Harold squinted as he observed the newly arrived armies. “These bastards... They coordinated perfectly.” There was no other explanation for their synchronized arrival. The royal forces and the noble coalition numbered around 8,000, while the Ferdium forces brought an additional 3,000. Combined, the reinforcements exceeded 10,000 soldiers. It was the scenario Harold had feared the most. “Sigh... So it’s come to this,” Harold muttered. The delays caused by Gillian had cost him too much time. For a moment, he considered whether he should have ignored Stonehaven Fortress entirely. However, he quickly shook his head. “If I had, they would’ve ambushed us from the rear.” Regardless, the result was the same: his forces had been stalled long enough for reinforcements to arrive and join Ghislain. Harold clenched his jaw as his frustration mounted. His plan had been to use his army’s numerical advantage to crush his enemies one by one. Now, he had no choice but to engage them head-on, risking considerable losses. But Harold forced himself to remain calm. “These are all enemies we would’ve had to face eventually.” If he could defeat them here, it would buy him valuable time. Once Fenris was under his control, he could enforce a forced conscription to replenish his ranks. He summoned his most trusted commander, Emerson, who had famously defeated Viscount Doren’s 2nd Legion. “Emerson.” “Yes, my lord.” “Take 5,000 men and annihilate the 3rd Legion to our right.” “It will be done.” Thud. Thud. Thud. The right flank of Desmond’s army began moving toward the royal 3rd Legion and the noble coalition. Harold turned to issue his next order. “Viscount Garen.” “Yes, my lord.” “Take 5,000 men and hold off the Ferdium forces on the left.” “As you command.” “The Ferdium soldiers have significant combat experience from the northern territories. Fight cautiously—there’s no need to overextend. Just keep them occupied while we deal with the other side.” “I understand.” Viscount Garen was not an exceptional swordsman, but his ability to pin down enemies and delay their movements made him a competent strategist. With Garen leading the left flank and Emerson the right, Harold’s central force still maintained a formidable 16,000 troops. The Fenris forces, by contrast, were advancing directly toward the center with a mere 3,000 soldiers. Harold couldn’t help but sneer as he watched them. “Still arrogant as ever.” The arrival of reinforcements had significantly reduced the gap in numbers, but even combined, Ghislain’s forces amounted to barely half the size of Desmond’s army. In Harold’s eyes, Ghislain’s confidence was nothing more than reckless bravado. The Fenris troops charged forward without hesitation, their entire force following closely behind Black King. Thud. Thud. Thud. The pounding of hooves grew louder as the Fenris cavalry increased their speed. But Desmond’s army had already fortified their formation. Harold smirked as he observed the approaching Fenris troops. “They’re relying on those strange suits of armor again. They’ve even outfitted their horses with it.” The Galvanium armor was undeniably impressive. Soldiers equipped with it could easily take on ten opponents at once. Harold himself had been shocked by the weight and durability of the armor after inspecting a fallen Fenris soldier. Outfitting even their horses with such armor implied a production scale far beyond anything Harold had anticipated. “It’s excellent equipment, no doubt... but it has its limits.” Such armor could only give them an edge against smaller forces. Even with their impressive equipment, the Fenris troops were up against a central force five times their size. Harold raised his hand, signaling his next move. “Prepare the spearmen.” Shhhk! Thousands of spearmen moved to the front lines, their weapons bristling like a forest of steel. Thud. Thud. Thud. The Fenris cavalry thundered toward the formation with relentless momentum, showing no signs of hesitation. The Desmond troops, however, remained unshaken. Their discipline and confidence in their ability to repel any opponent were why they were considered elite. “Archers.” The archers stationed at the rear drew their bows and aimed high. Even though the Fenris cavalry and their horses were fully armored, the arrows could still disrupt their formation or frighten the horses. Harold gestured toward the archers, signaling them to fire. Fwoosh! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Arrows rained down, but the Fenris troops raised their small shields and deflected most of the barrage. A few stray arrows struck their armor or barding but had no noticeable effect on their speed or formation. “As expected, arrows are useless,” Harold muttered, frowning. He wasn’t particularly worried about such a small force, but the mystery of their armor was a troubling variable. If an army of 10,000 soldiers were fully equipped with such armor, they would be nearly unbeatable. “This has to end today. I must crush them and claim the secret of their armor.” With that, Harold gestured to Willow, the 6th-circle mage. Desmond’s mages began gathering mana, their hands glowing as they prepared their spells. Willow took the lead, chanting the incantation for a high-level spell. “Fire Rain.” Rumble! Flames gathered in the sky, forming massive fireballs that radiated intense heat. Boom! Boom! Boom! Simultaneously, dozens of attack spells were unleashed from Desmond’s formation, all aimed at the charging Fenris forces. If these spells hit, the Fenris army would suffer significant losses. In the rear of the Fenris formation, the mages stationed with the reserves sensed the incoming mana and raised their heads. Alfoy, one of the Fenris mages, pushed his hair back and stepped forward confidently. “At last... my moment to shine.” Alfoy had yet to cast even a proper Fireball in this war, making this battle his official debut. He envisioned himself earning fame and glory through his contributions. “This is my chance to show them what I’m made of! I’ll burn them to ashes!” With a dramatic flourish, Alfoy extended his hand, ready to unleash his spell. But before he could act, Vanessa grabbed his wrist. “Hey! Don’t just grab me out of nowhere like tha—AHHH!” Alfoy’s face turned pale as Vanessa drained his mana completely. ‘I just wanted to prove myself...’ Vanessa, now brimming with Alfoy’s mana, raised her hand toward the sky. “I restore the twisted laws. Dispel.” Sssssshhhhhh... With a single word, the massive fireballs dissipated before they could reach their targets. Every attack spell hurled at the Fenris forces dissolved into nothingness. It was an extraordinary feat, executed with precision and focus. Vanessa had neutralized every spell on the battlefield. Willow’s jaw dropped in disbelief. “That... That’s impossible! To cancel so many spells at once, with no delay? Is there a 7th-circle mage among them? No, if there was, they’d have used a 7th-circle spell already...” Chaos spread among Desmond’s mages. They couldn’t fathom the strength of the opposing mage. Vanessa, ignoring the growing chaos among the Desmond mages, turned to another mage standing nearby and grabbed his wrist. “Hey! I told you I have a girlfriend—AHHH!” the mage cried as Vanessa drained his mana as well. With her newly acquired energy, she began casting another high-level spell. “Twin Cyclone.” At first, small, barely perceptible whirlwinds appeared on opposite ends of the battlefield. Their size made them easy to overlook, but Willow immediately recognized the subtle shift in mana and shouted in alarm. “Dispel it immediately! Hurry!” The twin whirlwinds began to grow, spinning faster and faster, their size and ferocity increasing with each passing second. The Desmond mages scrambled to close the distance, but the cyclones grew too quickly. WHOOSH! The twin cyclones roared to life, transforming into massive tornados that tore through the battlefield. Their violent rotation sent debris flying, and their trajectory threatened to swallow the Desmond forces on both flanks. Willow gritted his teeth and extended his hand, casting Dispel on the cyclone nearest to him. Boom! One of the cyclones dissipated, but the effort drained a significant amount of his mana. “Damn it!” Willow cursed as he turned to the remaining tornado. “Focus on the left one! All of you, together!” Desmond’s mages gathered and pooled their energy, concentrating on dispelling the second cyclone. Though they managed to weaken it, the destructive winds tore through part of the formation before finally dissipating. Willow, panting heavily, barked orders. “Don’t stop! Keep attacking! We have to strike before their mage casts again!” Meanwhile, Vanessa stood unshaken, her focus unwavering despite the blood trickling from her nose. Her mastery over magic allowed her to disrupt the battlefield on a massive scale, but her body was far from keeping up. Her internal mana capacity was still limited to what a 2nd-circle mage could sustain. To compensate, she had to channel external mana from the other Fenris mages, a process that came at great physical cost. Alfoy, collapsed nearby, watched her with a mix of admiration and concern. “You idiot... You’re going to kill yourself at this rate...” Vanessa, however, didn’t respond. She simply clenched her teeth and continued. ‘No one dies today,’ she resolved silently. ‘At least, not from enemy magic.’ Her unwavering determination drove her to intercept every spell aimed at the Fenris forces. On the Front Lines: As the chaos of magic dissipated, Harold refocused on his next strategy. The back-and-forth with the opposing mages was costing him valuable time. “Cavalry,” he commanded, signaling the mounted units on both flanks. The Desmond cavalry began to move, tracing wide arcs to encircle the Fenris forces from behind. Thud. Thud. Thud. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶 The Fenris knights charged onward, closing the distance between themselves and the Desmond spearmen. Despite their full-body armor and armored mounts, the Fenris cavalry maintained an incredible speed, rivaling that of light cavalry. The Desmond spearmen braced themselves, preparing to absorb the impact. The sheer momentum of the Fenris charge would undoubtedly knock back the first line of spearmen. But Harold was confident that the subsequent ranks would hold firm and grind down the attack. Just before impact: Ghislain raised his voice, a single command cutting through the din of battle. “Spread out!” Shhhh! The leading knights and cavalry suddenly veered left and right, splitting their formation as if to avoid the spearmen entirely. Through the newly opened gap emerged another unit—mounted archers armed with bows instead of spears. At their forefront rode an elf, Lumina, her golden hair flowing behind her as she loosed her grip on her reins and drew her bowstring taut. The other mounted archers followed suit, nocking their arrows and taking aim. Harold’s eyes widened in disbelief as he muttered, “Mounted archers?” It was an entirely unexpected maneuver.