On the evening of the second day of the battle, the Byrne Legion, having cleared the battlefield, finally headed north and officially marched to the imperial capital of Golovin.

The reason for the delay until the next day, in addition to the necessary rest, is to clean up the battlefield - bury the corpses, treat the wounded, sweep the booty, dispose of the prisoners......

Troubles like this forced the Byrne Legion to stop, after all, this is not the Far North Ice Sheet or the wilderness, and if a large-scale plague breaks out in the heart of the Empire's elite, the outcome may be ten thousand times more terrifying than the fall of the Imperial Capital.

Because of this, Loren had to give up the idea of chasing the elven prince - although there were reasons for caution, he would not let go of such a great opportunity if he could.

And the information sent back by the witcher who was on a reconnaissance mission basically confirmed his suspicion: the Azorean elves came from the Jewel River, but when they retreated, they did not leave the river, but quickly reorganized their ranks and continued along the previous marching route.

A large army, usually a force of more than 1,000 men, needs to be routed before marching in order to maintain its formation and not let the group scatter, and not to be demoralized by getting lost or not knowing where to go.

The choice of Rodria Azores shows his quality as a competent commander, and in the face of such an enemy, the hasty organization of a small raid party is pure meat buns and dogs, and if it is an orderly pursuit, he will be 100% able to avoid it calmly.

Loren hates to do this kind of useless work.

After cleaning up the battlefield, the tired and somewhat embarrassed Byrne's legion headed north, where they encountered the Elemand legion, which was a little more embarrassed than them.

Almost all of the Ellemont legions, which numbered less than 10,000 men, were wounded, and the few who looked "normal" were all covered in bandages, limping with each other's arms, and barely a single place intact under their somewhat dark faces.

The Ellermont Legion, like the Byrne Legion, did not have any extra baggage, so those who dragged behind were almost all wounded soldiers who could not move and could only walk on stretchers and crutches.

Even the Grand Duke of Ellemont himself was equally embarrassed, the big coat on his body was gone, and the torn close-fitting armor made his already thin figure look even more delicate, and he couldn't see the majesty of the Grand Duke of a country at all.

Without opening his mouth at all, Loren could roughly guess what was happening the moment he saw them—they were ambushed.

The elven prince had long guessed that there would be an ambush to stop him, so he personally led the elite to risk crossing the Gem River, while the rest of the army was attacked by the "Elem ambush" in the middle of the road according to the original route - with or without intention, and with a very large disparity in strength, in order to block the enemy's offensive, heavy casualties were almost inevitable.

It was a miracle that they were able to get out alive and in full formation, and in the case of Loren himself, he didn't think he could do any better than Yuri Wirtz.

"It's embarrassing. ”

When the Archduke of Elleman, who was limping and covered in wounds, approached, Lusen took the initiative to meet him, and his cold tone was undisguised mockery:

"The dignified Grand Duke of Ellemont is still in danger alone, are you afraid that the bloodline of the Wirtz family will not be cut off fast enough—or are you too self-righteous to think that you can do anything?"

"It's not your turn to say such things if you think so. Despite being extremely tired and scarred, Yuli Wirtz still stood straight, and looked at the "sneering" Lusen with a solemn expression:

"I've heard... Someone who insisted on becoming a witcher even though he had no wizarding talent, with a success rate of only one in tenth, engraved three runes of high-level spells on his body......"

Rusan snorted softly, his expression disapproving.

"Participated in various experiments related to witchers many times, and once climbed the ...... of Torch Peak Mountain"

Shrugging, this time the gray-eyed boy didn't bother to answer him.

"Even so, it is not enough, it is rumored that he is suspected of having an affair with the power of the evil gods, and he is trying to master the ......way of the Azorean elves as a warrior," Yuri Wirtz, who said word by word, stepped forward and stared at the pair of silver-gray pupils that were exactly the same as himself:

"Is such a guy qualified to say that others are self-righteous?"

"Absolutely. Lu Sien was unceremonious, and looked at his half-brother intently: "What you said, I have succeeded." ”

"Even if you succeed, you will only become a slave to 'power'. ”

"So what, it's better than some guy who is blind in one eye. ”

Raising his head coldly, Lusen glanced disdainfully at the blindfold on Yuri Wirtz's face.

Yuli Wirtz, who frowned slightly, had a deep expression.

The "brother-like caring" gaze, the gray-eyed young man who looked at it was hairy.

The silence lasted for a minute, and Lu Sien, who couldn't resist the eyes, tugged at the corners of his mouth: "What are you doing, what are you doing?"

"You're too impulsive, Lusen, who doesn't even need to be stimulated by others, will lose your mind and do things that hurt you because of the simple reason of 'proving yourself'. ”

Yuli Wirtz raised his eyebrows: "That's why my father gave me the inheritance of the family back then, and you are too emotional to take over the burden of being the head of a country." ”

The gray-eyed young man was stunned for a moment, and then sneered: "What, do you want to use this to save some face-don't worry, I'm not the slightest interested in that thing on your head, even if you give it to me, I won't ......"

"Smack!"

Before he could finish speaking, Lusen, who reacted almost instinctively, caught what Yuli Wirtz had thrown, and opened his palm to reveal a red and white badge separated by a black cross.

The family crest of the Wirtz family of Dragon's Heart.

"What does this mean?!"

"It's something that belongs to you, and it has nothing to do with whether you admit it or not. The Grand Duke of Ellemont, who put his hands behind his back, walked to the side of the gray-eyed boy:

"My father chose me that day because he was worried that you would be too impulsive and too eager to prove yourself, but... That doesn't mean I have to share my father's views. ”

"As the current Grand Duke of Ellemont, I don't think the next successor must also be an absolutely san, dispassionate decision-maker. Yuli Wirtz, who was facing Lusn on the side, had a hard look:

He may need that trait in the face of the next situation, but he also needs the courage to do whatever it takes, the determination to win by any means. ”

Glancing at Lusen, who was completely stunned, the Grand Duke of Ellemont turned his gaze in another direction:

"Am I right, Lord Loren Turin, Duke of Byrne?"

The black-haired wizard who was suddenly "named" showed a slightly embarrassed smile - he didn't want to be involved in this "brother, friend, brother, brother".

But before Loren could wait, the Grand Duke of Ellemont had already put an end to this embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. ”

"Huh?"

"The enemy's attack was beyond my judgment, I didn't expect ... No, I should have known that Rodria Azores could have guessed that there would be an army halfway through. ”

"Don't mention that. Loren consciously changed the subject: "What about the casualties of the Elems legion, is the situation serious?"

The moment the words fell, Loren sensed a chill in Yuri Wirtz's eyes.

"If you are a casualty... You should have seen it. Yuri Wirtz's expression turned cold:

"I guessed that the enemy might be prepared for a blockade, so all the elites brought from the imperial capital were left—more than a tenth of the casualties, and nearly a fifth. ”

"Two of my lieutenants, one of whom was the Count of Ellemont, led the guards to get entangled by the enemy in order to protect me during the raid, attracting three times as many enemies to buy me enough time. ”

"As for the casualties since the beginning of the war, they have long been incalculable - more than half of the 7,000 pioneers have been lost, and the 30,000 Dragon Heart City soldiers I brought out from my hometown have now lost two. ”

"Having faced the Azorean elven warriors in Ebolden, you should know very well that in the face of these enemies with superb swordsmanship, tacit cooperation and special strength, our warriors... In fact, there are not many ways to deal with it. ”

"Fight to the death, fight with your life—there's no other way. ”

Yuri Wirtz's voice was flat, but it still made Loren hear the pain in his voice: "It is because of their heroic and bloody battles that I would rather die than retreat, and I, as their duke, can stand here alive and talk to you." ”

"Otherwise... I may become the second master of a country after Master Corona, who has been killed by the Azorean elves. ”

Faintly, the eyes of the Grand Duke of Ellemont darkened a little.

The plain words resonated with many people around him.

Although it has only been more than half a year since the declaration of war, the Azorean elves can be called terrifying combat power, and they have left a very deep shadow in the hearts of the imperial people.

The knights of Byrne, the two-handed swordsmen of Ellemont, the "black walls" of Sackland...... The top combat power of the empire is not at all advantageous in the face of the Azorean elven warriors, and even has to rely on "sneak attacks" to win back a slight advantage.

And ordinary warriors have no room to parry in front of the Azorean long knife ... After losing the advantage of tight formation, numbers, and terrain, there is almost no end to being slaughtered one-sidedly.

Fight to the death, sacrifice your life... There's only one way.

With countless corpses, pave the way to victory, or not to defeat.

The strength of the Azorean elves shattered the pride accumulated by the number of people in the empire for hundreds of years - the glory of the thirteenth generation, torn apart in front of the sharp Azorean long knife.

"Forget it, don't talk about that. ”

The gloomy Archduke of Elems shook his head, and his words changed: "Your Excellency Loren Turin, what you need to consider now is not the Azorean elves outside the imperial capital. ”

"In a sense, the people in the city who need your protection may be the real trouble for you. ”

As the words fell, the expressions of everyone on the side changed—especially the knights of the Byrne Legion, who showed a little indignation.

The black-haired wizard who had already guessed that it would be like this looked away a lot: "How serious can it be?"

"It's beyond your imagination. Yuri Wirtz shook his head.

"Because of the previous fiasco and the siege of the Azorean elves, the nobles of the imperial capital are now extremely sensitive to 'power', and they are always worried that their power will be taken away by us people. ”

"Coercion and temptation, both soft and hard... In order to retain its power and position, the Imperial Diet has reached the point where it will do everything it can, and in my opinion it is even close to the point of 'madness'. ”

"I thought that with the Imperial Cabinet, the nobles of the Council would be at least slightly restricted, but now it seems that such a thing is really naïve. The Grand Duke of Ellemont sighed:

"The royal family of de Salion is curled up in the palace of the heavenly vault and does not care about the affairs of the world, the Holy Cross Church is instigated behind the scenes, and there are some stingy chambers of commerce instigated, plus His Majesty Connad ......"

Yuri Wirtz was about to say something.

The black-haired wizard probably understood something.

"What do you mean... The nobles of the imperial capital will probably not even let me enter the city gate?"

"Not very likely, but definitely. Yuri Wirtz looked at Loren with a somewhat complicated expression:

"Although I understand that your plan is to help the imperial capital lift the siege, this is not the case in the eyes of those nobles - in their eyes, you are the second black duke of the past, and no nobleman of the imperial capital who remembers the era of the black duke will be willing to accept such an outcome again. ”

"Even if they know that it is impossible, they will definitely resist desperately regardless of everything. ”

"Really?"

The black-haired wizard smiled disapprovingly, and before he could say anything, the embarrassed Yuli Wirtz suddenly stepped forward, and the only remaining silver eyes stared at his face:

"Loren Turin... I'm not kidding you. ”

"I don't think you're joking. ”

"Then what are you going to do next, storm the gate of the imperial capital and then fight all the way to the Heavenly Dome Palace?

"There's a big difference... At least my ears aren't that pointy. ”

"I repeat, I'm not joking!" the Grand Duke of Ellemont frowned and said coldly: "Heavenly Dome Palace... This is my bottom line, and the bottom line of royalty and empire, if you ......"

"If I really wanted to do it, I wouldn't have to go through such trouble!" interrupted Loren unceremoniously:

"Imagine if I really want to seize power or put the Imperial Diet under house arrest, then why send reinforcements to defend the Imperial Capital - wouldn't it be better to wait until they are besieged by the army of that little elven prince and the city is about to be breached?"

"There's only one thing I've wanted to do from the beginning to the end, and that's to make sure that the emperor doesn't fall, and in order to do that, I need to get the power to control the city, or I can't do it. ”

"You, who have personally guarded this city, should know this better than me!"

Yuri Wirtz finally calmed down and stopped rebutting, just silently staring at the black-haired wizard.

“...... What do you need me to do?"