"But... both Majesties seem to be enamored with you. How could they..."
"You mean, how could they make me the one to shoulder the responsibility?"
Luo Li smiled, took a small sip of her tea, and let out a long sigh.
"Is there something wrong with that?"
Ligeia looked at Luo Li with a hint of confusion in her eyes.
"Your Highness?"
Luo Li shook her head slightly. As expected... while Ligeia had a thorough understanding of biology...
And even a deep understanding of human reactions...
Her perspective was still not high enough.
"Ligeia, look at the bigger picture."
"Those two are the emperors of their respective races."
"Though they seem enamored with me, in their hearts, the interests of their races come before all else."
Luo Li looked at the clear black tea in her cup.
"They represent not just themselves, but the vast populations behind them."
"Therefore, they will not risk their own interests for their personal preferences, and what is more..."
"What's more?" Ligeia pressed.
"Even if I truly fail in commanding this war."
"Although the entire continent would blame me, it wouldn't be hard for them, as emperors, to protect a single person."
"Offering help in a time of need is far more valuable than adding to one's glory. If I fail, I might not even be able to keep the title of the Saintess of the Moon. If I survive, those two emperors could take me away at any time."
At that point, she would truly no longer be her own master.
But she might not even survive.
If they truly lost, then dying in battle would be the best choice she could see right now.
"I see."
Ligeia, finally understanding everything, looked grave, a trace of gloom in her eyes.
"Your Highness, if that is the case, why do you still take such a risk?"
Luo Li offered a faint smile, one tinged with a bit of bitterness.
"Heh... You might not believe me, but truth be told... I don't know either."
Indeed, even she did not know why she was doing this.
It was clearly so dangerous, and the cost was so disproportionate to the reward, so why do it?
Thinking it over, perhaps... the only reason was that she was being influenced by the holy power and this body.
"Alright, let's not think about that anymore. Since things have come this far, there is no turning back."
She set down her teacup and looked up at the distant sky.
At this moment, several small black figures could be seen flying high above.
Undoubtedly, those must be the dragons of the dragon tribe.
To be visible at this distance, there was no other possibility but the dragons.
"I still trust the dragons more. Their sense of collective identity is strong, and the Dragon King's orders are practically absolute."
"No dragon would defy the Dragon King's command, but the beastmen are... not quite as reliable."
Hearing this, Ligeia set down her cup, her expression turning somber.
"Does Your Highness mean that there might be rash attacks within the beastmen army?"
"Yes. Among the beastmen, especially the Lion-Tiger tribe, they are relatively more emotional and do not execute orders perfectly."
"If there are a few bold ones in the Lion-Tiger tribe who attack prematurely, it could cause major problems."
Ligeia frowned deeply, appearing quite troubled by this issue as well.
Seeing her like this, Luo Li waved her hand.
"Alright, don't worry about it. Regardless, things are still under control for now."
"As for the issues with the beastmen army, that's a headache for the Beast Sovereign to deal with."
There was no solution to this problem, as the beastmen army was not in Luo Li's hands.
And those of the Lion-Tiger tribe would not listen to her at all.
What else could be done?
They could only leave it to fate.
"Your Highness..."
Looking at Luo Li, who was feigning a relaxed manner, Ligeia made a decision in her heart.
If things truly became so bad that they were beyond redemption, she would take Luo Li and flee.
If such a saint, who disregarded her own life for the sake of all living beings, were to die simply because of a single failed war...
Then it would be the fault of this world!
In any case, things had already reached this point, and for the rest... she would just let it be!
"I'm done thinking. Let's continue drinking tea. Dominica, bring me some sweets!"
...
The army received its orders, and as professional soldiers, the knights reacted quite quickly.
In the rear, the Kingdom of the Sea knights, Norman and Maren, received their commands.
Though they didn't quite understand why this Saintess enjoyed tossing people around so much.
At least the knights from the Kingdom of Flame, the Kingdom of Ice, and the Kingdom of the Moon on the front lines...
Their treatment was much better.
First of all, they didn't have to face the demon race directly, which reduced the combat pressure significantly.
Unlike other nations, the Kingdom of the Sea saw almost no war.
Although there were many small countries in the regions adjacent to the Kingdom of Flame to the east and the Kingdom of the Highlands to the west...
Strictly speaking, the Kingdom of the Sea was not squeezed by the two major powers.
On the contrary, toward this nation hailed as a maritime commercial nation...
Both the Kingdom of the Highlands and the Kingdom of Flame maintained a very friendly attitude.
The key issue was that for the transport of goods between the east and the west, sea transport was much cheaper than land transport.
As for air transport... that price was not something ordinary people could afford.
And since the Kingdom of the Sea controlled almost all maritime transport, the other nations naturally looked after it.
Because of this, the Kingdom of the Sea almost never faced any wars on land.
And at sea... those ordinary pirates would occasionally cause trouble, but they would never form a large-scale chaotic army.
At most, it would be a dozen ships and a thousand or so people.
Therefore... the military of the Kingdom of the Sea could be summarized in one word.
Weaklings!
"Norman, what on earth does that Saintess of the Moon want to do?"
Maren watched the teams of knights scattering in all directions, his brow furrowed.
He still couldn't understand what effect this order from the Saintess of the Moon could possibly have.
"I don't know what she's thinking, but at least with this order, the knights of the Kingdom of the Sea, including you and me, don't need to go to the battlefield."
Norman looked back at the knights behind him.
"Hurry up!"
Then, he turned back to Maren and said:
"Isn't this a good thing?"
Maren curled his lip.
"It's not that it's bad, it's just that I always feel... like this Saintess of the Moon looks down on us."
Seeing Maren like this, Norman couldn't help but criticize him in his mind.
It wasn't that she looked down on them; it was that the military power of their Kingdom of the Sea truly wasn't up to par.
However, he couldn't quite say those words aloud.
After all, he himself was also a knight of the Kingdom of the Sea!
"That is the Saintess, don't speak recklessly. Be careful, walls have ears."
Hearing this, Maren looked to the left and then to the right.
As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but a vast plain.
"Where are the walls?"
"Er..."
Norman raised a hand to his forehead, feeling a bit helpless toward this companion who was feigning ignorance.
"Maren, regardless of anything else, she is one of the only Seven Saintesses of the Holy Church."
"We are both Temple knights. Although we belong to the Kingdom of the Sea, strictly speaking, that Saintess is no different from our own Saintess of the Sea. If you speak like this and someone with intentions hears it and reports you..."
"Alright, alright, I get it. I'll stop talking, okay!"
Maren waved his hand impatiently.
Although he knew Norman meant well, Maren always felt uncomfortable staying here.
Why?
When they came, they were only told they were supporting the Kingdom of the Moon. No one said anything about attacking the demon island!
Now, this sudden turn of events left everyone bewildered.
It had been a thousand years.
For a thousand years, no one had ever thought of doing this.
Why did this Saintess of the Moon think she could succeed?
She had recklessly brought tens of thousands of people to the demon island.
And in the first battle, they lost over twelve thousand men?
At this rate, it wouldn't take many battles before all eighty thousand men were left here.
Seeing Maren's impatient expression, Norman knew what he was thinking.
"Alright, anyway, the knights of our Kingdom of the Sea don't have to go to the front now. Spreading out like this means even if something happens, it won't affect too many people."
Norman was still somewhat confused about the sudden division of the army.
Clearly, the battlefield was ahead.
Clearly, their side held the advantage in this war, and it seemed that no army had even come out from under the Demon King's Castle.
Why not attack?
The gates of the Demon King's Castle were open!
Couldn't they just lead the troops and charge in?
If they occupied the Demon King's Castle, what could the Demon Emperor do, no matter how strong he was?
No matter how strong a single Demon Emperor was, if tens of thousands of knights charged at once...
Aside from fleeing, he could only wait for death.
So why not charge?
Why split the army suddenly?
Furthermore, the form of this military formation didn't look like an offensive stance at all, but rather like a defensive deployment.
A defensive deployment for the rear?
Would the demon race really circle around from behind?
A trace of a mocking smile appeared at the corners of Norman's mouth.
"She really is young after all, giving orders blindly. But this is fine too, at least on our side, we can keep our losses to a minimum."
Norman shook his head, rode his horse forward, and patted Maren's shoulder.
"Alright, stop sulking here. Let's go. Since we've received the order, we must obey it."
As Norman spoke, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
Wait!
A rear defense?
Could it be... the demon race truly has a way to launch a sneak attack from behind?
Although Norman hadn't experienced many wars, it didn't mean he was truly stupid.
He hadn't realized it at first because he had never considered it, but on second thought...
Though this Saintess of the Moon was young, it seemed she had never lost a single war she had experienced.
He had personally gone to the dungeon and seen that Zuka.
Although he didn't know how this Demon Marshal had been captured, it was at least certain...
That war had been personally commanded by the Saintess of the Moon.
Could such a person, who could command a war and capture a level sixty Demon Marshal while only being at level ten or so...
Truly be as foolish as he imagined?
No!
Absolutely not!
A commander capable of capturing a level sixty Demon Marshal would never issue a useless order!
"Could there really be a demon sneak attack from the rear?"
Norman couldn't help but mutter to himself. Maren, hearing him say this, burst into loud laughter.
"Haha! Norman, have you gone mad? Behind us is the strait, and there's only that one path."
"Even if there were demons, they would have been wiped out while we were marching. How could there be any?"
"No... I feel that the Saintess of the Moon is not the type of person to give orders randomly."
Norman was beginning to get a sense of it now.
He vaguely felt that the Saintess of the Moon had thought of something he had missed.
"Forget it, I don't believe in that Saintess of the Moon."
Maren gave a disdainful curl of his lip and turned his horse to leave.
"I'm going to the northwest to keep watch. I'll leave the southwest to you."
Watching Maren gallop away, disappearing over a hundred meters in the blink of an eye...
Norman could only shake his head with a bitter smile.
"Sigh... forget it, I won't think about it anymore. I'd better hurry and check the other side."
With that, he also galloped away, riding all the way to the picket line.
By now, the picket line had been stretched out for several kilometers, with a squad of knights guarding every hundred meters.
Each squad consisted of about ten knights.
One kilometer only required a little over a hundred people.
And right now, the entire line was still spreading further out.
The army had reached this position and then began to split to the left and right wings, leaving a squad every hundred meters before continuing forward.
The picket line was constantly being expanded, and a faint arc began to form.
When Norman arrived at the picket line, the knights were sitting on their horses, chatting.
After all, no one had anything to do, so what else could they do but chat?
Knight A glanced at the distant darkness and then turned around boredly, lying directly on his horse.
"I say, what exactly is our purpose in coming here?"
"We're at the very back for the fight, and we have no part in the charge at the front."
"Look at this place, almost nothing grows. Even the grass has been contaminated by demonic energy, and not even the horses can eat it."
Knight B's attitude was slightly more serious.
"I heard that the Saintess of the Moon once defeated a hundred thousand with five thousand. With a record like that, she must have some skill."
"And... the supplies from the airships are quite good. At least we haven't had to eat dry rations yet, have we?"
Knight C looked at the slacking Knight A and rubbed his forehead helplessly.
"I say, brother, that's enough. We're currently executing military orders."
"Give me a break. Executing what military orders? Staring at the starry sky in a daze? This counts as a military order?"
Knight A said casually with a hint of disdain, and instinctively looked toward the west.
"Guarding the rear? What on earth is that Saintess of the Moon thinking? What is there to be alert for back there?"
Saying this, he pointed toward the vast plains.
"Look, in a place this big, there isn't even a spot to hide."
"If there truly were a demon army, wouldn't they have been exposed long ago? Why even bother guarding?"
Knight B looked in the direction Knight A was pointing, and suddenly his brow twitched as he narrowed his eyes slightly.
Seeing this, Knight A gave a disdainful laugh.
"Tch! Alright, stop pretending. Why don't you just lie down and look at the stars with us?"
"No! Something seems wrong."
Knight B stared into the distance with narrowed eyes, his expression gradually turning grim.
And just then, Norman happened to arrive. Hearing Knight B say this, he instinctively asked:
"What's wrong?"
"Over there..."
Knight B replied instinctively, but then he suddenly realized something and snapped his head back to look behind him.
"Lord Norman!"
Hearing this, the other knights also turned their heads to look at Norman.
They were about to salute, but Norman waved them off.
"You are all in armor, there is no need for formalities. You... what did you just see?"
Norman turned to Knight B, who pointed into the distance.
"Lord Norman, look... doesn't it seem like something is wrong over there?"
Norman followed the direction Knight B was pointing.
Under the starry night sky where the moon was hidden, he could vaguely see a mass of shadows on the distant plains.
A dark cluster was slowly moving through the darkness.
Was that... a demon army?
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