Chapter 625: The Immortal Trump Soldiers
On an unnoticed night, roses and fairy tales intertwined, weaving a magnificent spectacle between life and death.
According to Hakuno’s observations, the soldiers summoned by Alice ca in four suits—spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs—matching the patterns of playing cards. Their distinguishing features lay in their weapons and the robes they wore, though their abilities showed little variation.
They were all re cannon fodder, unable to last three rounds against Nero.
While part of the reason was the exceptional prowess of the fifth Roman emperor, the more critical factor was that these soldiers’ abilities weren’t focused on combat in the first place.
With a rip—a sound eerily reminiscent of tearing playing cards—three more soldiers were cleaved apart by Aestus Estus’s sweeping slash. Their severed bodies collapsed to the ground, yet neither Nero nor Hakuno showed any excitent. re seconds later, the bisected figures seamlessly reford, rejoining the fray without even needing to adjust their stance, their weapons swinging chanically.
It wasn’t a matter of cutting them finely enough—Nero and Hakuno had already tried. These soldiers possessed formidable immortality. Even if burned to ashes, they would restore themselves in an instant and rejoin the army.
If this battle were likened to a ga, it would undoubtedly be the worst, most tedious trash—no combat experience, no reward feedback, no sense of accomplishnt... It was like a farr toiling under the sun, knowing full well the backbreaking labor they endured, yet forced to continue for survival. This monotonous stalemate was maddening.
But even this "mowing down hordes" state was rely an illusion. While the soldiers could revive endlessly, Nero’s stamina was constantly draining. If the battle dragged on too long, there was a real risk of being worn down to death by re foot soldiers.
Even ants could kill an elephant if there were enough of them.
This couldn’t go on. Alice held the initiative now. To break the deadlock, they had to change tactics first.
Yet even as she rapidly strategized, an unavoidable doubt arose in Hakuno’s mind.
Even immortality should have its limits. A handful of such soldiers might be plausible, but hundreds—no, thousands—all possessing this trait, along with tangible offensive capabilities... Just how terrifying was the cost required to sustain them?
Hakuno recalled another Holy Grail War Sakatsuki had once ntioned to her—the one where Rider, Alexander the Great, had summoned his own army. Yet those soldiers could die when killed, and the sheer magical energy demanded by Ionioi Hetairoi was so imnse that the King of Conquerors had only deployed his Noble Phantasm a handful of tis before his defeat.
So how were Alice and her Servant, Nursery Rhy, achieving this? Was it due to Alice’s nature as a wraith? But Nursery Rhy’s fa paled in comparison to the illustrious Alexander. How could she wield a Noble Phantasm of this magnitude?
There had to be so hidden trick to it... There had to be.
"Ugh!" Nero gasped heavily, her movents distorted by exhaustion, failing to parry the attack in ti. The two signboards of spades and diamonds struck her back, sending red gauze fluttering as pain twisted her delicate face. She quickly swung her sword to block.
A verdant light swept over, rapidly restoring her stamina. Hakuno checked her nearly depleted magical energy, knowing they couldn’t afford further delay.
"Saber, don’t worry about —go attack Alice and Nursery Rhy!"
Though it pained her, Hakuno still took out a protective artifact from her backpack and smashed it. The wings of a goddess descended as the card soldiers swung their weapons, only to et with re ripples before falling silent.
The Goddess’s Blessing, a B-rank protective artifact personally chosen for Hakuno by Sakatsuki, was an extrely cost-effective mystic code. Its defensive capabilities rivaled A-rank items, though with one drawback—this goddess appeared to be from ancient Greece, and her grace ca and went like a tornado, lasting only forty-five seconds. In other words, Nero had less than a minute to cut through the army and capture Alice and Nursery Rhy.
But for Nero, who had long been simring with frustration—
"More than enough!"
The mont her words fell, a flaming teor ignited at the heart of the surging crowd. Bolstered by Hakuno’s magical support, Nero rallied her spirits. Harnessing the explosive force of the flas, she shot forward in a straight line at incredible speed, her beloved sword cleaving through all obstacles in her path without slowing, charging straight toward Alice and Nursery Rhy atop the high cliff.
The principle of "capture the leader to control the followers" was well understood, and Nero agreed with Hakuno’s choice. If they could seize Alice and Nursery Rhy, the soldiers would hesitate to act.
"Waaah, the monster’s coming to get us!"
"No, shouldn’t we call it a demon here?"
Despite the scorching flas closing in, the black-and-white little queens showed no panic, instead enthusiastically debating the appropriate term. Nero gritted her teeth in irritation, casually slicing apart the guards rushing at her as she strode forward.
"Hmph, to call a monster or a demon... You mischievous little girls need a proper lesson!"
As if sensing Nero’s anger, Alice and Nursery Rhy exchanged a glance before crouching down with their hands over their heads, shouting in unison:
"Eek—so scary! Save us, knights!"
"What?!" Both Nero and Hakuno froze at the words.
Knights?
But the area was filled with weak card soldiers—where were the knights on white steeds, descending like divine warriors to rescue princesses?
Just then, Hakuno, still under the goddess’s protection, noticed the soldiers surrounding her suddenly freeze before collapsing like harvested wheat, dissolving into scattered motes of light.
What was happening?
Hakuno was utterly baffled.
Was this the legendary "I didn’t even exert myself, and you all fell down"?
Before she could react, the sound of hooves shattered the flas. Atop the high cliff, a fully armored knight wielding a lance charged forth in silence. The cold glint of the spearhead aid straight for the crimson emperor’s neck.
A knight had truly appeared!
Clang—
Blade t spearhead, the recoil numbing Nero’s wrist. With a fierce cry, she unleashed a wave of red fla, only for it to be deflected by another knight charging in close behind.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
The soldiers around Hakuno seed to be slain by an invisible force, falling one after another and dissipating into motes of light. In their place erged heavily armored knights astride towering warhorses from the void. Clad in plate armor entwined with four floral patterns and wearing dark helts, their lances bore intricate engravings. The black-armored steeds stood silently, pawing at the ground as they encircled the lone figure in red.
A quick count revealed there were seven in total.
"Our knights have arrived!" Alice twirled excitedly within the protective formation, her aqua-blue dress fluttering like butterfly wings, while Nursery Rhy sat primly on her tiny chair, issuing commands with a cheerful smile.
"Kill them!"
The knights raised their lances in unison and charged at Nero without hesitation—a decidedly unchivalrous assault. anwhile, though most soldiers had vanished, the remaining hundreds were still far more than Hakuno could handle. As ti ticked by, the goddess’s protection grew increasingly fragile. The girl paled as weapons rained down upon the feathered wings like hail.
Her order for Nero to execute a decapitation strike had backfired spectacularly—Alice and Nursery Rhy’s latest move had only plunged them deeper into peril!
"Master!"
Nero was acutely aware of Hakuno’s predicant. She tried to turn back to rescue her, but the disciplined knights closed in—one thrusting a massive lance, another sweeping at her legs, while a third yanked the reins to make his armored steed rear up, aiming to crush her skull!
"How dare you!"
With an angry shout, a flash of crimson sword light severed the head of the horse attempting to trample her. Using the thrusting lance as a springboard, Nero leaped high, blocking another strike with her blade. The shrill clang of tal echoed as the petite emperor was sent flying backward—directly toward Hakuno’s location.
She had used their force against them to make her retreat!
"Wow..." Alice was montarily stunned by the red-clad woman’s brilliance, but Nursery Rhy reacted swiftly. Frowning, she waved her tiny fist, and two knights spurred their horses into a dive behind Nero. Leaping high, they crossed their lances in an X-shaped shackle, slamming Nero back down!
Thud!
Struck across the back by the lance shafts, Nero’s chest constricted, blood rising in her throat before she forced it down. She hit the ground hard, her dancer’s outfit now tattered, lending her a tragically beautiful appearance.
Yet the seven knights remained unhard. Even the one who’d lost his horse’s head remounted monts later, rejoining the formation as if nothing had happened.
These knights, emblazoned with four floral patterns, also possessed immortality!
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