The Grand War (2)

"This wasn't about underestimating the Florent Mage Association, but it was very disrespectful to compare a mage force comprised of various countries with an association from just one country. What was a problem for them might not have been an issue for us. You can leave this matter to me," Jeanne assured the other two leaders.

"In that case, I'll leave this matter to you," Aylox said.

"What about the Saravejo joint forces? Will they follow us?" Orkan inquired.

"They should," Jeanne replied, affirming Orkan's question.

"The Saravejo joint forces will take a detour to cut off aid to the city of Elzoron. Then, with the strength of the Reon Federation, we will wage war to destroy this city," added Aylox.

The three key figures within the combined Otheni forces continued discussing the details of the grand war plan. They also deliberated on what actions Arkmenom might take to thwart their plans.

The discussion lasted until midnight before finally coming to a close.

Meanwhile, the Reon Federation faced smooth progress. The combined forces of the Florent Kingdom and the Mage Association encountered fierce resistance from Arkmenom.

Nearly 2 million Arkmenom were mobilized to fight against the combined forces of the Florent Kingdom. Various levels of Arkmenom were also present to handle the mage units. The intensity of the war between the combined forces of the Florent Kingdom and Arkmenom was significantly greater compared to the Reon Federation.

Arkmenom were not elves; they possessed fertility no less than humans. They had also learned from humans over thousands of years of warfare. Various weapons used by humans were observed being used by Arkmenom.

Maces, axes, and even swords, which had fallen out of favor among humans, made a return in Arkmenom forces. They understood that the Arkmenom-style battle tactics would no longer be effective. They couldn't rely on covert attacks to hold back forces of this magnitude.

Although extremely chaotic, fortunately, the Florent Kingdom itself excelled in personal combat and cooperation among the five individuals more than warfare between large forces.

Because of this superiority, the chaos on the battlefield did not automatically put the Florent Kingdom at a disadvantage. However, the casualties were expected to be much higher compared to those on the Reon Federation's battlefield.

Those casualties would have been twice as high if not for Felicia, the Holy Maiden. Her mage talent power allowed Felicia to heal her allies and harm her enemies with the power of holy light.

There were two types of healing that this Holy Maiden could perform.

The first was pseudo-healing. It was called pseudo-healing because this technique only stimulated the healing potential of a human beyond its limits, resulting in quite strong side effects.

The side effects of pseudo-healing included reducing someone's lifespan. Pseudo-healing also had its limitations. If the limit was reached and the person's age had significantly shortened, then this form of healing could no longer be performed.

The second was true healing. True healing could heal someone. The worse the injury, the more mental energy needed to heal that person.

True healing put a tremendous burden on Felicia. Healing 100 dying individuals with true healing alone was enough to make her head throb.

Felicia not only had to provide assistance to the combined Florent forces but also had to battle Arkmenom of a general level. This prevented her from using true healing as it would exhaust her and give Arkmenom a chance to kill her.

With Felicia's help, it could be said that the combined forces of the Florent Kingdom still managed to withstand the brutal attacks of the Arkmenom.

In the Florent battlefield, an axe flew towards Pierce. He rolled to his right, dodging the axe. An Arkmenom leaped forward, retrieving the axe, then jumped toward Pierce, swinging his massive axe.

Pierce raised his steel shield, a thud resonating as the axe collided with it. He twirled the spear in his right hand and thrust it forward.

The Arkmenom raised his left hand, defending Pierce's attack with his wooden armor. The wood used as the Arkmenom's armor was nearly as strong as steel, minimizing the impact of Pierce's assault.

The Arkmenom swung his axe brutally again. Pierce was forced to focus on defense. The constant thudding sounds echoed relentlessly.

"Very difficult to defeat him alone," murmured Pierce.

Over four years had passed since he graduated from training class and was accepted as a defender of the Florent Kingdom. He was no longer an inexperienced newcomer; these four years were spent at the border.

His experience taught him that the individual prowess of the Arkmenom naturally gave them an edge in one-on-one combat. Even if they lost, they could easily escape by leaping through the trees.

Pierce didn't just want to defend; he wanted to kill this particular Arkmenom.

He glanced left and right, spotting one of his comrades also engaged in a battle against an Arkmenom.

"Jess!"

Jess, Pierce's comrade, immediately spotted the source of the voice and found Pierce. He instantly understood what Pierce intended to do. They had worked together for years, their understanding of each other was exceptional.

Pierce blocked the Arkmenom's axe attack in front of him. Then he ran towards Pierce. Jess, seeing this, sprinted towards Pierce and crouched. He then directed his shield upwards. Pierce jumped onto the shield while simultaneously Jess pushed it up.

With the shield's push, Pierce soared towards the Arkmenom who had been fighting Jess. He aimed with the spear in his hand and threw it with all his might. The Arkmenom tried to dodge, but Pierce's spear wounded his leg.

Pierce then slammed his shield, toppling the Arkmenom in front of him. He retrieved his spear and thrust it into the gap in the Arkmenom's wooden helmet. There was no escape from death after Pierce punctured his head with the spear.

There was no celebration; Pierce immediately ran to assist Jess. Working together, they managed to corner their enemy, but the Arkmenom retreated.

"Jess, let's help the others."

"You're right, the war's not over yet."

They searched for Florent Kingdom's combined forces soldiers who were struggling and assisted them. Thanks to the quality training class, the Florent Kingdom's soldiers' skills drastically improved, enabling many to hold their own against an Arkmenom in a one-on-one fight, similar to what Pierce did.

After relentless fighting for 6 hours against the combined forces of the Florent Kingdom, the Arkmenom finally retreated. However, this retreat was more strategic. The casualties for the Florent Kingdom were notably higher, but with the presence of Felicia, the Holy Maiden, the casualties decreased.

As a result, the Arkmenom assessed that they couldn't crush the morale of the combined forces of the Florent Kingdom. In war, morale is crucial; if the Arkmenom succeeded in slaughtering too many soldiers, the Florent Kingdom's morale would undoubtedly shatter. It could be said that the presence of the Holy Maiden prevented that from happening.