Chapter 416: The Castle on the Wasteland
Kartepa Hills.
A group of unexpected visitors had arrived.
Under the command of Marshal Dolo's trusted general, the goblin count Jesse Swan, the imperial vanguard began its march southward.
They passed through the narrow Anzeta Corridor, crossed the vast Anstica Mountains, and reached the Kartepa Hills.
The Kingdom of Thrace had honored its promise, withdrawing all troops stationed at Kartepa and dismantling the only stronghold there—Glenan Castle.
Now, the imperial vanguard faced a barren wasteland, overrun with monsters and wild beasts.
Their task was to establish a forward base in this desolate region, paving the way for the Ember Empire's future southern invasion.
It sounded like an impossible mission.
But the empire had long been prepared, with the location for city construction already mapped out.
On their first day at Kartepa, under Count Jesse's command, the vanguard reached their designated location on the map.
They burned and cleared large sections of forest, set up tents, and erected wooden fences to create a makeshift camp.
On the second day, the accompanying mages began setting beacons and drawing magic arrays around the camp.
From the third to the twenty-first day, the infantry regiments, composed of Tieflings, goblins, and humans, swept across the surrounding area, killing every beast and monster they encountered. The resulting meat served as rations for the troops.
On the twenty-second day, the Imperial Magic Department established a permanent teleportation gate connecting Kartepa, allowing manpower and resources to flow in continuously.
On the twenty-seventh day, Count Jesse led the infantry and wyvern regiments to attack an orc tribe in the southwest, annihilating them completely.
On the thirty-eighth day, the Imperial Engineering Department dispatched dozens of construction players led by [Bucket Flee] to assist in the city's construction.
The city of Tahan, which meant "Conquer the South" in Draconic, was steadily being built from scratch.
Now, on the seventy-third day since the vanguard arrived, the city's framework had taken shape. Players, ogres, and frost giants from the empire busily transported materials.
Large construction machinery from the [Mechanist Cult] was disassembled and transported through the teleportation gate before being reassembled on-site.
[Bucket Flee], wearing a white safety helmet, stood with arms crossed, directing the construction team.
"Hey, you frost giants over there—no slacking off!"
"Everyone, stay focused! Newbies, start roughing the surface!"
"Ogres! How many times do I have to tell you? Stop eating the concrete! What's so tasty about that stuff?"
After the year-long construction of Istalia, these teams had gained plenty of experience and had become veteran civil engineers.
Standing on the half-completed city walls, Jesse gazed out over the distant hills with his yellow eyes.
"Those crafty humans..."
"They think burning their city and unleashing monsters will stop the empire? Heh, they're far too naïve."
"The south will belong to the empire, eventually."
He gripped the small, refined weapon in his hand—a newly issued "pistol" from the Ember Arsenal. Lightweight and easy to carry, it was his favorite.
"Count! We've discovered a hill giant nest to the southeast."
"There are about 130 hill giants there."
A Red-Scaled Conqueror, mounted on a wyvern, circled down from the sky and delivered the report respectfully.
The largest hill giant tribe in Kartepa, notorious for devouring everything around them, was now within reach.
Jesse grinned, exhaling a puff of smoke, revealing yellowed, sharp teeth. The scales on his forehead slightly protruded.
"Excellent."
He raised the pistol high and aimed it at the sky.
"Let these crude creatures witness—"
"Bang!"
"The power of the empire!"
The gunshot echoed, drawing everyone's attention—except the construction players, who were too busy working.
Standing atop the city walls, Jesse scanned the surroundings and fired several more shots into the air.
"For the Ember Empire! For His Majesty Cassius!"
"For the Ember Empire!"
"For His Majesty Cassius!"
"Conquest! Conquest! For the glory of the empire!"
Monsters and humans alike cheered and raised their arms in celebration of the impending victory—except for the construction workers, who kept mixing concrete.
Pre-battle celebrations were an imperial tradition. Under the emperor's draconic protection, victory was always inevitable.
Thus, under Count Jesse's rallying cry, the imperial forces marched forth.
Meanwhile, the hill giant tribe remained sound asleep.
The simple-minded, muscular giants sprawled across the wasteland, wearing crude, untanned animal hides fastened with hair and leather straps.
Their sweat soaked into the foul-smelling hides, mixing with the stench of leftover bones and meat.
The tribe's chieftain, Bone Club, wielded the leg bone of the previous chieftain as his weapon. He was the largest and fattest among them.
"Snore..."
Bone Club let out a heavy snore and kicked a nearby giant before rolling over.
Suddenly, a piercing shriek split the air.
His instincts told him this was no ordinary sound in their dull, food-focused lives.
"Huh?"
Bone Club slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the sky.
"Is that food?"
The hill giant wondered. Instead of dodging, he inexplicably opened his mouth wide.
What entered his view was a rapidly approaching metal sphere.
The next moment, flames erupted.
"Boom!"
Bone Club's massive head exploded, sending shards of skull flying in all directions.
"Roar!"
"Who's there?"
The hill giants awoke, roaring in anger, only to find their camp engulfed in flames.
Above them, Red-Scaled Conquerors flew on wyverns, dropping bombs and spewing flames.
"Bugs!"
"They're in the sky!"
The giants hurled rocks at the wyverns, but the creatures remained out of reach.
The conquerors had perfected their distance control, making it nearly impossible for the giants to hit them.
As the giants raged, gunfire rang out, and several giants collapsed.
Confused, the giants turned their heads.
A dull rumble.
The wasteland trembled.
Jesse charged forward on a ground dragon, drawing his longsword. Behind him, the empire's drake cavalry thundered across the terrain like moving mountains.
"For the empire!"
"Kill them all!"
"This land belongs to His Majesty Cassius! No one else shall claim it!"