After choosing to leave, they regretted it.

"Stand, no need for formalities. I'm sure you all are aware of the goal of this operation. Reclaim Lilbas and annihilate all those demonic scum who cross the Central Mountains and invade the Empire!"

"There's no need for further idle talk or platitudes. I'm sure you, like me, are still gnashing your teeth over the defeat two years ago, furious at the enemies so close at hand from a short distance. This is your opportunity. To pay homage to the Imperial soldiers who sacrificed their lives, and for the countless Imperial citizens still suffering, I urge you to do your utmost and forge ahead. I, Christina Karsade, thank you in advance and look forward to your victories!"

"For the Empire! For Karseid!"

"For the Empire! For Karseid!"

"For the Empire! For Karseid!"

……

……

As the generals around him took the lead in shouting, the majestic and orderly slogans quickly spread among the army, and then quickly formed a thunderous shout, echoing on the land that was about to become a battlefield.

Aize, who was watching from behind, also nodded approvingly.

Christina's image is there, and those who doubt her will inevitably doubt her. Spending time trying to whitewash herself will not only be useless but may even have a counterproductive effect.

Therefore, it is better to compress the length of the speech to the extreme, avoid talking about the content of the speech, and only talk about the eager desire of the entire army and even the entire empire. This will at least boost morale and will not have any side effects.

Quite smart.

"Miss, the temporary command center is over here. Please allow me to lead the way for you."

Another general stepped forward to greet her, but Chris didn't rush forward:

"The title 'Miss' is no longer permitted—this is an order. On this expedition, I am not serving as the daughter of the Marquis of Karside, but as a general of the Empire, no different from the rest of you. Do you understand?"

When many people suspect that you are related to someone, the title of "Miss" will only give them an advantage.

Even the general who called her "Miss" was hard to say whether he did it unintentionally or was really looking for trouble.

Therefore, we must start with these details to set the record straight.

The general was stunned, then his eyes turned blue and purple, and became erratic.

But he still pressed his chest and saluted awkwardly:

"My apologies, Lord Karseid. Please come this way. The battle meeting is ready, and everyone awaits your instructions."

"Well, I'm done."

At this point, we have passed the first level.

Although there are still countless obstacles waiting for me, at least I can relax a little at this moment.

Chris, who appeared calm on the surface, clenched her fists excitedly and restlessly under her cloak.

Not far behind her, Aize nodded, the relieved smile on his face became more and more obvious, and the corners of his mouth rose unconsciously, to the point where he could hardly hold it back.

Well, how should I put it?

Although I feel sorry for the Marquis, I feel like "this child was raised well."

going to cry.

"What's that expression on your face? It's like an old father crying his eyes out at his daughter's wedding. Disgusting~"

The witch lady saw all of this and poked his side with a wicked smile.

"You were so heartless before, pretending to be so serious, making it seem like you'd never give up, but the result is still the same. In the end, you're not the one who dotes on her the most."

If you think about it carefully, it seems to be the case.

For two years, he said he would be strict with Chris, but in reality he always ended up letting her go and condoning her.

Including before in the bedroom, when Chris was in so much pain that she couldn't control herself, Aize did not remain heartless, but was ready to make concessions.

If Chris hadn't figured it out for some reason, the situation now would be completely different.

But you still have to be tough:

"What's the point of spoiling her or not? If she doesn't figure things out on her own, what's the point of me following her around with a whip? Isn't that how it should be?"

"Hmm~"

The smirk on Villian's face grew wider.

This guy, in this situation, always acts like a bystander and sees things more clearly, which is really annoying.

Aize quickly changed the subject:

"Alright, stop talking nonsense! Hurry up and get going! The pre-war deployment meeting is about to begin!"

"Yes Yes Yes!"

Following the girl from a distance, the two men passed through the formation and, along with dozens of middle and high-level military officers, walked into the tent set up in the center of the base.

Inside, the furnishings were quite simple, with only a board with a large map hanging on it and dozens of simple benches. It could be said to be extremely plain.

This is completely different from some nobles who go to war with a bunch of incomprehensible decorations and luxury goods.

But as I have always said, Aize just likes this simple style.

On the map, after a short period of intensive communication and intelligence collection, the situation and troop deployment of both sides have been completely marked on it.

The Central Mountain Range stretches across the entire continent, separating the territories of the demons and humans. The dangerous terrain and huge span form an insurmountable natural barrier.

This natural barrier will become thinner or even break in some places, forming gaps. The great wars between humans and demons throughout the ages have basically taken place around these gaps.

The Anlin Plain that Tafia faces is one of these gaps.

But for Lilbas, who is on this expedition, the situation is a little different.

The Central Mountain Range is not completely cut off here, but becomes much narrower than other places. The terrain is not as dangerous, forming several mountain pass-like passages.

Lilbas is nestled among the mountains, sitting directly on the faces of the demons, blocking these gaps. It was only successfully established by an extremely bloody expedition when the empire was first founded hundreds of years ago.

Judging from the map, its location even exceeds the center line of the mountain range and is closer to the territory of the demons.

Therefore, even if the remaining orc troops stationed there are exhausted, the dangerous and difficult to defend terrain will still cause considerable trouble to the Imperial Army.

But fortunately, this is not a problem that Chris has to consider right now.

After all, the prince... and of course Rosaline's army, have already deployed a front line. They are the first human force to come into contact with the enemy.

"Everyone, I believe you have received the news. The vanguard of this expedition is led by the Royal Guards, led by His Royal Highness the Prince. They will be tasked with breaking through the orcish defenses along the way and advancing the battle line to the city of Lilbas."

After taking a quick look at the layout, Chris started giving orders without pausing.

"Considering the combat effectiveness of the Royal Guards, this process shouldn't be significantly hindered. However, this also means they will penetrate the entire demonic front like a sharp knife. Therefore, we must protect their flanks and rear. Once they break through, we must coordinate with the surrounding friendly forces to expand the gap in the front. Therefore, the specific deployment is as follows..."

The blue-haired girl assigned tasks in an orderly manner.

Slowly, without knowing when, even my trembling hands returned to normal.

The legendary genius who broke a series of records at the Imperial Royal Military Academy is quickly regaining his form, which means Aize can distract himself a little.

He shifted his gaze to the map.

Then he frowned:

"Are the demons' arrangement serious?"

Chapter 76 What Must Be Done

Thanks to his apprentice's unimaginable performance, Aize gained some extra space to move freely in the tense atmosphere before the expedition began.

So he left the military camp, returned to the city, and came to the Adventurer's Guild branch here again.

As part of the combat force that could be mobilized for this expedition, all members of the local Adventurer's Guild were collectively hired and organized into the combat sequence two hours after the news was announced.

Therefore, the current guild is really just an empty shell.

And Aize came here naturally to contact his intelligence director who was still far away in the Holy City through the guild's front desk clerk, just like before.

"I didn't have much time so I just asked directly."

After starting the conversation using the emergency contact code, Aize quickly confirmed that no one was around and got straight to the point.

"In a few hours, the Empire's attack will begin. Is there any new news from the Demon Tribe?"

The clerk who was being controlled yawned slowly and replied expressionlessly:

"Yes, since yesterday noon, all the demonic occupation forces that have invaded the empire's territory have been preparing for battle, and the combat forces of the various tribes have also begun to be mobilized. The combat forces of the giants, fire demons, blood tribes, and dragon people among the thirteen tribes are expected to arrive at the battlefield within a few days."

Aize raised his eyebrows:

"Has Charlotte also taken action?"

"Well, it's said that they received a direct order from the Demon King, so they have to show some reaction."

In the history of the confrontation between humans and demons, the vampires have always been the most active players, acting as pioneers in almost all wars against humans.

Although Charlotte chose to cooperate with Aize for personal reasons and hoped to break the existing situation, an overly strong change of position will inevitably arouse suspicion.

So in this chaotic situation, in order to conceal her identity, she had to pretend to attack.

Anyway, just be careful to keep a sense of proportion. For the sake of the overall situation, there is nothing we can do about it.

The three groups of Fire Demons, Giants, and Dragon Men possess military strength that ranks extremely high among the entire demon clan, so it is not surprising that they participated in this war.

Therefore, these are things that can be predicted without intelligence and are of no value.

Aize sighed and tiredly pressed his face against the guild's front desk:

"The expedition intelligence was leaked after the riot in the Holy City over twenty days ago, yet the Demons are only mobilizing their forces so late. Clearly, there's something wrong... Tsk, even if they know there's a problem, they can't find any trace of it. It's so f*cking annoying. Even the orcs are like this."

"Orc? What's wrong?"

Aize, who was lying on the table, turned over and cast his gaze towards the deserted street outside the window:

"Just now, I was at the Imperial Army's side and saw the orc deployment they discovered. How should I put it? Uh, it looked very real."

"What's the meaning?"

"Using their limited and underpowered forces, they set up multiple layers of defense along the Empire's offensive routes, maintaining a mutually supportive distance between them. This compensated for their disadvantages and ensured they could cover all possible Imperial attack routes, slowing the overall pace of the attack."

The intelligence chief frowned.

She was not a military professional, so she took a sip of the coffee on the table and spent several seconds to understand what Aize meant.

Then he shook his head as a matter of course:

"Isn't this the correct arrangement? What's so strange about it?"

"The premise is wrong, so why isn't it strange?"

Aize stood up suddenly.

"They're actually serious about defending Lilbas, and seemingly relying solely on their own strength. Isn't that suspicious enough!?"

As Aze's designated experience pack, the orcs suffered two consecutive defeats at Aze's hands that were enough to go down in history.

The second disastrous defeat at Tafia not only resulted in the death of the orc chieftain, but also killed the last elite troops and a large number of tribal leaders.

As a result, the Orcs, who once held a leading position among the demon clans, suffered heavy losses and became weaker and more destitute than ever before. Some intelligence even suggested that they might lose their position among the thirteen major clans in the near future.

No matter how hard these orc remnants defend themselves, they will never be able to stop the attack of the Empire's ace troops.

The ideal situation is to cooperate with a large clan, and during the gradual resistance, through orderly retreat and luring the enemy deep into the territory, lead the Royal Guards and the prince into the encirclement, and then severely damage or even annihilate them, thus breaking the spearhead of the human counterattack in one fell swoop.

In this way, the orcs will also have a chance to revive themselves.

This is not the case.

The orcs' tight defense arrangement had no intention of luring the enemy deeper into their territory. It was clear that they were determined to fight humans to the death on the front battlefield.

To this end, they also dispersed their combat power in various directions.

This action will inevitably lead to further vigilance of the Imperial Army, making sneak attacks by other races more difficult, which is completely not worth the loss.

When Aize received the information collected by the adventurers a day ago, the orc defense line had not yet been fully formed, so he did not pay too much attention to it.

Looking at it now, it really feels like my IQ has been ripped off.

The intelligence director turned around and looked at the map on the guild wall. After a lot of hard thinking, he found nothing. He threw up his hands and decided to give up. He asked again:

"So, what's going on?"

"That's why I'm going crazy because I don't know. The guards led by the prince are incredibly powerful. To deal with them, we must have the main force of a certain tribe on the scene. And to achieve this goal without being detected is almost impossible. Our intelligence network and imperial scouts are watching!"

Moreover, even if we put aside the difficulty of large-scale mobilization and hiding it from Aize and the Empire, which race could mobilize such a force?

The Fire Demon, Dragon Man, Giant, and Vampire have all appeared in other places. It is already clear that they can no longer play the role of a surprise attack.