As a villain, I really don't want to be pursued by the heroine.

"That's right, our compatriots from other countries are in danger. As fellow tribesmen, how can we stand by and watch?!"

The believers of Holy Light were deeply moved, and for a time, there was a wave of enthusiasm to help the kingdom. Those who had money donated money, those who had strength donated strength, and some even put forward the slogan that those who did not help were not worthy of being believers of Holy Light. The publicity effect was extremely good.

Even before Alice's letter requesting the White Harbor army to be mobilized was sent out, a large number of volunteers had already arrived at the Academy as reinforcements.

In just one week, Roy gathered a large amount of logistical supplies escorted by hundreds of magicians, hundreds of clergymen, and thousands of ordinary infantrymen.

It may seem like a small number, but you have to know that the extraordinary army of any force in the Western Continent has no more than a thousand people.

The effect of an extraordinary army of two hundred people on the battlefield is definitely greater than that of a hundred times more soldiers.

The real main force of the reinforcements is the more than 300 Lionheart students.

Not only do all of them have extraordinary bloodlines, but half of them are Griffin Knights who have passed the Griffin Trial.

The most important thing is that there are a large number of nobles who have experience in fighting against dragons and military command. They are the most valuable core of this reinforcement.

A week later, the reinforcements were assembled.

Amid the farewell and encouragement of the people of the city, the reinforcements slowly drove through the streets.

After accepting the personal blessing from the golden-haired saint and bidding farewell to the waving elf girl in the crowd, Roy turned around, rode his golden-winged griffin, came to the front, and followed closely behind the princess riding on the golden-red griffin.

Step out of the city gate and head towards the unknown distance.

----------

Lionheart Kingdom, Southern Fortress.

Surrounded by mountains and covered with dense forests, deep in the mountains lies a long-forgotten fortress.

Time has left deep marks on the ancient fortress, its walls covered in moss and even lush vegetation. At first glance, it looks like an old beast, huddled in place, its dignity and life long gone.

However, the city walls and the barrier have not decayed with time.

The knights who retreated here held the last line of defense. The dragons that were rampant in the sky fell miserably under the fireballs and crossbows here, and a forbidden area was created in the air.

For the refugees and defeated troops coming from afar, this is the last hope.

The city gates were opened, and refugees flocked in. Some knelt on the ground, some collapsed from exhaustion, and some burst into tears in front of their compatriots, loudly praising the reputation of the kingdom's knights.

However, looking at the scene outside the city gate, the expressions of every noble in the kingdom were not very good.

The seemingly beautiful picture was but a ray of light in the darkness, and inside the fortress, it was already overcrowded and extremely crowded, and every soldier's face was filled with fatigue.

Even though the last hope was true, this southern fortress was now on the brink of collapse and was crumbling.

Chapter 35: Facing the Afterglow

In the lord's hall, high-ranking nobles gathered and respectfully reported the current situation to the prince who sat on the lord's throne.

With red hair as flamboyant as flames and a body as strong as a city wall, the First Prince's figure seems to have been carved out of the mold of the Lionheart King.

However, his face was not as rough as the king's. He inherited more of his mother's elegance and refinement, and was so handsome that he looked like a work of art.

Natsu Reinhardt. The first prince of the Lionheart Kingdom. Due to his long-term guarding of the kingdom's borders, he is little known to the common people.

However, due to his meritorious service in guarding the border, he enjoyed extremely high prestige in the army.

When the dragons attacked, Natsu immediately led the border troops back to defend, and reorganized the scattered southern nobles into a reliable line of defense. This saved the southern fortress and brought the last hope to the southern part of the kingdom.

But as time passed, the last hope came to an end.

"In short, there is a shortage of food, medicine, weapons, and manpower. Excuse me, Your Highness, but our resources are about to run out. At this juncture, continuing to allow refugees into the city is just digging our own graves!" The old minister sighed in pain, extremely anxious.

The usually handsome face darkened, and the red-haired prince fell into deep thought.

Or is it simply helpless silence.

The young noble stood up angrily and shouted, "Are you not letting the refugees into the city? Are you going to keep them outside to feed the dragons? The so-called noble insects are referring to people like you!"

The old nobleman also had a bad temper. He lost his humble demeanor in front of the prince, pointed at the prince's nose and spitted back, "I'm a bug? Little thing, nineteen years ago when I was fighting for the kingdom, you were still nursing at your mother's breast! Letting them in won't be enough to feed them. Even if we chop us all up, we can't feed so many people. By then, we'll be finished even without the dragons' intervention!"

A somewhat elegant young nobleman smiled miserably, but instead of trying to stop the fight, he sneered, "You're talking as if we're not done yet."

"Whether we release them or not, we can't hold on for long."

Retreating to the southern fortress was the only option at the time.

Without the support of city walls and barriers, the kingdom's army, with the exception of the Griffin Knights, was powerless to contend with the dragons in the sky.

However, it is an indisputable fact that the southern fortress has reached its limit.

These dragons were smarter than those in the 19th year. Instead of a mindless attack, they surrounded the fortress and chased the surrounding refugees into the fort, gradually consuming the fortress's supplies.

Ordinary military encirclements always have loopholes, but the Dragon Clan can rely on their air superiority to maintain a flawless encirclement. Even if they wanted to send people outside the city to plunder wild vegetables from the mountains and forests to satisfy their hunger, it would be difficult under the Dragon Clan's round-the-clock surveillance.

"There's no point in wasting time like this. Let's just fight these beasts to the bitter end!"

"No, in my opinion, retreating first is the best strategy!"

"So you're still going to abandon the civilians in the end? Are you still worthy of being called the Knights of the Lionheart?!"

"Then what can you do? Rush out and die?!"

In the previous battle, the available griffin riders were almost exhausted.

Without air power to contend with the dragons, no matter whether they were breaking out or retreating, once they left the city walls, they would be immediately attacked by the dragons from the air - they had already learned a bloody lesson.

Amidst the debate, someone timidly raised their hand: "Hold on a little longer. If the capital can kill the dragon..."

The scene froze, and everyone was eclipsed. However, no one paid any attention to the voice, and even the man himself shut his mouth dejectedly.

The dragons killed carrier pigeons everywhere, causing great obstacles to intelligence within the kingdom and elsewhere.

They only knew that the royal capital had assembled a large army to fight a decisive battle with the main force of the dragon clan, but no one knew the exact situation of the battle.

However, if the head dragon is killed, it will be reflected on all the dragons on the spot.

Today, the dragon clan is still rampant, and the situation in the royal capital is not optimistic no matter how you look at it, otherwise they would not have been forced to this point by the dragon clan.

But at this moment, a slightly magnetic voice broke the silence.

"We do need reinforcements, but not from the north, but from the south."

Further south is outside the Lionheart Kingdom. Natsu's meaning is very clear.

"If the previous messenger has completed his mission, then the first batch of reinforcements should be arriving soon."

The carrier pigeons could not escape the dragons' pursuit, so Natsu sent the few remaining griffin knights who were still able to fight to break out at all costs and head south for help.

But the prince's words did not change everyone's expression.

How many forces would be willing to lend their full support when the kingdom is at war? I'm afraid I'll collapse before they can come to a conclusion.

Her Highness could count on them. Even a few dozen more Griffin Knights would give them a slight chance of breaking through. But young people, after all, had never witnessed the horrors of war against dragons. Who knew how many of them would have the courage to shoulder the responsibility of a Transcendent?

What's more...

The old man sighed and spoke out the cruel reality: "Your Highness, you saw it too. That day, only one Griffin Knight managed to break through."

In other words, even the hope of reinforcements is slim.

No one says it directly, but it is a reality that everyone has realized.

The setting sun is like blood, and the afterglow is scattered.

The red-haired prince's vision was hazy, and he no longer had his former spirit.

The fate of the kingdom may still have a chance to turn around, but they may not be able to survive until the moment of turning defeat into victory.

But as if fate wasn't satisfied that they hadn't hit bottom yet and was about to give them one last push, a deafening roar erupted outside the window.

That is the shudder that has been engraved deep in the hearts of every Lionhearted citizen these days.

The roar of a dragon.

It is also a symbol of the dragon clan's attack.

Panic and anxiety inevitably arise, like a flock of sheep surrounded by wild beasts.

However, Natsu's eyes were resolute at this moment, and his face showed the same boldness and unruliness as before, but even more so than before.

"Everyone, perhaps our fate is coming to an end, but even so, we are lions, not sheep!"

"Before the dragon's teeth pierce us, our fangs will penetrate the dragon's scales first. Before the dragon's claws tear us apart, our claws will tear off the dragon's wings first!"

"Pass on my military order, and meet the enemy with all your might!"

Natsu straightened his bruised body, waved his cloak with his sleeves, and looked forward.

Regardless of whether they were cautious or reckless, young or old, at this moment, the same fire erupted in everyone's eyes, carrying surging blood - the blood of the Lionhearted Extraordinary, following the Lionhearted Prince, facing the blood-like setting sun.

Even if the sunset is about to end, he will not hesitate to burn out all his energy. This is the true knight of the kingdom.

--------

at the same time.

As soon as the reinforcements entered the country, they rescued a group of refugees.

Roy caught a young man who still had the strength to speak and asked curiously, "So, why don't you go to the town? Why run to the mountains?"

"Sir Knight, the towns around here have long since fallen. Only the southern fortress still has knights stationed there! It's the only safe place!"

Roy and Charlotte looked at each other and tacitly agreed on the next direction of travel.

Chapter 36: Lightning Breaks the Dragon

The fortress was stained red with blood.

Hundreds of flying dragons followed one after another, and each time they landed, they would take the lives of soldiers and drop broken limbs from the sky.

No one backed down.

They wouldn't stop until the ballistas were destroyed, and when their arrows ran out, they drew their short swords for hand-to-hand combat. The Lionheart Knights were brave enough, even when pierced by claws, they roared and used their blades to leave a final mark on their opponents.

However, under the overwhelming attack of the flying dragons, the defense line that had stood for many days finally began to collapse.

No one retreats, but the blood will eventually be shed.

Atop the mountain, a frosty dragon sneered, as if looking down upon the futile efforts of ants: "Look, they've already reached the brink of collapse, ready to crumble at any moment."

"Claude, your worries are totally unnecessary."

The middle-aged man in a black robe with dragon patterns was only the size of a giant dragon's front claws, and looked even more humble and insignificant when he was crawling and bending over.

"Lord Frostpaw, those soldiers are nothing to be feared, but we still cannot underestimate the First Prince. He is far beyond the ordinary Sequence 5. Even you might not be able to face the flames of Lionheart..."

"You think I can't beat him?"

The dragon's pupils opened slightly, and the temperature dropped suddenly.

Claudy lowered his body even lower, breaking out in a cold sweat: "Sir, that's not what I meant."

"Humph......"

Snorting coldly, Frostpaw quickly lost interest in him.

"The decisive battle in the north is imminent, and we've already wasted enough time here. Claude, a cat doesn't have to be cautious with mice. I've waited until now only to gather them together and capture them all in one fell swoop."

"And, make no mistake."

Swinging his dragon tail, Frostclaw grinned, his deep voice revealing deep contempt: "Us? You are not worthy."

"Even if you receive the gift of dragon blood, you [Evil Dragon Society] are just our slaves, nothing more."

"...Yes." Claudy was not annoyed, but showed an enthusiastic look, as if it was a great honor.

Pillars of fire shot up into the sky, and the dragon army that was advancing forward was forcibly pushed back.

Seeing this, Frostpaw couldn't wait to get up.

"It's time to put out this ridiculous fire."

--------

Natsu's attack briefly turned the tide of the battle.

There were a total of 100,000 defenders in the southern fortress, and more than half of them were lost in the successive fierce battles.

However, the fortress was able to stand firm precisely because of these princes.

Sequence 5, one against ten thousand.