The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

"Who is this again?"

Sigurd, who had been staring intently at the miniature sand table since the first red dot appeared, finally couldn't help but speak up.

Chapter 417 Military Order

"It's Jessica, isn't it?"

"It should be Jessica."

Wiener and Feld spoke almost simultaneously.

The Demon Compass that I gave to Jessica yesterday seems to have no intention of returning; she disappeared after breakfast.

It seems that while Wiener was making glass jars at the refinery, Jessica was also using her own methods to investigate.

"Should we send someone to meet them?" Jegan asked.

Although she knew Jessica was quite strong, there were simply too many demons, and she would inevitably run out of strength if she relied on herself alone.

“If it were anyone else, that would be one thing, but Jessica… she could have come back on her own by the time she had gone to meet her,” Viner replied before Feld could.

He then made a gesture, spreading his fingers slightly several times, and the scene displayed on the glass jar began to magnify under Wiener's control.

The once inconspicuous blue dot has grown to the size of a watermelon.

"Hello, hello, Jessica, can you hear me?"

"Yes, it's me, Vena."

"Put aside what you're doing and go back to your residence first."

Wiener spoke into the blue orb of light, as if he could directly transmit a message.

"This glass jar also has the ability to transmit messages?"

Sigurd couldn't be more surprised.

Combining detection and communication, such equipment, if deployed on the battlefield, would be a game-changer.

"Ah."

Wiener nodded.

He could guess what Sigurd was thinking just by looking at his expression.

However, this glass jar can only distinguish between humans and demons, but not between people of the kingdom and people of the empire.

Not to mention that a second glass jar could not be made, even if it could be replicated, Wiener had no intention of popularizing such a thing.

"But why can't we hear Jessica's voice?" Sigurd was still puzzled.

"I can't hear it either; it's just a one-way sound transmission function."

"Then you just-"

"I just made a rough guess about what she would say," Viner said nonchalantly.

With another wave of his hand, Wiener restored the image to its normal size.

However, the blue dot that corresponded to Jessica had now disappeared from its original position.

"Why are you in such a hurry to call me back—"

The next moment, Jessica appeared in front of everyone.

Although she had never been to this conference room, she was able to quickly teleport back using the location tracking on Viner.

"This is?"

Jessica's gaze was also drawn to the holographic sand table in the air.

“My achievement today,” Wiener replied. “If it were another time, I would definitely brag to you about how amazing this glass jar is, but now is not the time to say such things.”

“Each red dot below represents a demon; those you just eliminated are only the tip of the iceberg.”

Even as everyone was talking, the alarm never stopped.

Although the frequency is not as rapid as before, the newly appearing red dots are correspondingly deeper in color.

"Then let me show you my results." Jessica took out the Lionheart from her chest.

As soon as it landed, it transformed into the size of a normal male lion.

The silver lion gagged twice and spat out a demon corpse.

The corpse was only half the size of the lion, yet it appeared incredibly heavy.

Above its head is a gaping maw, with three long arms covered in sharp claws, and three large, cold, hard eyes that can see in all directions at once.

“Rock-chewing monsters,” Jessica introduced to the group. “These are the main types of monsters I’ve encountered. But we can’t rule out other variants in the deeper levels.”

Vena drew a small knife from her ring and slashed at the demon's abdomen, encountering unexpected resistance the moment she touched the skin.

With another flick of his fingertips, he finally cut open, but what flowed out of his stomach was sand and clods of earth.

Wiener picked up a clod of earth, squeezed it gently, and the clod crumbled into powder, interspersed with sparkling quartz.

"The culprit who stole the grain from the Laffner family has been found."

Wiener tried to lighten the mood, but it didn't seem to work.

"Pass down the order: except for those who need to stay behind, all other Iceblade Iron Cavalry shall carry infantry combat equipment and assemble at the training ground in a quarter of an hour."

Feld looked at Jegan, a hint of menace in his eyes.

"As ordered."

Without hesitation, Jegan strode out of the conference room.

“The Silver Wolf Class can also help,” Jessica volunteered.

Although the Ice Blade Iron Cavalry is elite, its combat endurance will drop a level without the help of warhorses to share the burden of its equipment.

In addition, the complex terrain of the mine will reduce the strength that can be exerted by more than half.

Even though Feld himself is an eighth-tier emblem user who has reached the level of a Gun Saint, it is difficult to say that he is perfect in every aspect. It would be even better if the Silver Wolf Academy had a strong ally.

He would not disregard the safety of his subordinates for the sake of saving face.

“Then I thank you both in advance.” Feld bowed to each of them. “But over here…”

Feld glanced at the glass jar in the center of the conference room, then casually glanced at Sigurd.

He had to go to the front line to oversee the situation, and Jegan also had other important responsibilities and could not stay for long. For the time being, they could not find a suitable person to take charge here.

"Otherwise, it'll be troublesome—"

Knowing that Wiener was the person who understood the glass jar best, Feld intended to entrust him with the task.

“I think we can hand it over to Sigurd,” Viner said first.

Sigurd looked at Viner in surprise, as if he couldn't believe those words had come from him.

"What are you looking at? I'm a blacksmith most of the time, a swordsman occasionally, and I'd rather be a cook than a general."

"Besides, we're going to fight to the death up there, do you just want to sit back and watch the show?"

Sigurd is indeed a useless man; even with a weapon, he's no match for an ordinary soldier.

But what he destroyed was his body as a herald, not his brain.

Having been groomed for over a decade as the heir to the Laffner family and the Iceblade Knights, his accumulated military skills far surpassed those of a one-sided student like Viner, who relied solely on flashes of inspiration.

Since Feld brought Sigurd here, it means he still has expectations for him, or even hopes that Sigurd will speak up on his own.

Since even his father can believe him, then Wiener can also reluctantly play the role of Sigurd's father for once.

Thinking of Rufrey's solo battle against the demon and Koman's beheading as a sacrifice to the flag, Viner finally understood why she disliked Sigurd now.

In his view, maturity means knowing how to take responsibility for one's choices, not about seeing through the illusions of the world.

Doing nothing can reduce the number of mistakes, but doing nothing is itself the biggest mistake.

Even Sigurd, who knew he might become a cripple as a result, was better than the cowardly turtle in front of him.

They appear to be alive, but they are no different from the dead.

"Since you dared to gamble your life on the ring back then, do you now have the courage to take the lives of those soldiers' sons?"

Wiener added fuel to the fire.

If he can still back down like this, then Wiener will never respect him again.

"call--"

Sigurd closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, everything was completely different.

“Lord Feld,” Sigurd said firmly, “Sigurd is willing to obey military orders.”

Chapter 418 This is swordsmanship!

The alarm bell in the center of Xuelu Valley rang three times in a row.

This is a signal that the entire force is entering a state of combat readiness.

Before the echoes of the alarm bells had faded, a group of young men, clad in armor and armed with guns, poured out of the house.

The metallic clang of armor clashing was exceptionally clear in the night sky. As the scattered warriors gathered on the main road, they spontaneously formed ranks, their target the training ground.

"Lord Jegan, what's going on?"

Anna, who had just returned to the manor from the caravan, ran into Jegan, who was about to go out on patrol.

“Miss Anna, I was just about to come to you. The demons have been discovered to be lurking deep within the underground mines, and the Earl is preparing his army to conquer them.”

"Please lead the caravan to a safe place for the time being."

As he spoke, Jie summoned a guard and gave him a few instructions.

"Navi—I mean, what about the rest of them?"

Anna asked.

"The members of the Silver Wolf Class, entrusted by the Earl, will travel together to the underground," Jegan truthfully reported.

Seeing that the other party had no further questions, Jie Gang apologized, then mounted his horse and spurred it on.

Defeating such a large number of demons is no easy task.

In addition to medical and logistical preparations, Jegan also needs to conduct another inspection of the valley's defensive fortifications to guard against a demonic counterattack.

Everything was peaceful when I went out in the morning, but after only half a day, the entire valley was placed under martial law.

Even without further explanation from Jegan, Anna could already sense the urgency of the situation.

"Come back safely."

Anna silently offered a prayer.

-----------------

The underground of Xuelu Valley is like a complex web, with intertwined mineral veins.

In addition, after years of mining and exploration, there are no fewer than twenty entrances.

Although the demons deep within the mine have not shown any signs of activity so far, no one would entrust the safety of Snowdrift Valley to the "kindness" of the demons.

Instead of dividing his troops into smaller groups, Feld chose to launch a preemptive strike on the five largest and deepest mines.

The soldiers of the Iceblade Knights were ordered to enter the mine in shifts, providing cover for each other, and to withdraw from the mine at regular intervals to rotate with the reserve troops remaining on the surface.

The remaining half of the soldiers stayed on the ground to set up fortifications and guard against a counterattack from the demons through other cave entrances.

The only exceptions were the three of them, including Wiener.

After all, none of the three were members of the Knights, and forcing them to cooperate would only hinder their performance.

Feld gave them more freedom, allowing them to adapt to changing circumstances.