New World - A New Beginning

ASTHIA DARCK'S POV:

"Your Highness, the Dwarven armies are on the move."

My attention was wrenched from my thoughts as I looked at the scout who had delivered the message in the eyes. This was no joke of any kind. I could see the worry spread across the Dragon's face as he realized what this meant for the survival of his people.

"W-We've also received news from Eloria," he continued, his lips shaking slightly. The atmosphere darkened as the messenger refused to continue his sentence, and it seemed like the only thing that would pull the information out of him was a direct question.

"What happened?"

"The human armies have been pushed back to the capital. They believe that Eloria will fall in the next few weeks if they do not receive support."

What?

Had Amelia and Jean lost against the Vye twins? I had only heard stories of the S-ranked twins, but if this information was accurate, then it meant that they were completely overwhelming the strongest individuals currently on Auroria.

"Have they breached the walls?" I asked.

"No, your Highness. It seems both armies have come to a halt just outside the city walls. King Roy has called upon every available adventurer to aid in the defense of Eloria, whether they were conscripted to the army or not."

"We can only hope they're able to hold off. I'm afraid there's nothing we can do to help them. Do the Imanian soldiers know about this?"

"No. I came straight to you upon receiving the information," replied the scout. I nodded apprehensively.

"We'll have to keep it like that for now. We can't afford hesitation now. How much time do we have until the Dwarves reach our location?"

"Around two hours or so, Your Highness."

I said nothing, gesturing for the scout to leave.

The final clash was approaching...

My eyes closed as I felt the weight that still chained my body. There was no way I'd be able to take on Ares alone.

"Jay, they're coming," I echoed through the link, praying that my message would make it through to wherever the boy was currently located.

"How long?" responded a voice. I let out a sigh of relief at the response.

"Two hours."

"That's not enough," he muttered, "You'll have to keep them busy for at least an hour. I'll pick up the pace with my best soldiers."

"We'll try," I said, closing off the link and heading outside. The main captains of both armies awaited me outside, a small grin visible on Surge's face.

"We await your orders," he said, nodding sympathetically. Had he been the one to gather the officials? I smiled in return, briefly glancing at every individual before me before continuing.

"The time has come. The enemy forces will be here in two hours. Remember your positions, organize your men, and prepare for battle. We'll need to hold the line until our allies can surround the Dwarves."

"Yes, your Highness!" roared the captains, all of them rushing out as cries arose across the camp. I noticed Diana's silhouette as she ran over to me, her face white with terror.

"This is it?" she asked, her breaths shortening from the stress of the upcoming battle. The Princess had never experienced a full-on clash against the enemy's forces, her only encounter with the Dwarves being when they attempted to cut off her army.

This was on a completely different scale, and the importance of the battle was beginning to become apparent from the bustling energy of the camp. Everyone sprinted to their designated locations, putting down whatever they were doing and equipping themselves for battle.

I lay my hand on Diana's shoulder, squeezing firmly and grabbing her attention.

"Come on. We have a war to win."

Diana forced out a smile, but I could see the bravery behind her eyes. Only when in fear could one demonstrate courage, and the girl was doing all she could to suppress the glacial dread spreading inside her body and mind.

I squeezed one more time before releasing my friend, attempting to deliver one final surge of reassurance before heading off to the frontlines.

One hour...

That's all we needed. Mia's army was already on standby, and I estimated that her wyverns would be able to bombard the enemy within a few minutes of the fight's commencement. The bulk of her army would take longer, but I was confident that we'd still be standing by the time she arrived.

My eyes darted from soldier to soldier as they all yelled at each other, attempting to communicate amidst the orderly chaos. We all knew the bloodbath we were walking into, and the chances of even a tenth of our soldiers making it out alive were slim. The Dwarves had managed to accumulate dozens of high-ranked adventurers, and alongside all of that firepower, they had an S-rank...

I knew a small battalion of Dragonkin soldiers was more than enough to take down an AA-ranked adventurer due to their superior training and resistance, but what worried me was the presence of archmages.

A kind of adventurer who had the ability to unleash devastating amounts of bind at long range would decimate our ranks, and if the Dwarves had just a small group of higher-ranked archmages, they'd be able to wreak havoc on the battlefield.

An archmage's weakness arose in their inability to defend themselves at closer ranges, but with the support of an entire army, as well as an S-rank, there was no way we'd be able to approach them. I could only hope that the order to utilize the wyverns specifically as anti-mage units would help us survive a bit longer.

I arrived at the frontlines of the central division, the soldiers all looking at me with a mixture of expressions. Fear, confidence, terror... I could see thousands of individual expressions screaming at me, begging for the fighting to stop before it even began.

Surge approached me, coming to a halt a few mels behind.

"Are you ready, Princess?" he asked. I sensed no arrogance or ill-intent in his voice, so I decided to take it as a neutral question.

"I am."

"Can we be expecting the aid of our Supreme Commander?" he continued. I calmed myself, not wanting to give away any specificities. Only a select few were aware of when and where Jay would be intervening, and I intended to keep it like that.

I wasn't sure if Commander Surge had suddenly decided to be respectful and treat me honorably, but I kept my defenses up just in case something else was behind his kindness.

"If we're lucky, Commander."

"I don't believe in luck, Princess."

"Well," I said, conjuring flames that swirled around my hand before vanishing and revealing a silver sword grasped within my palm, "You better believe in it today."