Chapter 1423: Probe

"Be careful! They're charging up again!"

Hearing Fishball's warning, the defensive line composed of less than a hundred men produced the sound of concentrated firing.

Under the intense firepower, the agile monstrous beasts were forced to slow down and slowly crawl under the smoke and flying gravel.

The two 75mm cannons had been waiting for this very moment.

Within a range of a thousand meters, the cannons were astonishingly accurate; their might far stronger than the anti-demon rocket-propelled grenade and could be hailed as the nemesis of the 'stubborn rock monsters.'

The miniature monstrous beasts climbing at the front were the first to be bombarded as their upper bodies were instantly shred into pieces leaving limbs landing a hundred meters away.

After the deaths of a few monstrous beasts, the remaining demons retreated and concealed themselves within the Red Mist again.

But everyone knew that it was the calm before the storm; the monsters could regroup and come back even stronger at any time—from every direction.

This occurred not only in the northern region of the Kingdom of Dawn. From the mountains of the Kingdom of Wolfheart to the Coldwind Ridge at Graycastle, multiple battles occurred simultaneously at every moment. The only difference was the scale of the battle.

The First Army adopted a corresponding countermeasure—larger troops took on the larger enemies, and small numbers of intruders were handled by a smaller group of soldiers. The troops led by Fishball was precisely an assault force meant to make up for the gaps and take care of any that were missed. By relying on the city, they intercepted the demons that attempted to cross over and ensured a foothold for the humans.

Even though Fishball was a low-ranking officer, he was aware that his mission was intimately related to the overall situation. According to the calculations formulated by the higher-ups, the Red Mist produced at Hermes would be enough to envelop the entire City of Glow in a few months. Therefore, fighting in the Red Mist would soon become the norm. The soldiers were required to adapt to the battlefield without the support of the Witches and ensure the day to day operations within the Kingdom of Dawn.

It had to be said that engaging in such battles made them rather passive since no one could predict where the next attack would come from or the manner in which they would enter their warning radius. It was also impossible to establish a fixed defense line along the entire north border of the Four Kingdoms as they lacked the manpower or logistics for such an endeavor. Thus, the higher-ups were caught in a rather helpless situation.

Fortunately, the soldiers became more adept with their weapons. Even with just dozens of men, they were capable of unleashing a considerable amount of firepower in a short time frame. For example, Fishball's small team with four general-purpose machine guns, ten horses and two cannons, were capable of defeating any enemies so long as there were no Senior Demons.

After all, this nearly deadlock situation was due to the fact that the First Army was helpless against the floating island. Even if they forced their way into Hermes Plateau, it was impossible to destroy the moving stronghold. The humans had no choice but to maintain a defensive stance.

The only one capable of threatening the demons was the Aerial Knights formation led by Princess Tilly.

"If I had known this would had happened, I would have joined the Aerial Knight Academy," someone mentioned casually.

"That's enough. The requirements for joining that are too high; do you think it'll be as easy as where we are now, to go through simple training and pass?"

"In fact, joining the First Army is already a praiseworthy thing. My cousin couldn't even join."

"But Princess Tilly is there..."

This sentence incited a moment of silence.

The image of Iron Axe and Princess Tilly appeared involuntarily within Fishball's mind.

The outcome of such a comparison was self-evident...

"Shut your traps!" He expelled the distracting thoughts out of their heads and berated them. "The Aerial Knights might be able to deal with the demons head on, but we are the ones protecting the citizens! The enemies might even come again later, so pay attention to the sentry signals!"

"Yes..." Everyone probably realized how incomparable the two were as they changed topics.

"Captain." Hanson walked over with his rifle. "A subordinate of mine reported of an inclined position to the west with a good view. It allows monitoring of the enemy and they will have difficulty climbing up. As long as we set up a machine gun there, we will be able to suppress the wall-climbing monsters."

At least there are still some reliable people on the team.

Fishball turned towards the direction pointed to him and quickly came to a decision. "I'll lead five men over there, I'll leave this place to you. I'm sure you know when to fight or retreat."

"You're going personally?"

"It's our first time here; I'll be more at ease taking a look at it myself."

Fishball knew that the flank was far more important, and was well aware of his vice-captain's character. Hanson was not only a good marksman, but was extremely reliable and prudent. He was qualified enough to hold the line.

"I understand." Hanson saluted in acknowledgment of the order.

Fishball nodded and proceeded to pick out five reconnaissance soldiers. Together, they climbed towards the slope.

The bulging region had its similarities with the Northbound Slope. It had a gentle slope before coming to an abrupt cliff that went up almost twenty to thirty meters. The top of the hill was a suitable spot for cover and concealment with the trees and dense vegetation.

The only flaw was the dense mist in the area; the settled Red Mist was static, reducing their field of vision. Although it did not affect any observational activities outwards, being immersed in the Red Mist was not a good experience.

"Light up some fire to disperse the mist, then sweep the surrounding area." Fishball found a suitable firing position and laid the machine gun down.

It was indeed a prime location with the steep cliff acting as a natural barrier, especially against the monstrous beasts that had no defenses on their backs. Fishball decided to mark the location for future use before any new attack rose.

But after a long time, Fishball did not hear the crackling and burning flames that he had anticipated.

What's going on? How long do they need to gather firewood?

He frowned and yelled out twice, but the forest remained silent without any response.

Fishball suddenly felt something.

Something's wrong...

Even if there are enemies, they should have at least fired out once.

Be it Hanson's subordinate or the six of them, neither party came across any traces of enemies. The sudden silence was too bizarre.

At that very moment, he heard a light 'rustle' to his right, as though something had stepped onto grass.

Fishball turned and raised his gun—

A dark figure flashed in front of him and a cold gleam of light pricked his cheek.

CRUNCH.

His hand suddenly felt lighter as his weapon was split in two.

A tall 'female' appeared before him. She walked barefooted with light garments as clothes that covered her blue skin. Aside from the sword in her hand, there were no other metallic objects on her body. It was most probably how she was able to sneak forward without a sound.

It's over.

That was Fishball's thought.

The humanoid form was the distinctive feature of a Senior Demon, according to the pamphlets handed out by the higher-ups. The more humanoid the demon was, the stronger they were. Aside from her blue skin and tall figure, her facial features bore a striking resemblance to a human. One could only imagine how powerful she was.

Surprisingly, Fishball felt no fear in the face of death. The only thought he had was how to inform his comrades that a Senior Demon had infiltrated their location.

But the sword did not slash his body into two.

The other party took out a piece of paper and threw it in front of him.

"Take this and bring it back. Hand it to the Three Chiefs Witches."

Her intonation was queer and her flow of speech was terrible. But it was clearly human language.

"I don't know who the Three Chief Witches are..." Fishball secretly reached for the pistol at his waist. "And I will definitely not help my enemy—"

"Send it and your companions stay alive." The demon's words caused him to stop. "Since the Three Chiefs are leaders. Bring it back, and people will know."

Then, a purplish portal of magic appeared behind her.

She gradually retreated and disappeared without a trace.