The black sun hangs high

Chapter 204 Iris Street

While Hughes was taking a crucial step toward resolving the predicament of Seren, the Fifth Regiment of the Black Forest had just endured an extremely long and painful night.

The history and culture of the Lovi Plateau and the Goddess Plain have created many prejudices and misunderstandings among the inhabitants of the Plateau Kingdom, such as Wotel, regarding the soldiers of the Plain Kingdoms.

At least in the stereotypes of most people, the military academies of the Kingdom of Delan and many other duchies are unlikely to produce true military talents and generals.

In fact, this is a very serious misjudgment.

Although the highland kingdoms have consistently emerged as more advantageous in conflicts between the two major regions over the past centuries, these conflicts and contradictions have, in fact, caused relatively limited damage to the behemoth that is the Kingdom of Delan—its size is simply too immense.

The extremely rich resources and more pleasant living environment gave the plains states an amazing confidence in the face of conflict, and the generals trained in this environment were more adept at using their control of the battlefield situation to gain greater benefits for their country and camp.

"The outcome of a single battle cannot determine the life or death of a behemoth."

This is a quote summarized by Anthony, the current "famous general" of the Kingdom of Delan. It is regarded as a wise saying by many Delan soldiers and generals. These professional soldiers serving the Kingdom of the Plains may be slightly inferior in performance on the front line, but they can always make up for their mistakes and regain opportunities by adjusting their grand strategy.

This battle, which took place in the Black Forest region, is a testament to the wisdom of the Delan army.

This extremely intense battle had actually lasted for a day and a night. After the battlefield mages sent by the Delan army successfully detected the position of the Fifth Regiment, dense artillery fire enveloped all the members of the Fifth Regiment.

The bombardment lasted from early morning until noon.

Fortunately, the follow-up troops responsible for supporting the Fifth Jaeger Regiment also provided extremely fierce artillery support after receiving their message. Among them, a very special location attracted the attention of both sides: Black Forest Fortress.

This important landmark, which had previously been chosen by the Black Sun Society as a meeting place, unexpectedly became the common target of both sides' artillery in an unspoken agreement. Under the continuous bombardment of several different types of crystal shells, the historically significant Black Forest Fortress was completely reduced to a ruin riddled with holes.

The western part of the Black Forest town received the same treatment; in order to effectively block the advance of the Delan army, the Votel artillery almost leveled the area.

However, this intensity of artillery bombardment could only slightly alleviate the pressure on the 5th Jaeger Regiment, which was on the defensive.

The fall of the town and the severe blow suffered by the Black Forest Infantry Regiment were seen as a provocation by the Votel against the Delan royal family. Under the influence of this classic "viewing" problem, the Delan soldiers responsible for the attack were extremely fierce and brave. Even though the Juggernaut Regiment had set up multiple Karvan heavy machine gun positions, it still inevitably suffered a large number of casualties in the high-intensity battle.

As the leader of the army's medical staff, Mayer never got a break.

He felt he had never dealt with so many wounded people in his entire life.

The bloodstains on his hands had been washed away countless times. Although Mayer always possessed extraordinary perseverance and patience, he could not help but feel exhausted at this moment.

The Jaeger Regiment was not a particularly defensive unit in Water's army system, so Major Alfred made a bold judgment and adjustment in the defensive strategy—to place the enemy as close to the trenches as possible before starting the ambush. He even allowed the soldiers in the first trench to let the enemy into the defensive position for direct close combat.

This approach is certainly effective, but similarly, if the soldiers of the Jaeger Corps are injured, they will pay a greater price.

"Hold him down, don't let him move."

Mayer glanced at the young soldier who was curled up in agony, gave a brief instruction to his assistants, and then quickly went to the metal basin. He dipped his hand into the boiling water, and the blood on his hand immediately disappeared. As the steam generator operated, the blood was quickly drained, and clean water was injected and rapidly heated by the magical crystal.

Meyer estimated that if he lost the assistance of these new devices, his efficiency in treating the wounded would decrease by as much as 60%, and the survival rate of the wounded would be severely affected.

The stimulation of the hot water relieved some of the fatigue.

Amidst the sporadic explosions in the distance, Mayer ended his rest, which was hardly a break at all. He went to the young soldier and, after a mage who was acting as an assistant used magic to alleviate the wounded soldier's pain, immediately began to examine him.

The soldier's injury was in a delicate location, on the back of his thigh.

A shattered crystalline fragment sliced ​​through the young man's flesh like a blade; had it been positioned a little higher, his buttocks would probably have been reduced to half.

Meyer was also somewhat surprised. To ease the soldier's embarrassment and tension, he joked, "How could you get injured in such a place?"

"Uh……"

Feeling his pants being pulled down, the soldier twisted his body helplessly. There were just too many female doctors and apprentices in this field hospital, and he felt that his self-esteem had been severely damaged.

Amidst the laughter of his female assistants, the young man muttered, "The major sent me to deliver a letter to you... saying it was a magical letter sent via an arcane device, but I only got halfway there when I encountered a malfunctioning crystal cannonball, hiss... it took a whole day to explode! I'm not a deserter, I just had bad luck!"

"Yes, I know, the Water people don't desert."

Meyer found it somewhat amusing; it wasn't a particularly troublesome injury. So he called over an apprentice to treat it, while he took the letter from the soldier's coat pocket and held it up to the light of the crystallizer lamp.

Amid the soldier's low groans, Mayer saw the signature on the magical letter.

To his surprise, he discovered that it was a letter sent on his behalf, and the letter was signed "Master Alfred".

“A mage? I don’t know any mage named Alfred… Oh, wait.” Meyer immediately realized what he meant and turned to ask, “Did the major read the letter?”

"No, sir. This letter is addressed to you specifically, hmm... and when the major saw the signature, he had me deliver it directly!"

"okay."

Mayer nodded.

He already knew the source of the letter. There was probably only one person who would think of combining the name "Alfred" with the identity of a mage and send him a letter.

Driven by curiosity and concern for his friend's situation, Mayer quickly opened the letter and began reading it by the light.

"Professor, I hope everything is alright..."

……

Hugh had no idea that the mage Valery was so efficient. In just half a day and a night, he had decisively sent out that extremely important letter for him, and Valery had done it very "cleanly".

To ensure that the letter would not be monitored by the Eye of Mel's Arcane Instrument of the Law Council, he even risked being labeled as "treason" by contacting a mage friend of his on the front lines in Wotel. Through this connection, he successfully sent the letter out using a magical arcane instrument within Wotel.

While Meyer finished reading Hugh's letter and began to seriously consider how to write an important article that would truly attract attention, Hugh left the apartment building where he had been hiding alone and rode his Rampage Mouse toward Iris Street.

Just as Hugh learned through the memories of an Iris Street soldier late at night, this special force, composed of the independent government army of Seren City and the remnants of the Kingdom of Delan, has begun to consolidate the security of its territory.

These soldiers and mages, integrated by General Butz, not only established several strong outposts near Iris Street, but also took a very bold step in the city of Seren – they used magic and alchemical bombs to directly level a considerable number of buildings with potential hazards, and used the mages' magic to fill and seal all suspicious cracks and passages near Iris Street.

Hugh observed closely and found that the members of Iris Street were very willing to put a lot of effort into maintaining their territory. The repairs here were done very well, and some of the more dangerous cracks were even covered with solidification rituals. This level of repair was enough to withstand a large-scale attack from the Dark Abyss Spawns.

On the side of Iris Street, Hughes saw an even more astonishing sight.

There used to be a small park there, whose name, like many other facilities in Seren, was rather uncreative. It was called the "Peace Park" and was maintained by the Deland Embassy. At the center of the park stood the very classic "Treaty Sculpture".

A significant portion of this "Peace Park" has now been leveled. The areas that were not leveled have been separated by earthen walls created by the mages of Iris Street using magic. Judging from the condition of those lands, they are clearly prepared for cultivation. Although it is winter, through magical rituals, the temperature in a certain area can be maintained and crops can be planted.

The actions of Iris Street indicate that they are not merely "warlords" entrenched in the city. General Butz seems to have a relatively clear understanding of the situation in Seren. Although he may not have a way to escape Seren, he understands that in order to survive in this terrible hell for a long time, he must make more preparations.

This is also why Iris Street is recruiting survivors on a large scale—they have too much to do and are severely lacking in manpower.

Hugh, riding a giant rat, naturally attracted the attention of many soldiers. Perhaps because General Butz had already given instructions the day before, these soldiers and guards did not show much hostility. In fact, when Hugh reached the vicinity of the entrance to Iris Street, a mage came out.

This was a middle-aged man, still wearing the mage's robe issued by the Legal Committee, with a magic book hanging from his waist, but without wearing any insignia symbolizing his mage rank.

However, in Hugh's extremely keen magical perception, the middle-aged mage's level was impossible to conceal—he was a very ordinary Raindrop-level mage, the kind who had just gotten rid of his apprenticeship. In the Magic Council, he was probably only at the level of barely being able to do clerical work and support the operation of the arcane ritual.

Faced with such a mage, Shug didn't even need to unleash his magic.

The terrifying aura emanating from the mad rat alone was enough to intimidate him.

Hugh was even a little worried that the middle-aged mage who came to "welcome" him would wet his pants under Sniggy's watchful gaze.

"Is...is it Master Ernst?"

The middle-aged man still had some courage. Although his smile had begun to twist under the watchful gaze of the giant horned rat, he still managed to walk up to Hugh and gave a very strained greeting: "General Boots sent me to greet you... and he asked me to tell you that he is very much looking forward to today's meeting."

"Me too."

Hughes grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. Then he gently tapped the ground with his cane, and the enormous magical beast that had made everyone so nervous immediately vanished into the magical mist.

At the same time, Hugh's magical senses swept across the surroundings at an extremely fast speed. After confirming that there were no ambushers who could threaten him, he followed the middle-aged mage into the interior of Iris Street. Meanwhile, the Ernst family rats that had been summoned earlier also began to move. They quickly found suitable paths and began to explore and advance into the interior of Iris Street from various directions.

Upon entering Iris Street, Hughes displayed a hint of surprise.

This was a necessary measure. He didn't want to give the people nearby the impression that he had already explored the area before. Just like the images he saw through the memories of the "dead" the night before, everything here seemed to be in good order. Although everything here still exuded a strong sense of vigilance and seriousness, it was quite vibrant compared to other dilapidated and deserted areas in Seren.

Here, Hugh saw female residents hurrying by with baskets, workers repairing shop walls, and many children trying to earn bread by helping carry things...

According to Hugh, this Iris Street has been transformed into a special "community" in a post-apocalyptic setting.

(End of this chapter)