Golems

“That is our first objective to reclaim. March!”

Count Louis, the commander of the imperial army who had traveled across the ocean, returned to the main force after the meeting. He immediately mounted his horse and handed down his orders.

Their objective was to reclaim the port city of Rupelin.

Located near the coastal harbor, this city had once been the most prosperous metropolis in the region. But now, like everywhere else nearby, it had been abandoned by its lord and residents, reduced to a derelict ruin that even the ant colony didn't bother with.

When they first occupied this place, the colony had shown absolutely no interest in things they couldn't eat.

Because of this, most of the city's infrastructure and buildings remained completely intact. Reconnaissance confirmed that once captured, it could be immediately converted into a fortress.

“Commander! The monsters are visible to the naked eye! There are at least ten thousand of them!”

“Are those the ones?”

Count Louis raised his spyglass, spotting the massive swarm of ants surging toward them in the distance.

With such a plump prey gathering in large numbers right at their doorstep, there was no way the colony would sit back and do nothing.

What's more, the current colony had already gained a thorough understanding of humans.

They had learned from countless battles that humans holed up inside fortresses were far more difficult to deal with than those fighting in the open.

Therefore, they intended to settle the battle here on this open plain before the humans could enter the city and fortify it.

【Elise wants to test the combat strength of the new enemies.】

The various forms of ants currently rushing toward the imperial army were merely dormant combatants awakened from the nearest nest.

This was by no means the colony's main force. The colony was never foolish; they would never deploy their entire strength against an unfamiliar enemy.

“This is a battle of momentum! Deploy the golems! Remember, do not let your guard down under any circumstances!”

Even though this was his first time facing the colony, Count Louis had heard so much intelligence about them from Celia and the others that his ears were practically calloused. He did not underestimate the enemy in the slightest.

He followed the tactics they had rehearsed countless times, deploying the reborn combat golems at the very front to prepare to meet the enemy.

【The servants collide head-on with the enemy's main force.】

Finally, the brutal battle over the ownership of this abandoned city officially began.

The first to launch the assault were the jumping ants at the very front.

Before any magic or arrows could be fired, they relied on the incredible leaping power of their highly developed hind legs to fling themselves into the air, pouncing toward the golems in unison.

They clung desperately to the golems, gnawing frantically with their mandibles and gripping them with their powerful legs, attempting to drag them down.

“Shake them off!”

But the improved golems would not fall so easily. Even mandibles capable of crushing thick wood could not leave the slightest mark on their bodies.

Instead, the golems threw heavy punches or swung the giant logs in their hands like clubs, swatting away and crushing the jumping ants clinging to them.

【The servants employ all means in an attempt to overcome this powerful enemy.】

The colony had exerted all their effort.

They quickly realized that no mutated species could defeat these golems in a one-on-one fight, and they immediately switched to their specialty: swarm tactics.

However, the bodies of the golems were simply too hard, and their strength was too terrifying.

The blades of the scythe-bladed mutated ants, which could easily slice a robust beastkin in half, shattered one after another. The stingers of the venom-sting ants, capable of piercing heavy armor, failed to leave even a scratch.

Even when the bombardier ants and venomous ants detonated their highly acidic venom, it had almost no effect on the lifeless golems.

“Do you see that? Even evil monsters will eventually fall before our great magical civilization!”

Furthermore, this was not all.

Using the golems as a shield, the imperial army had long since had their mages set up large ballistas, which now poured down fire.

As long as they couldn't breach the golems' defensive line, the colony had no way of harming the imperial troops, who safely unleashed their attacks from behind.

【The servants determine that the enemy cannot be repelled by current means and decide to retreat.】

Ultimately, the colony quickly made a decision and began to withdraw.

Watching them retreat while recovering the corpses of their kin, the imperial army's morale soared, and they erupted into victorious cheers.

“What a pity. I had heard those flying pests were exceptionally troublesome, but we didn't even get a chance to use the preparations we made for them.”

“Those things are indeed incredibly cunning. I really didn't expect them to retreat so quickly.”

“Occupy the city as planned first. Also, gather the corpses those creatures left behind. Just as the Holy Kingdom said, we must also harvest what we can from them.”

Count Louis laughed heartily, seeing that he hadn't even broken a single drop of sweat.

This tentative skirmish ended in a one-sided victory for the imperial army, who had brought along far superior golems.

【The Queen Ant of the migratory colony asks if assistance is needed.】

【Elise replies that no assistance is needed and that they should just mind their own business.】

The defeat in this skirmish was shared with the entire colony through their linked hive mind, including the independently operating migratory colony.

The migratory colony, currently recovering its strength on the plains and roaming about to keep the beastkin in check, would not participate in this battle.

Seeing the two queen ants still clashing even now, Lin Miao couldn't help but sigh.

【Elise plans to lure the enemy out and engage in a decisive battle on the plains. She firmly believes that the newly created mutated species will surely defeat the enemy.】

Of course, the colony didn't feel like they had lost the previous battle at all.

On the contrary, they were planning a real battle based on the intelligence they had gathered.

After all, having constantly accumulated strength and grown, once they unleashed their true power, they could never be one-sidedly suppressed like before.

“Commander, shouldn't we wait for the Holy Kingdom's forces to arrive as agreed before we advance? Or at the very least, wait to regroup with the reinforcements behind us.”

“I originally thought so too, but I've changed my mind. You all saw the combat capabilities of those golems, didn't you? To these monsters who can't even use magic or battle aura, the golems are practically their natural enemy.”

Fortunately for the colony, even if they didn't lay any bait, the imperial army actively marched out of the city on their own.

Count Louis, who had secured an effortless victory and captured the city, was far from satisfied. Capitalizing on the formidable power demonstrated by the golems, he wanted to achieve even greater military merits.

“As long as we secure this fortress, the waters extending all the way from the sea will belong to us.”

Count Louis pointed out a new objective on the map, urging his subordinates to continue the offensive while their morale was still high.

Although there were virtually no casualties in this battle and immediately continuing the march was not unfeasible, many still harbored deep anxiety despite the overwhelming power of the golems.

However, in this highly enthusiastic atmosphere, they ultimately couldn't bring themselves to speak up and ruin the mood.

“As the vanguard, we are achieving great deeds. His Majesty the Emperor will surely recognize our efforts. Even if it's just for the reinforcements following behind, we must secure a safe path first!”

Count Louis drew his sword and shouted confidently.

Nothing boosted morale more than honor and pride.

“Besides, shouldn't we take this opportunity to rack up as many military merits as possible?”

His final, half-joking remark drew a round of cheers.

Rewarding merits and punishing faults was only natural, especially for these servants influenced by the deities.

Bestowing corresponding rewards based on military merits was one of the most classic and fundamental ways for deities to tame their servants.