Good grief!
Everyone drew in a sharp breath and looked at one another before turning back to the sand table. It took them a long while to calm down. When they finally looked at Samael again, their eyes were filled with astonishment.
This was no longer the foresight of seeing three moves ahead from a single step. This was a monstrous command of the grand picture, the ability to infer a hundred outcomes from one clue.
After taking several deep breaths, the three heroes known for their strategic acumen felt the heat in their hearts cool. Doubt began to surface, and one after another, they voiced their concerns.
Jason was the first to speak. "Rome has just come through a major war and suffered heavy losses. Four legions must mean they've drawn on every available force inside their borders. Isn't that too risky?"
"The Huns have retreated to the steppes, and Carthage is busy wrangling with its overlord, Egypt. Rome did suffer badly on the eastern front, but Persia had it even worse. Nearly 20,000 Persian troops were buried in the [Wasteland of Death]! Besides, judging from the situation at Thermopylae, the Persians have already thrown everything they have into this. Does Rome still need to stay home and defend itself?
"A war that risks the fate of a nation should naturally be met with the full strength of that nation!"
Samael pressed his lips together as he answered. His mind was already made up.
Since they had gone all-in, they might as well call to the end.
In those gleaming eyes, Jason saw a familiar gambler's look. Only, buried deep within those pupils was far greater wisdom and composure.
"If it's only four ordinary Roman legions and the Amazon warriors, then Cyrus and the Persian Pantheon…"
Odysseus frowned, voicing a more practical concern.
"There's no need to worry about that. Those traitorous divine-blooded nobles in Athens may be useless, but at least they managed to serve one purpose for me. They confirmed one thing:
"Cyrus should have already left the Pantheon. He may very well be among the Persian army at Thermopylae!"
Samael spoke with absolute certainty, his brows drawn together in a cold smile.
As an old adversary, Marduk knew him well. And in turn, he knew this Lord of Hosts just as well.
Now that angels had appeared, God could not be far behind.
"If I remember correctly," Sisyphus said, his concern more detailed, "the region linking Rome and Persia has already become a ghostly wasteland that rejects all living things because of the previous divine war.
"The raging Ether tides and massive sandstorms in the [Land of Nothingness], along with the deranged sinners wandering the [Wasteland of Death], are all deadly problems. They're completely unsuitable for an army's advance."
It was precisely because this special environment formed such a natural barrier that the Persians had dared to redeploy their forces, abandon their standoff with Rome, and launch a full-scale assault on Greece.
"Earlier, I learned from Hippolyta's reply that Nero had obtained the True Form Mecha Armor bestowed by the Roman Pantheon. That trouble should have been left to her, but I never expected that little brat to toss aside Rome's affairs and run off to Athens to make trouble…"
At the mention of this, Samael's face darkened. He suddenly felt the urge to tuck a certain troublesome child under his arm and give her a spanking.
But then the Ancient Serpent spread his fingers. Six emblems imbued with the essence of nature appeared in his palm, and his expression eased.
"However, Rome now has a better 'candidate' to lead the army out of the Old Gods' Battlefield…"
Although lingering divine power still remained within the [Land of Nothingness] and the [Wasteland of Death], the only ones capable of dispelling the terrifying disasters within the Old Gods' Battlefield were likely gods themselves.
A better candidate? Could one of the Olympian gods enshrined in the Pantheon have awakened again?
Artemis, the Moon Goddess? Apollo, the God of Light? Ares, the God of War? Or Demeter, the Goddess of Agriculture?
Surely not Zeus, the God King?
The three exchanged glances, completely unable to make sense of it. Doubt rose in each of their hearts.
...
Meanwhile, outside Rome's eastern defensive line, on the Old Gods' Battlefield, in the Land of Nothingness.
A crimson-black Ether storm whipped up sand and dust, howling violently as it formed several tornadoes that pierced heaven and earth. Wherever they passed, the sun and moon seemed to lose their light.
Hum!
Amid that strange pulse, thick yellow-green ripples brimming with vitality spread outward. The violent Mana along their path was gradually soothed beneath their glow. The raging curtain of sand parted like strings of beads drawn aside, while gray-yellow dust split from below and rolled away to the left and right, revealing a passage that connected the inside and outside.
Even more incredible was that the dunes along the way, where not a single blade of grass should have grown, now glimmered with the green shade of life. Flowers, grass, and vegetation sprouted and bloomed at a visible speed, paving a vibrant avenue of plants.
"Roar! Roar! Roar! Roar!"
Yet as they sensed that living breath, the deranged sinners wandering outside turned their eerie heads. They waved twisted limbs hung with rotting flesh and charged forward on all fours like frenzied beasts that had caught the scent of prey.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
In the next instant, dense spell projectiles came crashing down from above. The saturated bombardment swept the wanderers along the path clean away.
These tenacious monsters, their bodies twisted into even more deformed shapes by mutation, tried to pull themselves back together and lunge forward once more.
But the spreading flowers and grass had already driven their roots deep into the monsters' flesh, breaking down their bodies and purifying the madness within.
In the blink of an eye, the monsters had barely taken a few steps before they fell apart one after another, reduced to nutrients scattered over the grass and returned to the dust.
"Clear the battlefield! Keep moving!"
A war chariot rumbled past. The red-haired Celtic queen, wearing a golden crown and holding the reins, pointed her sword forward.
A moment later, the tall Amazon warriors, longbows on their backs and flail-swords at their waists, swept across the wilderness ahead like cheetahs racing over the grasslands.
As bright blades flashed, skulls along the way, no longer even recognizable as human, were shattered directly into powder.
Then, amid the crisp clatter of armor plates and the heavy rhythm of footsteps, disciplined Roman centuriae marched over the green grass, passing through the great sandstorm in orderly formation before splitting up to explore.
The Celtic Queen and the four legion commanders exchanged nods. Then she lowered her head and murmured respectfully to the figure behind her.
"Your Highness, the roadblock has been cleared. We can move on."
Thud…
A dull footfall sounded. The ground trembled slightly, and yellow-green ripples spread forward several more meters.
Within the shaded green avenue, a strange creature as massive as a mountain, with antlers on its head, snow-white fluffy fur over its whole body, and symmetrical red divine markings on its chest, moved like an oversized plush toy. It clumsily shifted its short limbs and took small steps forward, looking awkwardly adorable.
Even stranger, each time it moved, the grass-paved path beneath its feet extended a little farther.
At the same time, insects such as bees, butterflies, and ants gathered affectionately around this strange fluffy creature, while beasts such as snakes, deer, wolves, and bears ran ahead from the oasis rising out of the ground.
Behind it, a large crowd of small beings followed in a noisy cluster. Some had transparent wings, some retained partial Beast features, and some displayed plant-like traits. They seemed to fall roughly into six categories, chattering as they curiously looked around as though they were on an exciting outing.
A vast tide of Mana gathered around them, so dense that even Rome's spellcasters felt their hearts tremble. They kept their distance, afraid that these little troublemakers might "accidentally" send the surrounding Ether out of control and create a man-made disaster.
The Celtic queen's red hair fluttered as she lifted her gaze toward another battlefield locked in stalemate to the west. The corner of her lips curved upward, her heart light with joy.
Cernunnos, the Horned God…
The Six Great Fairy Clans…
Old friend, the beings you mentioned. I not only found them, I brought them here!
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