Martin and his group rushed into Prince Herbert's tent in a hurry, with hurried steps and anxious looks.
Prince Herbert was reviewing the military newspaper. He looked up in surprise at the sudden intrusion. Before he could ask, Martin stepped forward quickly.
Martin's breathing was rapid, and his words were full of urgency: "Your Highness, something big has happened!"
As he spoke, he quickly told everything about the magic circle, unfolded the military map on the table, and pushed it towards Prince Herbert.
Prince Herbert took the map and examined it according to Martin's instructions. The color drained from his face instantly, his legs weakened, and he slumped into the chair behind him.
After calming down a little, he immediately ordered the sky mage in the military camp to come quickly.
Not long after, the Sky Mage hurried over. Prince Herbert briefly explained the situation. Upon hearing this, the Sky Mage's expression froze. He took the map with both hands and examined it intently.
There was silence in the tent. Everyone held their breath and stared at the Sky Mage.
After a moment, the Sky Mage put down the map, his expression solemn. "Your Highness, as Martin White said, this is the ancient magic circle 'Dark Invasion'. This magic circle is extremely vicious, I'm sure you have heard of it."
"But there's one thing you might not know. Activating it requires draining the magic power of four sky mages, and once you enter the center of the formation, you can't get out."
"This means sacrificing the lives of four sky mages in exchange for the lives of nearly 100,000 soldiers, including sky knights, mages, and dragon knights."
Prince Herbert was shocked and asked hurriedly, "Where is the magic circle deployed?"
The Sky Mage pondered for a moment, then pointed to the final checkpoint in the western region. He said solemnly, "This is it. Once activated, this area will be enveloped in magical power, forcibly transforming all living beings into creatures of darkness, making escape impossible."
Upon hearing this, Prince Herbert and Martin instantly understood that the enemy's previous strange behavior of not resisting was actually an attempt to swallow up the Kingdom of Charlemagne in one gulp and all the knights and wizards that could be assembled openly.
If all these forces were to perish here, the situation would be dramatically reversed.
Thinking of this, Prince Herbert made a prompt decision and ordered everyone to stay where they were. At the same time, he sent two sky mages to the suspected center of the formation to investigate to avoid misjudgment.
Nearly 100,000 soldiers began to rest on the spot, waiting for a long time as the sky gradually darkened. Only when night fell did the two sky mages who had gone to investigate hurriedly return, bringing back despairing news.
One of the Sky Mages panted and said, "Your Highness, it is indeed a Dark Invasion Magic Circle. Four Sky Mages are already standing at the center of the circle. We didn't dare to get close. We only took a look from afar, fearing to alert the enemy, and then hurried back."
Prince Herbert's face was gloomy. After pondering for a moment, he made a decision: "Early tomorrow morning, we will set out for Cast Iron Pass and hold it firmly."
Martin sighed inwardly. It seemed this defense was a done deal. After all, no one was willing to fight the four sky mages who were trapped in the magic circle. Those four mages could hold out for years without food or water.
Is the peace gained at the cost of the sacrifice of four sky mages worth it?
The night faded away quietly without anyone noticing, and the subtle morning light gently fell on the earth, announcing the arrival of the morning.
Prince Herbert stood in front of the tent, looking at the gradually brightening sky, his expression calm but with a hint of determination.
He was fully aware of the current situation and without any hesitation, he decisively ordered the legion to begin an orderly retreat towards Cast Iron Pass.
Once the news spread, the nobles reacted in a very strange way. They were extremely active and quick in packing their luggage, as if they had known the prince's intentions for a long time, or as if they were urged by some invisible force.
It didn't take long for everything to be ready. Following Prince Herbert's loud and powerful command, the army marched towards the Cast Iron Pass. The orderly footsteps echoed on the ground, raising a light cloud of dust.
On the other side, the dwarves had been holding the final checkpoint for several days, looking forward to it every day, but there was no sign of the army of the human kingdom.
Doubts filled their hearts like a thick fog. Finally, the dwarf general sent a small group of elite dwarf knights to investigate.
Not long after, the dwarf knights who went to investigate came back at full speed, bringing back shocking news: the army of the human kingdom had retreated several days ago!
They carefully explored the routes that the human army might have passed, and finally found that the human army was now stationed at Cast Iron Pass, and it seemed that they had no intention of coming out again.
The dwarf guarding the gate was only a silver knight. He knew that his level was not high enough to handle such a serious matter, so he quickly passed the news to the legion commander.
As for how to deal with the situation next, he didn't know, but he was relieved. Looking at the people guarding the gate, he shook his head and thought, ignorance is really good.
After the army successfully returned to Cast Iron Pass, problems arose. Originally, this pass had never been designed to accommodate a large garrison, but now the soldiers poured in, and the pass was instantly overcrowded, filled with noisy voices and chaotic footsteps.
Prince Herbert stood on a high place overlooking the chaos, frowning and making quick deployments. With a wave of his hand, he ordered the troops to be stationed in the area close to the Kingdom of Charlemagne.
The knights assigned to this location were very happy to hear the order. After all, being closer to their kingdom gave them a greater sense of security.
With their orderly bustle, everything was quickly settled. Once everything was settled, Prince Herbert, with a solemn expression, picked up the communication crystal and delivered the bad news from the front to King Charlemagne.
The light of the communication crystal flickered, as if reflecting the tense and oppressive atmosphere at the moment.
King Charlemagne received the message, glanced around quickly, and his whole body froze in an instant. Then he sighed slowly, as if he wanted to exhale all the helplessness and fatigue in his heart with this breath.
He sat weakly in the chair, staring blankly ahead, without saying a word for a long time, and the air around him seemed to have frozen.
After a long moment, he slowly raised his hand and picked up the communication crystal. His voice was low but revealed an unquestionable authority: "Send the remaining knights and nobles back to their fiefdoms. I will deliver the subsequent rewards and compensation on time."
"As for the captives, the Western Territory is rich in minerals. Letting them mine first can help them recover some of their losses."
After receiving the order, Prince Herbert did not dare to slack off and immediately took action with great vigor.
He first sent the First and Second Warcraft Legions to escort the captives to the mining area to start mining, and also asked them to start building roads.
Afterwards, considering that the Ninth Legion had suffered heavy damage in the previous battle and its combat effectiveness had been greatly reduced, they were sent to guard the prisoners and mine, allowing them to recuperate.
As for the defense of the pass, Prince Herbert decided to keep all the sky combat forces and 40,000 knights, and disband the rest of the troops, allowing them to return to their fiefdoms to recuperate.
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