Why Am I a Priestess When I Reach the Maximum Level? - [Vol. 5] Chapter 207

[Vol. 5] Chapter 207: Drums Resounding, Conflicts Erupt

At 11 AM on February 8, 1377 of the New Calendar, news came from the left and right flanks of Sacchino City.

The rampaging demon army had completed its control over the entire eastern territory of the Fulan Province and was now encircling Sacchino City from the north and south. Although Sacchino was located to the west of the Star River, its unique terrain made it project like a stronghold.

The Star River was turbulent, while it didn’t harbor countless dangerous magical beasts like many areas of the Black River in the Beastman Kingdom, it still had powerful creatures lurking within. These beings were generally more attuned to light and usually docile, yet they held a natural hostility toward demons.

As a result, most demons, especially those that couldn’t fly and were particularly large, such as the ?Giant Hammer Demon?, found it nearly impossible to cross the Star River using their own abilities. Not to mention the attacks from the opposite shore and the bombardments of faith-based magic.

Thus, demons could only begin to gather their strength after completely occupying the eastern bank of the Star River and crossing it from other suitable directions, attempting to take down this prominent stronghold on the western side of the Star River in the Fulan Province.

Of course, if the demons were even more foolish and chose to ignore this fortress heavily guarded by the Holy Empire and instead marched west to invade other cities within the Fulan Province…

Then the main forces of the Holy Empire stationed here could launch a pincer attack from both flanks when the demons began their siege, dealing even more devastating blows to the demon forces.

After all, under Yuna’s prior arrangements, all cities in the western part of Fulan Province had been placed under martial law and sealed off, effectively surrounding the demon-occupied areas like a large circle enclosing a smaller one, using the Star River as the boundary.

Unless the demon forces temporarily abandoned their advance, they would inevitably have to engage in a large-scale battle with the Holy Empire’s main forces stationed in Sacchino City. Even if they couldn’t annihilate them, they would need to at least overwhelm or repel the Holy Empire’s army here to avoid being caught in a pincer attack.

This was the situation Miss White Fox had learned about during the last pre-battle military conference that morning.

At 1 PM, two vanguard legions responsible for stalling the demon left flank retreated to the vicinity of the southern gate of Sacchino City, according to the predetermined plan, and joined forces with the main army led by Yuna, forming a formidable formation of over 100,000 Knight Templars.

According to the information they brought back, the demon vanguard would arrive at the southern gate of Sacchino City along the Star River within a maximum of two hours.

At 2 PM, news arrived from the remnants of over ten thousand Knight Templars who had been stationed in the Angel City but were defeated by the demon main forces during the battle and had retreated to the western bank of the Star River, where they regrouped.

They reported that they had done everything possible to stall the crossing demon forces, but they were out of ammunition and supplies and were about to retreat to the western cities to resupply and reorganize.

After completing their resupply, this unit would meet up with the Redemption Saintess’ forces coming from the rear to support the battle in Sacchino City.

How the support would be organized was another matter. It indicated that the right-wing demon forces would also reach the northern gate of Sacchino City and launch an attack before nightfall.

Although the timing was tighter than expected, it was still within the predictions of Yuna and the others.

Next, it remained to be seen how the demons would act and whether they would attack this fortified stronghold, which the Holy Empire had secured and established solid defenses around.

Additionally, while the eastern gate of Sacchino City had the Star River as a barrier, the demons were not entirely incapable of crossing the river to launch an attack, so vigilance against surprise assaults from that direction was necessary.

The same applied to the western gate.

Standing on the south gate city wall, orders from the Saintess rained down like droplets, coordinating the deployment of various troops. Miss White Fox couldn’t help but wonder about where Yuna, who had seemingly never experienced war, had developed such meticulous and seasoned military skills.

She had witnessed a similar wartime scene when she first arrived in this world during the Western War between the Human United Kingdom and the Beastman Kingdom. At that time, the number of participants and the scale of the conflict were even greater than in this holy war.

But when it came to actual combat…

“Report! Your Highness Bright Light Saintess! The barrier has detected a large number of demonic responses coming from the southern part of the city! The numbers are difficult to estimate!”

The barrier established at the central temple of Sacchino City could sense the movements of demons beyond the city’s boundaries, allowing for early responses and deployment. The swift arrival of the Holy Knight at the southern gate confirmed Yuna’s judgment regarding the direction of the first wave of enemies.

“All troops prepare for battle.”

“Yes!”

Although it was a straightforward command, as Yuna’s words “all troops prepare for battle” spread with the help of messengers and communication magic, the atmosphere at the southern gate of Sacchino City and throughout the entire city became tense and filled with a sense of impending conflict.

The sound of the holy bell echoed in the air, and the resounding beat of war drums pounded in the hearts of every warrior present, stirring their anxiety and excitement.

The knights tightened their grips on their long spears and staves, and even Edwina, the deputy commander, had placed her hand on the sacred sword at her waist, her expression solemn.

“Miss Dawn, do you need to temporarily step down from the city wall? This place will likely become the front line of the battlefield soon.”

In response to Edwina’s kind offer, Miss White Fox, flanked by the two white-feathered girl, simply glanced at her and chuckled softly.

“What do you think?”

“…That’s true.”

With a hint of self-deprecation, the Holy Knight also smiled and shook her head, exchanging a glance with Yuna on the other side. She drew her longsword with determination, her beautiful eyes were filled with an unprecedented intensity and a burning desire for battle.

“Then, please be a witness to our battle!”

“Thud… thud… thud… thud…”

From afar, the heavy sound of footsteps echoed through the earth.

“Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud thud!!!!”

The slow, heavy steps pounding on the ground resonated with the increasingly urgent and fervent beats of the war drums atop the city walls, clashing like fire and water, seemingly in direct confrontation, as if a silent battle had already begun.

At that moment, terrifying shadows emerged from the hills.

They wielded weapons over ten meters long, with grips as thick as an adult human’s body, and at both ends, they were terrifying implements of destruction—a blunt round face and a sharp conical tip. They stood over ten meters tall, an intimidating presence.

Clad in rough but heavier armor than tower shields, their jet-black bodies were covered in muscles as hard as rock, and their emerald green eyes radiated a cold, fierce glare.

The ?Giant Hammer Demon? strode towards the city walls.

Though there were only a dozen of them, lined up in a row, they resembled an unstoppable war machine towering over the earth, ready to crush anyone daring to stand in their path.

Following closely behind were endless demonic beasts, so numerous that they were nearly indistinguishable to the naked eye, trailing in the wake of the giant hammer demons and making up the bulk of the demon army.

Further back were the core combat forces, demon guards and demon cavalry, though their numbers weren’t as terrifying as the demon beasts, their solid and oppressive momentum approached with an overwhelming presence.

Above them hovered nearly ten figures that looked only two or three meters tall, but were suspended in the air by magic wings or other means, resembling humans.

They donned armor far more exquisite and beautiful than that of the giant hammer demons and wielded sharp blades, seemingly herding the demonic beasts below them forward.

Without a doubt, these were true high-ranking demons. The “Emissaries” of ?Slaughter?, whose appearances would bring immense disaster and death to the Holy Empire and this world.