Legacy of the Dark Sage

Aella, Nithe, Nothum, and Veles each led a battalion of four companies with 150 members. Each battalion was split into vanguard and support. The composition seemed weak if one saw this because having only two positions meant their situation adaptability was limited.

Nonetheless, this was insignificant to the dragons, as they were inherently versatile. Their roles held little importance, serving merely to define the boundaries of their responsibilities. The role they occupied highlighted their strengths, even though they excelled in various other positions as well.

As soon as Celestine sent a message to dispatch, Aella, Nithe, Nothum, and Veles went to their respective places.

Four prominent sites served as the frontlines once the plane’s array formation was destroyed. Intruders would be transported randomly into these four sites just before the array formation’s destruction, serving as its last attempt for ‘counter-offense.’

When the Solis Clan and other clans previously assaulted the Dragon Clan, they failed to dismantle the array formation, resulting in most of the battle occurring outside the plane. The few who managed to infiltrate through the gaps in the array formation were swiftly handled, causing the Dragon Clan to incur minimal casualties.

This time was different. The fact that the enemies were able to launch a surprise attack at the military district without them noticing meant they were far more capable than the previous group that the Solis Clan brought last time. Because of this, they anticipated they had the ability to destroy the plane’s array formation.

Certainly, this does not imply that they would remain passive while their plane’s array formation was under threat. The four sites designated as the frontline after the array’s collapse served an additional function. These sites were also the array formation’s cores.

Most Array Formations only had one core. For this reason, mages with high Array proficiency typically target it after deciphering the formation. Locating a core depended on how much the Array Specialist deciphered the formation. However, even if they could not decipher the whole formation, as long as the Array Specialist roughly pinpointed the core’s location, it was possible to destroy it.

The Dragon Clan’s Array Formation was different. In addition to having four cores, deciphering it was also close to impossible.

But that in itself was its weakness.

The Array Formation might be impossible to decipher, but if a mage had enough destructive magic output, he or she could inflict damage to the formation.

If more than one mage with destructive magic output attacked the formation, the damage would be massive. When that happened, it would only be a matter of time before it crumbles.

They had to supply as much magic energy as possible to the formation’s cores to avoid this. Doing so would not prevent its destruction, but at least it would delay it. S~eaʀᴄh the ηovelFire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Do we have news on the military district’s situation yet?” Nothum asked Celestine about it through the communication device connected to the backup communication channel.

They could not contact the military district because the communication line’s central tower was there. The surprise attack seemed to target that area, bringing down the Dragon Clan’s communication channels in an instant.

Fortunately, they had anticipated this and created a backup communication line. However, to connect to the channel in that line, they had to do it manually.

Ducal, who was in the military district, was the only one who knew about the backup communication line. Since he had not connected to it yet, the situation in the military might be worse than they expected.

<I sent a team to investigate.>

Celestine answered from the communication device. He wanted to go himself, but he, along with the other tribe leaders, was manually supplying the projector on the table so they could monitor the movements of the enemies and all their people properly. Moreover, his innate ability allowed him to adjust the objects on the projector in real-time, so he could not pass the monitoring responsibility on to others. He had to use his Divine Sense to its limit to ensure the projector was updated in real-time, and that in itself was already exhausting.

Veles furrowed his brows. To be honest, he disliked the fact that he and the rest of the Aides had to split up at such a crucial time.

It was inevitable, but that did not mean he fully agreed.

Moreover, because they were two Aides short, the six had to split their responsibilities among them.

Splitting up the responsibilities was not hard; the problem lay in who could fill them. And the ones who could replace them had to vacate their usual post, and the rest of the Aides had to adjust accordingly. Because of this, most of them were delegated to a different task.

Anyway, Veles felt uncomfortable for not being able to contribute appropriately because he was assigned to lead a battalion. He should be providing his expertise in intelligence gathering.

Alas, today’s events did not allow them to devise a better strategy.

As if sensing what was on Veles’s mind, Celestine let out an exaggerated sigh from the other end of the communication.

<This is not the time to sulk, Veles. I understand that you pride yourself on what you do, but don’t beat yourself up just because you can’t go to the site and investigate the situation yourself.>

Veles’s frown deepened at Celestine’s words. However, he did not try to refute him. Annoyingly so, Celestine’s statement was on point.

“What’s the estimated time of the enemy’s arrival?” Veles changed the subject instead.

There was a short pause on the other end before Celestine’s voice replied.

<Half an hour. They are not moving slowly but don’t appear to be in a hurry either.>

“That means they have that much confidence in themselves.”

<…That… is infuriating.>

<<Have you confirmed their level?>>

A female’s voice chimed into their conversation.

<…No.>

“Tsk.”

<<…>>

Aella, who asked the question, fell silent.

<Yeah, I know. The fact that I can’t detect it only means two things.>

Celestine did not voice these two things. He did not have to. Aella and Veles already knew what he did not say.

The reason could only be one of the two. One, they had a very powerful concealment relic on them, or two, their level far exceeds Celestine’s.

Obviously, they would prefer the former. But just thinking of a group of Sentinels having the same relic seemed impossible. Thus, the latter was the likely reason, and that did not bid well for them.

They might have the Sigil that allowed them to exceed their limits, but they could only use it for a limited time. Apart from that, if they used it until they exhausted its duration, they would have to endure its aftereffects.

<<<You should stop overthinking things and mentally prepare yourselves.>>>

A gruff voice joined in, half reprimanding them and half wanting to lighten the mood.

“If that’s your way of assuring us, Nithe, it’s best not to say anything at all,” Veles replied with a sigh. “Anyway, we’re not overthinking. We are just being realistic. Even if we know the enemy’s level far exceeds that of our expectations, that does not mean it will affect our morale.”

<<<That’s good, then.>>>

Celestine chuckled at them. But then stopped when he saw movements on the projector.

<Estimated time of arrival has gone down to ten minutes. They suddenly sped up.>

Nothum, silently listening in on them, finally decided to join the conversation.

<<<<Which direction will they come first?>>>>

<Southeast.>

Your journey continues with empire

<<That’s my position.>>

Though the array formation would randomly transport the enemies after its destruction to the four sites, knowing the position where the enemies would attack first allowed them to support the cores properly.

“Try to gauge their level, Aella, and let us know.”

<<I will.>>

“When did you send the investigation team to the military district?” Veles asked Celestine right after talking to Aella.

<After sending the dispatch notice. They should arrive soon.>

<<<They have done us good for sneaking in and attacking the military district first.>>>

<Yes.>

“It is a textbook move to disrupt the communication lines of the enemies.”

<Unfortunately, we can only go on the defensive until we have enough information on the enemy.>

Using the Sentinels to attack the Dragon Clan was a good strategy on The Emperor’s side. This was because they had no intel about them. As far as they were concerned, The Emperor had only dispatched the Sentinels a handful of times in the past when the dragons were still having their internal feud.

For this reason, they first had to gauge the Sentinel’s strength and abilities before deciding what to do next.

Obviously, they would not just watch there and wait for them to destroy their plane’s array formation if they could help it.

Thus, this would be a battle of time.

Who would be faster? Would the Dragon Clan be able to gather enough information on their enemies before the array formation was destroyed? Or would the enemies destroy the array formation first?

BOOOM!

Just as these questions swirled in their minds, an explosion interrupted their thoughts, causing them to reel in shock.

The explosion came from the southeast, where Aella was.