Chapter 51: Halo

Chapter 51 Aura

Every war must have its master.

No matter how detached the Mage Tower and the Professional Association remained, in the face of war, the reins of command invariably fell to the City Lord.

The Lord of Maple Leaf City was the commander-in-chief.

As the chief mentor of the City Lord Mansion's Mage Training Regiment, Allen was bound to become the commander of the Maple Leaf City Mage Corps.

How could El ever bring himself to accept this!

Yet, in this matter, even he possessed no voice.

Unless Martin stepped forward to actively contest the command of the mages with Allen, only then might the outcome alter.

El knew Martin's temperament; he was not a man who coveted power.

As long as Allen did not cross the line too far, Martin would not rise in opposition.

Seeing his brother's sour countenance, Allen smiled, refraining from further mockery.

He turned his gaze toward Martin, offering a pleasant greeting, "Mage Martin, it has been a long time."

Martin replied, "Allen, I did not expect you to become a Ring Mage."

Allen remarked, "I merely chose a path that suited me."

Martin nodded, "Mhm, I recall when you left the Mage Tower, you were but a first-tier advanced mage, and now you are already a third-tier mage, which is not bad at all."

Allen smiled and said, "For this campaign, the City Lord has appointed me as the commander of the Mage Corps, so I must ask for Mage Martin's full cooperation when the time comes."

Martin countered, "As long as your command is without flaw, the mages of the Maple Leaf City Mage Tower will cooperate to the utmost."

In other words, if Allen's command proved incompetent, he should not blame Martin for refusing to cooperate in battle.

With the conversation concluding there, the City Lord arrived at the head of the army.

The City Lord's personal guard, comprised of extraordinary professionals, marched at the very front, and City Lord Oates appeared before the crowd, clad in armor atop a warhorse.

Behind him stretched an army of several thousand.

The total military force of Maple Leaf City amounted to only five or six thousand men, yet the soldiers standing before them, densely packing the entire street, numbered no fewer than three thousand.

Oates had drawn forth the vast majority of Maple Leaf City's forces, preparing to lead them to reinforce the battlefield.

Leaving only a mere two thousand men behind to garrison Maple Leaf City.

This was a highly perilous gamble.

Let alone deploying the bulk of their forces to reinforce the front, most City Lords would feel a twinge of anguish at sending even a thousand soldiers.

The Kingdom of Machir belonged to the King, but a city belonged to oneself.

Unless it was a city directly established by the Kingdom of Machir.

The land of the Kingdom of Machir was vast and sprawling, stretching from south to north, from east to west, with over twenty cities standing proud upon it.

Among them, fewer than half were founded by the Kingdom of Machir itself.

Most were independent cities, merely existing within the borders of the kingdom's territory.

Their relationship was not one of lord and vassal, but resembled that of feudal princes.

Maple Leaf City was one such independent city.

City Lord Oates was a Count enfeoffed by the Empire, whereas the King of the Kingdom of Machir was merely a Marquis enfeoffed by the Empire.

Oates owed his allegiance only to the Empire, with no obligation of loyalty to the King of Machir.

The Lords of the other independent cities found themselves in the exact same circumstance.

On the surface, the great cities within the Kingdom of Machir all submitted to the King.

In reality, the Lords of the independent cities stood in a state of rivalry with the crown.

Therefore, when most City Lords received a wartime conscription order, they would merely dispatch a handful of men as a token gesture of reinforcement.

They would never stir up such a storm or mobilize on such a grand scale as Maple Leaf City had.

Oates met with the leaders of the various factions.

Martin of the Mage Tower, Owen of the Knights Association, Lehman of the Warriors Association, Monte of the Assassins Association, and Tanya of the Archers Association.

When Martin, Lehman, Monte, and Tanya beheld Owen's figure, astonishment bloomed upon all their faces.

None of them had expected Owen, a Grand Knight, to actually participate in this battle.

Oates, however, seemed entirely unsurprised, with Allen standing by his side.

He introduced Owen to the gathering, "The supreme commander of the Maple Leaf City army for this venture is Owen."

Hearing this, the crowd felt no surprise.

Owen's profession was that of a War Knight, distinct from ordinary knights. A War Knight could only unleash their true might upon the field of battle.

It could be described as an extraordinary profession born entirely for warfare.

Lehman, a burly third-tier advanced warrior, laughed, "Finally, I shall witness the legendary strength of a War Knight!"

Monte was enveloped entirely in a black robe, looking like a phantom that might vanish into the shadows at any moment.

He cast a glance at Owen but remained silent.

Tanya was a half-elf, her weapon a magical shortbow.

Upon hearing Lehman's words, she could not help but steal a few more glances at Owen.

She knew little of Owen himself, but the illustrious reputation of a War Knight was something she had long heard of.

Martin cast a sidelong glance at Owen, a trace of wariness flickering in his eyes.

Word had it that Owen had once slain a Great Mage of the same tier.

Such a feat could only be described as astonishing.

As all knew, mages were invincible within the same tier.

Having introduced Owen, Oates then presented Allen to the assembly.

"This is Mage Allen, currently the chief mentor of the Mage Training Regiment, who will serve as the commander of the Mage Corps in this war."

After speaking, he turned to Martin and inquired, "Mage Martin has no objections, I presume?"

Martin nodded silently, "No objections."

The remaining extraordinary professionals, including knights, warriors, assassins, and archers, were also commanded by third-tier experts dispatched by their respective factions.

Incidentally, the Knights Association had also sent a third-tier advanced knight.

Regrettably, beneath the radiant splendor of Owen, this third-tier advanced knight appeared utterly obscure.

His strength was by no means inferior to Lehman, Monte, or Tanya; it was simply that Owen was too powerful, his light too dazzling, making the other appear somewhat weak.

Once City Lord Oates finished assigning everyone's duties, he began the pre-battle mobilization speech.

Levi and Gu Ze stood amidst the crowd, listening to Oates loudly proclaim the justice and necessity of this war.

Neither took the words to heart, whispering quietly between themselves.

Gu Ze said, "There are more people this time. Be careful—it might be different from usual."

He had a vague sense that something was off.

He’d supported battlefields before, but never with so many present.

Li Wei nodded upon hearing this.

He didn’t fully understand the situation, but seeing Orn stirred an instinctive feeling that matters were serious.

The sight of Orn brought back memories of the hidden secret within Maple City.

He had only glimpsed a sliver of it, still unaware of what exactly Orn, the City Lord’s Manor, and the Warrior Association were concealing.

Winter had passed two months ago, and the secret seemed buried beneath snow and wind, never spoken of again.

"Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Suddenly, three thousand soldiers raised their weapons, roaring in unison.

Li Wei startled.

He turned to see the soldiers’ faces flushed with frenzy, eyes blazing with excitement.

Something felt wrong.

He glanced toward the group of supernaturals and noticed many among them also wore the same wild expression.

Gu Ze whispered, "The War Knight’s aura."

Li Wei asked, "Why aren’t we affected?"

Gu Ze scanned the surroundings and speculated, "Perhaps we’re standing too far away. See how those visibly excited ones are all closer to Orn."

To maximize the aura’s reach, Orn stood at the center of the crowd.

Li Wei and Gu Ze stood at the edge—outside its influence.

(End of Chapter)