"Boom!"
A violent explosion erupted at the designated impact point. Under the relentless bombardment of more than thirty heavy cannons, the insect nest in the forward battle zone was quickly engulfed in blazing flames.
As the bombardment continued, fully armed Plantagenet knights raised their banners and led elite musketeers swiftly toward the nest. Once the shelling ended, they would follow their respective commanders deep into the nest to deal with the dangerous monsters lurking inside.
The crests on the knights' breastplates showed that they belonged to the Greeny Legion. They were the finest force under King Louis and a symbol of the Plantagenet Kingdom's valor. The veteran Imperial Guard had proven themselves worthy of the name.
Over the past few days, they had already destroyed two small nests. The one before them was the largest—and last—monster nest in Anjou.
Though they certainly couldn't match the Transians' absurdly powerful arsenal, the goldflame flamethrowers the Plantagenet Kingdom had acquired from the halflings were just as effective for hunting insects. They also had armed airships providing fire support. Most importantly, Anjou's convenient rail network allowed the veteran Imperial Guard to deploy rapidly.
They faced no logistical pressures on their own turf. All the soldiers needed to do was draw courage from the people's blessings and attack the damned insects that had appeared out of nowhere.
But General Fleming, the veteran Imperial Guard's frontline commander, couldn't bring himself to feel pleased.
It wasn't just because his troops had suffered heavy losses over the past few days. More importantly, with the keen eye a commander needed, he had realized that the insects before him were getting harder and harder to deal with.
When they attacked the first small nest, the soldiers had been able to keep the cannon-fodder bugs in check with blades and firearms.