novelraw Chapter 755 60: Tiamat
Chapter 755 60: Tiamat
The Candle Knight, who came across time and space, wore that enormous Fallow Deer Horn Hood and paused in this courtyard with a desert flair.
Dappled light and shadow were cast amidst the lush olive tree leaves, making it an ideal place to display the Light and Shadow Secret Technique.
When she arrived, Prague was in the midst of summer, akin to Semanude's current winter, yet the exotic scenery still felt very novel to her.
As Losa walked out of the corridor, Viviana instinctively inquired, "Is this your other identity?"
"This is the main one."
Losa was puzzled, "Didn't we talk about this during the defense of Constantinople?"
She carefully examined Losa's face, somewhat sentimental, "Just didn't expect the ship's captain to be so young."
Losa smiled and said, "Actually, not that young, after all, I've lived through other identities."
If considering the two lives as a human, adding up the ages, he should be over forty now, and if including the simulated battles' lives, even longer, but for the long-lived species, age really was insignificant.
Just as he told the Elector, there would be no unbreakable nation in this world, nor a crown that never falls, but Yesterday's Giant Ship would remain forever.
The two walked into the conference room, and the room, which had just quieted, once again became lively.
"Oh God, it's the Candle Knight!"
Hans couldn't help but shout out.
Viviana was the most famous star knight in the German region, and Hans's Prussian area, although not under the Empire's rule, still belonged to the Germanic world, so this emperor-endorsed star knight was naturally well-known.
"So, is this person really powerful?"
But Veneto looked perplexed, unable to understand why Hans was so surprised, in his view, this new colleague's level wasn't much stronger than his own.
Hans suppressed his excitement, wanted to explain, but thought about it and said, "You old relic, you just don't get it."
He couldn't possibly say that back then, a hand-drawn Candle Knight poster sparked dozens of open and secret fights among their Teutonic Order's attendants, and at that time, he had his face bruised for it, taking quite a beating.
Such an embarrassing matter.
The female knight smiled and nodded at Hans, then turned to the group, curtseying, "Good day to all, I'm Viviana von Hohenzollern, honored to work with you in the future."
Jeanne raised an eyebrow slightly and teased, "Didn't expect it to be you, little girl, we've run into each other before in Paris, that tournament was well-fought."
Viviana's eyes lit up, even though Losa had already mentioned this, seeing the Knight of Radiance still brought a trace of surprise, "You overpraise, after all, you didn't participate, otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to win."
"The captain's taste is truly spot on."
Jeanne shrugged, "At this rate, perhaps someday that Lamp Goddess, Ms. Nightingale, will also become our colleague. After all, she has the heart of an angel, yet serves history's most evil gang, it must be very trying."
Jeanne always had a poor impression of the British, which was to be expected, after all, they were the ones who tied her to the stake.
Losa thought, how can you dream more beautifully than me?
Ms. Nightingale, judging from her feats, was a similar but more powerful support-type Six-star compared to Lavinia.
Unfortunately, such responsible ladies had almost no chance of being summoned to another world by him.
"Welcome, Ms. Candle Knight."
Lavinia and Cherina also smiled warmly, they had heard of the Candle Knight after all, a name on par with the Knight of Radiance, though the Wolf Race's insular ways meant they knew little of her feats.
In fact, there were no major feats, just a series of knight competition championships.
Furinjira crossed her arms, feeling a surge of guardedness in her heart, this new colleague, seemed average in combat, but her appearance still stirred a hint of jealousy in the always-confident Furinjira.
Prajna on the other hand, revealed her usual gentle smile, presenting herself as the Book Immortal, she was quite approachable.
When Hans held out a banknote attempting to get Viviana's autograph, Losa cleared his throat, "Viviana, please take a seat first. The Shadow of Darkness has already sent back information, the Saracens have driven many tamed Giant Dragons, putting them into that great furnace."
The Shadow of Darkness's members already included Saracens, with Julia the female Vampire in command, reporting intelligence would first reach her, then via a special emblem made by Anna, be passed to Kurs.
"Sounds like a large-scale ritual." Jeanne frowned and speculated, "And the offerings are quite lavish, are they planning to resurrect an Ancient God again?"
Losa gravely said, "Perhaps. Based on reliable intelligence, that Master Shemir has successfully crossed into the Legendary Domain using that set of Stone Tablet Divine Artifacts, you all probably know this already, we once faced the 'Source of the Plague,' achieved a hard-won victory, and that was merely a remnant of a legendary figure."
The group became stern, some of them had not been to Constantinople, nor participated in the battle to eliminate the 'Source of the Plague,' but they had learned about it from others.
Jeanne added, "What's worse, that Shemir possesses a set of Cuneiform Clay Tablet Divine Artifacts, and with the sorcerers of this world having all sorts of strange abilities, no one knows what means he can employ."
"Therefore, to deal with Shemir, we must use our full strength. My power has increased again during this 'retreat', and Jeanne and I will handle Shemir's main forces. Cherina, you must seize any opportune moment to target any valuable targets, any objections?"
Furin was the first to raise her hand. "I have a question. That old man nearly destroyed my Sea of Blood last time. Why am I not allowed to participate this time?"
Losa explained, "The Saracens have more than just one Caster. Although they might not be willing to risk their lives for the Saracens, there are quite a few who have reached the level of Advanced Caster. I intend to leave these individuals to you, Kurs, Venezia, and Viviana to handle."
"Hans, your task is to lead the troops in battle. I need you to secure a victory in the combat at the mundane level. This is crucial for me."
"Prajna, you are responsible for protecting Lavinia and ensuring she can assist all parts of the battlefield without interference."
Everyone agreed, and no one raised any objections.
Having drafted a simple battle plan, Losa then ordered, "Kurs, transmit my orders. I want to conduct a pre-battle speech. Also, privately request an audience with the two Kings."
The reason for doing this is, on one hand, to reassure the various crusader factions and prevent panic among the ranks.
On the other hand, it is for the "Highly Anticipated" new talent.
He is eager to know how impactful this talent, inscribed in the Six-star Template, can be.
He whispered, "Richard and Philip should recognize one thing as well: only I can bring them victory. This battle must be won using every possible means, so their casters must also play their part."
Though Losa's interests conflicted with those of these two Kings, they also had a foundation for cooperation and mutual wins.
Winning this battle would earn the two Kings enormous prestige, overpowering their political adversaries at home.
At the same time, Losa also intends to allocate some territories to them to appease his own followers. Egypt is vast, with a large population, and digesting such vast spoils cannot be done without Europe's help.
These territories may not be directly governed by the two Kings, but they can be exchanged with domestic lords, or replaced with trusted officials or second sons, which is also beneficial.
However, the biggest piece of loot, the Crown of Egypt, will surely be out of their reach.
...
In the Saracen camp, as time passed, more and more black smoke billowed out of the giant chimney, blocking out the sky, turning the entire camp's sky into night, filled with ominous colors.
The surface of that giant furnace also began to show layers of cracks.
Getting closer, one could faintly hear a vibrant heartbeat rhythmically sounding.
Everyone could feel that something powerful seemed about to be born from inside, and that cracked furnace was its cradle.
With a roar,
The surface of the furnace cracked open like a spider web, and suddenly, a fierce dragon head with a single horn crashed through the furnace, emerging from the swirling smoke and dust!
From within the collapsing furnace, a giant dragon broke free. With three pairs of distinct wings, once its body fully extended, it was even larger than the colossal furnace towering hundreds of meters high.
At the moment of its birth, it soared into the sky, its three distinctive pairs of wings, clearly from different giant dragons, flapping to lift its massive body skywards.
Shemir furrowed his brow as he watched this war machine he had crafted. The fierce aura it emitted made every Caster within the advisory group tremble involuntarily. If not for his control, every warhorse and camel in the Saracen camp would have been frightened to death.
Elis's expression was one of shock. "What a powerful beast, teacher, what is its name?"
Shemir replied without hesitation, "Tiamat."
Tiamat is Babylon City's female protector deity, the representative of Chaos Power. It is said she has an incarnation in the form of a "great dragon".
Because this artificial dragon's power originates from the Cuneiform Clay Tablet, it allows the power of the "Stairway to Divinity" to be perfectly realized in it, meaning the power Tiamat currently displays is not yet at its peak.
Unfortunately, Tiamat is a goddess, while the fusion giant dragon he created doesn't even have a gender, let alone produce offspring like true dragons.
"Teacher, this is power only gods can wield!"
Compared to the excitement of others, Shemir appeared somewhat disinterested. "It's not yet a real creation. It resembles a fusion beast more than a true dragon."
This was even worse than he had imagined: short-lived, low intelligence, lacking dragon instincts, and without even the reproductive ability that defines a "species".
Is it due to an issue with the materials, or is it because he has just stepped into the Legendary Domain and can't fully control the Cuneiform Clay Tablet's power, resulting in the alchemy techniques being imperfect?
Or perhaps the act of creation ultimately belongs to the gods' forbidden domain. Even a legendary being attempting to create a species will inevitably encounter various "coincidences" leading to numerous flaws?