The Head Priest raised his right hand, preparing to wipe anyone who dared to attack them from the face of this earth. "Sunf-"
"Stop!!!" A sudden shout came from the distance that shocked everyone. A wall of fire rose from the ground between the Royal Knights and the Head Priest who was about to attack.
The Head Priest stopped his attack and turned around. This wall of fire was powerful and he also recognised this voice.
"What are you doing here?" he asked as he turned. However, as soon as he looked back, his expressions shifted. The Head Priest that they left behind was here and he was covered in blood. His face was also pale, as if he had burned his life essence to even reach here as soon as he could.
"What happened?" Lerian asked as his face turned dark. He already had a bad feeling deep inside his heart since the beginning and now this?
"Were you attacked on the way here?" The other Head Priest asked. "Who dares to attack you on the way?!"
"I wasn't attacked on the way here. I was attacked inside the Church!" the bleeding man exclaimed, dropping to his knees. "Holy Lord, please get back as soon as possible! The Church is under attack! I'm not even sure if the others are still alive or not! I could only get out and come here to inform you as soon as I could!"
"This was a trap! We've all been fooled!" he further added, telling everything that happened at the Church of Flames and how the other Head Priests were killed.
The Holy Lord of Flames was stunned to hear all this. Not only were they fooled, but someone even dared to attack the Church of Flames in broad daylight? He finally realized just what that strange feeling in his heart was! It was about this!
"You!" His fists tightened. He didn't yell or show his emotions but the ones who knew him understood what he was feeling!
His figure flew high in the air as he left. His speed was already ten times faster than the speed of the Head Priests. Within seconds, he disappeared from everyone else's view. He didn't care about bringing the others back with him. At the moment, he just wanted to get back and kill the person who dared to attack his home!
The other Head Priests also flew back, on the way gathering other Church members. The attack on the Empire of Arecia was cancelled. The flaming dragon in the sky also dispersed as if he was never there.
The members of the Sacred Church of Flames and the Barrier were dispelled. The Empire was free once again. Once the Mages of Flame left, only stunned citizens were left behind!
"T-they left? Were they scared of us?" One of the Royal Knights asked, unable to believe his eyes. Just as they were about to attack, the enemy left which made him wonder if it was because of them.
"Nonsense. I know we are strong but we aren't that strong. I think they left for another reason!"
"Agreed! Maybe they found the person they were looking for? If that's the case, it looks like our luck isn't bad..."
The Royal Knights got down from their horses. The feeling of surviving at the face of death was something that they were experiencing for the first time and they were already so relieved.
"Good luck?" The Saint Knight sighed, also getting down from the horse. "Look at the surroundings. Do you think this was great luck?"
The Royal Knights of the Arecia Empire looked around, standing on the edge of what had once been a bustling city. The Flaming Dragon had done its work; all that remained was its destruction and ruin. Even though it was stopped before it could destroy the entire city, the destruction that it already caused was too much in itself.
Everywhere they looked, buildings were reduced to rubble, homes burned down to their foundations, and the streets littered with charred remains. Everywhere there was smoke in the air from fires still smouldering from the dragon's attack.
The Saint Knight surveyed the scene before him, his face grim as he took in all that had been lost. He knew that many lives were taken in this attack, but he also knew it could have been much worse if the Church of Flames hadn't stopped attacking.
Deep inside his heart, he felt a lot of hate toward the Church of Flames now. Those people really didn't value the lives of a person, treating them like ants!
He turned away from the carnage and spoke softly to the others: "Send out search parties - we need to find any survivors. Check if there is anyone buried under the rubble and if they're still alive, help them. We need to focus on the rescue now!"
His voice betrayed none of his inner turmoil as he made this order; instead it held only determination and strength as he faced an uncertain future ahead of them all.
In silence, one by one each Knight turned around and went to help people. The attack of the Church didn't even last for a few seconds and half the city was already destroyed. Even a small part of the Royal Palace was also damaged. Fortunately, most of it was still intact.
One of the attacks of the Flaming Dragon also landed on the Garden of Legacy near the Royal Palace. However, for some strange reason, there was no mark left in the garden. It was as if no attack landed there. The mysterious garden was still perfectly fine!
Duke Callum stood in the distance, watching the Mages leave. His palace was still left standing as well. He finally sighed in relief. "It looks like he really succeeded. If only the Messenger was a few minutes faster, so much of the destruction could've been avoided."
"These Churches are still as overbearing as before." He entered his mansion, not bothering about the rescue.
