This dungeon has mushrooms growing on it.

Chapter 334. Doubt
As Alama walked out of the communication room, the complex communication equipment behind him gradually dimmed and eventually fell silent, leaving only a barely audible hum of magical afterglow.

He was not optimistic about the bill that had been hotly debated in parliament earlier, which concerned incorporating the "Puji Division" system into the military structure.

Unlike some of his colleagues, he was not worried about the potential risks of so-called "parasitism"; his considerations were purely pragmatic.

In his view, while the number of Puji that a Puji Master can control is enormous, their individual strength is generally low, and at most they can only fill the gaps in the lowest level of the army's combat power.

Admittedly, effectively replenishing the ranks of lower-ranking soldiers is not a bad thing. However, the problem is that these soldiers, besides being weak, also have many troublesome limitations.

The most fatal aspect is the fungal carpet.

Once outside the creep's range, these seemingly convenient monsters will quickly die due to the depletion of their magic power.

This means that they can essentially only serve as a defensive force in fixed areas and are almost impossible to use for any form of proactive attack or remote deployment.

As is well known, the core of the Puji Fungus Creep, "Mushroom Capital," is located at the southernmost tip of the kingdom, while the "High Fortress" it guards controls the throat of the northernmost border.

The two are far apart, separated by the heart of the kingdom and the ever-present threat of an imperial army; there's really no one to rely on.

This is why he seemed somewhat disinterested throughout the lengthy parliamentary session and found it difficult to muster any real interest.

Duke Alama strolled up the thick walls of the High Castle fortress.

His gaze swept across the war-torn wasteland, finally settling firmly on the menacing, dark red building with its scarlet spire on the horizon.

It was like a sword hanging over the kingdom, forcing Alama to remain there year-round.

"Is there any situation?" Alama asked.

"My lord!" The adjutant stepped forward quickly and saluted, his voice muffled by the strong wind. "There are still only some ordinary small-scale skirmishes. Our scouts and observation crystals have not detected any signs of large-scale mobilization of the Imperial army."

Alama's brow furrowed even more.

The lack of unusual activity is not good news, as it is completely contrary to common sense.

He knew that the vampire duke Eleanor from the Empire had also been sent to the front lines to assist Sigismund, and the army was stationed not far to the west of the spire, as could be seen from the range of the canopy released by the spire to block out the sunlight.

With his forces reinforced, Sigismund, given his nature, should have seized the opportunity to launch a fierce offensive.

Alama has made ample preparations for this!
The seven towering magic towers outside the fortress were fully charged at their energy cores; the grain, arrows, and alchemical potions stockpiled in the warehouses were enough to sustain a siege that would last for months; he even mobilized a fresh force despite the strain on the northern front, ready to face a bloody defensive battle at any moment.

The results of it?
The area across the street was as quiet as a cemetery.

This unusual calm made Alama more uneasy than the sound of war drums.

He knew Sigmund too well, just as Sigmund knew him extremely well.

That enemy was despicable, insidious, cunning, and cruel, and would stop at nothing to achieve his goals, but in his dictionary full of conspiracies, you would never find the words "passive" or "cowardly".

The more the imperial army remained inactive, the more Alama sensed the turbulent undercurrents beneath the calm surface.

Sigismund must be plotting something; there must be an unseen, deadly storm gathering strength in the shadow of the Crimson Spire.

"Pass down the order," Alama commanded his adjutant behind him, "Raise the alert level of all outposts to the highest level. Tell the mages not to hold back their magic power and to continuously scan every inch of the land around the fortress, especially underground! Also, have the knights prepare!"

The adjutant looked up in astonishment, confirming incredulously, "Sir, do you mean... to take the initiative?" "I'll go find out about that new vampire duke!" Alama said decisively.

"Sir, this could very well be a trap!" the adjutant hurriedly warned.

“That’s better than being trapped in the city, unable to figure out the enemy’s intentions.” Alama didn’t give his adjutant a chance to dissuade him any further, resolutely turned around, and strode down the city wall.

At midnight, the vampires are at their strongest, but also at their most relaxed.

Alama personally led his most elite Hemlock Knights, under the cover of large-scale magic, in a surprise attack on Eleanor's position.

then……

Big win!

Eleanor's troops seemed completely unprepared for the attacking side to be ambushed!
Alama and the Hemlock Knights easily tore through the outer defenses, which consisted of slaves and a small number of half-vampires, and advanced deep into the territory.

They charged through the enemy lines twice, deliberately avoiding the strongest central army camp, but still managed to turn half the camp upside down and kill countless demons.

Finally, after a brief but fierce clash with the Blood Knights who arrived late from the Crimson Spire, Alama led his troops back to the fortress in an orderly fashion.

Looking at the victorious and high-spirited knights, the adjutant clicked his tongue, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

However, there was no joy on Alama's face.

The number of Hemlock Knights was limited, and although the raid was successful, it was far from enough to cripple the enemy.

More importantly, after this test, his doubts only deepened.

The newcomer, Eleanor, is of unknown personal ability, but he is clearly a novice in military command, a fact he has already roughly figured out.

Future military operations can primarily target her; she can be both an asset and a weakness for Sigismund!

What really puzzled Alama was... what exactly was going on with his old rival, Sigismund?

Why was the response so slow?

As Alama had originally planned, when he led his army into the position, the Blood Knights on the other side of the spire should have quickly moved out to intercept him, leaving him with a very narrow window to retreat.

But that wasn't the case!
Moreover, in that brief encounter with the Blood Knights, they seemed to lack a leader, their actions were somewhat sluggish, as if Sigismund himself was not commanding the army.

However, given Sigismund's past record of disguising himself as an ordinary knight to carry out sneak attacks, Alama did not linger in battle as a precaution.

However, the doubts in my mind only grew bigger and bigger.

Although this move could very well lead to a trap, after careful consideration, he decided to gradually escalate the confrontation to force his opponent to reveal their weaknesses.

……

"Sigismund!" Inside the crimson spire, the pervasive scent of blood was almost shattered by the sharp roar!
Duke Eleanor angrily confronted Sigismund, who had never left the Crimson Spire.

(End of this chapter)