Arknights' Lock of Heaven

Unlike the menacing preparations at the border, the infected's base remained as calm as ever.

So calm was it that Speaker Witt even wondered if he was dreaming.

I had planned to get a good night's sleep to be in the best condition to face the upcoming turmoil, but...

"Haven't they prepared for war?" Looking at the usual scene outside the porthole, Witt turned and asked, "No mobilization? No war preparedness? The relocation of the elderly, the infirm, and the sick, even..."

“Yes, they did nothing,” the guard said, equally bewildered. “They even withdrew the men from the front lines!”

Although those guerrillas certainly couldn't stop the nobles' fleet, you withdrew them all...

Didn't I give them any information last night?

“It was given to me, right in front of me, I remember it clearly.”

At this point, the two looked at each other and remained silent for a moment.

What exactly is going on?

"Let's go, let's go find them and ask them properly!"

------

"The army is coming."

It was still that secluded little house, where the three spy chiefs sat together.

"We are finally free."

It's hard to tell whether this statement is a sign of relief or sorrow.

“But don’t you think something is very wrong?” Petal forced himself to speak. “I don’t think the defenses can be kept secret from the Imperial Council. Witt will definitely get the news.”

"He would definitely share intelligence with the infected, but the base is no different from before."

"It's like they had no idea the army was about to attack. Do you think that's possible?"

“What’s the point of thinking so much?” David sneered. “You might as well think more about the future.”

"When the cunning rabbit dies, the hunting dog is cooked; the Duke will not allow us to live."

"The Unfading Flower, our last hope is the Unfading Flower!" Petar said confidently upon hearing this. "The proposed Gaia... that target is too big for us to control. Only the Unfading Flower is needed. The Duke of Ural needs this."

At this point, he looked at Elena.

He hadn't forgotten that "father" from before; who knew that a duke's daughter would become a blood pact assassin just like them?

“I can help you with anything, and there’s only one condition,” Elena said frankly, meeting his gaze. “Speaker Witt… once we catch him, he can’t die.”

“Impossible!” David exclaimed vehemently. “He absolutely cannot live…”

"I want to ask him a question, and after that... it won't matter whether he lives or dies."

471 Today is a beautiful, sunny day.

If viewed from hundreds of meters above the sky, the Ursus's tidal wave of attacks would be an absolutely spectacular sight.

Rows of black-painted warships stood straight like sharp arrows, obscuring the earth as they hurtled toward their target.

Thanks to its vast territory and abundant mineral reserves, Ursus boasts one of the world's leading industrial capabilities, resulting in a massive fleet that instills fear in neighboring countries.

Although Ursus had already suffered two defeats in wars before, those nations knew that these defeats were entirely due to internal political struggles within Ursus.

If they unite...

“What a magnificent sight!” Grand Duke Vanya watched the Ursus advance from his flagship, a surge of pride welling up within him.

It wasn't just him; any man with a bit of a desire for power would have sighed at the sight of dozens of warships leading an armed fortress on the defensive line in a grand and imposing advance.

It's really spectacular.

The army here is elite, or rather, most of them are elite.

“Look at this orderly rhythm, I told you they would be fine,” Grand Duke Vanya said smugly, pointing to the army and addressing Grand Duke Belgaard. “They are all well-trained officers, and even without specific military arrangements, they can handle everything on their own.”

"What you worry about will never happen."

Grand Duke Belgaard could only keep a dark expression on his face and remain silent.

As for why...does that even need to be explained?

What makes Grand Duke Vanya so arrogant?

Isn't it because he has a fully organized army group under his command?

As for himself... the thought of half of his Third Army being destroyed in Chernobog filled Grand Duke Belgrade with immense heartache.

That's almost half an army group!

If it weren't for the fact that it was a secret operation and it was inconvenient to bring warships and other weapons of war... we probably wouldn't even have our current assets left.

Even with some remaining resources, the quality of the recruited soldiers was completely incomparable to that of the previous ones.

Fortunately, I wasn't the only one who suffered. No matter what, I didn't lose any warships, right? Look at the Grand Duke of the Urals, not only were 80% of his officers wiped out, but he also lost two warships.

Thinking about it this way, Grand Duke Belgaard suddenly felt much better. Indeed, what people fear most is comparison.

The two dukes were the only ones in command on site. There should have been another Grand Duke of the Urals, but after what happened with the Sixth Army, if he were brought in to command, he probably wouldn't survive the month.

There were also two dukes who provided troops, but they themselves did not come. As for the miscellaneous armies and private militias of the counts, marquises, and other nobles below, there is no need to say more.

However, what Archduke Vanya said also makes a lot of sense.

The army's advance was indeed well-organized.

He looked out from the bridge, and his fears had not come true.

Ursus's offensive was spectacular, and terrifying.

When those warships appeared on the horizon, no opponent dared to underestimate them, not even the victorious Victoria had to be cautious.

The vast territory, abundant mineral resources, and industrial capacity brought about by a large and inexpensive population make Ursus's fleet size enough to terrify its enemies.

While some small countries couldn't even afford to build a single high-speed warship, the Ursus nobles were already able to take more than fifty warships to the snowfields to crush the infected.

This is not the full strength of the nobles, much less the full strength of Ursus.

Under the orders of the two dukes, more than fifty warships set sail towards the snowfield, accompanied by various armed vehicles.

Warships naturally cannot operate alone in most situations, and boarding maneuvers remain popular even in modern times.

A Victorian military strategist in Terra once said in his book that the first layer of protection for a warship lies in its guns, the second in its speed, the third in the surrounding escorting forces, and finally, in the armed personnel inside the ship.

To take down a proper warship, you first have to get past its gunfire, then catch up with it, then break through the surrounding escort vehicles, and finally board it.

The mission of these escort vehicles is to survey the surrounding environment and ensure the safety of the warship itself.

Normally, they would only do this when entering a battlefield. If it were just an attack on a group of infected, they wouldn't make such a big show of it.

However, the lessons learned from the Sixth Army Group are still fresh in our minds, so even if we slow down our speed, we must still implement an early warning mechanism.

Although there might only be one unlucky person, who would expect that unlucky person to be themselves?

This created a massive black curtain covering the snow-covered ground, not to mention the dozens of mobile armed fortresses that followed behind.

These armed fortresses are not actually suitable for the front-line battlefield. They are large in size and carry more weapons and personnel, but they are slow. They are more suitable for several armed fortresses to guard an important waterway or a strategic location together.

Compared to warships, their origins are even more diverse, including those used by the military, those built by nobles, and some nobles even brought their ancestral mobile fortresses to the front lines in order to take a gamble in the upcoming upheaval.

Compared to warships, these mobile fortresses are the main force in establishing a defensive line.

Now, these fortresses are also heading to the snowfields.

After seizing that simulated Gaia technology, someone has to guard it, and that's what they're responsible for.

They kept that technology, which could completely transform Ursus, firmly in the hands of the nobles.

Previously, the emperor and the council were always afraid that the nobles would become desperate and completely split Ursus, so they kept making various concessions.

Now that they have seized that technology, the nobles will be in a panic and fear the emperor will do something rash. Although the nobles don't have as many troops as the nobles, they still have two regular army groups and various armed supporters.

Rather than letting them stay here waiting for these nobles who brought their own provisions to come and curry favor to be won over or for their mobile fortresses to be destroyed, it would be better to take them directly to the snowfield and tie them completely to the dukes' chariots.

Therefore, the fleet became even larger, with more than fifty warships lined up in front, followed by countless armed vehicles, and a huge armed fortress slowly following behind. If viewed from the air, this scene would be enough to terrify anyone who opposed them.

At least that's what the dukes thought.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Are you all ready?"

In their hidden hideout, Petar looked at his two colleagues.

“I’ve already made the arrangements,” Petar said with a grim face. “When the time comes, they will spread the news that the army is coming. I don’t expect it to cause too much trouble, but at least it will make the guerrillas busy.”

"Only in this way can we fish in troubled waters."

At this point, Petar looked at Elena.

"I'm ready on my side too. My assassins will use the medical supply transport missions I arranged to infiltrate the eco-park and take control of the researchers there after the operation begins."

"In any case, we must keep control of this already operational equipment and the researchers who understand the technology. As for the Orville... that's a matter for the military."

"I'm here..." David paused for a moment, and hesitated for two seconds in front of his two colleagues.

“What exactly happened, David?” Perta asked anxiously, frowning. “What time is it? Haven’t you figured out the situation yet?”