Uncle here isn't your average office worker!

Islam Vitti nodded: "Twenty thousand men. With the military prowess of the Kazimirs, twenty thousand warriors are more than enough to deal with the vanguard. But we cannot let this opportunity slip by. Your Majesty, who is the commander of this battle? You should severely punish him to demonstrate your authority."

“It’s not 20,000, it’s less than that,” Fyodor interrupted.

Witt paused, somewhat incredulous, and said, "Two thousand men? Who is their commander? Could it be that the Grand Knight Commander has personally led the Silver Spear Pegasus to the front lines?"

Fyodor didn't answer Witte's question. Instead, he covered his face and sighed, "(⊙﹏⊙) Less."

Witt couldn't help but stand up, his lips and beard trembling slightly: "Two hundred men? Cyril Nearl has been resurrected?"

“Lord Islam, you can be even bolder.”

At this point, Fyodor suddenly calmed down. He held up two fingers and waved them in front of Witt's eyes, saying in a tone that was both incredibly complex and somewhat expectant:

"I'm comparing real numbers. Two people."

"Two people!!!" Islam Witt shouted, his voice almost cracking. "Did they fucking dig the Witch King out of his grave?"

Upon hearing the profanity, Fyodor's expression immediately brightened, and he continued, "One of them is seriously injured and is in a wheelchair."

"Damn trash, give me back my army!"

Good, well said! You worthless bastards, give me back my army!

I wasn't the only one who broke down; even Fyodor's sorrowful mood eased considerably.

After a torrent of abuse, Islam Witt forcibly suppressed his anger, looked intently at Fyodor, and said excitedly:

"Your Majesty, the opportunity has arrived! This humiliating defeat must be taken into account!"

"Cleanse them!"

Volume 1: Chapter 169 What's going on? Are we still fighting?

Such a humiliating defeat will undoubtedly become the hottest military topic in Ursus for months, even years to come. Just as Fyodor said, although the cause of this incident seems to have nothing to do with him, the emperor, he will certainly have to clean up the mess in the end. This will inevitably lead to the emperor losing face.

But crisis can also be an opportunity. Islam Witt saw it as a once-in-a-lifetime chance, an opportunity to ruthlessly suppress, and even purge, the pro-war faction and the old aristocracy.

Defeat will enrage the people, destabilize the military, and reshuffle the political landscape. Those who orchestrated this military operation will inevitably pay the price. What he and the emperor need to do is to expand the scope of this price as much as possible in order to achieve a deeper goal.

News of the complete defeat of the Third Army Group soon arrived from the Emperor's Blade, but this time, Fyodor and Islam Witte were no longer shocked and angry as they had been when they first heard of the defeat. They looked at each other, feeling a little sad, but more than that, they were excited.

That morning, the somber tolling of bells summoning courtiers and council echoed throughout St. Arthur's Keep. The summoned nobles and councilors awoke with a start, heading bewildered towards the tranquil fortress in the city center. A storm that would profoundly impact Ursus and even Terra in the future began to gather. At the eye of this storm, Fyodor and Islam Witt finally learned the title of the man who would bring such immense change to Ursus—the Knight of the End.

Your popularity is rising.

Roy was in a fairly good mood. He was stationed in the center of the army, surrounded by several knights, with Marna and Margaret walking beside him, their hands constantly on their sword hilts, like dutiful guards. Such treatment would have been unimaginable in the past. But now, it was Marna who had taken the initiative to make the request.

“We only have a mere six hundred men left, while we have captured over forty thousand Ursus soldiers. Do you know what that means?”

"That's what Marna said," Roy thought for a moment and figured it was probably the concept of "even if you scattered 40,000 pigs, you couldn't catch them all in a day."

In any military history of Terra, even with this number of slaves, if there were any unrest or rebellion, it would be extremely difficult for these six hundred men to suppress them, let alone the fact that these were elite Ursus soldiers, including many powerful Originium sorcerers. The reason they dared not rebel was largely because Roy was there.

Having witnessed firsthand the sun-like magical attack that swiftly cleaved their war fortress and the land in two, their fear of Roy had reached a point where it could "stop a child from crying at night." But this was also a risk; if Roy was not there, or if he were dead, they might not be so easily convinced.

Therefore, someone like Marner would go to the trouble of acting as a bodyguard, and even bring Margaret along. Although he also had some other motives.

Regardless of whether we knew each other before or not, we should get to know each other now, right?

Margaret, being straightforward, didn't see through Marna's thoughts. She just felt that what Marna said made sense, so she agreed to the task.

He really wanted to ask Roy what was going on with that move just now, and why she had to cooperate to use it, but after thinking about it, he figured it was probably Roy's secret, so he didn't ask.

But her silence doesn't mean Roy has nothing to say.

Roy was very curious about Margaret. Although he had met many "old acquaintances" since his transmigration, Margaret's figure and temperament still gave him quite a shock.

Her tall and muscular physique, which is definitely among the tallest and most robust women, does not detract from her beauty at all; on the contrary, it adds to her reliable aura. Margaret's features can definitely be described as sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, exuding a heroic spirit, yet one can also sense a touch of youthful naiveté. She is like a collection of contradictions, possessing the perseverance of a soldier, the generosity of an older brother, and the liveliness of a young girl and the gentleness of an older sister.

We usually use this term to describe someone with such qualities—the protagonist.

Margaret truly deserves to be called the protagonist of Kazimierz. Whether it's her family background, her qualities, her connections, or her experiences, she possesses everything a protagonist should have. It can be said that if anyone could single-handedly change what is happening in Kazimierz, that person would definitely be Margaret.

Unfortunately, Roy and Margaret are not facing a small Kazimierz, or even the "land" people talk about, but a much larger threat from the ocean, from the ice fields, from the sky and the universe.

Therefore, Roy's first formal conversation with Margaret was not about explaining misunderstandings, nor was it about smooth talk; rather, it was a serious question:

"Margaret Nearl, have you encountered an organization called Rhodes Island, or met someone named Kal'tsit?"

Margaret was slightly taken aback.

..............

Kazimir, the base of Silver Spear Pegasus Light.

Staring at the completely black screen, Wright still looked somewhat dazed.

Just now, Grand Knight Commander Russell officially ended his communication with him. Leaving aside the military deployment and battle plans, what lingered in Wright's mind was her last sentence before she hung up:

"If the situation gets to the worst point, preserving the strength of Silver Spear Pegasus must be the top priority. I authorize you to abandon the mobile city and withdraw the defensive line."

This is no simple order. Mobile cities are the lifeblood of a nation. Abandoning a mobile city is tantamount to handing over the mobile city and the territory covered by its flight path. Kazimierz is not Victoria; it doesn't have that many cities to abandon.

Besides, the fight hasn't even started yet, so why are you already thinking about giving up?

He didn't want to obey, but a soldier's duty is to obey. Even though he was extremely unwilling, he could only stand up, walk to the door, and inform the members of the Silver Spear Pegasus Knights. He dared not entrust the message of this order to a messenger, because if the message were leaked, it would have a devastating impact on the morale of the front lines.

But as soon as he pushed open the door, the cheers and noise from the street forcibly roused him from his gloomy mood.

He looked at the crowded streets and the citizens still pouring into the streets, his face full of bewilderment:

"What happened?"

"Huh? Sir, why are you still standing here? There's been a great victory at the front, everyone's rushing to the city gate to see the prisoners!"

"A great victory? What great victory?"

Wright's pupils were somewhat unfocused. What? This isn't right, is it?

What great victory? What's wrong with you all? I haven't even started fighting yet, and the first thing I heard was that I had to abandon the city and retreat. I haven't even fought a single battle, and now you're telling me about a great victory at the front? Is the entire battle being commanded by automated systems?

What should I believe? Is this war even going to go on?

Filled with suspicion, Wright followed the excited soldiers and hurried toward the city entrance.

Volume 1: Chapter 170 A Twist of Fate

The deafening sound of gongs and drums, the crackling of firecrackers, the fluttering of red flags, and the sea of ​​people—these classic adjectives will never go out of style.

Outside the city of Magyar, people who were rooted in the mobile city and would never leave these high walls in their entire lives were now rushing to the city gates to witness a scene that many of them would never see in their lifetime.

The Knights of Chesper were already on the scene maintaining order, but their limited manpower was struggling against the almost boundless enthusiasm of the crowd. The surging crowd nearly overwhelmed the knight with his hands raised, tossing him into the air. The seasoned veterans of the Knights of Johnson, clearly more experienced in such situations, had already positioned themselves at the back. After the Knights of Chesper had shielded them from the first wave of the crowd's onslaught, they, as if prepared, pulled out pre-prepared megaphones and loudly announced:

"The first artillery formation of the Third Army of Ursus is now approaching us."

The crowd cheered again, as if the newcomers were not vicious Ursus invaders, but a ceremonial contingent for a military parade.

Wright stared blankly at the scene before him, feeling dizzy and as if he were in a dream.

Did we win?

He couldn't believe it. It was a pity that there was no famous Trojan Horse story on Terra, otherwise he would have suspected that these Ursus people were trying to stage a feigned surrender and then launch a counterattack.

Just, why?

He stood on the city wall, his gaze sweeping over the dejected Ursus people below. They didn't have many wounds, and some even looked like they had only soiled their clothes without any injury. None of them were carrying weapons, but anyone would know that such a large group of Ursus professional soldiers, even without weapons, could be deadly to the civilian onlookers in hand-to-hand combat.

But they showed no intention of making any move.

Wright couldn't understand it. He noticed that all the Ursus soldiers shared the same emotion—despair. This despondency was so palpable that it seemed as if a dark cloud had descended upon them, suffocating them. This was a sign of utterly broken morale; only in this way could an entire organized army, while still physically capable of fighting, willingly lay down its weapons and become prisoners.

Who turned them into this?

Wright took a deep breath and looked towards the end of the seemingly endless Ursus formation. There he saw a small empty area, the only one in the entire formation that seemed to be avoided by all the Ursus people.

He knew that the person who caused all of this must be somewhere right now.

Regardless of who he was, Wright expressed his heartfelt admiration, while also saying with concern, "I hope everything goes well for you from now on."

A day later, news of the Knights' great victory over the enemy at the White Wave River spread throughout the streets and alleys of Kazimierz, becoming the headline of every newspaper.

Three days later, Ursus was in turmoil. News of several nobles committing suicide out of guilt for the defeat spread rapidly throughout the land.

A week later, throughout Terra, from the wilderness of Columbia to the pitch-black mines of Rembito, from the northern plains guarded by Samisheth to the desert overlooked by King Sargon, everyone began to talk about a momentous event worthy of being recorded in the annals of mysticism—what kind of magic created the Great Cross Rift of the White Wave River, and who exactly cast the spell?

Meanwhile, Roy had already embarked on his journey to Drip Village with Margaret.

He offered all the accolades and rewards from the Grand Knights to Marna, who, unusually, accepted them. He knew very well that what Roy needed most at that moment was someone to share the credit and burden with him.

If a title of competitive knight and Pegasus Knight could still make Roy merely a "celebrity" in the Kazimierz night sky, then now, titles like "Savior of Kazimierz" and "Hero of the White Wave River" are absolutely enough to elevate Roy into the Hall of Fame.

Some might wonder, wouldn't that be better? It would boost Roy's profile and elevate his status. If a real crisis were to occur in the future, Roy would be someone who could have a say. Why not?

From Kazimierz's perspective alone, that's certainly true. Thanks to the reach of new media like the internet, Roy's current fame and popularity far surpasses even Cyril Nearl's. It's safe to say that if Roy were to declare now, "I want to be the Grand Consul of Kazimierz!", a huge crowd would undoubtedly rally in support. But so what?

The combined might of Casimir's silver spears and Pegasus, and Letania's golden law guards, couldn't even withstand a single day from Hai Si. Even if Roy were to use this to enter politics and gradually gain control of all of Casimir, he would still be powerless against Hai Si's threat. Not to mention, if he were to actually do so, how would the Supervisory Council, which now regards him as a hero, and the Commercial Federation, which treasures him, react? They would not relinquish their positions and power, inevitably dragging Roy into an endless vortex of political struggle, which was certainly not Roy's intention.

While that might be an exaggeration, the key to saving Terra lies with just a few individuals. First, Skadi, the newborn inhabitant; second, Kal'tsit, the all-knowing one; and third, the otherworldly being, Suigetsu. The rest—no matter their royal status, their lineage, or even if they are suspected ancient humans, Roy's only possible spiritual kin—the Doctor himself—cannot play a decisive role.

Regardless of who they are, their fates ultimately converge at one place: Rhodes Island, the final destination of Roy and Skadi's journey and Margaret's starting point.

Only this place, Roy must go there in person; only Kal'tsit, Roy must meet in person.

With the [Kal'tsit's Riddle] module, he didn't believe he couldn't translate the old lynx's riddle.

That being said, this doesn't mean Roy should casually give up all the credit, fame, and power he's worked so hard to earn in Kazimierz. Since he can't be there in person, he can only choose someone capable enough, someone he knows well enough, and someone he can trust to help him. And that person, without a doubt, can only be Marna.

Maria is still young, Margaret will eventually leave, Zofia's ambitions lie elsewhere, the Blood Knight is infected, the Candle Knight is too idealistic, and the Unarmored Alliance is shrouded in darkness. Only Marna has status, position, strength, and morality, and is a lifelong friend of Roy, making her trustworthy and reliable.