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"Doo—woo—"
A deep, long blast of a horn echoed along the high city walls of the Imperial Capital.
Large groups of soldiers, clad in heavy armor and wielding weapons, gathered together!
On the walls! Thirty thousand soldiers stood ready!
Outside the gates! Three thousand elite Lion Knights waited!
Figures gradually began to appear in the sky as well!
Court Mages, the Magic Special Forces, and even mages from the Continental Magic Association showed themselves one by one!
"It seems the Empire is truly in dire straits."
The evening sun spilled across the scene. Serie stood on the balcony at the top of the Continental Magic Association's spire. She calmly gazed at the black, tide-like demon army outside the capital. She couldn't help but speak.
Beside her were Frieren, Fern, and Genau. It was said that Falsch had gone to participate in the battle in his capacity as the Vice-Department Head of the Magic Special Forces.
Fern withdrew her gaze from the chaotic streets. She clenched her fists slightly and pursed her lips.
"Aren't we going to help?"
"Help? The Empire hasn't reached its absolute end yet."
Serie shook her head. Then, she glanced out of the corner of her eye toward the Imperial Palace.
In the next second, everyone felt the ground tremble!
Dozens of colossal entities shattered the ground and crawled out from beneath the area outside the palace!
The monsters were made of steel! Their entire bodies emitted scalding steam! They moved with a creaking, groaning sound! Though they walked with heavy steps, their gait was incredibly solid! Each step left a deep footprint in the street!
"Those monsters are..." Fern's purple eyes were filled with disbelief.
"And there's more." Serie looked toward Frieren with a curved, smiling gaze. Seeing that Frieren had no reaction and her face remained as calm as ever, Serie pouted with dissatisfaction.
She reached out toward an unremarkable stone brick in front of her.
"Ka—clack—"
The stone brick was twisted, making a sound. After a brief silence, the Continental Magic Association—which had been empty and desolate—suddenly lit up with a golden light!
Amidst the sudden flash, a terrifying pillar of energy erupted from the spire where the group stood, piercing straight into the clouds!
This pillar, along with the city walls, instantly formed a physical barrier that enveloped the entire Imperial Capital! It was a radiant, multicolored light! Under the setting sun, it brought a profound sense of hope to the people!
"Is this the Imperial Magic Defense project Master mentioned?"
Seeing this, Frieren finally looked slightly moved. A barrier of this scale could already be compared to the one Serie had placed over the City of Magic!
But one had to realize! This barrier was clearly not the detection type like Serie's. It was... a genuine defensive barrier capable of both tanking hits and striking back!
Flamme! She was truly the genius who had suppressed the three races for a thousand years!
"Before it's time for us to take the stage, let's rest here for a while."
Looking at Fern, whose mouth was hanging open in shock, Serie showed a doting smile to someone other than Yulian for the first time. She gently ruffled Fern's hair. Then, she was the first to walk through the door leading inside from the balcony.
"Lady Serie..." Fern stared blankly at the departing Serie.
"Honestly, even I rarely get to rub Fern's head these days."
Frieren looked at the dazed Fern with slightly flushed cheeks. After muttering that, she followed Serie inside, feeling a bit jealous.
"No, Mistress Frieren!" Fern's face turned bright red! She shouted in embarrassment while waving her small fists, then disappeared from the balcony as well.
As for Stark?
"Young man, are you afraid?"
Regwalt tugged at the reins of his lion. He turned his gaze toward the red-haired, red-clothed boy beside him, who had a scar on his forehead and was trembling slightly.
"Afraid? Are you joking? Of course I'm afraid!"
Riding a fierce lion, Stark couldn't stop his body from shaking. At this moment, he was a member of the three thousand Lion Knights at the city gate! He was one of those about to use their physical bodies to block the oncoming demon army that looked like an apocalyptic flood! Wasn't this just suicide!
"You must be thinking that waiting here for the demons to arrive is just waiting for death."
Regwalt was clearly aware of Stark's unspoken words. However, he nodded gently and then shook his head vigorously.
"It is waiting for death, that's true. But it is a glorious death! As knights, as the elites of His Majesty the Emperor! If we cannot lead the charge and check the demon offensive, then allowing such a despairing army to plunge straight into the city would be a disaster for everyone!"
As Regwalt spoke, his aura continued to rise. The Lion King beneath him began to growl restlessly. It was at this moment that Regwalt issued the order!
"As soldiers, today we shall repay our country with our lives to return the favor of His Majesty's kindness! All soldiers, charge with me!"
As soon as Regwalt finished speaking, "Roar! Roar! Roar!" Thousands of lions immediately let out roars that shook the heavens and earth as they led the charge!
Stark was naturally among them!
"Charge!"
Stark could no longer worry about his trembling! Instead, he pulled out the axe from his back and followed the Lion Knights in a heroic charge! He was scared to death! But he knew that once he had reached this point, there was no turning back!
Without a doubt, this was another incredibly brave counter-charge!
"The knights have moved. Let's go as well."
In the sky, Denken—who had rested sufficiently—watched the golden torrent surge across the ground. He immediately gathered the other Court Mages to follow the charge.
However, the difference was that the Lion Knights were fighting to the death. They, on the other hand, were to use the Lion Knights as cover. Or rather, Denken was to use the cover of the knights to research the reason why the demons were able to revive as much as possible.
It was worth mentioning that the news about the demons reviving had not been passed to any unit other than the Magic Special Forces.
"What a bunch of monsters."
Böse looked at the members of the Magic Special Forces distributed along various parts of the city walls. His expression was grim. After learning that only the Magic-Sealing Dust from his unit could completely kill the demons, he had almost wanted to quit on the spot.
How many people did he have? The demons had an army of hundreds of thousands!
However, this was the Imperial Capital. It was the heart of the Empire and Böse's home. If they couldn't win... they still had to fight. If they couldn't hold it... they still had to hold it.
"Everyone, stay sharp! Be ready to kill the demons at any moment!"
After Böse shouted a few times at the top of his lungs, he looked up at the crackling cataclysmic lightning generated by the barrier above. He felt a slight sense of comfort.
He couldn't remember if it was eighty years or nearly a hundred years ago. Böse vaguely remembered that the demons had once broken through and reached the capital back then as well. But by relying on the Magic Defense project of the Great Mage Flamme, the predecessors had successfully resisted and crushed them.
"We will win." Böse gripped his arm tightly.
At that very moment, the Empire's steel giants climbed over the city walls one by one. They stood tall before the entire Imperial Capital!
"We will win!"
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