Global Beast Mastery: Only I Can See the Hints - Chapter 658 658: The Beginning of the Final Battle
On the walls of Withered Tree Fortress, Charles and General Sost stood watching the distance. On the horizon, formation after formation of the Stellar Empire’s army marched forward at a steady pace.
It had already been three days since Charles formed his contract with the Chrono Rabbit. During those three days, Charles and his Serpent Empire allies made their final preparations for the coming battle.
They reinforced the weakest sections of the fortress walls and built a series of towers and short defensive walls around the outer perimeter. The overall defenses of Withered Tree Fortress had been greatly strengthened.
“What’s meant to come will always come. We’ve already prepared everything. I’m certain we’ll win this battle in the end,” Charles said with a light tone.
He could sense the worry in General Sost and wanted to ease some of that pressure. Too much stress could cause mistakes during the fight.
General Sost nodded.
“I believe we’ll claim victory as well. I’ll take command of the Serpent soldiers and make sure Withered Tree Fortress holds. But as for those powerful helpers the Stellar Empire crown prince has brought along—that’s something only you can handle. Their strength is far beyond mine. I wouldn’t even stand a chance against them in direct combat. Only you are strong enough to defeat them.”
The division of roles between him and Charles had been decided long ago, but Sost still felt the need to remind him once more.
Charles smiled and nodded.
“Don’t worry. Not only will I deal with every one of the crown prince’s helpers, I’ll also be able to give you support afterward. My mystical beasts and I are more than strong enough.”
His calm reply finally put General Sost a little more at ease.
“Then we’ll follow the plan. Once the enemy reaches the base of Withered Tree Fortress, we’ll strike back from the walls.” Sost went over the plan with Charles again.
But this time, Charles shook his head.
“When we made this plan, we didn’t know the crown prince would bring such a massive army. If we stick to the original plan, I can’t guarantee the fortress will hold.”
“And so?”
“So I’ve decided to take action directly—to strike fear into our enemies first!”
The moment his words fell, a massive rainbow-colored dragon burst forth from Withered Tree Fortress.
That dragon, of course, was Rainbow.
Rainbow flew straight toward the Stellar Empire’s army, letting out a deafening roar as it soared across the sky.
The advancing soldiers were instantly shaken by the sudden appearance of the rainbow-colored dragon. The leading formations froze in place.
The crown prince of the Stellar Empire scowled at the sight.
“Charles has already made his move. Doesn’t that mean you from the Ancient Academy should act as well?” he asked Harbor sharply.
Harbor didn’t reply. He simply raised his left hand and snapped his fingers.
At once, the sky above the Stellar Empire’s troops filled with heavy storm clouds. Lightning flickered within the darkness, and then bolts of lightning gathered together and struck toward Rainbow.
But as a dragon, Rainbow was far too agile to be hit by such a direct attack. It dodged skillfully, then circled around, preparing to dive back and frighten the enemy troops again.
Yet just as it turned back, the clouds thickened and twisted together, forming a monstrous, terrifying shape. Its core was made of dark storm clouds, with arcs of lightning crackling all around it.
This was one of Harbor’s mystical beasts—the Cloud of Calamity.
The Cloud of Calamity chased Rainbow across the sky. Their power was roughly equal, but Rainbow didn’t turn to fight. Its task, given by Charles, was only to intimidate the enemy, nothing more.
When the Cloud of Calamity finally drove the rainbow dragon away, the Stellar Empire soldiers erupted with confidence. Their morale soared, and they began advancing faster toward Withered Tree Fortress.
The crown prince, watching this, was delighted. With a smile he said to Harbor,
“It seems your strength really does surpass mine. You may truly have a chance to kill Charles in this battle.”
Harbor gave no answer. He only nodded faintly. To him, this was just the opening clash between him and Charles.
Even though he was a sixth-rank Beast Master and should have held a clear advantage over Charles, who was only fifth-rank, Harbor knew better. Charles’s mystical beasts were stronger than his own.
And on top of that, Charles wielded two artifacts. Harbor would have to tread carefully against those.
The crown prince felt slight irritation at Harbor’s cold reaction, thinking the man showed him no respect. But with the decisive battle about to begin, he wasn’t willing to sour relations with his strongest ally.
So he gave a sharp order instead:
“Advance faster! We must take Withered Tree Fortress before sunset!”
Under his command, the Stellar Empire’s army quickened its pace.
The ordinary soldiers were full of excitement. They believed their side had an overwhelming advantage this time. But the higher ranks, who knew more of the truth, did not share their optimism.
Not far behind the crown prince, Aldany was filled with unease. Something about the situation felt wrong to him. Withered Tree Fortress could not possibly be taken so easily, and Charles had clearly not revealed his true strength yet. Aldany debated whether he should speak up and offer advice.
Walking behind Harbor, Maxwell carried far less pressure than Aldany. With Harbor present, he didn’t need to worry about command. All he had to do was follow orders. Because of this, his thoughts even began to wander to other matters.
Just then, Harbor’s voice reached him.
“When the battle begins, you will lead the Ancient Academy members. Julian and I have more important tasks.”
“I understand! Don’t worry, Senior. Leave the command to me,” Maxwell replied with confidence.
Harbor gave a cold nod and said nothing more.
Behind them, Julian was staring intently at the walls of Withered Tree Fortress. He had already spotted Charles—and even the faint smile on Charles’s face. That smile made him feel even more humiliated. He could barely contain his urge to act.
On the Stellar Empire’s side, everyone’s thoughts were divided. But within the Serpent Empire, the mood was completely different. From General Sost and Charles down to the common soldiers, they all shared the same belief—hold the line against the Stellar Empire’s assault.
“It seems I’ll have to strike first. The Ancient Academy has sent someone far stronger than I expected,” Charles said after seeing the Cloud of Calamity. He realized there was a powerful Beast Master he had never faced before, and he could not allow that opponent to interfere in the coming battle at Withered Tree Fortress.
For Charles, there was only one option—take the initiative.
General Sost nodded firmly.
“I understand. Do what you think is right. I trust you completely—and so does everyone in the Serpent Empire.”
At that, Charles turned into a streak of light and vanished.
General Sost immediately gave his orders in a cold voice.
“Everyone, prepare for battle at once! The fight is about to begin!”
At his command, all the Serpent soldiers of Withered Tree Fortress moved into their assigned positions.
Azka also brought his mystical beast to the outermost wall of the fortress. Even though he knew that, as a weaker Beast Master, he couldn’t make much of a difference, he still wanted to stand and fight on the front line.
Just as all the Serpents were ready for battle, a violent tremor shook the ground beneath the fortress. At the same time, the Stellar Empire’s long-range units launched their attack.
One after another, blazing fireballs flew through the sky and crashed against the fortress walls.
Underground, elite troops from Serpent tribes that had defected to the Stellar Empire tunneled through the desert passages and slipped past the fortress’s outermost wall. They clashed fiercely with the Serpent forces guarding the second line of defense inside the fortress.
General Sost remained at his post, calm and steady. The battle had only just begun. He couldn’t afford to act rashly, nor could he send out his mobile forces too soon.
Moments later, the Stellar Empire’s army reached the base of the fortress’s first wall. The fighting grew even more intense.
The entire battlefield shook with roars and the thunder of exploding spells. The sound carried so far that even people tens of kilometers away could hear the battle raging.
Yet, despite the ferocity of the clash at Withered Tree Fortress, neither side’s top fighters paid it much attention. All the strongest knew that the real, decisive battlefield was wherever Charles appeared.
So, the moment the battle at the fortress erupted, Harbor and the Stellar Empire crown prince began searching for Charles’s location. They needed to find him quickly and strike.
Harbor broke away from the main force, following the traces of Charles’s lingering power. He was certain Charles had been there only moments ago.
“Are you looking for me?”
As Harbor scanned the area, Charles’s voice suddenly came from behind him.
