Before the Battle

On the vast, flat snowfield, two wide rivers converge and flow slowly, irrigating this fertile black soil.

It was September, and although the weather was getting colder, the river was not yet frozen over; there were only some piles of ice floating on the surface.

These are the Inaki River and Oryol River. After the ancestors of the Scania People migrated to the Anzeta Great Wasteland, they built cities along these two great rivers, eventually forming the Northern United Kingdom. Therefore, they are regarded as the "mother rivers" of the entire Scania Civilization.

There is also a rather strange legend that says that tens of thousands of years ago, the Goddess of Winter Oryol, mated with a huge stone giant named Inaki, which eventually gave birth to the Anzeta Great Wasteland, a "Land Without Spring" that is shrouded in cold winds all year round and filled with rocky mountains. The two rivers were named after this and have been passed down to this day.

However, this is merely the fantasy of ignorant mortals.

In the southern part of the Okaglar Plain, there are allied fortifications everywhere, as well as busy soldiers, including many players.

Just as the soldiers were busy, the familiar voice rang out again, and the phantom of a noble-looking, handsome man appeared in the army formation.

"In fact, you have no reason to fight for them or to give your lives for them."

"And I do so in my capacity as king, in the name of Caesus, the King of the Burning Flames."

As the voice echoed, the soldiers involuntarily put down their work and turned their attention to the "speech," as if the phantom and the voice had some kind of magic.

"Wow, he's so handsome!"

"I'm going to betray them."

"Is this the human form of the guy next door Keosius? I love it! This face is a work of art. The official team really knows what they're doing."

"I'm sorry, Duke Leo, you're a good person, but His Your Majesty Keosius is just too delicious."

"I've made up my mind! I'm going to surrender in a bit!"

"Ahhh, I have become His Your Majesty Keosius's prisoner."

"The players in the Kingdom faction are eating too well."

The discussions among female players, and even some male players, were quite open.

Upon hearing these treasonous words, Earl Trischka, who was supervising the army, twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth, but he had already gotten used to treating the words of these "Starfallers" as nonsense.

With the influx of players, the Bosque Duchy, which desperately needed strength, naturally took notice of these "unexpected factors." Leo Earl also began to try to recruit these immortal "Starfallers," and now there are more than five thousand such beings in the allied forces.

After all, even with the promotion, nearly half of the players did not choose North Wind Fortress as their starting point.

Trischka strode forward and pierced the Magic Crystal with a single sword strike, causing the bewitching phantom to vanish completely. This was the umpteenth time he had done this; the Wyvern often launched these things.

"Do not listen to the evil dragon's temptations!"

"Anyone found hoarding crystals will die!"

Trischka stomped hard on the debris and shouted.

"No! My Lord Keosius!!"

"Sigh, it's not pleasing to the eye again."

"Happy times are always short-lived."

"This NPC is so annoying, can't we just tell him to get lost?"

"Next time we see something this good, let's pick it up first and then sneak a peek at it at the hideout, hehe."

The players' voices of disappointment rose and fell, completely disregarding Trischka who was right next to them.

Instantly, veins bulged on Trischka's forehead as he struggled to suppress the urge to execute the Starfallers.

"Ignore these rude people."

"We need to report to His Excellency the Duke first and discuss how to deal with it."

He thought to himself with a solemn expression.

The messenger, who had fled the front lines in a panic, rushed back with news that the defenses in the east and west had completely collapsed, and the allied forces led by Loren had been annihilated. The situation was dire, and they were now the last hope for the the North.

Fortunately, this time the ally is more reliable than ever before.

Inside the tent, Grand Duke Leo's unusually somber voice rang out.

"What?"

"A large-scale rebellion has broken out in the Holy Fadlan Empire? Earl Fabric has disappeared without a trace?"

"My lord, it should be like this."

"Their spellcaster opened a portal and must have left Anzeta directly for the territory of the Fadlan Empire. They won't be able to return anytime soon."

"Damn it! Why did this happen?!"

Grand Duke Leo slammed his fist on the table in anger, but there was nothing he could do about it.

It should be noted that the Earl of Gods himself possessed legendary-level strength, and coupled with the legion he brought from Fadlan, this was an indispensable force in the "Anti-Red Dragon Alliance".

In his mind, it was even more important than the combined armies of all the the North countries.

However, with the rebellion, the Earl and his legion left without notice, and the allied forces lost an important force.

Grand Duke Leo stared intently at the parchment map on the table, clenched his fists, and whispered:

"Fortunately, we can still rely on that Silver Dragon Elder and Asmo from Mount Paradise."

"In the Battle of Strasbourg, the Red Dragon will surely come in person."

"As long as we kill him, there is still hope."

"The foundation of the the North's millennia-old heritage can also be preserved."

Once the Grand Duke had completely calmed down, Earl Trischka spoke up, saying, "Your Grace, I have come to report some intelligence."

"Come in."

Grand Duke Leo stared at him, looking weary, and asked, "Tell me, how is the situation at the front?"

Trischka observed the Duke's expression, hesitated for a moment, and then replied in a low voice, "The situation at the front is very bad."

But surprisingly, Grand Duke Leo was not angry; he simply continued to ask:

How bad is it?

"The 'first line of defense' allied forces led by Loren have been completely annihilated, and the two lines of defense on the left and right of the Carter Duchy and the Fano Duchy have also been breached. This is all the intelligence we have."

Grand Duke Leo seemed to have anticipated this, and he merely nodded slightly, showing no grief whatsoever for his second son's death.

To him, offspring were like consumables.

This is Leo Bosk, a powerful ruler who led the restoration of the Bosque Duchy, a hero who fought against the invasion of monsters, and a purely political being—and these are not contradictory.

"What a bunch of useless trash."

"However, they at least played a role by tying down some of the Embers of the Burned Kingdom's forces for us, so all the sacrifices were worthwhile."

Leo Bosk looked down at the map, drew his longsword from his waist, and pointed it at the Okaglar Plain in the center.

"The fate of the Northern United Kingdom, and even the fate of the entire Anzeta, will depend on this upcoming war."

You will win.

"That's always been the case."

Trischka stood beside him and whispered in agreement.

Duke Leo shook his head and said, "The one who will decide the victory in this war is probably not us, but those powerful beings."

He lifted the tent flap and looked out at the sky; some kind of power seemed to be gathering within the thick clouds...