Chapter Ninety-One: A Battle of the Highest Order

Deep within a great mountain range, in a cavern buried beneath layer upon layer of rock chambers, the Blue Army command headquarters had been established. Its defenses were naturally as firm as stone and iron, yet from the outside it looked like nothing more than an ordinary, unremarkable mountain.

At this moment, the Blue Army’s supreme commander and dozens of regional commanders were gathered around a sand table, discussing matters with grave expressions. The Blue Army’s commander for this exercise was Richard, commander of the Fourth Regiment. He was a man of formidable skill, a master swordsman and a ninth-rank powerhouse, only one step away from becoming a Sword Saint. He was also well versed in military strategy and possessed a very high level of combat training.

Originally, during this war game, the Wind Knight Order, one of the kingdom’s three great knight orders, had also been assigned to the Blue Army. In terms of individual strength, General Fiora was already at the level of a Sword Saint, but she felt she was somewhat lacking in the area of legion command, and so she had deliberately yielded the position to him.

Richard’s face was usually set in stern lines, and he was seldom smiling. Even now, before the sand table, he remained the same. “The wolf cavalry unit has already been teleported over. Use this time to set up the giant staves. Flying dragon knights, make sure you thoroughly scout all enemy strongholds. If necessary, descend lower and inspect carefully.”

Fiora nodded in agreement and said nothing. The act was being carried out strictly according to the rules, and even though everyone knew they were actually Pegasus knights, they had to be addressed as “flying dragon knights.”

“General Ode has already been reassigned as supreme commander, and the Lightning Knight Order has been greatly weakened. A wolf cavalry raid now, even if it cannot achieve much, should at least blunt their momentum,” someone nearby said with a nod.

“Report!” A parrot flew straight in. “Our wolf cavalry has suffered a crushing defeat. They are being pursued by the enemy, and only thirty riders have escaped.”

Those present frowned slightly. Richard merely waved a hand. “Normal. I want to know the enemy’s losses.”

“The enemy judges only three dead,” the parrot replied.

“How is that possible?” everyone said in surprise, exchanging looks. According to the rules, the wolf cavalry and the Lightning Knight Order were supposed to be evenly matched, and their side had launched a surprise attack, so why had they suffered such a disastrous defeat?

“Could it be that the enemy predicted our raid in advance and set up a counter-encirclement?” Richard lowered his head, studying the terrain, trying to identify any places suitable for encirclement nearby.

“No. Our wolf cavalry leader was smashed to death by a slipper,” the parrot answered.

Everyone: “...”

“It is said that the slipper was made of iron,” the parrot added.

“Explain the situation in detail!” Richard frowned and waved a hand.

The parrot immediately rattled off a long account, though all it knew had merely been relayed by the wolf cavalry that had fled from the Blue Army. The parrot belonged to the Blue Army, with a blue ribbon tied to its foot; it was not a third party, and had no omniscient perspective. Still, it at least knew that the object had been hurled by a catapult, and that at the time there had even been a crow carrying it in flight.

Richard immediately ordered, “Spread the parrot’s message throughout the army. Everyone must be careful of slippers flying through the air, or any other strange objects. Dodge if you can; only use your hands to block if there is truly no other choice.”

Fiora spoke up. “Shall I send people to investigate the details carefully?”

“No!” Richard waved it off. “Since the other side has produced something strange, they will certainly anticipate that we will send scouts. Going now would only fall into their trap. Order the giant stave units to hurry and finish their setup. Once complete, immediately cast a forbidden spell centered on the Lightning Knight Order, with a radius of fifty kilometers. Strike directly, and show no mercy.”

Meanwhile, in the Red Army headquarters, General Ode also received word that their first clash had been won, and that the enemy commander had in fact been killed by a slipper.

Of course Ode knew the situation of his own legion, and the strange catapult Kevin had used instantly came to mind. But there was no time to think further. He immediately ordered, “The whole army advances at once. Run as far as you can, disperse as much as possible, and keep communicating through the parrots!”

The various regiments received the command and sprang into action at once. The Lightning Knight Order had already been preparing for a forced march; the order merely brought it forward by a little. The entire corps quickly packed up and spurred their horses onward.

Before departure, Kevin asked the staff officer once more, “What about my catapult?”

The staff officer still waved him away. “You should go find the Two-One-Three Regiment.”

This could hardly be blamed on the staff officer’s failure to use people well. Even though Kevin had earned merit by smashing the enemy leader to death, cavalry and catapults were simply not suited to cooperation. Right then, for example, the cavalry was moving at speed, and there was no way the catapult could keep up.

Helplessly, Kevin decided to travel alone, dragging the catapult along the mountain path, while parrots flitted back and forth overhead. Some were bound with red ribbons, others with yellow. Red ribbons represented the Red Army; yellow ribbons naturally marked the directorate’s parrots. The parrots fought among themselves as well. If a Blue Army parrot came over here, it would be mobbed by Red Army parrots.

But when the enemy Pegasus knights flew over, the Red Army really had very little means of countering them. Pegasus knights could fly at altitudes of around eight hundred meters; some exceptional experts could even reach over a thousand. Quite a few were water mages, creating mist and vapor as they flew, so that from below they appeared to be nothing but clouds, nearly invisible.

And even if they could be seen, eight hundred meters far exceeded the range of archers, and the catapult’s horizontal range still fell short. Only a few super-experts could strike that far. Moreover, the speed of airborne targets was astonishingly swift, making it incredibly difficult to calculate lead. Even if the attack was within range, whether it hit or not still depended on luck.

Since the air combat units, heavy siege weapons, and parrot corps had been introduced into the armies, warfare had undergone a tremendous change, almost revolutionary in nature. The old ways, with millions of cavalry and infantry closing in for a brutal exchange at arm’s length, had been swept into history. If one now massed too many troops together, one merely became a target for the enemy’s heavy weapons.

In today’s battles, the contest was concealment and reconnaissance, information transmission and theft, speed and comprehensive strength. Individual might still mattered, but not nearly as much as before. On the battlefield, one had to know how to hide oneself. Whether you were a Sword Saint or a great archmage, if you showed your head too carelessly, you were finished. Command posts had to be placed in the most concealed locations imaginable; this was no longer an age when a general could simply bellow and charge forward with his men.

What could an ordinary soldier do on a battlefield where magic was hurled about and forbidden spells rained down indiscriminately? Regrettably, with limited capability, the usual task was simply to survive. Once both sides had exhausted their magic and the mages were too weary to move, then hand-to-hand combat would begin.

Kevin was grateful that he was not an ordinary soldier. At the very least, he was a catapult commander. With a catapult came range, and with range came precise long-distance killing power. Seen that way, his future battles might still have some use.

But Kevin would absolutely never charge to the front lines. That would be suicide. He also could not be bothered to go looking for the Two-One-Three Regiment. That feint had spawned several camps; who knew where they were? Kevin decided he might as well hide somewhere first and wait for an opening.

Parrots also frequently came down from the air. “Sir, where are you headed?”

Kevin looked up and saw it was a red-ribbon parrot. “To find the Two-One-Three Regiment. By the way, are there any caves or large pits nearby? Something a catapult can fit into.”

The parrot answered, “Go find one yourself. I’m busy.” With that, it immediately flew off.

Kevin had already sent his crow out on patrol, but it still had not returned, and he was growing anxious. As he walked, someone suddenly tapped him on the back. Kevin was horrified. He hurriedly drew his sword and turned around, only to see Count Gulard.

“I’m from the relevant department,” Count Gulard said, showing his credentials. “I belong to the third party.”

“Oh.” Kevin nodded.

“Regarding the fact that you just smashed the Blue Army wolf cavalry leader to death with a slipper, I came specially to inspect your catapult in detail,” Count Gulard said. He did not bother with pleasantries. “You may introduce it to me.”

“Ahem, this...” Kevin hesitated for a moment. “Is this token real? I know such a token exists, but I’ve never seen one in person.”

“You needn’t worry about that. If I were a Blue Army spy, you would already be dead,” Count Gulard replied.

“That’s not certain,” Kevin said. “Maybe I know some Red Army secrets, and you’re approaching me to trick me into talking?”

“Rest assured. Forging a third-party token would be judged as a direct violation of the exercise rules, and the result would be failure. The third party has been supervising this from beginning to end, so there will be no problem,” Count Gulard replied.

“Oh.” Kevin nodded, then looked around. “Then is there any Blue Army surveillance nearby? What if I talk and get overheard?”

Count Gulard: “...”

“Look, there are all these parrots in the sky. The only way to tell them apart is by red ribbons and blue ribbons. We’re all face-blind and can’t tell who is who. What if one of the Blue Army birds had tied on a red ribbon and slipped in?” Kevin raised the question.

“Forget it,” Count Gulard said as he turned away. “It really is impossible to talk to you.” With that, he was gone.

Kevin stroked his chin and thought for a moment, then continued onward. Even knowing the other party was a third party, it was best not to say what did not need to be said. Sometimes, by not speaking, one could still bluff at a crucial moment; once everything was laid out plainly, one might no longer be able to bluff one’s way through.

In war games of past years, aside from various hard strengths, verbal sparring was also an important soft strength. My blade is longer, so I can reach you. I’m faster, so I can evade. I took a wound, but because of how my setup is defined, I can still do this and that. Whoever argued most convincingly naturally influenced the directorate’s judgment. For example, when Kevin smashed that leader to death, if his tongue had been a little less sharp, the outcome might well have been different.

At the same time, the sun slowly tilted westward, and the Blue Army’s giant stave formation was finally completed. Dozens of earth mages around it used earth magic to erect supports. Though the supports were temporary, and would naturally collapse once the spells faded, magical arrays could replenish them in the short term, cycling power back and forth. Supporting the structure for three to five days was no problem.

Inside the command post, Richard immediately ordered, “I’ve changed my mind! Shift the forbidden spell strike point one hundred kilometers forward. Use the Thousand-Mile Ice Seal and cut off this entire stretch!”

“Yes!” The giant staves activated at once. Brilliant light burst around them, and magical sigils in the air began to dance rapidly in sequence. At the same time, ice-element energies converged wildly in the distance, creating an almost suffocating pressure. Even non-mages could clearly feel moisture gathering and the temperature dropping. Those nearby could not help sneezing several times.

A yellow-ribbon parrot swooped down immediately and announced to the surrounding soldiers, “You are under attack by the forbidden spell Thousand-Mile Ice Seal. You are all dead. This area is now sealed off!”

The soldiers all stared up blankly at the parrot, utterly bewildered.

Of course, the forbidden spell could not truly be released. If it were, they would really die. In truth, its range was a long strip, about a thousand kilometers in length and around two kilometers wide. Such a strip could naturally be shaped at will. This time, the spell was being used to cut the map cleanly in two, as though drawing a long barrier across it.

In the exercise, the forbidden spell was only cast halfway. To put it simply, only the stage of elemental gathering was allowed, and never the stage where the magic fully took form. Otherwise it would truly be a catastrophe. The Thousand-Mile Ice Seal was not something to be trifled with. On the continent, anyone caught by it would die for certain if at the center; if at the edge, an expert of ninth rank or above might perhaps escape with half his life.

Within the area, whether insects, fish, birds, beasts, trees, or grass, all would be frozen to death, and the ice could remain unmelted for three years. Within those three years, unless one used the forbidden spell Scorched Earth for a Thousand Miles again, no one could even enter. A forbidden spell was no joking matter.

But for ordinary soldiers, no matter how powerful the forbidden spell was, they could not truly feel it. They merely ran around in bewilderment, only to be told that they were dead. Their swords had not even left their sheaths, and they had not yet seen the enemy before it was all over.

The sun sank in the west, and the sky began to darken. Inside the Red Army headquarters, several mages rapidly reported casualties to General Ode.

“Seven-eight-four Regiment annihilated, five-four-six Regiment annihilated, two-one-three Regiment annihilated...” The communications mage kept reciting the names of destroyed regiments without pause.

“Enough. Just tell me who is still alive over there!” General Ode waved impatiently.

The reporting mage fell silent for a moment. “We have also lost more than half our parrots. Near the ice seal, one must fly above two hundred meters to avoid being affected, and our communication parrots are now in serious shortage.”

“Report,” another mage spoke up, “the First Battalion of the Lightning Knight Order has been wiped out, while the Second and Third Battalions are currently intact.”

General Ode let out a breath of relief. Amidst a field of disasters, at last there was one piece of comfort. From the moment he received word that the Lightning Knight Order had engaged the wolf cavalry, he had urgently ordered the main force to disperse. Even so, they still suffered enormous losses from the enemy’s forbidden spell.

“General, some of our troops advanced too quickly and have already crossed the ice seal, while a large number of logistics units are trapped entirely behind it,” said one regiment commander anxiously. “Should we erect giant staves and use Scorched Earth for a Thousand Miles to burn a passage through?”

“In the darkness of night, it can still be tried,” someone agreed.

The heavy weapons of both the Red and Blue armies actually existed on both sides, though the Blue Army had more of them by design. The key problem, however, was that the Blue Army’s air power was too strong. The Red Army’s griffin-hawk units could not contend with the flying dragon force. To preserve strength, General Ode chose to retreat.

With air superiority lost, the giant staves could not even be set up. Once erected, they would certainly become targets for enemy aerial strikes, and would also expose their own positions. The giant staves already deployed by the other side would inevitably turn and attack. Night was the only chance to reverse the situation.

General Ode closed his eyes and thought for a moment. “The only method is also something the enemy will certainly consider. We have numbers on our side! We must make use of that. All logistics units are ordered: before it becomes completely dark, dig tunnels and pass through underground, bypassing the ice seal.”

“This... we’d have to dig down thirty meters at least,” several regiment commanders said, exchanging glances, somewhat hesitant.

“With earth mages, tunnel digging won’t be too slow,” General Ode said at once, waving a hand. “All regiment commanders, lead from the front yourselves. You are all above yellow-rank in battle aura, so what are you keeping it for? Move!”

“Yes!”

On the other side, Kevin was still seated atop the catapult, proceeding slowly onward. The sky was already dark, and tonight the clouds were thick. In the mountain wilds, one could not see one’s hand before one’s face. Yet Kevin still did not dare light a torch, nor even switch on the carriage lamps. He simply groped his way forward in the dark at an unhurried pace.

Suddenly, a cluster of firelight appeared. It seemed that several people were gathered around it, eating something and chatting and laughing as though they did not take anything seriously at all.

Kevin was cautious. He left the catapult where it was and crept forward alone with his sword in hand. But there were far too many leaves here; after only a few steps, the crack of broken branches sounded beneath his feet.

“Who’s there?” “Who are you?” The people around the campfire sprang up at once and rushed toward Kevin with torches in hand.

Kevin was startled. He stepped back and raised his sword, trying to fight.

But once the other side saw him clearly, they stopped. “Oh, one of our own.”

“Oh.” Kevin relaxed as well and casually walked forward. “You all look pretty comfortable. Roasting meat in the middle of the night?”

“Stop right there!” the other party suddenly said sternly. “This area is already within the Thousand-Mile Ice Seal. You can’t come in. If you do, you’ll die.”

Kevin looked around in surprise. “Then why are you here?”

“We’re already dead,” the group said, spreading their hands. Then they sat back down and continued roasting meat.

Kevin: “...”