CHAPTER 435: ANOTHER MEAT GRINDER

The instant Lyra felt the ground tremble, a deep tolling bell rang out from the watchtower, echoing across the entire fortress. Accompanying it were several beams of light-elemental magic rising into the sky, with warning signals.

This was the highest-level invasion alert in short of an Arcanist mage joining the battlefield, requiring all garrison soldiers to collectively defend the stronghold.

Lyra immediately abandoned her search for the adjutant. Drawing the longsword at her waist, the blade clinked crisply against its scabbard. The exposed, pure-white blade reflected sunlight, scattering a faint chill into the air.

She strode quickly toward the battlements, her long legs wrapped in warm white stockings. Upon reaching the wall, Lyra saw the Church Knights’ ranks circled nearby, clad in silver-white armor.

Of course, it was them again.

Arriving at her designated defensive position, she channeled mental energy into the dense magic circles before her. Instantly, a translucent, curved barrier formed outside the wall, shielding the soldiers and the wall behind her from all angles.

"Lyra, everyone’s assembled."

Hearing a familiar voice from behind, Lyra turned her head slightly. The one calling her was a petite black-haired girl in a white fur robe, another member of their squad.

"Quickly move to your defensive positions. The Church Knights are advancing toward the front lines."

Seeing the squad members behind the girl, their eyes carrying the sorrow of recently buried comrades, Lyra pressed her lips together before continuing.

"Also, stay fully alert and prioritize your own safety."

Maintaining the defensive spell circle and eliminating high-priority targets requires Lyra’s full concentration. Even if she wanted to protect those behind her, she had no spare mental energy to allocate.

"Understood, Baroness Lyra."

"At once, Squad Leader."

"Hurry up and calibrate the magical rifles."

After the brief exchange, Lyra took her position at the core of the flank defense. Her smooth pink hair swayed gently in the cold wind.

A bright light shone upon the girl’s cheek. In an instant, her fur robe transformed into armor. The silver-white pauldrons gleamed brilliantly under the sunlight.

A few snowflakes landed on the translucent Sword of Light, instantly melting under the intense radiation emitted by the blade. Lyra raised the holy sword, pointing its tip at the charging heavy knights. Her blue narrow eyes slightly as she aimed the gathered sword intent at the enemy at the forefront of the formation. A moment later, the strike erupted.

An extreme burst of white light locked onto the lead knight like a cannonball, its destructive aura sweeping across the frozen soil straight toward the enemy ranks.

The next second, several Temple Knights lowered their long shields. Countless light-elemental particles spontaneously arranged on the shield surfaces, linking from tiny specks into lines, intertwining to form a thick, foamy defensive net.

The slashing sword aura, combined with the peak-tier Magnus-level light-elemental magic [Scorching Death Ray], violently collided with the foamy barrier. Light particles scattered wildly, and after a brief, blinding flash, gave way to pure darkness.

Some Temple Knights closest to the barrier staggered, their boot heels digging hard into the soil. Using the frozen ground as a buffer, they reorganized their formation and continued advancement.

Others directly hit by the sword aura had their shields pierced. The sharp mental energy imbued by the Sword of Light completely shattered their armor and shields, creating a visibly empty vacuum in their ranks.

But that was all this strike could achieve.

The struck knights spat blood, staining the ground beneath them. Shattered metal rained down like chaff, revealing the soldiers’ bodies and clothings enveloped in holy light.

It seemed to be some special domain spell of the Church Knights, while within formation, each knight was wrapped in this light membrane. Even after destroying their outer armor, the residual mental energy couldn’t easily penetrate this light-elemental defense.

Lyra had just caught her breath when, with a flourish of her holy sword in midair, she prepared to deliver a horizontal slash to weaken the enemy’s momentum. Suddenly, her knightly instinct warned of danger, and every muscle in her body tensed instantly.

A vertical tornado, spanning the battlefield, slammed directly toward Lyra’s defensive sector. The protective spell circles on the outer wall sensed the threat and lit up one after another, but against the piercing, shrieking wind blades, the glass-like transparent defense appeared incredibly fragile.

Increasing mental energy output, Lyra shifted her holy sword from slashing to thrusting, driving it into the ground before her. A spring-like surge of light enveloped the wobbling arcane barrier, barely deflecting the sudden assault.

Taking advantage of the attack gap, other defenders who noticed the Temple Knights entering rifle range pressed their piston triggers. Flames gushed downward, covering the frozen soil. Generating Ice and fire clashed, several hazy mists of steam before the fortress.

At the same time, a few lower-tier mages with basic magical knowledge continuously channeled mental energy into the fortress’s defensive structures. Pre-carved magic circles activated, and along the towering, elongated defensive line, rumbles echoing one after another.

Chain lightning spread across the battlefield. Deadly ice spears arced into the sky before descending in parabolic trajectories. Sluggish earth swamps with strong metal-corrosive properties emerging. Countless elemental particles seemed tossed into a blender, rendering the very space chaotic and disordered.

Yet whether it was the magical devices in the defenders’ hands or the mass-produced defensive magic circles, the intensity threshold of these attacks remains below that of low level mage spells. For someone like Lyra, already at the peak tier Magnus level, relying on external devices was less effective than casting spells herself. Freeing up positions and conserving mana weapons allows weaker soldiers to make better use of them.

Below the high walls, the Temple Knights continued their steady advance. On the distant horizon, catapults began appearing in the twilight.

Soon after, a volley of roaring boulders pounded the fortress, causing the already heavily damaged, thin-layered arcane barrier to flicker incessantly. The entire stronghold’s wall trembled violently.

Elite knights formed the vanguard, using their armor and shields to withstand the defenders’ initial assault, creating safe openings for mages in the middle ranks to unleash their spells.

The rear was manned by the weakest individual combatants operating the catapults, without relying on devastating magic or externalized mental energy, using only the simple mechanical leverage principle to provide long-range siege support.

In battle after battle, not only had the Valeria Empire’s forces grown to defense, but the strategies of the Kingdom of Velys were also continuously optimizing and improving.

Blood stained the earth. The stench of burnt flesh wafted intermittently on the cold wind. Lyra held her breath. Her sword tip, glinting with cold light, made a slight slash. The blazing light-elemental enhancement made the holy sword in her hand seem, at this moment, capable of shredding space itself.

Her slender arm braced diagonally, her hand gripping the hilt through thin white gloves. Under the setting sun’s glow, Lyra stood along the line where dawn met dusk, her blue eyes shimmering with tiny specks of light.

As her wrist rotated, surging mental energy burst forth. Scorching waves of light poured down like a river of stars, illuminating the girl’s pale skin.

This sword strike seemed to briefly separate day and night.

Several heavy knights were cut cleanly through the waist. Their spurting blood evaporated instantly from the light and heat, never even reaching the ground.

Seeing the carnage her strike had caused, a flicker of daze passed through Lyra’s eyes.

Such injuries, even the strongest healing circles couldn’t possibly revive them.

But... how could it have such power...

Such a brutal scene, even in the midst of battle, sent a shiver through Lyra’s heart, her limbs momentarily going cold.

On the other side, having suffered such severe losses, the Church Knights immediately shifted their offensive focus towards the pink-haired girl standing atop the wall, clad in radiant holy armor.

The next second, an assault several times stronger than before slammed into the barrier in front of Lyra. Despite her immediate reaction and pouring massive mental energy into the runes, the instantaneous impact still leaves her head throbbing.

The battle wasn’t over. Now wasn’t the time for hesitation.

Focusing her mental energy, she began reconstructing the defensive stance. Just as arcane particles were adhering to repair the outer barrier, a giant flaming meteorite plummeted from the sky.

A peak tier Magnus-level fire magic, [Meteor Strike].

The boulder crashes into the incomplete defense. This heavy impact striked Lyra’s soul like a hammer blow. Her internal organs spasmed and constricted with the mental tremor, nearly causing her to drop the sword. Her eyelids drooped, her vision plunging into brief darkness.

But this was far from over. Her mental sense detected numerous cracks forming across the semicircular barrier. More piercing attacks followed in quick succession.

Once the defensive circle was breached, those stationed on the wall would face every incoming assault directly.

Her teeth bit into her lips. The cherry-pink petals of her lips instantly stained crimson. Lyra strained every ounce of strength to hold up the sky-like barrier, preventing it from shattering like glass. Yet the rain of attacks wouldn’t shift just because of her will.

"Snap."

A crisp sound. In her spiritual vision, the intact arcane barrier was pierced by a fire arrow. Then two, three, more holes followed.

"Everyone, focus on defense..."

Using her sword to support her body, Lyra quickly issued orders to her rear squad members.

"Understood... Squad Leader Lyra..."

"At once, I’ll..."

The clear female voice suddenly disappeared, as if severed by a sudden silence-binding seal. Explosions roared outside the wall, but to Lyra, it felt like deathly silence.

"A... Aria?"

No response from the woman. Only the sound of nearby footsteps remained.

Realizing what might have happened, Lyra’s tone turned suddenly stern.

"Send a medic. Don’t leave your defensive positions, this entire frontline is dangerous. Keep your weapons ready."

"Disobeyers will face military punishment."

Chaos will only lead to more casualties. At this moment, she had to set aside her anxiety and prioritize the survival of her entire defense squad.

Hearing her words, the other members quickly reacted, immediately plugging the defensive gaps.

"They’re shifting their offensive focus, aiming to break through the flank." Lyra infused a thread of mental energy into her voice, rapidly transmitting it across the nearby defensive line.

It was likely due to the heavy casualties caused by her previous strike, drawing their attention.

Adjacent units received the intelligence and handed over their barrage magic to the Temple Knights currently channeling Meteor Strike. Even with layered shield protection from the formation, the spellcasting speed of these mages was still somewhat hindered by elemental flow disruptions, giving Lyra a rare moment to catch her breath.

Re-establishing the barrier, Lyra heard crisp footsteps ascending the stairs behind her. From the sound, it wasn’t the heavy clomp of knight’s boots, but rather the light tread of short leather boots.

"Lyra, a batch of new-model magical weapons has just arrived."

"Terrible timing, arriving right as the Kingdom of Velys launched their assault. We don’t even have time to instruct the soldiers on how to use them."

Philice directed her attendants to carry wooden crates from outside, unlock them, and retrieve the spherical mana weapons within.

"Reportedly designed by Princess Astrid, made by Marquise Charlotte. Each sphere contains a lightning-elemental crystal core. Remove the external latch, and five seconds later, the lightning-magma orb will explode, releasing the peak tier Sorcerer-level lightning magic [Rupturing Light]."

Although late, it was still good to have them available.

"Miss Philice, the situation is critical. The flank defense is under heavy pressure. Please don’t stay here."

Lyra spoke softly, her tone sharper and more urgent than usual.

"It’s fine. I’ll be careful."

No sooner had Philice spoken than, just as she reached for the longsword at her waist, an ice arrow, moving too fast to react, shot straight toward her chest.

Even the holy sword couldn’t block it at this speed. In a flash, Lyra raised her arm. Her bracer struck the arrow, deflecting it just past Philice’s ear.

A sudden warmth brushed her cheek, followed by the smell of rust in her nose. Philice glanced at her side of the face but found no wound.

Then this blood... Could it be Lyra’s?

While Philice pondered, the pink-haired girl glanced at her injured right arm, confirmed the wound wasn’t deep, and continued channeling mental energy into the barrier.

Under normal circumstances, the Holy Armor of Light would have perfectly defended against that arrow. However, since Lyra had devoted most of her mental energy to maintaining the wall’s defense, only a minimal amount remained for the armor, allowing that mid-tier-level attack to successfully breach it.

Realizing that if not for Lyra’s quick reaction, she might have been struck fatally by that ice arrow in a panic, becoming another war casualty, Philice’s heart pounded. She immediately stepped back several paces.

"I’ll go to the weaker flank to instruct them on the new weapons."

Now wasn’t the time to be stubborn. Lyra had already been wounded protecting her.

Intense guilt surged in her mind as Philice turned around. Then, seeing the distant horizon behind her, her pupils instantly widened.

"The secondary fortress... it’s also under attack..."

Far in the distance, several light-elemental spells hang against the sky, framed by a blood-red sunset.

Upon hearing this, Lyra furrowed her delicate brows, her hand tightening around the hilt of the Sword of Light.

First, feign an assault on Liya Tower Fortress, forcing them to request reinforcements. Then, have the main force of the Church Knights launch a surprise attack, with the secondary fortress as the true target.

This was an undeniable open stratagem, forcing them to defend only one location, unable to protect both ends simultaneously.