[370] The War Begins

"Has the Empire's army arrived?"

"What should we do now?"

"We've run out of options. It's a fight to the death."

"But it's Esdeath, how can we fight her?"

"That woman is a complete monster. There's no way we can match her."

"We're doomed."

...

Numa Seika gazed at the tribal leaders with a face full of frustration. They were already giving up before the battle had even started.

The current forces were five to one—500,000 soldiers against 100,000. Such a massive advantage should have been overwhelming.

But Numa Seika had no real grasp of the terror that Esdeath represented. He had been sheltered in the harsh northern lands, hearing only rumors about her might. In his mind, Esdeath was nothing more than a myth, magnified by stories and fear.

For years, both the southern and western tribes had been defeated by her. The only reason these tribes were still alive was because she had spared them, not because they were strong. Numa Seika, who had never lost a battle since gaining his teigu, believed that Esdeath had been exaggerated by her enemies.

In his arrogance, he thought that defeating such a woman would be easy. After all, if he couldn't do it, how could anyone else?

"Enough, shut up!" Numa Seika finally couldn't take it any longer. He shouted at the leaders.

The room, which had been in a frenzy of anxious voices, immediately fell silent. Numa Seika nodded in satisfaction.

"Tomorrow, I'll lead the army myself. With our 500,000 troops, we can simply overwhelm Esdeath and her 100,000."

"But, Your Highness..."

"Do you have any objections?"

"No... No objections..."

One of the leaders immediately fell silent, realizing the threat in Numa Seika's eyes. Any more words and he would be dead.

He had only wanted to inform Numa Seika that the fear of Esdeath wasn't confined to those present—it extended all the way down to the lowliest of soldiers. However, Numa Seika was in no mood to listen, so he said nothing further.

The two forces settled in for a tense night.

Early the next morning, the Empire's army, led by Esdeath, began its march toward the Northern King's City.

As before, August and Esdeath were at the front, followed by the three Beast Soldiers, with the rest of the 100,000 soldiers marching behind.

What surprised everyone, including the Three Beasts, was that August, who had been deemed the "pretty boy" of the army, had decided to join Esdeath at the front line. It was a bold move, and many were amazed by his courage, if not his strength.

The Northern King's City, perched in the extreme cold of the north, was covered in snow all year round. The entire city gleamed with a bluish-white hue, a sight both majestic and imposing.

As both armies prepared for battle, a group appeared atop the walls of the city.

At the forefront stood a man clad in armor, gripping a long spear.

"So, you're the general Esdeath of the Empire," Numa Seika called out from the walls, his voice carrying over the winds.

"You are the so-called 'Northern Hero,' then?"

"Indeed. Why does your Empire wish to invade us?"

"Why? Do invasions and wars require a reason? I came because I wanted to."

"How arrogant."

"Enough with the pre-battle banter," Esdeath said, her voice cutting through the tension. "The time for words is over. Now, let the war begin."

A powerful aura erupted from Esdeath. The clouds in the sky parted, and her battle spirit surged. The soldiers behind her, the three Beast Soldiers included, were filled with excitement, ready for the fight.

Meanwhile, within the Northern King's City, although they boasted 500,000 soldiers, many of them were from different tribes with little trust or coordination between them. It was a tenuous alliance at best.

"Extreme Cold Shock!"

With a sweeping motion, ice shards appeared from thin air, hurtling toward the Northern King's City.

"Nice try," Numa Seika sneered, leaping into the air. His teigu, a spear imbued with ice magic, flared to life, shattering the incoming ice with ease.

Though both Esdeath and Numa Seika wielded ice-related relics, the difference in their mastery was immense.

"All troops, attack!" Numa Seika bellowed.

With that command, the gates of the Northern King's City slowly creaked open. Swarming out were countless soldiers, with more emerging from both flanks and the rear. The numbers were overwhelming—five times as many as the Empire's forces.

"General of the Empire, we have 500,000 soldiers, and you only have 100,000. How do you plan to fight us?" Numa Seika laughed, already thinking of victory as a certainty.

However, neither Esdeath nor any of her soldiers showed the slightest sign of hesitation.

"Numbers? That doesn't matter in the face of absolute power."

With a mighty surge of power, the cold energy around Esdeath exploded. In mere moments, the approaching Northern soldiers were frozen solid, turning to ice statues.

"Firearms team, prepare for battle. Pike and warrior units, advance!"

Liver, who had taken command, swiftly organized the army into three separate units, each moving to flank the Northern forces.

Liver, Daidara, and Nyau—each a wielder of a teigu—led the respective teams, launching their assault with brutal precision.

August, meanwhile, couldn't help but smirk at the sight of firearms among the Empire's troops. In a world like this, where magic and relics reigned, firearms felt oddly out of place.

But he wasn't about to dwell on that. After all, even the ancient relics of a thousand years ago, like the Pumpkin Cannon, had their own charm.

"Let me rack up some experience points!" August thought with a grin.

As Daidara rode forward, swinging his twin axes, the Northern soldiers fell in droves, their bodies littering the battlefield.

"By Esdeath's command, go and die!" shouted Liver as water arrows formed from thin air, freezing into deadly ice crystals and scattering to deal devastating area damage.

"Listen to my melody, and then die," Nyau chimed in, her flute music putting large numbers of Northern soldiers to sleep, only for them to be slaughtered by the advancing Empire's troops.

This wasn't a battle—it was a massacre. And in that moment, August was thoroughly enjoying every second of it.