Chapter 110

A troop sneaking through the darkness.

Their considerable force of 30,000 soldiers was moving swiftly northwest in a straight line.

The one leading them…

General Murriol, a subordinate of Wallenstein, had a deep smile on his face at this moment.

“Haha, those foolish Frantz fools. They are probably unaware that we are moving like this in their dreams.”

Currently, the Holy Empire Army was stationed in the Rhine River basin, gathering their forces there.

Of course, the troops there were real, with numbers reaching a whopping 60,000.

However, the primary role of this massive army was merely as bait…

At this very moment,


it acted as a diversion to assist Murriol’s troops heading towards the Lorent Region.

With such a significant amount of aggro, Frantz Kingdom’s attention would naturally be drawn to Loren and the Rhine River area.

Taking advantage of that, General Murriol, along with his troops, planned to infiltrate the Arden Forest via the Lorent Region.

Their goal was to surprise the Frantz Kingdom Army, which was gathering in the Loren region.

Yet, even if not all of the Frantz Kingdom’s soldiers were fools, it was still possible that some might sense something suspicious.


However, even if that were the case, they could never realize that they were here in such a vast borderland, Murriol was convinced.

“If we go to Pare, the first thing to do is secure the Queen’s safety. If I can capture Queen Louis, I will surely be the greatest contributor to this war!”

The best scenario was to successfully seize the empty Pare after advancing, taking Queen Louis along to command the hearts and powers of the people.

Even if that didn’t happen, capturing Queen Louis alone would still be a massive success.

If that were achieved, he thought he could add not just one, but two stars to his shoulder, having been stuck at the rank of Admiral for some years.

Although he was of low noble descent, Murriol had climbed this high solely through his combat ability.

As he was exceedingly thirsty for success more than anyone else, he didn’t shy away from enduring the harsh trip back for the sake of his achievements.

Delighted at having seized the best chance of his life,


General Murriol hurriedly led his troops forward despite the late hour.

The place they eventually reached.


In the dense Arden mountains, the group halted.

“Alright, let’s take a break here.”

“Yes, it’s the general’s command. We shall rest here.”

Since it was a battle against time, he wished to keep marching, but to engage in a full-scale battle at Pare, some energy had to be saved.

As Murriol sat down among his resting subordinates, this march wasn’t burdensome at all for him, an advanced warrior of Grade 8, even after quite a distance traveled.

“This area is completely within the territory of the Frantz Kingdom… but still, I see no remarkable enemies.”

“Well, that’s only natural. The enemy’s attention is solely focused on the Rhine. Unless they have eyes in the sky, they will never find us.”

“True enough. The borders of the Frantz Kingdom are vast, so how could they pinpoint this location?”

“Indeed. But that doesn’t mean we can be overly relaxed. They might have sent spies here and there. Once we leave this Arden Forest, they will surely notice and try to respond. From that moment on, we need to head to Pare without looking back.”

“Understood, General.”

“Then, you should get some rest too. To run hard tomorrow, you’ll need to rest well today and shake off the fatigue.”

“Yes, General. Please, you should also rest.”

After exchanging those words, his subordinate went off.

Watching them leave, General Murriol intended to take a short nap.

At that moment…

-BOOM!!!

“?!?”

“What… what was that?”

The sudden raucous explosion sound pierced the air.


Simultaneously, Murriol’s face stiffened as flames began to rise all around.

“W-What’s happening? W-What on earth is going on?!”

“General! It’s a surprise attack! The enemy… the Frantz Kingdom Army is attacking!”

“What?! N-No. How could they… how on earth do they know we are here and attacking?!”

Just as he was about to lie down, an entirely unexpected situation unfolded.


Amidst the chaos, General Murriol tried to organize the soldiers somehow.

“D-Don’t panic! Form the ranks and prepare to fight the enemies…?!”

“It’s too late.”

At that moment, he suddenly felt a chilling sensation creep over him.

That spine-chilling feeling caused Murriol to slowly turn around without realizing it.


Standing there was…

A man with a golden beard, emanating golden magical power.

An entity possessing a strength unimaginable even to advanced warriors…

“W-What… who are you?”

“Farewell.”

-POW!!!

*

“Annihilate them all!”

“For the Kingdom of Frantz!”

With raised voices, Napoleona and her subordinates pressed forward.

Though they were thrown into major chaos due to the sudden preemptive strike, the Holy Empire Army wasn’t falling apart that easily.

“Form defensive lines!”

“Block the cavalry charge!”

They were indeed elite troops who had received training.


As they formed up and began engaging the enemy, the Frantz Kingdom Army found it challenging to break through easily.

At that moment…

“Eh?”

A shadow streaked between the soldiers of the Frantz Kingdom Army.


At the same time, feeling an intense heat, the soldiers instinctively stepped aside.

What followed was


a woman’s appearance, holding a butchering knife.

With flames swirling around her body like loose marionette strings, she exuded an aura that sent chills down the spine of even the most ignorant soldiers.

“W-Who… who is that?”

“I-It seems she is on our side, but…”

Seeing her exterior might invoke a feeling akin to that of a reaper.


She walked slowly towards the Holy Empire Army, which was showering bullets in their direction.

Then…

“S-Shoot!”

-POP! POP! POP!

The Holy Empire Army started firing in unison at her.


However.

Not a single bullet managed to leave even a scratch on her, as if blocked in the air.

“Th-This… what is going on…”

The imperial soldiers expressed their bewilderment at the unexpected situation.


Even an advanced warrior couldn’t easily block such an onslaught.


Yet, this woman was doing it without batting an eyelash.

And then…

“Gah!”

“What… what the hell?!”

Charging at the Empire Army with phenomenal speed.


Simultaneously, the woman began to release immense magical power from the sword in her hand.

A swirling flame, manifesting the shape of fiery inferno.


Condensed with a unique property that could be used by those who reached the grand warrior’s realm,


While at first glance, it resembled a magician’s fire spell…

-HOOSH!

“?!? Gah…!!”

“Huh…!!”

The destructive force within it was,


as infinitely greater than a mere candle and a volcano.

The flames erupting from the sword…


And the tendrils of flames swirling around her body.

The shockwave traversing through the air, with highly compressed magical energy, melted and ripped to shreds anyone who approached.

“R-Run away!”

“M-Monster… that’s a monster! Everyone, flee!”

In an instant, the formation of the Empire Army was shattered.


With the look of a goddess of war, the woman mercilessly butchered her enemies, leaving the Frantz Kingdom soldiers momentarily spellbound.

At that moment.

“Stop dawdling! Attack!”

“Y-Yes!”

“H-Huh! Understood, General!”

Under Napoleona’s command, the Imperial Army hurriedly resumed combat.


Meanwhile,


the woman still ruthlessly mowing down enemies…


Watching Fraklin’s figure, Napoleona also started to feel a hint of wariness.

“Quite something… is this truly a subordinate of the Pirate King?…”

Having accepted the proposal of the Pirate King to become one of his subordinates,


Though still holding her military position,


Since she was soon to become part of their ranks, she had conducted some prior investigation.

She naturally gathered information about the key personnel like Franklin.

And…


She was also aware of how she viewed the Pirate King with deep suspicion…

“I somewhat expected it, but… he’s definitely not ordinary. As a competitor for the future…”

Seeing Franklin sweeping through enemies with overwhelming force at this moment, Napoleona too began to feel her blood race.

“But I can’t lose either! I’ll make sure to engrain my power in the Pirate King’s memory with this opportunity!”

Thus, feeling a sincere competitive spirit, Franklin charged toward the enemies.

With her offensive pushed to the max beyond her usual abilities, the Imperial Army crumbled like dried leaves.