Harassment

Ronan's side handled things with ease, but some warships with fewer crewmen than Ronan's, as well as those that had pushed too deep and been surrounded, still ran into trouble.

Pirates surged at them from every direction, leaving them hard-pressed to cope. Rexa had no choice but to send other warships to support them, but overall, Xinteland still held the upper hand.

Perhaps, just as Mario had said, Eredar had merely hired a batch of pirates who had lost their heads to obstruct and perhaps weaken Xinteland's relief force.

Caught up in the thrill of battle, Ronan even led his men in a countercharge onto the pirate ships. The Nord Royal Guard took the lead, raising their shields and hunching forward through the pirates' rain of arrows as they climbed the ladders.

Upon reaching the edge of the deck, they leaped straight into the pirate ranks. One man slammed down with his shield, knocking an enemy flat, then hurled three throwing axes into the crowd in quick succession.

The Nords quickly gained a foothold aboard the pirate ship. Ronan led the Vigyan Knights and Templar Knights after them. Gripping his blade in both hands, he deflected a pirate's scimitar, then slipped behind him and drove the blade up beneath his arm into his heart.

Another pirate who tried to take advantage of the opening to attack Ronan had his head smashed apart by a Vigyan Knight who had just boarded, swinging his mace.

The situation soon became clear. The pirates were utterly incapable of troubling Ronan and the others. Many chose to jump straight into the sea and swim toward other pirate ships, only to be picked off by elven archers' arrows.

The pirates soon scattered in defeat, fleeing in panic after leaving behind several captured ships and hundreds of corpses. Xinteland's side suffered only dozens of casualties, nearly all from the warships that had charged too fiercely and become surrounded.

Ronan returned from the pirate ship to the Wavebreaker, took a towel handed over by a subordinate, and wiped the splattered blood from his face. After wiping down his katana, he tossed the towel into the sea.

By then, the waters had been dyed crimson with blood. Numerous shark fins broke the surface and cut back and forth through the waves. Clearly, the scent of blood had drawn these predators from far away to feast.

The warships were mostly unharmed. A few minor scrapes did not affect their voyage. Only one ship, which had been repeatedly rammed by several pirate vessels, had suffered heavy damage and had to be replaced with a relatively intact pirate ship.

The fleet did not waste time scavenging spoils, because these pirates had little worth taking. At most, their ships carried some food, liquor, and weapons, none of which Xinteland's forces lacked.

They set the remaining ships ablaze, and the fleet set off once more.

The Snake Worshipers had never expected these pirates to defeat Xinteland's forces, but they had certainly managed to disgust them.

Though their smaller size left pirate ships inferior to warships in combat strength and troop capacity, they were considerably faster. Xinteland's fleet simply could not catch them. They constantly trailed behind the fleet, coming over every day to harass them.

Although they inflicted few casualties on Xinteland's forces while suffering considerable losses themselves, they successfully doubled the fleet's travel time and completed their mission of delaying them.

At last, they reached Terra's harbor, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Though the pirates had not caused them much trouble, the day-after-day harassment had worsened the exhaustion of the long voyage.

The fleet slowly docked in an area reserved at Terra Harbor. From there, they could see the magnificent city in the distance.

The earthen-yellow Terra City stood on a cliff not far from the harbor. The entire city had only one exit and occupied favorable terrain, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. Things did not appear too bad yet; the Allied Forces had not reached Terra City.

Otherwise, the fleet would never have been able to dock so smoothly. The moment the ships came to a stop, a group of Terra people dressed in long robes and headscarves came forward to greet them.

Rexa immediately began speaking with the other side's leader. Ronan did not care what they were discussing. Instead, he paced back and forth on the ground, savoring the feeling of having solid earth beneath his feet. Life at sea these past days had made him feel as though he was about to float away.

At the same time, the system notified him that the first stage of the mission had been completed, while the second stage had not yet been triggered. It would likely activate only after they entered Terra City and learned of their combat assignment.

With the Terra people's help, the supplies had been unloaded from the ships and loaded onto wagons. The horses had also been led out. More than a month at sea had dulled their coats, and some had fallen ill.

By then, Rexa had finished speaking with the Terra general, and the group began moving again, stretching into a long column.

An hour later, the troops entered Terra City. The soldiers settled into the barracks arranged for them, while Ronan, Mario, and the other leaders had to follow Rexa to the Royal Palace of Terra to discuss the coming battle.

Suppressing their exhaustion and hunger, they walked for another half hour before finally reaching their destination.

King of Terra and Terra's high-ranking generals were already waiting around a large council table.

King of Terra Gogen was fifty-three that year. Gray had already crept into his hair, wrinkles lined his face, and his once-powerful body had grown frail.

In a few years, he would have to abdicate. That made him all the more desperate to win this war, because he did not want to become the king of a fallen nation. Terra could not, at the very least, decline under his rule.

Standing to King of Terra's left was the First Prince, Gogen, Terra's heir. King of Terra had fathered a son late in life, and Gogen was only around twenty, full of youthful vigor. At that moment, he was fiercely arguing with the scale-armored general standing to King of Terra's right.

The man to King of Terra's right was Terra's grand marshal—Hogul. Hogul had been one of the first generals to follow King of Terra and had accompanied him through many victories. But age had stripped away his former impulsiveness and made him more steady.

Gogen and Hogul were currently arguing because they could not agree on strategy. Gogen advocated an aggressive counteroffensive, while Hogul favored a stable defense. King of Terra sat at the head of the table without saying a word.

When he saw Xinteland's reinforcements, led by Rexa, enter the hall under the guards' guidance, King of Terra raised a hand to signal Gogen and Hogul to stop.

After saluting King of Terra, Rexa took a seat first. Ronan imitated him, giving a passable salute before sitting down. During that month at sea, Mario had specifically drilled Ronan on such matters. After all, Ronan knew nothing about the etiquette of different nations.

In addition to the Silver Moon Clan led by Ronan and Mario, and the Nebula Clan led by Rexa, this relief force also included Inella Phantom Feather, an elven mage representing the Phantom Feather Clan. It was said that she was Thursma's sister. There was also Norin Sun Chaser, an elven Knight representing the Sun Chaser Clan, and Shandora Spiritwood, an elven ranger representing the Spiritwood Clan.

Besides these five great clans, there was also a mercenary force of six hundred under Rexa's command.

All of these people were core figures within their respective clans. Like Mario, they had joined this expedition to support Terra in hopes of winning renown for their own young lords and adding weight to their bids for the throne.