"We didn't lose."
Standing on the stage, looking around at the crowd below, this was the first sentence Benjamin spoke.
The soldiers' eyes lit up at that moment.
In the past few days, they have been confused and uneasy. Not only because their former colleagues died in the collapse, but also because they lost their way - what should they do now? Can they still defeat the church? After suffering such a big blow, should they...should still persevere
As a member of the Black Nightmare Army, the hatred for the church is common to all, but without Benjamin, without the forces above, they would never have been able to get together. Therefore, even if they want to persist, if the attitude of the people above changes, the army will be on the verge of collapse.
They needed a statement, and Benjamin had already shown all his attitude in the sentence he spoke.
Yes, they haven't lost yet.
"Because of my negligence, the current heavy losses have been caused. This is an unshirkable responsibility. But... we cannot let the church succeed." Benjamin looked at everyone again, and then said, "We have gone from being unknown to where we are today. , too many people have paid their lives for this, the soldiers who died in the battle, the brothers buried deep in the ground... everyone died with faith. They believed that we could bring down the church, and they believed that their sacrifices were valuable. . And we, standing on the high platform held up by their corpses, want to make their death worthwhile."
"The church is a stubborn disease buried deep in this country. If you want to get rid of it, you must pay a price. After this setback, you may be doubtful and uneasy, but look at the Horli Kingdom now. We have The church has been pushed to the edge of the cliff. This is just their desperate counterattack. If we can survive it, it will be the church that will die. If we cannot resist, it will be us. We have fought hard all the way until now, are you willing to give up at the last moment?"
"There are now three thousand mages and ten thousand soldiers in Coster City. The food and grass are enough to sustain us for another three months. Five Holy Light Cannons have just been transported to the camp. The patriots in the country have funded us with six thousand armors. You can also see Here we are, we still have the strength to fight. There are enough materials in the city, and the logistics force has restarted the production of enchanted weapons. Further outside, the rune defense formation is guarding us. Unless more than a dozen cannons are brought in, the church will not even reach our door. If it can’t be blasted, what do we have to be afraid of?”
Along with his words, the soldier's expression became excited little by little. They recalled the scenes of bloody battles and why they chose to join the Black Nightmare Army in the first place, and their enthusiasm seemed to be gradually awakened again. They were not only fighting for themselves, but also for the Kingdom of Hori and for those dead comrades. They can't give up.
And more importantly, from Benjamin's words, they learned the specific situation of the Black Nightmare Army.
Although it suffered a blow, but... it is indeed not to the point where it cannot fight, and the entire army still has good combat effectiveness. Thinking of this, their confusion was swept away and they soon became as confident as before. The church thought it could defeat them with this method, but they would never admit defeat!
The early morning sun shone sideways, making every soldier's eyes shine brightly.
Finally, Benjamin ended the speech with this sentence:
"May the spirits of the deceased be with us."
He made a fist with his right hand, held it diagonally in front of his chest, and nodded deeply towards everyone. Everyone also made a move in unison, and the shadows on the ground were uniform and stretched by the sunlight.
after an hour.
Benjamin sat in the room of the city hall and slowly put down the report in his hand. His face was a little solemn, and he touched his chin as if he was thinking about something. The door to the room was closed. Besides him, there was also the head of the academy's ANBU, waiting patiently.
"...Are you sure this death report is correct?" Suddenly, Benjamin asked.
"There may be some minor errors, but we have repeatedly confirmed the information about important personnel and we are certain."
Benjamin sighed after hearing this.
In fact, the results presented in this death report are not too bad. The Black Nightmare Army suffered heavy losses, but most of those who died were ordinary soldiers. During the collapse, mages relied on magic to have a higher survival rate, and Benjamin also brought powerful troops and a large number of mages when he attacked Coster, so currently, they still have Retains good combat power.
But... there are a few key names that appear on it.
"Those six nobles, including Duke Colin... have all been sacrificed?" Because the news was important, he had to confirm it again.
The ANBU leader nodded.
"Yes, many people saw it with their own eyes. When the collapse occurred, they and their families were following a team to move out, and happened to reach the narrow exit of Pearl Lake. As soon as the church detonated the explosives, the area near the exit completely collapsed, and the entire The whole team is buried inside, it can be said... there is no possibility of survival."
After hearing the details of that time, Benjamin couldn't help but sigh and shook his head.
Who would have thought
The nobles kidnapped the princess and took her out of the royal capital, but it ended up like this.
Benjamin felt a little sad. The initial formation of the Black Nightmare Army relied entirely on the support of the six of them, and along the way, although there may have been many differences of opinion between them, Duke Colin did provide them with a lot of help. They are all looking forward to the day when the church will be overthrown, but now, they can no longer see it with their own eyes.
"... Tell the knights of their family this news, don't make them too sad." After a moment of silence, he slowly spoke and said.
"clear."
Benjamin held his forehead and thought again, then added: "Also, send a message to Freden. I remember... Elizabeth's mercenary group is there. In any case, she has the right to know about this matter."
The person in charge was slightly startled, but immediately nodded, turned and left without saying anything.
Benjamin looked at the report a few more times, stood up, and walked out of the room. He flew all the way alone, and finally landed on the north gate of Coster. The guards at the top of the city saluted him, and through the barrier of the rune defense formation, he could see the desolate main road outside the city.
My eyes followed the main road to the end. On the horizon, some vague shadows were flying around.
Because it was too far away, Benjamin couldn't see clearly or sense it. Those figures were as small as mosquitoes in his eyes, but... for some reason, he seemed to be able to see flickers of holy light on those shadows.