Chapter 318: A Perfect Performance

Earth burst beneath the Golden Behemoths. Great craters opened in Piers’s formation, throwing stones and soldiers outward as the shock waves tore through the ranks.

One Behemoth was already moving before the dust cleared. Its claws swept sideways, each blade several meters long. A handful of Silvermoon Rangers vanished in a spray of blood.

"Counterattack!" Piers shouted. "Kill them!"

Twenty-four Golden Behemoths could not defeat more than seventy thousand troops by themselves. His army still had the numbers to surround them.

But the Behemoths had only arrived first.

Nearly two hundred Hill Kings swelled into towering figures as Titan Descent took hold. Storm power gathered from dozens of kilometers around them. Beneath the thunder, hundreds of Legendary Knights charged in ordered ranks, their mounts making the battered ground shake again.

Bone Dragons swept overhead. Black dragonfire rolled across the battlefield.

Grade-A Command and battle Talents, war-site bonuses, Battle Names—the advantages Divine Province’s Lords had gathered were now plain to see. At the same Quality and Level, even troops belonging to older-sector veterans fell short of theirs.

"They’re stronger than the reports said..."

Piers had barely seen the first exchanges before he understood. His army could not win this fight.

He drew himself up and shouted over the noise.

"Soldiers of Western Beacon! Fight to the last! Uphold our nation’s honor!"

Then he caught his Hero by the arm and lowered his voice.

"Get me out of here. Quietly."

A man of his birth had many duties. Dying here was not one he intended to fulfill.

——

The fighting lasted less than half an hour.

As the last organized resistance collapsed, a report reached Divine Province’s Lords.

"More than fifty thousand enemy units killed. The rest have scattered. Our losses are seventy-three Legendary troops."

Western Beacon had brought some of its finest soldiers. Even against Divine Province’s concentrated strength, they had taken lives before they fell.

Nessa held up two golden Sigils.

"I got two Legendary Troop Sigils."

Elara had three. When the others finished counting, their total came to fifteen.

In material terms, the gains far exceeded the losses. That did not account for the bonds between Lords and the troops who had followed them into battle. There was also the Battle Essence, equipment, and other loot to collect.

Darian helped clear the field, though one part of the victory still annoyed him.

"Why let Piers go? The Haldanes are one of Western Beacon’s great families. Even if we didn’t kill him, we could have charged a fortune for his release."

"Cassian said he’s leaving him for our allies," Nessa replied. "A chance for them to prove their sincerity."

"Our allies?" Darian looked at her. "The other twelve Crown Provinces aren’t here. Who does that leave?"

"If Cassian says we have allies, we have allies." Her confidence did not waver. "He got the Blood Throne to help us, didn’t he?"

Darian considered that, then nodded. Cassian did have a remarkable gift for finding help where nobody else expected it.

They finished gathering the loot and moved toward the next place where Western Beacon had opened a Gate. Every column they destroyed before the enemy could unite would make the rest of the battle easier.

With Crystal Seven scouting, forces within thousands of kilometers had little chance of hiding.

Western Beacon’s ambitious encirclement had given them this opportunity. Its armies had arrived on every side, far enough apart to be destroyed one at a time. If all two million troops had come at once, even Cassian would have needed to withdraw for a while, perhaps back to the sea.

Instead, Divine Province was choosing its battles.

——

More than a hundred kilometers from the ruined battlefield, Piers finally slowed.

Hundreds of Nanite Warriors surrounded him. For the first time since those golden monsters had landed, he felt that he might live through the day.

"We’re out," he breathed.

His Legendary Hero remained alert.

"My lord. Someone is approaching."

Piers stiffened. Then the distant shapes became clear, and relief flooded his face.

Sword Saints. Swordmasters. More than a thousand of them, accompanying a man he recognized.

"Lord Kestrel!" he called. "Gather Blackmere’s Lords at once. Divine Province’s Legendary army is far too strong!"

Blackmere’s Governor stopped before him and bowed deeply, his upper body almost horizontal.

Piers stared.

"What are you doing?"

"Lord Haldane. I would like to borrow something."

"Borrow what?"

Could the man not see the state he was in? This was hardly the time to come asking favors.

Kestrel straightened.

"Your head."

For a moment, Piers could only look at him.

"That is a very poor joke."

"A joke?"

Kestrel raised his hand. The Sword Saints and Swordmasters spread out and attacked.

"Moon Mirror!"

"Moonfall!"

Swordlight cut through the Nanite Warriors. Every soldier Piers had brought away was at least Epic, but that did little to help against the force now surrounding them.

He recognized the techniques. His face changed.

"The Pale Moon Codex! You brought an entire force trained in it to kill me?"

Another wave of swordlight swept through his guards.

"Why? We’re allies! We have the same enemy—the Crown!"

Kestrel watched the slaughter with a cold smile.

"Enemies change when interests change."

He stepped closer.

"Your people invited us to Sunhaven, then limited how many Lords we could bring. You kept the best hunting grounds for yourselves, thousands of kilometers around the Firstborn Gate. You mean to take every place in the top ten."

Piers’s jaw tightened.

"You collect our Aether, expect our gratitude, and leave us fighting one another over scraps. A very profitable arrangement. For Western Beacon."

Sudden understanding struck Piers.

"So it was you! Divine Province knew exactly when we would open the Gates because the Black Banner told them!"

Everything fit. The perfect timing of the seals. The enemy’s rapid concentration. Now this ambush.

Kestrel laughed.

"At last. Perhaps in your next life you’ll learn to treat an ally honestly."

Piers looked from him to the dying Nanite Warriors. Anger struggled with fear.

"Our Peacebringer has arrived. Do you think we won’t order a Peace Strike?"

The smile disappeared from Kestrel’s face.

"A Peace Strike?" His voice sharpened. "Like the ones you launched against Greyharbor and Emberfall? The rivers in those capitals still carry destructive power!"

For an instant, he looked ready to lose control. Then he recovered, almost visibly forcing himself to relax.

"But you won’t know who did this, will you?"

He smiled again.

"Once you’re dead, the blame will fall on Divine Province without any help from me. Let the two of you fight. The Black Banner will collect what remains."

Piers grew still.

"I see."

He gave Kestrel a measured bow. His eyes were cold.

"Then prepare your country for Western Beacon’s answer."

A blue-green scroll appeared in his hand. He tore it open.

Wind wrapped around his body. Before the surrounding swordsmen could close in, he shot away, dwindling to a speck against the sky.

"No! A Legendary Windbreak Scroll!" Kestrel roared. "You were drawing me out!"

Piers heard the fury behind him and allowed himself one last word.

"Idiot."

His figure vanished into the distance.

A stifled laugh broke the silence he left behind.

Several elderly Sword Saints covered their mouths. Young women’s laughter escaped those deeply lined faces.

"Lord, that was wonderful. I nearly laughed while he was still here."

Kestrel gave the speaker a warning look.

Golden ripples passed over him. A few seconds later, Cassian stood in his place.

Acting was not one of his talents. Fortunately, the Golden Statuette could manage his expression, voice, and movements better than any actor. He had paid for the disguises and studied recordings of Kestrel to make the impersonation convincing.

The swordsmanship had required more preparation.

Before this expedition’s trap closed, Cassian had given Celia the Pale Moon Codex won from Damon. She had used it and learned the art. He had then bought several precious Absorption Stones and spent them on extracting Skill Books from her. One gave him the copy he needed.

Veyra had consumed that book at home to register the art in the Eclipse Hall’s inheritance. The Eclipse fighters beneath these disguises could use genuine Pale Moon techniques. That was why Piers had recognized the attacks.

Even Piers’s escape had been arranged. Cassian had provided the Windbreak Scroll and asked Odette to give it to him before the operation.

It would have been troublesome if the man actually died here.

"Lord, can I have my own face back now? This one is horrible."

The complaint came from Rhea.

Cassian gave her another look.

"Not yet. We aren’t finished."

He paid for another change. Light flowed over him, replacing Kestrel’s features with those of a Western Beacon Lord killed by Darian’s force in the earlier battle. Around him, the apparent swordsmen became Nanite Warriors.

Cassian tapped Rhea’s forehead.

"Be careful this time. No Eclipse sword techniques. Don’t give us away."

Rhea stuck out her tongue. On the face of the burly man she now resembled, the gesture made Cassian shudder.