Thanks to Brox's shout, Kenneth finally could react to avoid the arrow as quickly as possible. Although his movement was a little late because Kenneth was previously in a lying position, the prince still could survive an arrow that scratched his arm. The wound Kenneth received immediately made the prince's clothes soaked in blood. But from start to finish, Kenneth held his sword tightly as if the wound did not affect him in any way.
"O god of fire, lend me the power to burn all my enemies. O protector of men, grant me the strength to survive the attacks of all my enemies."
Unlike before, Kenneth now directly used magic to burn his sword with fire while his body was protected by golden light. After he's finished using his basic magic, Kenneth's eyes focus on where the arrow that hit him came from. Kenneth no longer waited for the enemy to attack him this time. The prince raised his hand as he used attack magic without any hesitation.
"Thunderbolt!"
From the clear sky above them, a terrifying lightning bolt appeared and struck right where the archer was. Kenneth did manage to kill the archer who had almost taken his life. But in the next moment, it was his body's turn again to be blown away by the figure Kenneth believed to be the leader of the assassin group.
"Ugh. Thunderbolt!"
Kenneth was still in a hovering position as he directed his lightning magic to strike the people who were advancing to attack him. Although Kenneth knew that in such close range, he would also be affected by the lightning attack, being hit by his magic was better than dying at the hands of the enemy. His second explosion succeeded in eliminating some of the enemies who underestimated Kenneth's determination to win this battle.
Kenneth might have been hit by lightning and suffered severe injuries from his attack. But compared to others, Kenneth still managed to survive and swung his sword to cut down anyone who tried to get close to him.
After Kenneth got used to the fighting he was doing, the prince's senses slowly became more sensitive than usual. Even if the surrounding environment was now covered in dust due to his lightning attack, Kenneth could still detect enemy attacks directed at him. Kenneth dodged the fire attack directed at him. Then, at the second moment, Kenneth put up a barrier from the ground as the enemy used the same lightning attack as him without giving him the slightest pause.
"Thunderbolt!"
"Damn it!"
Kenneth's eyes immediately bulged as he heard the enemy use third magic without another pause. Releasing his magic in a row was already difficult to do. But this enemy, he managed to unleash advanced-level magic in a row. Kenneth did not have time to form a barrier to withstand the enemy's attack. The lightning attack directly hit Kenneth's body and left the prince's body lying on the ground immediately afterward.
When Kenneth fell, the figure that attacked him disappeared before suddenly appearing in front of Kenneth. The killer's eyes looked icy cold as he lifted Kenneth and threw his body violently toward the tree.
This time, Kenneth fell as the dust that had previously covered the place disappeared. Kenneth tried to get up again when he finally realized that his opponent was now only the leader of the assassin group. But every time Kenneth tried to get up, his body seemed to be stung by lightning, making his body fall to the ground again.
Being hit once by lightning was one thing. But being hit by the same attack consecutively still put too much burden on Kenneth's body. Kenneth felt the power start to leave his body. For some reason, Kenneth felt that he was no longer able to properly control his body since the beginning of the battle.
"I had thought that you were resistant to the poison we used. But in the end, it worked, didn't it?"
As Kenneth listened to the black figure's words, his eyes finally dropped to look at the condition of his arm that was scratched by the arrow. Unlike the previous wound, which was just like a normal scratch, now, Kenneth's wounded arm began to look purplish around the wound he had suffered.
Kenneth finally knew why he had been constantly having trouble controlling his power since before. Although Kenneth did not know what kind of poison was now in his body, it must have disrupted the flow of mana after the poison spread to his body.
"Not... not yet...."
Kenneth knew he could not give up now. Not after he promised to succeed or promised to protect Matias' family until they arrived at Celeste Village. Kenneth tried to get up again even though his body did not want to listen to his commands. Kenneth knew he had to get up, or he would die at the hands of the assassin.
"You can still get up?"
Kenneth could hear the surprised tone of the assassin's voice in front of him. But Kenneth didn't care. Right now, Kenneth only knew that he had to raise his sword again and kill his last enemy.
"I'll-"
BANG!
Kenneth didn't have the chance to finish his sentence as the assassin kicked him until he was knocked down once again. Kenneth could no longer suppress a groan as he felt like his body had just been hit by a large rock. Kenneth did not want his life to end here. But when his body could no longer move, Kenneth did not know what else he could do right now.
Kenneth began to feel despair when the assassin approached him while pulling out the sword he had not used before. The prince was about to give up when someone bravely ran to block his body from the assassin.