Arknights' Lock of Heaven

Given the notorious reputation of the Sarkaz in the world and the lack of a powerful nation, why does this mineral-rich region of Kazdel still exist today?

Do the surrounding countries feel they have enough land and resources, so they don't need it?

Was the once invincible Sarkaz Empire a fabrication?

The older I get, the more I understand the importance of family heritage.

Take Franz, for example. He's such a talented young man, but because his family lacks resources, he doesn't know the truth about the world, which makes him dare to spout such nonsense in front of me.

But I can't be careless; I've witnessed true terror before.

To be honest, he wasn't sure he could make up his mind at first.

After all, no one would find this task difficult.

But now he has decided to follow his instincts.

Since they were already so far from Cheprini, Lermontov wouldn't say much if they were a dozen or twenty miles ahead.

Thus, under his command, the two warships began to gradually increase their speed.

"They couldn't hold back any longer?"

The Sixth Army's movements were immediately detected by the radar on the Orville.

only……

"An operation before dawn..." Mudrock covered his head, his face full of exhaustion and confusion. "Do they really need to be this cautious?"

There is a reason why military operations are scheduled for the time before dawn. Generally speaking, people are most tired at this time. Moreover, as a matter of course, the Orville would not dare to be careless at night in order to guard against the troops behind it. After staying up all night, the time before dawn would be the most tiring.

Launching a surprise attack at this time is a very good strategy.

But... is it really necessary?

“From their perspective, they definitely wouldn’t take us seriously. They were so arrogant before,” W said, frowning. “What’s going on? Why did they suddenly change their tune?”

Previously, it was slowly trailing behind the Orville, and even had time to slow down and recover those stranded vehicles.

This also increased the distance between the two warships of the Sixth Army and the Orville from seven kilometers to more than ten kilometers.

It should have been developing as planned, so why is it suddenly going to be attacked?

"Could it be that they received some message?"

W can only guess at this.

“It’s hard to say,” Mudrock shook his head. “It’s like they’ve changed commanders, using a completely different strategy. Could it be that they really know something?”

"Forget about that," Mudrock turned to look at the command room. "Where would they catch up if we went full speed ahead?"

"Wait a moment... ...the results are in," an operator reported nervously. "They'll probably catch up with us at around 83 kilometers!"

"Good!" Upon hearing this, Mudrock's eyes shone with a different kind of brilliance. "Orville, full speed ahead!"

“W, go and reassure everyone on duty,” she said, then turned to W. “Make sure they know that everything is under control and there’s no need to panic.”

"Oh, don't disturb the operators who are resting, let them sleep well."

"So confident?" W laughed upon hearing this. "Understood, Captain. I'll go right now."

383 artillery fire

"boom!"

A loud bang from outside the porthole instantly woke Yan Ke. The booming cannon fire from the warship made him feel as if he had returned to those hellish days on the battlefield of Kazdel.

He jumped up, clutching the long sword in his hand, and looked around warily.

Then I realized that everyone was pretty much the same. They were all like rabbits, startled awake, their eyes red, weapons in hand, ready to chop someone up at the slightest provocation.

"Enemy attack! Prepare..." Just then, a logistics officer pushed open the door, intending to say something, but as she moved, the dozen or so Sarkaz in the cabin turned around and stared straight at her, their murderous looks making her swallow the rest of her words.

Cardiopulmonary arrest!

"What are you looking at!" Seeing the logistics department girl looking completely terrified, Yan Ke, the first to react, snapped at the Sarkaz around him, "Haven't you seen her these past few days? Put down your sword! She's here to deliver orders!"

With this brief respite, the remaining Sarkaz reacted and quickly put away their weapons.

"Is it the Ursus army attacking?" Yan Ke sighed upon seeing this, then stepped forward and said to the logistics officer, "Weren't they said they would attack this afternoon?"

“We…we don’t know why either,” the little girl said, sounding aggrieved. “They started approaching us at full speed at six in the morning.”

"what time is it now?"

"Eight o'clock in the morning."

Snapped.

Hearing this, Yan Ke slapped his forehead, "Then why didn't you wake us up earlier?"

"But the higher-ups said everyone needs to get plenty of rest..." the little girl continued, sounding aggrieved.

"No, you guys..." Yan Ke was about to swear when he heard this, but seeing the girl from the logistics department looking like she was about to cry, he ultimately didn't say anything.

Forget it, this is not something a lowly rank-and-file officer can decide.

"What is the order?"

"Have you assemble on the deck."

“Alright, let’s get back to our posts now,” he said helplessly. “Go and notify the others.”

Upon hearing this, the little girl felt as if she had been granted a pardon, nodded vigorously at him, and then turned and ran away.

It seems that the group of Sarkaz, with their bloodshot eyes and knives, had terrified the other person.

But there was no time to think about that. Yan Ke hurriedly led his mercenaries to gather his subordinates and headed towards the rear of the Orville.

boom! boom! boom!

All along the way, artillery fire roared, each sound like a blow to the hearts of the mercenaries.

Although it was agreed that the Sixth Army would not launch an attack prematurely, as mercenaries who had been through countless battles, they were not used to putting their own safety on whether the enemy was following the rules.

The fact that a dozen or so Sarkaz lived in one cabin is proof of this.

Rooms on the Orville weren't that scarce; while one room per person wasn't enough, there were plenty of rooms for two or three people.

It's not necessary to cram a dozen of them together. They usually live comfortably in cabins with two or three people each.

This is purely because the battle is about to begin, and only by sticking together can we survive.

This is the mercenary's philosophy of life.

When they arrived at the rear deck, Yan Ke was already followed by hundreds of mercenaries.

"W! What the hell are you doing?" He immediately launched into a tirade against W, "Have you never fought in a civil war before, or are you new to the business? Why didn't you wake us up sooner? Did you only remember us when we were being attacked?"

The surrounding mercenaries also complained.

Before we arrived, you guys didn't say it was such a big job, that we'd have to fight the Ursus regular army, and with such a huge disparity in strength between us and the enemy!

If W and Mudrock hadn't clarified the current relationship between the Orville and Ursus, making these Sarkaz mercenaries understand that even if they turned against the emperor, the nobles and officers would definitely use their heads to appease the emperor's wrath.

After all, the infamous Sarkaz mercenaries betraying their employers and robbing caravans doesn't sound out of place at all, right?

If they hadn't realized that they were all in the same boat, already caught up in the struggle between the Ursus royal power and the nobility, and that no one could stay out of it, they would have rebelled long ago!

After all, it was a disparity in strength: 800 men against 15,000, a transport ship against two warships...

Even the mighty Sarkaz couldn't withstand it.

However, even after recognizing reality, there were still many dissatisfied mercenaries. If it weren't for W and Mudrock simultaneously releasing information about Patriots and Ursus's recent lavish praise of Patriots, which gave them hope, they would have mostly fled even if they hadn't rebelled.

It was precisely because of these combined factors that the mercenaries felt things weren't so bad and that they could still fight for survival, which is why they stayed on the Orville.

But now! It's one thing that the intelligence was wrong and the Sixth Army initiated an offensive—war can't always go as planned—but what's wrong with you, W?

Was all that civil war in Kazdel for nothing? Did you really not learn anything at all?

What do you mean by only waking us up when the enemy is practically in our faces? Huh?

Oh, no, I wasn't called out by you guys, I was called out by the damn enemy's artillery fire!

Is this how you fight a war?

Is this how you fight?

Are you worried about war?

"W, what's wrong with you?"

"What do you want to do?"

"Do you even know how to fight a war?!"

The mercenaries surrounded W, chattering away as if they wanted to drown him with their spittle.

"What do you mean?" W couldn't stand this humiliation. She put her hands on her hips and said indignantly, "You want to teach me how to fight? Back in Kazdel, I was chatting and laughing with His Highness while you were still miserable as lowly soldiers!"

"Now you all think you're so capable, huh?"

"How dare you say that?" Fariad, who had hastily gathered his men and rushed over, was so angry that his nose almost twisted out of shape. He jumped up and down and cursed, "Is this how you fight a war? You want us to conserve our strength? If we keep conserving, we'll be surrounded in a room and wiped out piece by piece!"

"You didn't even wake us up in case of an emergency? You just let us sleep like this? What? You want to rely on the logistics crew on this ship to help you resist the Sixth Army's boarding?"