Part 1
Lifelia Kingdom Calendar Year 164, Month 7, Day 27, Afternoon──
On top of the sand ship's deck──Seated on a throne that was installed on a pedestal, Lamnites glared at the distance.
A soldier came running to her.
「A report! The evacuation of the people has been half completed, that is what it says!」
「So there is still half left. It is going too slowly.」
「I am terribly sorry! Because the whereabouts of the Head of the Holy Knights is unknown, there have been unexpected difficulties in our coordination with the Church, and the transportation of the sick and injured has not made progress──」
「I should have given directions for that a while ago though?」
It couldn't be helped she was thrown candid advice by the messenger, but Lamnites did not conceal her displeasure.
Since the day after the Demonic Being that named himself as the commander-in-chief of the Demon King's Army Vanaknes had attacked, she predicted that it would be like this.
She had made various preparations to match up with the next full moon.
She clicked her tongue.
──There should still be three days until the full moon!
She hated men that made a fuss over small details, but she hated men that acted sketchy and did not keep their promises even more.
A different messenger came running forward.
「The Demon King Army's distance──5000 meld! They have been sighted! Their number, roughly 300! There are also figures of large Demonic Beasts.」
──Their number is 300 huh.
If they were people of the Races, they would be a small group not worth mentioning. A single sand ship's worth of soldiers would be enough to fight against them.
On her side, she had gathered up 40,000 soldiers and Adventurers in this short period of time. She had also prepared about 200 sand ships of various sizes. It was a large-scale fighting power.
However, it was not enough.
The enemy was the Demon King's Army──It was a mixed force of Demonic Beings and Demonic Beasts. The fighting strength of each and every one of them was different.
Even if it was 40,000 versus 300, they were still lacking one digit. That is how she thought.
Lamnites made a command.
「Hurry up on grasping the enemy's battle formation. The enemy army should also have species capable of flight, so be strict in monitoring the skies!」
「Understood!」
Reports were brought to her one after another.
The Demon King's Army did not drop its speed, and was drawing nearer.
The front line was medium sized Demonic Beasts.
At the center of the force, there was a large sized Demonic Beast that looked like a turtle, and the figure of someone that seemed to be the commanding officer was confirmed to be on its back.
Demonic Being Vanaknes.
A beautiful young man that possessed the wings of a bat.
They approached to a distance where each and every one of the enemy army could be seen even with the naked eye.
It was close enough where anyone with good enough skill with a Magi Gun could reach them, but even if they attacked one or two shots ahead of them, it would only upset the entire army's pace.
Rather, she wanted to create the war front here, and prolong the fight for as long as possible. She needed the evacuation from Zircon Tower City to be completed during that time……
To let as many cilivians as possible escape. To not exhaust the soldiers. To make sure that she herself survived──Those were Lamnites' objectives in this battle.
She could not win with the current difference in military strength. Zircon Tower City would surely fall. However, if the human damages were kept at a minimum, a chance to counterattack should be created.
A surveillance soldier that was glaring at the enemy camp with binoculars raised his voice.
「The Demon King's Army, only the center large sized Demonic Beast is coming out! It is believed that the enemy commanding officer is aboard its back!」
「What was that?」
As part of the theory of tactics, the commanding officer was something that would either be in the center of the force or be waiting at the back, and was meant to be protected.
In chess, there was no one that would send the king to the front row.
However, the enemy came out.
Lamnites was perplexed.
It was surely a provocation.
It would be fine for her to give the soldiers the command to open fire, but the fact that Vanaknes had trespassed into Zircon Tower had already become a rumor and spread.
──So if I were to fall to the back here, the morale would lower.
If the soldiers were to suspect that 'Lamnites, the commanding officer, feared the Demonic Beings', it would become difficult to maintain the war front.
She clicked her tongue.
To think that the Demonic Beings would start with psychological warfare……
Lamnites shouted.
「Captain, bring this 《Golkalios》 forward! There is no need for any attendants!」
In order to respond to the provocation, she gave the order for only the flagship that Lamnites was riding, the 《Golkalios》, to advance.
He was an experienced captain, but to challenge the Demon King's Army with a single ship, he showed a moment of hesitation. But even so, he honestly obeyed.
「Unfurl the third and fourth sails! Sail at half speed!!」
The large sails that were bestowed with sorcery caught wind. The heavy, large sized sand ship left the other ships behind and advanced forward.
The swelling of the unit's tension could be felt.
Let alone Magi Guns and bows and arrows, they approached the enemy to a distance where even their voices could reach each other.