Each Doing Their Part

Kang De was on the city wall when the elves first attacked.

Together with Hong San, they led the rabble of the Heaven and Earth Society to face the sudden attack.

A torrential rain of arrows, terrifying spells, the air filled with the buzzing of arrows piercing the sky and the howling of spells sweeping across the heavens. The city walls trembled, the sky seemed to burn, and the shield in my hand constantly transmitted the violent impact, like struggling to walk with an umbrella in the most intense downpour... even more terrifying than that.

In this battle, the militia on the city walls were almost completely wiped out, their morale plummeted, and they didn't even engage the elves in close combat; the enemy's terrible ranged attacks had destroyed all their courage.

Even Kang De was astonished by the intensity of war in this world.

He once thought that the city wall was the most terrifying and dangerous place.

But that's not actually the case.

This morning, not long ago, while he was having breakfast, the elves' magic sounded the horn of war. Watched by the members of the Vidal Chamber of Commerce, he and Hong San set off for the city walls where the battle had broken out. As they sped through the city, Kang De witnessed another kind of great terror under the shadow of war.

That was the fear of ordinary people.

The sky and earth changed color, and crimson flames filled the sky. The mage corps within the city had limited power and could not intercept all the spells. They could only weigh their options and choose the more threatening spells to dispel, while those spells whose landing points and power were not dangerous... could only be left to their own devices.

These spells, though unable to damage the city walls, kill soldiers, or destroy important buildings within the city, still... went into the city.

Those who bear all of this are the ordinary people living in less important places...

The streets were in chaos, filled with screams and cries. Although people had long been aware and prepared, fear still spread like a cloud when war came again, because the elemental light that kept breaking through the magic barriers and shooting into the city clearly showed that the city was not safe.

Kang De and Hong San galloped through the streets when suddenly the sky brightened, and a blazing flame roared down, landing on a nearby street before their very eyes. Amidst the violent explosion, billowing black smoke and flames rose, mingled with muffled cries and screams.

Then, one after another, elemental rays of light shot into the city.

Some were intercepted, while others crashed to the ground. Those that landed on streets or in deserted areas were fine, but if they were thrown directly into residential areas, who knows how many casualties there would be.

As the intensity of the attacks increased, the mage corps within the city was already stretched thin, barely managing to withstand the high-threat spells... In the eyes of the mages and commanders, this was called helplessness, but to the civilians, it was undoubtedly a sign of impending destruction.

People who didn't have time to get home fled in panic, as if the magic had landed right at their feet.

Kang De's heart sank upon witnessing all of this.

War is terrifying and horrific. Its most terrifying and horrific aspect is that this monster forcibly drags everything nearby into a nightmare of slaughter and suffering, regardless of whether the victims are willing or not.

Like the people here, they had no connection with elves in their lives, and had never even seen an elf. Yet, the war of the Dusk Moon Dynasty 'Duchy of Goethe broke out in their homeland. Soldiers from both countries fought each other to the death, while the civilians passively endured this ripple effect of danger and damage. They were powerless to do anything about it, powerless to resist, and unable to change the status quo. All they could do was tremble and pray.

Even if I die, no one will care.

Perhaps in the next moment, a spell falling from the sky could easily kill them.

The elven mage who cast this spell may or may not have foreseen this outcome, but what is certain is that the mage had no intention or motive to kill any specific person; his actions were part of the war, and he was completely unconcerned about the collateral damage that might result from his own spell.

They paid no heed to the cries of the dead, no heed to the anger of the dead, no heed to the suffering of the dead.

Those killed by the spells had nowhere to seek justice, nowhere to express their hatred. Their souls howled incessantly, but no living person heard them. All the casualties would eventually be summarized as a heavy blood debt, remembered by the nation for generations, awaiting the day of retribution... But when it comes to individual lives, the fear and pain of the dead, their experiences, their names, their helplessness, are forever erased, never to be known again.

Kang De murmured, "It's truly... hell."

"That's right," Hong San said, "But... all the battles and resistance are battles against hell, to reclaim the pure land of humanity from the spreading scorched earth of hell."

The bell rang in the street, and brave municipal workers drove fire trucks toward the direction of the Flame, the huge fire tanks on the trucks shaking violently.

Then another official ran wildly along the street, shouting, "Take cover nearby! Take cover nearby! Commoners must not appear on the streets! Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be executed on the spot!"

When the official saw Kang De and Hong San rein in their horses and stop, he shouted, "You two!"

Hong San pointed to the badge he wore on his chest, issued by the city hall to identify combat personnel. Upon seeing this, the official bowed respectfully. "Thank you both for protecting this city!"

Without pausing, he rushed around the corner, continuing to shout amidst the apocalyptic scene of the world turning color, "Civilians, take shelter nearby! The valiant warriors of Valentan are fighting the elves, and they will surely prevail!"

Kang De spurred his horse and charged toward the spot where the first spell had landed.

Hong San was about to say something, but in the end he shook his head and spurred his horse to follow.

The fire truck went ahead first, and the streets were already cleared, so the two could drive away without worry. Before long, they arrived at the scene of the incident, where Flame were raging and billowing, and cries for help and screams could be heard from the smoke and thick fog.

Municipal officials have turned on the water valves and are spraying water jets at the burning house.

Kang De galloped over, dismounted, and without a word, rushed into the fire. Before long, the raging fire gradually subsided, and the thick smoke and Flame transformed into various Element forces, which flowed into Kang De's body.

The fire was extinguished, leaving only wisps of smoke.

However, the buildings were bombarded by magic and burned by Flame, making it difficult to conduct a search and rescue operation while ensuring safety. This was a time-consuming and technically demanding task.

Kang De strode out of the fire and said to the astonished municipal officials, "The rescue is in your hands now."

A municipal official, snapping out of his daze, noticed the combatant's badge on Kang De's chest. His breathing quickened, and he retorted, "This is our duty, sir! I'm utterly incompetent, incapable of fighting elves; this is perfect for me. Since you possess such abilities, why waste your time here? Go to your battlefield immediately; that's where you can save far more lives!"

Because they were wearing heavy protective suits and headgear, it wasn't noticeable at first.

It wasn't until they started talking that Kang De realized that this municipal official, who still didn't look very tall even in full gear, was actually a young woman.

The two municipal officials standing nearby were startled. They pulled their companion aside and then apologized in a flustered manner, "Your Excellency, please forgive her! This girl applied to participate in the city defense yesterday, but she didn't meet the requirements and was rejected, so... Anyway, please forgive her, she's never been very good at speaking..."

Kang De shook his head, said nothing, and rode away.

Hong San others, who had been standing nearby, caught up and said, "She's right. Everyone is doing their job. Sir, the municipal officials will handle the collateral damage to civilians. They're not strong enough, so this is the only way they can protect the city. We should go where we really need to go... instead of wasting our time here."

Kang De glanced at him. "You get into character very quickly."

Hong San sighed, "So although I resent Mayor Nick's cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness, I can't bring myself to hate him."

Kang De remained silent, about to spur his horse on, when suddenly he sensed something and looked back.

The thin municipal official who had just spoken was now bowing deeply in his direction.

He turned to look at the other person until the other person straightened up.

The municipal official also saw Kang De turn around, and at first he was flustered and flustered, but then he became calm.

Because she was wearing a very protective headgear, her face was not visible, but Kang De saw that her eyes were slightly curved like crescent moons, which must have been a smile.

The municipal official shouldered the rescue equipment from the carriage and rushed into the fire.

His companions hurriedly followed him inside, and someone shouted, "Steve, slow down!"

Although they were far away, Kang De and Hong San, with their abilities, heard the name. They exchanged surprised glances, and Kang De frowned, saying, "This name..."

Hong San, however, was unsurprised. "Either her father is so desperate to have an heir that he raises his daughter like a son, or she's just strong-willed and insisted on changing her name to a man's."

Kang De recalled the girl's angry words and many other details from before, and said, "I guess it's the second one, but..."

Hong San asked, "But what?"

Kang De gave the horse a kick to the belly, and the horse, understanding, began to accelerate. He smiled slightly, "I think that with her determination and actions, there's no need to change her name to a man's."

He immediately put the matter out of his mind.

Two warhorses galloped towards the battle-ravaged city walls.

The sky shifted, the earth trembled, but the thick city walls Immovable as a Mountain against the enemy's fierce attack, protecting everything in the city, while the brave warriors guarded the walls.

The two are interdependent, fight side by side, and share life and death. In the culture of the other world, the city wall has more concepts and symbols. It is not only an engineering project to resist enemies and dangers and build cities, but also the first and last line of defense for mortals in the face of the power of magic.

The city walls defend the people, and the soldiers guard the city walls.

Within this city, innocent civilians trembled and pleaded under the long-range bombardment of the elves, while brave people traversed the streets and alleys, extinguishing fires, clearing ruins, and rescuing the wounded. They risked the same dangers, upheld their duties, and fought, suffered, and even sacrificed together.

Kang De and Hong San arrived at the foot of the city wall.

The closer they got to the city wall, the stronger the terrifying shock became. The vibrations from the magical bombardment of the wall were already very clear, and the rain of arrows pouring down on the city wall occasionally flew over and fell. There were danger zones and protective zones at the foot of the city wall. The two revealed their identities and met the battlefield commander on the city wall.

It turned out to be Nick's brother, Preston Valentan.

Upon seeing Kang De in the operations room of the military camp beneath the city walls, he was first startled, then said, "Mr. Dong Zhuo, what brings you here? You should stay at the Vidal Chamber of Commerce or the town hall to craft enchanted arrows; it would be safer there, and you could use them to your fullest potential... Please go back, it's dangerous here!"

Kang De looked around at everything. People were constantly coming and going in the operations room, and reports and calls for help were constant. The voices of secretaries and staff officers mingled together.

He snorted, "How to support the operation is my own decision. Rather than sitting in the rear praying that you can hold the city, I prefer to take control of the situation... How is the battle going?"

He was determined to go up to the city wall.

In addition to the reasons mentioned above, there is another reason.

Yesterday, he sent several radio messages to Iron Son, informing him of the current situation of the siege. If Iron Son arrived today, he had to wait for him on the city wall; otherwise, in the face of the fierce battle, he, an Autobots, would likely be targeted by the defending troops if he wandered around aimlessly.

While nighttime is the safest time to move around, if we're spotted by elven scouts, rushing into the city as fast as we can is the best option, and we can't worry about the time...

Kang De thought about the condition of the city walls he had seen yesterday and felt a little relieved. Besides, Nick had already agreed to cooperate, and since he was just an Autobots, they could let him in no matter what.

Preston, unaware of his thoughts, was quite displeased by his stubbornness.

Although military discipline is strict, it varies from person to person. At least this Mr. Dong Zhuo cannot be deterred by a mere threat of "military law enforcement"...

He said irritably, "The elves launched their first attack at its peak, and we are struggling to hold them off, relying on our mage ranks and war machines to counterattack. Mr. Dong Zhuo, I must remind you again, yesterday's raid was merely a small skirmish. The real bloodshed and carnage will only begin today..."

Before he could finish speaking, a muffled but violent explosion suddenly came from not far away, and the violent shockwave rumbled back. Preston's expression changed, and the operations room fell silent. He roared, "Go investigate!"

A moment later, the message spread. "My lord, a catapult has been destroyed by enemy magic! The war sorcerer was killed instantly, and the projectiles have also suffered heavy casualties!"

Prolonged defense inevitably leads to defeat; this is a common principle in warfare. The mage squad fought with all their might to intercept the elven spells, but since it was a passive defense, there would inevitably be times when they became exhausted and miscalculated, and when the enemy would seize an opening.

Preston cursed loudly, then grabbed his weapon and rushed out the door.

Kang De followed closely behind.

The young commander turned to look at Kang De: "You..."

Before he could speak, Kang De said, "Let me see what I can do."

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PS1: Heavy rain, heavy rain, and another heavy rain...