Heimarian Odyssey

Although the bearded mercenary leader was also a low-rank Knecht, he had given Locke the impression that he was much stronger than Mond.

If Mond's aura was like an unsheathed sword, then the bearded man's would be a blood-stained axe.

When Locke donned his armour, he was confident that he could put up a comparable fight with Mond, but there were always warning signs coming from his heart when it came to the bearded man.

While Locke was resting on the stone, the bracelet that he placed next to him began to heat up.

He knew that this was Angelina looking for him.

According to Angelina, this ring-shaped bracelet is called the Moon Bracelet, and it had been marked with her mental power.

She couldn't deliver the messages through more complicated ways as she only knew little tricks such like heating things up.

Although all the soldiers in the camp knew that he'd rescued the princess and often communicated with godlike casters, Locke chose to walk out of the camp quietly.

Locke was someone who didn't like publicity, and he didn't want people talking about him regarding the things he had. He didn't like being in unnecessary limelight.

The bracelet was getting hotter and hotter to the point that it could scald someone. It seemed like its owner was very anxious.

Locke hastened towards the casters' camp curiously. Along the way, there were soldiers lying on the ground and getting some rest.

The Shalorians who were defending their city were still hanging in there, and it was the same for the Faustian soldiers. They were also under a lot of pressure as they had fought a every day for more than a week.

Fortunately, most of them were veterans, and those as huge as Hans could fall asleep the moment they laid down.

Although they were quite defenceless in that state, they rested and recovered quickly. It only took them a few hours to be full of vigour again.

Taking big strides, Locke strode over the bodies of several men who were sleeping on the ground. After practising impetus, he was getting better in controlling his body, and his agility had improved greatly.

It was a long way there, and Locke hadn't stepped on anyone yet.

As he got closer to the casters' camp, the hushed whistles from the guards could be heard.

Fortunately, Locke and his battalion had been on duty outside the casters' camp before, and most of the guards recognised Locke. They had just let him pass without asking him for the password.

Locke smiled and greeted the soldiers who were on duty. It wasn't easy for them too, as most of them were transferred there for a break after being in a horrifying battle.

It didn't mean that anyone who went there could curry favour with the casters and enjoy a luxurious life. On the second day after Locke and his battalion had retreated, the casters' camp had been bombarded by the Shalorian casters using a large-scale spell.

Shalor's casters were indeed a lot more powerful than Faustian's. The casters' camp was 1500 yards away from the walls of Audis, and nobody knew how they did it.

Locke had also learned some rough knowledge about spells from Angelina. For example, the spells she could cast could only reach ten yards away.

To reach a distance of 1000 yards, only a Lehrling that was high-rank or above could do so, and there were only three such casters in Faustian.

As for 1500 yards... Locke really couldn't understand how the spell was thrown over.

It was said that the camp was in flames on that day, and Faustian had lost a lot of casters.

It had killed even more ordinary soldiers on guard outside the camp. The two companies of nearly 2000 soldiers lost more than 500 that day to the fires, with countless more injured.

Of course, Angelina was fine. With all kinds of secret treasures with her, she didn't even lose a strand of hair from the surprise attack.

In fact, most of the casters were fine. Those who were killed were the inexperienced ones who had just advanced to become low-rank Lehrlings.

Even so, command ordered the casters' camp to be moved 500 yards backwards.

If they could reach a range of 2000 yards, there would be no other explanation other than a Magister attacking.

By that time, Faustian should retreat instead of persisting. If Shalor had two Magisters, they would consider launching a counterattack.

Too bad, Shalor only had one Magister.

That super-long-range spell from Shalor only happened once, so Locke was not under a lot of pressure on the way there. He didn't need to worry about having a destructive spell smashing on his head anytime soon.

As he got even closer to the camp, his status didn't work anymore. There were already several men stopping and questioning him.

If it weren't for the faintly-radiating aura of a low-rank Knecht and the Faustian uniform he was wearing, these soldiers wouldn't go easy on him.

Locke couldn't take a step forward at 200 metres away from the camp. Without a permit, the guards couldn't let him in.

He wasn't anxious about it and even chatted with the guards around him.

The guards there were from a company of Lion's 4th Division.

The soldier who was talking to Locke seemed like a new recruit.

His face had a hint of youthfulness and tenderness, and he was even stammering while questioning Locke.

This recruit had grown a lot from the battles during these few days. By the looks of the fine hairs on the corners of his mouth, Locke reckoned that this guy was probably only fifteen or sixteen years old, only three or four years younger than him.

The pain of losing his comrades and the current disastrous situation had made this kid respond to Locke, a low-rank Knecht, apathetically. Their conversation was mostly made up of Locke asking questions and him answering.

It wasn't easy being in the 4th Division. Despite being a division that was mostly composed of recruits, Marmen didn't treat them as recruits at all.

They had to join the other divisions to attack the city almost every time, and the level of danger they had to experience was not much lower than the other divisions'.

Although their casualty rate was a little high, their rate of growth was fast. Locke felt like this young recruit in front of him had the strength that was close to a third-class soldier.

"I must seek revenge for Twick!" cursed the recruit, Watson.

Locke didn't know who Twick was, but he assumed that he was Watson's unlucky friend.

Locke patted on Watson's shoulder and said, "I believe in you!"

Not long after, a black-robed man walked out of the camp. Locke knew that he was here to pick him up, so he bade Watson farewell and walked towards the camp. Nobody stopped him this time.

Watson waved goodbye to Locke excitedly. He felt like he could brag about having a conversation with someone who was a mid-rank Knecht and a platoon jarl.

Along the way, Locke ran his fingers over the stubble on his chin. He didn't have the time to clean himself up these few days because of the siege. Perhaps Angelina would be surprised.

Though, it was unlikely. Locke didn't shave his moustache as well during those days in the Bering Mountains. But he could feel that she cared about his appearance and preferred him to look clean.

"I'll just let it be," Locke had always thought that having a beard was a symbol of masculinity, and he should just keep it. It was no big deal. He would trim it neatly.

Perhaps it was the conversation with the recruit just now that had made him realise he would be turning 19 after the new year. Another year had passed before he knew it, and he'd been in the army for five years.

After the black-robed man brought Locke to the front of a tent, he turned and left. He hadn't spoken a word to Locke along the way.

Locke was also used to it. He'd been in contact with a lot of casters because of Angelina, and he felt that most of them were not easy to get along with.

He saw the casters as a group of eccentric and unsociable people. Perhaps it was because they were mostly more powerful than him, he'd even seen a hint of contempt in their eyes. This really annoyed Locke, but he had to tolerate it. Although the division jarl addressed him as his brother, and Wyr and Cadoj gave him face, in reality, he knew who they were actually giving face to.

Locke lifted the drapes and walked inside.

There was only one oil lamp inside the tent, but the light was surprisingly bright and illuminated every corner of the tent. This was a magic item.

There stood a pretty lady under the lights, it was Angelina.

She was wearing a white dress with exquisite patterns and diamonds on it this time, and it'd brought her charm to the next level.

"You called me here. Is something the matter?" There wasn't anyone else in the tent, and Locke spoke quite casually. He believed that no one around him would dare to eavesdrop.

Before this, Angelina would be corny for a while when both of them met, but she didn't this time. "Try to stay away from the west and the east gate as much as possible during the battle that is happening in three days," Angelina went straight to the point.

"Why?" Although he knew he didn't have any right to know about this, he still couldn't help but ask.

She wasn't being secretive and said, "My brother has transferred Gale here, and Shalor will be captured in three days' time."

Locke's eyes widened. This news was neither too big nor too small for him. Angelina had told him to stay away from the east and the west gate, which meant that those two gates would probably be the main points of attack.

Gale had committed a massacre in the northern region of Shalor and had killed countless of Shalorians. Plus, they had always never dealt with Falcon before. Locke was very curious as to why Gale would join the siege.

The shallow-minded Locke didn't know what Gale's participation implied. He just thought that the elites wanted to gather the strength of three corps and capture Shalor in one fell swoop.

After being affectionate with Angelina for a while, Locke left the caster camp.

The next battle was about to start again and Angelina was a busy woman, so they didn't have much time to spend together.

He didn't return to the camp directly and went to the transport team at the rear instead. He hadn't forgotten about the matter he'd promised Glace. Since Audis would definitely be captured three days later, it was the best opportunity to bring her in.

As Locke had the status of a platoon jarl, he was never stopped by anyone on his way to the rear. Being a platoon jarl in the Faustian army came with a high degree of autonomy.

As he walked towards Cardoj's transport team, he asked the guards to call for Henry. Henry then brought Locke to where Glace and the others were staying.

He hadn't seen Glace for nearly a week and she seemed even more mature compared to the last time they'd met. Unfortunately, Locke didn't have the time to admire her. He went straight to the point and said, "I'll ask Henry to find a way to bring you to the frontlines three days later, and I'll bring you into the city!"

Glace's eyes lit up as she nodded.