Goddess Kaleidoscope

Ludwig readily agreed without hesitation.

Thus, a joint force led by the Cult of War and primarily composed of adventurers was quickly formed. During this time, some people raised questions, asking why they couldn't ask the neighboring noble lords for help. Whether it was Earl Ramli in the southwest or Duke Gamelin in the southeast, they were both powerful lords with large private armies under their command, whose combat strength far surpassed that of these adventurers.

Narad thought to himself that he also wanted to call for outside help, but his ally, Duke Gamelin, was unreliable, always failing him at crucial moments. He was currently amassing troops to the east to fight another old rival, and didn't have any spare troops to support Narad.

Narad couldn't ask Count Ramley for help, otherwise it would be tantamount to helping their ally's enemy increase their influence in the border region, which would contradict their original intention of coming to the border region to preach. Therefore, they had no choice but to bite the bullet and find a way to solve this problem on their own.

Therefore, Narad explained to the adventurers' concerns that there might not be enough time. Furthermore, they were doing this to buy time for the lords to assemble their armies. So they had to send troops as soon as possible to thwart the lizardmen's plot, even if it was just to disrupt their operations.

End of this chapter

At Narad's call, a ragtag force of over a thousand men was quickly assembled and dubbed the "Virtual Realm Valiant Army".

The composition of the entire team can be described as extremely complex. The main combat force is the missionary group of the Cult of War God, including twenty elite guardian knights and about fifty monks who have received rigorous martial arts training. The core consists of more than three hundred adventurers and mercenaries, as well as a considerable number of local militia.

In addition, the team also included nearly 500 "cannon fodder," mainly a motley crew recruited by Narad through "splurging money."

This group included vagrants, beggars, thugs, and even prostitutes. They thought that with the priests of the War God Cult leading the way, they could get a share of the spoils just by following along and cheering, so they blindly answered the call and joined the Valiant Army.

In Lud's view, less than one-fifth of the entire force was truly combat-ready; the rest were just there to make up the numbers. They could barely contribute in favorable battles, but once the situation turned unfavorable, these men would become a burden.

However, Lud also knew that he couldn't apply the standards of a near-modern army from Earth to this rabble living in a magical medieval world. The valiant army that Narad had hastily assembled was, in fact, a true reflection of many noble private armies.

A small number of highly qualified elites are paired with a group of lazy bums who just keep saying "666".

Lude also led his men to join the Valiant Army, mainly responsible for saving lives and treating the wounded.

After only three days of preparation, the Valiant Army marched into the Void Forest and headed towards the lizardman settlement located about two hundred miles to the northeast.

Narald, as the commander, estimated that under normal circumstances, it would take them more than two weeks to reach their destination.

Even the king's elite guards would struggle to advance more than thirty miles a day marching through such dense forests, let alone a hastily assembled ragtag army like this.

Therefore, to accelerate the march, Narad would routinely cast a high-level buff spell on the entire army once a day. This served two purposes: firstly, to demonstrate the power of the God of War, and secondly, to further increase the marching speed.

As a high-ranking priest of the Cult of the God of War and soon to become a regional bishop, Narad's strength is beyond question. The daily maximum number of divine spells that can be used is seven, including two high-level divine spells.

His powerful enhancement spell will benefit the entire volunteer army of over a thousand people, giving them a period of time where they will feel energetic and courageous.

Rudd could also use similar buff spells, but the effects were far less powerful than Narad's, which could buff thousands of people at once. This display of skill made Rudd realize why the Church of War was both loved and feared by many kings and lords.

Thanks to the daily boost from the divine spell, the entire Valiant Army's marching speed increased from thirteen or fourteen li per day to over twenty li.

The first few days of the expedition went smoothly. Thousands of people marched north along a large river in a noisy and bustling manner, like a herd of migrating animals.

During this time, they encountered some monsters and beasts that attempted to attack them, but they were all quickly killed by the guardian knights. Only two people died and four went missing. As long as they were not killed on the spot or dragged away by beasts, they were basically saved by Jurud using divine magic.

Lude only brought three people with him on this trip: Aina, Shanis, and Hume, while Fallen Leaf and Romian stayed at the temple to look after it.

The four of them mingled in the middle of the group, trying to stay close to the militia members of the self-defense force. They were nothing like the monks of the War God Cult, who preached as they went, eager to convert the entire army into believers.

It is worth mentioning that the Self-Defense Corps, with its orderly marching formation, successfully stood out from the rest of the entire militia.

Although Hume was in charge of training these militiamen, Ludd's behind-the-scenes advice meant they were exposed to some modern military training during their training. Among the entire militia, their ranks were the most disciplined, a stark contrast to the other ragtag groups.

The performance of the self-defense force quickly caught Narad's attention. He initially didn't take the local militia of Pine Village seriously, because almost all village and town armed forces in the world were trash, and his twenty Guardian Knights could defeat them in one charge.

But as the saying goes, everything needs to be compared.

Compared to those adventurers who were scattered, disorganized, and undisciplined, the self-defense group that could maintain a three-column formation at least looked like an "elite force"!

The brave army arrived at the first ruin in less than five days.

As soon as everyone entered the city gate, many adventurers and cannon fodder couldn't wait to break away from the group and venture into the buildings on both sides of the main road to "hunt for treasure".

Seeing this, Narad quickly ordered his men to stop these people from running around.

That night, the brave army set up camp in the ruins. Although this place was an ancient city that had been abandoned for hundreds of years, at least there were some stone houses that had not collapsed, which could provide shelter from the wind and rain. It was at least more comfortable than camping in the wilderness.

As night fell, numerous campfires were lit in the camp. Adventurers and cannon fodder gathered in small groups to chat and boast. Those with some spare cash who wanted to relax took the initiative to flirt with the prostitutes accompanying the army and find secluded corners to conduct "transactions."

Lud and his group did not stay in the chaotic outer camp. As the only healing priest in the entire army, they received special attention from the Cult of the God of War.

Because in the previous battles, the members of the War God Cult finally experienced the warmth of having a doting father.

Although their own priests can grant powerful buffs, injuries are inevitable in the process of fighting monsters.

Whenever someone is injured and shouts "I'm bleeding all over the place," Rudd will rush over immediately and use a Holy Heal to pull the person up from the spot.

Narad was astonished to discover that Rud's Holy Healing spell was incredibly powerful! The healing effect of a low-level divine spell cast by the opponent was significantly stronger than the mid-level Holy Healing spell cast by him, a high-ranking priest of the God of War.

This indicates that the Medicine God Cult possesses restorative divine arts, and the extent of this enhancement is quite considerable. Furthermore, the fact that the other party can also make medicine makes them an ideal "little brother" tailor-made for their War God Cult, effectively compensating for their sect's biggest weakness.

Therefore, along the way, the War God Cult took great care of Lu De and his group of four, treating him like their own father!

End of this chapter

With the moon and stars shining brightly, Lud and his companions were enjoying the meat and wine provided by the Cult of War around the campfire. If it weren't for the constant commotion of the outer camp, which resembled a bustling market, they would actually be quite enjoying their camping experience.

"Master Luther, are you satisfied with today's meal?"

"Yes, please thank your chef for me."

Lude, who was eating, looked up at the big, grinning man standing in front of him and nodded with a smile.

The burly man before him was named Lucas, a monk of the Cult of War, who Narad had assigned to take care of Lud and his party's daily needs during their march. After spending a few days with him, Lud discovered that this seemingly simple-minded giant was actually not a bad person.

Two days ago, the brave soldiers passed by a deep pool in a thick fog. While they were fetching water, they were suddenly attacked by a group of giant salamanders.

During the battle, Lucas was accidentally bitten on the thigh by a giant salamander that attacked from the shadows. Fortunately, several priests in the group released holy light spells in time, using the dazzling light to drive away these ferocious predators. Lucas was able to save his life, but he could not get his leg back after it was bitten off by the salamander.

If the team had only had the priests of the War God Cult at the time, Lucas would have been basically finished. As a cultivator, Lucas knew better than anyone how bad their healing magic was. Fortunately, there was Lude, the priest of the Medicine God Cult, who managed to use a high-level holy healing spell to help him grow another leg.

Lucas was deeply moved by Rude's righteous act. He knew very well how precious high-level divine arts were, and he was just an ordinary cultivator, not even from the same sect as Rude.

Therefore, out of simple gratitude, Lucas became even more attentive to Lud and the others after this incident.

Soon, Ludwig and the others finished their dinner, and Lucas took the dishes to wash them in the nearby stream.

At this moment, Lu De suddenly asked the other party a question.

"Lucas, are you on watch tonight?"

"It wasn't me, is there a problem?"

"It's nothing. I just noticed you've been working really hard these past few days, and I was worried you might be overworking yourself. If you feel unwell, remember to come see me."

After seeing Lucas off, Lude glanced around discreetly and, seeing that there were no outsiders nearby, whispered to Hume, "..."

"How is the situation?"

"all the best."

Hume made an "OK" sign, and Ludd got up, stretched, and turned to walk toward the tent.

"I'm going to take a nap. Call me if you need anything."

Back in his tent, Lud lay down on the bed that Aina had made for him, pretending to be asleep and resting with his eyes closed. Tonight was destined to be lively, and Lud wanted to get some rest before the real show began.

As time passed and the night deepened, the noise from the outer camps gradually subsided, replaced by the sounds of snoring. Only the sentries on night duty were still struggling against sleepiness.

However, just as most people were soundly asleep, some ghostly figures were quietly approaching in the forest shrouded in night, sneaking into the city through the gaps in the ruins' walls.

Around the camp of the Valiant Army, a knight of the Church of War was leading a small squad of militiamen on patrol, checking whether anyone was neglecting their duties at the outer sentry posts.

As the group walked, the middle-aged knight at the front suddenly raised his hand to signal the others to stop, and then made a shushing gesture.

The other person listened carefully to the surrounding sounds and frowned.

"The insects suddenly stopped chirping..."

The experienced knight realized something was wrong and was about to send someone to inform High Priest Narad immediately when he suddenly sensed something approaching in the darkness. He drew his sword and turned to slash, first feeling his sword collide with something hard, and then hearing a strange scream.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

In the darkness, a non-human face with blue skin and fangs flashed by, and before the knight could draw his sword to give chase, it quickly retreated back into the darkness.

Almost at the very moment the knight shouted "Enemy attack!", strange hissing sounds came from all around. Some people didn't know what the sound was, while others who had heard it before couldn't help but change their expressions.

"It's the lizardmen, they've raided our camp!"

Under the cover of darkness, the ancient city ruins remain shrouded in darkness, and no one knows how many terrifying monsters lurk among the surrounding broken walls and ruins.

Seeing that the enemy had already reached them, several militiamen from the self-defense group quickly picked up the whistles around their necks and blew them loudly.

The sharp whistle instantly shattered the tranquility of the night. Most of the adventurers and cannon fodder were still unaware of what was happening, and some were simply not awake.

On the other hand, almost all the militia members of the self-defense corps jumped up from their bedding the moment the whistle blew.

"Emergency assembly?"

Thanks to their previous training, the militia of the Self-Defense Corps became the first unit in the entire Valiant Army to enter combat status as a whole, and their reaction speed was even faster than that of the well-trained guardian knights of the War God Cult.

At this point, the outer camp finally realized that something was wrong and took up their weapons to fight the lizardmen who had sneaked into the camp. They quickly killed some of them due to their superior numbers.

Compared to humans, reptilians have advantages in all physical functions, but their level of civilization is far lower than that of humans.

They couldn't even make bronze weapons, let alone iron ones. Their weapons were mainly made of stone and bone, and only a few leaders could use iron weapons stolen from humans.

Faced with the sudden attack by the lizardmen, the human side was briefly thrown into chaos, but they quickly regained their footing thanks to their superior weaponry and numbers.

The lizardmen on the other side were cunning and didn't engage in a direct confrontation with the humans. After suffering a few casualties, they decisively withdrew and quickly retreated from the ruins before the humans could fully react.

Once everything was quiet again, the valiant soldiers began cleaning up the battlefield and counting the corpses of both sides. The exchange ratio left many with grim expressions.

"We only killed three lizardmen, and eleven of us died. The wounded have all been gathered and handed over to Lord Lud for treatment."

Inside the main tent of the military camp, Narad listened to his subordinates' report, his face looking rather grim.

Although the recent raid on the camp only resulted in a 1% loss for the entire Valiant Army, it dealt a severe blow to morale. Moreover, the appearance of the lizardmen indicated that their movements had been discovered, and the journey ahead would likely be far from peaceful.

End of this chapter

A small-scale surprise attack left more than a thousand men disheveled and in disarray. The commotion in the camp lasted until dawn before it was finally quelled, and the morale of the entire army was greatly affected, to the point that a small number of men considered retreating.

Narad was also extremely troubled by this situation.