Chapter 131
Chapter 131
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: Chapter 45: Colossal Divine Soldiers (1)
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The Imperial Seal invigorates the soldiers loyal to the Philius Empire and His Majesty the Emperor, boosting their mana efficiency while subtly interfering with the mana usage of any hostile entities within its range.
It consumes both 'mana' and 'life force' to activate. That's why it can't be used recklessly, but it's correspondingly powerful.
"For His Majesty the Emperor!"
The knights of the Philius Empire let out a thunderous roar as they swung their swords. Archers from the Free Isiriya Kingdom rained arrows down on them, and mages unleashed powerful bolts of lightning and flames, but their momentum didn't waver in the slightest.
The infantry were no different. Their morale pierced the heavens, and not a single one showed any fear as they clashed with the Free Isiriya Kingdom's forces.
"What in the world is going on?!"
As the Philius Empire's troops suddenly surged in morale and their aura sharpened, the Free Isiriya Kingdom's 3rd Marshal, Marquis Diref, panicked greatly.
This had clearly been a battlefield where the Free Isiriya Kingdom's army held the advantage. Then reinforcements appeared out of nowhere, turning the tide.
"What the hell is happening?!"
Marquis Diref berated his subordinate commanders. In his eyes, the reinforcements weren't even that numerous.
Even with them joining, the Free Isiriya Kingdom's forces still held a numerical superiority.
"It seems that wide-area spell is the problem!"
"I know that already! Find a way to counter it!"
A young high-ranking commander mustered his courage to speak, but Marquis Diref continued raising his voice, pressing his subordinates.
Victory had been within reach, only for this unexpected interference to strike. It was inevitable he'd be furious. But no matter how much he raged, the Imperial Seal's effect wouldn't dissipate.
Even as Marquis Diref shouted in the command center, the Philius Empire's forces were steadily pushing back the Free Isiriya Kingdom's troops.
"Marquis Diref, sir! We must retreat!"
"Damn it! What do the mages have to say?"
Seeing his adjutant's urging to withdraw, Marquis Diref spat curses as he sought out the mages.
If he could at least know how long that golden wide-area spell dyeing the sky would last, he might gauge whether to retreat or press forward.
"Our high mages say they cannot predict when the wide-area spell will end!"
The adjutant relayed exactly what he'd heard.
"Goddamn it!"
Unlike his usual composure, Marquis Diref cursed again. Victory was right there—how could such a bolt from the blue strike now?
This could mean he'd end up treated the same as the 5th Marshal. That thought made Marquis Diref increasingly anxious.
"Marquis, sir! We have to fall back!"
"Our casualties are severe! We need to withdraw and regroup!"
"The enemy's assault has broken our front lines!"
His adjutants and commanders repeatedly urged retreat. Fortunately, unlike 5th Marshal Ranins, Marquis Diref was a competent commander who had risen to his position through his own merits.
He swallowed his frustration and coldly accepted his subordinates' advice, ordering a full retreat.
Bwooo!
The horn signaling retreat echoed across the battlefield, and in the Free Isiriya Kingdom's camp, signalers vigorously waved flags bearing the retreat order.
The Free Isiriya Kingdom troops engaged with the Philius Empire forces hurriedly fell back.
Though their lines had collapsed, their retreat was utterly chaotic—largely because more than half the mid-level commanders had been assassinated by Shades, creating gaping holes in the chain of command.
"They're retreating!"
"Long live His Majesty the Emperor!"
The Philius Empire soldiers cheered their victory, but the damage was too severe for everyone to celebrate.
Though Raymond had arrived with reinforcements, the combined force was still smaller than 3rd Marshal Diref's army. Without the Imperial Seal, defeat would have been certain.
"Urgh..."
"Your Majesty!"
"Are you alright?"
Raymond's condition wasn't good either. It wasn't life-threatening, but deploying the Imperial Seal over such a wide area had drained too much of his life force, leaving him staggering unsteadily.
Gestain and Desia Heli, at his side, were the first to notice the emperor's distress and rushed to support him. Some nearby Royal Guards also hurried over in a panic.
Raymond slowly raised one hand to calm them.
"I'm fine. Don't worry."
He soothed his escorts, but he spotted commanders rushing over from afar. Raymond let out a short sigh and shook his head.
"Shall I relay a message?"
Sylvia asked. Raymond nodded slowly and spoke.
"Tell them not to make a fuss, secure the remaining forces, and hold the defensive line."
"Understood."
Sylvia approached the oncoming commanders and delivered the emperor's words. Only then did they compose themselves and hurriedly return to their posts.
"Your Majesty. Are you truly alright?"
Gestain showed uncharacteristic excessive worry. Raymond nodded with a faint smile.
"I'm fine."
As he finished speaking, he pushed away Gestain and Desia who were supporting him. There were too many eyes watching from afar.
He didn't want to show himself being propped up and risk lowering the troops' morale. Besides, in that short time, Desia's healing magic had restored much of his life force and mana.
"We're heading to the rear. I need a full report on the situation."
"We'll escort you."
As Raymond took the first step, Gestain and the other escorts followed.
Marquis Blizzard of the Royal Guard had keenly prepared a carriage, allowing Raymond to rest fully inside without prying eyes until they reached the rear command center.
"We've arrived, Your Majesty."
Gestain's voice came from outside. As Raymond opened the carriage door and stepped out, he saw the commanders lined up in formation before the command building.
Raymond concealed his fatigue and walked between the ranks of commanders into the building.
A young man wearing the insignia of a high-ranking commander rushed over and saluted. Raymond nodded slightly in response.
"High Commander, who's in charge here right now?"
He'd seen Marquis Kreier being carried off the front lines covered in blood just moments ago.
On the way here, a messenger had informed him that the marquis was wounded but safe.
But he'd need time to recover, so command was likely temporarily handed to someone else.
"Count Danchihi has taken command!"
"Where is he now?"
"He was directing troop reorganization at the front until moments ago. A messenger has been sent, so he should arrive soon."
News of Raymond's arrival had only just reached the command center. The commanders had scrambled to assemble and form ranks in front.
Count Danchihi had been notified too, but it wasn't enough time to hand off front-line duties and return.
Fortunately, Raymond wasn't the type to fuss over such things. He even viewed dutiful performance positively.
"I'll wait in the central conference room. Bring Count Danchihi to me the moment he arrives."
"Yes, Your Majesty! At once!"
The high commander bowed and withdrew. Raymond headed to the central conference room.
He sat in the head seat and waited about five minutes.
There was a knock, the door opened, and Count Danchihi burst in, bowing his head.
"Your Majesty! I'm terribly sorry for being late!"
"No need. You came from directing reorganization at the front. I'm not bothered."
Raymond spoke sincerely, without any falsehood. He didn't think scolding over this was right. Besides, he hadn't waited long.
"Thank you for understanding, Your Majesty."
"The situation?"
"It's not good at all. The original defensive force numbered 10,000. Yet our command has lost another 10,000 in ongoing clashes with the Free Isiriya Kingdom's army up to today."
"And their casualties?"
"They've lost 20,000 as well."
Losing 10,000 while repelling 20,000 might seem like a victory. But given the Philius Empire's current strength, it was a pyrrhic win at best—victory at the cost of wounds.
"Not a good situation."
Raymond muttered unwittingly. They'd pushed the enemy back for now, but the foes still had plenty of troops left.
The Free Isiriya Kingdom alone had many reserves yet to be mobilized. The Philius Empire's western, southern, and eastern armies had finished reorganizing and marched out, per reports—but crossing the Black Mountains meant no immediate aid.
What the Philius Empire forces needed now was time.
"Count Danchihi. Judge coldly. Can we hold until reinforcements arrive?"
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty. The situation is so dire I can't give an optimistic answer."
* * *
After hearing the negative assessment from Count Danchihi, Raymond left the command center and returned to his quarters.
But before he could calm his troubled mind, Count Potas visited. Raymond received him in the temporary residence's reception room.
"Your Majesty. Central Intelligence confirms that troops from the Lisbon Maritime Kingdom and Edriger Kingdom are assembling and heading to this defensive line."
"Their scale and main units?"
"Around 20,000. The Lisbon Maritime Kingdom has mobilized the Golden Glory Mercenaries. Edriger Kingdom has moved their Ebony Legion."
The Golden Glory Mercenaries were elite mercenaries active mainly in the Far East Isles. The Ebony Legion was Edriger Kingdom's pride— their elite central army.
Mountains beyond mountains fit the situation perfectly. Raymond sighed inwardly and shook his head.
"Excluding the minimum needed to hold occupied territories, how many can we assemble at the front?"
"Even pulling in the northeastern nobles' private troops that joined the occupied zones recently, maximum 40,000."
"Enemy numbers? Including Lisbon Maritime and Edriger reinforcements."
"60,000."
40,000 against 60,000.
"Your Majesty. What if we abandon the occupied territories, fall back to the Black Mountains, wait for reinforcements, and link up?"
"We can't do that."
Raymond replied with a hardened expression to Count Potas's suggestion.
"Your Majesty. The Ireiser front is wider than you think. 60,000 is too much to handle. We might not hold until reinforcements come."
"I have a way. Don't worry too much."
"A way...?"
"We'll use the Colossal Divine Soldiers."
That was the only breakthrough.
"But Your Majesty. Aren't the Colossal Divine Soldiers unusable right now?"
"So you knew as well."
"Yes. Central Intelligence treats it as top secret among top secrets. Probably only I know."
Raymond nodded slowly at Count Potas's words. The Colossal Divine Soldiers had suffered major damage in a battle right before the Great War ended.
Afterward, they'd been repeatedly summoned in their unrepaired state for various battles, accumulating further damage—that was the lore from the novel [Empire of the Dead].
"We can use them one more time."
That was also canon. Unlike the End Society's vague hints, the author had explicitly stated it, so he could deploy them with confidence.
"Your Majesty. Even if we block the enemy now, the problem is after. If damage worsens and they become inoperable..."
"No need for that worry. Don't we have ancient-era technicians?"
He meant the Iron Hammer Unit.
"Ah...! Of course! I'd forgotten about them."
"The Mine Fortress construction is complete too. It's time to summon the Iron Hammer Unit here."
The Iron Hammer Unit could repair the Colossal Divine Soldiers. Of course, it required astronomical sums and rare materials, which was why he'd hesitated until now. But with no more leeway, he had to call them immediately for repairs.
"Count Potas. Connect a magic communication to the Mine Fortress in the Black Mountains right now. Summon Sir Rackle Bronze and the Iron Hammer Unit to Ireiser territory."
"Yes, Your Majesty. At once."
Count Potas bowed and withdrew. Raymond let out a short sigh and walked to the window. The reason he'd delayed using the Colossal Divine Soldiers until now wasn't just the accumulated damage.
It was the immense life force consumption—far beyond even the Imperial Seal. That was the true reason for the delay.