Gospel of Blood

The change in the magic shield over Northport was quite noticeable across the entire battlefield.

On the side of the Borde-Violet coalition forces, Prince Philip noticed it too.

He frowned and looked at Count Linte beside him.

“What’s going on? Is there a hidden high-tier extraordinary in Northport?”

Count Linte was equally surprised.

After some thought, he shook his head slightly.

“It shouldn’t be. According to our informants in Northport, the only person capable of maintaining the magic shield is the Mercenary Association branch leader hired by Castell, and he is only a Silver Moon tier.”

Hearing Count Linte’s words, Prince Philip’s frown deepened.

He squinted at the increasingly stable magic defense system over Northport and said,

…

Charlotte felt she had entered a very peculiar state.

Through Northport’s defense system, she realized her consciousness seemed to have merged with the entire city, with the glittering stars in the magic network representing each living being within Northport.

She could hear the voices of every person in Northport through the magic defense network and communicate with every soldier stationed in the city.

She could hear the nobles’ discussions about her behind her back and even hear some discontented nobles secretly plotting to surrender once the city fell, including those who were already in contact with the enemy outside, providing intelligence as “traitors.”

This is the nature of war. You can never ensure that everyone remains loyal from start to finish. In these times, the silent majority are those who side with the winner.

The various discussions she heard soon turned to astonishment upon noticing the changes in Northport’s magic shield.

As for the source of everything, Charlotte, now controlling Northport’s entire defense system, no longer bothered to listen to the voices within the city.

Once she got used to manipulating the magic defense network, she proactively touched those points of light with her consciousness and said,

“I am Charlotte, the Countess of Castell.”

“I will stand with you all to defend Northport together.”

This time, Charlotte did not pull out the Holy Court’s banner.

Her ethereal and melodious voice echoed in everyone’s hearts, bringing a sense of calm and stability.

Looking at the gradually stabilizing magic shield above the city, the keen extraordinary individuals quickly realized something.

“It’s the Countess! She has stabilized the magic shield!”

Those who knew the difficulty of maintaining the entire Northport magic shield showed surprise on their faces. However, more common extraordinaries were simply excited and delighted.

Especially in the Northport army, those lower-rank nobles commanding the battles brightened up and quickly encouraged the soldiers, whose morale had been deteriorating due to the worsening situation.

“Did you hear that? The Countess herself has stabilized the magic shield!”

“Hold firm! Victory will be ours!”

With the magic shield stabilized and Charlotte’s encouragement, Castell’s side quickly regained their previously falling morale.

With the magic shield’s protection, the Castell defenders on the Northport Bridge also began to regain some ground.

Though they were still no match for the advancing Borde-Violet elite troops, at least it was no longer a one-sided situation.

Viscount Leon-Castell, who had been watching the battlefield closely, also noticed the change.

Standing on the high platform of the Mage Tower, he could see everything on the Northport Bridge clearly.

Seeing the duchy’s elite troops being delayed, he was invigorated and said excitedly.

“We can do this! We can still do this!”

“Using the terrain of the Northport Bridge and the magic shield’s defense, if we fight with everything we have, we can hold on!”

However, just as the Old Viscount was considering whether to send more troops to support the battle on the Northport Bridge, Charlotte’s voice suddenly sounded in his ear.

“Listen up, Castell’s vassals. Abandon the Northport Bridge, and orderly withdraw all troops to defend Northport and the Castell Bridge.”

Hearing Charlotte’s words, the Old Viscount was slightly stunned, utterly astonished.

…

“What? You say the one maintaining the magic shield in Northport is Charlotte?!”

In the Borde-Violet coalition camp, upon hearing the soldier’s report, Prince Philip’s expression was complex.

He looked at the magic defense shield covering all of Northport and quickly shook his head.

“That’s impossible!”

“Northport’s magic defense network was established by the first Count of Castell and has been reinforced by the Castell family over generations. Only a Blazing Sun can fully utilize its effects…”

“She’s just a child who awakened not long ago. How could she possibly maintain the entire magic shield of Northport?”

“Your… Your Highness, it’s said that she prayed to the Gods and received their blessing…”

The soldier stammered.

“A blessing from the Gods?”

Prince Philip was momentarily stunned, then snorted coldly.

“Absurd!”

“Setting aside whether Charlotte could even draw the Gods’ attention, how could the lofty Gods concern themselves with secular wars? This isn’t a holy war against heretics!”

However, upon hearing the Prince’s words, the surrounding nobles couldn’t help but glance at him before quickly lowering their heads.

Noticing their subtle expressions, the Prince immediately caught on and angrily said,

“What do you mean by this? Do you really believe Castell’s nonsense?!”

At this moment, Count Linte, who had been closely monitoring the battlefield, suddenly exclaimed.

“Your Highness, look at the bridge!”

Suppressing his anger, Prince Philip looked towards the battlefield and was stunned.

He saw that the Castell forces, to the sound of repeated horns, had begun to retreat.

Moreover, even the Castell fleet on the Dorn River was withdrawing towards Northport.

The accompanying nobles from Borde and Violet were also taken aback.

“They’re abandoning the Northport Bridge?”

“It seems so. It looks like… they plan to rely on Northport’s defensive magic.”

Prince Philip squinted for a while, then thoughtfully said,

“It appears our little countess cannot maintain the magic defense so easily…”

“Castell doesn’t have a Blazing Sun. If they did, this war wouldn’t be in this state. Charlotte maintaining the magic shield must have come at a price.”

“Pass down the order. Attack and surround Northport!”

Upon hearing the Prince’s command, Count Linte frowned slightly.

For some reason, watching the orderly retreat of the Castell forces into Northport, he felt uneasy.

However, Castell’s strength was far inferior to the coalition forces, even with the magic defense.

In Count Linte’s view, with their overwhelming advantage, taking Northport was just a matter of time.

So, he ultimately said nothing more and issued the command.

“Blow the horns, attack!”

The horns blared, and the Borde-Violet army launched a new wave of assaults.

After securing the Northport Bridge, the vanguard of extraordinary troops crossed the river and reached the north bank.

By nightfall, after a day of battle, the main coalition forces also crossed the river, completing the encirclement of Northport on the north shore.

Northport had become an isolated city, connected to the mainland only by the Castell Bridge.

…

“Countess, why did you completely abandon the north shore? Now we are utterly isolated!”

In Northport, Viscount Leon-Castell looked at the girl standing on the observation deck of the Mage Tower, gazing at the sea, and couldn’t help but question.

With night coming, both sides temporarily ceased fighting, and the magic shield no longer needed to be maintained, allowing Charlotte to rest.

She didn’t immediately answer the Old Viscount’s question. Instead, she kept her eyes on the distant sea horizon and issued a new order.

“Viscount Leon-Castell, inform everyone to prepare for battle. We have a big fight tonight.”

“A… big fight?”

The Old Viscount was stunned.

Charlotte nodded slightly, then looked towards the sea, smiling.

“Yes, a big fight.”

“Our reinforcements are coming.”

Following Charlotte’s gaze, Viscount Leon-Castell looked out at the sea. However, apart from the gradually rising fog on the horizon, he saw nothing.

“Also…”

Charlotte paused, then took a parchment scroll from her pocket and handed it to the Old Viscount.

“Temporarily detain everyone on this list.”

Viscount Leon-Castell opened the scroll in confusion, freezing upon seeing the first name.

It was none other than his eldest son, Derek de Leon-Castell.

…

Meanwhile, thirty nautical miles away.

In the gradually thickening sea fog, dozens of oar-sail ships were raising their sails, moving like ghosts towards Northport at a speed of seven knots.

Count Yurst stood on the flagship, “Queen.” using a telescope to look at the brightly lit Northport and the Borde-Violet coalition fleet blockading the port.

After a moment, he put down the telescope, glanced at the clear moon emerging from the clouds, and smiled with a hint of crimson in his eyes.

“Tonight’s moonlight is quite lovely.”

He then turned around and looked at the figures behind him.

“Everyone, what do you think?”

“Hehehehehe…”

On the deck, figures cloaked in black, weapons at the ready, and faintly visible red eyes, chuckled in agreement.