Chapter 173: Chapter 42: The Strange Hierarchy of Uruk

“First Wing Pillar, Bone Mage, Wing Spread!”

With the final declaration, Bone Wings, formed from fragments of bone, suddenly appeared behind Shara Elkaras. Ethereal wings manifested at his back, and blue ghostly flames began to emerge densely.

Shara was relatively fond of the “First Wing Pillar” among the governors. He didn’t prefer using other wing pillars that conserved more World Spell in comparison.

The First Wing Pillar was indeed a very convenient wing pillar. Once chosen, it naturally allowed the use of the powers symbolized by the other wing pillars as if they were extensions of one’s own limbs.

Whether it was the ranged attack symbolized by the Third Wing Pillar…

The weapon manifestable by the Fourth Wing Pillar…

or the high mobility capability symbolized by the Second Wing Pillar…

All could be used normally during the manifestation of the First Wing Pillar. However, this meant consuming comparatively more World Spell, significantly reducing the governor’s endurance.

But in moments like these, it didn’t matter.

“Bzz bzz bzz~”

Like the sound of something lightly trembling, without need for incantations or gathering mana, the power of the advanced Bone Mage, belonging to the Skull Mage, also reappeared at this moment, driven by the governor’s force.

It was worth noting that Skull Mages were not particularly powerful creatures; due to their fragility, they were relatively weak units on the battlefield.

*But what did a Bone Mage’s weakness have to do with a governor?*

“Come!”

With this proclamation, the sounds surrounding Shara abruptly ceased, replaced by blue flames gradually emerging from the ground, suspended in the air… Soul Fire, born from buried corpses.

Actually, from a war perspective, the most useful ability was to raise the undead from the ground, resurrecting them as soldiers for combat.

However, such actions would enormously deplete the “wings”… In the current ceasefire between the Empire and monster-controlled regions, Shara couldn’t afford to be extravagant.

*If damaged, it would be hard to find something to replenish.*

The faint blue flames encircled Shara. He soared high into the sky, his body struck mercilessly by arrows and magic, leaving scars and scorch marks.

*But it didn’t matter; no one should underestimate a governor’s body… they were weapons born for war.*

…

The battlefield grew silent… Imperial soldiers had already retreated some distance.

The duchy soldiers defending the castle also realized what was about to happen. They could only offer meaningless resistance, incapable of doing anything else.

Having witnessed countless siege battles in the Demon Kingdom (monster-controlled areas), and governors enduring attacks without mercy or dissolving them from a distance… they knew very well what was coming.

It was–

A dive.

…

With Shara’s dive, blue flames representing souls blazed with dazzling light, descending together with Shara, striking the fortress without mercy.

This solid stone-built fortress seemed to dissolve without any defenses…

Outside the city were the imperial soldiers prepared for battle; inside, there were only duchy soldiers who had lost the will to resist… specifically, soldiers from the Hazad Duchy Alliance–formerly Caesar Duchy’s troops.

Within moments, this bastion defending against the Empire’s advance, a relatively small city, was breached.

“Lord Shara!!!”

“Ohhhhhhhhhh!!!!”

“Oh oh oh oh oh!!!!!!”

Fortunately, what awaited the duchy soldiers and citizens was not a massacre; for the Empire, at least, prisoners were treated better than peasants.

Enemy soldiers held value; they could be a reason for the nobility to demand ransom from the duchy, and when the duchy redeemed them, everyone would gain some income.

The occupation took slightly longer than expected… perhaps because duchy councilmen had also started joining the battle to some extent, though they quickly retreated at the last moment.

In the subsequent campaigns, councilmen would likely gradually exert their efforts, making the Empire’s victories more challenging… but both the Empire and the duchy had no objections.

Sometimes a knife was not a bad thing; when others used the knife to slice through meat or fruit, some meat or juice would always stick to the knife… If the knife was strong enough, they could eat these things.

If the opportunity arose, having more was not impossible.

“It seems we’ve won a great victory.”

A very young-looking man said this, smoking a pipe quite unceremoniously on the battlefield, dressed in platinum attire that appeared both noble and practical, watching his troops take the city without haste.

Shara glanced at the boy who stood next to him, looking down at the youth who barely reached his armpit, greeting him, “Little Ul, what’s the plan for the rest of today?”

Called “Little Ul,” Ulrichla Jem Goodwin took two puffs of his pipe, then handed the nearly burned-out pipe to his deputy officer behind him, saying, “No plans, or rather… the next period will be used for defending the city’s hold.”

Even if the front lines of the duchy seemed to break with a single blow, holding the freshly conquered city was vital.

It was a very conservative strategy, but no one objected; after all, the Empire’s goal was not to secure an outright win but to engage in a tacit trade with the duchy.

Sometimes, victory was not a victory, and defeat was not necessarily a loss.

“Let’s go down…”

Ulrichla said, waving to signal his guards and deputy officers to leave. He then looked at Shara, who leaned nonchalantly against the broken walls, and asked, “How’s Yila doing lately?”

This question implied that Shara had recently been in contact with Yila.

“He seems alright. If you go looking for him… he might feel troubled.”

Shara answered blandly, with no indirectness, ensuring no outsiders were listening. “From what I heard, the Demon King Territory is a nice place; perhaps Uncle Yila is more comfortable there than in the Empire.”

“…”

“I see…”

Ulrichla spoke, his expression as calm as a governor’s, making it hard to read his thoughts. However, his eyes clearly relaxed, as if he had laid down a burden.

“That’s good.”