Red dragon: in charge of natural disasters

The vast territory south of the Elbert Mountains and north of the Radiant Mountains is traditionally known as the "Agostino Region," the location of the ancient Agostino Kingdom.

This land is fertile and rich in magical elements. Decades ago, Aragon I led his invincible Divine Army to destroy the Agostino Kingdom, incorporating it into the territory of the Holy Fadran and renaming it "Thrace."

At the pass of the Elbert Mountains stands a strategically crucial military fortress: Eisengard, meaning "The Impassable Iron Fortress City."

Two crescent-shaped twin castles span the canyon, with magical barriers displaying golden纹理patterns at sunrise. The cast-iron city walls, stretching for three miles at the pass, gleam coldly in the morning mist.

This city acts as a natural barrier, separating North Athel from Thrace.

Tens of thousands of Thrace's most elite soldiers are stationed within the city, along with several noble Angelic Descendants as military commanders. Their military strength is sufficient to easily destroy a small country.

The city walls are equipped with the Sun God ballista, Radiant Discs, and Holy Lance defense system left behind by the Holy Fadran.

It is said that within the indestructible city walls, dozens of Iron Golems and War Colossi from the Fadran Empire era lie dormant. Once the city is attacked, these behemoths will awaken from their slumber and completely destroy the invading enemies.

However, at this moment, as the Empire's expansion in the north becomes increasingly reckless, the residents of Eisengard are gradually becoming nervous and uneasy.

In the official propaganda of the Thrace Kingdom, although the Red Dragon is ferocious and has relentlessly destroyed many countries, enslaving the vast populace of the north,

the Red Dragon fears His Majesty Wilhelm's wise and divine prowess and has not dared to move south, even signing a peace treaty with the Thrace Kingdom lasting several decades. The residents of Eisengard need not worry about safety issues at all.

But people are not fools. Keen observers have long noticed the increasingly tense situation on the Fianso Continent, discovering that the elite troops of the Thrace Kingdom are gradually gathering at Eisengard—a harbinger of war.

A bleak, cold wind sweeps across the cast-iron city walls.

A messenger soldier climbs onto the city tower, his voice exceptionally heavy: "Lord Earl, a urgent report from August, the Ember Empire has declared war on us! Those dragon's minions... could arrive at any moment."

"I understand. Issue the order to gather all troops and prepare for war. We must not be careless!"

At the top of the towering city tower, a warrior clad in heavy, ornate armor with wings on his back is gazing north, his expression extremely solemn.

He is Hein Diaz, the Divine Earl of the Thrace Kingdom and the military commander of Eisengard.

Regarding the Ember Empire's southward advance, he, who has been stationed in Eisengard for many years and knows the northern situation like the back of his hand, naturally anticipated it.

But in his expectations, the Ember Empire's southward advance would be at least a year later—or even three or four years later—and certainly not now.

Hein lowers his eyelids, suppressing the anger in his golden pupils: "The claws of these dragons are so arrogant... After years of continuous warfare, they have unexpectedly declared war on our Thrace Kingdom without any warning!"

Soon, the sound of flapping wings is heard, and another Divine noble rises into the air, appearing at the top of the tower—Viscount Elliot Evans.

"Outrageous! Do they think the Thrace Kingdom is one of those small countries that can be easily crushed?

"You've come, Elliot."

Hein turns his head and nods to him, then snorts coldly: "Although the Holy Fadran has fallen, its afterglow has not yet faded! This young and barbaric nation has not witnessed the greatness of Fadran—they should remain in awe."

Elliot agrees: "If it weren't for being tied down by the battles in the south, unable to look north, how could the Ember Empire be so rampant! They would have been wiped out by us long ago!

These dragon's minions are extremely greedy, even selling us the most advanced weapons for gold coins. And they have no high-end forces to compete with the Divine Descendants, how could they possibly capture our fortress?"

Hein nods slightly, but still reminds him: "However... we still cannot be careless. If that Red Dragon takes action, with our strength, I'm afraid it will be difficult to stop him."

Recalling that terrifying Red Dragon, Elliot can't help but shudder, but he still tries to maintain a strong front: "As far as I know, that dragon is extremely proud and rarely takes action personally."

"Dong—"

The great bell of Eisengard rings, its loud sound echoing within the city, accompanied by the solemn and reverent Sun Anthem, startling countless people from their sleep.

Under the call of officers at all levels, soldiers from Eisengard rush forth, gathering in a vast and mighty throng below the towering cast-iron city walls, forming streams of mottled humanity.

"The Ember Empire has declared war on us?"

"Amanata be above!"

"Didn't they just finish fighting the High Mountain Kingdom? Don't these guys use up any energy when they fight?

"What a bunch of lunatics!"

The soldiers discuss among themselves, the emotions of panic, anxiety, and tension permeating their hearts. They no longer want to participate in any war.

In recent years, they have heard of too many familiar countries being destroyed by the Ember Empire. In the fairy tales of northern Thrace, every soldier of the Ember Empire is a fire-breathing monster.

But under the strict gaze of the overseers, no one dares to talk about retreat or surrender.

Under the focus of countless gazes, Hein, standing at the top of the city tower, raises the dazzling Sun Holy Lance, his voice echoing within the city: "Loyal warriors, I believe you are also aware of this news—the Ember Empire has declared war on us!

They shamelessly tore up the peace treaty, wanting to occupy our land, plunder our wealth, and turn our relatives and friends into slaves of the dragons!"

Hein's voice is passionate and stirring, but the soldiers are not excited, their expressions even somewhat numb.

Many of these soldiers were transferred from the southern battlefield, experienced the brutal Three Emperors War, and witnessed countless comrades die outside the Holy City. They no longer have much reaction to this kind of slogan.

The following question often arises in their hearts—clearly we are all former Fadran people, why must we fight to the death for the ownership of a city?

“Everyone, listen up!” Hain shouted, his voice loud and clear, like a war drum in the silence. “Today, we have no retreat. If this city falls, the homes of all of us will be reduced to ashes.

Therefore, no matter what happens, no one is allowed to retreat a single step! Fight for the Kingdom of Thrace, for His Majesty Wilhelm! Fight for the glory of Fadlan!”

“Hurry!”

“Keep up, get into position immediately!”

“Quick, move these shells to the north gate tower! We’re still short two boxes there!”

Under the organization of the officers, the soldiers went to their respective posts, checking the cannons, loading their guns, and transporting boxes of ammunition.

Somewhat ironically, many of these armaments were purchased from the Ember Empire, with the [Made in Empire] stamp engraved on the bottom, now being used to resist the impending invasion of the Ember Empire.

“Where is the Sun Holy Arrow?”

“Where are the people from the Arcane Legion? Quickly, charge the Radiant Disks!”

“It’s too late! Hurry and awaken the Iron Golems!”

A cloud of thick smoke appeared in the valley. Immediately afterward, iron-gray clouds pressed down on the top of Eisengard, like a huge black curtain covering the entire city.

At the top of the city tower, Hain’s expression became even more solemn, as if shrouded in gloom: “There shouldn’t be fog in the Elbert Valley at this time.”

He ordered in a deep voice: “Arcane Legion, dispel this smoke, show me what’s hidden inside!”

“Yes, Earl.”

Several mages wearing scarlet-golden robes appeared in mid-air. They chanted spells, raised their staffs, and their eyes burst out with dazzling light, creating gusts of wind.

“Whoosh—”

The gale roared, sweeping across the earth and dispersing the thick smoke. However, the faces of the mages who cast the divination spells changed drastically, and they cried out: “Be careful! Their shells are coming!”

“Enemy attack!”

A piercing screech rang out. After the thick smoke dissipated, a dense web of shells appeared in the sky, as if to envelop the entire city.

Hain roared: “Activate the Radiant Disks—”

Mages and priests immediately chanted spells, trying to activate Eisengard’s magical defense system, but the speed of those cone-shaped shells was too fast, almost instantly piercing the air and tearing through the sky.

“Boom!”

“Boom! Boom!”

Hundreds of fireballs bloomed simultaneously on the cast iron walls, the light blinding and the flames raging.

Those sudden shells were like they had eyes, instantly destroying most of the cannons and Sun God Crossbows, and killing thousands of soldiers.

“It hurts!”

“My leg! My leg!”

“Where is the enemy’s artillery? I can’t see them at all!” The wounded soldiers groaned and cried out desperately in the ruins.

They were caught completely off guard, suffering a devastating blow without even seeing the enemy, dying in surprise and horror.

—This was a long-planned attack. The Ember Empire’s intelligence personnel had already figured out the city's defense structure and carried out a precise strike.

Looking at the devastated city walls, Hain stood there, muttering in disbelief: “How could this be… How could they bombard us from thousands of meters away?”

Immediately afterward, the God-blooded Earl’s eyes were bloodshot, and he trembled all over: “Damn it, damn the Imperials! The ones they sold us were defective products!”

“Buzz—”

Several Radiant Disks rotated simultaneously, and a huge light罩 engraved with the Amanata emblem enveloped Eisengard.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!”

Hundreds more shells struck, but they were all blocked outside the huge light罩, only exploding in mid-air, causing the light罩 to flicker slightly.

In the distance, a continuous, rumbling sound like thunder rolled in, an ominous omen produced by the iron hooves shattering the soil and the chariots crushing the rocks as the enemy approached.

Smoke and steam swept across the earth, and even the city walls were constantly trembling. All that could be seen were steel behemoths charging through the valley, rushing towards Eisengard—the Empire’s armored corps.

Fierce flames burst out from those thick cannons, and powerful armor-piercing shells bombarded Eisengard’s light罩 time and time again, causing the light to dim further.

“Earl, we are sensing an extremely strong spatial fluctuation!”

“It’s teleportation magic!”

“Amanata above… What, what is that?”

The mages were anxious, and the soldiers looked up in horror, only to see huge gashes appearing in the sky.

Huge airships poured out, swarming in groups, blotting out the sky and casting huge shadows over Eisengard, like magnificent whale pods suspended high in the sky.

And densely packed wyverns flapped their wings chaotically, circling the airship cluster, emitting hoarse howls.

Immediately afterward, hundreds upon thousands of bombs poured out from the bellies of these “whales”, falling towards Eisengard like a torrential rain.

The continuous explosions and the firelight that covered the sky were like divine punishment descending, the end of the world arriving.

Under this dense bombardment, even the Radiant Disks left by Holy Fadlan could hardly resist, becoming increasingly dim, and finally shattered with a “crash”.

“Holy Lances! Destroy these whales for me!” Hain pointed his spear at the sky, roaring almost madly.

Several magic arrays within the city suddenly lit up, and intense magical fluctuations surged. Beams of dazzling golden light descended from the sky, tearing through the sky with undeniable force, piercing through the airships suspended tens of thousands of meters in the air.

—That was the Holy Lance defense system of Holy Fadlan, capable of drawing energy from the sun to pierce through the invading enemies.

The airships pierced by the Holy Lances exploded in mid-air, then turned into huge fireballs, falling towards the ground and creating spectacular explosions within the city.

“Tear them apart! For Thrace, for Holy Fadlan!”

Immediately afterward, Hain flapped his wings and led several Angelic God-bloods into the air, attacking the threatening airships.

“Aowu—”

An angry roar resounded through the sky. A huge, unmatched wyvern flapped its wings and flew out of the teleportation gate, spewing out extremely hot dragon flames—it was Smaug, King under the Mountain.

One of the Angelic God-bloods was caught off guard, engulfed by the oncoming dragon flames, and instantly turned into a fireball and fell to the ground.

Accompanied by chaotic hissing, hundreds of wyverns surged like churning clouds, swarming towards the Angelic God-bloods, colliding and entangling with them.

The corpses and severed limbs of the wyverns, the golden blood of the Angelic God-bloods, and the charred feathers, constantly fell towards the earth.

(End of this chapter)