Published: March 12, 2025
Chapter 339: Retreat
Zhao Hai stood quietly in the lobby of the Shelley Hotel. He truly did not expect that the hotel would act this way; their protection of the guests was indeed commendable.
Taking a deep breath, Zhao Hai calmly walked outside. As soon as he reached the entrance, he saw that at least a thousand cavalrymen had tightly surrounded the Shelley Hotel. The leading cavalryman stood about two meters tall, donned in finely crafted steel armor, with a tower shield on his back and a massive sword hanging at his waist. A knight's spear was inserted into the saddle, with a triangular flag on its tip fluttering boldly, appearing quite impressive.
The mount he rode was quite peculiar. Although it was a horse, this horse was extraordinarily tall, nearly four meters high, entirely black in color, with two curved long horns on its head and blood-red eyes, giving it a frightful appearance.
Zhao Hai recalled having seen this kind of magical beast in the magical beast compendium. This was a level five horse-shaped magical beast, simply named "Demon Horse." It belonged to the dark attribute and could grow up to six meters tall, with astonishing divine strength. It was capable of using blood-related magic like Blood Devouring Technique and dark magic such as Weakness Technique, Slow Technique, and Confusion Technique, making it very difficult to subdue.
Zhao Hai also noticed that the cavalryman's saddle was specially designed, featuring two horse stools on each side, allowing a person to grab onto the stools to mount.
As Zhao Hai stepped out, the knight spotted him; however, he did not pay Zhao Hai any mind. To him, Zhao Hai was merely a tool, just a means to create trouble for the Shelley Hotel. Even if it weren’t Zhao Hai today, he would have done the same with someone else.
He had no enmity with the people living here; his grudge was with the hotel, and he only needed an excuse. As for who provided that excuse, it was of no concern to him.
However, he might soon regret his actions, as he had provoked someone he should not have. He thought of Zhao Hai as a pawn, someone to be used and discarded at will. But when he moved this pawn, he realized it was not a mere pawn but a thorn ball that could prick him at any moment.
Zhao Hai looked at the knight and said, "I heard you were looking for me? May I ask what this is about?"
The knight glanced at Zhao Hai and replied, "You are Wells, and we suspect you are a spy. Come back with us." This knight was well aware of the Shelley Hotel and knew they would not allow him to take anyone easily. This gave him a reason to deal with the Shelley Hotel, while the guest... was entirely overlooked.
Zhao Hai looked at the knight and smiled slightly, "I am a noble of the Aksu Empire; do you have any evidence to prove I am a spy? If not, should I suspect that the Roson Empire is insulting the nobles of our Aksu Empire? That could lead to a diplomatic dispute."
The knight, however, did not care about Zhao Hai's words and shouted, "Stop wasting words! In the Roson Empire, you must abide by the rules. Come with us obediently, or you won't have a good ending."
Just as someone from the Shelley Hotel was about to speak, Zhao Hai's expression darkened, "You have quite the authority, knight. Unfortunately, you have provoked someone you shouldn't have." Hearing this, the cavalryman glanced at Zhao Hai, not noticing anything particularly special about him.
At that moment, Zhao Hai waved his staff, and one after another, stone giants emerged from the ground, totaling more than twenty.
Seeing this, the knight's expression changed. He had not expected Zhao Hai to be a mage, and a high-level one at that, able to summon so many stone giants without chanting a spell—it was indeed astonishing.
The knight quickly grabbed his knight's spear, and with a swipe, a tower shield was in his hand. He shouted, "Prepare for battle! Secret gathering formation, retreat slowly."
The knights behind him, evidently trained soldiers, quickly mimicked his movements and began to control their mounts to slowly retreat. They intended to create some distance for a charge. For heavy armored cavalry like them, their power was only significant when they charged; standing still would reduce their combat effectiveness by at least fifty percent.