The light in the ogre battle servant's eyes faded away. Drained by the sudden withdrawal of psychic energy, its massive frame seemed to shrink. Clutching the meat Felix provided, it devoured a whole roasted sheep, its hollow eyes regaining a glint of life only after the feast.
Felix silently approached the corpse of the dark knight, left alone on the battlefield, pierced by three rune javelins through its deep black armor.
The dark knight's body and his dead nightmare mount dissipated into a mist. Being energy projections summoned from the primary material plane, they left no remains upon death.
Touching the cold, blood-stained black armor, Felix felt as if he could hear the wails of souls clinging to it. "It seems this armor was the medium those necromancers used to summon the dark knight," Felix mused aloud to his companions.
A fierce wind kicked up, blowing sand and rocks across the ground. Then, three griffin knights, who had slain the dark knight, descended.
For the first time, Felix had a chance to observe these legendary dragon-slaying warriors. Clad in silver armor adorned with various magical runes, they carried seven-meter-long dragon spears and the last rune javelin on their backs. Each griffin knight had five javelins; after throwing them, they could only engage in close combat.
Their mounts, the king griffins, survivors of brutal training, stood over three meters tall, their wingspan rivaling that of a small dragon. Adorned with rune leather armor, metal beaks, and sharp metallic claws, their fierce and wild eyes radiated ferocity.
These griffins, trained by hunting humans and magical beasts, were elite creatures, capable of killing abominations even without their riders.
The true pinnacle of combat was found in the finest combinations. Other nations had griffin knights, but none could likely defeat a single graduate from the Titans Empire.
Upon activating his elemental sensing abilities, Felix realized the empire's rumors did not exaggerate but actually downplayed the griffin knights' prowess.
These three knights, in perfect harmony with their griffins, had stepped into the Silver Domain, one even close to entering the Golden Domain.
Their dive attack had left Felix utterly stunned. The griffin's dive momentum, a Silver Domain warrior's physical strength, elemental forces, and calculated gravitational pull formed a terrifying assault. If it hit its target, it would be an instant kill for any ground opponent.
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
The griffin knights wore helmets, their faces obscured. High-altitude flight required special magical runes for combat. They dismounted, nodding at a middle-aged knight with a scarred face, and then began to collect their thrown rune javelins.
These javelins, forged by alchemists using costly anti-magic metal, were worth no less than 10,000 Caesar gold coins each!
Griffin knights usually stayed out of regular battles, appearing instead on decisive fields, like attacking enemy mage groups or executing suicidal strikes on enemy leaders.
Noticing the griffin knights' disinterest in the dark knight's armor, Felix picked it up, pocketing it. Then, he turned to the silent, scarred-faced knight, asking, "How did you come to be here?"
The legendary Silver Hand glanced coldly at Felix, then turned to gaze westward towards the main road. "Her Highness the Princess ordered a patrol of every town within a hundred miles of the capital. You're lucky," he said, his voice deep. "I remembered an altar here from the Scourge War era."
Throughout history, three Scourge Wars have occurred, each initiated by a necromancer who stepped into the demigod realm, challenging the glory of the Church. These wars, recorded in the "Bible Old Testament," once led to the deaths of nearly half the continent's population!
After the third Scourge War, the Church destroyed the Necronomicon and ordered the burning of all books on necromancy. The necromancy spells used by casters now are just surviving remnants, far weaker than before.
In that era, powerful necromancers could command millions of undead creatures. But now, enslaving thousands is considered a mark of great power.
Having collected their rune javelins, the griffin knights soared again, heading towards the four valleys of the mountain range. The legendary Silver Hand, with a powerful leap, followed closely behind.
"To enter or to return?" Felix was sure the heretics were performing an evil sacrificial ritual. With a high-level dark knight and three abominations as guards, the creature they sought to summon must be immensely powerful.
It could be the God of Plague, mentioned in the "Bible Old Testament," a shattered deity who had descended multiple times in different incarnations.
The middle-aged nun, having bandaged her wounds, shot Felix a cold glance and hastened after The Silver Hand. Her two squire knights immediately followed. Watching them leave, Felix shook his head and, with his somewhat dispirited ogre battle servant, followed suit.
The griffin's piercing cries echoed through the sky, answered by a series of sharp cries from afar. Then, three groups of griffin knights in triangular formations flew towards the valley.
Felix, closing his eyes in deep thought, realized these knights must have a special way of communicating. They likely sent information to other patrolling knights and even the capital as soon as they encountered the undead. That's how reinforcements arrived so quickly.
In just twenty minutes, six groups of griffin knights had arrived, and Felix even spotted a dragonhawk in the sky!
Was this the vast combat power of an empire?
This semi-informative way of warfare might not be too far off from modern warfare.
With so many reinforcements, Felix slowed his pace, curious about what would happen next.
The arriving griffin knights didn't immediately enter the valley but circled above it. When twelve groups, a total of thirty-six knights, gathered, they formed an inverted triangular formation in the sky, waiting for more reinforcements.
As time passed, about sixteen dragonhawks began soaring in the sky, and several figures flying mid-air entered Felix's view.
Mages!
They were the Golden Domain court mages!!!