The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

If it weren't for Chlorie's timely intervention, he would probably have become a victim of Herman's gun.

At the same time, I feel ashamed of my previous doubts.

Facts speak louder than words. From the moment the Paladin reinforcements entered the battlefield, all previous concessions became well-thought-out strategies.

"Go to the military doctor for a check-up. Make sure there are no hidden injuries. We'll need your help a lot in the future."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will do my utmost for you!" Bliss nodded solemnly.

After calming her down, Chlorie turned and walked towards the Holy Knights.

Not far away, Lisette was directing the knights to clear the battlefield, ensuring that no enemy threat was missed.

“You’ve come just in time,” Chlorie said, stepping forward.

Lisette turned her head upon hearing this, her tone full of helplessness, "Lady Chlorie, even though the result has been successful, I still do not approve of your plan to use yourself as bait."

These 10,000 men were a force cobbled together by various warlords, but none of them were Chlorie's own troops.

In other words, she led a motley crew of soldiers, each with their own ulterior motives and whose loyalty was hard to discern, and managed to delay the kingdom for half a month. Through this battle, she completely subdued them and brought them under her control.

"If we don't do this, how can we discover talents like Bliss?"

Chlorie chuckled softly, her gaze shifting to a corpse at Lisette's feet. "Is this Swain?"

“Yes, it was him.” Lisette nodded, her tone indifferent. “It’s too good for him to die in the chaos of battle.”

Svein was originally a nobleman who was pro-Kingdom, and he did not hesitate to betray the kingdom after it sent troops.

Almost all of Chlorie's trusted subordinates were sent out to deal with potential threats like Swain.

"However, this battle also exposed the existence of the Holy Knights to the kingdom. It won't be easy to achieve such results again," Listy warned.

The intervention of the Holy Knights was undoubtedly a double-edged sword. While it greatly reversed the situation, it also made the enemy more vigilant and wary of them.

“Of course I know that,” Chlorie nodded. “It’s too much of a stretch for a vassal state to fight against the kingdom on a full scale.”

"But our goal is not to completely defeat them, but to slow them down and keep them busy with other things."

She paused, then added, "I just hope that Adele won't keep me waiting too long."

"We've already received news about this from the Empire." Lisette took a scroll from her bosom and handed it to Chlorie.

Kurori took the book and began to read it, her expression gradually turning to shock. "They've quelled the rebellion so quickly?"

“That’s what I thought too when I received this news,” Listy said calmly. “The Empire is probably not as powerful as we imagine.”

“I’m more inclined to believe that someone played a significant role in it,” Chlorie said with a knowing smile.

"Even if it were Wiener, it wouldn't be possible—"

Just as Lisette opened her mouth to refute, she was interrupted by Chlorie.

“I didn’t say it was Venus,” Chlorie teased.

“Hmm…” Lisette was speechless for a moment.

"If we can't even imagine this, the kingdom probably can't either. They must be feeling a bit caught in a dilemma right now," Chlorie said, bringing the topic back to the present.

“This is firsthand information from the Holy Knights. It will probably be a few days before the kingdom receives it. Given the kingdom’s current modus operandi, I’m worried…” Lisette hesitated.

"Are you worried that they'll take a desperate gamble?" Chlorie pointed out Listy's concerns.

“Yes,” Listy admitted, “that’s what Lady Rhea was worried about, so she sent the entire academy here.”

"That's truly an honor."

A hint of surprise flashed in Chlorie's eyes; no wonder she saw many familiar faces in the Holy Knights.

With this help, she felt more confident in dealing with the kingdom's invasion.

"It's all thanks to Viner," Chlorie couldn't help but exclaim, with a touch of genuine admiration.

Listy didn't deny it, but simply nodded slightly, her gaze fixed on the direction of the Empire. "They're probably on their way."

"It's on its way."

Suddenly, Venere appeared and hugged Lisette from behind.

His sudden action startled Lisette, who almost immediately used a spell to retaliate if she hadn't sensed that incredibly familiar aura.

After recognizing the person who had come, Chlorie put down her bow and arrow and said, "We were just talking about you."

"Right? I knew Lisette wouldn't want to leave me, that's why I rushed back first," Venus said shamelessly.

"I'm not reluctant at all... Even with teleportation, it's impossible to get here from the Empire this quickly. How did you manage to do it?" Listy asked, puzzled.

“What one person can’t do, two people can do,” Jessica’s voice came from the side.

Although Vena's mastery of the Chapter of Boundaries is not enough to support long-distance teleportation, by using the power of Ghost Entanglement to amplify Jessica's power, the teleportation distance can be increased to an extremely exaggerated level.

The two of them used this method to travel more than a thousand miles a day.

"Long time no see," Jessica greeted Chlorie.

"You've finally decided to help me," Chlorie replied with a smile.

"I will do what I promised, but this time it's because of someone."

Jessica turned to look at the young couple who were being all lovey-dovey, a hint of envy flashing in her eyes.

"You're really lucky with the ladies." How could Chlorie miss her friend's expression? "I felt your motives were impure back then, and now that I think about it, I was right."

“Say what you will,” Jessica said without trying to argue.

"Alright, everyone's still watching, let's get down to business." Lisette, her face slightly flushed, pushed Venus away.

From longing to disgust, sometimes it only takes a few words.

Not everyone can be as shameless as Wiener, whose abilities are directly proportional to his shamelessness.

"Lady Chlorie, I have brought you some news." Venus said solemnly.

"It can't be good news if it makes you come all this way yourself, can it?" Chlorie said helplessly.

“You guessed right,” Vener nodded. “Although Edel has been reinstated as Empress, there will be no reinforcements from the Empire.”

Chapter 662 Encircling Wei and rescuing Zhao

"Is Adel planning to back out?"

Chlorie frowned, weighing the potential changes this news would cause, but seeing Venus's calm expression, she realized something.

"You probably meant more than just that, didn't you?"

“As expected, you can’t hide it from Lady Chlorie,” Venus shrugged. “Although the Imperial Army will not send troops to support the vassal states, it will send another elite force to march on the capital.”

“To attack where the enemy must defend…” Chlorie murmured. “If they knew that the kingdom’s homeland was under threat, these kingdom armies that have invaded the vassal states would probably lose their will to fight.”

"It's wonderful that you understand, after all, this battle plan was proposed by me." Viner breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

"This is much crazier than I imagined."

Chloe was curious about how Vena had persuaded Edel.

Sending troops to aid vassal states and invading kingdoms may both seem like waging war against the kingdom, but the difficulty is incomparable.

The former only needs to do its best, even if it is only sending three to five thousand reinforcements, it can be considered to have fulfilled its duty as an ally.

The latter is different; a slight misstep can lead to total defeat.

“There’s no way to defeat the kingdom using conventional methods. If we just defend step by step or launch local counterattacks, the war will be dragged on indefinitely. Even if we win, it will only be a Pyrrhic victory.”

“Only by taking the initiative and forcing the opponent to disperse their forces can we find an opportunity to win,” Wiener said calmly but firmly.

"How much longer will it take for the Empire to send troops?" Chlorie asked.

This is about when the clarion call for the counterattack will sound.

“A week. Edel only needs a week to gather the army, and then we can send them out. We just need to hold on for a while longer, and then things will turn around,” Vena said confidently.

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

Sylvan hurriedly entered the tent, turned his gaze to the main seat, and said anxiously, "Your Highness, General Herman's vanguard has fallen into Kurori's trap and is being attacked from both sides by the vassal states and the Holy Knights. They are in a fierce battle and request reinforcements."

However, Dimir showed no surprise or anger at the news.

“Herman’s greed for credit and recklessness, and his disobedience to orders, are his own fault.” Dimily’s tone was cruel. “Even if he manages to escape alive, I will not let him off easily.”

"But Your Highness, Chlorie's actions were clearly premeditated! If we don't provide support soon, the vanguard army may be completely annihilated!"

"How do you know Herman isn't bait left by Kurori? The more reinforcements we send in, the deeper we'll sink." Dimir turned and walked to the map, his finger lightly tracing an area representing the territory of Cordelia.

"Pass down the order: the entire army is to break camp and march into the territory of Cordilla."

Upon hearing this, Sylvan felt a chill run down his spine. It was clear that Dimirli's order meant to abandon Herman.

Even if Herman is guilty and deserves punishment, he still commands tens of thousands of men; how can we just give up like that?

"Your Highness..."

Sylvan tried to argue, but was interrupted sharply by Dimir.

"enough!"

Dimir looked down at Sylvan, his eyes radiating a suffocating pressure. "I don't need your reminder! No one understands Chlorie's cunning better than me."

"Over the past two weeks, the vanguard has seemingly won a series of victories, but has not achieved any substantial results. Don't you understand what this means?"

"She was using these insignificant wastelands to buy time and delay the army's advance. Now she's choosing to fight back because she can't afford to delay any longer."

Exchanging territory for greater strategic depth is not a flawed strategy, but it ultimately has its limits.

Given the current position of the kingdom's army, they can simply push forward and invade Cordelia tomorrow.

Herman's vanguard, however, was lured into a trap because they intended to kill Kurori's troops.

The various lords were not entirely of one mind, but they were all willing to entrust part of their troops to Chlorie's command.

It's simply a matter of hedging one bet against the other.

If Chlorie can hold off the Kingdom's main force, then everyone will be happy.

If not, one can extricate oneself when the kingdom's army arrives at the city gates.

After all, it was Chlorie, the leader of the vassal states, who raised an army in rebellion.

“The Cordelia family is the most supportive lord of Chlorie. If we can take them down, it will prove that Chlorie is incapable of protecting her nobles and territories. Then, no matter how long she delays us, her prestige will be greatly diminished.”

"Do you understand this?" Dimily looked intently at Sylvain.

"Understood."

Sylvain lowered his head, his voice weak, yet unable to refute.

He knew that Dimily's words were not a question, but a command.

As a subject, Sylvan had no right to question his monarch's decisions, even if those decisions required the sacrifice of tens of thousands of vanguard soldiers.

“I know you want to plead for Herman.” Dimily suddenly softened his tone and patted Sylvan on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, only you and I know about his unauthorized actions. As long as we eventually take down the Allies, I can even give Herman credit as compensation.”

Upon hearing this, Sylvain stiffened slightly, but quickly regained his composure.

"My subordinate understands."

When he responded again, his voice was cold, and his face was expressionless.

"If you understand, go and pass on the order. Don't waste the time that the vanguard has bought for us."

Dimir waved his hand casually, then turned his gaze back to the sand table, lost in thought.

"Yes."

Sylvan turned and left the tent, a chill rising from the bottom of his heart.

His best friend, with whom he had grown up and sworn to dedicate his loyalty, has now become such a stranger. Is this the inescapable fate of the next king?

Seeing the soldiers crowding around to ask questions, Sylvan composed himself and gave the order:

"All troops, advance! Target: Cordilla!"

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

"Lord Alliance Leader, the main force of the Kingdom's army has begun to move."

While Chlorie was still talking to Venus, Juno rushed over and interrupted their conversation.