The Mythical Path of a Princess from a Destroyed Kingdom

“We’re almost at war with Iceflower City,” Maginus told Laura. “After this battle, the gnoll army will probably make its final decision.”

"Ha, Ice Flower City is probably also paying attention to this battle."

Turning her gaze away, Maginus returned to Iceflower City to observe how the preparations were progressing.

Even in a state of universal conscription, there are still regular armies, but they do not train together. Instead, they train separately in different clans. When war begins, they will probably fight independently.

The situation is similar for the gnolls. In the end, the battlefield will likely become a clash between small armies, with local victories leading to the outcome of the entire battle.

Maginus was naturally not concerned with the armies of the small clans; she focused her attention on the armies of the large clans. There were quite a few spellcasters, and besides warriors, the largest group was indeed berserkers.

They roared and charged toward the stone pillars, hacking away with all their might. Facing the gnoll army, they probably wouldn't have any morale issues at all; they would just charge forward headlong. The bigger problem would be getting them to retreat calmly.

Chapter 596 Defending and Attacking the City

The battle with the gnolls lasted for about two days, causing the local temperature to rise in a controlled manner. Although it would recover to the same level as the surrounding area at a faster pace, it at least bought the gnolls some time.

The gnoll shaman had tried to keep the camp at a normal temperature, but it didn't work.

It's not that it's useless; the temperature does rise in the short term, but the magical effects left after casting the spell are quickly dispelled, just like being hit by a dispelling spell.

Although the temperature drop in the surrounding environment did not have any magical characteristics, it did cause magic to dissipate faster and spell effects to disappear more quickly, a situation that even legends like them could not resolve.

Unless a temperature-insulating magic circle is built like in Ice Flower City, relying solely on heating magic with a duration is useless, as the duration has been shortened by nearly four-fifths.

The civil war that determined the gnolls' actions ended two days later. As for the result, it was evident from their actions: a large amount of food was taken out of the storeroom, and the gnolls, who had been starving for a long time, had a hearty meal.

Their bellies were bloated, their mouths full of blood and fat, so full they could barely stand up.

The gnolls, who were specifically there to boost morale, raised their scepters and roared. Evil, sulfurous magical energy emanated from the scepters, and instantly, all the gnolls touched by the magical energy revealed bloodlust and madness in their eyes.

"Tomorrow! Tomorrow we will launch an attack on Iceflower City, using it as an appetizer before heading to Nesery to establish our kingdom!"

"There's an endless supply of meat in Ice Flower City! Enough to keep us eating for a long time!"

Making no attempt to conceal his hostility towards Iceflower City, his declaration of war was overheard by many people from Iceflower City. Maginus, who was hiding nearby, raised an eyebrow and turned to leave the snowfield.

After explaining the situation to Laura, she grinned excitedly: "Ha, I was just afraid they wouldn't fight."

"You succubi are going to join the war too?"

"Just doing some work in the shadows, what about you?"

Rubbing the blood-stained hilt of the sword at its waist, it seemed to sense the approaching battle and that Maginus was somewhat excited. The blade flashed red, appearing eager to fight.

“Since I’m already here, I have to show my face. Besides, if the King of the Gnolls possesses someone along the way, and the Winter Maiden doesn’t come out, I’ll definitely have to help Iceflower City get rid of this threat.”

Attention all local residents and visitors who have not yet left! The gnolls are about to attack!

Walking down the street, a loud male voice rang out from the management tower, informing everyone to prepare for battle, his emotions running high.

This concerns the safety of Ice Flower City, the safety of our loved ones. Your children and your loved ones need to be protected; you absolutely cannot back down...

Hearing the sounds, Maginus also got a little excited. She went to the inn, ordered a lot of meat, and took it back to her room to eat, which could be considered as preparation for the battle.

The battle was to begin tomorrow. Under the cover of night, a vanguard of gnolls, skilled in stealth, launched a swift attack, rushing towards Iceflower City in the snowy night, attempting to catch them off guard.

As they raced toward the vicinity of Iceflower City, several gnolls raised their bows and arrows, aimed at a whole group of Northerners patrolling the city wall, and fired arrows that instantly killed them. Then they tried to climb the wall of light by using their hands and feet.

The claws left scratches on the wall, but the wall, which had been doused with ice water, was too slippery, and the hard ice wall could not be broken by the claws.

They immediately threw out their grappling hooks, made sure the hooks gripped the top of the tall city wall, retracted their hooks and struggled to climb. Just as they were about to reach the top of the wall, a flash of silver light appeared, and the head of the gnoll in front of them snapped off, along with the grappling hook rope.

As the firelight flared up, the Iceflower City soldiers, who had been waiting for a long time, emerged from their blind spots and watched the fallen monster with cold smiles.

Under the light, the jackals, who thought they had been stealthy and had successfully killed the patrolmen, discovered that they had only shot at a scarecrow with their arrows; the northerners had been prepared for this move.

"Who doesn't know how cunning the gnolls are? Do you really think we'd believe you if you said you'd attack tomorrow morning? Fire! Fire!"

After mocking the gnolls, the heavily armored leader ordered the archers to fire. Arrows rained down on the gnolls, and they dodged many thanks to their agility, but the North has no shortage of sharpshooters.

Having confirmed their escape route, several rangers drew their bows and fired, the bowstrings snapping back as the arrows instantly pierced their vital organs.

The storm intensified, and the commander standing on the city wall listened intently. The chaotic footsteps grew closer, and his expression turned serious. Even though he couldn't see clearly in the distance, he knew that the gnoll army was approaching.

"Messenger! Warning signal!"

The messenger beside him raised the enchanted yak horn, took a deep breath and blew it rhythmically, and the entire Ice Flower City came to life. The civilians who were holding weapons or had placed them by their beds picked up their equipment.

They emerged from the rooms, a chaotic yet orderly process. Women led children to safety, while the men marched against the flow towards the city walls, where, under the command of the chieftain and hunting captain, they stood in their designated positions, awaiting the arrival of the enemy.

"Awoo!" roared Liuling Mountain. (Shrimp pulling Si n)

Howls echoed one after another in the blizzard, eventually forming a terrifying wolf howl. Pairs of wolf eyes appeared in the blizzard, gleaming like blue-green will-o'-the-wisps.

At an extremely great distance, the first thing to be launched was naturally the ranged attack, with fire arrows, ice arrows, and normal arrows all being hurled down from the city walls.

As for the gnolls, they were even poorer. All they had were arrows. It was rare for them to have spellcasters, and even if they did, they mostly chose to strengthen their bodies.

The Iceflower City defenders had all the advantages: the blizzard slowed down the gnolls, the Iceflower City's tall walls provided ample space for their soldiers to launch projectiles, and they had more spellcasters than gnolls.

"Scatter!" the jackal shouted.

Arrows rained down, and the jackal leader roared decisively, ordering everyone to scatter and charge towards Iceflower City in an encirclement formation, aiming to find a weak point in the defenses and launch an attack.

They mixed their elite troops among the ordinary soldiers, waiting for an opportunity to infiltrate Iceflower City and launch a fierce attack.

The massive army was broken up into smaller units, and the number of enemies hit by arrows was significantly reduced after the first wave of attacks.

As the gnolls approached the city, the archers decisively launched a second wave of attacks. Those with strong arms, accurate shooting, and sharp eyes focused on exchanging fire with the opposing archers, taking down as many as they could.

The archers, who were slightly less skilled, launched an attack on the gnolls who were close to the city walls.

Chapter 597 Intensification

The rain of arrows could not completely stop the gnolls from approaching. As the army reached the city walls, the elite gnolls quickly scaled the walls and charged at the archers with their superior weapons.

Some soldiers, whose archery skills were only "useful" at a basic level, immediately dropped their wooden bows, drew their weapons from their waists or backs, and charged at the gnolls, roaring as they charged, their skin turning bright red.

violent!

“Ouch!” “Ouch!”

A lone gnoll charging into the city wall howls, and if other gnolls also climb up the surrounding walls, they will call out as a signal to gather.

The gnoll guard, who had been guarding the gate, drew his flail. His eyes gleamed, and he swung the flail at the barbarian's chest. The berserk human blocked the blow with his body and raised his greatsword to slash at the barbarian's shoulder.

Fortunately, it had its own armor, and the greatsword only cleaved into the gnoll's flesh without completely severing its head or arm.

A chaotic battle broke out on the city wall, but the defenders quickly reacted, with captains at various points shouting for their men to pour warm water over themselves.

Buckets of warm water were brought up and poured down the city wall. The water cooled down completely before it reached half a meter, and froze completely as it continued to fall, thus filling in all the gaps that the jackals had dug out with their claws and weapons.

Snow and fog reduced visibility, and many gnolls took advantage of the chaos to climb the city walls. Some of them had no intention of helping their companions up and jumped off the walls alone, attempting to enter the residential area and wreak havoc.

But as soon as they jumped down, they were met by a large number of warriors wielding long weapons. Sharp spearheads and blades stabbed and slashed them relentlessly, and no one could escape.

"Woo!"

A mid-level gnoll overthrew the soldiers who were blocking its way and finally broke into the town after a great struggle. A powerful arrow pierced its armored heart, causing it to fall to the ground in resentment.

"Humph."

The ranger on the tower snorted coldly, about to check where any fish had slipped through the net, when suddenly his expression froze, his body tensed, and he took a step in front of the tower, only to miss and fall from the tower, crashing to the ground and turning into a pile of corpses.

Outside Iceflower City, the gnoll shaman waved his staff and used a command spell to make the ranger fall. The result pleased him, and as he was about to look for his next target, a stone thrown from inside the city made him cast a shield to block it.

Before it could even catch its breath, a shadow darted out from beneath its feet, and the rare assassin slit its throat without even using any magical equipment.

Having dodged the large hand of the high-ranking gnoll, the Shadow Dancer, who had taken a head from the midst of a vast army, advanced rapidly through the shadow plane. Thinking he had retreated to a safe zone, he had no time to catch his breath when a giant wolf descended from the sky and bit down on his body.

Before the high-ranking gnoll could even bite, a barbarian stomped on the ice crystals created by the spellcaster, smashing through many gnolls with his bare body and charging towards the high-ranking gnoll, taking him with him away from the spot.

As the battlefield grew increasingly chaotic, Maginus sat alone in the empty inn with only Rachel and herself, picking up a wine sachet and taking a sip of sweet wine.

"The gnolls are at a disadvantage. Continuing this fight will only lead to nothing; they've made a bad move." (Ling Mengba o Shan Linglong Qi C Jiu Wu Ba)

Daring to draw conclusions, Rachel Burgh judged, and Maginus shook his wine bag: "Is there a calculation legend?"

"After calculation, based on the number of Gnoll Legends you provided, combined with the number of Iceflower City Legends Miss Laura provided, Iceflower City still has the upper hand."

“As long as the legends of the gnoll tribe are not as powerful as you, master, Iceflower City is bound to win. They won’t even be able to break into the city.”

So far, not a single gnoll has tried to breach the walls, because the walls are covered in numerous spells and are made of extremely sturdy material, so even a legendary spellcaster would not fare well.

Moreover, there are other legendary spellcasters watching, and if they make a move, they will definitely be killed.

"To be honest, I feel they have no chance of winning. Why would they choose to fight a battle they can't win at all? At best, they can only leave Ice Flower City with heavy casualties."

Rachel was very puzzled, while Maginus pinched the book spirit's cheek:

"Perhaps we weren't planning to win anyway. I've thought about it carefully. Ice Flower City doesn't need to annihilate all the jackals. We just need to satisfy the Winter Maiden's faith needs."

"As for the gnolls, they were just trying to survive the harsh winter. After learning about the Winter Maiden from Iceflower City, they could have sacrificed some of their forces to appease her anger."

So far, no legendary figures have made a move, and even among the high-level ones, only two battle maniacs have launched an attack.

Maginus realized that by slightly reducing the population, they could quell the Winter Maidens' anger, and they were happy to do so. Attacking Iceflower City was merely sending the weak to their deaths.

A battle with a high probability of failure is best won, but there's no harm in losing.

This would appease the Winter Maiden's anger, leaving the main force of the legends unaffected. Only a few low-level members would die, and the corpses could be taken back as food. This was perfect for the jackals who were caught in a dilemma.

This is a win-win situation; the gnolls win twice.

"In that case, you'll still have to take action in the end?"

"Maybe, but if there's a chance to annihilate the gnolls, do you think Iceflower City would make a move?"

Maginus raised an eyebrow. She hadn't forgotten that Laura hadn't appeared for quite some time, and these succubi were probably preparing something.

"Hey."

She stood up from the chair, drew out the Blood Gathering, and jumped out of the window, leaving Rachel Bai at the inn to await orders. She herself went to the front line, regardless of the outcome of the battle, her intention to give the Blood Gathering to the abandoned Master remained unchanged.

Grasping her longsword, she arrived at the battlefield. The city remained orderly. As she had expected, the jackals would never be able to breach the city gates unless they could open them.

"Ah!"

A roar rang in his ears as the barbarian was pinned to the ground by the gnoll, the axe in his hand about to strike him.

"The first person to fall to my sword wasn't a powerful one, sorry."

With a flick of her sword, Maginus appeared behind the gnolls and barbarians, her blood-gathering technique piercing straight through their armor and flesh.

The gnoll, who had been trying to kill the barbarian, froze, still thinking of turning around to see who had killed it. However, its strength was quickly drained, and it could only collapse on the barbarian's body.

Emerging from his berserk state, the barbarian, who had narrowly escaped death, gasped for breath and looked up at Tirenie to thank her: "Thank you, ma'am!!"

"Small things."

Maginus responded casually, his gaze focused on the Blood Gathering, which was reforged from the spine and actively absorbed life force, draining the jackal's life force completely, the sword gleaming with a scarlet luster.

Chapter 598 An Unexpected Conspiracy

A scarlet, ferocious figure appeared on the street, specifically targeting those who had slipped through the net. Many barbarians who were about to be killed were saved, and "Tirini's" presence gradually increased.

The legend observing the battlefield naturally noticed Maginus's actions. Upon investigation, it was discovered that she was a high-ranking barbarian who had come from the other side of the mountains with the caravan of the Lusty Lips Ball.

Although the local legends had traveled to the temperate zone, they didn't really know much about the high-level beings there in recent years. After observing for a while and confirming that Maginus was there to help, they didn't bother with her anymore.

Well, some legends have already suspected that she is Maginus's agent, but due to the lack of concrete evidence and the imminent threat of a major enemy, they have taken no action.

Or perhaps her appearance in the Northland actually relieved the legend of Iceflower City. Even if the King of the Gnolls really intervened in this battle, and even if the Winter Maiden remained unmoved, with Maginus's help, they might still have a chance of winning.

She may have come to provoke them into war with the gnoll army, but now that war has actually broken out, Maginus is definitely the best ally.

The battle continued, and Maginus picked up the scraps on the sidelines without attracting the attention of the gnolls. There were only so many gnolls that could get in, and they were all dealt with by her and the other northerners as soon as they entered; the gnolls really had no choice.

Just as Maginus thought the battle would end with time and the increasing casualties of the gnolls, the crystal ball in her arms sent a communication invitation.

"Hey, what's wrong? I'm on the battlefield."

Leaning against the wall, Maginus took out the crystal ball and asked, but Laura's tone was somewhat exasperated:

"Damn it, they never intended to give up Iceflower City! Now these despicable hyenas are using the fight to draw Iceflower City's attention, while their main base is building a temporary teleportation portal connecting to the Abyss!"

Laura disappeared to do something big. She and a squad of succubi took advantage of the battle to sneak up on the gnolls' current stronghold, hoping to burn all their food while their defenses were weak.

However, when they infiltrated the vicinity, they discovered that the defenses there were still formidable, and that most of the defenders were spellcasters among the gnolls.

After charming several gnolls who were unaware of what was happening in the camp, Laura decided to sneak in. Before she even got close to the tent, she smelled the sulfur she knew best.

As a demon skilled in advanced teleportation, she could also sense the gradually stabilizing spatial fluctuations emanating from it; without a doubt, a stable teleportation portal was about to be established.

According to information from the Abyss, the Gnoll King has been held back by the Tauren King, but he is still able to send soldiers to the Prime Material Plane to provide support.

"Holy crap, reinforcements have arrived! Why don't we hurry and inform the upper echelons of Iceflower City?"