The man stood just over half the height of a full-grown man. His stout, muscular body and short stature marked him as a dwarf. His full plate armor clanged as he walked toward Christopher before suddenly rushing at him with a speed unnatural for his kind.
Clang!
The halberd swung down with imnse force, the dwarf's strength on full display. The cobblestone beneath Christopher cracked as his feet sank into the ground. Screeching tal rang out, sparks scattering as the blades clashed.
Christopher felt the full power of the dwarf's blow ripple through his blessed blade, sending shockwaves through his arm and body. If not for the blade being forged from Atlantean steel and blessed by holy power, and if his body hadn't been strengthened by faith, his weapon—and likely his arm—would have shattered.
"Grrrrr…" Christopher growled, feeling his arm straining, muscles tensing as his bones creaked. He quickly summoned more strength, amplifying his power to withstand the dwarf's assault.
They exchanged blows several more tis before the dwarf's raw strength forced Christopher back, leaving him exposed.
But instead of pressing the advantage, the dwarf swung his halberd toward Richard, who was still fending off the attacking paladins.
Seeing this, Christopher threw his blessed blade at the dwarf, hoping to force a defense. But the dwarf didn't flinch—he ignored the attack entirely, continuing his charge toward Richard. He rely shifted his armor slightly to protect any weak points, shrugging off the blade that could pierce steel as if it were nothing.
Clank! Clank! Clank! Clank!
Without any one guarding him, the halberd slamd down toward Richard.
Boom!
The impact shattered Richard's personal shield, but the ergency defense function of the shield generator kicked in. It released a burst of kinetic energy outward, forcing the dwarf back.
At that mont, the paladins with firearms opened fire on Richard, but Christopher sprang into action, shielding Richard with his body and using his blessed blade to guard his vital areas.
However, they were surrounded. A few bullets slipped past Christopher's defenses, striking Richard. Blood sprayed as the rounds embedded in his flesh, but Richard, though weakened, used his arms to shield his vital organs.
"Richard! Run!" Christopher shouted, knowing his mission was to protect Richard, as ordered by the pope himself.
With a tacit understanding, both Christopher and Richard made a dash toward the path with the least resistance. Several paladins in that direction panicked.
Another volley of bullets rained down on them, but Christopher blocked most with his bulletproof trench coat. Still, so found their mark in areas left unprotected.
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Despite his wounds, Richard retreated alongside Christopher, but—
Clank!!!
The dwarf's halberd crashed down again, stopping Christopher in his tracks as he struggled to defend himself.
At that mont, Richard was left vulnerable. A hail of bullets followed, striking him rcilessly. Though he tried to shield his vitals, several rounds hit his head, turning it into a sieve.
"Warn... my... lor...d," Richard whispered to Christopher, locked in place by the dwarf, before collapsing into a pool of his own blood.
Christopher gritted his teeth, cursing under his breath as he quickly began calculating how to survive.
It wasn't that Christopher didn't feel grief over Richard's death… he did. But as a grizzled old veteran, he had witnessed the deaths of many comrades. He had survived too many funerals to count. His instinct now was to survive, rember the loss, and co back for vengeance later.
"Raaaarrrggghh!" Christopher roared again, this ti unleashing the full power of his right prosthetic arm.
The robotic arm exerted more force than any human limb could, shoving the dwarf back. Then, with a sharp clicking sound, the arm transford into an arm cannon.
"Die, f*cker!" Christopher bellowed, commanding the arm to unleash its full firepower.
A brilliant flash of light surged outward as the powerful beam shot forth, disintegrating everything in its path. Superheated energy burned and charred the cobblestone streets as the beam scorched its way forward.
The dwarf warrior took the full brunt of the blast, hurtling through the air and slamming into a building, which promptly collapsed. The beam obliterated the building's weakening magical barriers, allowing Christopher to access his full power once again.
His prosthetic arm powered down, rendered useless by the massive energy drain. But with his abilities fully restored, Christopher began to pray.
"O Almighty Lord, in Your na I stand, a vessel of Your divine wrath! Unleash upon the fervor of Your righteous fury! Grant the strength to cleave through the darkness that besets ! I beseech You, my Lord, ignite my blade with holy fire! Let it blaze with the intensity of a thousand suns!"
As his prayer grew louder, Christopher's left arm began to glow, forming a sword of pure light in his hand. Without hesitation, he charged forward, cutting down every paladin that stood in his way. The holy blade seared through them, burning their bodies to ash in a single stroke, consud by the cleansing fire of the sword of light.
Christopher quickly escaped the encirclent and vanished into the city. The Vatican Paladins imdiately searched for him, but as day turned to night, no one could find him.
In an opulent room within the Vatican, an old man sat reading the battle report, his face dark with anger. The plan had seed foolproof—both Christopher and Richard were supposed to die in the ambush. But no… only the weaker one had fallen, and Christopher had managed to escape.
"What is the aning of this!?" the old man bellowed, throwing the battle report at one of the Paladins who had co to deliver it. The Paladin dared not protest, swallowing his frustration and beginning his explanation.
"Your Eminence, we did our best, but no one could have predicted that Christopher's prosthetic arm had such capabilities. It allowed him to escape!" the Paladin explained hastily.
At this, the dwarf in full plate armor spoke up.
"Your Eminence… Christopher Ward's reputation goes beyond being a fierce warrior and a Grand Paladin. He's a hardened survivor who's co through countless battles and seemingly hopeless situations. Defeating Christopher is one thing, but killing him? That's another matter entirely.
I told you we needed more manpower in case he regained his strength during the ambush, but you didn't listen!" the dwarf grumbled.
The old man's face flushed with fury as he glared at the dwarf. "Shut up, dwarf! You claim to be the best warrior the Hephaestus Institute has to offer! But without that cracked armor you luckily acquired from the black market, you wouldn't have survived Christopher either!" the old man snapped.
Indeed, the dwarf's armor was none other than the indestructible set Daniel had crafted for Hagrim Goldgrip, which had been lost when Hagrim was bombed by the royal family. The armor had eventually fallen into the hands of the Hephaestus Institute.
After expending a fortune in resources and ti, the Hephaestus Institute had managed to break the seal Daniel had placed on the armor to prevent anyone other than Hagrim from using it. Since the armor had been custom-made for a dwarf, it naturally beca the prized possession of Thorgest Steelheart, the strongest warrior of the Hephaestus Institute and a devoted follower of Hephaestus.
Thorgest had been sent to help in the ambush by the Vatican… no, by the Archbishop… through a collaboration between the Hephaestus Institute and the Hightower Council. That's why they manage to enlist Thorgest help.
The old man grumbling was none other than the Archbishop, who had recently staged a coup to take control of the Vatican.
The reason he needed Richard dead was because of Richard's diplomatic skills. Even after seizing power from the Pope's faction, if Richard remained loyal to the Pope, the Archbishop's grip on power might weaken, with the Pope's supporters rallying behind Richard.
Christopher was the next target, as he was a celebrity and war hero within the Vatican's Secret Exterminator Unit. While the Archbishop had taken control of the Vatican, many of the Paladins from the Exterminator Unit had survived his purge.
With Christopher still alive, they might regroup and resist his control, knowing that Christopher supported the Pope.
"No matter. Do you know where the Pope's grandson is?" the Archbishop asked the Paladin.
"Your Eminence… we still have no information on that matter. We need more ti to investigate," the Paladin responded nervously.
Hearing this, the Archbishop felt a surge of rage. He had given them ample ti to discover the Pope's grandson's whereabouts and identity, yet they still knew nothing.
As for the Pope himself, due to the anomaly caused by the Whispering Hall, he, along with half of the Vatican's Exterminator Unit, had gone to investigate the true cause. This gave the Archbishop the perfect opportunity to seize control of the Vatican and usurp the Pope's power.
But now, with Christopher surviving the ambush… if the Archbishop couldn't control the Pope, his reign would be short-lived. Unless, of course, he could find a way to have soone kill the Pope while he was away.
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