The white snow plains had long since lost their purity. Everywhere were crumbling walls, smoldering ruins of farms and villages, corpses frozen to an ashen blue, and vast swathes of dried blood. Occasionally, the cold wind carried stifled wailing—harrowing sounds filled with despair and grief. The once fertile and peaceful Mana Hill Plains had once again suffered invasion from the wicked neighbor to the north, and blood had dyed the entire plain red.
Of the seven cities of the Mana Hill Plains,
This was the heaviest blow dealt to the Commercial Alliance, and a resounding slap across the face of the entity that fancied itself the greatest power on the Galentea Continent. It drove home a simple truth to everyone in the Commercial Alliance: without powerful military might, no amount of gold coins or vast territory could make one a true great nation. In the eyes of the enemy, such a state was nothing more than a fat piece of meat.
Last year, the Andinak Kingdom's army had invaded the Mana Hill Plains, capturing Bruvik, Lett, and Klito in succession. Meanwhile, the Hunt Riders Corps and Flying Tiger Corps of the
But the atrocities committed by the Andinak Kingdom's forces in the Mana Hill Plains and the surrounding provinces had enraged the entire Commercial Alliance's populace. Chairman Comberite of the Twin Dragon Trading Company, one of the six magnates of the Commercial Alliance, delivered a public declaration in Morant City, vowing that the Commercial Alliance would never make peace with the Andinak Kingdom. He declared that for two hundred years, the wolves from the north had coveted the fertile Mana Hill Plains, eager to swallow them whole. But the industrious and brave people of the Commercial Alliance would never consent to slavery. They yearned for freedom and equality, and had paid a tremendous price to drive the northern wolf from the Mana Hill Plains and protect their homeland.
The forty years of peace had been purchased with the blood and lives of the Commercial Alliance's ancestors. Now, however, the northern wolf had regained its strength and once again came to invade the Mana Hill Plains. "I believe the brave people of the Commercial Alliance will not fear the wolf's sharp claws and fangs. No matter how much blood we spill, no matter how great the price, we will take up our bows, arrows, and spears and fight this wolf to the death. Only this time, we will not mercifully spare this northern wolf. We will turn the tide, strike at the wolf's den, and we will not rest until this beast is destroyed!"
Chairman Comberite's declaration won the cheers and support of Morant City's residents. Countless people volunteered for the self-defense forces and the three newly formed garrison corps recruited by the Commercial Alliance. Soon, the Commercial Alliance once again possessed nearly a hundred thousand troops, who were dispatched to Thomas City, Gypsus City, and Robertvia City—three fortress cities that had not yet fallen—to resist the Andinak Kingdom's advance and hold the Commercial Alliance's defensive line on the Mana Hill Plains.
"The Commercial Alliance thinks this is still a hundred years ago? That outdated fortress defense tactic is still supposed to work? Pah!" The
The prosperity of the Mana Hill Plains was inseparable from the irrigation facilities spread across the plain and the countless artificial canals crisscrossing one another. In peacetime, these canals served as guarantees of bountiful harvests and vital waterways for transporting goods. But when war came, these canals became insurmountable moats that enemies could not cross. Combined with the fortresses and barriers hastily erected at various points, they turned the entire Mana Hill Plains into a defense network of vast depth and breadth.
"Your Majesty, even if the Commercial Alliance knows we can launch surprise attacks during winter through snow and wind, they have no way to mount effective defenses. They can only watch helplessly as we cross those artificial canals and ditches and use our catapults to smash apart those fortress barriers they believe to be sturdy!" This was Lipired, a
The Second Prince had tasted the benefits of his winter surprise campaign in the northwestern regions the year before last. Coupled with the rich haul of war spoils, he had ordered that the entire batch of magical beast pelts purchased at a discount from the
Kalitok stood atop the walls of Robertvia, gazing at the fortress barriers reduced to rubble in the distance and the soldiers of the White Lion Corps regrouping and preparing to rest. His face was somber and heavy. The walls were thick with tension; every garrison soldier knew that come afternoon, those detestable Andinak Kingdom soldiers would launch their assault on this very city, and no one could guarantee they would survive the battle unscathed.
He had once been a member of that very army across the field—one of the famed war generals under the legendary King Oggsero I of the Andinak Kingdom. But now he stood on the opposite side; the king had become his enemy. In the eyes of that noble monarch, he was nothing but a deserter. Kalitok recalled the past with bitterness.
Seventeen or eighteen years ago, Kalitok had been a young student at
It was Lorist's journey north that changed the course of his life. It was
The journey north was filled with hardship, but he had been honed like a long sword into something dazzling. Among the thirty-six Dawn Academy students who followed Lorist north, he had already become a member of the ten-person council that decided the caravan's itinerary. He even held considerable influence within the caravan's armed forces, commanding obedience from many.
Later, when the caravan arrived at the Andinak Kingdom, that very king who now stood across the battlefield—then still only known as the Second Prince—had taken great notice of him, pressing him in every manner to switch allegiance to his side. At the time, Kalitok had genuinely been swayed. Perhaps it was the dazzling title of Royal Knight that blinded his eyes. Inexplicably, he had agreed, becoming one of seven Dawn Academy students who defected to the Second Prince.
He remembered the looks on the faces of Fatty Shi,
The fantasy had been so beautiful, but reality was so cruel. After becoming a Royal Knight, he discovered that the Second Prince did not actually value him. On the contrary, all twenty-six knights who had defected from the Norton Family's northern caravan to the Second Prince—including the seven academy students—became mere chess pieces in the prince's military formations. In the battle to breach the Duchy of Madras's border and besiege and prevent the Iron Guard Corps from breaking out, two of the newly defected students had been killed within less than a month.
Then came the great victory at Liushui River, the campaign to conquer the southwestern provinces and Campo Province, all the way to the siege of the Fideliga capital that forced the Crown Prince to cede the southwestern provinces—all of which established the Second Prince's reputation as the new Military God of the Galentea Continent. But by then, Kalitok could have wept without tears, for of the seven students who had defected together, only he and Sende remained.
Later, Lorist came to the imperial capital to deliver the captured imperial traitor—the Second Prince, who had become King of the Iblia Kingdom—to the Second Prince. They met again and even attended a garden party together hosted by Princess Kari. Kalitok confided his frustrations about serving under the Second Prince, and Lorist urged him to come back, saying he would handle everything. But when Kalitok recalled the contemptuous looks from Fatty Shi and the others at their parting, he hesitated once more.
In the end, Sende did not escape the fate of dying on the battlefield. When the Second Prince crossed the Cloud-break Mountains and the Great Snow Mountains in a surprise attack on the Fideliga capital, Sende was frostbitten. Then, while storming the royal palace with his wounds, he was cut down by the palace guards' longbows when he could not dodge in time. Only then did Kalitok's heart finally turn cold. He left the Second Prince without a word and returned to Morant City.
Upon returning to Morant City, he found that not only had he changed—the entire Commercial Alliance had transformed. A baronetcy system had been implemented, and numerous landed nobles had been enfeoffed. Surrounding kingdoms had been destroyed and their territories seized. He had originally intended to return and work as a free mercenary, only to discover that the mercenary trade in Morant City had long since declined. He tried to find an instructor position at one of the academies in the Academy District, but found that academies could no longer attract students. Not only had many academies already closed, but the remaining ones were reducing their teaching staff just to survive a little longer.
What was happening to this world? Everything was changing so fast, making it difficult for him to adapt. During that time, Kalitok felt deeply lost. He stayed at home for nearly a year, becoming a thorough shut-in. If not for the fact that his parents were a thoroughly mercenary pair of Morant City residents—and his elder brother feared that this younger sibling had returned to seize the property their parents would eventually leave behind—Kalitok might have simply lived out the rest of his days at home on the gold coins he had earned over the years.
When his parents learned that their second son had actually become a Gold-rank knight, they were overjoyed. They then threatened Kalitok with death right before his eyes, ultimately forcing him to become a Gold-rank bodyguard for the third-rate trading company where his father worked. His father, as he had wished, was promoted to a managerial position in the company.
Kalitok looked at the White Lion Corps' battle standards fluttering in the distant cold wind, then at the seven pale faces beside him. These were the other seven chiliarchs of Robertvia City, excluding himself. They were thugs or bodyguard captains from various second- and third-rate trading companies who had barely seen a battlefield. Their aura cultivation was all above Silver-rank, but none had experienced any major engagements.
Kalitok was now the commander of the Eleventh Regiment in the Commercial Alliance's newly formed Second Garrison Corps. Under his command were eight thousand-man battalions. Besides himself doubling as the captain of the first battalion, this eight-thousand-man regiment consisted entirely of Morant City residents who had been swept up in fervor, along with bodyguards from various trading companies. Their mission was to hold Robertvia City—stay alive as long as the city stood, die when the walls fell.
"There's nothing to be nervous about. Our walls are far sturdier than those small fortress barriers. Those catapults won't easily bring down our walls. Besides, I've calculated that the catapults' range is only about two to three hundred meters—well within the range of our city-defense ballistae. If the enemy launches an attack, we can use several ballistae against each catapult. Once we destroy those catapults, the enemy won't be able to reach our walls..." Kalitok said this deliberately to ease his subordinates' fears.
"I'm not lying to you," Kalitok called out encouragingly. "There's nothing scary about catapults. You know why I had you line the walls with sandbags? It's to withstand the catapult attacks. As long as we stay behind these sandbags, unless a stone lands directly on our heads, they won't do much. You don't really believe your luck is that bad, do you?"
"B-but the catapults will smash our walls, punch a hole for the enemy to pour through..." said one pale-faced chiliarch.
"I've already accounted for that. If the wall gets breached, we can throw these sandbags down to plug the gap," Kalitok replied calmly.
"I-I—we're dead for sure. W-we should run while we can..." one man was on the verge of breaking.
"You bastard! Where do you think you're going to run? In this frozen wasteland, how would you escape? And can you run faster than the wooden planks on the enemy's feet? One more word of cowardice and I'll cut you down!" Kalitok was furious and moved to slap the man into his senses. In this situation, there was no option but to defend with everything they had. But before he could act, he slipped on a thin layer of ice that had formed on the ground, nearly falling flat with a startled yelp.
"Who the hell spilled tea on the ground?!" Kalitok roared. Then, in a flash of inspiration, he suddenly recalled how Lorist had once told him about flooding an area to build walls of ice against magical beasts.
Kalitok's anger turned to joy. "That's it! I've got a way—the catapults won't be able to break through our walls!"