such frightening magic?” He could not help but bark this question at the wizard next to him.

The wizard nodded.

“The spell is Call Lightning, but the magnitude of the spell isn’t simply done by one or two Druids. This spell is definitely cast together by at least ten Druids, and if these Druids are truly Iron-rankers, then they would need to rest for a full day. But if these Druids are Arch Druids, it’s a whole different story altogether....”

The old knight interrupted the wizard, refusing to believe there were high-ranking Druids in the rebel army: “You mean to say that our opponents cannot cast that spell repeatedly?”

“Lord Palas, there is no need to worry even if they are capable of casting it repeatedly. It takes at least ten of them to do so, while we only need three mages to dispel this magic. In addition, dispelling the Call Lightning doesn’t require a lot of Mana. It is much easier for us to use Mana for defense than offense, and I would not use this magic spell again if I were them. This spell is probably used to deter us from advancing.” The wizard lowered his head and answered respectfully.

Lord Palas nodded. He did not need to worry much if that large area-of-effect spell could not be used. The difference in military might was too far apart, and he did not need to use any excessive strategies at all. The food expenditure for his army was too high and he did not want to waste time, thus his plan was to use straightforward tactics from the beginning to end this war.

As long as they crossed River Gris, then it would be a matter of days to take Firburh.

It was within his acceptable range to finish the war within a week.

[Rebels, Aouine....]

His mind revolved around these two words, and all his other deep thoughts turned into a confident, faint smile. As a general who had won countless victories, he did not have any reason that he would lose under such overwhelming advantage.

The old knight snorted. It was a sigh that showed his pity for the enemies and this kingdom. There had not been such a large rebellion for the past century in Aouine. Even though Count Randner displayed his strength, it did not change the fact that this kingdom was becoming decrepit and corrupted.

[Even if you extend it another two hundred years, there isn’t a case where a noble is blatantly murdered like Graudin was. Brendel, did I get your name right, let this old man be the last watchdog for this kingdom....]

He threw his dagger on the table’s map, stabbing exactly onto Firburh’s location, as though victory was at hand.

There was no more hesitation in him. Count Randner’s army would set camp for this evening and rest, before launching a full assault and take the enemy’s defense line. He was completely unafraid that the ‘rebels’ would try and commit to a night raid, and he would never make an error to defend against such a lousy tactic. If the enemies were that foolish, then he would not mind for the war to finish a little earlier.

And the enemies’ leader was as sharp like he had thought. There was no disturbance in the night, and the next morning came.

The real fight was about to begin at the crack of dawn.

Ciel and Medissa stood on top of a watchtower and saw unclear shadows at the other end of the river. The sky was still dark.

“They are constructing bridges with wooden planks, taking advantage of the fact that we are lacking in numbers,” Ciel said.

Medissa nodded.

[[It’s going to be a test from now onwards.]]

Both of them thought of the same thing.

n to burn once the fire arrows struck them, with the moisture of their wooden bodies evaporating amidst the flames and caused thick sooty smoke. The soldiers wearing dull-green gambesons and the Highlander warriors took the opportunity to move under the cover of the smoke, advancing towards the stronghold in the forest in the blink of an eye.

The invasion’s progress was incredibly smooth without encountering any enemy resistance. Lord Palas could not help but raise his eyebrow slightly as he observed this outcome.

But there was a sudden peal of thunder that came over from the heart of the forest at that moment. Large dark clouds gathered at a rate that was visible to the eyes, congregating above the trees. The old knight caught a golden flash of lightning and accompanied with it were big raindrops that came without warning, almost putting out the strong fire that was created a few moments ago.

Once the flames were out, the storm continued to spread with several bolts of lightning striking at the edge of the forest, landing coincidentally into the midst of Count Randner’s men. There was a deafening explosion of blood and flesh, with several large pits forming because of the destructive force of the golden lightning, and the loose rocks caused by it flew in every direction and landed onto the people near the pits.

Pained cries could be heard in that instant.

The morale of Lord Kruss’s soldiers plummeted. Be it the foot soldiers or the archers, everyone wanted to escape, running away at ten times the speed compared to the time when they were advancing. Even though the Highlander warriors were brave and fit, it was unfortunate that this battle did not have any meaning for them. Since the soldiers fled, the Highlander warriors naturally fled as well, though the latter moved orderly compared to the soldiers.

The two other Knight Commanders who traveled alongside with Lord Palas with were secretly shocked at the Highlanders’ discipline, and they remained silent when they thought about Lord Palas gaining victory over these men and even forced them back. Even though they naturally hated to be placed under Lord Palas’s command, they could only keep their silence when they saw their army’s performances.

Black clouds gathered over the archers, and the commander-in-charge screamed:

“Retreat! Hurry up and run!”

But it was late by step. A large bolt of lightning— No, it was a net of golden electricity that exploded in the midst of the archers. Lord Welkins was also struck by the lightning, but his magic resistant full-plate armor saved him. The adjutant beside him did not share the same luck, and he was turned into a charred corpse.

The muddy Welkins climbed up from the ground, and wept in sorrow.

[The entire company of archers wiped out in just a single attack!]

In truth, only twenty percent of the archers was killed, but the others were so terrified that they would not be able to participate in the upcoming battle, at least for a short period of time. Not to mention that the dark clouds above them were still active, almost looking like it was about to launch a second series of lightning strikes.

Screams surrounded everyone’s ears as they realized mortals had no defense against such power from nature. The experienced knights under Lord Palas might fare a little better in this situation, but these soldiers privately hired by nobles definitely would not be able to do anything.

Suddenly, chanting noises of long passages could be heard echoing in the forest, and there was an invisible energy that seemed to form in the air. Pressure seemed to be lifted off from the surroundings, and the dark clouds faltered, before disappearing bit by bit.

In the blink of an eye, the sun suddenly shone through and the clouds vanished as though they were never there.

“Magic Dispel, there are at least three chanting points,” a druid covered with a robe made of grass said after listening carefully to the wind.

“No, there are four points,” Ciel was listening in as well and shook his head a while after.

“Four?” The others did not dare to disagree.

The first batch of Druids sent to Firburh did not have any Grand Druids, and Ciel could be seen as the most powerful wizard in the territory. High-level casters were rare, and someone as powerful as Count Randner only had two Gold-ranked Wizards with him at his sides. It was unlikely that the enemies in Trentheim had brought along one.

“Even though I said there are four chanting points, that doesn’t mean there are only four wizards. It’s unfortunate to not know the exact numbers. The report stated that there are possibly more than thirty wizards in the enemy’s army, and some of them are Silver-ranked casters. Judging from the battlefield, this possibility is very real.” Cornelius who was standing in one corner answered.

He was the commander-in-name for the mercenaries. The more dependable Raban was actually sent out to help command the eight hundred Subterrane Dwellers. Leto and part of his men were the replacement for Jana at the silver mines. Count Randner was unlikely to know that the silver mines were lost, and Brendel hoped that Leto could make a nasty surprise when the truth was revealed.

This was a dangerous mission, but Leto and the others were veterans from the November War and were more suited for this mission compared to Jana and her men.

As for Jana, she was relegated to defend against Count Randner’s army at the forefront. She was immensely satisfied with this arrangement. Currently, this pretty female mercenary leader was standing next to Medissa and she issued her own question:

“Why would the Palas region have so many mages? Even if that place is beset with battles all-year long, it’s still not possible.”

“Don’t forget that Lord Kruss and Lord Raleigh are participating in this battle. But I think Count Randner had also pulled some manpower from his personal group of wizards. It’s unlikely the enemies would have Silver-ranked wizards if that was not the case.”

“A squadron composed of thirty wizards. There hasn’t been a battle like this ever since the November War. Count Randner is really not sparing any costs to silence ‘the weak’!” Gaspard could not help but ridicule the Count.

As one of the patrolling commanders in Fortress Riedon, he was like half a noble, knowing all the major and minor battles that happened in Aouine.

Everyone smiled a little at Gaspard’s words. The Druids they had right now were more than a hundred, even if they were to put aside the fact the young lord’s attending wizard was a Gold-ranked spellcaster.

The numbers of the army that Brendel brought with him to Firburh were not high, but the quality that was unbelievable. The soldiers consisted of veteran personnel who fought in the November War, and even the least experienced amongst them were people who had fought against Madara in the past. There were very few classified lower than Iron-rankers, and there was quite a large amount of people who were above the standards of a typical Iron-ranked warrior.

Apart from that, he still had a group of Subterrane Dwellers, a force that was definitely close to Silver-rankers.

The total men from these two armies were close to three thousand. Adding in the Druids on top of the existing spellcasters made the percentage more than ten percent. It was unthinkable in Aouine’s history. If the news of this force spread out, then the outside world would be stunned with plenty of noise made. The strength of Trentheim’s new lord would have to be analyzed one more time.

Brendel purposely suppressed this information. He knew very well that a surprise was more deeply etched when the truth was revealed. He wanted everyone in Aouine to know his name, and that he was the rightful owner of Trentheim.

Gaspard’s words made the uneasy darkness shrouding over everyone’s hearts fade quite a bit. It was as if Count Randner’s large army in the forest was not as frightening.

But Ciel till gave them a word of caution and waved his away:

“Even though we make fun of the enemies, their army’s strength still beats us by quite a bit. There are three Knight Commanders leading the armies, with twenty thousand men from Count Randner and ten thousand highland natives. That is to say—”

Ciel pointed at River Gris with a solemn expression: “We might be facing numbers that are thirty times our size right now.”

Everyone sobered up. They knew this point a long time ago.

“In addition, these Knight Commanders have first-class knights that number at least a hundred, perhaps even more, and all of them are at least Silver-rankers. We lack such a unit. Even though the Subterrane Dwellers are capable of going up against them, but our Lord has said very quickly. If the Madara undead don’t appear, the Subtterane Dwellers must not appear too. This is why our opponents have an absolute advantage in terms of having Silver-ranked units.”

Ciel paused for a moment before he continued:

“With the exception of Lord Palas, it seems the other two Knight Commanders are Gold-rankers, and it’s hard to guarantee that there are no hidden trump cards— Supposing that they only did bring in two Gold-rankers to this battle, we are only equal in strength if Medissa and I encounter them. If there’s a third enemy Gold-ranker, then we would be in a disadvantage.”

“Then what should we do?” One of the Druids looked a little cross-eyed once Ciel revealed this answer.

“It’s fine. We only need to follow our Lord’s words.”

“Lord Brendel’s?”

Brendel had asked them to delay Count Randner’s army from making their way across the river for as long as possible, but the enemy vanguard’s numbers were not as terrifying as before. Now the armies of the three Knight Commanders, native highlanders, and even Madara’s undead were looking in to get an advantage.

The youth had promised victory in the past, but that was something in the past. Could they really win now?

Many people who followed Brendel in the past had almost a blind trust in him. The promises he had made always seemed to come true, and as long as he moved forward, then the sword he was pointing to would always be the path of victory. The young lord was like the legendary heroes found in history, proclaiming victory proudly and it would be as easy as putting it in his bag.

But the people in this battlefield could not help fall into a lull.

These were warriors who could smile in the face of the most desperate battles, but this did not mean they had lost it. Even without understanding Brendel’s plans, they were certain that victory could be achieved if they delayed the advance of Count Randner’s army to the utmost limits, forcing them to retreat after all their food was expended.

But this was a hefty price for both parties.

As a warrior, this was not unacceptable as they had pledged allegiance to Brendel, and everyone was prepared to shed blood.

But the youth’s promise was to defeat Count Randner’s army completely and directly in battle.

How was that possible?

The Druids naturally thought that Ciel was merely trying to boost morale. But Jana and Cornelius who had witnessed Brendel’s miracles for themselves were having headaches; both of them were thinking hard but they were simply unable to know what Brendel was relying on to achieve victory.

Ciel and Medissa merely met each other’s eyes and smiled amidst the various types of stares. Indeed the Loop of Trade Wind’s change would spread throughout the kingdom and even the whole continent.

The battle at Firburh would be the next event that would be recorded in history as well.

Ciel once again looked out to the forest.

Lord Palas did not sense that foreboding gaze. He was currently assessing the casualties from that thunderstorm. The men under Lord Kruss did not suffer many deaths, and the advancing foot soldiers merely had ten-odd bodies lost, but the archers were in no condition to return to battle.

[This is a little painful. A whole squadron of archers who are out of this battle, without even having the chance to see even one enemy.]

The army he was controlling directly was around twenty thousand, but there were not many trained soldiers. He only had another thousand-odd archer of the same quality as this squadron, and a large portion of these men came directly from Count Randner’s private soldiers. It was difficult to explain himself if he lost too many here.

“Is that lightning storm a spell of the Druids? These are Iron-ranked Druids right? How can they command such frightening magic?” He could not help but bark this question at the wizard next to him.

The wizard nodded.

“The spell is Call Lightning, but the magnitude of the spell isn’t simply done by one or two Druids. This spell is definitely cast together by at least ten Druids, and if these Druids are truly Iron-rankers, then they would need to rest for a full day. But if these Druids are Arch Druids, it’s a whole different story altogether....”

The old knight interrupted the wizard, refusing to believe there were high-ranking Druids in the rebel army: “You mean to say that our opponents cannot cast that spell repeatedly?”

“Lord Palas, there is no need to worry even if they are capable of casting it repeatedly. It takes at least ten of them to do so, while we only need three mages to dispel this magic. In addition, dispelling the Call Lightning doesn’t require a lot of Mana. It is much easier for us to use Mana for defense than offense, and I would not use this magic spell again if I were them. This spell is probably used to deter us from advancing.” The wizard lowered his head and answered respectfully.

Lord Palas nodded. He did not need to worry much if that large area-of-effect spell could not be used. The difference in military might was too far apart, and he did not need to use any excessive strategies at all. The food expenditure for his army was too high and he did not want to waste time, thus his plan was to use straightforward tactics from the beginning to end this war.

As long as they crossed River Gris, then it would be a matter of days to take Firburh.

It was within his acceptable range to finish the war within a week.

[Rebels, Aouine....]

His mind revolved around these two words, and all his other deep thoughts turned into a confident, faint smile. As a general who had won countless victories, he did not have any reason that he would lose under such overwhelming advantage.

The old knight snorted. It was a sigh that showed his pity for the enemies and this kingdom. There had not been such a large rebellion for the past century in Aouine. Even though Count Randner displayed his strength, it did not change the fact that this kingdom was becoming decrepit and corrupted.

[Even if you extend it another two hundred years, there isn’t a case where a noble is blatantly murdered like Graudin was. Brendel, did I get your name right, let this old man be the last watchdog for this kingdom....]

He threw his dagger on the table’s map, stabbing exactly onto Firburh’s location, as though victory was at hand.

There was no more hesitation in him. Count Randner’s army would set camp for this evening and rest, before launching a full assault and take the enemy’s defense line. He was completely unafraid that the ‘rebels’ would try and commit to a night raid, and he would never make an error to defend against such a lousy tactic. If the enemies were that foolish, then he would not mind for the war to finish a little earlier.

And the enemies’ leader was as sharp like he had thought. There was no disturbance in the night, and the next morning came.

The real fight was about to begin at the crack of dawn.

Ciel and Medissa stood on top of a watchtower and saw unclear shadows at the other end of the river. The sky was still dark.

“They are constructing bridges with wooden planks, taking advantage of the fact that we are lacking in numbers,” Ciel said.

Medissa nodded.

[[It’s going to be a test from now onwards.]]

Both of them thought of the same thing.