Chapter 52: Marching

Chapter 52: Marching

"Move out!"

At Oates' command, the group marched from the city.

Three thousand soldiers advanced in a mighty procession along the highway toward the front lines.

Their footsteps fell in perfect unison.

In contrast, the accompanying adepts walked in scattered clusters, chatting idly as they went—

laughing, gossiping, utterly unlike warriors on campaign.

Oen rode up beside them astride a Dragonblood Warhorse.

"Pfth!"

The steed snorted sharply, making several nearby individuals stumble backward in alarm.

Oen's mount was a genuine third-rank Dragonblood Magical Beast—

its combat power surpassed that of most adepts.

A single kick could shatter bones and send even second-rank warriors spitting blood.

Instinctively, everyone edged away from Oen, fearful his beast might go berserk.

Oen swept the group with a cold gaze. "No idle talk during the march."

"Knights and warriors will form protective flanks. Archers and mages march in the center. Mont has assigned assassins as scouts to gather intelligence en route."

Soon, the chaotic formation settled into disciplined order.

Not perfectly silent, but no longer unruly.

Oen did not demand perfection.

In war, trained soldiers were the backbone.

Supernatural adepts existed primarily to counter enemy adepts.

Unless it was an army composed entirely of supernaturals.

Once the adept ranks were organized, Oen wasted no time—he spurred his mount forward, galloping ahead to rejoin the main force.

Lord Oates led the vanguard, followed at a distance by the adepts, then the supply convoy hauling grain and provisions.

Positioned centrally, the adepts could swiftly reinforce either front or rear.

After Oen departed, the group collectively exhaled.

They resumed whispering, careful now, no longer brazenly conversing as before.

Livi sat aboard a cart pulled by a Landcrawler.

All the mages rode upon wagons.

Each wagon was drawn by a six- to seven-meter-long Landcrawler—a creature like a living locomotive, dragging seven or eight wooden carriages forward at a steady, unhurried pace.

Wheels groaned and creaked, jolting occasionally over uneven ground.

Leaning against cargo sacks, Livi gazed curiously at the beast ahead.

"According to books, Landcrawlers are gentle-tempered, possess extraordinary endurance, excel at long-distance travel and carrying heavy loads. Not only humans domesticate them for transport, but orcs, dwarves, and goblins do too."

"I've seen illustrations in texts, yet this real one seems... different?"

"The ones in books are hairless, armored all over, usually exceeding ten meters in length."

Livi frowned in confusion.

Guze explained, "You're thinking of the Landdragon—a subspecies of Landcrawler, actually a type of lesser dragon.

Ordinary Landcrawlers look like this. The dragon-blooded kind is rare."

Livi nodded, enlightened. "I see."

The march was tedious. The wagon swayed incessantly, making meditation impossible.

So Livi closed his eyes, mentally practicing spellcraft—constructing fireballs in his mind, grinding skill through sheer repetition.

Other supernaturals glanced occasionally at Livi on the cart, envy flickering in their eyes.

"Lucky mages. Don't even have to walk."

And rightly so—mages were physically frail compared to other adepts, ill-suited for long marches.

This journey alone spanned over a hundred kilometers.

Forcing scholars who spent their lives cooped in towers to walk such distances? They'd arrive at battle already broken.

By dusk, they had marched the full day.

Night fell. The column halted, beginning to erect camp.

Livi jumped down from the wagon, stretching his limbs.

A day of sitting left his back stiff, his legs aching.

Rumble—rumble—

The earth trembled. A low roar approached.

Livi turned. Mage Martin cast a spell, conjuring a crude hut from soil and stone right where he stood.

Small and rough, perhaps—but compared to others forced to sleep on bare ground, it was paradise.

Livi watched, envious.

The hut was small; Martin took only El and Mariana inside. The rest remained outside—

some sitting on the dirt, others leaning against wagons.

Livi turned to Guze. "What spell did Martin use?"

"Earth to Stone—third-rank earth magic."

"The opposite is Stone to Mud, also third-rank earth magic, with inverse effect."

"Third-rank?" Livi sighed, disappointed.

He had hoped to learn it—how convenient for future travels.

But such high-tier spells were beyond him now.

He scanned the surroundings, a quiet hope glimmering in his eyes.

Tonight’s gains would surely be substantial.

Fire was lit. Meals cooked. Guards posted. Food eaten. Sleep taken.

Except for eating and sleeping, Livi had little role.

Sentinel duty belonged to soldiers.

Later, Alan approached the group. "By Commander Oen’s orders, to maximize our effectiveness, we are forming mage squads. Mages skilled in similar spells will group together. Orders will be issued by squad."

He announced the assigned mage groups for everyone. Gu Ze was placed in the Ice Mage group, while Li Wei and Luo Ta were assigned to the Fire Mage group.

Li Wei glanced at the people Alan had brought along—members, he said, of the City Lord’s Mage Instruction Corps.

A group of Ring Mages and Ring Mage apprentices.

Not a small number either—eight first-rank Ring Mages and twelve apprentices.

They all looked quite young, unlike the Mage Tower, which was mostly composed of middle-aged men in their thirties and forties.

Yet in terms of strength, the Mage Tower utterly overshadowed the Instruction Corps.

Fifteen novice mages here were roughly equivalent to fifteen first-rank Ring Mages.

Even so, when El and Marina saw how many first-rank mages the City Lord’s estate possessed, they couldn’t help but feel astonished.

El stared intently at Alan. “Did you make them all reclass into Ring Mages?”

Alan smiled. “What do you mean, ‘did I make them’? They chose it willingly.”

“If any of you need help,” he added, grinning at the gathered novice mages, “I can help you become Ring Mages too.”

At those words, El’s expression darkened.

Among the crowd, some felt tempted, others hesitated, and a few looked on with disdain.

In raw power, novice mages and first-rank Ring Mages were evenly matched.

But in status, there remained a clear gap.

Even if weaker in strength, a first-rank Ring Mage was still an official mage—an acknowledged formal mage, a recognized supernatural professional by both the Mage Association and the Adventurer’s Guild.

Seeing that the mood had shifted enough, Alan didn’t press further.

He let the members of the Instruction Corps mingle with those from the Mage Tower, allowing them to get acquainted with their respective groupmates.

The Fire Mage group, Li Wei’s group, had the most members—fifteen in total.

Sixteen, if counting El.

Most of them came from the Instruction Corps.

Unquestionably, this was the firepower squad.

Late into the night, Li Wei double-checked that his invisible armor was activated, wrapped himself tightly in his invisibility cloak, leaned against a pile of cargo, and slipped into the dream realm.

“Great Dream Soaring Through Heaven Technique!”

(End of Chapter)