“We’ve got the assault trenches ready already,” General Bismarck said, as he looked at the gathered troopers of the 33rd Infantry Battalion and their two leaders, who were already in their light combat armor—Alexa and Phoebe. “If need be, we can cover you with direct and indirect fire from the rear.”

  “No, it’s not needed.” Alexa shook her head. “We’re going to try to get close in an attempt to parley, after all. Should they fire back, I’ve already tasked Phoebe to do her part.”

  “I am ready to do it, sir,” Phoebe said, gripping her staff tightly. “I’ll protect your men.”

  The general took a deep breath, shaking his head, before turning to Wilhelm, who was checking his pocket watch on the side. “Are you going with them?”

  “Of course,” Wilhelm smiled. “I can hardly let these fine ladies go on their own to danger, after all. It’s up to you now to manage the rest until we make a breakthrough.”

  “Or capture General Horatio.”

  “That’s her general plan,” Wilhelm nodded a bit. “We’ll see if it works.”

  General Bismarck stepped back before raising his hand as a gesture to one of the signalmen. The soldier fired a flare crossbow bolt at the sky. The glowing smoke it emitted in its wake was the color black, which indicated a ceasefire of the fireball artillery from their shützes on the rear. Alexa requested for this to happen so their scheme would look legitimate.

  In a few seconds, the constant rumbles of bombardment soon ceased. All Alexa held in her person was her wand and spellbook, which was filled to the brim with glyphs made with Archdemon blood. For the mission at hand, it made her feel somewhat naked, and, to be honest, she was a bit afraid.

  But I already did this back then at Rumpalz.

  Just like back then, I just have to keep my head high and march forward.

  These rebels, all they need is a true empress, and they’ll bow before me.

  She steeled herself and curled her fist before marching on ahead.

  “Let’s go,” Alexa spoke out loud so that all the soldiers would hear her as she walked down the trenches that were connected to the frontmost ones. “I will be going first. All I ask from all of you is to watch my back. Nothing more, nothing less.”

  The soldiers from behind all watched her in awe; even the ones on the side of the trenches stopped just to gape at her. Behind her, General Bismarck looked at Wilhelm with a grin.

  “I’m sure that once this is all over, the Empire will have a bright future ahead.” The general patted Wilhelm’s shoulder as he walked past him. “Make sure to bring her back home, Sir Wilhelm.”

  +++

  “What in the devil’s name is that?” One of the soldiers of the Second Continental Army squinted his eyes as he looked ahead from the trench they were on. He was an officer, a captain in charge of this section of the line.

  So far, the enemy hadn’t attempted any assault at the center. Instead, for the past hours, artillery simply rained intermittently. It didn’t create much damage, except the fires from the incendiary artillery spells burned the land between the armies so much that a thick smoke reduced visibility. It was why he could barely see beyond eight hundred feet.

  To him, the figures advancing ahead were mere specks. They were just vague figures that only barely resembled humans. But, at the front of their formation, he was sure that he could make out something clear. It was someone who was holding a flag.

  “Are those enemy soldiers?” One of his subordinates asked as he craned his head up the parapet. “Shit, everyone ready up!”

  Around the officer, his men all sprang up into action, each of them grabbing their crossbows on the ready and pointing them at the figures ahead of them. Eventually, their forms became clear through the smoke and the fire. The loyalists were incoming.

  “Ready! Take aim, gentlemen,” the officer shouted, realizing that a full attack was imminent. He grinned. The center of the Second Continental Army was said to be so well-fortified that attacks were only going to come from their flanks.

  He was going to be an absolute hero of the unit today. He was sure of it. They would slaughter this formation without breaking a sweat.

  “Hold steady till they’re in range. I want clean volleys. Signal Fort Henderson that an attack is coming. We’ll need fire support!”

  “Aye, sir!”

  A chorus of affirmations rang through their zigzagged line. The officer watched as the enemy crept closer and closer. One of his soldiers aimed a crossbow high into the sky before firing it. A flash of green light illuminated the sky above, signaling a new area for their shützes to target. Yet, the enemy didn’t seem to be in a rush.

  Instead, they continued walking forward, unabated and unbothered. It was strange. Even the bravest soldier of the Imperial Army and the new revolutionary army wouldn’t be walking like that in such a dangerous area. Misplaced confidence—that must be what he was seeing.

  This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

  He couldn’t wait to cut them down to ribbons.

  All the bravery in the world can’t help you if you’re stupid.

  That was when a feminine voice, as piercing as a newly forged steel blade, cut through his mind. It was a voice he and all the soldiers were all familiar with, a voice that assaulted their minds again and again and tested their faith in the great cause they believed in.

  A voice that was enough to crack those who believed they were fighting for the liberation of the common man.

  “I am here.” The figure leading the enemies ahead of them stopped, planting the flag that she must have been holding in an area where its white color could be seen. “Your future empress is now standing before you. And what are you doing, aiming your weapons at me? Then try it! But you won’t, will you? Why would you, after all? Will you shoot a young woman trying to speak to you?”

  The officer was shocked. Even the soldiers beside him were equally frozen. This voice, after all, was so authoritative that many believed it had properties akin to hypnosis spells. He tried to fight it, trying to shake himself off, but the voice transfixed him to her. She demanded his attention, and his soul, try as he might to resist it, followed her.

  Even if the effects only lasted for a few seconds, or it was truly quite minimal, it was enough to break his composure, enough to keep him from shouting ‘open fire’ to his men.

  The woman ahead of them raised her chin before haughtily crossing her arms as she stood tall in front of the flag she planted. It was a display of bravery in the battlefield unheard of, that even the most hardened soldier would never show off to the world. After all, it was madness, suicidal even.

  But as the officer stared at the woman’s cool, pink glowing eyes, he realized why so many feared this young crown princess.

  “I am here to end the bloodshed,” she declared, as if it was something that any person could do at a whim. “I generously offer you all the chance to parley with me. To those who wish to surrender to me and my loyal soldiers, what awaits you is great leniency. I understand why you all rebelled and fought against me. Whether it’s because you were tricked by a conman promising the same thing I am promising, or whether it’s because you hate me…it all ends now.”

  She then stared straight at the officer’s eyes, the two making eye contact in a manner that made him shudder.

  “You. Where is your general? I need to give him the terms of surrender he will agree to.”

  +++

  Alexa knew that she was making a big gamble here. The hope was that the enemy would see her and thus make the mistake of deploying their reserves here to attempt capturing her. Wilhelm expressly told her that she would know if it was working if the enemy didn’t open fire immediately.

  It meant that they noticed her, and that their eyes were on her, and that they were all salivating at attacking and capturing her, and that they wouldn’t dare do anything until they had everything set up perfectly for an attack.

  It was a most annoying thing she would have to deal with. The enemy, after all were mostly dishonorable knaves, so they most likely wouldn’t even give a signal to her if they were going to accept her offer for negotiations. Still, she stood here, waiting and waiting.

  Meanwhile, on the flanks, General Bismarck should be preparing the final assault.

  Should the enemy refuse to take Alexa’s offer, and attempt to attack her, that was when she would barge in forward with the 33rd, strengthened and protected by Phoebe’s saintly magic. straight to Fort Henderson, where she would capture General Horatio. That would happen right as General Bismarck launched the general assault.

  All in all, it would lead to a rout, or the enemy surrendering en masse.

  Should they take her offer, Alexa would still do the same. She would barge in and demand that they surrender. If they refused, then she and Phoebe would capture General Horatio and his command staff, decapitating the head of the Second Continental Army and making it vulnerable to General Bismarck’s imminent general assault.

  But the wait was grating on her nerves. Still, she could feel Phoebe’s powerful magic barrier glistening around them. Nothing would be able to touch them. Phoebe also gave blessings to each soldier of the 33rd, protecting them from bodily harm even if she wasn’t looking at them.

  Each of them had at least twenty minutes of protection without her attention and complete protection if Phoebe was active. It was why Alexa could stand tall here even if she felt the raw fear of facing an entire army head-on, something a girl of her age should never have to do.

  She felt a pat on her shoulder.

  “Lady Alexa,” Phoebe spoke to her. “Are they going to respond or not?”

  “We shall see.” Alexa narrowed her eyes. “What I’m sure of, though, is that they are shaken right now. Where’s Wilhelm?”

  “He’s observing the enemy.”

  “I see.”

  Alexa didn’t bother looking back. Everyone on the enemy side was looking at her after all. They all squirmed behind their cover, all watching either with their naked eye or with their telescopes. She didn’t want to seem anything less than a figure of absolute authority in such a scenario.

  So she kept her eyes straight at them. It was both a threat and a display of dominance. Quite frankly, it even made Alexa feel giddy. These people, even if they were men who trained and worked for warfighting, all it took to make them place their focus on one thing was two young girls with exceptional abilities and a suicidal level of bravery.

  Heh, what now?

  Are you going to attack, or not?

  A communication crystal hanging on a necklace on Alexa’s neck glowed. It was the same device they used back during the Battle of Perlenstadt against the Archdemon of Sloth. Resonated and synchronized to Alexa’s [Rose Eyes] and Wilhelm’s [Azure Eyes] abilities, the communication crystal was capable of allowing the two to talk to each other freely from a distance.

  “General Horatio is moving in his reserves. He wants to attack and capture you, and he’s making sure that it will happen.”

  “Is that so?” A smile crept up on Alexa’s lips. “I see, so he refuses to even make the appearance of attempting to negotiate.”

  “It appears so. We have to make a move now.”

  “Of course, we will.”

  Alexa then turned to Phoebe. “You can fly and carry me to that fortress, yes?”

  “I already prepared to do that, Lady Alexa. Ask and I will do it.”

  “Make sure to avoid killing people, okay?” Alexa smiled wider. “I only need that guy who adamantly refused my benevolence.”