The Vastness of Magical Destiny
Chapter 758: Volume 22: Revival and Rise - 17: Military Strength

Chapter 758: Volume 22: Revival and Rise Chapter 17: Military Strength

Dragumo had no idea that he and his army had been scrutinized by Komer and a lady like a herd of animals, simply because his Lord could not control his own lust, treating the other as beastly as he’d savaged. At that moment, he was fretting over the attrition of his two thousand soldiers. They had embarked from Bruce with a full complement of two thousand men, but by the time they arrived at the dock on Lake Nissai, twenty-six had been lost without exception, either drowned in the river or devoured by the fierce Yuaikroc that lurked in the river. The Yuaikroc was one of the fiercest magical beasts in the Nissai River, but they mostly hid in the swamps around the rivers and lakes shrouded by the forest, never merciful to invaders of their territory. And from the river harbor dock to Quke Valley, thirty-three more soldiers were lost to the battles with Gray Wolves and Ogres.

Having lost nearly seventy warriors before even engaging, Dragumo was seething, yet he had to admit that in terms of combat ability and experience, his troops were significantly lacking against these ferocious magical beasts. Yet looking at Solonberg and Ilot, who had accompanied his army, the two viewed the magical beasts as a rare opportunity to enhance their skills. They slew them along the way, even actively provoked them, leaving no peace throughout the journey. Their display of formidable prowess almost brought Dragumo and his Half-beast men to the verge of worshipping them, especially Solonberg, who single-handedly fought two Ogres and bisected one with his Knight’s Sword, eliciting the utmost respect from the Half-beast Warriors.

Of course, Dragumo was aware that in a real large-scale battle, he would still have to rely on his own Half-beast soldiers. Knights might be valiant, but in army troop combat, individual strength recedes to a secondary role. So while envying Solonberg’s personal prowess, Dragumo focused more on rapidly acclimatizing his remaining nineteen hundred or so soldiers to the environment and further strengthening their discipline training.

Komer silently stood in the forest outside the barracks, observing the training condition in the ground. It must be said that Fran’s training had indeed been quite effective. These robust but unruly Half-beast Warriors now at least appeared orderly at a glance, and to laymen, they were already intimidating. Katya had been thoroughly conquered by these fierce and terrifying Half-beast men, and as for Palermo, a merchant’s eye held no particular skill in discerning warriors - beyond his incessant praise, he only pondered how to make the Livonian Folk accept this reality without becoming flustered.

However, Komer knew that although this army seemed ferocious, it still lacked a true baptism by war. Fortunately, the Noble private soldiers gathered around Hoffman didn’t fare much better. His Half-beast Army should still hold a certain advantage over them. The only concern was the Royal Court Magicians. Although this army had gone through preliminary resistance training against Magic Attacks, such was only routine. Regular Fire Magic and Thunder Magic attacks still posed a considerable threat to them. It was perhaps in their species’ nature, and not something a few drills could eliminate.

Another key issue was the insufficient numbers. Two thousand soldiers could not assure Katya’s ability to withstand Hoffman and his Blood Lion Corps, which had even garnered support from Two Great Lords of the North, with their numbers officially exceeding ten thousand. They appeared strong and formidable, prompting an increasingly aggressive stance from Katya’s side, with even some calls to arms, demanding that military might solve those in the Southwest Region that did not obey Godeburg.

Komer sighed lightly; the forces in his hands were too weak. Yet, even so, the maintenance of five thousand troops had already caused financial strain on Caucasus. If not for the accumulation from vigorously developing business and trading away mines these past few years, even sustaining three thousand troops would have been challenging. However, this was a battle that concerned Katya’s ascension to the throne, and just as crucial for him. As long as they could triumph in one battle, all the pressure he bore could be resolved.

Komer’s sigh was immediately detected by a Half-beast Sentry patrolling the training ground, who lunged towards him, his Long Spear nearly reaching Komer’s throat before realizing it was the Lord overseeing the training. Not quite sure how to handle the situation, the Half-beast Sentry looked to the approaching Squad Leader for guidance.

"Oh, my Lord, is that you? What brings you here? Are we to go into battle soon?" With a wave to dismiss the Sentry, Dragumo looked surprised to see Komer standing alone outside the training ground.

"Yes, I came to see how the training was going. Dragumo, how’s the morale among the soldiers?" Komer glanced past a Half-beast soldier puffing out his chest, and seeing that the Lord himself had come for inspection, the Half-beast soldiers were all the more spirited. With the adjustment of the troop formation, their roars grew even more robust and orderly.

"Fantastic, Sir. They’re all eager for a real fight. I’ve heard that the Nobles here have already prepared rewards for us. If we win, the soldiers will receive a generous bonus. They’re all stepping up their training now, ready to win this battle," Dragumo puffed out his chest and declared proudly. "I believe in my soldiers. Those weak Mortal Soldiers are no match for them. We are sure to achieve victory."

Komer nodded meaningfully, "Dragumo, I also firmly believe that my army can achieve victory, but you must be aware that those fellows over there have not just an army; they also have mages. We may have to face the enemy’s Magic Attacks."

The complexion of Dragumo seemed somewhat abnormal. Although they had gone through several drills for Magic Attacks, the half-beast soldiers’ resistance to Magic Attacks was still quite weak. In fact, it was less about the devastating power of the magic itself and more about the half-beasts’ frail psychological tolerance. Confronted with a force beyond their comprehension, they invariably felt an overwhelming sense of fear and instinctively wanted to flee. On the contrary, when facing combat with mortal soldiers, they showed exceptional bravery. This was perhaps the greatest weakness of the half-beast army, and no one understood this better than Dragumo did about his own kind.

"Lord, I am powerless in this regard. Not just the soldiers, even I myself feel panicked when faced with a Magic Attack, always feeling like these forces of nature could cast us into an eternity in hell," Dragumo replied somewhat gloomily.

"Hmm, I understand this. To prevent this phenomenon from causing greater damage to our army’s combat effectiveness, we only have two options beyond intensifying the adaptive training against Magic Attacks: we must restrain them with strict military discipline, preventing them from breaking in battle!" Komer, of course, was well aware of the reasons. "Dragumo, mortal soldiers fear Magic Attacks just as much as half-beast soldiers do, there’s no difference. But long-term rigorous training has instilled in them an iron discipline; even if they face a sea of fire, as long as they haven’t received an order to stop, they will still step forward. Even if the sky were to collapse, they can only wait in place without command. It’s the strict military discipline that ensures the reliability of a real army. I hope you can understand this."

Dragumo nodded excitedly yet solemnly, indicating he understood the point. A surge of pride welled up within him. The Lord had now fully considered him a reliable deployment, a source of indescribable honor. To prove his worth as more than ordinary, he had to manifest it through victory in war, and now this opportunity lay before him. Dragumo would not allow such a chance to slip away.

"Please rest assured, Lord, Dragumo will not let you down."

Komer nodded slightly, then suddenly remembered something akin to a question: "Dragumo, I would like to know, if you pit your half-beast army against the beastman army, do you think we stand a chance of winning?"

Dragumo’s expression became serious again. As the supposed hybrid progeny of beastmen and mortals, the true origins of half-beasts had always been contentious. Half-beasts always considered themselves an independent race, distinct from both beastmen and mortals. If they claimed kinship with any race, they preferred to think they shared some common ancestry with mortals. The term "half-beast" was, after all, attributed to them because their stature and appearance resembled those of the northern beastmen—a tenuous association at best.

"Lord, although I have always believed that our half-beast soldiers are second to none, judging by the current quality of our soldiers and the overall combat power of our army, I fear we cannot compare with the beastman army of the north. I have never directly confronted the northern beastman army, but Sir Fran has always been the teacher I respect the most. From his words, I’ve learned that the combat power of the beastman army has actually far surpassed that of any mortal army. They not only have the individual strength advantage of our half-beasts, but they also have the obedience to discipline that mortal soldiers possess due to their long history of warfare. Moreover, their constant warring against mortal armies has resulted in a battle-hardened and matured military. If mortal armies lack more advanced weaponry and the powerful support of mages, according to Sir Fran, I’m afraid the entire north could become the beastmen’s hunting grounds."

Dragumo did not dare to speculate on this matter; he could only convey Fran’s views to Komer.

(To be continued. For the continuation of this story, please visit WWW.CMFU.COM, where Chapters are updated more frequently, and support the author and authorized reading!)