It was just morning after the night of the Emerald Bow. Eleana was supervising the knights as they prepared, as there was a chorus of voices everywhere. She was on the walls along the southern border, where preparations were being completed.
Eleana was currently cleaning her sword with a napkin as her figure shone on its surface.
She looked at it, seeing her jade-like face and deep pupils reflected in it. Her thoughts went back to the flash from yesterday, just before the Emerald Bow appeared. She looked in the direction of Veer's group, whose position had been mentioned by the commander, and muttered, "It was definitely related to him… But such power…" She shivered a bit.
"That could probably even kill a Grey Knight... Huh..."
"And what is this Emerald Bow about..."
She gripped the sword's hilt as she muttered, "No one has known how to activate that dormant bow for decades. Suddenly, it gets activated."
Her gaze remained fixed on the sword as her long white hair fell all around her.
Her ears suddenly perked up as she heard her knights discussing the Emerald Bow. One was saying, "Finally, the bow has emerged! If the bow alone can be used, it can defeat Breaven by itself… Haha."
"You bet... I don't even see the point of war anymore... Haha."
"But, Steralla, who can even wield such a great bow? That's part of the legends, isn't it?"
"Hmm! Who cares! If it has appeared, it means either the King, Sir Myrell, or Madame Clayren has achieved that kind of power. Who can know their thoughts?"
It seemed that the appearance of a legendary lost object had sparked hope in the hearts of men.
Eleana murmured, "Indeed, who can know their thoughts?"
She suddenly paused as her thoughts returned to the book in the grand library. Veer had shown her that book. Her pupils constricted as she pondered, "Convergence of stars… Emerald Bow… Apocalypse…"
As she was absorbed in thought, her knights called out to her. She stood up and walked gracefully towards them as everyone seemed to have a profound sense of respect for her. Eleana could feel it—admiration, respect, and even lust from some.
She didn't care much anyway as she asked, "What is the issue?"
A fully armored Golden Knight, Santek, responded, "Lady, all the preparations are complete."
The other knight who was second in command to her, Gurian, said, "The automated bows and…" He paused and added, "Even that… furnace. Everything is prepared. We are completely ready."
Eleana listened to everyone and said, "Okay! Have the informers ready at the lookout tower. Don't they have a strange device that can see many yojans into the distance? Use that."
She gestured for everyone to leave except one. It was Gurian.
She paused and said to him, looking into his eyes, "Gurian, what information do we have about last night? What happened to the two missions?"
He looked at the ground and said nervously, "Lady, the group that went southwest… I've heard bits and pieces. It seems Captain Knight Rhaelle, along with Knight John and Caria, completely eliminated the secret base… that they encountered."
"It seems Knight Caria with her personal troops will arrive in a while."
Eleana's mind returned to the commander's orders, which stated that the two groups were only supposed to attack the Breaven soldiers from behind during the frontal war. So why was there already a secret base there? Did she already know about it?
Eleana's gaze sharpened as her silver white hair shone in the gentle sunlight. She asked, "And… what about the other group?"
The knight became even more nervous as he muttered, "Actually… It seems something happened there… I just received news that several of our knights are missing… Knight Veer and Sythris aren't talking to anyone..., most importantly, it seems a very big fight took place there…"
Eleana's eyes constricted as she said, "Explain."
The knight spoke in an awkward voice, "I'm not too sure. An informant just arrived, and he went to the palace… That's all I've heard."
"But, Lady, multiple Golden Knights died, and no one remembers anything. Many kniths seem injured especially Knight Veer and Black Knight Sythris."
Eleana looked at him and dismissed him. He returned to his duties as a supervisor while she looked down at the streets from above, where common men and women were going about their daily routines. In the far distance, children were clearly happy, and many people seemed to be celebrating the appearance of the kingdom's legend.
She recalled the legend of the first Queen of Drudar, who had used the Emerald Bow to shatter a white lotus the size of a kingdom as she sighed interanlly.
"At least he is safe.."
Her pupils constricted again as she remembered the White Lotus… Even Lythria had used white lotuses in her fight against the Illusion Demon. Now that she thought about it, Veer had also been dumbfounded when Lythria used that White Lotus attack. So, did he know something about the White Lotus?
She shook her head as she recalled the events involving Veer—the puppets, his loss of consciousness, and Noelle's obsession with him. Also, compared to before, it seemed Veer no longer remembered many things. What was going on with him?
As she pondered these things, she felt a small tap on her shoulder. She looked back—it was the cheerful girl, Caria. When had she arrived? Why hadn't she been able to sense her? Caria laughed. "Are you trying to figure out why you didn't sense me?"
She wore golden armor that made her look like a golden ruler. She even had a regal headband.
"Haha, it's because of a new skill… Amazing, right?"
Eleana nodded as Caria explained in a slightly more serious voice, "You guys actually went to attack that Noelle without informing John and me…"
Eleana didn't say a word as Caria gave her a playful shoulder tackle and said, "Yesterday was really unexpected… There were a bunch of Breaven secret knights…"
She came closer and whispered, "Our commander just explained that to our captain.. Knight Rhaelle… It was different from the earlier orders… It seems there are some spies…"
Elean's mid drifted to a few things with suspicions. Knight Rhaelle was ctually a loyal follower of Supreme Grey Knight, Knight Myrell. John and Caria actually both worked under Rhaelle. That assasination attempt on Eryssa was discovered by Caria and her team. So was Rhaell's commands working under Myrell ? What was his stand on the war ?
Eleana asked looking at Caria, "What about our commander? Did you see her? Also, why are you in your fighting mode?"
Caria nodded and raised her hands as she said, "One question at a time. Geez. She's actually unavailable! She went somewhere, probably southwest, or on some order from the King."
She looked in Veer's direction as she said this, her gaze deepening.
Eleana said thoughtfully as her heart churned, "Veer and Sythris went there…"
Caria laughed and said, "What, are you jealous that they're spending time together?"
Eleana shook her head and tried to explain, but at that moment, several observers came running towards them.
Eleana stood up and asked them, "Why are you guys in such a hurry?"
They answered in unison, "Lady Eleana, Breaven is coming… but that's not the main issue, ma'am… It's what's coming with them…"
Each of them handed her a paper with a scene inscribed on it. It was some kind of mechanism invented by a master magician.
As she looked at them, both Eleana's and Caria's eyes constricted. Eleana stood like a statue while Caria jumped forward and muttered, "…Oh my God…"
The papers depicted a scene in the distance—a large number of knights rallying with horses and weapons, along with all kinds of preparations barely visible at the front. But there was a huge shadow over the army. It was so dark that nothing beneath it was visible.
Eleana said in a daze, "Is it related to some forbidden legend…?"
As Caria nodded, Eleana's gaze sharpened. SHe knew Caria was the second most knowledgable after Kerin in the current knights. She took something from her waist. It was an ornate artifact with intricate designs. She threw it into the air. A faint emerald light appeared as streaks of light flashed into existence and disappeared.
Caria inquired, "Did you inform everyone?"
Eleana nodded and commanded the others, "Call all the Golden Knights here immediately… and Gurian as well."
Gurian immediately came from some distance away as Eleana said in abit commanding tone as her hair flowed in the wind, "Prepare the automatic artifacts… Get them ready to fire."
Gurian bowed and left immediately.
She then said to Caria, "I was also given special orders by the commander. It seems she had foreseen many things."
Caria raised her eyebrows. "You mean…? No way… It isn't your duty…?"
Eleana sighed and nodded. "I informed all the Black Knights nearby. They should gather shortly."
Caria stuttered, "But… but Captain Rhaelle is still on her way… It will take some time…"
Eleana looked at Caria and said, "We will engage until they arrive."
She looked down where thousands of soldiers were gathering .
....
The observers, meanwhile, had a cone-shaped artifact that they used to call out to everyone. Within a short time, all the Golden Knights assembled under the gate—near a hundred of them. Each Golden Knight generally had seven Silver Knights under their command, though the number sometimes varied. Each Silver Knight generally had seven Bronze Knights under their command as well. The Bronze and Silver Knights were already arranged. Each Bronze Knight had several regular foot soldiers under their command.
Eleana called the golden Knight Gurian again and said, "Thousands of knights are here. You understand the structure much better than everyone else. Command them and explain the rules of battle and the rules of the units."
"Once you finish, I will address them."
Knight Gurian bowed solemnly and said as he moved top address everyone gathered, "Yes, Commander."
He looked at everyone as he addressed the army from above. Thousands of soldiers had assembled. The entire path from the kingdom to the northern boundary was lined with them.
Gurian used special amplifiers designed by Princess Eva and the mages to address them.
"As per the orders of our Captain and current leader, Eleana, I, Gurian, will address the army. The enemy is already here. In about prahars, they will clash with us. For those who already know and those who don't, listen carefully, as I shall not repeat myself. Our kingdom has two Supreme Commanders. Supreme Commander Clayren leads this war. The current battle will be overseen by Black Knight Eleana. She is our appointed commander."
There were cheers from everywhere as Gurian continued.
"Silence! As everyone knows, we have seven Black Knights joining the war. Here, the forces of all seven captains will participate. So, the army will move in seven steps. As you all know, each unit will have roughly 3,000 soldiers, including one Black Knight leading the unit or the Golden Knights currently assigned to it. Under them are seven Golden Knights, each Golden Knight leading seven Silver Knights, and each Silver Knight leading seven Bronze Knights. Together, the Seven Legions of Drudar will move and overcome any obstacle and face the Breaven soldiers to achieve victory."
"You should remember the ironclad seven rules. First, you cannot deny an order from someone above you in the hierarchy. Second, you cannot flee from battle. Third, you shall not abandon a comrade if it is within your power to help them. Fourth, you cannot reveal Drudar's secrets to the enemy if you are captured. Fifth, you cannot draw your blade against a fellow comrade in the army. Sixth, you shall not strike any civilian, whether they are on our side or the enemy's. Seventh, you shall hold your position until someone of Black Knight rank or above reassigns you."
"We will have the Vanguard Striker unit, belonging to Knight Laren, move first, followed by Commander Eleana's MoonDefense unit, Knight Rhaelle's Shadow Fang unit, Knight Marvis's Ariatal Squad, Knight Nyelle's Void unit, and Knight Symon's Fortress unit."
"The seventh unit, belonging to Knight Sythris, and half of Knight Rhaelle's forces will join as the commander deems necessary."
Eleana nodded from behind as she praised Gurian in her heart as the truth was that only half of the captains were near. Only she, Laren and Marvis.
There were hundreds of Silver and Bronze Knights standing in orderly formation as the sun shone upon them. Each of them was fully armored and carried various weapons—spikes, maces, spears, swords, and shields, including spiked ones, as well as bows and arrows. A few other knights, clad in green, stood at the back. They held wands and books—strange books with four emerald stars in their corners.
In other parts of the army, separated from the common area where people were observing, many special knights stood. They wore completely blue robes that covered their bodies. They were all chanting something as a transparent screen slowly formed, separating parts of the kingdom- the marching of the army and the residential areas that were present in the way.
Children were celebrating, while their parents and the elderly looked ashen, watching the blue-clad protectors throughout the kingdom casting spells. They knew what that meant, but the children did not. Many people looked towards the sky as they prayed…
An old man muttered as he looked at the sky, "So it starts…" He then looked at his grandson, who was excited to see everything.
"Grandfather I want to be like that person ..high on the walls..."
The grandfather nodded as his face was grim. He had never seen Drudar mobilize such a force ever.
People showered the army with flowers as they passed by.
The army was like a river that flowed from the Drudar's castle's plaza to the northern borders.
Meanwhile, strings were stretched from various parts of the wall as some kind of artifacts were prepared for release. They included hefty pots, strange bows with fire in them, poison-coated arrows, and furnaces… Loud noises echoed throughout the area.
Eleana stood on the wall as her voice echoed towards the soldiers below. Her hair fluttered, and her armor shone. She addressed them, "Fellow knights of the Drudar Kingdom, the war is upon us. Within a prahar, the Breaven army will reach us. You are the guardians of this kingdom. It is because of you all that the general and common people of our kingdom can enjoy peace. Last night, we already conquered a secret base of Breaven, and it seems they are now eager to strike at us. We will show them the power of the Drudar Kingdom!"
Waves of cheers rose from below as Eleana continued, "With the protection of the Emerald Bow's power and the strength that lies within us, we will overcome this. I will take the frontal assault while our captains join the fight. Each one of you is a hero—do your duty to protect the kingdom! Let's go!..."
She screamed as she raised her weapon. "To warrrrr!" A blue moon manifested above her…
As thousands of soldiers joined in chorus, raising Drudar's flags to the sky while horses neighed, a shout rang throughout the area:
"To warrrrrrrrrr!"
"To warrrrrrrrr!"
"To warrrrrrrrrr!"