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

"As expected of Lieutenant Zod, I thought Lieutenant Nobunaga who was parachuted in from the rear would be just a pretty face!" a soldier said with a sigh of relief.

But another veteran slapped him hard on the head: "Still calling him 'Second Lieutenant,' this is a real Second Lieutenant in our 'Imperial Blade' Legion!"

"Lieutenant Zod, from this day forward, I, Holt, am willing to follow you to the death!" A new recruit who had recently joined the "Imperial Blade" legion solemnly declared.

"Is this true? A lieutenant from the rear took down a lieutenant from the Holy Kingdom?"

"My former lieutenant was executed by 'Executioner' Barnes. I never thought I would be able to personally witness the moment Barnes became a corpse."

"I thought we were going to die here."

"If Lieutenant Zod can't beat 'Executioner' Barnes, we're all going to die here!"

All the soldiers of the Empire were grateful to have survived this ordeal.

If Zod hadn't withstood Barnes's attacks and completely defeated him...

Anyone present would have been unable to defeat Barnes's offensive just now.

All that awaited them was total annihilation.

Although Barnes' moves only consist of "three basic attacks," you must first be able to withstand them and become familiar with his moves before you have a chance to counterattack.

Most people can't withstand Barnes's set of attacks.

Even Lieutenant Hitis couldn't do that.

On the battlefield, there are always those who rejoice and those who grieve.

On the other side, the soldiers of the Holy Kingdom were shocked to see Lieutenant Barnes, known as the "Executioner," being taken down by a mere lieutenant from the Empire.

Many new recruits have lost their will to fight.

"Are you kidding me? Lieutenant Barnes... how can we possibly fight against a monstrous Imperial lieutenant?"

"Lieutenant Barnes, wake up! You said you wouldn't lose to any Imperial dog, you're the 'Executioner'!"

Despite the Holy Kingdom soldier calling out Barnes' name, Barnes remained motionless as he lay on the ground.

"Heh heh heh~ The lieutenant's dead. How can I possibly win? I still have family at home!"

The soldier dropped his weapon, took a few steps back, and looked around at the other soldiers, hoping to find one or two like-minded people to leave the battlefield together.

"The lieutenant's dead, so what's the point of us risking our lives?"

Lieutenant Barnes' death left the Holy Kingdom's soldiers leaderless for a moment.

Furthermore, no one dared to step forward and lead the Holy Kingdom's entire army to regroup and launch a renewed offensive.

After all, Zod is still on the field!

Even the officers of the Holy Kingdom looked at each other, none of them wanting to be the first to step forward and die.

Thus, the battle between the two sides fell into a strange stalemate.

Having regained his composure, Zod loudly proclaimed, "All Imperial soldiers, heed my command! Follow me and charge out! I will bring you home!"

Zod's physical strength was nearing its limit, coupled with the various accumulated injuries on his body.

Although "Iron Defense" protected the vital parts, this martial arts technique is not an all-powerful armor and cannot cover the entire body.

Even the strengthened parts only significantly reduce damage, not become immune.

The moment Zod defeated Barnes, it was as if his taut nerve had snapped.

All the fatigue in his body surged up at this moment, and he staggered a few steps, almost losing his balance.

It was only the instinct for survival that pulled him back from the brink of collapse.

He's a man who's constantly thinking about how to survive.

He cannot let his guard down until the danger is over.

"Roar! Roar! Roar!!!" Upon hearing Zod's voice, the Imperial soldiers were all like they had been injected with chicken blood, their morale soaring to unprecedented heights, and they moved towards Zod's direction.

At this moment, they knew that only Zod could lead them to a bright future.

Only Zod can lead them back to their homeland.

In fact, their mission was not yet over, and Zod had not yet received orders to retreat.

But at this moment, he no longer cared about any of those damn orders; he just wanted to go back, to go back safely.

As for whether he should be dismissed, disciplined, or sent back to his original unit, that would suit his wishes perfectly.

He had no intention of staying on such a hopeless battlefield just because of a death order.

Under Zod's leadership, the Imperial soldiers broke through the outskirts of Clock Tower with unstoppable momentum.

After Barnes fell, the soldiers of the Holy Kingdom lost their will to fight and collapsed at the first touch when faced with the high morale of the Imperial soldiers.

Zod broke through the Holy Kingdom soldiers' encirclement with virtually no resistance.

Just when everything was progressing exceptionally smoothly, and the complete evacuation of Clock Tower Town was only a matter of time...

A shell that had been fired from the outskirts of Clock Tower Town flew straight toward Zod, its tail whistling as it hurtled towards the town.

Cassius and Hitis watched helplessly as the cannonball flew toward Zod, trying to tackle him, but they were too far away, and it was too late to warn him.

Zod, however, was covered in wounds from his battle with Barnes and had not yet fully recovered.

By the time they realized the shells were approaching and tried to escape, it was too late.

Only at the moment the shell landed could the steel defense be applied to the side closest to the shell.

The shell landed on the wall behind Zod's side, shattering the bricks and sending shrapnel and debris flying everywhere.

As one shell fell, several more followed, raining down around Zod's body. Shrapnel flew at high speed, whistling through the air.

Instantly, Zod's body was shrouded in smoke, his fate unknown.

The instant he saw Zod engulfed by the artillery fire, Cassius had no time for fear or shock. As if by reflex, he rushed toward Zod without regard for anything else. He could not believe, nor could he accept, that Zod would die like this.

Hitis gritted her teeth and rushed into the smoke without hesitation, not caring whether more shells would fall from above.

They all had only one thought in their minds: to make sure Zod was not in any danger and then rescue him.

When they rushed into the smoke, they saw Zod lying on the ground, his uniform torn apart and his exposed skin covered in blood and gore.

His face was blackened by gunfire, and blood trickled from the corners of his mouth and nostrils.

He lay motionless on the ground, looking as if he were dead.

Cassius knelt on the ground, never having the courage to check if Zod was still breathing.

At this moment, Hitis swallowed and nervously placed her hand in front of Zod's nose.

Her fingers were trembling uncontrollably; she was filled with fear, fear that she would lose all feeling between her fingers.

Until Hitis's fingers felt that unusually faint, warm breath.

She breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness, Lieutenant Zod is still alive."

Cassius's heart finally settled down, and then his gaze became unusually firm: "Warrant Lieutenant Hitis, Lieutenant Zod is not truly out of danger yet. The lieutenant is seriously injured, and we must get him to the hospital immediately."

This was Cassius's only thought at the moment; he only wanted to save Zod, and even the most important tasks had to be put on hold.

After the artillery fire stopped, the soldiers of the Holy Kingdom surrounded them again from all sides.

The Holy Kingdom's reinforcements have arrived at Bell Tower Town; the artillery barrage just now was merely their preliminary offensive.

Just as one crisis was averted, another, like the Grim Reaper, arrived, giving the team no chance to catch their breath.