Perhaps the time was not that long, but to the marching soldiers, it felt like a century had passed.
They pressed onward through the night in the Bewildering Mountain Range, risking falls and enduring exhaustion, moving forward, forward, and forward again. By the end, they were like soulless skeletons, mechanically moving their limbs, numb as they followed the flow of people onward or briefly stopped.
Finally, as the eastern sky began to brighten, the vanguard—a full-strength Magic-armored Knight Legion—emerged from the Bewildering Mountain Range, their feet stepping onto level ground.
Ahead of them, the outline of a square city came into view. It was one of Shalin's border trade hubs, sparsely populated and guarded by only a small number of soldiers. To be honest, no one had ever imagined that enemies might suddenly appear here.
The Magic-armored Knights looked at the city and silently formed ranks. Behind them, the remaining soldiers emerging from the Bewildering Mountain Range steadily joined them.
A moment later, several thousand people launched a collective charge without a sound.
They were silent not to remain hidden, but because their throats were already hoarse, their strength nearly spent, and they had no energy or desire to shout. They only wanted to use their scant remaining strength where it mattered.
Charge.
Close in on the city gates.
Wizards rose into the air, and the Magic-armored Knights activated their magic patterns.
Flames erupted within the city.
By the time the flames died out, the city had changed hands—after all, this was merely an inconspicuous frontier town of Shalin, with little power to resist.
After taking the small city, Soren quickly received two pieces of news.
One good, one bad.
The good news was that from this frontier town, they could follow the major roads laid by Shalin and