The air screamed, and the world gradually slowed down.

Heat dominated the battlefield. — No, it wasn’t the battlefield that was dominated, but the Empire.

The entirety of the Empire was engulfed in heat, and the land was swallowed by an unprecedented turmoil.

A multitude raised their voices, swung their weapons, and proclaimed their ideals, stoking the flames further.

That fervor propagated, growing larger, wider, faster, and stronger.

This heat was something that had long smoldered in the hearts of the citizens of Volakia.

Opportunity for it to be released was lost, and the heat was perpetually confined within a box. However, as the confined heat intensified, it found an opportunity and finally erupted.

Henceforth, there is no intention to deny the things that began.

With many people, there are various viewpoints. Moreover, being in different countries means that common sense differs, and the roots of various ways of life are intertwined with different soils, waters, and airs.

Even if one were to speak without understanding that, no one would lend an ear.

So, discussing what’s right and wrong here would be out of place.

In such a tangled place, if anything can be said, it is just one thing.

That is——,

“——I really, really hate this.”

The voice that murmured this literally changed the atmosphere of the battlefield.

White snow fluttering down over the farmlands and grasslands surrounding the Imperial Capital Rupugana is an unbelievable sight for an Empire known for its warm climate.

“What the… is this…?”

Before the snow they saw for the first time, a bewildered voice came from the metallic humans collapsing onto the ground.

Born with metallic parts integrated into their bodies, they could be called weapon humans who transformed these parts into weapons to run through the battlefield, challenged the siege of the Imperial Capital, and were crushed by a great enemy.

Even so, the survivors who could still fight had resolved to face the enemy once more when that white scene slowly appeared.

For a moment, they were taken aback, but they quickly pulled their consciousness back to the battlefield.

If they were caught off guard for even a moment, it wouldn’t be strange for their lives to be taken. However, perhaps the enemy no longer considered these metallic humans a threat, so they weren’t even targeted.

Stewing in humiliation, they swung blades, spears, and axes filled with their anger, vowing to uphold their pride as a race and defeat the enemy this time—they realized something.

——Their bodies, which they tried to move, were numb and did not move as they wished.

I repeat, the Volakia Empire is a country with a warm climate all year round.

Of course, if they were from high mountains or the borders with neighboring countries, or lived near great waterfalls, they might experience different climates, but these metallic humans were not those.

That said, they could not be blamed for that.

Just who could expect such a thing?

In the bright midday battlefield, where the blue sky and sunshine peeked through, the body that had become so hot it was almost sweaty suddenly cooled as a freezing wind blew, causing the blood circulation to worsen.

“Everyone! Get away from here! I will work very hard here!”

As she pushed her unresponsive body, the voice struck the bewildered metallic humans.

In the midst of the cold air that made merely gripping weapons difficult, a figure strode through the grasslands, silver hair billowing.

With white skin and violet eyes, the girl of astonishing beauty stepped forward with an attitude of simply taking the scene for granted.

As they were captivated by her appearance, the metallic humans began to realize——this was a presence bestowed upon them.

“——It’s you again, huh,” they uttered in terror.

The surprise of the metallic humans continued.

The silver-haired girl who stepped forward was being hailed by a small figure standing atop the castle walls—a dragon-human, Madelin Eshault, with two black horns on her head.

She was the “monster” who ruled as the greatest general of the Empire, the “Nine.”

Madelin looked down disdainfully, her hand gripping the oversized weapon, the “Wing Blade,” which was far too large for her height, adeptly controlling its formidable weight.

In a realm full of mixed races, the dragon-human, a rare existence, had an overwhelming presence that could leave even the weak-hearted metallic humans trembling in their knees just by facing her.

However——,

“Hey! It’s me again, Madelin! The passing spirit mage, Emilia!”

The girl, Emily, pointed at the dragon-human with no sign of fear.

That fearless exchange made the metallic humans understand the disparities of the stage they stood upon, the height of the viewpoints they perceived.

“——”

Disappointment and despair washed over them in the face of the harsh reality, yet immediately afterwards, an exhilarating anticipation surged.

It was the expectation of the battle about to unfold before their eyes, one that surpassed human understanding.

It begins. A fight in the realm of high peaks and heights, an area unreachable by merely being born robust.

Indifferent to the cooling blood from the lower temperatures, they began to tremble as warriors.

And——,

“What an infuriating girl. I thought I wouldn’t lose to a dragon in the last battle—”

The adorably fierce look on Madelin’s face turned terrifying.

Wielding the Wing Blade overhead, the enraged dragon-human didn’t give a thought to the extreme cold that hindered the movements of the metallic humans.

They felt it intuitively. The moment that Wing Blade would be swung, a battle of historic proportions would begin——.

“——Take this!”

——In the next moment, huge chunks of ice tumbled from where Emily had stretched out her hand, crashing down with a mighty roar, engulfing Madelin’s figure in the spray of ice shards.

───────────────────────△▼△▼△▼△

The large chunk of ice slammed into the castle walls, and Emilia internally nodded, “Alright.”

The battle between the rebel army surrounding the Imperial Capital and the regular army trying to defend it had begun, leaving Emilia’s mind a chaotic mess.

To the best of her ability, she aimed to reduce the number of people dying.

That was the policy Emilia laid down, and while she knew it was challenging, her comrades accepted it without objection, which had been their goal.

Yet, when Emilia and her group arrived at the Imperial Capital, they found the rebels who had come before them had already started fighting.

“While each tribe may view the others as the same rebels from the Imperial Capital’s standpoint, each has its own motives. A well-mannered battle that begins in unison is impossible to expect. That’s self-evident.”

Amid Emilia’s mounting anxiety, Abel made a pointed comment, but their party, which had joined the battle from the castle city, secured their position and finally joined the fray.

Among Emilia’s group, the primary combatants were herself and Garfiel. Beatrice and Petra couldn’t fight, while Otto and Frederica had their own duties.

Frustrated that the only thing she could do was fight, Emilia had learned the importance of role allocation, so she intended for them all to handle what they were best at.

“The capital, Rupugana, is a city surrounded by star-shaped walls. It’s tough to defend and even harder to attack; thus, breaking through is no easy task. The key to conquering it is to take the five vertices.”

“The five vertices?”

“The star-shaped walls. From these five vertices, we can deeply and broadly grasp the battlefield. Conversely, if we seize them, we can significantly weaken the enemy’s forces. To do that—”

“To do that?”

“First, we deduce the enemy’s troop deployment from the rebels who engaged directly. If they can expend even a modicum of the enemy’s reserves, that’s a win.”

“Then, isn’t it dangerous for those who engage first? No way, that’s absolutely not okay!”

While devising victory strategies was Abel’s role, Emilia couldn’t accept it that way. Thus, she decided to march out to capture the essential vertices.

Honestly, she couldn’t pinpoint where to rush to first, but—

“Emily, I will give directions on where we should go. — I have a game plan.”

As Emilia was on the verge of bolting, Otto offered his assistance.

At that moment, the expression on Otto’s face struck Emilia as reckless, leaving her at a loss for how to respond,

“Don’t worry, Emilia. Leave it to me.”

With Petra reassuring her like that, Emilia was able to muster up the conviction to charge forward.

“Emily! Over here! I’m gonna smash a hole right through!”

She exchanged spirited encouragement with the energetic Garfiel and headed toward their respective vertices.

“Emily… I mean, Lady Emilia, I will also go fulfill my duty. May fortune favor you. Please don’t overexert yourself for Lord Subaru!”

The accompanying Frederica transformed into her beast form, racing across the battlefield in a blur.

Everyone, striving desperately to fulfill their roles.

“I’ve got to give it my all, too.”

With strong resolve in her heart, Emilia reached the vertex she was meant to safeguard.

She tightly shut her eyes, placing her right hand against her chest and overlaying it with her left. Before the battle began, Beatrice, who lamented being unable to join, had grasped that hand and said,

“I’m frustrated, but I have to rely on you instead of Betty. When it comes to Subaru, you’re the one who can try your hardest after Betty.”

“Yes, really, I want to believe that.”

Thanks to Beatrice’s entrusted feelings and the presence of her supportive comrades, Emilia felt astonishingly well.

The anxious heart and the chaotic mind calmed, granting her a sense of clarity.

With that clarity, Emilia balanced her responsibilities and desires.

The role she needed to fulfill was to defeat Madelin, who guarded the vertex.

What Emilia wanted was to save as many people as possible from death.

She planned to fight against Madelin. And to prevent many from dying.

“——”

Opening her eyes, Emilia became aware of the gate within her body and unleashed her accumulated mana, rapidly cooling the temperature around her.

Since Volakia is a warm country, many people dislike the cold, a viewpoint thanks to Petra, the scholar. Otto, who loved animals, noted that flying dragons are also weak to the cold.

Moreover, Garfiel and Frederica, the sibling duo, mentioned that when it gets cold, you naturally want to curl up.

By correlating all of this with none other than her own experiences, Emilia realized the crucial insight.

That is——,

“When it’s really cold, everyone becomes unable to fight.”

There was a time before the Roswaal mansion burned down, when Pack, sleeping before his awakening, triggered issues due to insufficient mana release, and the surrounding area became a snowy landscape.

The issue spread to Araham Village nearby, causing quite a stir, and though Emilia had never experienced cold in her life, that memory remained a strange one.

That experience and knowledge served her well.

“I understand that everyone’s feelings about the fight and their sentiments cannot easily be swayed. I want to communicate properly and come to understand each other, but time doesn’t allow it.”

So, Emilia made a decision.

By sheer force— no, through cold— she would subdue everyone.

Her fingers were numb and unfit to wield weapons, her knees trembled, she was unable to use any skills, her teeth clattered, her gaze couldn’t steady, and her breath appeared white in the air.

If she did this, then everyone would be unable to take up arms.

And yet, to face those whose strong bodies and hearts still yearned to fight——,

“——I will take you on!”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself—!”

With her prized declaration, a voice roared from the fallen ice block that had struck the castle wall.

The gigantic ice chunk, larger than a house, produced an energetic response even when hit, causing surprised looks all around, though Emilia was unfazed. It had been the same days before when she clashed with Gwararu.

Just like back then, the battle’s onset began with crashing ice.

“How unrefined!”

A sharp sound reverberated, and in the next moment, the massive ice split vertically down the middle.

Emerging through the scattered ice shards was Madelin, brandishing the Wing Blade overhead and looking completely spry.

She watched as the pieces of ice shattered before her and turned to mana, narrowing her golden pupils.

“Even after experiencing that pain, you’ve changed nothing, half-dragon…”

“It was quite shocking, but I, along with Priscilla, were close to winning that last one. Don’t lie.”

“——Don’t underestimate a dragon, half-dragon!”

Upon hearing Emilia’s retort, Madelin glared angrily and bent her knees, preparing to leap down from the wall. Her movement caught Emilia’s eye, and after glancing around—

“Here goes!”

Emilia swung her arms and summoned ice chunks to rain down upon Madelin once again.

Of course, that was of no hindrance to Madelin, who nonchalantly swatted them away with her weapon, rendering them ineffective.

However——,

“Here! And here! And still more! There!”

“Wh—?”

One after another, Emilia created ice chunks in the sky and sent them cascading towards Madelin on the castle walls.

As she prioritized speed over power for these fragments, they were smaller than the first, each only being about the size of a person.

Even so, they would cause tremendous pain if they struck the head, and with ten, twenty, fifty, or even a hundred of these being summoned by Emilia, they showered down upon the wall.

Ice fragments——though, more accurately, an uncharming blizzard of ice.

“Don’t get cocky——!”

Targeted by the showering storm of ice, Madelin retaliated fiercely.

Utilizing her body unbothered by the cold, rather than throwing her Wing Blade, she swung it around as a weapon and shot down every falling ice chunk.

The sounds of impact and shattering echoed as chunks of ice surged toward Madelin.

Crushed, dodged, deflected, and avoided in agile spirals akin to an acrobat or dancer, Madelin gracefully evaded the swirling storm of ice.

Her mobility was astonishing, but hitting her wasn’t Emilia’s aim. This was an attack designed to be evaded; the goal was merely to buy time.

In other words——,

“Everyone get back! If I fight Madelin, it’ll be dangerous for those around us!”

As the hail of ice fell, Emilia called out to the surrounding rebels.

The metallic humans who had been crushed huddled together, lying in wait for a chance to assist, but many were trembling from the cold and had lost their weapons, making that a futile effort.

It was dreadful that the difficulty in moving their limbs was something Emilia had caused, yet she hoped they would try their best to move their hands and feet and retreat with their companions.

If they did that——,

“——Uh-oh!”

As Emilia’s offensive, focused on overwhelming numbers, became monotonous, Madelin’s Wing Blade shot through the gaps formed by the smashed ice.

The terrifyingly howling blade flew toward Emilia, and she barely leaped to evade it in the nick of time, but the rotating Wing Blade stirred up a sonic boom as it whirled through the battlefield, returning with deadly precision.

This gale of death slashed mercilessly through everything, sparing no one but Emilia herself. Thus, to prevent the slow-moving metallic humans from being caught in the wake, Emilia dashed forward.

“Uagh!!”

Unable to keep up with her body in the face of the gales of death, Emilia dove in front of the metallic humans, intercepting the incoming attack.

With a leg raised, she kicked up the blade of the Wing Blade. The impact made Emilia’s bones creak, but she gritted her teeth and bore it, launching it with all her strength, allowing the blade to fly over her head and that of the metallic humans behind.

“That’s it…”

“You think it’s over?”

“——!”

With no time to feel relieved, a voice rang out from behind.

Waving aside her silvery hair, Emilia caught sight of Madelin gripping the wing blade she had just kicked away, raising it overhead once more.

If she dodged, those around her would be in danger.

“Glacial Brand Arts!!”

With no choice but to receive, Emilia swiftly conjured an ice sword to clash with the Wing Blade.

This wouldn’t become a standoff; the moment the blades met, the ice sword shattered without a fight. But that was merely the first strike. Creating a second blade with her other hand, and a third with the hand that lost the first, Emilia unleashed her ice sword barrage, undeterred by the shattering.

She exaggeratedly pivoted her body, striking at the side of the Wing Blade, banging, banging, barely managing to redirect it away.

“——Kyaah!?”

The downed Wing Blade struck the ground, sending shockwaves that rattled Emilia’s whole body.

Caught by shockwaves that were equal in force, any metallic humans who had lingered behind were sent flying. The dragon-human’s strength was unfathomable—much stronger than even Emilia herself.

“Still…”

Leaping back from the ground, Emilia slapped her cheeks and turned her gaze forward.

Madelin, pulling her Wing Blade from the ground, glared at Emilia with dissatisfaction, then glanced around.

“You’re the only one left to face me. What happened to that woman?”

“That woman? …Ah, you mean Priscilla?”

“I expect a dragon to remember human names? I’m talking about that red-haired woman.”

“That’s Priscilla. I’m Emily. Priscilla has someone she wants to meet.”

While Abel crafted strategies within the camp, Emilia and her companions dashed onto the battlefield, and Priscilla, along with Al, were also treading the same soil of conflict.

However, unlike Emilia, who wanted to bring back Subaru and Rem, and Abel, who sought to deal with the Emperor somehow, Priscilla’s purpose remained unclear.

Even when asked, she wouldn’t give a proper answer.

“You won’t tell me what you talked about with Yorna either…”

Perhaps because it was a reunion of a long-separated parent and child, there must have been a wealth of conversation.

As Emilia thought of the day she would reunite with the Pack, who was stirring inside the magic crystal she wore around her neck, she was curious about what sort of conversation they had during their reunion.

Naturally, she also simply wished to hear about Priscilla’s joyful tales.

“Someone she wants to meet…”

“Yes, it seems like they’re somewhere in this battle. She said it was her own dilemma, so although I prioritized my knight… Ah! Well, it might be Petra’s knight!”

“——”

As Emilia fumbled to correct herself, saying she needed a title that was appropriate for the Volakia Empire, Madelin looked at her suspiciously.

She felt as though she was being doubted, but Emilia was bad at lying. The more she tried to cover it up, the higher the chance of her slip-up growing, so she reluctantly slumped her shoulders.

“No, that’s a lie. Subaru is my knight. I’m sorry for deceiving you.”

“To begin with, I never asked that in the first place!”

“Is that so…?”

“Whatever a little girl like you thinks has nothing to do with a dragon. ——I’m irritated that the red-haired woman isn’t here, but if that’s the case, it’s fine by me.”

As she spoke, a monsterous heat began to radiate from Madelin’s body, slowly starting to steam.

In the cooling air, her exhaled breath turned white, and her warmed body began emanating visible fighting spirit.

Faced with that apparent fighting spirit, Emilia instinctively produced dual swords in her hands.

Emilia held them ready, wary of Madelin, who grinned ferociously and declared,

“I’ll make a bloody spectacle of each one of you who dared to mock a dragon.”

With shining golden eyes, she charged toward Emilia.

Transforming her legs into flames, Madelin approached with the intent to obliterate everything in her path.

With Madelin’s fiery grip upon the battle, Emilia amassed her own strength, stating firmly:

“Even without Priscilla, I’m not alone!”

“What are you—”

Madelin began bellowing angrily, but that was drowned out by the sudden emergence of a shadow alongside the striking flame that held her in place.

It was Natsuki Subaru, made out of ice, crashing into Madelin and interrupting her attack.

“What…!?”

“Take this!!”

While Madelin was still halted, Emilia’s dual swords struck out fiercely in a counterattack.

───────────────────────△▼△▼△▼△

Surrounded by the star-shaped castle walls of the Imperial Capital, battles began at each vertex, altering the nature of the war.

An overwhelming force that forms out of the weak — so often, a single formidable individual easily plucks hope from them.

In truth, the battle they had boldly labeled as the deciding fight at the Imperial Capital was almost certain to leave a trail of destruction in its wake, felling the rebels and causing those with a fighting spirit to settle down for years even without intervention.

Or perhaps that was part of the Emperor’s intent to flush out these rebellious elements.

Most importantly—

“——That is, if His Excellency Emperor Vincent Volakia is still seated on the throne.”

With a smoking pipe in hand, Yorna Mishigure surveyed the battlefield with swirling puffs of smoke.

Purposefully igniting a small fire within herself, she sought to tighten her relaxed thoughts. That was precisely what the Emperor would do, but it wouldn’t be something he would orchestrate just for such a minor scheme.

What if she had not known the truth this time and had been summoned as one of the “Nine Divine Generals” reigning over the Magic City—where would her allegiance lie?

“Such idle reveries are not fit for me.” — She had a role to fulfill.

Vincent Volakia, the true Emperor, had laid peace upon this Empire. Yet, what future would be paved under the reign of a false Emperor?

With thoughts of her beloved children alongside the citizens he adored remaining, Yorna considered.

“My dear children, and the citizens living on the lands loved by His Excellency.”

Those foolishly mourning the loss of the Magic City, unable to exhibit the authority they ought to, continued to harbor fondness for her.

The man she once loved, who still held an unmatched place in her heart, remained beloved in this Empire.

And notably, wishing for harmony in the world where her very soul lived on through her child.

That longed for sentiment involves——,

“——Wishing for the continuity of peace upheld by the true Emperor over the future shaped by the false Emperor.”

As she spoke, Yorna twisted her pipe, and the earth began to swirl slowly around her in spirals.

This was Yorna’s technique of imbuing “Soul Marriage Technique” to inanimate objects.

Due to the limitations of its spirit capacity, no one could hope to replicate her methods—however, unlike the Magic City which had soaked in her feelings over time, the soil in the Imperial Capital moved sluggishly.

It was likely that Yorna’s complicated emotions toward the Empire contributed to that delay.

“Forgive me for being unprepared, but I shall be the one to face my lord.”

Her gaze rose toward the towering peak of the castle walls, directed at the opponent situated even higher up, flying freely in the air above the battlefield.

The “Spirit Eater,” which transformed her knees into flames, held utter destruction within her slender body.

“——Yorna.”

“General Arakia, still as flamboyant in battle as ever. Even from afar, it was clear it was you.”

The brown-skinned dog-human Arakia, possessing an eye patch over her left eye and a wooden branch in hand, cast a wary gaze at Yorna, the hostility warming the air around them while Yorna’s eyes narrowed at the charred fields.

In response to attacks from the rebels, it was this vertex that had witnessed the most ostentatious counterattack—it was Arakia herself.

Undoubtedly, that was due not only to her powerful abilities but also for show, aimed at the surroundings.

It was no challenge for anyone to instantly perceive that Arakia was stationed here.

Any top warrior could easily recognize her overwhelming might, even if they did not know her identity.

That was less a matter of Arakia’s intentional design—

“Did someone give you the heads-up, Arakia?”

“——”

“My lord…”

The voice of someone approaching from behind trod across the charred earth, shaking the battlefield.

Breath caught and wide-eyed in surprise, both Arakia and Yorna shared the realization— this was a voice audible for none other than to walk proudly into existence, and Yorna was furrowing her brows.

Without needing to turn, she knew she was flanked by her side, right next to her was—

“Mama, what’s this? Even after facing death, you still can’t let go of your children?”

Cracking open a fan in a theatrical manner, Priscilla, with her crimson eyes, cruelly laughed.

Yorna was taken aback by her unexpected entrance and follow-up words, exhaling sharply.

“Priscilla, It is natural that my lord cannot forgive me but… ”

“Unfortunately, the girl who bore that name is dead. If you’re concerned, pay your respects at her grave. I am Priscilla Barielle. Don’t make that mistake ever again.”

“——You were supposed to leave this to me, as Abel mentioned.”

“I told you I wouldn’t be a pawn for Abel, that was our conversation as well.”

To think that every response was shot back unyieldingly left Yorna speechless. However, Priscilla merely huffed, eliminating her smile.

Continuing her gaze, it settled upon the figure of Arakia above them.

As one of the strongest figures among the “Nine Divine Generals,” the reason Arakia had been assigned here was clear to all that she could only stand against Yorna.

Yet, the thoughtful Priscilla’s decision to approach was driven by a reason that lay beyond matters of strength or tactics.

The proof was that Arakia obviously showed signs of unease at Priscilla’s appearance.

Even in the presence of Yorna, her somewhat otherworldly expression didn’t waver, but when she saw Priscilla, that façade crumbled.

This was without question a testament to the special connection that existed between Priscilla and Arakia.

“Arakia, has your heart decided?”

Priscilla’s sideways glance appeared to pierce, her gaze sharp enough to suggest she would kill her target. However, the words that escaped her lips were somehow gentle, a hint of mercy came through.

Her harshly adorned gentle inquiry left Arakia breathless as she nodded.

“I will take back the princess. — By killing the Emperor, the princess shall become the true Emperor.”

“Do you wish for a formal conclusion to the ‘Ceremony of Selection’? So be it.”

Hearing Arakia’s response, Priscilla closed the fan she had been holding and tucked it into her bosom, raising her free hand to the sky, summoning a crimson sword from the air.

The sword blazed with heat so intense that the air near it shimmered, known as the “Sun Blade,” permissible only for the Volakia Emperor to wield—Yorna, too, couldn’t help but be captivated.

Once, wielding this ruby-red sword, the man she loved beckoned back to her.

“It’s not the time to be enchanted, mother.”

“——Why is it that you’ve grown up to be so headstrong, I haven’t raised you to be this way…”

“That is simple enough. No reason exists for me to be who I am. Also, there was one thing I forgot to mention.”

As Yorna tensed into a battle-ready stance, she cast a dubious look at her daughter.

Even without meeting her gaze, Priscilla pointed the Sun Blade toward Arakia.

“That one is my sibling. After you have departed, I have raised her as a sister. And now, she aims to place me on the throne.”

“What—?”

“Here it comes.”

The revelation left Yorna’s eyes wide, while the grim declaration came almost simultaneously.

A torrent of flames swelled to engulf the skies, preparing to transform the charred fields into scorched earth with sheer explosive heat.

Amid all that, the world was dyed in crimson as Arakia screamed.

“I’ll take back the princess with my own power!! ——That’s what I was taught!”

───────────────────────△▼△▼△▼△

As Arakia unleashed her flames to dramatically scorch the world, Todd Fang sensed the atmosphere of the battlefield changing with the shifting winds.

“——It’s clear the first strike was effective.”

The overwhelming firepower breaking the noses of the attacking rebels affirmed the role of the vanguard.

No rooted morale could remain if they were scorched with no means of defense.

Thus, amidst the five vertices guarding the star-shaped battlements, Todd figured that the vertex he was assigned to, which included Arakia, would be the safest and the least susceptible to the enemy’s attacks.

In fact, Todd’s deduction proved accurate; after the unit of single-eyed warriors was wiped out, the rebel forces, fearing Arakia, launched sporadic attacks, and it seemed a victorious combat was just waiting to happen.

The change in atmosphere occurred when the second wave of rebels arrived to consolidate with those who had already been repelled.

The initial wave, struck down and battered, was expected to collapse entirely, but the newly arrived second wave absorbed them, attempting to regroup.

Of course, a dogged pack of beaten hounds would have little bearing on the outcome, yet the follow-up forces, despite their crushed morale, rallied the disheartened survivors and minimized their losses.

It seemed they had quite the astute commander shaping the second wave, prompting a chill to run down Todd’s spine as he contemplated the fearsome possibility.

“Could it be that their late arrival was also part of a larger strategy?”

The disjointed first wave of rebels charged in under the flimsiest of tactics. Their painful defeat stung, nearly ending the battle favorably for the regular army.

Yet, with their experienced lead eradicated, the initial squadrons received a cold shower and had their heated heads cooled, only to lose the nuisance that had been derailing conversations.

In that case, to gain victory in their planned fight, they too could only vie for opportunity under a renewed leadership.

“With a crowd of brainless vanguards, the second wave might be the main force.”

The decision to challenge Arakia might become a counter-strategy devised by the true leader behind this game.

It was difficult to conjecture that Arakia would be taken down, but Todd found it hard to believe that someone calculative enough would have come unprepared to conquer the Imperial Capital.

Whatever the case, those responsible for guarding the peaks surely had some tricks up their sleeves.

On top of that, even the regular troops, intended merely to annihilate remaining remnants, began taking their time with the rebels, signaling that they were encountering at least some difficulties despite that.

It felt as if the devilish enemy possessed not only shrewd intellect but also a far-reaching aim and skilled dexterity.

The formidable foes would be left to Arakia and the other guardians.

However, Todd considered that there was a far more insidious presence amidst this war.

Thus——,

“——I need to take care of the ones causing trouble.”

“`

 

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