"Report, General Jiyan handed over full command of the troops to you before he left."
Zane, who had rushed to Norfall Barrens in a hurry, listened to the soldier's report. He glanced around, making sure that black silhouette wasn't there, and then immediately showed an annoyed expression.
With Rover not around, he could finally express his dissatisfaction about them going to fight the boss without bringing him along.
But dissatisfaction was one thing. Work still had to be done.
"Lingyin, gather a unit of about 50 Resonators. As for abilities… it's best if they're speed-type."
Lingyin was the commander of the close-combat unit appointed by Jiyan.
The commander of the long-range unit was Linkong.
"Understood, General… but may I ask why?"
Zane didn't mind Lingyin's question at all. In fact, he appreciated it.
History had no shortage of cases where parachuted commanders or those who sat high above blindly issued orders, wasting their advantage and ultimately leading to defeat.
Compared to commanders who stayed detached, frontline soldiers were the ones closest to the battlefield.
Any strategy or tactic wasn't rigid. It had to be adapted to the real conditions of both the soldiers and the battlefield, analyzing each situation as it came.
So Lingyin raising a question meant he wasn't the type to just rigidly follow orders.
"This unit will serve as a mobile force. If something goes wrong on Jiyan's side, or if anything unexpected happens here, this unit will act as a reserve to handle the situation."
As Zane spoke, since Jiyan trusted Lingyin to command the close-combat forces, he would definitely become a general capable of standing on his own in the future. Zane couldn't help but look at Lingyin seriously and said in a deep voice,
"Lingyin, remember this, when waging war, if you seek advantage, you must consider the harm. If you seek success, you must consider failure. Go prepare."
Although Lingyin had often heard Jiyan mention Zane, he had never truly understood Zane's capabilities.
For the past three years, all he had heard were stories about Zane that sounded almost like legends.
But could a legend really remain unknown for three whole years?
Lingyin couldn't help but doubt it. He had even questioned whether Zane's feats had been fabricated.
In fact, before Zane made this arrangement, they had always believed Jiyan would win. They had never considered contingency plans in case of failure.
But now, he finally realized just how far ahead Zane's combat awareness was.
Pride was the greatest enemy of all.
"I understand. I'll arrange it right away.", Lingyin saluted Zane respectfully, fully convinced, then quickly left to prepare.
At that moment, a piercing whistle sounded once again.
Without a doubt, the TD tide had returned.
Ovathrax clearly understood that this was a battle tied to its life, so it desperately summoned more TDs to crash toward the Midnight Rangers Army's defenses.
As long as people died, as long as there were cries of anguish, the war-born TDs could continuously draw power from it to replenish themselves. And so, it set its sights on this defensive line.
Thus, this battlefield also determined whether Rover and the others could successfully deal with Ovathrax.
"General, they're everywhere!"
"Then fire everywhere."
Zane gave a sharp shout and flipped forward like a hawk, diving straight into the tide of TDs.
The best way to reduce casualties on their side was to eliminate every single enemy.
A long blade swept across the battlefield like a storm. Every swing sent two TDs flying into the air, letting them experience the thrill of being flung sky-high.
The long-range units on both sides of the cliffs timely unleashed volleys into the tide, greatly easing the pressure on the close-combat forces.
Zane swung his blade again, splitting the last TD in two. Watching the well-coordinated troops, he narrowed his eyes in satisfaction.
With this force, not only could they defend, even counterattacking Ovathrax wasn't impossible.
At the same time, on a ridge not far away, a red figure silently watched the battlefield. Behind her, one TD after another rose to their feet, like a well-trained army awaiting her command.
The girl's right eye was wrapped in a clean white bandage. The crimson hem of her clothes made her look like a blooming red flower on the banks of the underworld river.
In her hand, a strange red-glowing flower swayed continuously, like a lonely conductor directing a symphony of death and destruction.
"The white demon…"
The girl murmured softly. The eye faintly glowing red was unexpectedly calm.
"Is your movement ending here… or is it just beginning…"
Red petals gradually rose from below, wrapping around her body and slowly covering her completely.
In the next second, as the petals scattered, her figure disappeared from this space.
After cutting down the last TD, Zane seemed to sense something and looked up, scanning his surroundings, but ultimately found nothing.
"Was it just my imagination?"
Zane stroked his smooth chin, uncertainty flickering in his eyes.
Just now, he had clearly felt a familiar presence watching him, but it vanished in an instant.
As he was thinking, a soldier's voice pulled him back.
"General, the TD tide is coming again."
Zane suddenly raised his head. His pupils shrank as he immediately spotted, within the tide, a TD that looked strikingly similar to Iori Yagami...
Tempest Mephis.
'Where's Kyo Kusanagi? Hurry up and come save us.'
Looking at that beast-like figure, Zane clenched his teeth.
"Damn it, how did this thing end up here!"
Like the Thundering Mephis, this one also belonged to the speed-type TDs. It possessed lightning-fast teleportation traits.
Even elite Midnight Rangers soldiers were nothing more than slightly stronger infants under the claws of the Tempest Mephis.
If this thing really broke into their defenses, forget covering Jiyan and the others... even whether this Midnight Rangers unit could have anyone escape to report back would be a question.
Clearly, if Zane could see it, so could the rest of the Midnight Rangers Army.
"Temp… Tempest Mephis?"
"This is bad… with General Jiyan gone, who can stop a Whisper-type TD…"
"Young ones, fall back! Veterans, step forward and hold it back!"
"I don't want to die…"
"Don't be afraid! Midnight Rangers Army, form ranks! Hold the line to the death!"
———
Panic spread among the Midnight Rangers Army like a plague. If they weren't elite troops carefully trained by Jiyan, they might have already collapsed the moment they saw the Tempest Mephis.
Zane knew very well that if this panic was allowed to spread, then even if the Tempest Mephis didn't act personally, the Midnight Rangers's defense line would be crushed by ordinary Lightwave-class TDs.
"Lingyin, you take command of the troops. I'll hold that thing off."
"But General…"
"Execute the order!"
Zane shouted loudly, leaping into the tide of TDs, following the path carved out by the firepower from the cliffside units, heading straight for the Tempest Mephis.