"Ms. Talulah, none of us are fools; the Reunion Movement's excuses might deceive others, but they won't fool us. Moving women and children, and assigning a large number of youth and soldiers to build fortifications. If the enemy were merely a Reconnaissance Squad, I don't think the Reunion Movement would need to be so tense. So, this time we're facing the regular Ursus army, aren't we!"
Anto said in a low voice.
"How did you guess?" Talulah looked at him calmly.
"As I just said, Rhodes Island has experienced countless wars. We've seen families torn apart many times; we won't interfere too much in your choices. But I want to ask, what are the chances of success?" Anto looked at Talulah and asked.
Talulah pointed at Flandre. "The chance of success lies with her. As long as she can find and decapitate the enemy's command as quickly as possible, we can win easily."
"Huh?" Anto looked at the little one floating in the air in disbelief. Just her? She looks like she'd cry for a long time if he punched her. You're saying she's going to take down the enemy's command center single-handedly?
"Don't underestimate me!" Flandre struck a certain hands-on-hips pose like a certain 'Strongest ⑨[1]'. "I'm super strong!"
"Do you need us to help with anything?"
Although Anto felt this was somewhat fantastical, it was ultimately the Reunion Movement's own arrangement. Since they were willing to believe this child could deal with the enemy's command center, what was the point of his group acting like villains on the sidelines?
"After going south, just help comfort the children and the sick." Talulah bowed to Anto.
"I understand. I will do it." Anto nodded and agreed.
After returning to the Rhodes Island area, the others asked Anto about his visit. Anto told everyone that the Reunion Movement was indeed facing a very dangerous opponent this time, which was why they were being moved in advance. But the Reunion Movement also had a plan, so they only needed to follow the women, children, and patients to a safe area first.
Hearing his words, everyone finally felt at ease. After all, the Reunion Movement's recent actions were too unusual, making them feel a constant sense of pressure.
"Our people have already found news of Count Miles. He is indeed in the army, organizing troops to head south. Their excuse is... to assist the Fourth Legion. Hmph, the Fourth Legion's battle with Kazdel is far away in Kazdel. How can they assist by coming this way? The target has one High-speed Battleship, equipped with five thousand soldiers and an Armored Battalion. Fortunately, we destroyed all the roads to the east, so their Armored Battalion can't get in for now. So we will only have to face their ground troops. Approximately three thousand five hundred people."
Hearing Buldrokkas'tee's words, everyone fell into silence. The total number of people in the entire Reunion Movement didn't even add up to three thousand five hundred, and the number of enemies they were about to face was despair-inducing. Not to mention the enemy consisted of fully armed elite warriors. Furthermore, an army group wouldn't just consist of ordinary soldiers. There's no telling how many long-range bombardment units, Caster Battalions for long-range support, and snipers there are.
"So when will they arrive?" Talulah didn't panic and continued to ask.
"Judging by their speed, I'd say about a week from now, which happens to be exactly half a month since the last appearance of The Guard."
After Buldrokkas'tee finished speaking, everyone stood up gloomily to go about their work.
"How about Flandre goes north to beat up the bad guys right now?" Flandre expressed that she didn't want to feel stifled; when things happen, one should take the initiative to attack.
"No, we can't take the initiative this time. We must wait for them to come before we fight back. Otherwise, the people from the Fourth Army Group will also be drawn in, and our enemies will only keep increasing!" Talulah shook her head.
Admittedly, letting Flandre take the initiative was a good idea, but then Flandre would have to bear all the danger alone. Moreover, she would be facing not just Count Miles alone, but a suppression campaign by the entire Old Nobility. But if they waited until the enemy arrived here before acting, the Reunion Movement could help share some of the pressure.
Even if the Old Nobility really came to threaten them later, they could directly head south to Leithanien or Victoria for refuge. With so many people at once, including former Ursus soldiers, the public opinion impact would surely force that Emperor to place certain restrictions on the Old Nobility. At that time, if Lungmen also made a move to distract them, with threats from both the east and west, the Reunion Movement's chances of staying safe would be quite high.
After Talulah shared her views, Flandre pouted and didn't mention the matter further.
At night, in a dream.
"Flandre, Flandre, are you there?" Flandre heard Remilia's voice again.
"Sister! Flandre is here!" Flandre said loudly.
"Great, I finally got in touch with you. It's really hard to lock onto your location where you are. How are you doing now? Are you sleeping well? Are you eating well?" Remilia asked a string of questions, making Flandre a bit dizzy.
"Sister, Sister, you're asking too much, Flandre can't remember it all!"
"Alright! Just tell me about your situation lately!" Remilia said.
"Mm-hmm, since the last time I contacted Sister..." Flandre talked about what happened in Lungmen, how she thought she'd stay there until Remilia found her, but then she received news from the Reunion Movement and brought people over.
"What! You're going to sneak attack the enemy legion's command center all by yourself? It's too dangerous, I won't allow it!" Hearing what she was about to do, Remilia said shrilly.
Flandre said aggrievedly, "But Flandre already promised, and these people are quite weak. Flandre thinks she should be able to win!"
"Should be able to?" Remilia was about to criticize her sister when she was interrupted by a gentle and intellectual voice nearby.
"Little Flandre, how long has it been since the last contact?" Flandre thought for a moment. "Two or three months, I think!"
"Your action is in seven days, right?" Patchouli Knowledge continued to ask.
"That's right, Patchy."
After Flandre answered, the other person's mood clearly relaxed a lot. "There should be enough time!" Patchy said to Remilia.
Remilia's mood seemed much calmer. "Flandre, remember, I will contact you in three days. At that time, I need you to provide me with stable coordinates so I can come to your side."
Flandre scratched her head. "But what should I do?"
"You will know!" After Remilia finished, she asked how she had been eating and living lately. Flandre said it was fine and that there were many fun things here, and she was having a great time. Hearing this, Remilia on the other side let out a soft chuckle. Indeed, this was her sister.
"Then we'll see each other in seven days! Remember, don't tell anyone else about this." Remilia said gently.
"Okay, okay! Then Flandre will wait for Sister to come! Then we can play the game of beating up bad guys together!" Flandre was very happy to hear that Remilia was coming.
"Of course, I'll help Flandre beat up the bad guys then!" Remilia replied with a smile.
When Flandre opened her eyes, it was already the next morning. Alina had already gone out, leaving only her in bed. Thinking about her sister coming to play the game of beating up bad guys with her, she jumped and skipped around the room happily. However, Remilia told her to keep it a secret, so she couldn't tell anyone else.
On the other side, in Gensokyo, the Scarlet Devil Mansion had undergone a great transformation, with various machines, equipment, immortal arts talismans, and Taoist runes pasted everywhere.
"How is it, how is it?" Remilia looked at the people not far away.
"For now, we've roughly locked onto her location, but there's a thick barrier between us. We suspect it's the 'wall' between different worlds. It's not that people from other worlds haven't been discovered in Gensokyo, but the phenomenon of someone like Flandre suddenly disappearing and being thrown into another world is indeed worth studying. Moreover, the barrier between that other world and us is such that, logically, it should have been impossible for Flandre to cross over."
The speaker was Yukari Yakumo. Her staying here wasn't out of interest in the other world, but because the sudden disappearance of a Yokai forced her to come and understand the reason. Otherwise, if one Yokai disappears today and a Great Yokai disappears tomorrow, and if Reimu suddenly disappears one day, what would happen to the Hakurei Barrier without the Hakurei Shrine Maiden?
But now it seems the matter is almost over. And that world Flandre mentioned, where people look a lot like Yokai—to be honest, she was a little curious... Should she let Ran go take a look when the time comes? But if Ran goes, what about the housework? And who will look after that child, Chen? I can't possibly do it myself!
"How annoying!" Yukari Yakumo sighed and then disappeared into a Gap.
On the continent of Terra, Flandre was in a very good mood after knowing her sister was coming. That emotion spread to the somewhat nervous people, making everyone feel as if they had lightened up quite a bit.
Just like that, a week passed quickly. The Ursus army arrived and stopped at a village less than fifty kilometers away from the settlement. Everyone was rubbing their hands together, preparing for tomorrow's attack.
At this time, Count Miles and his staff were making pre-battle plans in front of the map.
"It's obvious that someone among us leaked the news. According to the situation scouted by drones, they've set up very troublesome obstacles in an area extending a full thirty kilometers from the target location, specifically designed to deal with our mechanized units. Furthermore, this place is located behind large mountains. Except for the west and south, the east and north are among the mountain ranges, so the High-speed Battleship simply cannot pass through quickly.
However, the quality of our soldiers is trustworthy. Even if we launch a direct frontal assault, based on our judgment, the opponent can only hold out for a day at most."
[1] CIrno