Rescue
On the contrary, Leylin felt at ease when gods held conflicting views and were petty.
If the gods all presented a united front, there was no way he could have been able to survive and grow in the main world. His alternatives were either the deep abyss or hell itself.
“The consequences of the will of the World of Gods, the Overgod, falling into slumber had encouraged many gods to harbour their own agendas.
Leylin recalled the World’s Will in the World of Gods.
The gods were the children of the world, and the World’s Will was their leader. The one and only Overgod!
In Leylin’s opinion, the Will of the Magus World and the World of Gods had reached the realm of rank 9. Omniscient and omnipotent, they were but one step towards eternity.
Back then, not only did the Magus and the Gods exchanged blows, but even the Wills partook in the battle, with both sides perishing and entering a heavy slumber.
Before its slumber, the Will of the World of Gods had completely sealed the world with a layer of crystallised wall that isolated the world from any form of communication.
This move had effectively protected the World of Gods and allowed the growth of newer gods. However, after they had finished dividing up the faith they had, the limited source of worshippers had caused a huge conflict between the gods.
Having lost their foreign enemies, the gods had now turned inwards into fighting against one another.
At the very bottom of Leylin’s heart, he held a strong conviction that there were gods who had coveted for the seat of the Sovereign.
Afterall, gods will fall with the dwindling of their worshippers, unless they were able to directly extract the world origin force and surpass the existence of a god!
The only thing standing in their way was the World’s Will!
“Isn’t this ironic? To nurture a child that would eventually oppose you…”
Leylin’s eyes narrowed with a gleam of determination.
……
“Wizard Cassley, good morning!”
Outside the city walls, Leylin bumped into an entirely unexpected person.
“Good morning, wizard Leylin,” Cassley nodded at him, “Perhaps I will ride out with the troops with you, so when the time comes I hope you will cooperate.”
‘Cooperate?’ Leylin’s eyes narrowed, but the smiling expression on his face did not change as he slowly left.
Although he was slightly less powerful than Cassley, their status was almost equal. He no longer had to give way to the other wizard as he had been forced to do in the past.
Since the troops were mobilising, coordination was purely organised between the mid-ranks and not an order given by the higher ups.
It was important not to underestimate this point, as it could be used to devastating effect in the midst of true battle.
At the very least, it would put an end to Cassley’s informal and unnecessary orders, and eliminate the possibility of him sending the troops off to die.
“Damn!” After Leylin’s back disappeared from view, Cassley’s gently smiling expression completely collapsed. It was substituted with the most chilling intent.
Leylin Faulen! This name had grown offensively conspicuous ever since the orc invasion. Most notably, Cassley’s several retaliatory attempts against the wizard had all been played down by him, and even served to enhance the other man’s reputation.
In the end, many people had gradually come to lump him and Leylin together, likening the two of them to the brightest new stars in the sky.
From Cassley’s point of view, the fact that they had gone as far as to place someone from the younger generation on the same level as him was a bold-faced insult!
Additionally, after he had suffered defeat, the faction backing him had gradually withdrawn their support. This was something that he absolutely could not stand.
There was only one way to resolve this mess, and that was to make the source of trouble, Leylin, disappear entirely from this world.
“I look forward to the face you’ll show me before you die…” A trace of darkness flashed across Cassley’s eyes, and he returned to Silverymoon City without looking back.
……
Two days later, nearly a thousand troops slowly left Silverymoon City.
“I’ve always found that Cassley an eyesore, and now he’s even deliberately riding out with us. He’s trying to make trouble for us, I’m sure!” The lady knight seethed next to Leylin.
“I’m afraid that he won’t simply cause trouble for us,” Leylin was well aware of the murderous intent that his companion was so clearly radiating.
“Only… I’m not sure what will happen in the end,” A strange smile curved at the edges of Leylin’s lips.
“We’re now entering the danger zone, stay alert!” As they drew closer to the Moonwood, even Cassley became even more vigilant as it was possible that the werebeasts could attack.
After the orc invasion, the forces near Silverymoon Alliance began to get restless, especially the Blackblood tribe who had immediately occupied the entire Moonwood. In the past, the patrol rangers had previously been able to routinely enter and collect intelligence there, but entering the forest now was a death sentence.
The alliance between the werebeasts and the orcs now seemed entirely possible. After all, humans all thought that they had similar looks and characteristics.
Working together was natural when the conditions were right.
Once the Blackblood Tribe joined the orc faction however, Silverymoon City would suffer an inconceivable setback.
‘The queen of the city, her majesty Alustriel, must be in distress…’ Leylin indifferently thought to himself.
A loud chirping sound abruptly sounded. It came from a grey and white eagle, an animal companion of a druid scout in their troops.
“I’ve seen Baron Andrew’s castle! It’s now under siege!” The druid immediately reported to Leylin.
“A siege?” Leylin furrowed his brows. He could faintly see smoke and ash rising at the edge of the horizon, “By orcs or by ogres?”
“It’s the orcs! I’m very certain, as I’ve seen the Blackblood tribe’s flag there!” The druid nodded vigorously.
“What are we waiting for, let’s go!” Rafiniya drew her longsword. Ever since she had seen the village massacres of the orcs and the ogres, she had become the resolute believer in human superiority.
“Wait, we should at the very least inform Cassley,” Leylin helplessly grabbed Nick’s reins and let an orderly inform their allies. There was a rather begrudging expression on his face as he said, “I’ve known you for so many years already, but you haven’t even matured a little…”
Before long, the orderly had already brought back Cassley’s reply.
“Commanding Officer Cassley says that he is in charge of the defence corps, and he will leave these matters for you to resolve!” The orderly announced loudly, and bowed as he left.
Before they had set off, he had not known what tricks Cassley had employed, and in the end he had unexpectedly obtained the mission of defending a few nobles.
The mission Leylin had received was to attack and push the orc’s frontlines back into the Moonwood.
Far behind the front line, Cassley was in charge of defence. He had even incidentally blocked his grain supply channels.
The impression he had gotten was that Cassley’s true mission was to defend the area when Leylin had completely failed. His mission was similar to defending the city walls, but Leylin had been the pioneer who had taken the initiative to attack.
‘This fellow is already thinking of the unthinkable outcome behind my back…’ Leylin shook his head. If an ordinary person was in his position, perhaps they would die playing Cassley’s game. It was clear how deeply Cassley hated him from how readily he had issued the command.
‘Those who are meant to back me haven’t supported me at all. Is it a question of loyalty?’ Leylin sighed a little. He had risen to power too abruptly and had not truly won their trust. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have behaved so passively.
‘Once a high-rank wizard of Silverymoon City reaches rank 15, they sign a very powerful contract to pledge their loyalty. Its effect can even extend all the way until the wizard reaches the realm of high-ranked and Legend…’
Leylin suddenly thought of a rumour which now appeared to be true.
‘Once I reach rank 15 and become a high-ranked wizard, something similar may befall me. In comparison however, Cassley who had signed the high-ranked wizard contract seemed to be trusted more easily.
The troops under Leylin saw a look of unswerving determination on their leader’s face.
“Onwards!” Leylin finally issued the command.
A besieged castle rapidly appeared before them, and the village next to it had already been burnt to the ground. There were corpses strewn everywhere on the ground, and many of them were badly damaged.
“Charge! Leave none of them alive!” At the sight of this scene, the soldiers immediately saw red. Leylin duly issued the command to attack.
“Kill!” Rafiniya led the way on horseback as the captain of a small squadron of knights. She and her subordinates fiercely advanced like black jackhammers into the orc army.
The people in the castle let out a cheer at the sight of the reinforcements’ arrival.
‘There are very few orcs here, and they have spent their energy attacking the castle. If we coordinate with those inside the castle, they’ll have no luck in defeating us,’ Leylin’s gaze swept across the entire battlefield as he demonstrated his natural leadership skills. The army made up of 200 Professionals became the most precise and accurate tools in his hand, calmly and efficiently reaping the lives of the orcs before them.
When Cassley finally arrived from the rear, he only saw the scene of the auxiliary troops sweeping the battlefield clean.
His eyes narrowed at Leylin’s abilities, and afterwards a dense killing intent leaked from him.
“I am Baron Andrew, and I thank you all for coming to our aid!” At this moment, the securely shut castle door was flung open. A middle-aged noble walked out with his retainers, with a trace of fear still lingering on his face.
“I am Cassley from Silverymoon City. You and your people have been saved,” At this moment, Cassley stood at the forefront and willingly took the credit. He looked as if he had no qualms about doing this, and Leylin’s subordinates were extremely angry at the injustice.
‘Haha… This is reality. Even geniuses must be restrained by the rules,’ Cassley had absolutely loathed this rule in the past, but now he felt very carefree.