That evening, the Cecil Army's ground troops set up a second artillery base on the southern plains of Saint Sunil, completing the initial coverage of the Captical's front line of defense.
The battle was not over yet, and there were still a large number of Crystal Cluster Giants active in the southern and eastern areas. Driven by their destructive instincts, these monsters would continue to attack the areas with dense magic and life reactions. In this regard, these Abominations were similar to the mutated creatures in the Gondor wastelands. However, one thing was certain — the crisis of Saint Sunil had been temporarily resolved.
In the next twenty hours, Gwen did not let the ground troops blindly expand their base but continued to reduce the number of Crystal Cluster Giants in the southern open area of the Captical while maintaining their firepower advantage. At the same time, he called for the armored cargo ships on the Gorgon River to send a batch of engineers to the battlefield.
Under the cover of superior firepower, with the help of a large number of engineering magitek devices, the engineers set up the first batch of interception nets and temporary works in the southern part of the battlefield overnight. Before noon on the seventh day, the Magic Combat Army with individual burners were sent to these works in groups of seven. Some of the key positions were guarded by the more powerful White Knight who carried heavy burners.
This line of defense would be used to stop the Crystal Cluster Giants from spreading over from the Holy Spirit Plains. The intersecting fire-breathing bunkers, barbed wire, and interception posts were the most powerful weapons against the charge of those monsters. Before this battle ended, the engineers would continue to work. The interception works and firepower bunkers would be spread all over the plains until more than half of the various resources carried by the transport fleet were used up. After that, the ground troops would switch to a more conservative battle and wait for Philip's main forces to come up north.
On the towering walls of Saint Sunil, the Knight and the warriors who finally had a chance to rest were leaning against the walls. The crisis of the collapse of the defense line had been temporarily resolved, but it was far from being to the point where they could relax. There were still a considerable number of Crystal Cluster Monsters wandering outside the walls. Before those monsters were completely eliminated, no one dared to leave the defense line.
A griffin with a blue background and a golden royal coat of arms soared into the sky and left Saint Sunil under the gazes of the soldiers, flying toward the south.
Countless pairs of eyes on the walls stared at the Griffin Knight who bravely challenged the sky. Some of the warriors who were resting against the walls even subconsciously stood up. They watched as the raptor flew over the western wall, over the ruins of Mill Town and Crow Terrace in the southern part of the Captical. One or two arcane electric arcs shot from the ground into the sky and landed far behind the Griffin Knight. Finally, the griffin safely flew over the battlefield.
Wales watched the griffin leave and let out a sigh of relief.
This was the first Gryphon Knight to successfully fly out and carry out a reconnaissance mission since the siege of the capital. Before this, dozens of well-trained Gryphon Knights had already lost their lives to the dense arcane lightning arcs. Basically, they were shot down as soon as they left the barrier. Now, although the number of crystal cluster monsters had decreased sharply, the knight must have expended a lot of courage to fly over the wall.
May he return safe and sound.
…
In the southern part of the Captical, in the camp set up by the Cecil Army ground troops, Gwen looked at the high walls of the Captical that had already appeared in his sight.
In the distance outside the camp, in the direction of the two fire highlands, the continuous whistling sounds were still coming, and the sound of cannonballs exploding could be heard from even further away, as if it had not stopped for a single moment.
A faint cold aura came from behind. Gwen turned around and saw Victoria walking toward him.
The Duchess came to the frontline with the second batch of landing troops, but she and her mountain corps did not have much use in the 'Cecil style' battle line, so her main role here was as an advisor. Although Gwen had the help of the satellite map, the resolution and detailed analysis of the satellite's perspective were limited. He barely knew the details of the Captical, and Victoria's presence could alleviate this problem. The location of the second fire highland was actually chosen after referring to the information provided by the Duchess.
"The enemy's main force on the front battlefield is no longer a threat," Gwen said indifferently as he nodded to the Guardian of the North. "Our next goal is to block the southern and eastern crossings and stop the monsters from following."
Victoria's face, which had been frozen for a long time, could not help but loosen at this moment. The Duchess, who was always unsmiling, seemed to have put down some burden in front of Gwen. She let out a long sigh and a faint smile appeared on her face. "You have saved the kingdom."
"But it's still too early to say that," Gwen said casually. "The crisis is far from over."
There were two meanings to his words. First, it meant that the Crystal Cluster Army on the Holy Spirit Plains was far from being completely wiped out. Second, it meant that the Apocalypse Society had still created a shocking crisis in the depths of the Holy Spirit Plains, and no one knew when it would erupt. Victoria, of course, only knew the first meaning. She nodded lightly and said, "As you said, we can't relax yet … Protecting the Captical is only the first step."
"Protecting the Captical …" Gwen said softly. He looked to the north again, at the high wall of the Sunil Saint Sunil. "It's already so close."
Victoria followed Gwen's line of sight and turned her head. Her eyes swept across the glowing accelerator railguns not far away, the tanks and troops that were ready to go, and the Cecil flag flying in the wind above the camp. Finally, her eyes followed the extension of all these things and landed on the Captical wall in the distance.
In the background of the two cannons roaring in the distance, Gwen's side suddenly quietened down.
The Sunil Saint Sunil had indeed defended, but its function as the Captical only existed in name. Be it its armed forces or its ruling system, it was the same.
An extremely powerful Cecil Army was now stationed outside the city, and the master of the army had just completed the magnificent feat of saving the kingdom.
At this moment, Victoria thought of the Moon Mist civil war that changed the fate of Ansu a hundred years ago. She thought of the day when the head of the Wilde Family attacked the Captical.
"Duke Cecil, you …"
Gwen did not let Victoria continue. "Guess what Wales is thinking now?"
"… I can't guess his actions anymore." Victoria shook her head slightly. "Now that I think about it, maybe I never saw through him from the start."
…
The Gryphons sent to the south returned.
The Gryphon Knight saw an amazing scene and brought back the latest information. That Knight exhausted all the words he could to describe what he saw — rumbling chariots, soldiers spewing flames, incomprehensible war machines, and their terrifying power.
Wales listened to all this information on the city wall and did not say a word.
The Cecil Army had practically controlled the entire area, and their strength could flatten this battlefield …
Maybe it was time to face the most difficult choice in life.
Wales left the city wall.
Seven days after the coronation, the king returned to the Silver Castle for the first time.
The meeting of the nobles in the golden oak hall was held again.
The reinforcements had arrived, and the crisis had been resolved. Although there were still small groups of enemies outside the city, the haze that had shrouded the city for many days had gradually dissipated. Other than the Holy Light Cathedral, which still maintained its closed door, the inner city of the Captical was almost shrouded in a relaxed and happy atmosphere. As the masters of the upper class, the reaction of the Captical nobles to this atmosphere was particularly obvious.
Many of the faces that had been filled with fear a few days ago were now smiling happily. Many of the people who had been planning to flee with their families not long ago were now wearing luxurious clothes and ribbons. These former escapees, opportunists who had only changed their direction during the king's coronation, were now gathered in the golden oak hall, happily talking about the bright future.
Now, they were all meritorious subjects who had defended Saint Sunil.
When Wales entered the golden oak hall, he saw such a relaxed and happy atmosphere.
"Your Majesty, history will remember this day." A male noble wearing a white wig stood up and bowed to the king. "Facts have proven that the great bloodline will show itself."
Wales did not respond. He only nodded and slowly walked to his throne.
The noble who spoke had loaded all his valuable belongings into the carriage seven days ago and even sent them to the west gate. However, he had keenly noticed the changes in the Silver Castle, so he hurriedly summoned the carriage and servants back.
The few people sitting on the west side of the long table were the fence-sitters. Before the king's coronation, they had already prepared to flee, but on the day of the king's coronation, they had all sworn their loyalty immediately.
For hundreds of years, the nobles had lived so shrewdly. They shrewdly calculated gains and losses, shrewdly protected their own interests, shrewdly chose their teams, shrewdly adjusted their factions, and the direction of their investments.
The kingdom had experienced many upheavals, and the society had its ups and downs. Even the bloodline of the king could not avoid the calamity of the Moon of Mist's civil war. However, only the astute nobles could always accurately grasp the direction in this turbulent world. Other than a few who lost their footing and fell, most of them were eternal winners.
Just like today.
Wales sat down on the throne, and his blood-stained armor made a cold sound.
Many gazes fell on him.
"The Cecil Army has already set up camp in the south of the city," Wales said slowly. "It's only a day's journey away from the Captical."
Whispers of discussion rang out in the hall. Some people had serious expressions on their faces, while others looked at Wales with complicated expressions.
The nobles were decadent, but they were not stupid.
Almost everyone instantly realized the risk of this situation — the risk to the royal family.
The Captical was already in tatters, and the royal family's forces only existed in name. The Knight Army had suffered heavy casualties in the battle to defend the city, and more than half of the fiefs in the south had fallen.
A powerful duchy army was now stationed outside the city.
The master of the army was not from the royal family.
It was another Duke Protector who had turned the tide. It was another situation similar to the 'civil war in Moon Mist'.
Those who were whispering stopped one by one. They began to calculate the balance of power in the kingdom in the future and the angle of their next round of "investment". The king who was sitting on the throne looked a little embarrassed in the eyes of many people.
Ordinary nobles could choose their positions in the game, but the king could not.
Wales took in everyone's reaction, but he didn't say anything.
After all, these people were now the heroes who had defended Saint Sunils.
However, at least, as the king, he still had the power to give orders.
"Before Duke Cecil enters the city, we need to ensure the safety of the south wall," Wales said after a moment of silence. "Gentlemen, this concerns the dignity of the many families of Saint Sunils."
Regardless of the situation, at least his words resonated with everyone present.
"We will organize our forces and take back the two strongholds outside the south wall as a 'gift' to Duke Cecil," Wales said. "One is Mill Town, and the other is Crow Terrace further south."
After a short silence, many voices of agreement sounded in the hall.
Because these two areas were very close to the city wall, the sentries had already seen that there were basically no enemies in these two areas.
They were the best tools to 'ensure dignity'.
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