217: Chapter 215 The Beginning of the Feud Between Ragu and Lake

As previously mentioned.

All living beings on the Saul Continent—humans, elves, dwarves, and so on—harbor a certain degree of doubt regarding the existence of gods.

At most, however, it is just doubt; no one dares to beat their chest and declare that there are no gods on the Saul Continent.

The fundamental reason for this lies entirely in "miracles."

What is a miracle?

Something that mortals cannot achieve no matter how hard they try is a miracle.

The Silent Forest belongs to this category.

If it were any Kingdom other than those two, they would likely be utterly bewildered to learn that Lagu had traveled such a great distance, risking the destruction of its entire army to cross a mountain range teeming with magical beasts just to attack Lake.

Is it really worth it?

If one wanted to expand their territory, there were plenty of Kingdoms bordering Lagu that were much weaker than Lake.

Fighting them would be convenient and consume fewer resources, so why would Lagu go through all that trouble to attack Lake?

But for the people of these two nations, it was easy to understand.

Damu felt that the matter had to be traced back to when the grudge between the Lake Kingdom and the Lagu Kingdom first began.

Long ago, the Silent Forest did not exist in reality; between Lagu and Lake stretched a long border.

Perhaps humans everywhere possess a predatory nature.

Although mandatory regulations from the Church suppressed killing and bloodshed to some extent, smoke from the fires of war still rose across the Saul Continent.

The current Laike Royal Family, having fled to this place where city-states were scattered, used the foundations of the former First Empire to establish a foothold, subsequently unifying the surrounding independent city-states to form the United Kingdom of Lake.

At the beginning, Lagu didn't know the background of this newly emerged power next door.

But having been entrenched there for a long time, it understood very well how chaotic the neighboring area was.

Cities fought one another, and if a powerful city occasionally stood out, it would immediately be besieged by everyone else.

In this kind of regional dynamic, the rise and fall of powers happened frequently and with extremely short cycles.

Lagu had once been wary; after all, no Kingdom wanted a tough guy living right across the street.

But the chaos lasted too long.

Lagu became numbed by the sight that remained unchanged for centuries, and thus didn't pay much attention to Lake.

By the time they noticed something was wrong—that the many cities seemed to show signs of being integrated—and wanted to intervene to stir up trouble again, it was already too late.

When the army set out from the Lagu capital and reached the border, what awaited them was no longer a collection of independent city-states, but the unified Lake Kingdom.

Seeing the legions standing quietly on the other side of the border, having proactively stepped out of the cities as a show of force, Lagu couldn't help themselves.

In the past, whenever they came over, hadn't these cowards always cowered inside their cities?

Now they think they're capable and dare to provoke me?

Thus, the King of Lagu at the time commanded his great army to boldly cross the border.

However, on this trip, the King of Lagu, the generals, and even the Soldiers were not psychologically prepared for war.

They only intended to do what they had always done: take a lap around, support the weaker cities, and keep everyone's strength at the same level.

Coupled with the fact that their understanding of Lake was basically zero, the outcome of a crushing defeat in the campaign was already predestined from the moment they crossed the border.

As for Lake, they didn't actually need to adopt such a hardline stance.

The Kingdom was newly established, internal stability hadn't been fully achieved, and the Soldiers hadn't been trained for long.

The best choice would have been to stay behind closed doors and show weakness.

But the Laike Royal Family of that time did not have the same mindset as the current one.

The latter thinks—my ancestors were once great.

The former thought—I am the ancestor.

As the royal family of the First Empire, although their nation had been destroyed due to being targeted by the Church and they had fled under assumed names, they were not some trash that anyone could bully.

And so, the two sides clashed on the open plains.

Lagu was indeed a Kingdom in a remote area, but it had been established for a long time and had some foundation.

The army Lake had incorporated hadn't been trained yet, and those who had slipped through the net during unification were still stirring up trouble.

Therefore, in terms of legion numbers and combat power, Lagu still surpassed Lake.

But the Laike Royal Family had not been long removed from the fall of their empire, and the number of High-tier Professionals who had followed the royal family far exceeded those on Lagu's side.

In the ensuing great war, it was precisely by relying on their overwhelming number of High-tier Professionals that Lake successfully decapitated the King of Lagu, who was staying in the rear, and won the war.

Their elite forces were nearly wiped out, and their king was killed by the enemy.

The First Prince of Lagu ascended the throne under these circumstances.

This First Prince was also a man of great vision; disregarding infamy and the dignity of a king, he ceded cities to neighboring countries in exchange for armies and Professionals to defend against Lake.

Meanwhile, he developed the people's livelihood, accumulating strength for the future.

His efforts were not in vain.

Four hundred years later, Lagu, having slightly regained its breath, mobilized its legions to cross the border once again late one night.

At this time in Lake, most of the founding royal family members had passed away, and seeing no hope of restoring the First Empire, most Professionals had left in disappointment, except for a few loyal ones.

Coupled with being blindsided by a sneak attack, more than half of the cities fell into enemy hands under the combination of multiple unfavorable factors.

If they had continued with such a steady approach, Lake might very well have been wiped out in one go.

Unfortunately, or perhaps inevitably, Lagu—having been tormented by hatred and the loss of dignity for four hundred years—had lost its collective mind and fallen completely into madness.

Normally, for an occupied city, one would only need to replace the city lord and the garrisoned army.

Regardless of what was done, it shouldn't have anything to do with the citizens.

But Lagu crossed the line.

They first used the excuse of "letting them remain as city lord" to gain the trust of those who opened the gates and surrendered.

Then they lured the citizens, Soldiers, and city lords out of the cities—and slaughtered them.

According to Lake's historical records, after the cities were reclaimed, not a single body dug up by Soldiers from the pits was intact.

Curiously, the limbs and organs missing from the bodies were not found in the pits.

Where did they go?

After continuing to excavate the surrounding land and digging up a large number of iron pots and ashes, the mystery was solved.

As word of this spread, no city ever surrendered to Lagu again.

In the most tragic city, everyone from the city lord down to the citizens was surrounded by Lagu for several years; they chose to die rather than surrender, and all starved to death inside.

Later, the King of Lake finally organized a resistance force and, after more than ten years of war, drove Lagu out of the country.

From then on, the chains of hatred firmly locked the two countries together.

For the next few hundred years, they fought each other.

To inflict enough pain on the other side and vent their anger, both sides coincidentally chose to fight outside the cities, and no matter which side won, they took no prisoners.

Every time a battle ended, they would dig pits and bury the bodies on the spot, to the point where in the later border areas of the two countries, one could turn up bones with just a single swing of a pickaxe anywhere.

Even the gods must have found it unbearable to watch.

Three hundred years ago, when the two countries woke up one morning and led their armies to attack each other, they were stunned to see that the original border had been replaced by a forest stretching for thousands of miles.

Inside the forest, the number of powerful magical beasts and monsters was countless, making it impossible for an army to cross.

Since then, the killing finally ceased.

Three hundred years have passed, and the scent of blood has faded quite a bit.

Only stories passed down by word of mouth remain to warn future generations of the pain this land once suffered.

As a citizen of the Lake Kingdom, Damu had naturally heard this from his mother.

He could understand why Lagu would go to such great lengths to attack Lake.

Hiding behind the earthen slope, Damu recalled these things in his mind.

The surroundings were deathly quiet; there wasn't even the sound of a single bird.

This was normal.

Damu remembered that the Silent Forest had no birds to begin with.

Everyone living nearby knew this, so it wasn't anything strange.

It was just that with a great battle about to begin, the excessive silence inevitably felt oppressive.

The companion next to Damu, likely unable to stand the silent environment, asked him in a low voice, "Damu, are you afraid?"

"What about you?"

"I'm alright."

"I'm alright too."

"Then... Damu, will we die?"

"No, the Marshal said that victory and survival will surely belong to us."

After the brief conversation, the surroundings returned to silence once more.

After a while, Damu suddenly said with some shame, "Actually, I am afraid."

"Hehe..." The companion suppressed a laugh. "Me too."

Eh?

Looking at him blankly, Damu asked, "The Marshal doesn't force anyone to join the First Army, so if you're afraid, why..."

"What about you?"

"I'm different..." His hand gripping the magic rifle tightened as he muttered sullenly.

"Even if the Marshal had forced us to join the First Army, I wouldn't have run away."

Lying on the slope, the companion pulled out his right hand, which had been pinned underneath him for a while and felt a bit numb, shook it, and continued, "It's just that if that were the case, I definitely wouldn't have answered the Marshal's question just now.

Well... even if I did answer, I would have been lying."

"Ha... mmph." Just as a loud laugh started, Damu hurriedly covered his mouth and held it back.

He poked his head over the top of the slope, and seeing that the enemy hadn't arrived yet, he ducked back down with a sigh of relief. "Me too."

"Right?"

His companion responded, shifting from a prone position to lying on his back. "Look, Damu.

If the Marshal hadn't come to the Silent Forest, we might be dead by now.

Starved to death, or had our hearts pierced by a spear from a Soldier of Gur City.

Now, not only do we have our own farmland outside, but we can also eat our fill. The legion's lunch even has two eggs—two, Damu! That's two eggs!"

As if worried he hadn't made himself clear enough, he emphasized it several times.

Hearing this, Damu said with a somber face, "Joining the First Army isn't just for two eggs."

"I know!" The companion, worried about being misunderstood, sat up in a hurry. "I'm just saying that the Marshal brought us all of this!"

Seeing Damu nod, he lay back down. "The Marshal gave us Moza Village and then rarely came by.

I thought... Damu, I thought I wouldn't have a chance to repay the Marshal.

I went to ask Mr. Mi He, and Mr. Mi He told me that the Marshal doesn't help us for a reward.

I thought about it again after going home, and I didn't seem to have anything valuable to repay the Marshal with."

As he spoke, a light shone in his eyes. "A few months ago, Mr. Domit gathered us and said the Marshal needed us!

I was thrilled.

But hearing that it was to become Soldiers, I was very disappointed.

I'm not very strong, I'm short, and I've never even held a sword hilt; I couldn't help the Marshal at all.

I didn't expect that what we'd be using isn't swords, but guns!"

Raising the magic rifle with both hands, he looked at the light reflected off the gun's black coating. "Damu, I'm very good at practicing with the gun, and my marksmanship is good too.

A bullseye—I hit a bullseye after only three tries!"

The corners of Damu's mouth curled up slightly. "I hit it on my first try."

"I know." The companion placed the gun back on his chest. "You're first in the First Army's shooting rankings, and I'm second; it's like that every time.

So I was disappointed again, thinking that I couldn't give the Marshal the greatest help."

Sitting up again, he stared at Damu. "But Mr. Domit told us that what the Marshal needs most is our loyalty and sacrifice!

I won't lose to you in those!"

Hearing this, Damu's brow furrowed. "I am the Marshal's bravest Soldier!"

"Haha..." The companion didn't argue, turning back to a crouch with a low laugh. "Damu, when the Marshal led us out of the Silent Forest and we settled in Moza Village, I thought I had met a god.

Giving us farmland, not stealing our food, not bullying us—I couldn't think of anyone but a god who would do that.

Doesn't the Church always say that piety brings divine blessings?

I thought then, was the Marshal's appearance because my pious prayers were heard by the gods?

Oh, you know, Damu, I pray every night."

He closed his eyes and listened carefully; hearing no movement, he opened them and said, "A few days ago, when the Marshal came to Moza Village to give us the Magic Guns,

I plucked up the courage to go before the Marshal..."

"You bastard!" Damu was furious. "You actually spoke to the Marshal before I did? You sneaky cat!"

"Hey! Hey!"

His companion made a pressing motion with his right hand as he said, "When we were in the forest, you were the one sitting on the ridge of the field chatting with the Marshal every day.

I watched from afar, drooling with envy!"

"It's... it's not the same."

Damu's voice grew weaker. "That was Mr. Zhang Mu; I haven't had a face-to-face conversation with the Marshal yet."

Having said that, he suddenly remembered his companion's words. "What did you ask the Marshal?

Tell me quickly!"

The companion laughed triumphantly for a while, only stopping when Damu raised a fist with a dark expression. "I asked the Marshal, 'Are you sent by the gods to save us?

Or, are you a god yourself?'"

"Did the Marshal answer?"

"The Marshal smiled—well, even as a man, I thought he looked very handsome when he smiled."

If Zhang Mu knew his Soldiers thought of him this way, he might be so scared he'd never dare be alone with them again.

The companion paused, staring blankly at the ground as if recalling the Marshal's smile.

Awakened by the sound of urging, he said, "The Marshal told me he is not a god."

Damu smiled.

"That's right, the Marshal is not a god."

The idle chatter ended there because they heard the rustling sound of grass rubbing together coming from in front of the slope.

...

"At one point, especially the moment you told me you had been promoted to Magister, I seriously considered the possibility that you were an incarnation of a god."

On the way to Gur City, Mihe spoke.

Being held by the back of his collar, Zhang Mu's mouth twitched. "God my ass."

"How so? Did the gods offend you?"

"That son of a bitch—you say he created the Silent Forest to stop the war between Lake and Lagu, fine, but then the magical beasts in the forest actually migrate? What's the meaning of that?"

"Hmm..."

Mihe held Zhang Mu with his left hand and rubbed his chin with his free right hand. "Perhaps... er, I can't think of a reason."

You look all thoughtful, and I wait forever just for some nonsense.

Zhang Mu gave him the middle finger and said, "We're not going into Gur City.

I just noticed their flight path; it's basically a straight line.

When they realize the main force hasn't arrived at Gur City, they'll definitely return to the Silent Forest the way they came. We'll block them on the only path back."

"Understood, Lord Marshal," Mihe said with a smile.

Feeling like he was being teased, Zhang Mu rolled his eyes. "What's wrong with you lately? Did you take a course in sarcasm?"

"I just think the title 'Marshal' suits you very well."

"Go away."

While chatting, the two stopped at the edge of the woods.

"I have no mana fluctuations, so I'll wait for them in the middle of the road. You go into the forest. When I start fighting them and they don't have the energy to worry about their surroundings, you strike with a sneak attack."

"Understood, Lord Marshal."

"Get lost!"