Two days later, Elwin and the Radiant Legion finally struggled out of the remote mountains and reached Karthus's border.
Or rather, what used to be the border.
By now, the area had long since become a battlefield contested by the Imperium and Karthus. They weren't even sure which side currently controlled it, so they had no choice but to rest for a while in a mountain hollow thick with tall, dense vegetation.
On the way here, after their fierce battle with the Imperium's Azure Dragon Knights, they had run into one problem after another: savage tribes that seemed to crop up endlessly, evil monsters, and all sorts of beasts lurking in the jungle.
After forced marches and a string of battles, their once-mighty Radiant Legion, which had numbered over a thousand, was now down to fewer than six hundred.
They had lost more than half their force and were utterly exhausted. Worse still, they had yet to catch even a glimpse of the Holy Sword they had set out to find.
"..."
Standing beneath the dense canopy and feeling the cool shade, Sherry felt just as cold inside. She looked around at the troops she had brought with her, and sorrow welled up within her. For a moment, she didn't know what to say.
When she left, she had sworn to her father that she would complete the mission in a spectacular fashion and return with the vital Holy Sword to help them fight the Imperium's emperor, Bernhardt, and that terrifying evil Magic Sword.
But in the end...
They had gained nothing at all from this expedition, apart from losing men and suffering defeat!
The more she thought about it, the more frustrated and miserable she became. Without even realizing it, she glared fiercely at the back of Jessica, the