I only wanted to retire, but I ended up becoming an extremely popular character.

"Cassius, you are in charge of selecting personnel and assembling a crack assault team, keeping the number under thirty. Follow me to the other flank of Tono Village."

Zod looked at Cassius, paused briefly, and then gave a clear order: "Upon reaching the designated location, await my command to launch a surprise attack on the village."

"Yes!" Cassius answered firmly.

He then turned around and began screening from the nearly two hundred people in the line.

He selected soldiers who were experienced, agile, and, in his observation, the most reliable.

He quickly assembled a team of thirty people.

The squad silently assembled behind Zod, and under the cover of the thick night, quietly left the main position on the reverse slope and stealthily moved towards the flank and rear of Tono Village.

Hitis's main force waited quietly for about twenty minutes behind the reverse slope.

When the time was right, she steadily raised her rifle, aimed at a Holy Kingdom soldier patrolling on the outskirts of Tono Village, and pulled the trigger.

Gunshots pierced the night sky, and the soldier fell to the ground.

Immediately following Zod's prior instructions, the Imperial soldiers opened fire with their rifles, unleashing a dense hail of bullets upon the Holy Kingdom's garrison in the direction of the village.

The Holy Kingdom soldiers, caught off guard, reacted swiftly. They immediately took cover and launched a fierce counterattack against the distant, fire-spewing reverse slope.

The rifle fire from both sides clashed in the night sky, instantly turning the tranquil darkness into a cacophony.

Just as the direct firefight drew and firmly held the attention of the Holy Kingdom's garrison,

Zod's assault team, under the perfect cover of darkness and terrain, had moved silently to the flank of Tono Village.

The Holy See's defenses were so focused on the intense frontal firefight that they were oblivious to the deadly threat that was quietly approaching.

Just then, a series of muffled thunderous roars came from the direction of Sarlom City, and the orange-red flames suddenly expanded, dyeing half the sky an ominous scarlet.

"Artillery fire! It's coming from the direction of the main city!" A soldier from the Holy Kingdom instinctively turned his head to look, his exclamation filled with unease.

Almost at the same instant that the Holy Kingdom soldiers' attention was drawn to the distant explosion, dozens of Imperial soldiers suddenly accelerated from the darkness on their flank.

They switched from stealth to charge, swiftly rushing towards the nearby Holy Land defense line.

"Right flank! Some sons of bitches from the Imperials are creeping up there."

A soldier from the Holy Kingdom finally caught a glimpse of the dark figure that was almost upon him, and screamed in terror, his voice distorted with extreme fear.

The other Holy Kingdom soldiers snapped back to reality upon hearing the sound, their hearts sinking.

The ferocious faces of the imperial soldiers were clearly visible in the firelight, and they were less than twenty meters away from their own positions!

Some of the Holy Kingdom soldiers who were exchanging fire with Hitis's forces suddenly turned their guns around, and a hail of bullets swept hastily toward Zod's squad.

Several stray bullets whizzed past Zod's clothes, kicking up dust on the ground.

"Don't stop!"

Zod's voice drowned out the gunshot, calm to the point of being cold.

He drew his longsword from his waist and swiftly deflected the bullets coming from the front.

The bullet struck the sword, scattering a dazzling burst of light.

Dodging those bullets was second nature to Zod.

Because Zod led from the front and came with great force, the Holy Kingdom's firepower was almost entirely focused on Zod.

The soldiers following behind Zod did not face as much firepower as Zod did.

Led by Zod, a group of Imperial soldiers charged into the Holy Kingdom's position like a pack of wolves, ruthlessly tearing a gap in the Holy Kingdom's defenses.

The gap widened under the onslaught of Zod and Cassius.

The Holy Kingdom's soldiers had so much firepower that they couldn't even spare any attention for the Imperial army on Hittis's side.

In order to solve the immediate crisis, they all turned their guns or drew their swords, pointing them in Zod's direction.

At the same time, to coordinate with Zod's offensive, Hitis stood up from the reverse slope and pointed in the direction of Tonomura: "Follow Lieutenant Zod's lead! For victory and glory, attack the Holy Kingdom's army!!"

The imperial troops rose from the opposite slope and launched an attack on the Holy Kingdom's garrison in the direction of Tono Village.

Braving the artillery fire and the sparse hail of bullets, they resolutely charged towards Tono Village to join Zod's troops.

The Holy Kingdom soldiers in Tono Village had just turned their guns toward Zod when they were met with a large number of Imperial soldiers rushing toward them from a distance, so they had to turn their guns around again.

Immediately, the Holy Kingdom's garrison was thrown into chaos.

Seeing that the Holy Kingdom's defenses were on the verge of collapse, a Holy Kingdom lieutenant named Eric, who wore the rank of lieutenant on his shoulder insignia, stepped forward.

He wasn't particularly burly; in fact, he was rather thin, but every step he took was extremely steady.

Lieutenant Eric's pace quickened as he charged toward the Imperial army from the rear of the Holy Kingdom's forces at breakneck speed.

The Holy Cross sword in his hand was already drawn, its blade leaving a chilling trail in the firelight.

The moment he saw Zod, he flicked his wrist, and the blade traced a tricky arc, aiming straight for Zod's nape—fast and ruthless.

Zod kicked away the Holy Kingdom soldier who was entangled in front of him, and then quickly turned around to parry with his Imperial longsword.

Sparks flew as the swords clashed.

Lieutenant Eric's eyes flashed with a menacing light: "I've seen your picture. You're 'Empire Eagle,' aren't you! The one who defeated Lieutenant Barnes!"

Sure enough, Colonel Xavier was absolutely right. The Holy Kingdom must have established an intelligence file on Zod, and even this lieutenant knew Zod.

Just as Zod was focused on dealing with Lieutenant Eric, a murderous figure suddenly attacked from his left blind spot.

Lieutenant Ramsay of the Holy Kingdom, sword in one hand and gun in the other, silently approached Zod from the shadows.

He calmly raised the hand holding the gun, aimed the muzzle precisely at Zod's temple, and then pulled the trigger.

Zod was facing Lieutenant Eric, but he had already noticed the bullet coming from his left.

Just as Zod was about to dodge, an Imperial longsword blocked the bullet's trajectory.

Cassius stepped in front of the Holy Kingdom lieutenant, blocking the bullet: "Get out of the way, your opponent is me!"

Lieutenant Ramsay scoffed and said disdainfully, "A mere warrant officer dares to spout such nonsense here? Your epaulets are brand new; you must have just been promoted to warrant officer!"

Ramsey was right.

Cassius was not angered by Ramsey's slightly sarcastic remark, and simply said coldly, "Does a battle on the battlefield depend on the opponent's rank first?"

With that, he raised his sword and slashed at Lieutenant Ramsay. The blades clashed, producing a mournful sound, and the two were engaged in a fierce battle.

Meanwhile, in order to complete the final mission, namely destroying the artillery positions in Tono Village, Hitis led a team to rush towards the artillery positions.

"No, no, you might have mistaken me for someone else."

As Zod vehemently denied it, he suddenly exerted force in his arm, thrusting his longsword forward in an attempt to force Eric back.