The Assassin's Seven Principles of Manipulation

Chapter 305: Chapter 300 — Seige

”We are northerners! We are true Ferrans! We don’t turn our backs when danger comes for us. we charge straight at it! These southerners made our brothers bleed! They tortured our own! They tried to take what belongs to us, and they failed! Now it’s our turn. Now we take what belongs to them! Now we make every last one of those bastards pay for spilling northern blood!”

Gordon’s rousing words were met with thunderous shouts from the northern cadets. He stood before the bulk of the northern army, more than a thousand able cadets gathered before him. Their elites, strongest, and head cadets stood at the forefront, their armor catching the morning sun in harsh flares.

Thanks to the elixir Malach had given him, Gordon’s arm had healed as though it had never been broken in the first place. Still, he swallowed as a phantom ache seemed to throb through it. His body might have recovered, but his mind refused to forget the pain.

The price of failing Malach.

He turned towards the horizon, where the southern fortress stood imposing in the distance. Several cadets were already gathered atop its walls, waiting for them.

Gordon’s fingers tightened around the arm that had been broken.

’I can’t fail him. Not again.’

He stepped forward and roared.

”WHO ARE WE!?”

”NORTH!”

”WHO ARE WE!?”

”FERRANS!”

Shrn!

Gordon unsheathed his sword and thrust it towards the sky.

”THEN LET’S MAKE THEM FUCKING REMEMBER IT! ATTACK!”

The ground trembled beneath the thunderous roar of the northern cadets. Then, with Gordon at the helm, the army surged towards the southern fortress.

Atop the wall, several southern cadets narrowed their eyes at the approaching force. The head cadets, especially, couldn’t help but glance towards Zephyrion.

He had told them the northern army would attack immediately, and many were still surprised that it had happened exactly as he’d predicted. The warning had barely given them enough time to prepare, but even that was far better than being caught completely off guard.

More unnerving, however, was Zephyrion himself.

More than a thousand enemies were charging straight towards their fortress, yet his expression remained as calm as ever.

Suddenly, Zephyrion broke the silence.

”Nedra.”

Snapping out of her shock, Nedra seemed to remember that she was the one in charge of the fortress’s defense. A wide grin immediately spread across her face.

”Fuck, finally! I was starting to think I wouldn’t get to kill these cocksuckers today!”

”Yo—”

Nedra shot Kaelith a glare that immediately silenced whatever he had been about to say, then stepped forward, her aura surging around her.

”Alright, you fucking pussies! You see those idiots running towards us!? We’re sending every last one of them back as a fucking corpse! They made ours bleed, now we make theirs bleed harder! Understand!?”

The cadets manning the walls and ballistas stiffened beneath her fierce gaze.

”Y-yes!”

”The fuck was that!? YES OR NO!?”

”YES!”

”Good! Prep the ballistas! Everyone else, spread out and get ready to engage!”

The cadets immediately sprang into action, spreading out across the wall with practiced ease. Soon, the ballistas began to flare with light, fully charged and ready to fire.

Nedra waited, her eyes fixed on the approaching army.

The moment they crossed the five-hundred-meter mark, she shouted,

”FIRE!”

The wall trembled violently beneath their feet as the ballistas discharged, the force nearly throwing several cadets off balance. For a moment, it even felt as though the entire structure might collapse beneath them.

But it held.

As everyone regained their footing, their gazes immediately followed the streaking artillery as it tore across the distance towards the northern army.

”ACTIVATE THE SHIELDS!” Gordon shouted just before the attacks struck.

A violent explosion swallowed the plains, engulfing the entire northern army in a thick, choking haze.

Several of the southerners immediately erupted into cheers, grinning at how easily the attack had landed. The head cadets, however, weren’t nearly as quick to celebrate, and Nedra’s frown was the deepest amongst them.

As the piercing sounds of the explosions faded, another sound gradually reached their ears.

Heavy marching.

Then, the northern army burst out of the haze.

A golden barrier enveloped their entire formation, and not a single one of them appeared to have been harmed by the attack.

”Oh, you have got to be fucking kidding me...” Nedra muttered, her expression darkening as her gaze settled on the northern cadets now standing at the forefront of the army.

Each of them held a thick metal pole with a circular top.

’Legion Shields.’

Zephyrion immediately recognized the relics.

They were Grade Three formation-class relics. Individually, they were practically worthless, but when several were activated in unison, they could generate a barrier powerful enough to withstand even ballista fire.

Not a single resource drop had appeared since the first day. Which made where the northerners had gotten their hands on such relics quite obvious.

”How the fuck did those bastards get their hands on Legion Shields!?” Nedra demanded, disbelief clear in her voice.

The other head cadets also wore dark expressions. With the Legion Shields in play, they would need something even stronger than the ballistas to break through!

”Fire!”

Nedra’s eyes narrowed as several flares of light appeared within the northern army. In the next moment, a barrage of attacks shot towards the southern fortress.

”Tch!”

Clicking her tongue, Nedra raised both arms as a sharp, thunderous hum pierced through the air.

”Magnetic Field!”

A formless wave swept out, engulfing the entire wall. Every projectile that entered its range abruptly came to a halt, suspended harmlessly in the air as though caught in an invisible grip.

This was precisely why Nedra was best suited for defending the fortress.

But defense wasn’t all she was good at.

”Right back at you, fuckers.”

The countless projectiles immediately shot back towards the northern army. However, they slammed into the golden barrier, causing it to flicker slightly before being blasted apart.

”Fire at will! Don’t give those bastards a second to breathe!” Nedra ordered immediately.

The cadets atop the wall unleashed a nonstop barrage, but every attack crashed uselessly against the barrier. The northern army didn’t even slow down, continuing their advance until they crossed the three-hundred-meter mark.

Gritting her teeth, Nedra finally turned towards Zephyrion.

”Prime, I think now would be a really fucking good time to hear that genius plan of yours.”

Zephyrion glanced at the approaching army.

”Not yet.”

Nedra’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

”Not yet!? What the fuck do you mean, not yet!? They’re already right fucking there!”

Zephyrion simply returned his gaze to the approaching army without saying anything.

Nedra clenched her fists, then looked towards the others as though hoping someone would confirm that she wasn’t the only one who thought he had completely lost his mind. But although the other head cadets wore equally grim expressions, none of them said a word.

Clearly, they trusted Zephyrion.

Unfortunately, Nedra found it rather difficult to share that trust when more than a thousand fucking cadets were charging straight towards them!

Suddenly, one of the defense cadets called out.

”Ballistas are recharged, Lady Nedra!”

Nedra’s eyes immediately lit up.

”Then what the fuck are you waiting for!? FIRE!”

The ballistas discharged with thunderous booms, their shells tearing through the air towards the northern army.

This time, with the enemy much closer, the resulting cloud of dust rolled all the way towards the fortress, swallowing the wall in a thick haze. Nedra immediately blasted it away with a burst of force, narrowing her eyes as she tried to see the result.

Instead, Gordon’s voice greeted her.

”Fire!”

”Oh, fuck me!”