After hearing Minos' voice, Brooke had a sad expression on her beautiful face in disbelief of what her old childhood friend had told her.
But she did not have much time to talk more with Minos when someone took her to the post where the weaker soldiers who would not participate in this conflict were.
For the time being, Brooke would be escorted to Minos' residence, where she would be under house arrest until he returned from battle.
With that, that young woman could only feel the apprehension of knowing that the chances of her and her family losing something today were not slight.
Brooke naturally had no great love for the specialists in her family, as well as would be true any young member of organizations like hers. She would, of course, feel bad if her family lost such people since it would mean that their power would be less.
But this was purely for the organization's sake, her immediate family members, herself. Like most nobles of her age, she valued the symbolism of having specialists. Still, she would not particularly mourn the death of the specialist 'x' or 'y'.
So, her concern upon hearing Minos' comment was not because of her great love for the specialists of her organization, but because of what it would mean for the organization itself!
Sure, there was her father, the person she truly cared about, who was unfortunately in King Brown's group.
But other than that, she was only worried about the destruction this would mean for her noble house.
"Minos!" She cried out with tears in her eyes as she was pushed further and further away from that place where he was.
...
More than an hour later...
While the Black Plain Army and allies were waiting for the moment to act, the tens of thousands of opponents had arrived in the vicinity of Dry City!
From the positions Minos' soldiers and allies were in and out of the local defensive dome, they could all see the masses of enemies to the rear of that area.
'And to think there would be so many...' One of the many soldiers in that city thought to himself as he saw so many warriors in the distance.
They knew of the enemy numbers, but it was hard not to be surprised by such grandiose troops.
It was unusual to witness situations like this, after all!
Consequently, many besides that soldier could not help but feel chills at the sight of that many opponents.
'It's a good thing we have this great barrier... Otherwise, this would be a massacre!'
At the same time, as many soldiers were feeling the natural tension of the moments before battles, the enemies finally stopped advancing.
At that moment, the most substantial specialists of that group led by Thomas Brown stopped in front of those masses, still under the winged beasts that held them in the air, in privileged positions.
'So, this is Dry City!' King Brown thought to himself, looking deeply into the defensive dome of that place and seeing many buildings near the edges of that circular area.
'I don't even need to enter this city to know that the local development is awe-inspiring!'
'Looks like the Night News didn't lie about that...' So, he considered as he analyzed such a thing.
'But where are the plantations in this place? That whole city can't have been built on small food exports...'
'They would need at least a few tens of thousands of hectares for that...'
'But I don't see anything nearby...'
"Strange, very strange." He said in a low voice, drawing attention from some people in his surroundings.
"Is there a problem, Your Majesty?" One of the Generals of the royal guard asked upon hearing that.
"It's nothing. I just thought that the surroundings of Dry City should be a little greener..."
"But it doesn't matter. We will discover the secrets of this place sooner or later..."
"So, let's get straight to what matters!" He said loudly for everyone there to hear him. "Get into positions!"
And immediately after this was said, many individuals standing nearby began to enter the battle formation, preparing for what was to come next.
"Did you hear His Majesty, you bastards? Hurry, we have no time for nonsense!"
"Get the cannons ready to fire as fast as possible!"
"Get in position to fight! The enemy can act at any moment!"
"Pay attention to the next warnings!"
Several expert voices sounded throughout that area as the masses of soldiers in that group of the Counter-Revolutionary Army began to prepare.
They need to complete many tasks for their attack to have the best possible chance of success. For example, destroying at least a portion of that defensive dome would prevent the enemy from hiding there.
King Brown himself could destroy part of those defenses if he wished so. But doing that would be costly for him, making it impossible for him to fight on equal terms against regional peak experts.
He could not absorb spiritual energy from others, as in the case of young Stuart!
Consequently, they needed to use other strategies before even thinking of this possibility.
But besides destroying a part of the enemy's defenses without dangerously compromising themselves, they also had to prepare for the enemy offensive!
The local position was definitely in favor of the forces in Dry City, and the individuals on Minos' side were aware of the arrival of these troops.
That was an all-out attack attempt, something intended to suppress the opponents with tremendous pressure. So, there was no way to be discreet in this operation, something that would invariably put them in the enemy's sights.
As such, they had to be very careful at the beginning of the operation as the enemy would undoubtedly use every advantage to their benefit!
Apart from this and other details, they would need to wait for signals from the other two groups, something necessary to start the conflict around this city.
The best possible situation in an event like this was that the attacks happen simultaneously, increasing the chances of a successful attack, invasion, etc.
After all, the more fronts the battle occurred on, the more overwhelmed the enemy!
So, only when the three warning signs were given would the attack begin!
Boom!
Before long, the first warning, the audible alert from this leading group, reverberated through that area after the incredible explosion of a low-level grade-2 array a few hundred meters off the ground.
And while the Spiritual Kings there waited for the following two warnings, some of them talked to Thomas about these enemies.
"Your Majesty, will the traitor come to the battlefield?"
"Hehe, I have the same doubt. But will a 21-year-old brat show up at such a grand event?"
"He's probably relying on the strength of his men!"
Hearing these comments and questions, Thomas was not sure what to say. But, of course, none of them knew about Minos' strength, since in none of the reports, news of recent battles, had that young man had had his level uncovered.
And without this information, he was not sure whether Minos could participate in this confrontation.
After all, a general did not always have to be at the front.
But even if Minos was not in the battle that was sure to take place, this monarch already had a goal regarding this young man.
"Minos Stuart, regardless of his level or presence in this battle, he is the greatest threat ever faced by our kingdom."
"Therefore, I will do my best to kill him today!" He said firmly, while a murderous glint could be seen in his eyes.
"In fact, if anyone identifies that person, kill him immediately."
"We need not risk apprehending such an individual, taking him for trial. His death, whether by my hands or anyone else's here, will already be a great relief to the kingdom..."
"No, that will be a relief for the entire region." He finished, looking at the people in his group.
Upon hearing this, the representative of the Cromwell family sharpened his gaze, looking once more at the Snow family member and then smiling. 'I'm glad King Brown understands his priority here...'
But as these individuals prepared themselves after Thomas' orders, what they had been waiting for the most, finally happened.
Boom!
The second warning came, and then, a few moments later, when one could still see the dust from the explosion in the southern part of that place, the last of the warnings finally came.
Boom!
Upon realizing this, thousands of people in the surrounding area began to shout in excitement, as the time for the start of this extraordinary confrontation was finally here!
"Set!"
"Aim!"
"Fire!"
...
