Violet Tower.

The first battle lasted for more than three hours, and it was not until midnight that the new military of the Holy See left nearly 1,000 corpses behind and retreated slowly and orderly.

Seeing the other party retreat like a low tide, Dios couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Unexpectedly, the first wave of the opponent's attack was not just a temptation, it was so violent that it even looked like a decisive battle. Even so, under his command, the mercenary group still stubbornly withstood it, and the retreat time of the other party was also expected by him.

Normally, in a war, the average number of times the clergy of the Holy See can bless magic or shield is about nine times, and if you know the duration of each spell like Dios, you can calculate the limit of the clergy. If the opponent continues to attack without the assistance of the priest, then the battle damage will be greatly increased, so there is no possibility for the opponent to feint and attack.

"Take a break for a while. He pulled himself together and ordered in a loud voice. The priesthood needs a certain amount of time to pray to regain mana, and this time should be completely safe, and it is also the most precious opportunity for their side to rest.

The order was quickly conveyed, and the soldiers on the walls of the city collapsed to the ground. These young mercenary soldiers, who had just received training for a short time, had not received any baptism of war at all, and they were dedicated to such a tragic war for the first time. That is, relying on the geographical advantage to defend, they can fight to the current level of strength, if it is on a flat field, the encounter between the two sides will inevitably end with the mercenary group soldiers being defeated and then pursued.

But even with the geographical advantage, the situation of the mercenary group is not optimistic. Dios rested on the battlements and gasped as he asked, "Have the casualties been counted?"

"The preliminary situation has been counted," said a young fighter standing next to him. It was a squadron leader in the fighter battalion. He reported in a low voice, "About 300 brothers died in this war, almost the same number were seriously wounded and incapacitated, and the soldiers on the defensive line were more or less slightly wounded. ”

"So many ......" Dios took a slight breath, and seeing the sad expression on the mercenary warrior's face, he reached out and patted him on the shoulder. "Tell the brothers to withdraw the line of defense and rest, as long as we resist the next two waves, we will have reinforcements coming." ”

"Huh?" the nearby mercenary warrior raised his head a little excitedly and asked, "Deputy Commander, is it the reinforcements of the Snowton Empire?"

"Oh," Dios nodded noncommittally, "and you'll know then." ”

Looking at the little mercenaries running towards the city wall with an excited face. Dios took a deep breath and sat down against the stone wall.

"Snowton's reinforcements, how did I not know about this?" said the bewildered dwarf Hoel with a small broken step, looking puzzled. When he returned to the valley, he also participated in the defense of the city walls, of course, and did not ride his black goat, Babi.

"You come here first," Dios beckoned and whispered. "Don't shout. ”

"Huh?" said Hoel looked at him with some confusion.

"By the way, I remember your goats were able to climb mountains?" asked Dios, frowning.

"yes. Babi is very capable," Hoel nodded blankly, "What's wrong?"

Dios casually took out a sealed letter from his bosom, handed it over, and whispered, "You take the path to the Green River Valley." Ask them for help. At the speed of your goat's mount, it could be there in a few hours, right?"

"Asking for help?" repeated Hoel, "didn't you say there were reinforcements from Snowton, and didn't there be many troops in the Green River Valley?"

"Lie to them," Dios sighed and whispered. "The other party has no intention of attacking the Green River Valley at all, and they have no problem withdrawing thousands of troops...... The life and death of the valley is up to you, remember, don't tell anyone about it. ”

"I know it, I'll leave right away. Hoel nodded solemnly and ran down quickly.

Alas...... Dios looked at his back and sighed again. The normal casualty ratio in an offensive and defensive battle is about one to three, as is the case now, but Dios originally thought that with the Ogre Slinger, the damage caused to the other side would be greater. Even so, if the opponent attacks next regardless of casualties, it is still a question whether the opponent can hold it. According to his experience, if such a line of defense is less than 300 people, it can only be broken through by the other side at a loss.

As for the reinforcements of the Snowton Empire...... He shook his head helplessly, this was just a means to motivate the army. He did indeed send Cyrell to the Snowton Empire for help, and the best possibility was that the thousands of Snowton defenders stationed on the other side of the Path of the Light Sputtered quickly rushed to help. But it takes more than two days to come and go.

In terms of the military strength of the two sides, the number of troops in his hands was about a little more than one-third of the opponent's, including a mercenary regiment of nearly 2,000 soldiers, a thousand ogre warriors, hundreds of mercenary regiment archery battalions and other mercenary warriors, and An Lan's 1,000 troops stationed outside the river valley. Excluding the ogre warriors and bow battalions that were used as long-range attack firepower, the number of warriors who could be sent to the defense line was only about 3,000. And now, with just one wave of onslaught, he has lost the strength of six hundred men at hand.

He pondered for a moment, then summoned a herald and ordered, "Order, transfer An Lan's 1,000 troops to the defensive line." ”

"Don't you leave any reserves?" asked the herald. The more than 1,000 Anlan troops were originally stationed in a small town outside the river valley, but they were transferred in by Dios before the war. Since the opponent is a friendly force after all, they are placed as reserves behind the defense line in the first wave of attacks.

Dios waved his hand, "I have ordered the brothers on the defensive line who are seriously injured to withdraw and deal with their injuries, and those of them who are still capable of fighting will be transferred to the reserves. ”

Watching the herald walk down, he smiled bitterly, the troops in his hands were really a little stretched. With such a casualty ratio, he would have to send the ogre warriors to the line after barely surviving three waves, but they are exactly the highest output class at the moment. Removing them from the watchtower and catching up with the city wall can only be an act of drinking to quench their thirst.

But what's the solution?

From the beginning, there was such a big disadvantage, and all I could do was to do my best.

Outside the river valley, the big tent of the New Army of Light.

Innedil frowned slightly, it was the first time he had encountered such a tricky general. The commander of the other party was extremely familiar with all kinds of aspects of the Holy See army, which made him feel surprisingly awkward more than once. From the deployment of the formation to the blessing of the divine shield, and even the timing of his own retreat, it seems that the other party is in control.

"Do you have any more detailed information about the enemy's deputy commander, Dios?" he asked, thinking for a moment, turning his head sideways.

"There's not a lot of information about him, he fought with us on the Vanuna Line, and he collected information about him at that time," the intelligence officer next to him pondered, searching for the file on the table, "But what is the archbishop referring to?"

"Let me introduce you to the basics first. Innedir said lightly, he still didn't have a clue.

"Dios, the first deputy head of the Sorrowful Mercenary Regiment, and one of the two most important cronies of the evil mage Allegri, the superior warrior, is also the strongest known in the mercenary group," the intelligence officer concluded, as he scanned the file in his hand, "The weapons he uses are a long sword and a shield, and he is an evil energy inheritor who has cultivated the defensive direction. We even suspect that he has obtained a legendary-level warrior inheritance......"

"What about age?" asked Innedil abruptly.

"Age? Age, about ...... Between the ages of thirty and forty. "The intelligence officer was a little unsure.

"That's a small range," Innedil scoffed, and asked, "what about his origins? Who gathered the original information we had about him, and so irresponsible?"

"His origin...... It seems to be from the highland barbarian tribe, but it has nothing to do with the other barbarians in the mercenary group," the intelligence officer looked at it, and hesitated, "Do we get the first information about him...... This ......"

"What's the matter?" said Innedir, grunting disapprovingly.

"The earliest information about Dios was precisely ...... Your Excellency collected it yourself," the intelligence officer reads busily, stealing a glance at Innedir's face, "Before the Victory Day celebration, your Excellency met Dios and Illo on the streets of Vanuna, and when he returned, he ordered the intelligence department to collect information about this person...... But then there were great changes, and the matter was delayed. ”

"Oh......" Innedil muttered with a sudden nod, "but who is he...... It's not just the way the Church's armies fight so well...... I remember that at that time, he even knew the secret magic of the 'Seed of Light'......"

For a while, he had no clue where Dios came from. At this time, a dusty messenger actually broke in without being reported. His body was covered with mud, and it was obvious that he had slept all the way, and had come day and night.

"What?" Innedil didn't reproach him, the other party dared to break in like this, there must be very urgent information.

"My lord, there's an urgent message from the headquarters. The messenger tiredly took a metal cylinder from his bosom and handed it over. He bowed slightly, but he didn't expect his knees to be weak and he collapsed on the ground.

"Come, take him down and have a good rest. Innedir commanded with a gentle face, and then opened the metal cylinder and took out the letterhead that was still sealed intact.

The intelligence officer stood respectfully on the sidelines, but involuntarily peeked involuntarily, hoping to get some facial signs, a professional habit that the intelligence officer could never change.

Unlike usual, Innedir's face, which had always been indifferent, became more and more gloomy, which made him a little nervous, and he held his breath to find any clues, and finally heard the white-robed archbishop grit his teeth and spit out a name,

"Good, good, Silves......" (To be continued......)

PS: (double change)