The Assassin's Seven Principles of Manipulation

Chapter 297: Chapter 292 — Impact

”Get ready,” Kaelion said.

The others immediately echoed the command. Draven made a show of slamming his fists against his chest before letting out a thunderous roar, the sound tearing through the silence of the coming dawn.

Several of the burly Hartvain cadets followed suit, pounding their chests and roaring alongside him, their voices carrying all the way to the walls where the northern cadets stood.

In an instant, the southern cadets seemed to stand a little straighter, and soon, a heavy sense of anticipation settled over the army, their expressions sharpening and eyes growing fierce.

In silence, they waited for the sun to rise over the horizon. During their wait, though, a figure stepped forward atop the northern wall. Despite the distance, Kaelion, along with the other head cadets, immediately recognized him.

The northern Prime.

Malach.

Kaelion’s expression slowly grew fierce. The atmosphere around the clearing seemed to shift with the northern Prime’s arrival, but the greatest change came from the northern cadets themselves.

Now, it was their turn to stand straighter, their voices erupting into deafening roars. Far louder than what the South had shown, their cries seemed to echo from the very depths of the northern fortress.

Yet, despite the maniacal, bloodthirsty screams, it all ended the moment Malach raised a hand.

Silence returned almost instantly.

Malach regarded the southern army with an impassive stare for several seconds. Then, just as the first rays of light began piercing the horizon, he waved a hand.

”Ready the Rune Ballistas.”

The cadets manning the massive emplacements nodded and immediately broke into action. Soon, all five Rune Ballistas lit up with runic light.

In the distance, Kaelion frowned. He knew those lights. They were clearly preparing to fire.

But that was the strange part.

Every cadet knew the Rune Ballistas only had a range of about five hundred meters. They were standing a kilometer away. Even if the North fired, the attacks wouldn’t come anywhere close to reaching them.

”Haha! Those idiots! We’re a whole kilometer away! Do they not know their own damn ballistas can’t reach us?!”

Even Draven, a bona fide, proud musclehead, had realized that much. Across the army, smiles began creeping onto the cadets’ faces, and even Lucien shook his head at the apparent stupidity.

Kaelith did the same. Then, a moment later, his smile slowly faded. His brows furrowed, his gaze remaining fixed on the glowing Rune Ballistas as he suddenly fell into deep thought.

Still, for the rest of the army, the sentiment remained the same.

A moment later, Kaelion shook off his unease.

’Sixty seconds to recharge after every shot. Let them waste this one, then we charge. Hell, at that point, we probably won’t even need the shields. Six on the dot. The barrier should come down any second now.’

The sun was already beginning to peek over the horizon. Kaelion checked the time and confirmed it was six on the dot, the agreed time. He, along with the other head cadets who knew of the plan, immediately turned their attention toward the northern fortress.

Their barrier should be collapsing any second now.

’...Any second now.’

The seconds ticked by.

Then a minute passed.

However, there were no explosions, nor were there any flickers around the fortress to signify the barrier breaking. Instead, the only thing that reached them was Malach’s cold voice.

”Fire.”

The sound of the ballistas firing was like the crack of thunder. Even from a kilometer away, Kaelion could feel the rumble through the ground beneath his feet. Then, bright orbs of light tore into the sky, shining so fiercely they resembled miniature suns, their radiance piercing through the coming dawn.

Kaelion gripped the pommel of his sword, watching the incoming attacks with sharp eyes.

’Two hundred meters.’

Three hundred more and they would drop, exploding harmlessly against the ground. Kaelion glanced back at the army. Just as expected, most of the cadets appeared rather relaxed, barely concerned about the approaching attacks.

Except...

Kaelion frowned as his gaze settled on Kaelith Korrath.

Of all the cadets, Kaelith’s eyes had somehow gone wide, his expression shifting as though he had suddenly realized something.

’What...?’

A strange sense of apprehension gripped Kaelion, but before he could make sense of it, his rune tab suddenly lit up, and Zephyrion’s voice cracked through the silence.

”Shields up.”

The unease already crawling through him, coupled with Kaelion’s unshaken trust in his cousin’s judgment, made him abandon all thought and simply act.

”SHIELDS! NOW!”

The shout jolted the southern cadets, causing several to stare at Kaelion in confusion. But Draven and the other vanguards had already moved. Raising their massive shields, they locked them together and planted them firmly into the ground with a series of unified bangs. Kaelith, too, hastily ordered his troops to raise their shields.

Still, several cadets hesitated.

Then, a cold chill suddenly swept through the remaining stragglers.

They stiffened and instinctively turned, only to find Lumi silently staring at them, her eyes cold.

Her gaze needed no words.

Realizing their mistake, every last one of them raised their shields in an instant.

’Four hundred... five...’

Kaelion counted silently. At this point, the ballista shots should have already fallen and exploded harmlessly against the ground.

But nothing of the sort happened.

Kaelion peeked through a narrow gap between the shields, and his eyes immediately caught something on the northern wall.

Malach’s arms were moving rapidly, weaving through a series of signs as several runic symbols formed in the air before him. In an instant, bursts of light ignited around the falling ballista shots, swallowing them whole. Then, more bursts of light appeared directly ahead of the southern army.

The ballista shots vanished.

And reappeared right in front of them.

Horrified, Kaelion immediately planted his feet firmly into the ground.

”BRACE!”

The five ballista shots slammed into them like speeding trains.

A force unlike anything Kaelion had ever felt traveled through his shield and up his entire body, forcing him several steps backward. His arms felt as though they were on the verge of shattering, and the rest of his body wasn’t much better. Screams erupted all around him, some agonized cries, others strained grunts as the cadets struggled to remain standing beneath the impact.

Then, slowly, the force dispersed.

Kaelion lowered his shield and was met with a scene of devastation. The ground around them had been reduced to scorched, cracked earth. The shields had held, but many of the cadets could barely hold onto them anymore, their arms trembling violently from the impact. Even Kaelion himself couldn’t stop his hands from shaking.

’Kaiden failed.’

The realization struck him with horror.

A sudden worry immediately gripped him as he wondered what had happened to Kaiden, but before the thought could go any further, Malach’s icy voice carried across the clearing.

”Attack.”

The northern gates swung open, and immediately, deafening roars erupted throughout the clearing. Kaelion narrowed his eyes as the northern army poured out of the fortress, surging toward them like a tide.

”PREPARE FOR BATTLE!” Kaelion shook off the trembling in his arms and stepped forward. ”Get the wounded to the rear! Second-line shielders, move up! Rangers, ready your shots!”

The cadets immediately broke into practiced motion. The wounded were hurried toward the rear while the second line of shielders surged forward, taking their places at the vanguard and planting their shields firmly into the ground.

Standing at the forefront, watching the northern army rapidly closing the distance, Kaelion tightened his grip around the hilt of his blade.

”Fire!”