Chapter 166: The Griffin
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
As soon as it appeared, the Icicle went straight towards the furious Andrew.
Andrew saw it coming and immediately chanted a spell to produce a layer of stone wall above his head. He meant to block the Icicle that Benjamin had summoned. However, right after the two collided, the stone wall crumbled to shreds as if it was a piece of rotten wood. It could not stop the momentum of the Icicle even by the slightest bit.
"Master Bishop, save me!" Having seen this, Andrew was extremely shocked and began asking for help in a panic.
The Bishop gave him a look. He did not seem very willing to save Andrew. But after a slight moment of silence, the Bishop still decided to lend a hand. A Shield of Holy Light appeared on top of Andrew’s head, saving him from the icicle.
"Thank... Thank you Master Bishop....." Even though he was still frightened, Andrew did not forget to express his gratitude towards the Bishop sincerely.
Upon watching this, Benjamin was sneering in his heart.
Is he thinking that he will be fine now?
Thinking about this, Benjamin suddenly spoke in a loud voice. "Don’t you want to know what happened at the Imperial Capital? Whether the Pope is dead or alive? Fine, I will tell you what happened."
His words immediately caught the attention of the Bishop.
"So you DO know what transpired."
But Benjamin did not continue to talk. Instead, he once again casted the Icebreaking Spell, producing more than twenty Ice Arrows. In a blink of an eye, he began attacking Andrew, who was still under the protection of the Shield of Holy Light.
The truth is, he did not know what happened to the Pope at all. His words before were just to divert the attention of the Bishop so he would have the chance to kill Andrew.
Andrew MUST die.
For the sake of the others in the Mage Group, he had to do this!
The change in Benjamin was rather abrupt. In addition to that, everyone was focusing on whether the Pope was dead or alive, so no one was quick enough to react. Because of this, no one was able to help Andrew.
Under the double attack of Ice Arrows and Icicle, the Bishop’s sloppily maintained shield was destroyed. Andrew, who was previously protected under the shield, was not able to react to this change. As a result, he was pierced through his chest by a few Ice Arrows. As Andrew’s blood spurted out along with a little ice shred, the Bishop who looked like he loved being clean all the time, dodged the spurt of blood.
"You..."
Andrew fell to the ground in disbelief.
Benjamin gave him a cold stare as Andrew took his last breath.
If it was possible, he would want to behead Andrew and bring his head back to let others in the Guild to see so the others would be able to release their resentment as well. However, in this situation, he could not just do whatever that he wanted. Killing that man was already enough for him.
It was about time to go. He should flee now.
In reality, just as he had predicted, he could already hear the piercing eagle’s cry from afar.
"Have you caused enough trouble?" The Bishop’s tone was emotionless. It was as if he did not care about Andrew’s death at all. Nor did he notice the eagle’s cry which came from afar. He said, "Now, quickly, tell me what truly happened to His Highness the Pope?"
Benjamin flashed a smile to him and said, "Okay, let me tell you this. The Pope is actually dead. The one who showed up previously was actually a puppet manipulated by the Bishop in the Imperial Capital. "
The Bishop was stunned upon hearing this.
"Are, are you speaking the truth?"
Benjamin simply smiled. He did not say a word more.
Of course this was not the truth. He did not even have much impression of the Pope. He only took a glance of him once at the fire execution ground. How would he know what truly happened then? The reason he said this was only to divert the attention of the Bishop, so that it would be easier for him to escape.
Well, of course, if the Bishop believed what he said and fought even more furiously with the Bishop in the Imperial Capital, Benjamin would be glad to see this happening. It was commonly said that "those who love drama in life do not mind how big or small the drama is", not to mention Benjamin was on the opposite side of the Church. These people should just fight. The more furious the fight, the better it would be.
"If you dare to lie to me, do you know what the consequences will be?" The Bishop said this in a threatening tone.
"Of course I’m not lying to you. These are all true." Benjamin said this with a straight face. He sounded so serious that he almost believed it himself. "The Pope is long dead. The Bishop in the Imperial Capital hid this news so that the others won’t know for the sake of keeping the Church together. "
"How do I know I can believe what you said?" Such an important matter. It was obvious that it would not be easy for the Bishop to believe what Benjamin tells him. He would need solid proof.
Benjamin nodded his head, thinking.
In the case of proof, surely he could not provide one to the Bishop.
But...
As the Bishop stared intently at Benjamin, trying to judge by his expression whether he was speaking the truth or not, a horrifying scream was heard suddenly from the periphery of the encirclement.
Following the scream was the sound of eagles’ cries near and far.
At that moment, everyone’s expressions changed drastically. They turned their heads only to see a vast colony of who knows what – a layer of black shadow against the dim moonlight. Like a colony of bats leaving their home, these black shadows flew endlessly from the far mountain peak and came straight for the group.
"What, what are these?"
In an instant, a few of the black shadows came close enough to them. They were finally able to see what it truly was.
Its body size was huge, much bigger than any adult lion, with its beak and claws glistening in the night. Its head was like a ferocious falcon; its amber eyes slowly moving. The white feather at its neck was like a layer of impregnable armor. But below its neck, the bird-like feather was replaced with an animal’s fur. With its tail springing upwards and its strong limbs slightly bent, it looked like it could attack them any minute.
Also, the enormous wing at its back was like a cloud capable of blocking the sun. The sense of foreboding lingered in each and everyone’s heart.
Finally, someone recognized what it was.
"It’s... It’s a Griffin!"
As if the person just dropped a bomb within the encirclement, the previously calm soldiers lost their cool too. Those at the periphery of the encirclement broke their ranks almost in an instant. Those at the inner encirclement, however, did not have anywhere to run to. All they could do was to hold on to their sword and shield, and try the best they could to fend off the Griffin that broke into the encirclement one after another.
However, against such a strong magical creature, they were no different than normal citizens who have never been trained. Every time a Griffin struck, a person died.
At this moment, the endless screams sounded as if they were a choir performance. Sometimes they were harmonized; sometimes they were out of tune.
The narrow road in the mountains was like living hell in this moment. Even the priests were also involved and forced to perform their Shield of Holy Light in order to protect themselves. It was thanks to their shield that they were able to survive the sudden attack of the Griffins.
As for the Bishop and Benjamin...
Just as the group of Griffins began their attack, Benjamin chanted the spell for Pillar of Steam. With the steam surrounding him, Benjamin leapt into the sky, thus quickly escaping the encirclement.
Well, this was a scene he had expected, so of course his reaction would be much quicker than those of the others.
But since Benjamin had already taken off, it was unlikely that the Bishop would not notice his action.
From Benjamin’s attitude and the right timing when the Griffin arrived, the Bishop would have already understood what truly happened, no matter how stupid he was. So at the moment Benjamin leapt, the Bishop also chanted a spell. Followed by the chanting, a pair of wings that was purely made of holy light appeared at his back.
At that exact moment, the Bishop’s whole body was bathed in the holy light, as if he was a messenger sent by God. After that, he raised his head and looked at Benjamin who was in mid-air. As if he was possessed by God, his face was expressionless, without feeling sadness or happiness.
"You can’t run from me."
After saying this, he flapped his Wings of Holy Light and pursued Benjamin.
"Shit..."
Benjamin’s expression could not help but change slightly upon seeing this.
About the plan for tonight, the last part was actually for him to attract the Griffin to his location by using horse oil to create confusion. Amidst the confusion, he would then be able to flee. At first, he was rather successful in creating chaos. All the other priests were busy saving themselves and did not have the energy to deal with him. However, even if he was going with the plan and doing things deliberately, it was obvious that the plan would not be smooth. The Bishop surely had something up his sleeve.
Well, now look at this! As expected, he was not the only one who knew how to fly.
Just by reading the "Introduction to Divine Arts", he really did not know what other flying spells there were in divine arts. But looking at this stance, this divine charm must be more powerful than the Flying Spell of a mage.
It would be the end of him if he was caught by the Bishop.
So, in face of this situation, Benjamin did not dare to hesitate any longer. He quickly directed the steam and brought his maximum speed into play. In a second, he turned and ran.