Chapter 90 - 86: Spare None

Chapter 90: Chapter 86: Spare None

As night fell, bonfires were lit within the military camp.

Inside the tents, Magic Lanterns powered by Magic Stones glowed dazzlingly, illuminating the command tent as if it were day.

These Magic Stones were a gift to Lian from Catherine. They were derived from Blue Moon Ore and designed specifically for lighting.

Kob gave a detailed briefing on the Skeleton Monsters, from A Level down to F Level, but the more Lian listened, the more he felt the intelligence was incomplete.

Based on his experience with games in his past life, an A Level Skull Knight couldn’t possibly be the final boss. ’What about Marshal Level or Lord Level? Above A Level, there should be S Level, and even SS Level.’

The Skeleton Monsters in the eastern Bone Forest had survived for ages, occupying a quarter of the territory. If they only relied on Skull Knights and scattered Knight Orders, how did they all agree to stay holed up in the eastern region?

’There must be some organization or leader at the top centralizing all their power.’

It was just like Green Shade Territory, where the Lord commanded the four armies of the north, south, east, and west. If the Skeleton Monsters hadn’t developed a sophisticated structure like a council, then the only other possibility was that they were hiding a behind-the-scenes lord who had never shown themselves.

Lian felt the latter was more likely.

’This skeleton lord has probably never appeared before humans, which is why there’s no record of them in any of the intelligence reports.’

Besides, before Lian’s arrival, the strongest person in Green Shade Territory was likely the Six-star Glory Knight, Land John.

Land John had led his Knight Army deep into the Bone Forest, where the strongest enemy he encountered was a Skull Knight. He clashed with it, and the encounter resulted in him being laid up at home, recovering for over a year.

Therefore, it was only natural that the intelligence report didn’t contain information on any Skeleton Monsters ranked higher than a Skull Knight.

After all, anyone who had seen a higher-level Skeleton Monster had probably become a skeleton themselves.

As for Witches, they generally did not leave the territory they were assigned to protect. This applied to Guardian Witches, but there were also War Witches.

Before the Holy Empire was unified, War Witches were more sought-after than Guardian Witches. But once the unification was complete, the Empire immediately issued a decree abolishing the War Witch designation. All Witches were left with only two paths: join the Guardian Bureau and become a Guardian Witch, or join the Church and become a High Tower Witch. Of course, the two paths could sometimes merge; when the Guardian Bureau was short on Witches, they would conscript High Tower Witches from the Church.

For example, the Disease Witch Dora of Blue Moon Territory had once been a High Tower Witch. She was temporarily conscripted to become the Guardian Witch for Blue Moon Territory, and she continued to protect it until its eventual fall.

Another example was Old Moria. When he realized Sophie was on the verge of losing control, and after his pleas to the Guardian Bureau for aid went unanswered, he had decisively taken his Knight Order to search for a High Tower Witch—though he had yet to find a single clue.

The Empire’s prohibition on Witches participating in war stemmed from a fear of their Power. In other words, Witches were the nuclear weapons of this world. In a war between humans, it was best not to use nuclear weapons, as they came with a host of side effects.

The only reason Lian was able to bring Sophie along on this campaign was that their target was the Bone Forest. It was a land of monsters, so their actions didn’t violate any human laws.

If Lian were to declare war on Mary’s Rose Territory, for example, he would be completely forbidden from bringing Sophie along.

Doing so would violate the Supreme Codex of Human Protection.

Of course, if Lian grew tired of the Holy Empire’s rule and decided to rise up in rebellion, that would be another matter entirely.

For the time being, Lian had no such rebellious thoughts. He was a noble himself, so what sense was there in overthrowing the very system that gave him his authority?

The Lords of this world were highly autonomous. Even the King had to ask him repeatedly to borrow troops, and in the end, Lian had still refused him.

From this perspective, Lian felt his reincarnation had been a resounding success.

After Kob finished relaying all the known intelligence, Lian raised an eyebrow and asked,

"The B Level Skeleton Wizards—where do they usually appear?"

Kob froze for a moment. To him, the most troublesome enemy wasn’t a Skull Knight, but a Skeleton Wizard.

Although the Skeleton Wizard’s assessed danger level was lower than a Skull Knight’s, encountering one practically meant the entire army was doomed.

Everyone would be afflicted with a terrible curse. Even if they survived the battle, they would ultimately die an unnatural death.

’Could the Lord be thinking the same thing as me? Does he want to deal with the Skeleton Wizards first?’

"Skeleton Wizards are very weak in direct combat and never appear alone. They’re almost always found with Skull Knights. And Skull Knights themselves rarely appear in Eastern District 1. That area is mostly inhabited by common skeletons, making it the easiest of the outer zones to clear."

Kob pointed to Eastern District 1 on the map. Though it lacked Lian’s precise cartography, the general terrain was still visible.

The outskirts of District 1 consisted of a dense forest, beyond which lay a hilly plain and a natural river—an ideal location for human Guards to establish a camp.

Lian spent the rest of the morning discussing the plan of attack with the others, and they finally settled on a preliminary strategy.

First, they would capture District 1, then push into District 2 to hunt down the Skeleton Wizards.

The assault on Eastern District 1 went even more smoothly than Lian had imagined.

Over 500 common Skeleton Monsters were hidden in the dense forest of Eastern District 1. These were F Level common skeletons. An Elite Guard could take one on one-on-one, and a group of five or six regular Guards could bring one down by surrounding it.

Sophie didn’t even have to use her Magic. The Southern Army simply charged through the dense forest and cut a path straight through the Skeleton Monsters.

Normally, one could retrieve a Magic Crystal after chopping off a common Skeleton Monster’s head. However, some skeletons had empty skulls, their Magic Crystals not yet having formed.

Killing 100 Skeleton Monsters and harvesting 30 to 40 Magic Crystals was considered a high yield.

But for the fortunate Southern Army, almost every beheaded skeleton yielded a Magic Crystal, and sometimes even two.

These Magic Crystals were similar to Blue Moon Ore, classifying them as Low Tier Magic Stones.

A Low Tier Magic Stone was worth about 10 Gold Coins, which was why the dense forest of Eastern District 1 was a favorite destination for Adventurers venturing into the Bone Forest.

But for Adventurers, obtaining a skeleton’s Magic Crystal was far more dangerous than it was for an army.

The skeletons appeared in swarms, which was more than the members of one or two Adventurer’s Guilds could possibly withstand.

Only a force tens of thousands strong, like the Southern Army, could face the prospect of being surrounded by skeletons without fear.

Lian ordered his men to collect the Magic Crystals, counting them as part of their spoils.

In total, they killed 523 Skeleton Monsters and obtained 651 Magic Crystals.

Passing through the dense forest, they emerged into an open plain. Blue skies, white clouds, and tall, verdant grass greeted their eyes.

The grass was a full meter high, and many Skeleton Monsters were hidden within it, wandering about aimlessly.

That is, until they spotted the human Guards. Like sharks that had caught the scent of blood, they began to sprint madly in Lian’s direction.

Lian felt as if he were watching a stream of Magic Crystals approaching him.

He drew his Knight’s Blade, raised it high, and roared, "Leave none alive!"