"We won!!"
"We won!!"
The moment the dragon collapsed and stopped breathing, cheers erupted across the battlefield.
As they looked at the enormous corpse, no one had ever imagined that one day they themselves would become part of a dragon-slaying force.
Shyvana slowly returned to human form, and people quickly noticed that she looked different now.
For example, a suit of blood-red armor had appeared over her body, just like the outer shell she wore in dragon form.
With that armor and her blood-soaked aura, she looked even more imposing than before.
People could not help recalling what she had looked like just moments ago, and once again they were forced to accept the truth that the woman before them was, in fact, a dragon.
Blood was still flowing from Shyvana's wounds as she looked around, as if she had already prepared herself mentally.
She was not sure whether people would still accept her after seeing what she truly was.
But in the very next moment, even louder cheers broke out.
"Way to go, Shyvana!"
"You were incredible out there!"
"My friend is a dragon!"
"I'm gonna be bragging about this for a year!"
The soldiers crowded around Shyvana enthusiastically. The sincerity on their faces was like a warm breeze, blowing away the coldness around her.
At that moment, the weight hanging over her heart finally disappeared.
She knew she had found her home.
"Save the cheering for later. If you're hurt but still able to move, get those wounds treated now."
Seeing the joyful mood on the battlefield, Luke finally spoke up and cut through it.
As soon as he did, the soldiers quickly calmed themselves. The wounded began treating injuries, and the uninjured started cleaning up the battlefield.
Taking advantage of that moment, Luke walked over to the dragon's corpse.
Even up close, the dead dragon still carried the dignity of a supreme predator. Though life had left her body, the blood pouring from her was still hot.
The dragon was simply too huge. Standing in front of her, Luke was not even taller than her head.
Her dragon eyes had already gone dim, but the sharp fangs inside her gaping jaws still gleamed coldly.
Nearby, Shyvana sat while healers treated her injuries, and she looked at the dragon's corpse with equally complicated emotions.
On this day, she had personally killed her own birth mother.
Even knowing they had stood on opposite sides, the moment Yvva stopped breathing, Shyvana could not help feeling a little grief.
It felt more like something instinctive, something rooted in the nature of a living creature.
She had no real memories of Yvva, of course. What little she knew had all come from her father.
Without question, compared to Yvva, her human adoptive father had always mattered far more to her.
But he had died in Yvva's dragonfire, and after that she herself had been hunted without end.
Today, here and now, the score had finally been settled. By all rights, she should have felt happy.
Luke glanced at Shyvana beside him. "What are you thinking about?"
Shyvana answered softly, "I'm thinking that I finally avenged my father... but I can't feel happy about it at all."
After all, even with her revenge complete, the dead could not come back to life.
In the end, she had been left alone.
Fortunately, she had found a new home, a place with many companions willing to accept her.
Before Luke could say anything, she continued, "No matter what, I still have to thank you, Your Highness. If it weren't for you, I'd probably still be wandering around right now."
If Luke had not stepped in back then, she probably would still be living day after day in panic, hiding from Yvva's pursuit.
"You don't need to thank me." Luke shook his head and smiled. "You're the one who made it this far. Even without me, someone like you would've found a group of companions to fight beside sooner or later."
Shyvana smiled too, then said nothing more.
At that moment, Lux and Kahina came over as well, staring at the dragon's corpse in fascination and clicking their tongues in amazement.
"She's huge!"
"One of her scales is almost bigger than my hand!"
Most people were no different from them. After all, this was the first time in their lives any of them had seen a dragon, let alone gotten this close to touch one.
Even Katarina, despite herself, stepped closer now and examined the dragon's corpse before reaching out to touch one of the scales.
A dragon scale felt hard, but its surface was smooth, slightly warm, and surprisingly nice to the touch.
Dragon scales could be used to forge armor, and armor made from dragon scales possessed magical resistance and tremendous durability.
And dragon-scale armor had become exceedingly rare in Runeterra.
Dragon teeth could be made into weapons as well. They contained a great deal of the dragon's magical essence and were precious materials in their own right.
In short, the dragon before them was a gigantic treasure vault. Every part of her body was valuable.
Katarina had never expected the dragon to be brought down this cleanly. In fact, not a single person had died.
From the moment the dragon appeared to the moment she fell, the entire battle had been led by the nose.
Every step had been planned, every step anticipated, by the guy standing beside her.
Katarina could not help glancing at Luke's profile. Suddenly, that face that usually carried a lazy expression felt strange to her.
Then she looked at Shyvana again and felt a bit more pressure settle over her.
Shyvana had played a vital role in slaying the dragon, and after this, she would absolutely become a major force on Demacia's side.
A dragon.
A dragon that had tasted blood and was now rising.
A being like that would become an enemy of Noxus.
From Noxus's perspective, even though Patria stood opposed to her family, Katarina still could not help worrying about the Noxian soldiers at the Gates of Mourning.
Right, the Gates of Mourning...
Suddenly thinking of something, Katarina looked toward Luke.
By now, Luke had already withdrawn his gaze from the dragon and turned to Shyvana, whose wounds had been treated. "Can you still fight?"
Shyvana nodded without hesitation. "Of course."
"Then take a short rest and get ready. We're going right back to fighting."
As soon as he finished speaking, Luke turned and shouted, "Full army, rest and regroup. Assemble in ten minutes!"
The night was not over. Though they had defeated the dragon, the real battle was only just beginning.
Ten minutes later, Luke gathered a total of twenty thousand soldiers from within the city at the gates of Hill City.
Twenty thousand soldiers, lined up in perfect formation behind him, made for an enormous force.
In Demacia's army, twenty thousand men was no small number.
Demacia's military had never been known for sheer size.
That was because entry standards were extremely strict. Even joining the regular army was not something anyone could do.
And that was precisely one of the reasons Demacia's military strength remained so formidable.
As mentioned before, because of their different philosophies, Demacia and Noxus trained their soldiers in very different ways.
Noxus waged war year-round and thrived on feeding war with war, plundering resources and manpower from every land it conquered to strengthen itself.
Its power to absorb outsiders was extremely strong. Almost anyone could quickly be folded into the Noxian army and become part of it.
That also meant the quality of Noxian soldiers varied wildly, some excellent, some terrible.
After all, for many people, no matter their circumstances, joining the army was the fastest path to success.
But as a result, Noxus often relied on overwhelming numerical superiority to crush its enemies.
Just like this time. To hold a border stronghold like the Gates of Mourning, Noxus had deployed at least a six-figure force.
Demacia, by contrast, followed a model of careful cultivation. Most of its soldiers had been trained from a very early stage using Demacia's own resources and highly targeted instruction. That was what gave the Demacian army its high discipline, strong unity, tight coordination, and generally elite soldier quality.
Although this made the total size of the army look smaller, in truth, every one of its soldiers was an elite.
Combined with excellent equipment, Demacia's military power had always remained formidable.
Now, on the city wall, Luke quietly gazed into the distance. Before long, a dragonbird rider descended from above.
"Your Highness, the enemy is expected to arrive in half an hour."
"Good. Inform everyone, battle stations."
Luke nodded and sent the order down.
On the other side, Patria was still leading his army forward at full speed when a mounted soldier rode up to report.
"General, we're expected to reach Hill City in about half an hour."
"Good!"
Patria kept his eyes fixed ahead.
As the distance closed, his excitement continued to rise.
Tonight, he was going to break Hill City.
More than an hour had already passed. By now, the battle between Demacia and that dragon ought to be winding down.
Having witnessed the dragon's power himself, Patria was certain Demacia would not have dealt with it easily.
If he struck before they recovered, he could take the city in one clean push.
Taking Hill City meant an enormous amount of military merit, enough to earn him at least two promotions once he returned to the capital.
Thinking of that, Patria tightened his grip on the reins and urged even more speed from his mount.
About half an hour later, Patria and his army gradually entered Hill City's field of view.
Standing atop the city wall, Luke watched as a black sea of armored soldiers marched forward in tight formation. They looked like storm clouds pressing down on the land, all the more intimidating beneath the night sky.
There were so many of them it was impossible to count, and countless weapons glinted coldly in the darkness.
With every synchronized step they took, the ground itself trembled faintly, as if it too were shuddering beneath the advance of such an army.
At the head of the force rode Patria, clad in thick black armor that covered him completely, a battle axe in hand, looking every bit the fearsome warlord.
Within the army, black Noxian banners flew high, and alongside them marched powerful beasts and enormous war wagons.
A force of that size carried crushing pressure just from looking at it.
Luke's expression did not change. He simply stood there calmly on the wall.
In the distance, Patria also noticed Luke at once. The Demacian standing on the wall somehow drew the eye the moment he appeared.
For some reason, Patria felt completely certain.
That guy had to be Demacia's second prince.
Then suddenly, he saw Luke move.
As if he had sensed Patria's gaze, Luke casually raised his right hand and held up his middle finger.
Patria's mouth twitched.
At that moment, no words were needed.
That gesture was not especially damaging, but its insulting power was extraordinary. In an instant, every humiliation he had suffered because of that bastard surged back into his mind.
Patria almost gave the order to charge on the spot.
But no rush. Very soon, he would be standing in that very position, with this guy's head beneath his boot.
Grinding his teeth, Patria withdrew his vicious gaze and coldly ordered, "Tonight, Hill City falls. Whoever captures that second prince alive first gets a bounty of five thousand and a promotion of one rank!"
A bounty on par with the reward for slaying a dragon spread through the ranks, and the entire army's morale surged immediately.
By now, they all knew that the flyover harassment had been that damned Demacian second prince's idea.
Now they could beat him, and get paid for it afterward. Just thinking about it made their blood boil.
"Break Hill City!"
"For Noxus!"
The roar of tens of thousands of voices shook the night sky, deafening and wild, their momentum explosive.
Shouting like that did not just raise morale, it also effectively intimidated the enemy.
Unfortunately for them, Demacians were not impressed.
Luke raised a hand, and at once a large line of white-armored soldiers appeared along the wall, bows in hand, ready to fire.
Patria narrowed his eyes. There were quite a lot of defenders on the wall, as if they had been waiting here all along.
Come to think of it, the dragon was nowhere in sight anymore.
Then he swept his eyes across the walls and noticed numerous signs of damage. A cold sneer immediately formed in his heart.
"Just bluffing."
At that, Patria hesitated no longer and shouted, "All forces, charge! Break Hill City!"
"Kill!!!"
With a roar, the troops behind him surged forward. The entire army charged toward Hill City, massive siege wagons rumbling ahead.
Huge basilisks carried siege crews forward in bounding strides.
Even more terrifying, drakehounds darted through the formations with vicious agility.
The sight reminded Luke of the beast tide he had once faced, except that compared to this dark sea of soldiers, even a beast tide looked tiny.
But this time, the preparations he had been able to make were very different from back then.
Watching the enemy draw closer, the instant they entered range, he shouted, "Fire!"
In an instant, a storm of arrows shot from the walls like heavy rain, shrieking through the air, but every single shot was blocked by the advancing enemy.
Noxus had always excelled at siege warfare. That was obvious just from the sheer amount of siege equipment packed into their army.
So the arrow storm could only serve as intimidation.
It did not slow a single soldier's charge.
A cold smile tugged at Patria's lips. He had besieged too many cities to count, and this siege was destined to succeed.
That second prince had only just begun commanding troops. How could he possibly be a match for him?
Then, in the very next second, Patria's expression changed.
"Fire again!"
Luke gave another order.
One after another, antique-style cannons with broad round barrels were wheeled into view atop the gates, right before the eyes of the Noxian army.
Then came the black, round cannonballs, loaded and rammed into place, fuses lit, the entire sequence completed in one smooth motion.
A heartbeat later, boom, boom, boom!
Another volley followed. Patria's eyes widened as he looked at the sky full of black cannonballs and realized, these sure as hell were not arrows.
Even the shield-bearing troops went briefly blank, just staring as the shells came crashing down.
Boom boom boom boom!!
The next second, even more violent explosions erupted. Bursts of fire swallowed soldier after soldier whole.
That very first volley turned the vanguard into utter chaos, blasting them apart and flipping men off their feet.
"Black powder?"
Disbelief flashed through Patria's eyes. There was no question, it looked exactly like the black powder he knew of.
Noxus too had begun experimenting with black powder in recent years, but the results had been far from encouraging.
These dangerous explosives could go off at the slightest mishandling, and usually they killed as many of your own men as enemy soldiers.
Many war masons who developed the stuff had died from it themselves.
Demacia had already developed black powder to this level?
Since when?
Why had he never heard a word about it?
"Fire again!"
Boom boom boom!
Another thunderous volley snapped Patria out of his shock. He watched another batch of soldiers die under the shells and finally realized the situation was nothing like he had imagined.
"General, the enemy firepower is too heavy!"
One of his adjutants rode up to him.
There were at least a hundred cannons on the wall. Under such relentless shelling, the assault troops could not advance even a single step.
"Pull the vanguard back, move the siege wagons forward!"
Patria barked the order at once, shifting tactics.
Immediately, the charging infantry pulled back while the huge siege wagons rolled forward.
These siege wagons had been built for durability, and on top of that, the army had brought mages specifically to reinforce them.
Sure enough, under magical reinforcement, the wagons withstood the cannon fire and kept pushing steadily toward the walls.
Seeing that, Patria immediately gave another order. "Raise the war banner. Advance behind it!"
At once, several mages poured magical energy into the Noxian banner.
Forged from special materials and inscribed with powerful magical markings, the banner was immediately activated, sending a wave of power rippling outward.
Every soldier touched by that wave felt strengthened, becoming fiercer and more fearless.
The siege wagons and the army continued pressing toward the foot of the walls. Luke calmly kept ordering volleys, completely unshaken.
The moment he saw the Noxian banner lifted high and magic spreading out from it, he ordered, "Cithria, bomb that flag for me."
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Cithria answered instantly, rising on the wind as her dragonbird spread its wings and climbed high into the night sky.
At once, all of the dragonbird riders took flight.
Seeing them soaring high overhead, Patria frowned, a bad feeling rising in his chest.
In the next moment, black powder bombs began raining down from the sky along their flight paths.
Some were dropped on the mages, others directly at the banner.
The bombs hit and detonated instantly. Fire swallowed the area, the heat of the explosions slammed into everyone nearby, the ground shook, and screams rang out one after another.
"Protect the banner first, protect the mages!" Patria shouted at the top of his lungs. "Shoot down those dragonbird riders!"
A hail of arrows shot toward the dragonbird riders high above, but every last one of them dodged with ease.
Then the next disaster struck.
The leading siege wagons were already less than three hundred meters from the gates. If they reached the base of the wall, that alone would count as a breakthrough.
But as one wagon rolled forward in complete focus, no one noticed what it had passed over.
Then, boom!!!
An explosion erupted beneath the siege wagon. Bright fire burst upward, and under the deafening roar and blast wave, the wagon was flipped over and utterly destroyed from below.
That sight left even Patria frozen for a brief moment.
Before he had even processed what had happened, more explosions followed.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Each one meant another siege wagon destroyed. In only that short span of time, every siege wagon at the front had been wiped out.
Seeing that the anti-siege-wagon mines were working, Luke allowed himself a small satisfied smile and calmly ordered, "Keep firing!"
This time, every bit of black powder they had brought was being poured into this single battle.
Patria was half-stunned now. Explosions were erupting everywhere, and every new burst of fire in his sight meant another chunk of his force had just been lost.
The cannons on the walls, the dragonbird riders bombing from above, the anti-siege-wagon mines on the ground.
Together, the three formed a tight defensive net that completely blocked the Noxian advance.
Even the soldiers on the wall stared in amazement. None of them had expected a scene like this.
Patria had never fought such a punishing siege battle. His army had not even touched the enemy's walls, yet wave after wave of his men had already been destroyed.
But looking at the city walls so close ahead, he still refused to abandon the fight.
He believed that once he broke through the enemy's firepower, his forces could easily crush the defenders on the wall.
Besides, coming all this way only to lose so many soldiers and turn back, that was not the Noxian way.
With that thought, Patria roared, "The gates are close! Charge! Let the enemy's blood honor our fallen brothers!"
"Charge!!"
"Kill!!"
Some soldiers had already lost all will to fight under the bombardment, but in Noxus, desertion was punishable by death, and usually a very painful one.
At this point, they could only scream to rally themselves and hurl forward with everything they had.
If they could just break through the gates, their chance would come.
Not even the relentless shelling from hundreds of guns could stop the Noxian army's charge. As they drew closer and closer to the gates, three hundred meters, two hundred meters...
Then someone beside Luke said, "Your Highness, we're almost out of powder."
Hearing that, Luke immediately said, "That's about enough. Fire the signal flare."
"Yes, sir!"
A moment later, with a sharp whistle, a signal flare shot high into the sky and burst open like fireworks.
The moment Patria saw that flare, instinct told him something was wrong. A powerful sense of danger surged through him.
"Kill!!"
Then he heard the cries of battle erupt from both flanks.
Demacian troops that had been lying in ambush there all along charged in from both sides, slamming into the Noxian army at its center.
At their head was none other than Lev, commander of the Dauntless Vanguard.
He led from the front, charging straight into the Noxian ranks at blinding speed and cutting enemies down from horseback with overwhelming force.
And between the two flanks, there were at least ten thousand soldiers combined.
From atop the wall, Luke shouted another order. "Open the gates! Out of the city, kill the enemy!"
As soon as he spoke, the gates of Hill City swung open from the inside before Noxus could break them.
This should have been the perfect chance for Noxus.
And yet the Noxian soldiers at the front, who were just about to reach the gates, did not dare take another step forward.
"Kill!!!"
A flood of white-armored soldiers poured out of the gates and charged the Noxians head-on.
How could this be?
Patria stared in shock. Had the dragon really done nothing at all to weaken Demacia?
Why were they this prepared?
Seeing that there were still so many forces left inside the city, Patria had no time to think further. He raised his weapon high. "For Noxus! Kill!"
He still had plenty of men. He should still be able to fight these enemies!
But very soon, he realized the situation was nothing like he thought.
The white-armored soldiers crashed into the Noxian formation, black and white mixing together instantly like stones on a game board.
The only difference was that the black stones were the ones being surrounded.
High on the wall, Sona sat playing a fierce, soaring battle anthem. Her music washed over every Demacian soldier, giving them even greater resolve and strength.
By contrast, the Noxian army, whose morale had already been shattered by the black powder bombardment, was visibly losing its will to fight.
The two armies clashed, and in only a very short time, countless enemy soldiers were cut down.
Luke leapt down from the wall and joined the battle. Wind intent swirled around him, and with a slash of Snowglance, a massive tornado tore across a broad swath of enemies ahead.
The gale ripped through the Noxian ranks.
Luke did not stop. He used Sweeping Blade to build more wind intent, and when the momentum was right, he unleashed another massive tornado with a single slash.
This technique was absurdly effective for mowing through ranks of soldiers.
Vayne moved through the enemy ranks with her crossbow in hand and a cold gaze in her eyes, carrying out a merciless hunt.
Poppy swung the Hammer of Orlon with ferocious force, and in that tiny body of hers, the sacred hammer displayed tremendous destructive power.
When she put her full strength behind a swing and slammed it down, the ground cracked open, blasting enemies far away.
Yurna wielded that black dagger of hers and silently took lives without a sound.
Lux and Kahina followed behind the lines as healers, immediately treating the wounded as soon as they were rotated out.
Lux spent the entire battle secretly using magic to shield every soldier she could keep track of.
She had wanted to openly use magic in this battle, but Luke had told her that wasn't necessary.
On that point, Lux had chosen to listen to him.
Even so, she still could not help secretly using it. So far no one had noticed, and she believed that as long as she hid it carefully enough, no one would find out.
For both girls, this was their first time experiencing a battle like this. It might even have been the first time they had ever seen so many people die in front of them.
But neither of them was afraid.
Instead, they only became more determined to carry out their duty.
After Demacia's first full assault, the Noxian army was already beginning to show signs of collapse. Their momentum fell lower and lower.
Even though they still outnumbered Demacia, they had already been forced fully onto the defensive.
It was then that Patria noticed Luke in the fighting.
The moment he saw him, anger, hatred, and humiliation all collided in his chest. He raised his battle axe and prepared to charge straight at him.
With the situation growing worse and worse for his side, only one thought remained in his mind.
Fight his way through and capture that prince alive.
That prince was now his best chance of turning the battle around.
The instant that thought formed, Patria began to move toward him.
But then a firelit glow flared in the sky overhead, and a roar from within it made both him and countless Noxian soldiers freeze where they stood.
Roar!!!
A roar filled with overwhelming menace sounded from behind the Demacian army, and a shadow descended from the sky.
What appeared before the Noxian troops was unmistakable, a fire dragon!
The dragon roared at the enemy, and with a blast of dragonfire, explosions instantly erupted around several Noxian soldiers.
Then came a second breath attack. Flames roared to life, and soldiers screamed and wailed in the inferno.
That sight spread terror through more and more of the army.
This dragon was clearly fighting for Demacia.
"How is there another one?!"
Patria stared with eyes wide in disbelief. The fire dragon's form sent an uncontrollable chill through his whole body, cold sweat breaking across his forehead.
Demacia had a dragon helping them fight?
He could tell this was not the same dragon as before. The size was different.
The earlier dragon had been larger, more imposing.
But that did not mean this one lacked presence.
At that moment, under those circumstances, Shyvana's appearance in dragon form brought the Noxian soldiers just as much pressure and terror as Yvva had before.
Now everything suddenly made sense.
For example, why Demacia's army had shown no sign of being weakened by the earlier dragon.
Clearly, this fire dragon had helped them deal with the other one.
And Demacia, like a hunter waiting beside a snare, had devoted its attention to fortifying the city gates and setting up an ambush here long in advance, just waiting for Noxus to walk into it.
The moment Patria realized that, the cold in his body deepened, and his heart hammered in his chest so hard that his breathing became ragged.
Bad, bad, bad!
By now, Shyvana had already plunged into the enemy army and begun slaughtering them at will. Biting, breathing fire, crashing through formations, she tore the Noxian ranks upside down like she was massacring fodder.
The enemy's weak, powerless attacks meant almost nothing to her.
Because of her appearance, more and more soldiers completely lost the will to fight, their courage shattered as fear consumed them.
Luke knew that although Shyvana's combat power was immense, her dragon form could only be maintained for a limited time and drained her heavily.
So, while her intimidation factor was at its peak, he shouted, "For Demacia, kill!"
On Demacia's side, Shyvana's appearance sent morale soaring to its highest point yet.
"Kill!!"
"For Demacia!"
Everyone roared as one and followed behind Shyvana into the slaughter.
"General, the situation's turning against us, I advise retreat!"
Seeing the troops already struggling desperately just to withstand Demacia's charge, an adjutant shouted to Patria.
The situation was growing worse by the second, and Patria no longer dared hesitate. "Retreat!"
At this point, the situation was no longer merely bad. It was completely one-sided.
Patria had fought many wars. He knew that if he kept forcing a battle against Demacia now, total annihilation was only a matter of time.
Retreat was not shameful. Staying alive was victory.
He still had one chance, retreat to the Gates of Mourning. He had left ten thousand defenders there. If he could fall back and regroup with them, it should not be difficult to hold off these Demacian soldiers.
And once he got back, he would request reinforcements immediately.
That was his last hope.
He could not understand how, despite having such a huge numerical advantage, he had ended up being crushed so completely by Demacia.
His mind was in total chaos now, incapable of thinking clearly. The only thing in his head was how to survive.
He could not die yet. His future was so bright. He absolutely could not fall here!
Thinking that, Patria was among the very first to retreat, racing harder than anyone else.
Soon, a mass of black-armored soldiers appeared in his field of view.
"Thank gods, reinforcements!"
Joy burst across his face, as if he had grabbed hold of the final rope that might save him.
He did not realize that this was actually the rope that would hang him.
The black-armored soldiers were only the surface. Behind them stood even more white-armored troops.
The instant Patria saw that, he froze, and a crushing sense of dread detonated inside his chest.
"General! The Gates of Mourning have fallen! What do we do now?!"
An adjutant fleeing from the Gates of Mourning looked at Patria in utter despair. When he saw the even larger force of Demacian troops pursuing Patria from behind, despair overtook him completely.
"What did you say?"
At those words, Patria felt his mind explode as if a bomb had gone off inside it.
He had heard it clearly.
He just could not believe it.
The adjutant lowered his head. "The Gates of Mourning fell. Right after you led the army out, the enemy prince led ten thousand soldiers in a surprise assault against us."
"The prince..."
Patria's dazed eyes lifted toward the one riding in the lead.
Jarvan IV.
Then he looked back at the pursuing enemy behind him and suddenly let out a self-mocking laugh. "So that's how it is."
He was the turtle inside the jar.
The dragon's sudden appearance and overwhelming might had given him false hope.
He had not expected Demacia to resolve things so quickly, or to have already prepared an ambush and stationed men at the Gates of Mourning in advance.
What they had been waiting for was for him to confidently march out with the bulk of his forces.
Once he did that, he drastically lowered the difficulty of taking the Gates of Mourning.
Thinking it through, it was likely that the moment that dragon appeared over the Gates of Mourning, Jarvan IV's force had already been lying in wait outside it.
They had prepared that many layers in advance?
The black powder had blasted apart his confidence, and the fall of the Gates of Mourning finished what remained.
From the day he joined the army, he had won battle after battle, yet somehow he had stumbled and fallen at this supposedly easy border stronghold.
No, no, no!
This was not how his fate was supposed to go. The witch had said his future would be glorious.
He was not supposed to fall here. So where, where exactly had it gone wrong?
"General, the enemy is about to hit us, what do we do?!"
The adjutant's panicked shout pulled Patria back to reality.
He looked around. Enemies on all sides. His army had nowhere left to retreat.
"Fight to the death!"
He raised his battle axe high and shouted as if ready to die, but the trembling in his voice betrayed the fear in his heart.
At this point, what else could he do?
They had no choice but to fight to the death.
Only by fighting to the death.
Only by fighting to the death could they carve out even the slightest chance of survival.
"Fight to the death!"
Cries answering him rose from every side. Even though their morale had been shattered and their spirit broken.
At the edge of death, every person could still force out one last desperate reserve of strength.
No one wanted to do nothing and simply die beneath an enemy blade.
So the Noxian army's final counterattack began. Like madmen, they launched themselves forward, trying to break out of the encirclement.
But against Demacia's tightly sealed formation, all of that resistance looked weak and pale.
Demacia excelled at shield formations. Once the shield wall was in place, it became an immovable barrier on the battlefield.
Now, with shield-bearers in front refusing the enemy a single opening, no one on the Demacian side rushed. Holding an overwhelming advantage, they advanced methodically and steadily.
The Noxian army was gradually forced tighter and tighter into the center. The space they could still move in grew smaller and smaller. Men fell every second.
Watching the bodies of comrades collapse beside them only fed the terror of death in everyone's hearts.
As the general, Patria was protected in the center, but that made it the most agonizing place to be.
He still remembered the smug triumph he had felt after taking the Gates of Mourning, when he had thought Demacia was nothing special at all.
So how, all of a sudden, had things fallen so far?
"General, we'll cut a bloody path out for you!"
Several adjutants, fiercely loyal, gripped their weapons and charged at the Demacian encirclement.
But they died under focused attack almost immediately, unable to carve out even the smallest gap.
Fewer and fewer men remained.
By now, most of the soldiers had abandoned resistance entirely. They could already see that struggling any further would change nothing.
One after another, their faces turned ashen.
The encirclement came to a halt. Looking at the trapped enemy, some soldiers turned toward Luke, waiting for his command.
Luke's face did not change. "Leave none alive."
As far as he was concerned, these enemies were not even worth taking prisoner.
The moment the words fell, countless bows were raised and aimed into the center of the encirclement.
At the final moment, Patria looked straight at Luke and saw nothing but coldness in his eyes.
Demacia's second prince.
It seemed that every bit of his bad luck had begun the moment that man had appeared.
The witch had not said it would be like this.
He...
The thought in his mind never finished, because merciless arrows were already piercing through his body one after another.
As Patria's body crashed heavily to the ground, the border war came to its end.
In this battle, Noxus fielded a total of 108,324 men.
Not one survived.
The entire army was annihilated.
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