I only wanted to retire, but I ended up becoming an extremely popular character.

In Chapter 102, to some extent, he even had to thank these imperial dogs!

Lieutenant Lucien turned around abruptly, his pupils shrinking.

He never expected that the soldiers of the Empire would be so "despicable" as to launch a sneak attack while he was distracted!

He tried to block Cassius's attack, but it was too late.

He instinctively dodged to the side, trying to avoid a vital spot.

But Cassius's sword was too fast; the longsword sliced ​​across his chest, tearing a gash in his uniform, and blood gushed out instantly, staining Lucien's chest red.

He staggered backward, clutching his wound, his face deathly pale.

Meanwhile, on Hitis's side...

As a woman, and as a sniper, she never talked about being "upright and honorable".

Sneak attacks are part of her job, and she has no psychological burden about it.

On the contrary, she was better at doing things quietly than others.

Just as Warrant Officer Frosent's gaze turned toward Zod, and he was momentarily stunned, Hitis had already raised her rifle.

He subtly adjusted the muzzle, aiming it at Warrant Officer Frosent's heart.

The speed and timing were so fast that it was impossible to defend against.

She intended to end the fight with one shot.

"Bang!" A gunshot rang out.

Lieutenant Frosente was jolted awake at the last second, his body instinctively tilting to one side. The bullet grazed his heart and pierced his shoulder blade.

He groaned, clutching his shoulder as blood gushed from between his fingers. His arm instantly lost all strength and fell limply to his side.

Lieutenant Lucien gritted his teeth, his gaze sweeping rapidly across the battlefield.

At the critical moment, Lieutenant Lucien quickly assessed the situation: Lieutenant Patrick had died in battle, his body lying at the feet of the Imperial Lieutenant named Zod.

He and Warrant Officer Frosent were both ambushed and injured by that pack of despicable Imperial dogs, and the Imperial lieutenant exuded a dangerous aura.

They have little chance of winning this battle.

He wasn't sure if continuing the fight would result in total annihilation, since they still held a numerical advantage.

But so what?

Most importantly, Lucien will definitely be the first to die.

That lieutenant nicknamed "Empire Eagle" will definitely kill him first.

Lucien didn't want to die, much less to be buried with someone in a battle he couldn't win.

Moreover, he was also injured. Even if he retreated, it wouldn't be considered cowardice or desertion in the face of battle, but rather that he was forced to retreat because he was outmatched and seriously injured.

Such a reason is reasonable. Even if the superiors do not intend to reward him for his bloodshed, there is no reason to hold them accountable.

Besides, Lucien himself didn't really want to go to the meat grinder of Sarlom City to die.

I heard that the battle over there is extremely fierce, with the "Imperial Blade" Legion and the "Black Sheep Saint" Division locked in a bloody and chaotic fight.

A second lieutenant in the "Imperial Blade" regiment even killed his superior, Lieutenant Patrick.

As a lowly lieutenant, he frankly had no choice but to get involved in this war if he had the option.

He valued his own life more than dying for the so-called glory of the Holy Kingdom.

Rather than sending them to their deaths, it's better to lead the troops in a retreat now.

His wounds are still quite deep; he definitely won't be able to go back to the battlefield without resting for a while.

This gave him the perfect excuse to escape this damned war.

In some ways, he even had to thank this group of imperial dogs who suddenly appeared.

If it weren't for them, I might have already embarked on the road to hell.

Although he felt a little sorry for Lieutenant Patrick, Lucien knew in his heart that this was the battlefield, and only the survivors had the right to speak about right and wrong.

The casualty rate of vanguard teams like theirs is already alarmingly high, so it's better for them to retire gracefully.

As for the reasons for the retreat, based on the basic facts, a little artistic embellishment should suffice!

Lieutenant Lucien made his decision in just a few seconds.

After Lieutenant Patrick's death, he is now the highest-ranking commander here and has the authority to issue orders.

"All soldiers, listen to my command—" Lucien took a deep breath and shouted hoarsely, "Retreat!!"

Lucien knew this was just an encounter, and the Imperial army's objective was to reinforce the town of Segner.

If the commander of this imperial army wasn't insane, they shouldn't have wasted much time on Lucien's troops.

Moreover, Lucien still has the advantage in military strength. If things get really heated, and both sides fight to the death, the Empire won't gain much advantage either.

Upon hearing Lieutenant Lucien's order, Warrant Officer Forcent breathed a sigh of relief.

After all, he was also injured, and if the fight continued, it would be quite disadvantageous for him.

Warrant Officer Frosent secretly rejoiced, then loudly repeated Lieutenant Lucien's order: "Retreat! Retreat now!"

Lieutenant Lucien and Warrant Officer Fersent led their troops in a retreating, fighting and withdrawing, heading away from the city of Sallom and the town of Segner.

Since the Holy Kingdom has more troops than Zod, pursuing them and pushing them too far will not bring any real advantage.

Cassius and Hitis wanted to give chase, but after only a short distance, Zod called out to them, "Don't bother chasing."

Zod's voice was weary, but his conviction was unwavering: "They're not going to reinforce Saallom; we have our own mission."

He understood all too well the desire to survive.

If that Holy Kingdom army dares to flee towards the city of Sarlom, they will only die even faster.

The battlefield there was terrifying even to Zod, let alone the two wounded lieutenants.

The fact that they didn't go that way proves that they just wanted to survive and had no intention of fighting again.

Moreover, Zod's current goal is quite simple: to get as far away from Saallom as possible.

If the Imperial Blades decide to fight to the death and seize the city of Sarlom, it will soon become a living hell.

(Of course, at this moment he was unaware that Xavier had already decided to retreat.)

Upon receiving Zod's order, Cassius and Hitis immediately stopped their pursuit and returned to Zod's side.

The moment Hitis saw Zod, her heart clenched.

Zod had many large and small wounds on his body, his face was pale, he was covered in sweat, and his eyes looked so tired that he looked like he was about to collapse at any moment.

She used to take it for granted that as long as Lieutenant Zod was there, everything would be fine.

But at this moment she suddenly realized that Lieutenant Zod was just an ordinary person. He could get hurt, get tired, and show such a weak expression.

If she could, she really wanted to share some of his burden.

"Medic—" Hitis turned around in a panic and called out, "Medic!"

"No need, Hitis." Zod raised his hand to interrupt her, his voice low but steady: "They're just minor injuries, nothing serious."

"Your body—" Cassius stopped mid-sentence.

He knew that Zod's injuries were minor; what was more serious was that Zod had exhausted himself.

Lieutenant Zod needs a good rest.

Cassius changed the subject: "Lieutenant Zod, the soldiers are all tired from coming from Saallom. Why don't we rest here for a bit? Sharpening the axe won't delay the work."

Hitis immediately understood what Cassius meant.

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