After being forced to step down, the once-annoying nun eloped with me.

"May the God of Light protect you! May the God of Light protect you!"

Every soldier was praying loudly, every soldier's eyes were red, and when they looked at the dark monster forest in the distance, there was no fear in their eyes, but rather a greedy look as if they were looking at a wide-open vault.

The pastor and his apostolic guard were in the safest rear section. There, the pastor was arranging the final tasks.

"You will accompany me, acting as overseers outside the range of the elven longbowmen. I will then, once everything is safe, reduce the thickness of the divine barrier, providing these hungry soldiers with area-of-effect divine buffs," the priest continued, emphasizing the importance of [safety]. "A group shield, Tranquility to prevent morale collapse, Pain Relief to ignore pain, and Berserk to unleash their fury... This way, even if the elves still have arrows, they won't be able to withstand our attack."

“But that means we can only enter the Monster Forest. The Elf Forest is still a mysterious place for us,” the captain of the Guardian Army warned. “Once we get there, the Elf Mage Corps will take over.”

"Hmph! Elves wouldn't unleash strategic magic that would cause widespread damage in their own forests! Listen to me, listen to me—and you, that bankrupt village chief of Schul, keep a close eye on him. That coward will definitely sneak back under various pretexts. Just kill him then, so we don't have to share our spoils."

"Yes!"

The priest was immensely pleased to receive orders from the friars.

Just as dawn broke, the brilliant sunlight shone from the east upon the Redemption Army's marching formation. The priest, seated in his palanquin, smiled and raised his glass, saying, "Even the God of Light is celebrating for us; it seems victory is assured this time."

"May the God of Light bless us, victory is assured!"

"For victory!"

The Christian defenders also raised their glasses, and as they tilted the reddish-purple wine, they drank it all in one gulp, praying for the war that day.

Meanwhile, in the Demon Forest, an army of over 1 elves and demons was making intensive preparations.

Five thousand demon warriors of various types, who had volunteered for the army, were digging pits. They then carefully watched as the cheap, earthen golems entered the pits before burying them. Afterward, they covered their skin with green and earth-colored pigments to enhance their concealment in the forest. Under the command of the elves, they proceeded to await orders in an underground passage system known as the "Demon Forest Trail," located approximately 600 meters from the forest's edge.

These tunnels were originally left behind by demons who lived in underground caves. After being reinforced by the elves with magic, these tunnels became massive underground bunkers capable of accommodating tens of thousands of soldiers for hiding.

The tunnels were improved to be interconnected, all to quickly throw the Redeemers into chaos once they stepped into the trap. However, the elven commander in charge of the on-site operation knew perfectly well that the tunnels' effectiveness depended on the success of the decapitation strike against the priests and the Guardians of the Faith.

"Hurry! All riflemen, immediately take up positions in the trees and prepare your magical barriers to defend against arrows! Do not fire and reveal your position before the priests and friars are within our range!" The commander ran through the elven ranks, directing the elven archers wielding Japa 1404 rifles to the treetops for concealment. "Don't forget the stealth spell! We have enough mana here, so don't worry about conserving it! Hurry! They're coming!"

The core of this battle is to take advantage of the parish's current lack of understanding of elves to launch a perfect ambush.

The key to the ambush is to mislead the parish's judgment with arrows in the early stages, making the parish mistakenly believe that the elves are still in the previous archery era. Once the parish makes a misjudgment, the priests will underestimate the enemy and go to a place outside the longbowmen's range to wait and prepare divine spells.

At this point, the longbowmen should slowly retreat to give the Redeemers the illusion that the elves are withdrawing. The riflemen, on the other hand, must remain in the trees, enduring any rain of arrows rained down on them by the Redeemers.

They would wait until the priests advanced, until the friars appeared on the battlefield—and when that moment arrived, the riflemen would fire a volley at the priests under the commander's orders, aiming to kill the enemy commander, as well as the enemy reserves and military police.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the gunshots following the priest's death will serve as the signal for the buried golems and demon axemen to move. The golems will launch a surprise attack from underground; they are slow, ineffective targets for ordinary soldiers. The demon axemen can compensate for the golems' slow movement, while the elf recruits waiting in the rear, though not as powerful as regular soldiers or rangers, provide precise, close-to-mid-range support.

Faced with the simultaneous death of a priest, the loss of their divine spells, and a sudden onslaught from above, below, front, and both sides, even the most resilient legion would crumble, and those that didn't would be caught off guard and annihilated...

At that point, the Redemption Army will be completely defeated, and the soldiers who flee to the rear of the parish will become a source of information about the defeat at the front, further damaging the morale of the parish and becoming a troublesome bandit problem for the parish.

...

If only everything could go this smoothly. The elven commander thought, sweating profusely. The more complex the plan, the more likely it was to fail completely due to unforeseen events on the battlefield. And to avoid the complete failure of this main plan, the elven commander had actually prepared several other plans...

But those are just backup plans; at best, they can only protect oneself, not achieve the intended goal.

"—Commander! Eagle Ranger's signal! They're here!"

Just as the commander was pondering this, a rifleman waiting in a tree pointed eastward at their sun and shouted, "Damn it, we're still backlit, backlit!"

Couldn't the Redemption Army have chosen to launch their attack in the afternoon?! The elven commander shielded his eyes with his hand, nimbly climbed a tree, and from there, he saw the vast army in the distance.

As the intelligence indicated, an army of approximately 8 men was approaching the Demon Forest. The most elite among them were the four legionary formations at the forefront, their armor gleaming in the sunlight—though it was unclear whether those were just a few pieces of armor for show or if everyone was truly wearing armor, it was certain that these four legions were far more elite than the four grimy infantry formations behind them.

Not to mention, the subsequent vibrational changes of the Redemption Army confirmed the elven commander's guess—the four elite legions stopped to rest about 1200 meters away from the monster forest, while four dusty, cannon fodder formations stepped forward in a pathetic, chaotic formation and entered the range of the elven longbowmen.

Further away, the elven commander saw what appeared to be a palanquin used by priests, along with cavalry waiting around it.

(No, the distance is too far, I need to get closer.) He muttered to himself, then turned and waved to the ranger captain waiting below.

"Fire freely! Retreat immediately after five rounds!"

"Free fire! Five rounds!"

"Free fire!"

The elven commander's orders were effectively conveyed.

The rangers, regular soldiers, and some young archers skilled in long-range precision shooting, who were waiting below, drew their simple and practical elven longbows. All the elves were chanting incantations, perhaps for their loved ones, perhaps for honor, or perhaps simply to avenge their husbands who had died hundreds of years ago.

whoosh-

Even without verbal communication, elves will eventually find common ground with the group and launch a volley.

A dark rain of arrows suddenly rose from the edge of the Monster Forest, the arrowheads from the Oak Factory gleaming coldly as they flew toward the vanguard of the Redemption Army.

But the Redeemers had clearly done their homework on the Elves' original tactics. Many, upon noticing the rain of arrows, immediately raised their shields in layers upon layers, shouting for help. These inferior shields were numerous, not to mention the divine magical buffs they received!

The fastest-flying arrow suddenly stopped in mid-air, and after a visible burst of golden light, it lightly struck the wooden shield.

A wide-area divine spell from the Church of Light: a group shield!

Although its individual strength is not as high as that of a single-target shield, it has the advantage of being able to cover all units within a certain area.

It's just that, perhaps because cannon fodder isn't worth giving too many resources, the group shields applied to the cannon fodder formation are obviously very fragile.

Even so, the group shield still significantly bought the cannon fodder a second or two of extra survival time.

"Thump thump thump—!"

The first few arrows were blocked, but the arrows behind, unimpeded, were far more devastating. Under the onslaught of the elven longbow, these arrows easily pierced through one layer of wooden shield, two layers of wooden shield, and even penetrated the corpses of many, but that was all.

The Redemption Army's cannon fodder advanced, pushing against the corpses of their allies riddled with bullets. It was as if those figures with shields strapped to their shoulders, which they were carrying, were not their fellow believers, but rather convenient cover that had appeared out of nowhere.

"A bunch of inhuman bastards!" the elven commander could only curse upon seeing this. This volley of fire had likely only killed a few hundred. "Keep firing! Keep firing! Then retreat immediately! Lure them into our encirclement! Hurry!"

The elves were anxiously preparing for the second volley.

However, the morale of the Redemption Army soldiers was not affected by this.

One reason is the dry food they ate early this morning, which contained a large amount of addictive drugs; another is the slowed mental state caused by long-term cannibalism; yet another is that they themselves were not the ones who died, and they now have human shields in their hands. Most importantly, it is the buffing divine spell the priest cast on them.

"Great God of Light! God of Light! Let us ascend to Heaven!"

The divine magic twisted their minds, turning them into ferocious, warlike beasts. Angels from heaven danced in their eyes, while the demonic forest before them became a sickly, hog-headed demon.

Anyone who kills the demon can be pardoned and ascend to heaven. Those who survive will also enjoy wealth and honor, for the plunder of demons and spirits is permitted by the Lord.

Undeterred by the intense stimulation, they pressed on through the rain of arrows to within 600 meters of the monster forest. This was already the elves' fourth volley.

The fifth salvo was imminent. The cannon fodder shouted the slogans of the God of Light, and the elite troops behind them began their advance.

But in the eyes of the elven commander, the palanquin bearers and the group of knights still showed no intention of making any moves.

"Isn't this being overly cautious?!" the commander gritted his teeth. Just then, he noticed that a second sun seemed to be faintly appearing in the sky...

Could it be...?

His expression changed drastically, and he immediately turned his head and roared downwards:

"Everyone turn around! Archers, retreat immediately! Move! Run!"

That was a type of light magic used for nighttime illumination—before the commander could offer any explanation, he saw a burst of intense golden light erupt from the tree in front of him. His shadow stood out starkly against the golden light, and he even felt the heat behind him from the illumination!

Is this the power of a pastor with so many followers?! A divine spell meant for nighttime illumination can have the power to burn skin?!

The commander swallowed hard. Fortunately, no elves were hit except for the young soldiers. They turned and casually launched their arrows, completing the fifth volley, before hoisting the wounded soldiers, whose eyes had been temporarily blinded by the bright light, and fled.

They will be on standby in the rear, with a trap zone extending 600 meters from the edge of the Elf Forest. A large number of golems are shallowly buried in the ground, and the howitzer golems in the rear, whose trajectories have been corrected, are ready to fire at any moment.

Everything was waiting for the moment the Redeemers entered the forest, everything was waiting for the moment when the riflemen killed the priests and the Apostolic Guards and the signal was given with the sound of gunfire!

But before that...

There's still one more hurdle to overcome.

The elven commander cast a spell, simultaneously placing himself in a state of invisibility and a magical barrier.

Meanwhile, in the distance, the priest used divine magic to command the cannon fodder in front, who were once again subjected to a volley of fire:

"Forward! Advance at all costs! Those with javelins and bows, immediately launch a barrage of arrows into the monster forest until our vanguard and elite troops enter!"

In the ranks of the four legions on which the priests had placed their hopes, four groups of archers broke out of formation and launched three volleys of arrows before the cannon fodder legions stormed into the monster forest.

Of the three volleys of arrows, only a few actually penetrated the forest. Instead, quite a few arrows struck the back of the heads of the cannon fodder. For a moment, the priest felt somewhat embarrassed. After the archers moved forward a little further, he was finally satisfied to see the rain of arrows relentlessly piercing the depths of the forest.

The cannon fodder legion patiently waited at the edge of the forest, while the elite troops were still on their way. Once they joined forces, they would enter the Demon Forest directly and then deploy completely within it—at that time, the sparse forces of the elves and demons would be completely surrounded, and they would accomplish the great task of defeating the elven kingdom before Bishop Stephen!

The pastor was eagerly anticipating the scarf of glory and wealth that was about to be draped over his shoulders.

But then again...

"It's not safe enough... but my divine magic is almost beyond the reach of my range."

He frowned and muttered to himself. As the army advanced, the number of believers around him dwindled, and the intensity of his divine spells diminished.

The [Illumination] spell, which could originally burn the skin directly, now only emits a relatively strong golden light. He had to move forward, otherwise it wouldn't be a minor matter of the Illumination spell's strength decreasing further; it would be a major issue of the cannon fodder, who would lose their divine buffs, falling into chaos once they were out of his spell's range.

Divine magic cannot directly eliminate fear and pressure in people's hearts. What divine magic can do is merely to "cover" courage and glory upon them—once the divine magic is removed, the previously accumulated negative emotions will erupt in an instant. At that time, the cannon fodder troops fleeing directly is a minor matter; the real disaster is that they lose their minds on the spot and become "madmen" who cannot distinguish friend from foe.

A pastor cannot let something like this jeopardize his career.

But for some reason... even though I was clearly outside the range of the elven longbows... even though the elven longbowmen should have been routed and fleeing into the depths of the forest...

Why do I still have this ominous feeling in my heart?

The priest fell into deep thought, while the captain of the guards spoke up, saying that if they didn't move forward soon, the soldiers at the front would soon be out of the spell's range.

"Wait a little longer, wait a little longer. Anyway, my range of influence can probably still penetrate more than a hundred meters into the interior... Wait a little longer. I have a bad feeling about this. Do you think elves really can only shoot that far with longbows?"

"Yes."

"...Okay, let's wait a bit longer."

The priest muttered to himself, ordering the palanquin bearers to lift him a few steps forward before he stopped. He was testing whether an arrow would head-on into his forehead, and for this purpose, he had reduced the output of his area-of-effect spells, clutching a single-target divine barrier to protect himself at any moment.

He waited for two minutes without seeing a single arrow. Even though the legion's archers had run out of arrows in the monster forest, the elves hadn't launched any hostile attack against him.

What was this ominous premonition in my heart?

The priest pondered, while the elven commander, who had almost ordered the riflemen to fire, exclaimed with relief.

The enemy priest was still outside the rifle's precise range; he was stuck in that position, and unsurprisingly, he was holding a powerful divine spell to protect himself—thankfully, I didn't order the firing.

He breathed a sigh of relief, but the sight of the Redemption Army soldiers swarming into the forest below still sent chills down the spine of this seasoned commander.

These creatures were more like demons than humans. Their eyes glowed with a green light more terrifying than the most monstrous beasts. They were clearly in a hallucination, their ferocious expressions making them disregard even the corpses of their former comrades, whom they carried as human shields, leaving an extremely deep impression on the elven commander.

He shook his head and turned to check on the riflemen's condition—several unlucky men had been pierced through the barrier by arrows, but fortunately, the arrows had not caused fatal damage. As long as the wounds were stopped in time, survival would not be a problem.

The commander secretly watched as the wounded elves bandaged their wounds with cloth with the help of their companions. Below them surged the Redemption Army soldiers, while the priests in the distance showed no sign of advancing.