Three days later, Lux's group finally arrived at the forefront of the battlefield.
The first thing they did was to report to the Grand General who was in charge of the campaign in order to drive the Yelan Army off its borders, and reclaim the lands that had been taken from them.
Truth be told, this was the greatest humiliation that the Ammar Kingdom had suffered ever since it had conquered two of its neighbors some years past.
The King of the Ammar Kingdom even vowed that as soon as the Yelan Kingdom fell into his hands, he would declare the birth of the Ammar Empire, uniting all the lands that surrounded its borders.
"So, you are a Mercenary Group," the Great General, who seemed to be in his early forties, scanned the faces of the teenagers in front of him and snorted. "All of you still smell like breast milk. Are you sure you are qualified to be on the battlefield? How about you lads just become part of our Logistic Team and help us carry the supplies on the battlefield.
"The ladies on the other hand can become the bed warmers of the other Generals to ensure that they are in top condition. Of course, if you'd like to warm my bed, I would be more than happy to receive you girls."
Henrietta, as well as the five other ladies that belonged to the Storm Dragon Guild, Skystead Alliance, and Xynnar War Pact, all frowned after hearing the General's words.
They could tell that the Great General was very serious, which proved that he wasn't taking them seriously.
Lux understood why the General was acting as arrogant as he was, because the man talking to them now was a High-Ranker.
'At least Rank A or Rank S,' Lux mused as he gazed at the silver-eyed man with platinum blonde hair in front of him.
Standing behind the Great General were also two other Rankers, who seemed to be his close aides. Although their rank was lower than the Great General, the Half-Elf assumed that their ranks were somewhere between Rank C and Rank A, making them very formidable fighters.
"Your offer is good, but I am afraid we have to pass," Lux replied with a smile. "We are mercenaries, so if we die on the battlefield, that only means that we lack the abilities to survive. I would appreciate it if you didn't mock our resolve to fight in this war."
The Great General snorted, but judging with how he looked at the Half-Elf, he seemed to be satisfied with Lux's answer.
"Very well." The Great General who goes by the name, Rafael Watts, gave the members of Lux's Mercenary Group a side-long glance before shifting his attention back to the Half-Elf. "Since you want to prove yourselves in battle, I will give you a chance."
The Great General made a gesture for the Half-Elf and his group to follow him at the large table where the map of the battlefield was laid out.
Several wooden pieces, representing the various units of the Ammar and Yelan Armies, were scattered in different places.
"Right now, we have four battlefields," Great General Rafael said. "The battle in the Forest, which was led by General Revon, the Mountain battlefield led by General Herodes, the battle in the Plains led by General Gideon, and the Marshland Battle led by General Phobus."
The Great General pointed at the different places on the map and told the Half-Elf about the number of soldiers, as well as the number of mercenary groups that had joined each battlefield.
"As you may already know, the Ammar Kingdom is bigger than the Yelan Kingdom," Great General Rafael stated. "Because of this, we decided to fight them on four fronts, thinning out their manpower, and allowing us to break past their defenses. However, these bastards have proved to be quite tenacious, and managed to hold their strongholds against our relentless assault.
"Right now, this is a battle of attrition, so every small victory on the battlefield is important. They have the geographical advantage, but we have the advantage in numbers. As long as one of our Generals is able to break past their defenses, their entire formation will crumble, and all of them will be routed out."
Lux didn't say anything and simply listened to what the Great General was saying.
He wanted to know everything about the battlefield, so he committed all the information that was shared to him and his Mercenary Group to memory.
"Do you have any questions?" Great General Rafael asked.
Lux nodded as he scanned the different battlefields on the map.
"Among these locations, which one has the highest chance of a breakthrough?" Lux asked, which made the corner of Great General Rafael's lips rise slightly.
"Here," Great General Rafael replied as he pointed at the Marshlands. "Unlike the other battlefields, they don't have as firm a foothold in the marshes, and the fog that rises up during the early morning, and late evening reduces the visibility by a good margin. It will be very easy for a small elite unit to navigate in the marshland, taking them by surprise."
Lux narrowed his eyes as he looked at the estimated number of troops of the Yelan Empire in the marshes.
According to the report, the Yelan Kingdom has placed at least 50,000 to 100,000 troops in the Marshlands to defend against the Ammar Kingdom's advance.
The Ammar Army stationed there, which was led by General Phobus, was 60,000 strong, posing a great danger to the defenders due to the extremely low visibility during certain times of the day.
"Understood." Lux looked at the Marshland with a determined gaze. "We will go to this battlefield."
Great General Rafael nodded his head as he took out a letter of recommendation from his drawer, and wrote the name of Lux's Mercenary group, Ars Goetia, in it before stamping it with his seal.
This scroll would serve as Lux's and his Mercenary Group's documents, allowing them to pass through the several checkpoints along the way.
When they were a good distance away from the Main Headquarters of the Ammar Kingdom, Henrietta patted Lux's shoulder and gave him a curious gaze.
"Why did you choose the Marshland?" Henrietta asked. "The numbers that the Great General gave us weren't verified, so there might be more enemy troops stationed there. Fighting in the marshland is also difficult because it would slow our advance. Did you decide to choose this because the Great General subtly urged you to choose this location?"
Lux smiled after hearing Henrietta's inquiry. What she asked were all valid questions, but for now, he didn't have any intention of telling her anything.
In the end, the Half-Elf only told her that it would be a surprise, which made Henrietta shake her head helplessly.
"Fine, you're the boss," Henrietta said. "I'll just wait and see this 'surprise' that you are talking about."
The red-headed teenager only chuckled as he looked at the scenery, while they rode the wagons headed towards the Marshland.
There was something he wanted to try, and he didn't know if it would succeed. However, if it did, he might be able to break the current stalemate of the war, and help his "Allies" win one of the battlefields that was currently suffering from a stalemate.
Half a day later, they arrived at their destination, just in time to hear the sound of explosions caused by the spells that were being unleashed across the battlefield.
"Both sides are just using long range attacks," Einar said as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I guess I can understand why they are doing this. The one who crosses the marshland will be at a disadvantage and will become sitting ducks."
Lux nodded in agreement to Einar's words. The marshland did pose a hurdle against land units who would be susceptible to spells, arrows, and cannon fire from the opposing party.
"Strange, why aren't they using flying mounts to attack from the sky?" Henrietta mused as she looked at the dozens of hippogriffs that were lazing around on the Ammar Army's Main Camp in the Marshlands.
"Maybe they are afraid that they will be shot down from the air?" Cai answered with a doubtful expression.
Lux ordered everyone to just observe the battle for the time being. He didn't want to approach the General in command while the skirmish was happening, because he was afraid that it would leave a bad impression.
Since that was the case, he just opened his Soul Book and checked the map, and examined it properly.
He was looking for possible routes that he could take in order to cross to the other side, and scout the true number of troops that the Yelan Army had.
Right now, he needed all the information he could get.
He had a hunch that Watson's and Sherlock's Ranks were no different from the Great General's, whom they had just met, which would prove to be vital in the plan that was slowly hatching inside his head.
