After the princess's speech ended, the mages merely stood there in silence, staring at the stage. The "big baboons" beside them also sensed that something was wrong and gradually stopped cheering! The square quickly fell silent. The warriors glared at the mages, the mages glared at the princess onstage, and the atmosphere became extremely awkward...
Apparently having never expected this to happen, Her Highness the Princess looked only sixteen or seventeen. After all, she was just a young girl who had been pampered since childhood. Giving a speech under the pressure of a crisis had already been difficult enough, and now that the most awkward kind of silence had descended, beads of glistening sweat began to run down her jade-like neck and along its graceful curves into her armor. Although the princess was still forcing herself to remain calm, even the warriors, whose heads were supposedly full of nothing but muscle, could now tell that Her Highness the Princess had panicked!
"Ha..." After the stiff atmosphere had lasted for more than ten seconds, Mainesi finally broke the deadlock. He walked to the front of the stage and stood beside the princess. His cold gaze, sharp as a steel blade, slowly swept across the gathered professionals. Everyone present felt a chill rise in their hearts. Yet aside from a few professionals too weak to endure it, who were already drenched in sweat and trembling on their legs, the mages forced themselves to withstand their discomfort. Almost no one backed down.
Mainesi knew that unless he offered these mages sufficient benefits, there was absolutely no chance they would help fight this war. His strength might indeed have been formidable, but the enemy also had professionals no weaker than him overseeing their forces. He could restrain the enemy's professionals, but he could never defend Konola City by himself when its garrison was so insufficient. These mages were the key to holding the city! Mainesi might possess many magical methods, but he was not a Legendary Mage, nor did he know the spell "Mind Alteration." He could not force the professionals to risk their lives for him. Even if he used force to coerce them, once they reached the battlefield and he was restrained by the enemy's Formal Level professionals, the coerced fighters would definitely defect on the spot. Other than paying them and establishing an employment relationship, this Formal Mage had no other path to take.
Now, Mainesi felt that he finally understood why those mages with a little wealth all formed their own alchemical legions. A group of absolutely loyal servants might not be able to help defeat powerful enemies, but they could protect their master's property and home!
Now, with no loyal army of his own, Mainesi had no choice but to show sincerity and hire these low-level professionals whom he normally would not even glance at. And it was precisely because these low-level professionals understood that fact that they dared challenge a Formal Mage like Mainesi!
Though many thoughts ran through his mind, Mainesi maintained a cold expression on the surface!
"Any warrior who kills fifty enemy professionals, after being verified by a Divination Spell cast personally by me, may come to me and receive three portions of Journeyman Level spell knowledge known to me, as well as one portion of Formal Level spell knowledge. Furthermore... they may ask me... Formal Mage Mainesi, one question!" Mainesi announced his offer in a low voice!
"Hiss!" Many mages below the stage, including Punk, could not help drawing in a sharp breath!
Upon hearing Mainesi's generous terms, Punk knew that the deal had been struck. Even knowing full well that it was dangerous, he was tempted by such enormous rewards despite possessing an inheritance of his own, let alone those wandering mages who were desperate to learn spells. After all, they did not necessarily have to win the war. They only needed to kill a few professionals. And amid the chaos of a battlefield, even if the situation became hopeless and the war was lost, slipping away, defecting, or playing dead would still be possible!
Sure enough, after thinking for a moment, the mages put on smiling faces and saluted the princess onstage with a mage's salute. They then calmly expressed their determination to remain "loyal" to the kingdom.
"Warriors and other professionals may also receive one exclusive royal secret technique." A knight standing behind the princess did not forget the other professionals. Although casters were the main force behind large-scale area attacks, the strength of combat professionals was equally indispensable!
"Prince William's brutal army is expected to reach the city gates at dawn tomorrow. Let us unite to protect our home. Konola City will never fall!" The princess stepped forward again, trying to raise morale. However, her young, trembling voice was hardly convincing. In the end, only the combat professionals and a small number of mages responded to her encouragement, and many of them were merely putting on a show for Mainesi's sake.
After completing an utterly standard mage's salute, Punk raised his head. He gave Mainesi, who had once again retreated behind the princess, a meaningful look, smiled faintly, and turned to walk toward his laboratory!
"As a Formal Mage who worships profit, for Mainesi to go this far for an incompetent princess... unless he is some rare eccentric, his relationship with the princess is definitely not as simple as it appears." Punk stroked his smooth chin and stepped into the shadows of an alley. "What surprises and gains will this war bring me? How exciting!"
War had arrived! Unexpected, yet expected.
Just as "Mira" rose, the first ray of dawn shone as usual upon Konola City's ancient, weathered walls. But today—the day after the Verdant Festival—along with Mira's dazzling radiance came a long ribbon of countless suits of bright silver armor reflecting the sunlight. Beyond the horizon, the silver army advanced toward Konola City with slow yet unwavering steps. The silver tide was like a surging flood, unstoppable. Every sword and blade gleamed with chilling light, shining from the distant wilderness directly into the depths of every soldier's heart in Konola City. It seemed as if those flashing weapons alone were enough to sever and tear apart a warrior's heart!
Punk leaned behind a battlement, surrounded by a group of solemn ordinary soldiers. To prevent the enemy's Formal Level experts from specifically targeting them, all the professionals had been scattered across the city walls and mixed among the ordinary soldiers. Once the battle began, Mainesi would be responsible for restraining the enemy's Formal Level experts, while the professionals' task was to prevent the enemy from taking the walls.
Konola City had long since lost its usual bustle and liveliness. Every commoner had shut themselves inside their homes. Only yesterday, everyone had been joyfully celebrating the Verdant Festival, which represented happiness. Yet today, war—which for many people had existed only in bards' songs—had suddenly descended upon them. Even Punk found it absurd. The ordinary citizens must have found it even harder to accept.
But no matter how difficult it was to accept, they had no choice but to accept it. As the weak, they had no choice!
"Therefore, I must become strong, and this war is an excellent opportunity for tempering myself!" Punk coldly watched Kamos's army pressing toward Konola City, his right hand gripping his staff tightly!
Prince William's army, like a silver river, had gradually encircled Konola City. They had at least three hundred thousand elite soldiers, while Konola City possessed fewer than one hundred thousand ordinary city guards. As Prince William's army approached the walls in orderly ranks, their gleaming steel armor wrapped each warrior as tightly as iron barrels. Their powerful, uniform footsteps sounded like thunderous war drums. Every step made the earth tremble slightly; every step seemed to stamp upon the hearts of the defending soldiers. A vast killing intent crashed toward them, as though that overwhelming momentum alone was enough to destroy this decayed and ruined city!
Punk cast a disdainful glance at the trembling city guards beside him, then turned his gaze once more toward the invincible army that seemed destined to trample the entire city beneath its feet. A brilliant blue radiance of magic suddenly lit his pupils.
"This really is... something to look forward to!"
The war had begun. Where were the votes? With favorites, victory would be assured.
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