The Beginning of War

"Waaah—"

At the top of the Dwarf palace, the horn forged from the shinbone of a giant beast was sounded once more, emitting a long and majestic roar.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

Dwarf messengers rode goats through the cliffs and precipices, delivering the message to Dwarf Fighter scattered throughout the land.

Immediately, all the Dwarf who heard the horn were startled and set off for the Dwarf palace.

—Finally, the army of the Embers of the Burned Empire has arrived.

The Dwarf Fighter, who had been sleeping with his hammer in his arms, was suddenly awakened. He spat fiercely before skillfully donning his meticulously crafted armor.

The Dwarf, who was mining gold in the mine, wiped the sweat from his brow and resolutely turned back the way he came.

The Dwarf craftsmen, constantly hammering metal in their Blacksmith Shop, also dipped their red-hot knives into the water. The icy water instantly boiled, making a crackling sound. "The Embers of the Burned Empire, huh? What a formidable force. No wonder they were able to conquer North Aisel."

As Ed gazed at the vast, seemingly natural disaster-like imperial army advancing into the distance, he couldn't help but sigh with genuine emotion.

Thinking of this, he lowered his head and gave a bitter smile, "I was worried that letting Zane evacuate was a mistake, but now it seems that our chances of winning are indeed extremely slim."

In his centuries-long life, Ed had never seen an army like this.

Behind him, the Dwarf minister Bjorn calmly stepped forward and reassured him, "Your Majesty, why should you worry? We have made all the necessary preparations. Now all we can do is to do our best, and as for how things develop, let our descendants take care of it."

Ed smiled and said, "However, I'd like to see just how far we can go. At the very least, we need to let these Evil Dragon Kin know that the Dwarf are a tough nut to crack!" He thought for a moment, then asked, "Have they made contact with the Father God at the Dwarf altar?"

Bjorn shook his head and sighed, "Still no news. It's said that in response to the Blackstone Mountain Battle, the Orc Pantheon launched an attack on our Dwarven Pantheon, cutting off all passages from the divine realm to the Material Plane."

Ed looked up at the sky, a look of helplessness on his face. "It seems that this time, we can only rely on ourselves."

The renowned "Lord of the High Mountains" gripped his warhammer tightly, feeling the power surging within him, a resolute light shining in his eyes.

Unbeknownst to them, the Dwarf Fighter, following the sound of the horns, had rushed from all directions of Avendell Dan and even the High Mountain Kingdom, gathering in the square where the towering Moratop statue stood.

The elderly, women, and children were mostly evacuated from Avendell Dan under the leadership of Prince Zane. The Dwarf who remain are the elite of the High Mountain Kingdom, the bravest and most fearless Dwarf Fighter.

"Is the dragon's army coming?"

"Where are they? I'm going to smash them all to pieces! Those orcish bastards are disturbing my peaceful dreams at a time like this."

"Exactly, it's never going to end! I was forging a longsword when I was startled by the horn, and the blank in my hand was completely destroyed!"

The square was filled with a cacophony of noise as the Dwarf whispered and chatted amongst themselves, showing no sign of the pre-battle tension. They even began to gossip about everyday matters.

Ed lowered his head, his gaze sweeping over the rough, bearded faces with their varied expressions. As the Lord of the High Mountains, he knew these Dwarf all too well—he could even call each of them by name.

These are his people, his Fighter, and those who would die alongside him.

Like most Dwarf, they are rude, savage, and unrestrained, but they also possess hearts more stubborn than rocks and purer than gemstones.

For over a hundred years, he has always fulfilled his responsibilities as king, working with his people to resist the invasion of foreign enemies. Neither the Holy Fadlan, the Hill Giant, nor the Orc Legion could subdue the Dwarf.

Now, Ed is about to lead his people into a battle that seems almost impossible to win.

Looking down at the Dwarf Fighter, Ed remained silent for a long time before solemnly speaking, "Children of mountains and rocks, people of the High Mountain Kingdom, war has come!"

The Dwarf king raised his warhammer and pointed it to the distant horizon—where dark, cloud-like shadows had already appeared.

"Look, there are our enemies, the Evil Dragon Kin from the north. They swept through North Aisel months ago, and now they want to conquer us! They want to seize our fortresses, trample our homes, plunder our wealth, and enslave our people. Tell me—can we allow this to happen?"

"Cannot!"

Smash their heads!

"A bunch of orcish bastards, mongrel bastards! How dare they attack our fortress! I'll teach them a lesson they won't forget!"

The Dwarf were filled with rage, letting out angry war cries and vying to express their disgust and disdain for the empire.

"Yes, we absolutely cannot allow it!"

Ed looked at the Dwarf' angry faces, pointed to the ground beneath his feet, and said in a deep voice, "Blackstone Mountain, this is the home of us Shield Dwarves for thousands of years, the place where our ancestors lived."

We mine for ore and forge weapons in these mountains; they are Dwarf greatest treasure, and now we must give them everything.

Finally, the Dwarf king raised his warhammer high, his eyes blazing with the fury of the mountains, and roared with all his might, "For Avendell Dan!"

"For Avendell Dan!"

"By Moradin, Father God, fight for the Shield Dwarves, fight for Avendell Dan!"

The Dwarf raised their warhammers and giant axes, letting out deafening shouts as heavy as the roar of mountains.

Meanwhile, the Empire's army was cheering for the Embers of the Burned Empire and for their Emperor, and was rapidly advancing towards Avendell Dan.

On one side is the invaded, and on the other is the aggressor; the two sides of this impending war have surprisingly found a subtle resonance at this moment.

"Quickly, set up all the fortifications. We will make those arrogant Evil Dragon Kin pay the price!"

"Gentlemen, are all the ballistae installed?"

"Who moved the stones from this bunker? Who did it? That orc bastard!"

"."

The Dwarf Fighter gathered in the southern part of Avendell Dan, busily building fortifications and installing defensive equipment.

For thousands of years, the Dwarf' greatest threat has been the orcs to the north. As a result, their city defenses have mostly been located on the north side. Over time, compared to the well-maintained north wall, the south wall has become much weaker.

Fortunately, Avendell Dan is built against the mountain, giving it a natural advantage of being easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Just like in the north, the south requires traversing a long, narrow valley before reaching the actual walls of Avendell Dan.

Most invaders were blocked outside the "Path of Glory," unable even to enter the outskirts of Avendell Dan, let alone conquer this fortified stronghold.

As the Dwarf were busy at work, they suddenly heard muffled rumbling, roaring, and countless other noises coming from the plains outside.

What was that noise?

"Quick, look!"

"What are you doing? Don't bother me. I'm just wondering how to mount this catapult on it," said the old Dwarf, Kord, who was engrossed in designing the mechanism, as he was patted on the shoulder.

As a renowned master craftsman, Kord had a heavy responsibility, as he was in charge of a large area of city defense.

But the Dwarf did not stop, his tone growing increasingly fearful and astonished. "That's... the army of the Embers of the Burned Empire? That's the dragon's retinue?"

Seeing his companion's reaction, Kord finally realized that something was wrong.

The Dwarf looked out with some curiosity, but his mouth dropped open as he saw a sight he would never forget—on the earth, one after another, steel behemoths roared forward, raising billowing clouds of dust.

In the sky, the Wyvern flapped their wings, forming dense clouds that almost covered half the sky, casting dappled shadows on the earth.

"Father God Moradin, how can there be such an army!" Kord couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"Moradin!"

"God, what... what is this thing? Is this our enemy?"

The Dwarf along the Path of Glory stared in disbelief at the approaching imperial army, their bearded faces showing rare expressions of shock and fear.

"No, don't worry, our Dwarf ' equipment is invincible!" Kord tried to remain calm, barely managing to reassure his companion.

"Yes, yes, no matter what they are, as long as they enter this Path of Glory, they will be killed by our cleverly designed traps!"

"They can't possibly capture Avendell Dan!"

These Dwarf live deep in the mountains year-round, with little contact with the outside world, and are unaware of the dramatic changes that the Empire's military-industrial complex has brought to the world in recent years.

But soon, they will understand everything at the cost of blood.

The Steam Tank gathered in front of the valley, surrounding the entrance like undulating mountains. The "Path of Glory" in the south of the city was also quite narrow, only wide enough for two tanks to pass side by side.

But for the Imperial forces—that was enough.

Dror stood atop the "Emperor's Wrath" tank, holding a megaphone, and shouted towards Avendell Dan: "Dwarf, you'd better be smart and surrender to the Empire as soon as possible."

"If you surrender before the battle, His Majesty the Great Embers of the Burned Emperor Keosius will spare your lives and lead you to a bright future."

The Hobgoblin was not very enthusiastic about persuading them to surrender. Although he said so, he did not want the Dwarf of the High Mountain Kingdom to surrender.

After all, conquering the enemy and taking prisoners are two completely different kinds of merit. The former is the pride of the empire, while the latter is a job that even a fool could do.

Although unwilling, Dror continued reading from the prepared statement provided by the Imperial Parliament: "The Embers of the Burned Empire's visit to Avendell Dan is primarily to uphold fairness and justice on the Fiansu Continent, to protect the Dwarf here, and to completely eradicate the orcs in the north."

Yes, protection.

A few days ago, the Embers of the Burned Empire issued a formal declaration of war against the High Mountain Dwarf Kingdom, believing that they were no longer able to resist the orcs from the north.

At this point, it is necessary to allow the more powerful Embers of the Burned Empire to settle in Avendell Dan, so that the continent can usher in true peace and be spared from the orcs' southward invasion.

This war letter, written in a grand and dignified manner, infuriated many of the Dwarf ministers, who denounced it as treating them like fools, claiming that the damned dragon was clearly after the Dwarf ' treasure!

But they didn't know that in Keosius's mind, destroying the High Mountain Dwarf Kingdom was just a matter of convenience—the main enemy was still those Green-skinned Orcs.

"Shut up!"

A deafening roar echoed through the valley, and a gigantic Dwarf's face slowly emerged from the steep rock face.

Thousands of meters away, Ed pressed his hand against the rock face, his whole body radiating an earthy yellow light. He resonated his spirit and body with Blackstone Mountain, using the power of the mountains to make his voice heard.

However, at this moment, the Dwarf king was filled with indignation, his hair and beard bristling, clearly enraged by the blatant provocation of the Embers of the Burned Empire.

"Damn Evil Dragon Kin, stop with your shameless tricks! These words aren't even hypocritical, they just make me laugh!"

I tell you, Avendell Dan will never yield, the High Mountain Dwarf Kingdom will never yield, and the great Shield Dwarves race will never yield!

Ed's voice Earth-Shattering, greatly boosting the morale of the Dwarf, who cheered loudly. This was their king, the true Son of the Mountains!

"For the Lord of the High Mountains!"

"Shield Dwarves will never yield!"

Upon seeing this scene, Dror grinned maliciously, nodded in satisfaction, drew his saber from his waist, and pointed it at Avendell Dan in the distance.

"In that case, my fellow citizens—destroy them!"

In an instant, accompanied by the billowing steam, the steel behemoths let out a deep, rumbling roar and began to advance toward Avendell Dan, while the muzzles of their machine guns suddenly burst forth with dazzling tongues of fire.

Bullets rained down on the Path of Glory, catching the Dwarf hiding in the caves with crossbows off guard and turning them into sieves in an instant.

The Dwarf were indeed Life Force resilient, but they were still flesh and blood and couldn't withstand a barrage of machine gun fire. In just one exchange, they paid a terrible price.

The Dwarf knew little about the Embers of the Burned Legion, but the Empire had detailed information on Avendell Dan, including its secret passages, and knew exactly where they were hiding.

The master craftsman, Kord, was now trembling behind the fortifications, his earlier smugness completely gone. "How could it be when we were still hundreds of meters apart?"

He could only watch helplessly as his comrades fell one by one, bleeding profusely, riddled with bullet holes, and wailing in agony, while he was powerless to do anything about it.

Moreover, not only the Dwarf were riddled with bullet holes, but the cave walls were also riddled with bullet holes, with shards of rock flying everywhere. Such destructive power far exceeded that of the crossbow bolts he had made.

Such things are commonplace in the Empire's legions.

Kord was in despair.