Sounding of the Horn
Sounding of the Horn
He recounted to Tilly the recent discoveries that were made in Misty Forest and behind the snow mountains. "I had intended to send witches and First Army soldiers to bring the person trapped in the monuments back to Border Town, but heavy snow arrived more than one month before schedule and disrupted these plans."
"The legendary Army of Demons is close by. To think that there's still a person in a more than 400-year-old monuments..." Tilly gaped in astonishment. "I'm starting to believe what you told me.."
Anna turned her head to look at Roland. The latter coughed twice and continued, "Based on the observed scene and the enemy's response, the demons should have inhabited the back of the snow mountains for many years now. My guess is that they're restricted by the effective range of the Red Mist, and thus can't advance closer to the continent of our kingdom. They shouldn't be a threat to Border Town for the time being. In the next two years, I'll set up guard posts along the coast to monitor their movements." He paused before continuing. "The person sealed in the monuments could possess the truth about Holy City of Taquila and the church's defeat."
"I feel so too." Tilly closed her eyes and ruminated. "Is there a way to get there not by land but by sky? Ashes says that you have a flying device which can transport people once it's filled with hot air."
"You want to bring the person out of the monuments during the Months of Demons?" Roland furrowed his brows. "My hot air balloon, the Cloud Gazer, can fetch up to 10 people, or perhaps be expanded to fetch 15 people. Nonetheless, it won't ever be able to carry the First Army soldiers. If demons are encountered along the way, the witches may get injured or be killed. Not to mention that demonic beasts are everywhere... this is far too dangerous."
"It's definitely dangerous if we solely depend on the Witch Cooperation Association." Tilly nodded in agreement. "However, we now have Shavi and Ashes, who'll significantly reduce the risks. As you explained earlier, the demons' main forms of offense are long-range spears, as well as melee combat using their superhuman strengths. Shavi's invisible barrier can deflect the spears, while Ashes is able to suppress the enemies at close range. As the Months of Demons have just started, the demonic beasts aren't at their strongest yet. This is the best time to go to the monuments."
Roland felt slightly hesitant to agree. He had suffered losses owing to the disadvantages of aerial combat during the previous battle with the demons. He was thus uncertain of flying across once again. However, Tilly's words sounded reasonable. Sylvie's Eye of Magic would ensure that they spotted the enemy before they were spotted back. By maintaining the hot air balloon at a height of 10 to 15 meters, which meant keeping close to the canopy, they could ensure that they landed before the enemies approached. After that, Nightingale's and Ashes' powerful offensive abilities would easily crush small groups of demons. Even if one or two demons managed to slip through, Shavi and Anna's shields would ensure the safety of the party.
He meditated in silence briefly, and then asked, "Are you sure you want to go?"
"I feel that this is an opportunity to solve the mystery," Tilly replied frankly. "The early arrival of the Months of Demons and the appearance of demonic beasts in the southern seas give me a bad feeling."
Roland sensed a slight chill in his heart. He had a similar feeling; it was unlikely that the Months of Demons was brought about by climatic changes, and he also vaguely suspected that it had something to do with the demons and the church.
"Who'll be in the party?"
"I'm not sure about the Border Town witches. What's certain is that I'll personally be going," Tilly replied without a second thought.
...
Snowflakes danced in the grayish sky. Mayne and Tayfun ascended slowly up the city wall of Hermes, where a huge battle had just taken place.
Dark and warm blood flowed beneath their feet and blended together with the white snow. The good thing was that these blood were spilled from the bodies of their enemies. Hundreds of God's Punishment Army soldiers stood erect on top of the city wall, waiting for the demonic beasts to carry out their next wave of attack.
"Your Eminence!" The Judgement Army warriors, who were assisting the God's Punishment Army in battle, hurriedly made a fist salute. There was a look of tenderness on most of their faces, and their eyes seemed to be mingled with fear and excitement.
"They're still teenagers." Tayfun walked to an open space, from where he observed the wilderness in the distance and sighed. "When I was at their age, I was still in the mill, grinding flour for the noble lords."
"The God's Punishment Army has to prioritize guarding New Holy City. I can only hand the task of eliminating the remaining defendants of Wolfheart City to the experienced Judgement Army. These soldiers here are believers who were promoted recently. They've never properly been on a battlefield," Mayne explained with a sense of frustration. "This snow has come too early."
Tayfun hesitated and then said, "This type of situation isn't recorded in the Holy Book."
"The Holy Book was also written by a pope. There're bound to be omissions." The archbishop held on to a battlement and observed the cliff below, where there was a huge pile of corpses. Most demonic beasts would certainly not be able to climb up such a high city wall—the only ones which could threaten Holy City were the hybrids. "It's fine as it is, as long as its general direction is right. Based on the Wilderness Beasts which appeared last year, I can infer that we have about 10 years left."
"We'll use two years to unify the four kingdoms, and another eight years to build up the God's Punishment Army. By then, the church shall possess a military force of more than 10,000 men." After a short pause, he continued, "By making use of Hermes' sturdy city walls and advantageous geography, we'll hold our ground on this plateau until our strength exceeds our enemies'."
"I'm already old. I'm afraid I won't be able to see that moment."
"Nothing to do with age, Archbishop Tayfun." Mayne solaced. "Many people won't be able to see that moment. Allen, Stone, Liji, etc."
"And Heather," Tayfun added.
"Yes, Heather as well." He nodded. "But no matter what, there'll always be successors to continue our mission and keep going."
"Let's not talk about disheartening things." The elder shook his head and laughed. "By the way, how's the effect of the snow powder formula which Zero obtained? Have tests been carried out in the Pivotal Secret Area?"
"Toys used to deal with common people won't be of much use to the church," Mayne replied scornfully, "Perhaps it can also be used to eliminate hordes of demonic beasts, but our real enemy is the Devil of the Abyss. The lethality of the powder is greatly reduced in an open area, and thus we'll require a huge volume of it to damage the heavily-armored devil. Apart from the God's Punishment Army, no one else will be able to hurl a bag of snow powder that's about half the size of their own bodies."
"Aww... that's a real pity."
"There aren't any tricks that'll help us to defeat the demons." Mayne emphasized every one of his words. "The only way for us to survive is to defeat them head-on."
Just then, a long horn sound was heard from the observation tower on one side of the city wall.
"Woo..."
Such a long sound signaled that demonic beasts were incoming.
"Let's return to the cathedral. There'll soon be a battle here."
"Yes." Tayfun nodded. As he turned his body, the horn began to sound once again.
"Woo, woo..."
Two long sounds meant that there were numerous hybrids among the demonic beasts. Mayne's heart began to quiver. There was no question that the God's Punishment Army was going to face an arduous battle.
"But... why is it so soon? This is only the first Month of Demons," thought Mayne.
Before the echo of the second sounding had fully dissipated, the horn sounded for the third time. The dull and continuous sounds seemed like claps of thunder that rolled across the sky above Hermes, and did not subside for a long time.
"Woo, woo, woo..."
Mayne almost could not believe his own ears. He glanced at Tayfun, who stared back at him with a look of shock. Three long sounds were only played when the situation was extremely critical, and implied New Holy City was on the verge of destruction! Even when the demonic beasts managed to intrude into the perimeter of the cathedral the previous time, this signal was not sounded.
What exactly had the observator spotted?
Mayne quickly knew the answer.
Among the hordes of demonic beasts which swarmed towards the city wall like a black tide, there were two enormous monsters. They each had four stout fangs, four legs and two arms. Their bodies were covered with pitch-black fur, and every one of their legs was as thick as the torso of a wolf-figure hybrid. From this distance, the monsters each resembled a fortress that could move. Every step they took would leave a deep imprint on the permanently-frozen plains. Any accompanying demonic beast which did not evade their legs in time could be plunged into the ground and be turned into a pool of blood and flesh.
This type of monster had many records in the Holy Book. It was referred to as the "Death Messenger", "Fearful Beast of Hell", "Fangs of Demons", etc. However, what Mayne was terrified of was not its menacing appearance, but rather what it represented.
"Why?" His mind was completely seized by a dreadful thought. "Why would this horrible monster, which the Holy Book prophesized would only appear five years before a catastrophe, suddenly appear in Hermes?"