Goddess Kaleidoscope

"God bless our Emperor!"

"The glory of the empire will endure forever! Rise, my generals!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Jagger and his generals rose and looked at the man who ruled the entire empire. The man had the fiery red hair that was the hallmark of the Canary Islands royal family, and his features bore a striking resemblance to the late emperor, reminding Jagger of Canary II, whom he had once followed.

Canary III, now in his early forties, is a capable and ambitious emperor who ascended the throne seven years ago. Under his rule, the empire has successfully continued the policies of Canary II, resulting in a flourishing national power.

While the nobles and commoners of the country acknowledged Canary III's governing abilities, they also harbored considerable criticism of him. This was because Canary III lacked a strong stance against foreign powers; despite reigning for so long, he hadn't launched a single war. To the militaristic Canary people, this made him seem somewhat "unfit to be a ruler."

After all, everyone in the empire longed for military merit. Nobles needed military merit to protect their titles, while commoners saw military merit as the only way to rise in social class. Therefore, people who had been well-fed for several years dreamed of fighting a war.

Therefore, in order to comply with "public opinion" and to consolidate royal power, Canary III, with the strong recommendation of his ministers, not only launched a foreign war, but also embarked on a major undertaking, directly targeting the Kingdom of Durand.

The war did indeed start off very smoothly, even to the surprise of the Empire itself.

It should be noted that although the Kingdom of Duran is not as powerful as the Canary Empire, it is still one of the top five powers in the world. Therefore, the invasion plan formulated by the imperial high command is to only swallow up about one-third of the kingdom's southern territory, and the remaining part will be gradually eroded until it is completely destroyed through several wars over ten years.

The war progressed so rapidly that the Imperial Legion practically swept all the way to Yodl Fortress, forcing King Duran to personally lead the campaign.

This gave the empire's decision-makers unprecedented optimism, and they quickly adjusted their strategy, changing from gradual encroachment to a swift victory! They demanded that the imperial army occupy all of the kingdom's territory except for the northern region within three months, and then invade the northern region after the weather warmed up in the spring, directly destroying the Kingdom of Duran, so that the soldiers could return home before the Holy Emperor's birthday next autumn.

The idea was excellent, and Jagger once thought it wouldn't be difficult to accomplish, because he had been sweeping all the way here. In open battles between his troops and the noble armies of the Duran, the exchange ratio was close to one to six. For every Imperial soldier who fell, six soldiers on the other side would fall!

This exaggerated casualty ratio will be further widened as the Kingdom's existing elite forces continue to be lost. This is because the Empire has a universal conscription system, where all eligible young men must enlist and undergo two years of training. The outstanding ones can join the legions and become professional soldiers, while the rest are discharged and transferred to the reserves, to be temporarily conscripted when the Empire goes to war.

These reserve soldiers, who had received two years of military training, were far superior in quality to the peasant conscripts on the kingdom's side.

In addition to the difference in regular troops, the Empire also has organized mage units, siege engine units composed of professional military engineers, and super units such as the Dragon Knights.

However, harsh reality soon dealt a heavy blow to the overconfident Jagger. In just a few days, he suffered a series of setbacks, to the point that when His Majesty the Emperor personally led the Dragon Knights to the front lines, he didn't know how to report to them.

Upon arriving at the front lines, Canary III quickly noticed that something seemed amiss in the military camp.

"Marshal, what's the situation in your camp? Where is this stench coming from?"

As Canary III spoke, he turned back to calm the somewhat restless wyvern. The other wyvern riders also tightened their reins. Because wyverns are scavengers, the stench of decay was irresistible to them, making their mouths water.

When asked about the conditions in the military camp, Jagger gave a slightly embarrassed reply.

"Your Majesty, my military camp... has just been attacked by enemy forces."

"An attack? Didn't your previous battle report say that those Durans were trapped inside the Yordle Fortress and couldn't get out at all?"

"That's how it was supposed to be, but... the other side somehow brought in a three-headed monster lord who keeps throwing trash into our camp every day."

"Wait a minute! Since it was a monster lord who attacked the military camp, is it really as simple as just dumping some trash?"

"Those monsters all have artifact rings from the Holy Light Church. They argue that they are just deliverymen, and the shit... garbage they throw away is a package delivered to us by others, so delivering packages is not an attack."

Jagger did not say it explicitly, but Canary III understood.

The emperor knew that the Holy Light Church had befriended many dragons and monster lords, so he guessed that this was probably the Holy Light Church expressing its dissatisfaction with the establishment of the War God Church as the state religion of the empire. Pope Saint Leonid couldn't openly declare war on the empire, so he used these petty tricks to annoy them.

King Canary III, who believed he had "seen through" the situation, did not blame Marshal Jagger. The three-headed monster lord was indeed beyond his ability to handle. Conventional troops were too strained to deal with those behemoths, and the fact that they could all fly made things even more difficult.

Fortunately, he had already led the Wyvern Knights to the front lines. While a single wyvern was indeed no match for a monster lord, the monster lord was not invincible. The entire knightly order, including his emperor's personal mount "Dragon Mother Lazara," consisted of thirteen adult wyverns. In addition, with the "imperial guards" he had brought, they had a significant advantage over the three-headed monster lord, if not a guaranteed victory!

So, with the dragons practically charging in, how could they possibly lose?

The Empire's Dragon Knights are currently the only special force in the world that uses high-level monsters as mounts.

The Knights were formed forty years ago, during the reign of the famous "Reform Emperor" Canary I. A court sorcerer of the empire mastered the method of taming wyverns. After twenty-seven years, the Knights were finally formed during the reign of Canary II, and their formation caused a sensation throughout the world as soon as they were made public.

As a sub-dragon species that has formed a relatively stable population, wyverns, although their individual strength cannot compare to that of pure-blooded dragons, still belong to the category of high-level monsters, and have a not low probability of producing elite individuals at the level of "monster lords".

In addition, wyverns grow faster than giant dragons. Dragon eggs only take three years to hatch, and young dragons mature in twenty to twenty-five years. The life expectancy of ordinary individuals is around two hundred years, while elites that break through to the lord level can live for more than a thousand years.

Before the Empire's sorcerers succeeded, only a select few of the world's top experts could form contracts with highly intelligent monsters to become their partners. There were also tamed monster populations, but these were generally weak and naturally docile low-level creatures.

Therefore, the empire's strength lies in its success in taming wyverns, high-level magical creatures with powerful combat capabilities and ferocious nature, making them as obedient as cattle and horses.

Rumor has it that the empire has established a "Dragon Ranch" in a secluded place within its borders, specifically for raising two-legged wyverns.

Of the thirteen adult dragons currently serving in the Dragon Knights, the first female dragon to be tamed was the Dragon Mother Lazara. The other twelve were her offspring, also known as the first generation of tamed dragons. Several breeding dragons remained on the ranch to breed, and there are already a considerable number of second-generation tamed dragons.

Although the second generation of dragons are not yet adults, they are more numerous, with the entire domesticated population numbering nearly a hundred.

That evening, the Imperial Legion sent a special envoy with a personal letter from Canary III into the fortress to persuade King Durand to surrender.

Upon meeting King Duran, the envoy arrogantly declared that if he were willing to surrender to the Canary Empire and abandon resistance, His Majesty the merciful emperor would guarantee the safety of him and his immediate family members, grant him the title of duke of the empire, a lucrative fief near the capital, and also select a princess from among his (half-sisters) to marry him.

King Duran's response to the Emperor's offer of surrender was equally straightforward.

He immediately ordered his men to hold down the envoy who dared to "stare" at him with his nose in the air, then stripped him of his clothes and had someone carve his "reply" on his back with a dagger.

"My royal family is of noble blood, and we will not surrender to a mere bastard!"

Durant's "reply" was both very assertive and extremely malicious, essentially like dancing ballet in a minefield, courting death by spinning around in circles.

Because almost everyone in the world knows that although Canary III was the heir chosen in the late emperor's will and had the strong support of the prime minister and the five legion commanders, his origins were actually quite problematic. He was the illegitimate son of Canary II and was currently just the youngest daughter of a minor noble family near the northern border of the empire.

This youngest daughter was ridiculed by the surrounding nobles for having a child out of wedlock in her early years. They secretly mocked her, calling her a harlot and maliciously spreading rumors that she had affairs with grooms and beggars. It wasn't until the emperor issued an edict before his death, and the prime minister led the army to welcome the eleventh prince, that everyone was surprised to learn that the emperor was actually that mysterious "wild man."

It is worth mentioning that long before Canary III ascended the throne, there were rumors that although Canary II had many children, none of the dozen or so sons born in the palace were his.

During the reign of Canary II, the empire still had remnants of the old aristocratic forces. These were opponents of the centralized policies implemented when Canary I ascended the throne. Their power was greatly diminished after being suppressed, but they were not completely eliminated and continued to seek opportunities to counterattack.

So these scoundrels devised a wicked plan, attempting to switch the crown prince and "rejuvenate" the Canary Islands royal family. Canary II, needing time to push forward with reforms and build the Imperial Army, pretended not to know anything.

Subsequent events proved that although Canary II was accused of countless crimes, he ultimately won the victory. The central authority of the empire was consolidated during his generation, and the newly formed imperial army was completely loyal to His Majesty the Emperor. Thus, before his death, the old emperor took almost all those who were unwilling to follow his own son with him, completing the final blow!

So in reality, Canary III was indeed the biological son of Canary II, but he was also an illegitimate child. It is said that he was often pointed at and gossiped about by others when he was young because of this dishonorable identity. It would be impossible for him not to have psychological trauma because of this.

King Duran knew this, which is why he deliberately criticized Canary III behind his back, simply to break his defenses, without ever intending to reason with him calmly.

Simple foul language! The ultimate enjoyment!

Upon receiving the reply, Canary III appeared remarkably calm. His early, secret education in imperial matters had instilled in him a habit of concealing his emotions, so King Durand's instigation did not completely break his strong defenses, but only slightly.

"Since King Duran wants to live and die with his kingdom, then grant his wish."

The following morning, the Imperial Legion launched a new offensive, deploying four bipedal wyverns in the battle.

Contrary to what some onlookers speculated about, the wyvern riders used longbows, not traditional lances. The riders would use arrows to guide their wyverns to targets; these wyverns were trained from a young age to spew acid towards the points where the riders fired arrows.

To draw an analogy, the Empire's wyvern riders are like armed helicopters on Earth, completely overwhelming conventional forces. As long as they don't fly too low and get into the range of mages and heavy ballistae, they are practically invincible.

Apart from these four, the rest of the knights' dragons were on standby outside the main battlefield to deal with the three monster lords that might appear at any time.

As for Yanmu City, Jagger, out of professional duty as an imperial soldier, had already reported the situation truthfully to Canary III. Unfortunately, they had limited intelligence at the time and did not know the details of the situation there. In addition, King Duran was inside the Yordle Fortress.

Therefore, Canary III and his ministers felt that they could ignore the rear for the time being and prioritize capturing Yodl Fortress.

Once the Imperial army captures King Duran, regardless of whether he lives or dies, the entire Duran Kingdom will be leaderless, and the remaining noble lords will be unable to cause any significant trouble.

The Imperial Second Legion, a once elite force that was incredibly proud of its identity, had completely lost its former spirit after three days of continuous artillery bombardment.

The corps commander and a large number of officers were killed in action, the corps and its attached mage brigade suffered heavy losses, and several top experts were captured... This series of blows almost caused the Second Corps to collapse.

In contrast, the morale of the Northern Allied Forces was high. The entire army of tens of thousands, along with the remnants of the Flamewood City, had become devout followers of the "God of War" in just a few days. This was because the God of War had not only bestowed upon them invincible cannons, but was also very powerful himself.

No one can resist the charm of a strong-willed older sister!

Therefore, during this period, the number of believers seeking baptism from Rud, Shanis, or Romian increased exponentially. Furthermore, the core principle of the Pantheon is "multiple worship," and it doesn't prohibit believers from worshipping only one god. Thus, anyone who worships the war god Sura inevitably ends up worshipping other goddesses within the Pantheon, essentially creating a "family worship" system.

Blessed by Lud's primordial fire, the allied forces bombarded the opposing imperial forces daily, much like a grand religious ceremony. Tens of thousands of believers, accompanied by the booming cannons, sprayed their faith outwards with a series of bursts of light that continuously exploded into the air, a spectacle that Lud found utterly magnificent.

Lud: "That's incredible (referring to the surge of faith)!"

Hamilton: "That's incredible (referring to the cannon)!"

After being rescued, Hamilton did not retreat to the rear to recuperate, but stayed with the Allied forces, studying Lord Lu's cannons every day.

This old magician was very receptive to new things and had a very creative mind. After learning about the range and accuracy of cannons, he immediately thought that cannonballs could be used as carriers for high-level magic spells to enhance the range of magic projection. Heavy ballistae have enchanted bolts, and catapults have enchanted stone projectiles; they all work on the same principle.

Forbidden spell cannonballs, that must be a wonderful thing!

However, there are also many mages within the allied forces who worry that cannons will completely replace their position in the future. Previously, when Lude was inspecting the camp, he saw several dwarven gunners arguing with their own mages.

"My fireball is incredibly powerful, far surpassing your grenade."

"I can shoot from over a kilometer away."

"We mages can form a multi-person formation to increase our power many times over."

"I can shoot from over a kilometer away."

"Can you fucking stop talking about that kilometer away?"

"Alright! My cannon, a skilled crew can fire three times a minute at most, and it won't overheat even after firing hundreds of times in a row. It can be left to cool for half an hour before it can be fired again. How many fireballs can you make in a day, sir?"

"His grandma's..."

Fortunately, the mages also knew that although the appearance of cannons would replace mages on the battlefield, mages could play a role not only on the battlefield. So, despite their complaints, no one really disliked this powerful weapon that could sway the course of a war.

The Imperial Second Army Corps struggled under the bombardment, launching several raids and night attacks, but all were thwarted by the well-prepared Northern Allied Forces. In three days, they suffered thousands of casualties, and their morale was on the verge of collapse. However, they refused to surrender, stubbornly insisting that they were the ones protecting their homeland.

During this period, the allied forces received several waves of lobbyists, including representatives of surrendered nobles who wanted to persuade the allied forces to abandon the darkness and join the light. They argued that even though they had powerful weapons, the empire was still stronger overall, so they should bring their weapons and army to surrender to the empire.

Lude and Gulig showed no mercy to these bastards, dragging them out and beheading them before they could even finish their rant.

Following these traitors and lackeys, the second group arrived in a more interesting manner: special envoys from the Cult of the God of War. Although their wording was more euphemistic, their main message was still to persuade them to surrender. Furthermore, they condemned cannons, stating that such weapons were evil, tainted the fairness and purity of battle, and were disliked by the God of War, and should be stopped immediately.

The Durans present at the time were all amused by his words.

Before Lude could even refute the other party, a hero emerged from the surrounding crowd—Normen, who had already left the Cult of the God of War.

Without wasting any words, the old man threw a longsword at the feet of the War God Cult's envoy and said, "Since you want a fair and pure battle, do you dare to follow the War God Cult's old rules and have a duel before the gods that will determine who is superior and who will live or die? If you dare, pick up the sword."

The envoy was dumbfounded when he saw the tall and imposing Nomen. He was just an ordinary priest who had heard of Nomen long ago. He knew that Nomen's father was the archbishop of the Duran diocese of the God of War, and that Nomen himself was a God of Madness chosen by the God of War. Even after leaving the church, the blessing he received had not disappeared, which showed how much the God of War loved him.

Knowing he would die in the duel, the special envoy immediately vomited without saying a word.

Several waves of lobbyists were rebuffed by Lud, and the Allied forces continued their shelling day and night, sometimes with full fire coverage, sometimes with sporadic sniping, doing whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted, without giving any prior notice.

They showed the outside world with their actions that they had the Empire's Second Army Corps completely under their control, and even the God of War couldn't save them—just as Master Lu had said!

On the fifth day of the attack, Lud received news from both the north and south. The news from the south was bad: Yodl Fortress was in dire straits. The Imperial Dragon Knights had arrived two days earlier and joined the battle the following day, inflicting considerable losses on the fortress's defenders.

The three monster lords from SF Express attempted to disrupt the battle, but the Empire was prepared. As soon as the monster lords appeared, they were surrounded by thirteen wyverns. Instead of engaging in direct combat, the two sides locked in a stalemate, staring at each other intently.

Just as Canary III estimated, a single wyvern was indeed no match for a monster lord, but thirteen wyverns together gave them a real advantage.