Chapter 266: Going on the Offensive

Among troops of the same rank, Angels already had better-than-average attributes. Mind Link made them even more dangerous.

If Mount Celestia attacked without regard for the cost, the Second Homeworld Legion’s defeat was only a matter of time. The question was how much the Angels would lose along the way.

That depended on how hard the Humans fought.

Without Malcolm’s helpful contribution, Gideon might never have chosen to attack a Legion that stood comfortably above the middle of the field.

The Crown Champions in the First Legion did not quite know what to make of it.

"The Council never stops causing trouble." Elara looked grim. "I wonder how far we are from their map. Could we tie down some of Mount Celestia’s forces?"

"Help them?" Nessa muttered. "They’re lucky we aren’t making things worse."

"We can’t look at it that way." Elara shook her head. "We’re rivals now, even enemies. But when we face other races in the future, the Homeworld will have to stand together. What happens to them will affect us too."

"I’m with Nessa on this," Darian said. "Did they think about the Homeworld when they formed the Second Legion? Why does the greater good become our responsibility?"

"Thank you, Darian." Nessa gave him a sweet smile.

Both sides had a point. Elara was looking at their shared future. Nessa and Darian were unwilling to swallow what had happened.

"All right. There’s no point arguing when we’re so unlikely to encounter them."

Cassian looked up at the towering Five Elements Temple.

"We have less than nine hours. Keep working. Darian, I’m leaving you in full command of the First Legion."

"What about you?"

"I’m going out for a little exercise."

Darian stared at him.

"Don’t tell me you’re actually going to find a way to rescue the Second Legion."

Cassian laughed. "I’m not that idle."

He was less forgiving than Elara. Even if helping cost him nothing, whether he did it would depend on his mood.

Right now, he had one goal: complete the World Wonder.

It might seem impossible, but he intended to try.

"Aurelia, begin scouting the maps on the other side of the Spatial Vortices."

"Yes, Lord!"

The vortices varied in size. Some were only a few dozen meters across; others spanned hundreds.

A hundred kilometers from the Temple, Harriet led a squad of Dawnwings through one of them. Seven, the spellcasting Crystal Maiden, went with her.

They had barely emerged when powerful attacks crashed toward them.

"Trolls..."

As Harriet spoke, she sent dozens of commands through Mind Link. The Dawnwings dodged or defended, neatly breaking the ambush.

"Angels?"

The Tyrant Hero guarding the vortex sounded alarmed.

"Mount Celestia? Aren’t they fighting the Humans?"

Harriet gave him no time. More commands followed.

"Leave none alive."

Two minutes later, the Tyrant Hero and more than a thousand Troll troops lay dead. Seven had completed her survey.

[Seven: Vortex Three. The Five Elements Temple is 380 kilometers from this position. Troll Legion. Approximately twenty-five percent complete. No sign of an invasion in either direction.]

Cassian frowned at the report.

Trolls were hostile to Humans, and their place in the Racial Ranking was higher than the Winged Folk’s. A full Legion meant tens of thousands of Lords and tens of millions of fighting troops.

That was no easy target.

Reports soon arrived from the other vortices. None offered a better opportunity.

"Everyone return for now. Scout again when the vortices change."

There was still time. He could afford to wait a little longer.

Ideally, he would find a Temple already caught in a war and seize the chance to profit from it.

Three hours passed. Cassian had scouted more than a dozen vortices without finding a target he wanted.

Meanwhile, the battle between Mount Celestia and the Second Homeworld Legion had grown fierce.

Gideon had miscalculated.

The Homeworld’s Humans fought bitterly among themselves, but against an outside enemy, their determination gave Mount Celestia a painful lesson. The easy victory over the Winged Folk had made the Angels overconfident.

The Second Legion’s tens of thousands of Lords built more than a hundred defensive lines, each a few hundred meters behind the last. They used their fortifications to the fullest and rushed reinforcements between Domains through teleportation arrays.

Every line bought more time.

After three full hours, the Homeworld Legion had lost nearly half its fighting strength. Most Lords had stayed in the rear, however, and could save themselves and their Domains by withdrawing from the contest at the last moment.

Gideon was beginning to regret his decision.

Mount Celestia was powerful, but it was fighting away from home, without its own fortifications. Crushing half the Human forces had cost him a tenth of his own.

Worse, the delay had made him miss two better targets.

Retreating now meant gaining nothing for those losses and losing face besides. Continuing for another two hours or more might finish the Homeworld Legion, but could cost Mount Celestia another tenth of its strength.

Many of his Angel Lords were already unhappy with his decision.

Damn Malcolm. Damn Cassian. Damn the entire Homeworld.

While Gideon hesitated, a report made the choice for him.

All Angelic dignity vanished as he entered the All-Races Champions Channel.

[Gideon: Attacking while our main forces are away? Does Blood Throne want war with Mount Celestia?]

Blood Throne had struck at his Temple.

Vespera laughed.

[Vespera: It’s a Legion Contest in one new Realm. Must you make it sound so serious?]

[Vespera: Blood Throne against Mount Celestia? Why stop there? Why not call it a war between all Bloodkin and all Angels?]

[Vespera: Even in the new Realm, Mount Celestia has plenty of Legions in other War Realms, doesn’t it?]

Gideon’s eyes were almost red enough to belong to a Bloodkin. At last, he gave the order through gritted teeth.

"Withdraw. Return to defend the Five Elements Temple!"

Bloodkin were hardly weaker than Angels. With the forces he had left behind, his own Temple would fall before he could take the Homeworld’s.

As the Angel army pulled back, cheers rose from the Second Legion.

"They’re retreating! Mount Celestia is retreating!"

"We beat the Angels! The Temple is safe!"

They had held, but nearly half their Lords had been forced to withdraw from the contest. For the remaining hours, the survivors could do little beyond protecting themselves.

The Crown Champions in the First Legion watched with mixed feelings.

Then Fivefold Heaven’s space shifted again.

A Lord cried out.

"A Spatial Vortex just appeared twenty kilometers away! Enemies are coming through—damn, they’re strong! They killed my Epic Hero in one hit!"

A little over ten seconds later, Liora arrived with reinforcements. She quickly killed the few enemy scouts.

Cassian frowned.

Their Temple was more than ten kilometers tall. From only twenty kilometers away, the scouts would have seen it clearly. They might even have learned much of his defensive strength.

An ordinary enemy would not have troubled him. But the troops Liora had killed suggested that one of his old rivals was on the other side.

After a moment’s thought, Cassian narrowed his eyes and gave an order in his Domain Channel.

"Praetorians, remain here and defend the Temple. Everyone else, follow me through the Spatial Vortex."

——

On the other side, Azrak frowned at his subordinate’s report.

"A Five Elements Temple that appears to be more than ninety percent complete?"

His displeasure was plain.

"I can understand your troops making a mistake. But couldn’t you check such an absurd report before bringing it to me?"

The Divine General gave a helpless smile.

"Lord Azrak, there’s more. According to the message my Pathfinders sent before they died, it’s a Human Legion. Barely more than a thousand Domains are guarding the Temple."

Azrak laughed in irritation. He was about to rebuke his subordinate again when his eyes widened.

A Human Legion.

A thousand Domains.

A name he could never forget rose in his mind.

The First Homeworld Legion. Cassian.

"So we meet again."

"Could it be true? The Realm has given me this chance to wipe away my humiliation!"