The weapons I forge are absolutely flawless.

"What do you want to say?" Dimir seemed to notice Sylvan's unusual behavior and turned to look at him.

Sylvan quickly composed himself and changed his tune, saying, "Their act of blocking the way in front of the army seems courageous, but it is actually a show of bravado without substance. The territory of Cordelia must be extremely vulnerable at this moment, which is why they are forced to use this risky method to delay."

“That’s what I think too.” Dimir nodded, his smile deepening, but the chill in his eyes growing stronger.

"To crush the vassal states before the empire can react, a swift victory is necessary; Cordelia is just the beginning."

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

Jessica brought Vina to an open space dozens of miles away.

She quickly cast a detection spell to confirm that there were no other dangers around, and then laid Vina flat on the ground.

Despite being protected by the Phoenix Cloth, Venus's shot seemed to ignore all defenses and cause and effect, striking her directly in the heart.

If it weren't for the Saint Cloth's immense life force slowing down the loss of his life, Venus would probably have been in grave danger long ago.

Jessica tried all the healing spells she could cast, from light-based healing spells to water-based restorative magic, but none of them worked.

Her hands trembled slightly, her eyes filled with self-blame and pain. Finally, she couldn't help but growl, "You idiot! Why did you come out to shield me? Don't you know how precious your life is?!"

If one of them had to die, Jessica would rather it be herself.

Not only because Vena was the hope for saving the continent, but also because she loved this man who was a few years younger than her.

"Cough..." Viner coughed up a mouthful of blood with difficulty, forcing a bitter smile, "I didn't want to either, but my body just started acting on its own."

His voice sounded relaxed, as if he didn't regret his choice.

"Dimili's spear is called the Spear of Death Thorns. It can reverse cause and effect and force a hit to the heart of the enemy. Once activated, teleportation magic is meaningless in front of it."

"Since you knew that, why did you still do it!"

"I can't just watch you die in front of me, can I?"

"Do you think I can do it?!" Jessica almost shouted, tears finally streaming down her face.

She knelt beside Vener, holding his hand tightly, her heart filled with regret and self-reproach.

If she hadn't insisted on seeing Dimir, how could Vina have ended up in such a state?

"Don't cry, this isn't like you."

Viner reached out and gently wiped away Jessica's tears, but she couldn't wipe them all away.

"What time is it? Why are you still worrying about this!"

Jessica choked back tears and hugged Vina tightly, as if afraid he would disappear at any moment.

"Don't scare me, you must have a way, right? From now on, I'll listen to you in everything, and I won't act like a senior and make decisions on my own anymore, okay?"

After a moment of silence, Viner responded weakly, "Even if they did, there wouldn't be enough time, would there? Who would have thought that Dimili had such a trump card?"

Upon hearing this, Jessica abruptly raised her head, her eyes filled with resentment.

“Escuda!” she almost screamed. “I know you’re watching, think of something! Do you want to watch Vena die like this!”

As the cry was uttered, a soft light flashed, and the holy sword Escudo appeared in human form before the two.

Just as she was about to speak, a command suddenly came to her mind.

“...Place your master’s head on your knees first,” Escudo said expressionlessly.

Jessica didn't have time to think further and immediately did as she was told, carefully placing Venere's head on her lap. "And then?!"

“That’s all,” Escudo replied calmly. “This was my master’s last wish.”

"Don't say things like that at the end!"

Jessica suddenly stood up, seemingly wanting to argue with Escudé.

However, due to the large movement, Venere's head hit the ground directly.

"Ouch—"

A pained groan escaped his lips, and all traces of his previous weakness vanished.

Jessica looked at Venere, who was sitting on the ground rubbing the back of his head, and finally realized that something was wrong.

"Vina...you?"

Seeing that Vena had been exposed, Escudo sighed helplessly and took out the Zhōnen Zhōna.

The weapon, which was designed to transfer all the damage to Venus, was in a terrible state, riddled with cracks and nicks.

But since it didn't break, it meant that Wiener's life was not in danger.

It will be unusable for a short period of time.

"You can deal with the rest yourselves." Escudo said this and quickly transformed into light, hiding back in Vina's hand, seemingly unwilling to get involved any longer.

An awkward atmosphere filled the air.

Wiener scratched his head, trying to explain: "Actually—"

"shut up!"

Chapter 665 Making the Best Use of Everything

"We just agreed that you would listen to me in everything, and you're changing your mind so quickly."

When Jessica threw her first punch, Vina didn't dodge, letting her vent her anger.

But when the second punch came, he reached out and blocked it.

“Who told you to lie to me!” Jessica said through gritted teeth.

"Hey, that's really unfair. Did I tell a single lie?" Venere's brows furrowed in innocence.

Jessica thought back carefully and realized that although what Viner had said earlier was full of misleading information, not a single word of it was a complete lie.

"You're not planning to go back on your word, are you?" Viner pressed on.

"You better remember this!" Jessica glared at him fiercely, but the anger in her eyes had gradually faded.

“I would have done it even if you hadn’t told me,” Viner nodded in satisfaction, then her expression gradually turned serious. “No more joking around. It’s a good thing I came with you this time. It would have been troublesome if anyone else had faced that weapon.”

“The weapon that Dimi uses is a cursed weapon,” Vena said solemnly.

"A cursed weapon?" Jessica frowned. "I don't sense it."

“Because the person who forged that weapon made a special disguise, even I was fooled at first,” Viner sighed.

If he had discovered it earlier, he would never have allowed Dimir to use it so easily.

"It was only after I personally experienced what it felt like to be hit by the Death Thorn Spear that I became convinced of its true nature."

“We’ve already destroyed the Iron Giants, so where did they get such a high-quality cursed weapon from?” Jessica frowned, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes. “Besides, they’re letting Dimili use it. Aren’t they worried about the side effects?”

"Recall how the kingdom dealt with Rogurd."

Wiener's reminder made Jessica suddenly realize the truth.

When the Taivo family was purged for colluding with the Iron Giants, the kingdom's handling of the matter seemed flawless on the surface, but in reality, it was more like a meticulously planned silencing operation.

"So the kingdom has preserved the method of forging cursed weapons?"

“Now it seems that’s correct.” Wiener nodded. “The key is that we don’t know exactly how many of these weapons have been deployed.”

Given the kingdom's resources, finding a few master blacksmiths wouldn't be difficult.

Although these cursed weapons do not reach the A-grade level, their power is even greater.

Especially with weapons like the Death Thorn Spear, which possess special abilities, one will inevitably suffer a great loss if one is unaware of them beforehand.

Even now, Jessica hasn't figured out a way to break the Death Thorn Spear.

"Let's go meet up with Chlorie and the others first, and also report what happened here to them," Venus suggested, interrupting Jessica's thoughts.

"it is good."

Jessica then took Vina's arm, and the two disappeared from the spot.

When they appeared in front of Chlorie, she visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

"You are finally back."

Juno had previously reported to Chlorie that the Kingdom's army had resumed its advance, but there was still no news of Vina and Jessica.

This intelligence almost made Chlorie's heart tighten, and she even began to consider the worst possible scenario.

“Sorry, it didn’t take too long, but we’ve obtained some new intelligence,” Viner said.

"It's good that you came back safely," Chlorie shook her head, indicating that she didn't care. "So what's the news you brought back?"

“The Kingdom’s army is very likely equipped with cursed weapons in large quantities, and even we almost capsized in the gutter,” Viner said succinctly.

"Even you guys find it troublesome?"

Knowing that Venus wouldn't speak without reason, Chlorie immediately realized the seriousness of the problem and frowned slightly.

“That’s right, like the spear in Dimir’s hand. If it weren’t for Vener, I probably wouldn’t have made it back alive,” Jessica confirmed, a hint of lingering fear in her eyes.

She recalled the scene with lingering fear—the spear seemed to ignore all defenses and strike straight at her vitals.

If it weren't for Venerable's ability to transfer injuries using the Nie Dian Zhe Na, that attack would have been equally fatal.

If one-on-one duels are this difficult, then in the midst of a chaotic army, if one is targeted by several wielders of cursed weapons at the same time, even a high-ranking emblem master would find it hard to escape unscathed.

"Have you encountered any weapons that look rather unusual before?" Viner asked in a deep voice.

Kurori shook her head, thought for a moment, and replied, "It's probably because I've been avoiding battle most of the time, so the other side has had a hard time finding an opportunity to fight, and therefore didn't notice anything too obvious."

The only direct confrontation between the vassal state's army and the kingdom's vanguard was also achieved through an ambush, which gave them the upper hand.

After the entire command structure of the army collapsed and fell into complete chaos, even with the blessing of cursed weapons, it would not be easy to exert their full power.

Herman didn't even have time to use any means before Kurori shot him through the head with an arrow, killing him instantly.

"It seems we've stumbled upon a winning strategy," Viner said thankfully. "Until we understand the specifics, we should focus on probing and avoid direct confrontation."

"That depends on their willingness to cooperate." Chlorie shook her head with a wry smile.

The overwhelming force of the Kingdom's army clearly left them little room to delay, and Dimir was not one to back down easily.

How long until we reach the territory of Cordelia?

“With the shortcut that Lisette led us to, plus the time you bought us earlier, we should be able to arrive a little earlier than them.”

"What's the exact time?" Wiener pressed.

“Half an hour,” Kurori replied.

This timing is obviously somewhat awkward; there's certainly no time to set up large-scale fortifications, but it can still serve some purpose by allowing time to catch one's breath and rest.

However, considering the disparity in troop strength and quality between the two sides, this impact is not enough to gain an advantage.

"Half an hour should be enough."

Wiener's eyes lit up, as if she had already come up with a solution. "Where are Felix and Anna now?"

"Felix is ​​with the Dragon Knights and is heading this way; they won't arrive until at least tomorrow. As for Anna, she's waiting for us in Cordelia."

While Chlorie was buying time with her army, Anna wasn't idle either. She led the Valentin Merchant Guild to relocate the people from several territories closest to the kingdom's border, preventing them from being unnecessarily dragged into the conflict.

"Go and bring Anna here, as quickly as possible," Vena instructed Jessica.

Without asking any further questions, Jessica immediately used teleportation to travel to Anna's location.

"You only have half an hour, what are you going to do?" Chlorie asked curiously.

“Unfortunately, I just fought a major battle in the Empire and captured a batch of equipment.” Vena twirled the Qiluo Ring on her hand. “Edel found these things inconvenient to carry, so she gave them all to me.”

"What do you think about setting up siege engines like catapults and ballistae on flat ground? Would that be a viable option?"

P.S.: 1. Thanks to Scarlet Flower for her monthly ticket support.

Chapter 666 Fighting and Retreating

When Emperor Mili led the kingdom's army to the outskirts of Cordilla, the armies of the vassal states were already in full battle array.

The army was well-organized and its banners stood in neat rows. Although its troop strength was only one-fifth of the kingdom's army, its equipment and imposing presence were quite impressive.