A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 518 Under the Sky

Since acquiring "safe air-floating gases," the Empire's airships have been put into more active use.

After the Imperial Army penetrated deep into enemy territory and unexpectedly engaged in fierce fighting with the National Guard, the airship force accelerated its flight and deployed to the front line despite the severe weather, attempting to replace the role of artillery and deliver a devastating blow to the enemy from the sky.

Unfortunately, their scheme will not succeed.

All the airships requisitioned from the central port area took off. Most of them had not even undergone military modifications, but they were equipped with the most dangerous weapons—spellcasters.

When the two sides met, an imperial airship was destroyed without warning, and the accompanying mages on the ground immediately realized that Valuwa's companions were on the airship.

If spellcasters on the current battlefield choose to conceal themselves to avoid being marked as key targets, then the sky might be an exception for now. The airspace is a layer that ground troops cannot reach, and clearly neither the Imperial Army nor the Valuans have the experience to deal with it or the corresponding anti-aircraft weapons.

Realizing this, the Imperial airships urgently descended and extended ropes to roam, while the public channel of the [Radio Communication] spell began calling on the accompanying mages to immediately transfer to the airships to protect their own forces and fight the enemy.

The flying spellcaster simply took to the air, and sure enough, Valuwa's companions had been waiting for a long time.

Mages, chasing each other, patrolled the airship. Those who could maneuver freely in the air were no ordinary people. They threw deadly spells at each other, while more low-level mages and even apprentices relied on the airship platform for protection, as well as to protect and enchant all the weapons on board.

In an instant, the airships of both sides seemed to be fighting a naval battle from an old era. The slow speed of the airships was just like that of a large sailboat whose speed was limited by the wind, and their firepower—whether it was the weapons carried by the airships or the projectiles and rays from the mages—was the most ferocious from the side.

Therefore, the famous "T-shaped tactic" can be seen from the sky, where a squadron of airships cuts across the bow of the enemy ship and launches a fierce attack.

From the ground, when all the airships met each other sideways, they would shoot out dazzling lights, including scorching red, dangerous and mysterious blue-purple energy, and various shields would unfold, causing the sky, still shrouded in rain, to flicker frequently.

Valois's airship suddenly accelerated and flew towards the Imperial airship.

The Imperial airships, targeted by the enemy, were not afraid. They had discovered that these large Valuans were, in essence, civilian vehicles, and were not as fast or maneuverable as the Imperial's standard armed boats.

The crew members, already bloodthirsty from the battle, had no intention of maneuvering to evade. Instead, they raised the shields on their skins, prepared to unleash magic, and adopted a "who's afraid of who" attitude. They even accelerated towards the enemy ship, trying to seize the "T position".

"Wait! Take off! Ascend or descend, damn it!"

As the Imperial airships successfully seized the T-position and prepared to unleash a volley of fire on the oncoming airships, some noticed that the Valuwa people were jumping off the airships one after another. Some had parachutes, while others cast the [Featherfall] spell on themselves. Mages with enhanced vision even saw enemies jumping out of the airships and giving them the middle finger.

The Empire's airships were upgraded very early, which made them subconsciously overlook one thing: the gasbags of the old airships were filled with high-explosive lightweight fuel.

Ironically, none of Valois's "aerial bombs" had been detonated during the confrontation. Perhaps they had updated their protection methods to make the airbags more secure and reliable, but there was no doubt that the deadly aerial delivery speeding towards them must have deactivated these measures.

"There's still some distance, take it down quickly! Hurry!"

Just as the Imperial airship commander shouted, a burst of light suddenly flashed across the entire body of the "self-destructing ship" from front to back. In the blink of an eye, the distance between the two ships was suddenly reduced by a tiny bit.

"That little bit," yet so deadly.

The first dazzling fireworks of the aerial battle erupted, and the rapidly spreading combustion gases instantly engulfed the two aerial behemoths. They were now completely entangled, burning, deforming, and falling together.

Several more airships crashed in succession. In Valois, some airships had their gasbags punctured and exploded without taking the others down with them.

Regardless, these civilian airships have served their purpose to the fullest extent; without their sacrifice, the enemy's aerial behemoths would roam freely overhead, patrolling and dropping bombs. Now they are locked in a fierce struggle, simultaneously draining the spellcaster's resources.

"Is that so? Okay." At the front, Major General Hench received a final report from an airship. It observed from high altitude that an army that did not seem to be Valuwa was approaching the battlefield. Leading the way was a large cavalry unit with seemingly retro equipment, followed by soldiers dressed mainly in bright red, which were particularly conspicuous.

"It's the army of Istani." Richard Hench checked the map, predicting where the newly joined force might be deployed.

"It's too long, our front line is too long." He hadn't expected the National Guard to be fighting simultaneously along a front of over two hundred kilometers, putting immense pressure on the Imperial Army's logistics. And when he pushed the symbol representing the Istank people to the front lines, his pupils suddenly contracted.

Their target, of course, is the royal hunting grounds, the confluence of the two rivers!

The Valuans remained firmly entrenched in this position. Although the troops had been rotated twice, Galishia had already committed a total of ten legions to this key point, with four and a half legions currently continuing to resist. Similarly, the Imperial forces above them had reinforced the "wedge" with three legions to the east and two to the west, but unfortunately, they were unable to break through.

The newly added forces on the battlefield will act like a "hammer," providing support to the "wedge" embedded in the Imperial battle line. If this wave of impact cannot be withstood, the Imperial battle line may even collapse from this focal point!

The cautious Hench immediately turned his gaze to other parts of the map, scanning each of the Imperial Army's markers, but he found to his despair that all the fighting forces were already locked in a fierce battle with the enemy, and there was no more troop or reserve force available to reinforce the area.

The Imperial Army had reached its limit, but the Valois, as the masters of this land, were doing everything they could to entertain the uninvited guests. Wounded soldiers were constantly being replaced from the front lines, and new soldiers were constantly arriving from the capital in carriages and trucks that appeared out of nowhere to go.

Even if this strategic focus does not collapse, the 220km front could become the starting point for a collapse at any time.

Then the only option is to retreat.

Richard Hench came to a bitter conclusion: once they retreated, there would be no chance of ever reaching this place again.

He pondered for a moment, but the battle situation didn't allow for further deliberation. Holding the map he had marked, he approached the supreme commander: "General, please order a retreat!"

The old general glared angrily: "Boy, give me a reason not to execute you."

Hench remained unfazed: "The battle has dragged on for so long that there's no doubt we can't achieve our objectives. Therefore, we should cut our losses. If we continue, and all the Valuans and our soldiers die on those damned riverbanks, what will happen to the enemy within the Empire? Do we really want to fight to the point where not a single soldier is left alive?"

Having said that, he immediately reported on the movement of the Istani troops and his own dire plans. Seeing that the commander was still hesitant, he gritted his teeth and said, "Then, on behalf of the Supreme Staff, I will order you to organize an orderly retreat! Gather our troops and don't let them get bogged down on the long front!"

He brandished his medals and Helmut's letter: "At this moment, I represent the Supreme Marshal, and I alone bear all the responsibility!"

The battle on the River Lane lasted for a day and a night. As dawn broke on the second day, the artillery fire gradually thinned out. Everyone on the battlefield was extremely tired. Theoretically, they were taking turns going to the front line, but at this moment, in this place, who could sleep peacefully?

Beneath the Starlight Torch Tower, Kano, who had been sitting idly all night, received a message: "Is the battle about to end?"

"Yes. The Imperial Army has begun its retreat."

"Then let's begin preparations." At his instruction, the prototype starship "Aurora I" was prepared for launch.

(End of this chapter)