A long time passed.
Lin Nuo finally came up along the ladder at the bottom of the cabin.
Dax Migludia stood in the lookout area at the bow, the lantern in his hand swaying in the night wind.
“Lin Nuo, do you understand what happened now?”
“I understand.”
Actually, before XÄ« lost consciousness, she had said a few more words, and Lin Nuo still remembered them.
She clung to her own weakening body and gave instructions to that paper angel: “If that person kills me, he will definitely seek revenge when he gets the chance. He can’t beat him yet…”
“If you see Dax Migludia, let him know, have someone take the Noble Young Master somewhere else to hide. Wait until his father returns before letting him come home…”
He still vaguely remembered that after XÄ« stopped talking, her fragrance lingered before him for a long time.
It was as if she hesitated for a very long time, then, using all her strength, she whispered a soft “goodbye”…
“Lin Nuo, I’ve always been tolerant of you, but this time, it’s impossible,” Dax Migludia’s tone was very stiff, “This is not a game.”
“Ankalamuheng, you should have heard of it.”
It was as if he was leaving him time to think about the origin of this magic artifact.
The air fell silent for dozens of seconds before Dax Migludia continued: “That magic artifact has already been deployed. The entire stretch of sea from the outskirts of Shilang Bay to the open ocean has had its magic power completely sealed off. Listen closely—completely.”
He emphasized that word: “No matter what element my mages are proficient in, as soon as they enter the anti-magic domain, not a single wisp of magic can be used.”
“I’m not even going to talk about the explosive ballistas on the ship— even the patrol ships driven by magic can’t get in, so we can only row by hand…”
Seeing Lin Nuo remain silent.
As if not wanting to lecture too much, Dax Migludia gave Lin Nuo a heavy pat on the back, letting out a dry laugh: “I don’t want to say too much, that’s all. You should understand.”
“Mm.” Lin Nuo didn’t try to gloss over it, and instead raised the most fundamental issue: “Generally speaking, in battles between mages and monsters, the mages win due to their superior control of magic. An outstanding team of mages, working together, can prevent hundreds of monsters from getting close.”
“But monsters have the advantage in numbers. There are far too many of them, countless really,”
“Ankalamuheng has turned the current situation into a standoff where neither the church’s monsters nor the mages can use magic.”
“But, The monsters from the Skeleton Church outnumber us mages by a crushing margin.”
In the past, facing a monster tide.
Even if three thousand mages faced ten thousand cultists, it was like three thousand frogs facing ten thousand flying insects.
There was still a chance but this magic artifact completely erased the advantage the mages once held.
Now it had become three thousand flying insects against ten thousand flying insects… No.
They weren’t up against ten thousand, or fifty thousand, or eighty thousand, not even a hundred thousand…
But the entire Skeleton Church’s cultists and monsters.
Their enemies numbered two hundred thousand in total!
“What is the current situation?” Lin Nuo asked.
Even when confronted with enemies whose numbers were dozens of times greater, so much so that there was not even a hint of a chance at victory, Lin Nuo still calmly asked.
Dax Migludia was silent for a moment, but finally spoke: “The outer perimeter of Shilang Bay has a defensive line set up using the Sea Demon’s giant bones, but it’s of little real use.”
“From what I’ve observed, if the monsters from the Elemental Forest hadn’t long dwelled in caves and weren’t yet used to the tossing of the sea, which slowed them down, Shilang Bay would have been flattened by now.”
It was in this irreversible situation that Lin Nuo suddenly understood why XÄ« had said goodbye so suddenly and decisively.
She had said that all her power came from Shilang Bay, perhaps meaning… the vitality or faith from that place?
He didn’t know.
But there was no doubt that if Shilang Bay was leveled by monsters, she, having lost her source of life, would die.
With that tone of an impending farewell.
Because she knew this would be a fight with absolutely no chance of victory.
“There are mages in the magic world who can break through Ankalamuheng by brute force, but they’re not people I or Shilang Bay can invite, even if we wanted to, it would be too late. Blaineau is very shrewd; he was able to launch so many monsters and warships in just a few days—his preparations started earlier and were more thorough than I imagined.”
“From the moment the surprise attack began, the fall of Shilang Bay was inevitable.”
“In the first place, no great lord of the Divine Empire would ever bother about cultists invading the area around Shiguang Sea—that’s not the domain of any lord to meddle in.”
“Myself and a few of my subordinates only thought of helping her because we owed her our lives a long time ago.”
“Even so, I can’t even be bothered to see how many of those sergeants and lieutenants she once saved have volunteered to come here and die…”
Lin Nuo understood.
Not only did they face two hundred thousand enemies.
Even the strength on their own side, just in numbers, was far less than the other…
“You know who I mean by ‘her,’ and she can’t retreat. She’d rather see you being the one kept safe. So Lin Nuo, this time Uncle Dax Migludia must apologize, I can’t let you go die in vain.”
A long, long time passed.
The Gilded, still heading toward the Capital, slowed its speed.
It was a sign they were nearing the harbor.
Dax Migludia had cast a speed spell on the Gilded to get to the Capital faster, cutting off any time to reconsider…
They would be there very soon.
It seemed Lin Nuo accepted the choice made after his rational judgment, and only gazed quietly at the sea.
After a long while, Dax Migludia finally heard him ask in an even tone: “Can you answer a question for me?”
“If I remember correctly, Uncle Dax Migludia, you lost a leg in a battle eight years ago and after that battle, you went from being a centurion who led just a hundred men in the Knight Order to suddenly being promoted, step by step, to your current position as a lord… I just asked Kaier, and for a centurion of sergeant rank to be promoted, it must mean you led an incredible victory.”
“I want to know—was the situation eight years ago the same as now? And how did you win? As for the things I can’t remember, you must know the truth. Or, to be blunt… Eight years ago, the Holy Knight who took the ten-year-old me on an adventure was you, right?”
“…..”
Eight years—a number that made Lin Nuo extremely sensitive.
Adding together the years Dax Migludia and XÄ« had known each other, plus the fact that this proud earl addressed XÄ« with respectful but not fearful ‘Lady XÄ«,’ and thinking of the word ‘naval battle,’ it wasn’t hard to reach a conclusion.
“Not the same.”
“That battle, for me, was nothing glorious. In fact, looking back, I know I was very cowardly.”
“If you want to talk about my promotions starting from sergeant, I can only tell you: I led nine hundred battered soldiers, and was routed by fifty thousand cultists.”
“Later, by a stroke of luck and her kindness, we happened to win that battle…”
As if reminiscing about the past.
He carelessly set his cane aside and looked toward a certain direction on the sea.
He suddenly put his hand on Lin Nuo’s shoulder, his tone both comforting and regretful, “I once asked my men, if it were you, the one from the Clemence Family, with only nine hundred battered soldiers against fifty thousand cultists… What would you do?”
“Without exception, they all said, you? You’d probably surrender. Then I asked, what if it were me, nine hundred against fifty thousand?”
“I don’t know if those blockheads were flattering me or speaking the truth because of my temper… They all said, I’d fight to the bitter end.”
“So Uncle Dax Migludia means, eight years ago I had a say too, and didn’t think of surrendering?” Lin Nuo guessed, “And maybe even at ten years old, I played some unusual role?”
“No.”
“In my view, you brat, you didn’t do anything remarkable,” Dax Migludia said, “It was just that eight years ago, leading nine hundred subordinates against fifty thousand cultists was too despairing. As a centurion, I was responsible for my soldiers’ lives, and I did think of surrendering…”
“But you wouldn’t let me retreat.”
“Then it sounds like I wasn’t anything special after all.”
Not wanting him to get too proud, Dax Migludia choked up at that.
He wanted to continue, to talk about how glorious that battle was, and what an incredible thing that ten-year-old child had done.
But Lin Nuo seemed to truly not care about the history Dax Migludia cared about.
He revealed his real purpose and asked: “So, actually, eight years ago it was XÄ« who helped you win, and I was with you…”
“So I owe XÄ« my life too, don’t I? Then can I go with you to Shilang Bay?”
Dax Migludia was silent.
He raised his cane to let Lin Nuo look at the harbor under the night sky.
“We’ve docked, don’t go. When we land, I’ll knock you out, and you can sleep in the Capital for a few days. When you wake up…”
Dax Migludia’s brow relaxed as he looked Lin Nuo up and down, from a tagalong little brat to a young man as tall as him.
“Just pretend you never knew Uncle Dax Migludia, or that person.”
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