Chapter 34
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Defense of the Crimson Mountains (2)
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“Kaisen Alter Aradamanthel, welcome to the strongest unit on the Central Front.”
Roveris finally removed her tinted glasses with a graceful motion, setting them on the table as she gazed at Kaisen.
The gesture was breathtaking.
Her measured tone, refined vocabulary, and every restrained movement spoke of her authentic noble lineage.
‘To think someone could possess such natural dignity…’
Camilla, rough and boisterous.
Sharon, perpetually playful.
Those two had been overflowing with personality, but this Warrior possessed an aura that was the polar opposite of them both.
“To say I saved them both is an overstatement—”
It was only natural, now that he thought about it. Roveris was the eldest daughter of the Margrave House of Peiji, one of the Empire's greatest noble families.
“—Enough. Don't bother with false modesty. I'm simply saying you've made a good first impression on me.”
“...?”
“I truly respected them both. Is there a FakeWarrior who didn't? They used to call me Roro. Senior Sharon came up with it. Before I became a FakeWarrior, I had the middle name Roradi.”
A faint trace of a smile appeared on Roveris's lips and then vanished, as if she were tracing a distant memory.
To Tval and Mern, who were watching the transfer proceedings from outside the tent, this was nothing short of a shock.
For the commander to show someone her nickname and a smile upon their first meeting was unprecedented.
“We’re connected.”
Just then, a woman on the other side of the tent spoke, exhaling a bewitching plume of smoke.
A witch's suit of red silk.
The witch, holding a short-stemmed pipe beneath her low-brimmed conical hat, winked when she met Kaisen's gaze.
[This is Marshal Melvin. Roveris, are you there?]
The smoke from the pipe swirled above the simple table, coalescing into the form of a middle-aged man.
A communication spell of the consciousness-linking type.
A spell that required immense knowledge; this one incantation alone was enough to gauge the witch's formidable skill.
“I’m here.”
[A large Uruk force is moving into the plains. We've confirmed the presence of ogres and trolls as well.]
“Trolls in the plains... They must be planning a siege. What's the status of the Uruk forces?”
[The Nuwigin clan is leading a coalition of seventeen clans.]
“Nuwigin is third in the High Kun Tark hierarchy. This won't be an easy fight.”
[Without the Iron Cross, there's no way to break the Nuwigin's heavy infantry phalanx. Estimated time of arrival is two days. Take command of the Iron Cross and rendezvous immediately.]
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
The Iron Cross Knightly Order was composed of 522 knights.
Traditionally, each knight was attended by a squire, along with two or three servants to care for their warhorse and armor.
Since these attendants were also armed and rode in the rear, the Iron Cross Knightly Order would swell to a force of nearly two thousand at the start of battle.
“Kaisen, do you know how to ride? The White Skeleton Corps was an infantry unit, I believe.”
“I learned mounted combat in the [Grand Swordmaster’s Chronicle].”
“Ah, right. That will suffice.”
Roveris took the Hero's sword, Scherpang, from its rack.
Awakened in its proxy's hand, Scherpang resonated with Aradamanthel, letting out a long, white breath.
Scherpang had no scabbard, so she fastened it to her back with a specially made binding wrapped around the hilt.
Its majesty was that of a foremost Supreme Holy Sword—heavy and immense, unlike the clear, cold dignity of Aradamanthel.
“I said before that we didn't need a second Warrior, but now I'm thinking that having a new special asset isn't so bad after all.”
He followed Roveris out of the tent.
At the command of Tval and Mern, the knightly encampment was already bustling with activity.
Squires were fetching their knights' swords and shields while servants brought forth the warhorses.
“Howell. Bring Bloodwind.”
“What? Commander, you mean *that* Bloodwind?”
“Did we get another Bloodwind while I wasn't looking?”
“No, ma'am. I'll bring him right away.”
A servant, on Roveris's order, brought over a warhorse with a crimson mane.
“This is Bloodwind. He's a fierce one, but with your Dragon's Soul, he'll calm down on his own, so don't worry.”
“Understood.”
The horse, which had been snapping its jaws as if to bite the servant's head off, truly did grow quiet the moment Kaisen's hand touched it.
Perhaps it was a creature's instinct to feel awe in the presence of the dragon dwelling within his soul.
He had never taken an interest in horses or had an eye for breeds, but he could tell at a glance that this was a magnificent steed.
“He's of the most famous Solondian breed. Befitting a FakeWarrior. Though the line was nearly lost when the Adrion Continent fell.”
Its legs were long and graceful, and the sheen of its mane flowed like a field of silver grass dancing in the wind.
When he reached out and stroked its head, the steed let out a gentle snort and rubbed its head against him in a sign of submission.
Roveris handed him an apple to help them bond, and Bloodwind ate it with relish.
“I'll be counting on you, Bloodwind.”
“He's taking to you better than I expected. I need to give this letter to a courier. Howell, get the saddle and tack on him. Use the ones his original owner used.”
“Ah, yes…”
At that moment, he couldn't comprehend the meaning behind the uncomfortable and bewildered stares directed his way from all around.
It was the witch from before who explained it to him. Alidona, a member of the Iron Cross Warrior's party.
Her suit was rather revealing, perhaps because the Empire's weather was cooler than the Republic's.
“It's because the vacancy you filled is a sore spot for everyone. And seeing Roro give you that horse so readily makes it even more so.”
“...?”
“Margaret. He belonged to Roro's dead apprentice. You're not her apprentice, but your position is similar enough. I'm sure everyone will get used to it soon.”
The prelude to total war.
Defense of the Crimson Mountains (2)
There is a land that glides upon the westerlies, soaring over the skies of the continent and the peninsula.
Its name: the Floating Castle.
Mortal beings call it a fortress, but this land was not a kingdom of stone, but of wood.
From a lake at the heart of this kingdom, a great tree known as the World Tree soared in a sacred form.
Elegantly coiled around its trunk was the body of an ancient water dragon, its once-azure form slowly assimilating into the World Tree over the ages, taking on the same texture and color as the wood.
And there, leaning against the trunk of the World Tree, was a figure of pure white.
Was it because he had slept in this state for nearly twenty years?
Moss covered his snow-white skin, and new shoots were sprouting. Even in such a state, he looked divine.
On this land, there was only water, wood, and pure white. A holy silence reigned. Into this land, a golden dragon descended.
*Shhh…*
Like a dawn ray shattering into countless particles, the dragon's form disintegrated, pouring out a brilliant light.
「Mir.」
From within the light.
The figure of a woman appeared, her sun-gold hair flowing beautifully from beneath a worn, wide-brimmed hat.
This dragonkin with peculiar, cross-shaped pupils was Setsunen of Thunderous Fragrance.
「I heard you sent a projection to Kerkunode.」
She knew the truth of this land.
Knew it with a sorrowful desperation.
The truth that the Blue Star's White Dragon had lifted the World Tree and the lake, whole, into the sky.
「You're overexerting yourself, commanding the elves on the Idea Peninsula as well.」
It was because of the ‘Black Summer.’
During the height of that war, he had suffered a deep wound from the Abyss, and now Mirngadia could not maintain his physical form without being near the World Tree.
That was why he had chosen this method to protect the world. This was his resolve.
If his body was bound to the land, then he would simply move the land itself. That way, could he not send his projections even farther?
「Was it because he's Raminea's son? You couldn't just ignore him, could you?」
Before any answer could come, a dark elf attendant spoke.
“A large army, its numbers difficult to ascertain, is approaching the Crimson Mountains.”
The dark elves.
Beings who had served the White Dragon's legion with devotion since time immemorial.
That very devotion was their tradition, their history, their honor.
Even in this age, with the land of the World Tree gliding through the sky, their loyalty and traditions endured.
“The Demonic Central Front invasion force has gathered and split into three prongs.”
Normally, Mirngadia could observe hundreds of battlefronts simultaneously as they appeared on the surface of the World Tree's lake.
Normally, that is.
Now, dying from the Abyss's corrosion, that was impossible. Thus, the dark elf attendants filled the perceptual void, reciting the state of the war.
“The Nuwigin clan and the troll tribes form the left flank, heading for the plains. Including the lesser demonic tribes, it is a grand army numbering over five hundred thousand.”
“The composition of the enemy's main body, heading for the Second Front, cannot be confirmed. The volcanic ash is too thick.”
“A force of 240,000 Necrons is independently advancing toward the eastern Mythic Peak.”
The answer to Setsunen’s earlier question finally came. Not through sound, but sight.
[Nen, deploy the Barrier of Thunderous Fragrance.]
The lake's surface rippled gently.
Upon the shimmering water, aquatic plants wove themselves together, forming a string of words.
Mirngadia's body was asleep; he could not use his vocal cords.
「Understood.」
Setsunen pushed back her worn hat and piously clasped her hands.
A clear, noble radiance spread forth.
From her clasped hands to the heavens and the earth, flowing out across the entire Crimson Mountains battlefield below the Floating Castle.
The Thunderous Fragrance Heart Resonance Formation.
The waves of light drew out threads of soul from the bodies of the chosen, binding them as one.
Thus, their consciousnesses were synchronized.
A miracle that only Setsunen, who could read the hearts of others, could perform. Its power easily transcended the principle of seclusion that governed the battlefield.
[Marshal Melvin, connected.]
[Avino 2nd Infantry Regiment, Vice Marshal Rokat, connected.]
[Iron Cross Knights, Roveris, connecting.]
The voices of those scattered across the battlefield came through as crackling telepathic messages, like the echo of thunder.
The concentration of fragmented information.
The immediate execution of high command's orders.
With this power of light, Setsunen had saved countless lives in the fierce pandemonium of the Central Front.
[I, Mirngadia of the Blue Star, hereby assume supreme command of the plains defense operation. First Front Army, all commanders with secondary operational control, beginning with the Marshal, will now check in.]
If fragmented battlefield information could be instantly focused in one place and forged into a final judgment, then it was no longer fragmented, but whole. The battle was not a collection of small parts, but a mere piece of a greater whole.
When he had devised this use of her power, that was how Mirngadia had explained it to Setsunen.
[1st Infantry Brigade… confirmed.]
[Iron Cross Knights… confirmed.]
[22nd Infantry Brigade… confirmed.]
[36th Infantry Brigade… confirmed.]
…
…
[Iron Fortress Heavy Infantry… confirmed.]
[11th Armored Battalion… confirmed.]
[4th Independent Armored Company… confirmed.]
…
…
[1st Artillery Brigade… confirmed.]
[23rd Artillery Brigade… confirmed.]
[116th Artillery Regiment… confirmed.]
[217th Independent Artillery Battalion… confirmed.]
…
…
[1st Fighter Wing… confirmed.]
[3rd Fighter Wing… confirmed. Roll call complete.]
An army is strong as a whole. Individual strength is necessary, but it must stem from solidarity with the whole.
By this tactical philosophy.
The various units from fallen kingdoms, small nations, and expeditionary forces, which had once fought as a disjointed collection, were reformed into a single, unified army.
[First Front Army, as of 1100 hours, we will commence the plains defense operation. You face an enemy five hundred thousand strong. All units are to move on my command.]