A corpse killed by an arrow and a corpse shredded by a 20mm Autocannon are different.
No matter how strong a bow is, it is ultimately a weapon fired by human hands. Unless it is fired with Mana, once it is stuck in a corpse, that is the end.
Therefore, the corpse is also left clean.
But the 20mm Autocannon is different.
A bullet the size of an adult fist, flying through the power of engineering and gunpowder, erases the struck area in chunks. Anyone directly hit by a 20mm round would be lucky if even their corpse is recovered properly.
And there was no corpse struck by a 76mm Anti-Air Shell.
The armor of medieval to early modern Infantry does not guarantee any defense against high-explosive shells. The corpse of a person killed by a 76mm hit had literally evaporated.
Thus, a horrific scene unfolded that could not be reproduced even by all the massacres and atrocities committed until now by the 12th Infantry Corps under the 12th Knight Order.
It was a sight that even the 12th Infantry Corps, which followed Charles and plundered the West whenever they had the chance, could not endure.
Until the Anti-Air Artillery sorted out the situation, the Infantry stared blankly at their comrades' corpses.
In their eyes was the fear of people who had encountered something they could not understand.
That was also true of the West's negotiation delegation, who were watching the footage sent by the Crystal Orb.
"How could one of our most elite corps..."
"Does this make any sense?"
"Black Magic! The South must be using Black Magic!"
Faced with an incomprehensible situation, the West's negotiation delegation attributed the cause to something outside the matter.
It is clear they are colluding with Black Mages. The South is hiring Black Mages to wage war. We must inform the Holy Kingdom of this fact at once.
If the Crystal Orb had been prepared by the South, they could have denied reality by calling it manipulated footage, but this Crystal Orb had been prepared personally by Western Grand Duke Charles Raymonds.
All sorts of opinions burst out in confusion.
In the middle of it all, Kyle Leopold stared intently at Charles.
With a relaxed expression as if it were nothing, watching Charles's face turn red.
"I have seen all the footage you showed me, and it seems you have now properly realized my position. So shall we try the negotiations again?"
That was the moment.
Thud-!
When Charles slammed down a fist filled with Mana, the table split exactly in half.
The confused conference room fell silent in an instant. The presence of Charles, standing up wrapped in Aura all over his body, crushed everyone.
"Kyle Leopold!!!"
When the table collapsed, all the staff in the conference room rose to their feet. In front of them, Kyle sat with his legs crossed and asked leisurely.
"I'm right in front of you. You could just speak normally, so why are you shouting like this?"
"Don't smile so shamelessly when you're colluding with black mages!!!"
Charles, his eyes rolled back in rage, was giving off such a thick aura that he could lunge at any moment. There were few people who could act relaxed in such a situation.
And Kyle was one of those few people.
"Hmm."
Kyle Leopold had not come without any preparation.
Naturally, he had expected Charles to suddenly explode.
And it was none other than Kyle Leopold who had already unofficially reached the level of a 9th Rank Mage three years ago.
"To say I colluded with black mages... spreading such absurd rumors is not polite toward a fellow Grand Duke."
Clap-
When Kyle lightly clapped, a blue magic circle rose above the conference room. A magic circle of tremendous size, enough to cover the entire conference room, began to spin threateningly.
"You bastard, how..."
He, a 9th Circle, instantly recognized that Kyle Leopold was also a 9th Rank Mage like himself.
And moreover, that he was a mage who had reached the 9th Circle far faster than himself.
"Anything else?"
So he could not move carelessly.
Because Charles had not intended to truly lunge at him in the first place.
No matter how much he had been driven out, Kyle Leopold was a Grand Duke appointed to the South by the Emperor's order.
Killing such a Grand Duke was a very grave crime equivalent to treason.
So he released the Aura he had wrapped around his entire body.
With that, the tension that had settled over the conference room eased, but... with the table already split in half, the talks were as good as ruined.
With Charles kicking open the conference room door and leaving, the meeting held in Irestopol came to an end.
But that absolutely did not mean the end of the tense situation between the West and the South.
What happened in Sarsen was a preliminary battle between the two forces.
Because the full-scale conflict had not been resolved at all yet.
The West had lost the 12th Corps and been completely stripped of Sarsen, but it had only lost a preliminary battle so far.
***
The West has no major industry to speak of.
Nevertheless, the reason it could be treated as a proper pillar of the Empire was thanks to the West's powerful Wyvern Unit.
The world had left the Middle Ages, achieved some technological development, and was about to enter the era of the Industrial Revolution, but humans still could not fly in the sky.
Whether an army or a merchant guild, Wyvern riders were needed to use the sky routes.
And Wyverns are not creatures that can be raised anywhere.
The West, one of the main stages of the mythological era.
In that West, a considerable number inhabit one of the few Wyvern Canyons.
Adult Wyverns are proud creatures that do not obey humans.
Therefore, Wyvern riders steal eggs from this Wyvern Canyon and raise the young Wyverns themselves.
In such an environment, it was difficult for Wyvern riders to emerge from regions other than the West.
Although Wyvern Canyons exist in other regions, they were not as huge or numerous as in the West.
Thanks to that, the West, and the Empire, had been able to remain rulers of the world until now.
"Battle report... sir. Among the Wyvern Knights, there are... no knights who returned alive."
"...Until now."
However, the South wiped out sixty Wyvern Knights without any damage.
With only 230 troops.
Considering the time, money, and sacrifices needed to raise a single Wyvern Knight, it was an absurd exchange ratio.
"Are you really, really saying it is not Black Magic?"
"Yes. We were not certain either, so we even sent the footage to the Cardinal, but no trace of Black Magic was found."
That meant the weapons those bastards fired at Sarsen Harbor were made purely with human technology.
At that point, Charles Raymonds felt fear.
The fear that the Western Wyvern Knight Order might become useless at this rate.
"This cannot continue."
Once a hunting dog had finished serving its purpose, it was eaten.
Charles Raymonds was afraid that he too would end up like that.
Because once the Wyvern Knight Order became useless, the West would truly become a useless region.
Moreover, he was also afraid that the reputation he had built up would collapse.
The West's strongest Knight Order had suffered a crushing defeat against the South, which did not even have a proper army.
And that with an overwhelming difference in forces of 300 vs 5000, and even bringing the Wyvern Knight Order along.
How could he face his subordinates in this state?
How could he face the nobles of the capital?
After being miserably defeated by that bastard Kyle, who had hurt his beloved Aria 10 years ago, how could he stand before Aria?
He was so afraid. Afraid and resentful.
And he hated admitting that fear so much.
"Me, feeling this way because of that bastard Kyle Leopold?"
10 years ago. He remembered Kyle pestering Aria.
When he knocked down the guy who had been harassing Aria, he felt his heart pound for the first time in his life at the sight of the girl looking up at him and thanking him.
And he felt a sense of superiority looking at Kyle Leopold, whom he had knocked down.
The love you could never obtain, no matter what you offered her. I could have it so easily.
He thought he could easily take it.
Am I feeling fear because of a guy like that?
"Me, of all people?"
Thus, Charles, who had returned to the Western Grand Duke's office, was in no state to make proper judgments.
"...War."
Yes, he just had to repay them in kind.
"Prepare for war."
Until now, Western Grand Duke Charles Raymonds had lived such a life.
Afraid of technological development? Then destroy their factories and massacre their workers so they can no longer develop technology.
Afraid of being mocked for defeat?
Then he just had to achieve a feat that would make that defeat seem trivial.
Am I really feeling fear toward Kyle Leopold?
He just had to splendidly crush the South and prove it.
That he was not afraid.
"Lord Charles, this really cannot be done! The central government is already watching this side! If you commit more troops here, it will truly become a civil war within the Empire!"
"That is why we must push the South now, Albert."
With the perfect defeat in this battle, Charles had lost too much.
And the very reason for the West's existence was in danger of disappearing.
The only way for Charles to survive was to prevent them from producing that unidentified weapon any longer.
"Once the central government intervenes, we cannot fight. Does this Charles Raymonds look like a man who will just sit and die?"
"B-But... that is really..."
"It is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission. The central nobles would not welcome those bastards' weapons anyway."
The symbol that allowed the Emperor to maintain imperial authority was the Golden Bloodline. It was the outstanding magical ability flowing from the Golden Bloodline.
What allowed the privileged class of mages to maintain their power was also their irreplaceable firepower on the battlefield.
"The nobles will absolutely not like those South bastards' new weapons."
The moment that level of firepower falls into the hands of ordinary humans, the Empire's power structure is bound to be shaken.
Because it means commoners would be able to replace the roles of mages and the Emperor.
"Therefore, we will lead every available Wyvern Knight Order and raid the South as soon as possible."
However, Charles made a huge error in judgment at the end.
"No matter how amazing the weapons they have, they cannot fire if they cannot see in the middle of the night. Especially if it is a surprise attack coming from an unexpected place."
Because he did not know of the existence of Radar and Flares.
"Gather the Knight Order as quickly as possible. Albert."
Charles Raymonds looked toward the South, vowing to return exactly what had been done to his 12th Corps to the cities of the South.