Preparing for Rescue

"That is the plan. Your Majesty, Master Rhine, is everything clear?"

After receiving Rhine's approval, Luo Li detailed the entire evacuation plan.

At this moment, the army was still withdrawing toward the southwest, and the sounds of battle could already be heard in the distance.

Clearly, the chaos was continuing.

However, as long as the Saint's Carriage remained here as a symbolic presence, the knights would not panic.

It seemed her efforts to soothe them the previous night had been effective.

Luo Li thought to herself, though her gaze never wavered from the two individuals before her.

No matter how perfect the plan was, it would remain nothing more than ink on paper without the assistance of the beastmen and the dragons.

"I understand the general outline, but I still have a few questions."

"Please speak, Your Majesty."

Luo Li looked toward the Dragon King with respect.

There was no helping it; the Dragon King naturally held a rank higher than a Saintess.

Within the human race, the only person who could stand on equal footing with the Dragon King was the Pope.

At least, that was the case in terms of status.

Both were representatives of their respective races, allowing them to treat each other as equals.

As for Luo Li, she was merely a Saintess, which strictly speaking made her the Pope's deputy.

She could not stand as an equal to the Dragon King.

"I am curious. For this war, I brought fifty-six of my kin. Such a force should be incredibly powerful to the human race."

"That is true."

Although she was not entirely sure where the Dragon King was going with this, Luo Li responded nonetheless.

"Then why do you not place the dragons on the front lines? Why instead have the humans and beastmen resist the enemy?"

As he spoke, the Dragon King pointed toward the two strategic heights on the map.

"These two locations are clearly isolated. Below them are cliffs hundreds of meters high."

"Once the humans and beastmen, who lack the ability to fly, are surrounded, they can only wait for death."

"But if my kin were to hold these positions, would that not be better?"

The Dragon King's logic was sound, but Luo Li had her own plans.

Facing the Dragon King's question, she answered immediately.

"Your Majesty, the dragons are currently the most powerful force we have against the demon race. We cannot afford any losses."

"At the same time, it is precisely because the dragons can fly that I want you to arrange for them to provide rescue in all directions."

"No one but the dragons can ensure the most effective reinforcements are delivered in the shortest amount of time."

Luo Li's finger tapped lightly on the map.

"The Demon Emperor is not a fool. He possesses enough wisdom to understand our target for evacuation."

"He will only do one thing: set up defenses here in advance. If the dragons go there, they will inevitably be bogged down by his army."

"While individual dragons are powerful, they would find it difficult to resist certain battle formation skills."

"Once they are picked off one by one, and we lose both air superiority and the strategic heights, we will be left waiting for death."

The Dragon King's brow arched, a hint of irritation in his voice.

"Are you saying... you do not trust my kin?"

"No. I simply wish to minimize losses as much as possible, whether they be dragons, humans, or beastmen."

Saying this, Luo Li took a deep breath, her expression solemn as she looked directly at the Dragon King.

"Your Majesty, our battle strategy has changed."

"What we must do now is take as many living people with us as possible and lose as little of our strength as we can."

"If it were up to me to choose, I would have the humans sacrifice themselves first, then the beastmen, and finally the dragons."

"Because the rearing cycle for every member of the dragon race is simply too long."

The Dragon King fell silent, and even Rhine beside him was speechless. The two of them exchanged a glance.

In that moment, these two individuals from different races and social strata both saw a flash of shock in each other's eyes!

Since ancient times, conflict between races had been the norm on the continent.

Every race had its own disputes, large or small.

Some were for faith, some for survival, and some were born of pure loathing and hatred.

However, there had never been an entity that sought to unite all the races of the continent.

Even the human Pope from a thousand years ago, who led the continental races against the demon race, did not truly unite them.

Instead, they had negotiated a coalition to advance and retreat together.

While it appeared to be a unified alliance, strictly speaking, everyone was still acting in their own self-interest.

But the girl before them was different.

Although she had not explicitly said it, the sentiment she expressed was enough to shock them both!

Her perspective and character, which encompassed all races under heaven and treated them with equal consideration, was a sight to behold.

Even the Dragon King began to see Luo Li in a new light at that instant!

I never thought... that I would hear such words from a member of the sapient races in my lifetime.

This thought crossed the Dragon King's mind.

When he looked at Luo Li again, his gaze, which had previously held a hint of condescension, gradually shifted toward equality.

Regardless of whether she could achieve it or if she possessed the capability, this breadth of mind was a vision that the representatives of any other race on the continent could not match.

The Dragon King, who had originally only paid attention to her because of the contract tablet, had his perspective completely overturned in a heartbeat.

It seems... it was not that she received the power of the contract document tablet because she was favored by the gods.

Rather, it was because her heart and character were recognized by the gods that she was granted its power.

This thought flashed through Asfield's mind and vanished.

"I understand. Then, regarding the air superiority, I, on behalf of the dragon race... shall take full command."

"As long as I live, the command of the skies shall never fall into the hands of the demon race. Is that acceptable?"

Luo Li had no idea that her image had been completely transformed in the Dragon King's eyes in that brief moment.

Of course, even if she had known, she would have simply smiled and moved on.

While the document tablet was useful, it was a distant solution that could not solve the current emergency.

Furthermore, that item had to be saved for the right moment; it could not be mass-produced, or its value would naturally plummet.

"Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty."

Saying this, Luo Li turned toward Rhine.

"Master Rhine, what is the current status of the beastmen's battle reports? Are you able to inform me?"

Although Luo Li was exercising the authority of a commander, she did not officially hold the title.

Therefore, she could not communicate with the beastmen in the form of an order.

Furthermore, even if she did have the title, as a commander, she still needed to treat her talented subordinates with respect.

Otherwise... what was a general without soldiers, or a leader without subordinates?

A commander in name only?

One must show respect to the talented, but military orders must also be as absolute as a mountain!

"Of course."

This time, the look in Rhine's eyes as he watched Luo Li became much more respectful, and even his posture softened.

Though Luo Li found it a bit strange, she did not ask questions.

After all, attitude was ultimately a personal matter.

"According to the information received earlier, because the toxic mist arrived too quickly, our formation did not have time to withdraw. Over five hundred soldiers have been poisoned and are unconscious. Although some were saved, they have yet to wake."

"The vanguard has been split into two. One part is heading north and is currently isolated and helpless. His Majesty the Beast Sovereign is also there."

"The other part is moving south with the central command and is less than five miles from the main camp."

Rhine turned his head to look at Luo Li.

He wanted to know how this Saintess would handle the isolated beastman army.

Would she ignore them and abandon them to their fate?

Or would she give her all to grasp at a slim chance of survival?

"Why did you not mention such an urgent matter sooner?!"

Luo Li's face suddenly darkened. At this moment, she was truly angry!

There were only five thousand beastmen in total, and now half of that force, including the powerful Beast Sovereign, had been cut off.

"This subordinate has failed in his duty... by not reporting in a timely manner. I ask for your punishment, Saintess!"

Rhine also knew that by not speaking up first, he was certainly at fault.

However, the reason he had not spoken before was truly out of fear that this Saintess and the Dragon King would suddenly decide to abandon the beastmen.

Currently, air superiority was split fifty-fifty between the dragons and the feathered serpent tribe.

Without the help of the dragons, it would be virtually impossible to rescue those isolated two thousand five hundred people!

That included the Beast Sovereign, who was very likely to fall here!

The Dragon King might not care, but for the human race, this was a very advantageous opportunity!

Once the Beast Sovereign fell, the beastmen would inevitably descend into another struggle for the throne.

Internal strife and disputes would break out everywhere.

If handled poorly, it could cause the Beastmen Empire to collapse!

Until he was certain of the intentions of this human Saintess and the Dragon King, Rhine had not dared to speak, nor could he.

Looking at Rhine kneeling before her, Luo Li's heart sank.

Her brow furrowed as various plans flashed through her mind.

However, those plans could not keep up with this change in situation.

Who could have imagined that the Beast Sovereign had already been isolated!

No wonder the one who had come here was this man, Rhine.

"Rhine, do you believe in me?"

Luo Li looked down at Rhine, her gaze meeting his directly.

Rhine slowly raised his head, and after a brief hesitation, he made his decision.

"This foreign official, Rhine... shall support you with all his strength!"

"Good. Then, Rhine, I order you... lead the remaining two thousand beastmen and immediately head to the strategic heights east of the evacuation point. No matter what, take that position for me, regardless of the cost!"

"Yes!"

Rhine nodded vigorously. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he was suddenly called back.

"Wait. Leave after you hear the rest of my plan. At least it will give you peace of mind."

His massive frame paused for a moment, and Rhine stopped in his tracks, turning back and lowering his head.

"Your Majesty, how many dragons would be needed to protect ten magic airships?"

When it came to direct combat, the Dragon King's experience was clearly much greater than hers.

Luo Li was not familiar with what high-level combat looked like.

Although she had seen it from a distance, she had never experienced it personally.

Without that experience, she naturally had no right to speak on the matter.

"Those magic airships? Hmm... under the interference of the feathered serpent tribe and ground troops, it would require at least thirty of my kin."

Asfield pondered for a moment before giving his answer.

"Thirty... three for each ship?"

"And what about countering the feathered serpent tribe?"

"The feathered serpent tribe is a race that appeared suddenly after the demons emerged a thousand years ago. They likely appeared alongside the demon race."

Pausing, the Dragon King's voice grew grim.

"The combat power of that race is extremely formidable. Even for an adult dragon, it takes a six-to-one advantage to be certain of victory."

That would still be thirty dragons. Including the Dragon King himself, there were only fifty-seven dragons this time.

"I understand. Then, Your Majesty, please issue orders immediately for twenty-four dragons to head to the magic airships at once. Notify the entire Wyvern Knight Corps protecting the airships to retreat to the central command and temporarily hand over control of the skysoar dragons."

Asfield's golden vertical pupils constricted as he suddenly understood Luo Li's intention.

"You intend to... use the skysoar dragons to bring back those stranded beastmen?"

Luo Li nodded.

"Yes. While individual dragons are massive, they are not flexible enough."

"Once they fly over the demon army, they easily become sitting ducks."

"It is better to put our most effective strength in the most suitable place."

Her slender finger drew an arc on the map.

"Next, twenty-four dragons will guard the magic airships. Two other ships will be abandoned directly; use their crash from high altitude to eliminate as many of the demon race's effective forces as possible."

"Temporarily give up on dragon reinforcements and allow each unit to advance and retreat freely."

"Thirty dragons will coordinate with the ground troops to ensure that our air superiority is not breached."

"I and my knight, Lancelot, will lead the spare skysoar dragons and the remaining three dragons to carry out the rescue."

"Those three dragons are more than capable of carrying five hundred people. The remaining two thousand skysoar dragons can each carry one person. I will not abandon a single one of those two thousand five hundred beastmen."

In this era of cold weapons, air superiority was enough to pose a massive threat if one was even slightly prepared.

Once the command of the skies was seized, the feathered serpent tribe's ability to fly would allow them to carry out indiscriminate bombing of the ground troops.

The situation was similar for the dragons and the feathered serpents.

Both could be considered the bombers of this era.

But the prerequisite was having sufficient air superiority.

"Dominica! You should have understood everything from beginning to end, right?"

Luo Li turned back to look at Dominica, who was standing at the door of the Saint's Carriage.

"After I leave, I am leaving the rest to you. Carry out the evacuation step by step according to my plan. There must be no mistakes, understood?"

"If any unexpected events occur, consult the Dragon King immediately."

"Your Highness..."

Dominica stared blankly at her mistress before suddenly dropping to one knee and shouting loudly:

"This subordinate does not agree with this plan! Others may go, but Your Highness cannot!"

Luo Li shook her head. Facing Dominica's loyalty, she could only explain helplessly:

"If I do not go... those two thousand five hundred beastman warriors will have no way to regain their peak combat strength. Should we encounter a battle on the way, I can quickly restore their strength, which will greatly increase our chances of survival!"

"But Your Highness..."

"There are no buts. This is an order!"

She stopped looking at the complex expression in Dominica's eyes.

Turning back, she looked toward the Dragon King and Rhine.

"Gentlemen, the plan goes this far. The rest depends on our individual performances."

The Dragon King pondered for a moment before helplessly closing his eyes, signaling his agreement with the plan.

Rhine nodded slightly with a grave expression.

"Dominica, immediately notify the Black Armored Knights and Lina. Order her to lead the Black Armored Knights, the seven thousand knights from the Kingdom of the Moon on the left wing, and the twenty thousand knights of the Kingdom of Flame vanguard to occupy the strategic heights west of the evacuation point. Take that position at all costs!"

Just as Luo Li finished speaking, a familiar voice suddenly came from outside the door.

"Luo Li! Why has the order not been issued yet? The rear army has already fallen into chaos!"

As the voice spoke, a graceful figure pushed aside the curtain and stepped inside.

"Why are you all here?"