The elegant and well-decorated hall is filled with the familiar scent of "Night Curtain", and the Wendell family's "Wolf of Iron Armor" emblem hangs on the light golden column. In the hall, the portrait of Tirian Wendell hanging on the wall is shining, and the forever majestic and powerful grandfather in memory is standing quietly in front of the portrait of the family ancestor, with his back to the gate, as if he is in a trance.
The attendant on the side wanted to go forward to report, but Andersa stopped the attendant. She walked into the hall alone and stopped a few meters behind Duke Ferdinand. The dust is flying in the sun, like spirits in the atmosphere.
"Grandpa, I'm back."
"Seven hundred years ago, Tirian Wendell was the same age as you when he completely defeated the Aberrant Army on the Western Front," Ferdinand said slowly. "It was winter, and the knights were fighting on the snow field, united like wolves Bravery, fighting fiercely for three days and nights, annihilating five times as many enemies, after the victory, the founding king named Tyrian Wendell the first Wolf Duke in the name of wolf."
This is a history that every descendant of Wendell is familiar with. Andersa lowered her head: "I always remember the glory of my ancestors."
"The ancestors are indeed glorious," Ferdinand finally turned around, but the majestic face was a little older than what Andersa remembered, "or in other words, every pioneer is equally glorious, and This honor requires matching abilities—including Tyrian Wendell, and naturally Gawain Cecil.
"The magic army of the Cecilians was formed and trained by Gawain Cecil himself, and compared with other 'legions of glory', the most powerful thing about that army is that they are the 'first generation', As a young commander, you are qualified to fight against such an enemy without losing."
Andersa met her grandfather's gaze calmly. Under the gaze of those eyes, she knew that there would be a follow-up.
Duke Ferdinand really continued: "However, as the top general of the Winter Wolves Legion and the first commander of the Empire's defense line, the moment you head to the Paramer Heights, you are already unqualified."
Andersa took a breath, straightened up in front of her grandfather as if she was a child.
Ferdinand looked into Andersa's eyes: "About Changfeng Fortress, what is the order His Majesty gave you?"
Andersa replied immediately: "Keep continuous monitoring, and confirm the actual strength and deployment of the Changfeng defense line at any time. If there are no loopholes, do not take the initiative to attack. If you find an opportunity, you can choose the opportunity and attack immediately."
"That's right," Ferdinand nodded, "So from the perspective of a simple order, you have done nothing wrong, and His Majesty will not punish you for your failure, but when you execute this order, you really Is it 'just executed the order'?"
Andersa's face was tense, and she nodded under Ferdinand's gaze until a few seconds later: "Yes."
"When you are nervous, your eyes always look at the lower left corner." Duke Ferdinand shook his head, turned around, and looked at the colorful crystal window that was pouring in sunlight. "You didn't send spies to conduct a disguised investigation, but You chose to take the knights directly to the Paramer Heights. After discovering that the Cecils' position was false, you sent out the signal without further searching and confirming the surrounding environment of the battlefield. The rain, the obstructed line of sight, the reduced efficiency of detection...it shouldn't have happened to you."
"… I have nothing to say."
"Hatred makes you temporarily lose your judgment. You have been waiting for this opportunity for many years. I understand your urgency at that time, but you are not a knight fighting alone, but a commander, and more importantly, as your majesty. General, your personal feelings must be placed after the emperor's orders and national interests - you must firmly remember that even if the Cecils kill me in front of you today, as long as your majesty orders you to establish peace with Cecil If there is no relationship, you must live in peace with them on the border, this is the responsibility you must fulfill when you pick up the knight sword."
Andersa was silent for a moment, and finally took a deep breath, her eyes became firm again: "Yes, I understand."
"You will do it, because your surname is Wendell," Ferdinand nodded slowly, "I am most gratified that at least some of your decisions were made timely and accurately, and these choices allowed you to successfully withdraw with the Knights." Leaving Winter Wolf Castle—not being left on the highlands of Paramer is your greatest success, which prevents the empire from being passive in righteousness, and also prevents you from becoming a victim of negotiations and bearing all the infamy in your own name.”
Grandfather's preaching was as merciless as in memory, and Andersa also found that she could not make any refutation just like in memory, she accepted everything with her head down, until her grandfather suddenly changed his tone: "The time for preaching is over, I should also give you some compliments—you successfully brought back direct information about Cecil's Magic Guidance Legion, which is more precious than anything else."
The old duke paused at this point, and then asked: "What does that thing look like? What kind of weapons does it have? How to fight?"
Andersa immediately sorted out her sentences, showing a serious expression:
"It is made of a large amount of steel, its shape and volume are close to the 'train' you described in your letter, and it is equipped with powerful magic weapons...
"It was hidden behind woods and rocks, but because of its size, and its orbit with prominent rune markings and large raised structures, so it was easy to see from the air, I thought it was an unsuitable object for concealment. The main role of weapons should be to attack fortifications and serve as mobile fortresses...
"It should be able to accommodate large numbers of soldiers and supplies, and be able to operate for extended periods of time away from strongholds...
"... I haven't fought it, but I'm pretty sure it has some kind of shield...
"If you need to fight, destroying its orbit in advance should be the top priority. In addition, its long-range attacks are fierce and concentrated. When confronting it, it should be regarded as a group of magicians protected within the city wall and able to move at any time...
"Its main weapon is huge, and it was pointed at the Changfeng Plain at the time. Judging from its deployment location, its range is at least ten kilometers, which is far beyond the scope of traditional spells..."
Andersa said one by one, and Duke Ferdinand nodded from time to time. After Andersa finally finished speaking, the old prince thought for a while, and broke the silence with a little sigh: "... you are very lucky, Cecil is right Its mastery is not yet proficient, just like when we first formed the Iron River Knights a few years ago, those Cecils were not mature in the supporting tactics of the new weapons."
"Immature?" Andersa was a little surprised.
"If you're mature, you won't be able to come back." Ferdinand glanced at her. "Do you think it was just the right rain that allowed your knights to evacuate alive?"
Seeing Andersa's thoughtful expression, Duke Ferdinand nodded slightly, and then walked towards the exit of the hall: "Your Majesty is at the Obsidian Palace, come with me to see him."
Andersa woke up from her thoughts, and immediately turned to follow the footsteps of the old prince: "Yes, grandfather."
Duke Ferdinand hummed, but when he was about to enter the corridor, he stopped suddenly. Looking at Andersa who also stopped, with a puzzled expression on his face, the old man nodded slightly: "I forgot to say just now—welcome go home."
After a moment of daze, Andersa came to her senses, and finally a smile appeared on her face.
In front of the porch of the Duke's Mansion, Andersa didn't see the carriage she was familiar with, but saw a strange-looking car with four wheels and an iron shell parked under the steps.
"This is the magical vehicle I mentioned to you in my last letter," Duke Ferdinand explained before Andersa asked, "It is the third one—more than half of the parts inside are handmade by artisans. .Your uncle built a factory on Golden Shell Street, and he is trying to use machines to make the skeleton and shell of magic vehicles. If you have time this time, you can go and have a look.
"You have been away from the imperial capital for too long. Many changes have taken place here. Some new things cannot be clearly described in letters. You should read more. These insights will be useful to you."
"The Cecils have similar things," Andersa said. "They recently appeared near Changfeng Fortress. They use larger magic vehicles to transport supplies."
"The magic vehicle was first born in Cecil, and our craftsmen and scholars copied it. As you have seen - the Cecilians were the first to create the magic vehicle, and have come a long way in this technology , we are catching up now, which makes many imperial nobles who are used to a proud attitude very uncomfortable, but the fact is," Ferdinand said as he walked towards the magical car, "The 'war machine' you mentioned , is obviously also a creation of magic technology - we have built a powerful army of extraordinary people, but the Cecils are using magic technology to bridge the gap in this area. If we don't want to fall into the disadvantage, we must abandon the meaningless pride mentality, from now on to catch up."
Andersa sat in the car, observing everything in sight with uncontrollable curiosity and joy. Her fingers caressed the inner wall of the car door. After seeing the Cecilian war machine with her own eyes, this thing inevitably looked Simple, but when the tremor of mechanical operation came from below her body, she still couldn't help sighing softly: "...this is what we made..."
"Yes, we made this. We should thank every scholar, mage, and craftsman in the Imperial Manufacturing Association, especially the leader of this project, Master Daniel—although I don't like the overly gloomy temperament of the great magician. , but his wisdom and talent are admirable," said Duke Ferdinand, "don't be envious of the tools used by the Cecils to transport supplies. Winter Wolf Castle will soon use them. Your uncle has been instructed by Master Daniel. When his factory is officially in operation, we no longer have to rely on craftsmen's hammers to make the shells of magic vehicles."
Accompanied by the tremor of the mechanical device, the magic vehicle started. This incredible machine drove out of the Duke's Mansion and headed towards the Obsidian Palace. Along the way, they met some passers-by, and they all stopped to watch, but Andersa's attention now Not on the street at all: "We can build this thing, that train..."
"The train... the train is another concept," Duke Ferdinand smiled wryly and shook his head, "I know what you're thinking, I'm thinking about it, and His Majesty is thinking about it too, our scholars, craftsmen and mages are thinking about it, but we must Admittedly, we can't make it... at least not yet on the same level as Cecil's magic train. As far as I know, a group of craftsmen are trying to build simple, small rail vehicles, and I hope they will succeed Bar."
Listening to her grandfather's words, Andersa slowly calmed down. She raised her head, looked at the receding road outside the car window, watched the midday sun dispel the mist on the streets of Aldernan, and looked rarer than she remembered. There were many pedestrians walking hurriedly on the street, and her heart that was tied up in Winter Wolf Castle and on the front line finally came back here slowly.
The car passed the intersection and passed a mother and daughter who were taking a walk. Through the open window, Andersa heard a vague voice in the wind:
"Mom, there are so few people on the road... Where did everyone go?"
"They're in the factory..."
Times are changing, and the city is really a little strange.
But this is her home after all.
…
In the Obsidian Palace, an attendant walked into Rosetta Augustus's room and bowed to salute: "Your Majesty, Grand Duke Ferdinand Wendell and General Andersa Wendell have arrived."
Rosetta, who was reviewing a document, looked up from her work: "Let them in."
The patriarch and heir of the Wendell family walked into the room and saluted each according to etiquette. After Rosetta returned the salute, her eyes fell on Andersa.
The young General Wolf stood up straight, facing the emperor's stare calmly. After that deep gaze finally retracted a little, she heard a question:
"Andersa, what does our army lack now?"