Chapter 262: Death Knights

Led by Hass, the Gryphon Riders charged towards the Horde along the riverbank at the eastern foothills.

With Archimonde and Gul'dan out of the way, many Horde forces moved to the riverbank, planning to flank and assault the eastern mountainside. By the time the Gryphon Riders arrived, the defense on the mountain was already under immense pressure. On the frontlines, Tirion Fordring and Marshal Bolvar often had to lead the reserves to fill the gaps in the defense. Even King Llane Wrynn had to personally join the battle from time to time.

The only consolation was that the reserves of Stormwind were still plentiful. However, the casualty rate was alarming.

The Gryphon Riders moved to the Horde's flank as they attacked the mountain.

"Level the lances!" Hass shouted.

The knights lowered their nearly four-meter-long lances, driving their mountain steeds to charge at the Horde from the side.

The Gryphon Riders of Alterac were not traditional heavy cavalry; considering the mountainous terrain, their armor was somewhere between light and heavy cavalry. They wore lightweight chainmail and leather armor instead of heavy plate armor, and their warhorses only wore a piece of leather armor on the front.

In the complex terrain where the riverbank and mountains met, the Gryphon Riders performed exceptionally well.

With heavy hoofbeats, the knights quickly scattered, seeking their individual targets. As they closed in within two meters of their targets, they thrust their lances, striking vital points while the momentum of their horses drove the lances deeper. Meanwhile, the shafts of the precisely engineered lances couldn't withstand the powerful counterforce and began to shatter.

The unfortunate victims fell to the ground, and the knights discarded the remaining half of their lances. They drew Alterac's signature double-edged broadswords and slashed at the Horde warriors' necks.

The swift charge cut off the Horde's aggressive momentum.

However, Hass didn't linger. He led his troops in a quick sweep along the beach and swiftly withdrew from the riverbank.

Cavalry without speed was no match for the towering orcs, hardly even comparable to infantry. Moreover, in such an intense clash, the losses of the Gryphon Riders were far from insignificant.

Ordinary troops dealt with ordinary threats.

Extraordinary monsters were naturally left to the ridiculously powerful paladins.

During the charge, Uther soon spotted the opponents that Duke had seemingly handpicked for them.

Their faces were covered with scarves, revealing only their eyes. Each of them wielded a massive two-handed sword.

The cavalry from Lordaeron thought of them as fools, planning to teach them a lesson with their lances.

In a cavalryman's world, charging with lances against each other was common knowledge. Facing a lance with a heavy sword was a desperate measure. As they considered themselves fortunate, they prepared to take advantage of their lances and claim a round of heads.

Uther heard numerous strange buzzing sounds.

Still thirty meters away, the charging Lordaeron cavalry fell before these opponents. Not only did their horses stumble, but even those who didn't die on the spot struggled to get up. Instead of drawing their swords to attack, they felt as if they were about to bleed from all orifices, desperately clutching their heads with both hands.

...

"Ahhh!" The cavalry writhed in pain on the ground, letting out inhuman screams.

"In the name of the Light!" Uther witnessed this scene, and in an instant, he understood why Duke wanted the Knights of the Silver Hand to confront these cloaked figures: "These are demons! They are using dark magic to attack us!"

With that said, Uther raised his warhammer high, and several holy seals were placed upon it, making the hammer's tip emit a silvery light like the moon.

"Stand up, soldiers!" Uther shouted in his booming voice: "The Light will drive away the darkness, but you must use your weapons to defend your honor!"

The dazzling light spread from the warhammer, echoing the brilliant dawn, instantly driving away the darkness from the land. The Light shone upon the warriors, and when the cloaked figures raised their hands again, not a single person fell.

Although the cavalry who managed to get back on their feet and those behind them were still somewhat hesitant, they regained their courage when they realized no one was falling. With earth-shaking cries, they charged at the cloaked knights.

However, in the moment of combat, not only the cavalry, but even Uther was taken aback.

For this group was wearing the standard armor of the Stormwind Kingdom's cavalry. The only difference was the spiked shoulder armor commonly used by the Horde.

"No! Why?!"

A Lordaeron cavalryman cried out in shock. During their days in Southshore, they had repeatedly been ordered by their superiors to recognize the equipment of their allies. Suddenly finding their 'allies' standing on the opposing side, they could not accept it. It was during this moment of hesitation that many of them fell.

Uther looked closely at the faces of the opponents.

Pale, ashen, devoid of any color, their eyes emitted an evil blue light filled with hostility. Most importantly, Uther did not sense any life force in them.

"Blasphemy! The filthy Horde warlocks have resurrected the dead as animate corpses! Silver Hand, crush them!"

Uther swung his massive two-handed hammer, easily knocking a Death Knight off his undead steed. A torrent of golden Light flooded the Death Knight, and he was blasted to pieces by the Light before even hitting the ground.

The Alliance soldiers cheered once more, inspired by the Paladin's surprising skill and power.

Turalyon, in the rear, felt conflicted. As a Paladin, he should be with them, but as Lothar's adjutant, he should stay in the center of Southshore, accompanying Lothar in commanding the battlefield.

The battle between the Paladins and the Death Knights began, with neither side gaining the upper hand.

At first, Uther managed to kill four or five Death Knights in a row, but soon he met his match. A tall figure who called himself Talon Bloodmage managed to withstand Uther's attacks.

Turalyon saw a Death Knight grab Dathrohan's arm during a contest of strength, the rotting hand emitting darkness.

However, Dathrohan drove away the darkness with holy Light. Taking advantage of the Death Knight's recoiling hand, Dathrohan struck the foe's head with his hammer. The skull shattered like broken porcelain. Turalyon noticed that not a drop of blood flowed from the broken skull, only dried brain matter.

When the Death Knights faced ordinary Alliance cavalry, they were victorious at every turn.

Turalyon suddenly noticed a signal coming from the hill.