“This means that He needs to find a reason for you to meet Him, so…”

Before Isa finished speaking, Perlis’ heart skipped a beat and an obvious possibility emerged.

“…it’s possible that Carly Fellowes is still alive, at least in some form.”

As soon as she finished speaking, everything around her shattered, and Perlis floated up in the darkness, moving quickly towards the light above her head.

There was a flash of ice blue in her eyes. Yes… Carly had run towards her with all her strength so many times…

“This time, I will run towards you regardless of everything…”

The girl said softly, the light that pierced the lower world enveloped her, and she floated up in the dark sea, like a child chosen by God, but she had no god to believe in, she herself was the god.

…END…

1) The Highest Praise

“The rain is coming.”

Above the sky, a huge shadow floated over the border of Bristol Territory, and farmlands and mountains were burning with black smoke.

Half an hour after the “Zanli” made a short-distance jump here, Yi-Tran’s border defense collapsed completely.

Dark clouds, accompanied by the escort of fighter jets, swept across the fields. The factor energy beams mixed in the storm swept the earth madly. It was a rain of annihilation.

A few sparks lit up sporadically on the ground, but they soon went out. The last message that Duke Bristol sent back to Aslan Castle was that he would fight to the death, and there was no news after that.

When the huge dark cloud passed over the edge of Bristol Territory, the already sparsely populated border was reduced to nothing but ruins.

In the collapsed mansion of the Duke of Bristol, the bricks and tiles were charred black by the energy beams, and it looked as if the place had been briefly thrown into the fire of hell.

In a corner of the ruins of the mansion, half of the picture frame was miraculously not burned. In the painting, Glynis II was still looking at the ruins in front of him with an elegant and indifferent look. In the ruins where her eyes were pointing, a broken musket was half-buried in the ruins, and the I-Tran national emblem engraved on it seemed to declare where it once was.

“…”

Far away, on the archipelago around Aslan Castle, the I-Tran people who were driven here by the “Blessing Act” heard thunder in the sky almost at the same time. They originally thought it was a sign of a rainstorm, but when a dark cloud covering the sky and accompanied by a strong wind rolled in, they realized that it was a federal skyship.

The “Zanli” made a second jump and quickly passed through the archipelago surrounded by the escort formation. A knife-like wind blew on the already cold island under the dark clouds. The twisted woods roared, and the fallen leaves drifted towards the sea, floating in the violent waves.

The people on the islands shouted and looked for cover. They had never thought that the federal army would attack the islands so quickly. These E.Tlan people cursed William III while looking for cover. Some people with dull eyes stood on the beach and looked up at the sky, as if they had had enough of wandering.

However, the “Zanli” did not look at the people on the island. The giant ship went straight towards the direction of Aslan Castle, and along the way, it fired azure factor energy rays at several secret military bases on the island, easily destroying the defense of the I-Tlan people.

The people on the island stared blankly at the huge war machines heading towards their former home. They seemed to understand something, but the cold wind and icy rain hanging on their bodies meant that their resentment was destined to be difficult to dispel. They just silently hid back in the cave, hiding outside the range of the rain.

“…”

In the capital Aslanborg, William III walked briskly up to the Grimist Tower, shaking a bottle of champagne in his left hand and solemnly taking off the crown on his head with his right hand – on top of the light golden crown, the round red stones were flashing light frequently.

“Let war be a tribute to glory!” William III roared with a ruddy face.

He placed the [Crown of Majesty] on the pedestal in the center of the Glinis Tower. The redstone in the center of the crown instantly burst into a twisted red arc of electricity, which wrapped around the pedestal all the way down and ignited red lines along the way.

At this time, if you look from a distance, you can see that the entire Glinista has a red circuit. The twisted arc flickers unsteadily in the rain, constantly extending downward. The hour hand of the [Majestic Clock] moves in the opposite direction, and the red light turns the scale on it into a light source in the rain, dyeing everything around it with a layer of red light.

Soon, Glinista was lit up, followed by the entire Alfred Palace. The red light penetrated deep into the bottom floor and continued to extend. A great chain reaction was taking place.

[Crown of Majesty] is only the key to this chain reaction. In the basement of the Alfred Palace, the array of Vo1d crystals forms a complete set of factor energy circuits, and is expanded by relying on the sewers of Aslan Castle. This is a project that even Laplace did not know about.

This array will absorb the [Destruction Factor] throughout the entire Aslan Castle, and then build a defense system for the entire capital based on the sea lighthouses distributed on all sides of the island.

“Buzzing—”

A magnificent roar sounded in the sky. William III looked out from the high tower and saw a huge barrier slowly rising from the distant horizon – that was the greatest property left by Glynis II to I-Tran, a curtain of light covering the entire capital.

The azure light slowly covered the sky, and almost at the same time, a roar exploded above the clouds. Along with a blue light, a huge shadow suddenly appeared in the dark clouds – it was the “Zanli”.

As soon as the giant ship appeared, countless shadows that had been waiting for a long time flashed in the surrounding clouds – the [Steam Military Police] dragged steam trails in the clouds. They immediately began to fight with the fighter escort group around the “Zanli”. Suddenly, blue fireballs exploded in the sky above the capital.

William III seemed to be an outsider in this war. He sipped the champagne in his hand. The drizzle hit his rosy face, but it could not cool him down at all.

Looking at the huge airships looming over the sky above Aslan Castle, William III recalled the scenes of the Academy War. He remembered the heavy rain and strong winds beating on the deck of the Royal Glory, and the coastline that was getting farther and farther away when he received the order to return.

William III always felt that his mother was a coward. Only a coward would refuse to charge towards the enemy’s coastline, and a coward was not worthy of the word “glory” at all.

“Boom—boom—boom—”

The huge light screen created by the Majestic Crown was very wide, which meant that its strength was weak. During the intervals between the fights between the Steam Gendarmerie, the “Zanli” continuously used factor energy beams to bombard the barrier, and holes soon appeared on the barrier, like bubbles on the calm water.

The Federation’s bomber units began to pass through the barrier under escort. Almost at the same time, the city defense guns on Alfred Palace calibrated their positions. The honeycomb energy guns rotated rapidly, firing missiles with azure light into the sky.

The entire Aslan Castle was transformed into an armed fortress, with hundreds of anti-aircraft artillery spread across various areas of the city. With the light curtain provided by the [Majestic Crown], the Federals’ attack direction became very single, which allowed the firepower of the anti-aircraft artillery to become relatively concentrated, thereby maximizing the firepower.

1) Supreme Praise (Part 2)

The light curtain and the rainstorm intertwined crazily, and in the blink of an eye, the first casualty of the [Steam Military Police] appeared. A tall shadow in black quietly appeared on the federal air fleet: [Blackwater Scholar] Zu Chumen shuttled here from the netherworld, standing alone on the deck of the “Zanli” swept by the strong wind, holding a huge factor energy light cannon in both hands.

One after another, red light pierced through the hearts of the Steam Gendarmerie, and they all fell from the sky like birds. The I-Tlan people’s air superiority began to fail.

If E.Tran had more time to expand its army and prepare for war, they might have had more chances to fight back, but they didn’t have that condition. Under the shadow of the Academi Federation, even a small-scale expansion of the North Sea Fleet was already the limit.

At this time, the fleet that once dominated the entire North Sea was struggling to survive under the heavy bombardment of the “Zanli”. They did not have the “God-strike Cannon” of the Dila people, which was like a thunderous anti-aircraft weapon. The artillery support they could provide was at most to delay the landing offensive of the Federation, and the rest was to weaken the factor shield of the “Zanli”.

The commander-in-chief of the North Sea Fleet dispersed the ships as much as possible. When his military force was completely crushed, he planned to use guerrilla and cruising tactics to cause as much damage to the federals as possible and buy more time for the capital.

But under the crushing of absolute strength, all strategies are useless.

Not long after, the North Sea Fleet and the outer [Steam Military Police] were almost completely destroyed, and rows of sparks began to gradually emerge from the “Zanli” – they were the landing capsules of the Federation. They fell from the sky to the earth, turning the coastline of Aslanburg into the frontier of the Federation.

Watching the Federal landing capsules falling from the sky and the coastline of Fort Aslan being gradually occupied, William III showed no fear on his face.

The strong wind lifted his bright red cape, his messy hair danced madly, and the coastline was reflected in his sea-like eyes.

In his eyes, the scene of the first [College War] reappeared——

“Hahahaha! Federals, now I’ve finally reached your coastline!”

William III opened his arms and roared, his wine glass fell to the ground and broke, and one of his feet stepped on the railing at the edge of the Glinist Tower, like a sailor standing on the bow of a ship.

Strong winds and huge waves swept in, but he was not afraid at all. He was a king, but also a sailor, and sailors were born to conquer the sea!

“boom–“

The light curtain created by the [Crown of Majesty] finally collapsed and a huge crack appeared at this moment. The “Zanli” slowly sailed into the airspace of Aslan Castle, and all the factor energy cannons were focused on Alfred Palace.

But when the huge airship was ready to launch, it was surprised to find that the factor energy density in the light curtain had dropped to the average value. Maintaining flight was already the limit, and it was impossible to fully mobilize the firepower of the factor energy cannon.

There was no need for them to seek answers. Beams of azure blue light shot up into the sky from the outline of the city and all converged on the “Zanli” in the sky!

“boom——“

The azure halo engulfed the giant warship in the sky, followed by a factor energy storm that bloomed with the giant warship as the center. The fighter jets quickly avoided the violent arcs of electricity, but most of them could not escape the disaster and turned into burning wreckage in the explosions.

The light curtain system with the [Crown of Majesty] as the key is not just a stance generator, it is also a beam emitter!

Those factor energy circuits entrenched in the underground of Aslan Castle gather all the destructive factors of the entire capital together, and then output them at full power at once. Even if the [Admir Sky Eye] appears here, its proud factor energy shield will be destroyed.

These factor energy circuits are disposable, and they mean destruction at the same time as they explode. The city’s streets and building structures will suffer varying degrees of damage. The Alfred Palace in the center is the most obvious. The [Church] opposite the Glinista has collapsed, and the emblem symbolizing the ancient royal family of I-Tran has fallen to the ground and disappeared on the torn ground.

At the same time, a huge black shadow fell from the sky – the body of the “Zanli” was burning with flames, and the only remaining factor energy engine was still spraying as if it was struggling to survive, but it fell uncontrollably like a drowning person.

When the head of the giant ship touched the city outline of Aslan Castle, an intense light burst out, and the shock wave generated by the factor energy annihilation tore through the city’s fragile roof structure. Strong winds and smoke scattered like a wave blowing in the face.

William III was blown off the edge of the Grimm Tower. He tumbled to the floor at the top of the tower and grabbed the pedestal on which his crown rested to prevent himself from being blown away.

After the shockwave ended, William III opened his blurry eyes. Faintly, a faint golden light appeared in his field of vision. He struggled to grab the faint gold, holding the crown left by Glynis II in his arms, feeling the residual warmth of the red stone.

“Mom, I’ve told you countless times that I can do it.”

William III murmured in a low voice, and he stood up with difficulty, looking at the city outside Glinista. The fall of the “Zanli” almost destroyed half of the city. The buildings torn apart by the shock wave and explosion were like candles with exhausted oil, with tiny flames burning on them.

William III smiled at the sight. He imagined the nobles in Parliament hiding in their mansions in despair, and then being torn apart by the explosion – those people really paid the price.

But before he could laugh for long, a red halo suddenly appeared on the horizon.

“…”

William III silently looked at the western sky. The second sun was gathering in the sky, and the light of the Tower of Babel illuminated the entire horizon. It was like sunrise, but also sunset.

The surviving soldiers in the ruins saw the crimson light coming from the west at the same time. When the sky was dyed with crimson light, wailing and crying sounds were heard one after another in the city, surrounding the Alfred Palace which had almost turned into ruins.

In the center of this wailing sea, William III walked to the edge of the tower carrying a pale golden crown and looked at the red light expressionlessly.

He tremblingly put the [Crown of Majesty] on his disheveled head. His movements were pious and slow. He looked terrible. The king failed to maintain his dignity at the last moment.

But his eyes staring at the west remained unwavering, for he knew that that was the federal coastline.

“Long live the Kingdom of I-Tran.” William III murmured in a low voice. This was the kingdom’s epitaph.

“boom————“

The red light swept over, instantly turning the entire William III’s sight into a pale white. On this day, the federal people personally presented the Kingdom of E-Tran with the greatest gift that matched it – destruction.

……

1) Supreme Praise (Part 3)

When a fierce red light came from the horizon, veins suddenly popped out on Pace Monarch’s forehead.

He looked out the window and saw that the entire horizon was dyed pure red. The terrifying roar that was above the space swept across the wasteland in waves, and yellow sand swept in.

The entire armored train’s communications were disrupted by signals from an unknown source for a full ten minutes. When communications were restored, Pace immediately shouted on the radio:

“Evans, what was that just now?”

In fact, Pace knew what it was. There was only one thing in the world that could create such a huge scene.

“It is the Tower of Babel.”

Evans Monarch’s voice was very low. Pace heard the exhalation sound from the other end of the communication, and the scene of his uncle puffing out smoke suddenly appeared in his mind.

“The Federation launched an annihilation strike on E-Tran’s capital, Aslanburg. The strong factor rays seem to have caused the underground plates there to collapse. According to my experience, it will sink soon.”

“Sunk…?”

Pace felt a little bit unbelievable. He recalled the scene at the [Council of Kings]. The king who was so arrogant that he let the [Steam Gendarmerie] attend the meeting on his behalf was so arrogant. It seemed that the glory of I-Tran would really bloom again in his hands.

William III was a lone ruler who used all the power of the E-Tran Kingdom to deal a heavy blow to the Federation, and even nearly killed Laplace himself.

However, during the launch process that lasted less than five minutes, the capital of the Kingdom of I-Tran was destroyed.

The word “destroy” here seems particularly terrifying, mixed with shuddering horror – the capital of a kingdom, an entire island, was razed to the ground in a few minutes, and the Alfred Palace that once carried the I-Tran culture was left with only ruins, and those ruins will sink into the deep sea, perhaps never to see the light of day again.

Suddenly, Pace understood why the various nations faced the Federation with such a humble attitude after the [College War].

The Kingdom of Grau Yad was reduced to ruins bit by bit by the power of the Tower of Babel, until in the end only a cage remained, imprisoning the citizens of the kingdom who once flew across the plains like birds.

“There’s no time to be afraid now, boy, the war has begun.” Evans’ voice came again.

“I’m not scared, it’s just…” Pace hesitated for a moment and finally chose to skip, “Can I understand that the Federation’s airships have occupied E-Tran?”

“Not really. The old guy William III sank the ‘Zanli’, which was an airship second only to the [Eye in the Sky]… Tsk tsk…” Evans sighed, “I know what you are worried about. At least in the short term, the federals cannot surround us from the north. The surviving troops of I.Tran are still resisting. There are probably a few [Steam Military Police] on the Hillster side. They told me the information. Before the disconnection, they vowed to fight to the death. So it seems that the I.Tran people have helped us to strangle the federals…”

“But the Federation still has eight more heads,” Pace frowned. “We are crossing the border of the gravel hills and will soon reach Aston Plains. At this speed, we will soon catch up with the Eye in the Sky…”

In the previous battle, the Federation’s “Condemnation-class” Admir Sky Eye mothership was severely damaged by the coalition forces. Although it escaped from the battlefield through a short-distance jump, it is unlikely to survive and return to the Federation across the Aston Plains.

The armored train was moving at full speed, and if the calculations were correct, it would catch up with the Eye in the Sky on Aston Plains within half a day.

This will be a decisive battle – the Federals will obviously send troops to hijack the coalition’s pursuit force. At the same time, the Tower of Babel cannot be launched towards Aston Plains due to military deployment reasons.

As long as they can intercept the Eye in the Sky and capture Laplace on the mothership, this war will usher in a crucial turning point.

The problem now is that the federals will definitely delay the coalition forces by any means necessary. It is unknown how long the I-Tlan in the north can delay, and the Dila fleet will charge towards the east coast at any time. The most serious problem is not on these two sides, but in Wilkin, which borders La Vatino…

Pace frowned. When he thought of La Vatino, he thought of the death of Rein Terras. The man who was both his teacher and friend died in a fatal battle with [Crown Day] Allywood, protecting his queen until his death.

The reason for all this was that Wilkin had betrayed the kingdom. Prince Aloi Aziz, who had been scheduled to join the expedition, had lost contact, and the entire Wilkin had fallen silent.

Regardless of whether Prince Aloi personally made the decision to betray, it would be a huge threat to the coalition forces.

Ashlia and the scavengers should intercept at the gravel hill to prevent Wilkin from attacking from behind.

For Pace, there was only one thing left to do.

——Leading the army of Thebes and acting as the vanguard.

“Go for it, kid. When I’m in position, the missile swarm will support you,” Evans said nonchalantly. “Anyway, these are missiles stolen from the Federation… Just blow them up as you like. I don’t mind.”

“It’s already this hour, can’t you be serious?” Pace laughed.

He knew his bohemian uncle too well: he defected from Thebeth to the Federation, and then defected from the Federation to Thebeth. He would go wherever his ideas could be realized, and use his crazy and absurd ideas to solve the troubles before him for those in power.