As the Paladin Order led the army into the northern stronghold of Karinsha, everyone in the Kingdom of Lobul could feel the atmosphere of impending war.
The civilians near the border in particular had long been shrouded in panic, fear, and despair.
They had already heard just how massive this invasion of demihumans and undead was, and understood that the Holy Kingdom could never hold them off with its own strength alone.
Their only hope was that reinforcements from the Kingdom and the Theocracy would arrive before the defensive line was completely overrun.
Otherwise, based on past experience, the hundreds of thousands living along the border could forget about surviving.
As for the Hunter Association, the Holy Kingdom's civilians knew very little about it. Only the nobles knew a little.
Standing atop the towering Great Wall, Queen Karl watched the dense masses of demihumans in the distance and asked her two friends without turning around, "Kuirat! Remedios! We can hold this, right?"
"Of course! As long as I'm alive, I'll never allow these monsters to cross the Great Wall!" Remedios replied, tightly gripping the Holy Sword Sepharicia.
As the Holy Kingdom's strongest Paladin, she might have all sorts of flaws, but she had never let anyone down when it truly mattered.
Her talent for martial arts was especially exceptional, even surpassing Gedō, the Warrior Chief of the Kingdom.
"That's right! No matter how many enemies come, we have to hold them back, and we can only hold them back. Otherwise, the millions of civilians behind us will be left sprawled in pools of blood." Kuirat followed her sister in stating her resolve.
"Yes! Even if we die, we must not retreat a single step." Karl gently stroked the crown on her head.
It was not merely an ornament, but the