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

Startled, Spente quickly explained, "No, Colonel Xavier, you've misunderstood, I didn't say..."

"Spent, let me finish," Xavier gestured, then continued:

"Given the current state of the battle, regardless of whether we can ultimately win, if this battle continues like this, the blood of the younger generation of officers in the 'Imperial Blade' Legion will surely be shed to death."

"If all the fresh blood is drained, the 'Imperial Blade' Legion will truly become a decrepit old man."

Xavier stopped there and didn't continue.

He did not tell Spente the things that were buried deep in his heart and that he could not say directly.

That is: even if the war is won, the "Imperial Blade" Legion will lose everything and will definitely fall out of the ranks of the Empire's seven elite legions.

The training of officers in this world cannot be accomplished overnight, and it cannot be filled by ordinary conscription.

It takes a lot of time and resources for an ordinary soldier to go from warrant officer to junior officer, and then to field officer.

However, the battlefield situation changes rapidly, and the empire will never patiently wait for the "Imperial Blade" to slowly recover its strength and return to its peak before entrusting it with important tasks.

Once the "Imperial Blade" legion is unable to undertake the main offensive mission on the front line, both the Imperial Military and the Crown Prince, who has long been sharpening his sword, will quickly use the excuse of "normal military rotation" to downgrade the "Imperial Blade" legion to an auxiliary legion or transfer it to the rear for rest and reorganization.

By then, the "Imperial Blade" will no longer be able to enjoy the resource allocation benefits of elite units.

Abundant military equipment, high-quality personnel, and various supplies will all be gone.

Without the resources and platform provided by the Empire, the "Imperial Blade" will soon degenerate into an ordinary legion no different from other numbered legions.

Without the support of the "Imperial Blade" legion, Xavier and the Fifth Prince he supported would be far weaker than the First Prince and the forces behind him in terms of influence, status, and strength.

Xavier's political ideal of having the fifth prince ascend the throne and bring peace to the empire will inevitably be shattered.

Even Colonel Xavier couldn't predict the chain reaction that would follow the moment the first domino fell.

But he knew that the subsequent chain reaction would not end with the shattering of his political ideals.

This game of power will only end with the complete defeat of one side; there is no possibility of reconciliation, much less of a safer outcome through withdrawal.

If Colonel Xavier could sacrifice a legion of his "Imperial Blade" to secure the Empire's interests and future, and realize his political ideals...

So even if he were to die right now, he wouldn't blink an eye.

However, the current situation is that even if we sacrifice ourselves and the "Imperial Blade" legion, it will not bring any benefits other than making things worse.

The fifth prince, who was able to lead the empire to peace, will inevitably face an even more difficult and dangerous situation after losing the strong support of the "Imperial Blade" legion.

Xavier will be no exception.

The more the "Imperial Blade" legion fought, the more it seemed to be doing the work for others.

Shed your own blood to forge the crown of another.

None of this is what Xavier wanted to see.

At this very moment, Zod's meteoric rise to prominence gave him a subtle expectation for the younger generation of officers.

Those ideals and goals that even Colonel Xavier himself found difficult to achieve in the short term seemed to have finally found someone to entrust to.

Rather than letting the "Imperial Blade" legion bleed to its last drop, ultimately failing to gain any benefits for the Empire and instead suffering severe damage and becoming a discarded pawn, it is better to let the blood of the "Imperial Blade" legion be shed to the last drop.

Why not take a gamble!

This time, Xavier decided to go against the principles he had always adhered to.

It wasn't out of fear of failure, nor out of fear of death.

Rather, he hoped to gamble his future on the young officers led by Zod.

Ultimately, as long as the new generation of officers doesn't collapse, the "Imperial Blade" legion can rise again no matter how many times it falls.

His ideals may be passed down as these young officers grow up.

A resolute glint flashed in Xavier's eyes, a glint that held both relief and determination.

He turned to Spinter, his tone no longer hesitant, even carrying a hint of relieved certainty:

"Captain Spinter, I've had enough of the Empire's cumbersome bureaucratic system. I don't want to keep following their predetermined path to the end."

He paused, as if speaking to Spinter, or perhaps declaring to himself:

"I'm betting my future on these young people."

Then, he let out a long sigh, his gaze falling on the distant, smoke-filled battlefield, his voice steady and powerful:

"I'm withdrawing my troops!"

This cry of "withdrawal" is not a sign of defeat or cowardice.

Instead, it was an old general who used his last bit of authority to preserve the last embers of the "Imperial Blade" legion.

He wanted to entrust the future of the "Imperial Blade" legion to these young people.

Even if the troops are withdrawn, it may displease some people in the Imperial military.

But so what? Xavier is going to rebel just this once.

The moment Colonel Xavier uttered the word "withdrawal," Captain Spente involuntarily shuddered.

He heard everything Colonel Xavier had just said clearly, every single word.

The man before me, who valued military honor above all else, the commander who once proclaimed that the "Imperial Blade" legion existed solely to crush the enemy, actually spoke of withdrawing his troops.

It would have been unbelievable if Spinter hadn't heard it with his own ears.

Spenter knew Xavier all too well.

In Colonel Xavier's creed, the "Imperial Blades" are the sharpest blade of the Empire, and their only reason for existence and mission is to tear the enemy apart at all costs.

They are a group of warriors who are ready to die for the glory and interests of the empire at any time.

But now, this blade, which never returned to its sheath, has been retracted on its own initiative.

What suddenly made him change his mind?

Spente vaguely understood that, apart from his own words that had touched Xavier's "political ideals," it was something else entirely.

Another, even more important factor lies hidden behind the smoke of this war.

Xavier saw a glimmer of hope in the new generation of officers, represented by Zod, to whom he could entrust his ideals.

Zod, in particular, possessed more than just tactical talent; he had the potential to lead the legion into the future.

From Colonel Xavier's words, Spente understood that Colonel Xavier was not retreating, but gambling on a more distant future.

He was gambled the future of "Imperial Blade" on these young officers.

We're betting that they can survive, grow, and one day in the future, unleash the empire's blade once more, cutting out a brilliance even greater than it does today.

Instead of so easily breaking the empire's blade here.