combat Art.
The two spears were deflected to the side by a strange force. Both soldiers wobbled slightly and nearly fell over, their expressions turning to shock.
Nidhogg took the opportunity to strike with his longsword, instantly cutting through the armor of the soldier on the right and carving a deep, bloody gash across his chest.
The soldier instantly lost his strength, his legs went weak, and he collapsed forward.
This was the Guard Counter of the sword-and-shield combo—extremely practical. This was the first time Nidhogg had used it in reality, and a faint sense of excitement rose in his heart.
The other soldier regained his footing. Seeing this, his face paled with horror. Seeing Nidhogg raise his sword to strike him as well, he hurriedly raised his shield to block, resulting in a loud 'clang'.
Nidhogg pulled back his longsword and delivered a kick to the soldier's shield.
The soldier stumbled back several steps before barely managing to steady himself, but his shield had tilted to one side, exposing his body.
Nidhogg seized the chance to rush forward and deliver a charged heavy slash. He cut through the soldier's armor once again, finally ending the man's life.
Two corpses lay in the corridor. Before Nidhogg could catch his breath, he heard hurried footsteps behind him and the shouts of soldiers. It seemed another wave of pursuers had arrived.
I've really stirred up a hornet's nest. I need to get out of the battlefield as soon as possible, or at least find a hidden place to hide. Once I'm out of combat, I'll wait for this battle for the castle to end before finding a suitable time to leave.
At this point, he couldn't care less about the quest to kill "The Grey Knight" Bazuso. He just kept his head down and sprinted through the castle corridors once again.
However, the interior of the castle was intricate and complex. Nidhogg also had to avoid soldiers, so he could only follow the stairs up and down. For a moment, he didn't even know which floor he was on; it was almost like being in Chongqing.
Fortunately, as he turned randomly here and there, the pressure from the enemy forces breaking through the castle gates into the courtyard became too great. The soldiers finally stopped chasing him and returned to their posts, allowing him to slow his pace.
Just as he relaxed slightly, he turned a corner and saw a group of fully armored people on the bridge ahead, crowding the entire passage.
Most of them were full of a rogue-like air, occasionally firing a few cold arrows toward the courtyard without much care. They didn't look like regular troops or a knight order, but rather like mercenaries.
Nidhogg sucked in a breath of cold air. He hadn't expected to find such a large group of people here. If they targeted him, it would be trouble.
At the same time, those mercenary-like people also heard the noise. They all turned their heads to look at him, looking slightly surprised, and then began to size him up with scrutinizing gazes.
Specifically, one of them wearing a White Hawk Helmet had sharp eyes that felt like swords, as if they could pierce through his body and soul.
At that moment, the quest updated.
"Short-term Quest" Kill those obstructing the castle battlefield (1/1) / Kill "The Grey Knight" Bazuso / Meet key members of the Band of the Hawk (0/6)