The Herb King

The cavalry unit led by Einar went inside the camp as soon as the huge gate was opened and after all the cavalries entered, the soldiers hurriedly closed the gate.

Seeing this, Lexter wasn't worried. He turned his head to his army and called out. "Summon Gustavo!"

He didn't forget the conversation he had with Gustavo last time. The guy had already promised him that he will lead the front.

Not long later, a grim-looking Gustavo walked towards him. "Grand General!"

Lexter waved his hand and said. "Gustavo, you have made a blunder in the Leone Empire and failed your task. His Majesty might have forgiven you, but you still have to redeem yourself if you want to go back to the Ford Empire. Lead your men and join the frontline unit!"

Gustavo was already expecting this so he wasn't surprised. He just felt bitter that he had to be treated like this even after working tirelessly for the Ford Empire. "I'll follow your commands, Grand General." He lightly lowered his head to hide his bitterness.

Lexter grinned as he looked at Gustavo. "Go and command the troops."

"Yes, Grand General!" Gustavo turned around and stepped forward. He then called the remaining subordinates of the Northern Viper Group as well as the frontline unit. The collective number of his forces was now seventy thousand soldiers, but most of them were just ordinary soldiers so they could only serve as cannon fodders.

While Gustavo was planning how to breach the stone walls of their enemy's camp, Lexter decided to take a short break. Although he looked fine, he still expended a bit of world essence earlier to save the soldiers of the Ford Empire.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Ramiel gave Einar a thumbs-up for his splendid performance. This old man was always silent, but he has some skills with the broadsword. "I have underestimated you, Sir Einar." He said to the old man.

Einar merely nodded his head at him.

Suddenly, two people walked towards them. They were none other than Aethelwolf and Aenwyn.

"At this moment, the enemies are exhausted so we should use this opportunity to strike them. Ramiel, tell your guys to fire the ballistas and the catapults. Let the archers fire their arrows as well. Once all our ranged weapons are used up, send out the light infantry and the heavy infantry. You should send them in this formation..." Aethelwolf explained to him in great detail and Ramiel kept on nodding his head like a diligent student.

"I'll follow your arrangements, Sir Aethelwolf. I'll take my leave now." Ramiel bowed to him and left to execute Aethelwolf's suggestions.

When he saw Ramiel leaving in a hurry, Aethelwolf chuckled. "I didn't know that I had a war maniac under my command."

"You seem like one yourself." A calm and angelic voice echoed beside him.

Hearing this, Aethelwolf was stunned and he started to doubt himself. Was he also a war maniac? He wanted to deny her words, but for some reason, he enjoyed looking at their enemies suffer. 'Perhaps she might be right...' He thought to himself.

***

In the Lion City camp, Duke Baron stared at the first prince with a blank look on his face. "Your Highness, why did you not go with Sir Aethelwolf and Sir Ramiel? Didn't we already discuss that you will join them?" He was a bit exasperated by the prince's relaxed attitude. They were at war, but it seemed like Prince Renz wasn't treating things seriously.

Prince Renz didn't have his usual lazy appearance. He had a dignified look on his face as he replied. "You're right, Sir Baron. I was supposed to go with Sir Ramiel's group, but since Sir Aethelwolf is already with him, I think there wasn't a need for me to be there. Besides, the Dustin Empire would attack the capital soon and we need more soldiers here." He wasn't worried about Vale City at all. He believed that as long as Aethelwolf was there, Vale City would never fall.

Duke Baron felt the sudden change in the first prince's temperament and he felt as if he was looking at a different person. This guy was known as a drunkard by everyone so it was surprising to see him act all serious. "Your Highness, with all due respect, even if the Dustin Empire attacks us now, they wouldn't be able to breach Lion City." As he was speaking, he noticed the Two Lion Sword tied on the prince's waist. This was the symbol of the Leone Empire's power and stability, but it was now in the hands of this slovenly prince.

Prince Renz frowned after hearing the duke's arrogant words. "Sir Baron, don't underestimate the Dustin Empire. I heard that they have been training a new flying unit in their army for several years now. Do you know about it?" The prince asked sharply.

Duke Baron furrowed his eyebrows, but he still nodded his head. "I've heard about their Ice Wyvern Battalion. They have one thousand Level 3 Ice Wyverns and the soldiers riding them are also Level 3 Espers. That battalion is the strongest fighting force of the Dustin Empire." He answered. As a Duke, he knew of some valuable information related to the other empires so he had some knowledge about the Dustin Empire's Ice Wyvern Battalion.

Prince Renz sighed and shook his head after hearing the Duke's words. "What you have is a piece of outdated information, Sir Baron. The Dustin Empire was heavily nurturing this battalion and their numbers had already increased to five thousand! Other than that, the man leading them is George Dustin, a peak stage Level 4 Esper. He is an Arch Duke of the Dustin Empire and a member of the Dustin Imperial Family! That guy's mount is a Level 4 Ice Wyvern! Do you know what that means?!"

Duke Baron was stunned into silence by the prince's words.

"That means the Dustin Empire has an aerial superiority. Our Leone Empire doesn't even have its own aerial unit so we wouldn't be able to hold them off. The only way to fight back against their Ice Wyvern Battalion is to use the defensive might of our Lion City. We have tall walls equipped with the most fearsome weapons and runes! This is our advantage over them so we have to use it well!"