When the commander's consciousness slowly emerged from the haze, he found himself tightly bound and thrown next to a magitech cannon, with a huge lump on his forehead from hitting the axle.

As he opened his eyes and took a closer look, he realized that there were not just one, but around ten magitech cannons around him, most likely the ones not destroyed by Aya and Tiran's relentless assault.

As for the other soldiers of the Glerius army, most of the brave and skilled officers and high-ranking knights who had stood in front of the dragon were cut down by Aya and Tiran, and the rest, who had the ability to cause harm to the duo, lost all will to fight under Aya's dragon's might after their magitech cannons were destroyed or taken away. Approximately a few hundred soldiers actually died at the hands of Aya and Tiran, a relatively small number compared to the entire army, but the combined impact of the Golden Dragon's might and Holy Rank strength was devastating on morale. The remarkable strike that felled the commander, who held a technologically advanced blade, made it impossible for anyone else in the army to step up, leading to an inevitable rout.

This was the commander's second encounter with the terrifying presence of Holy Rank entities on the battlefield, but this time, he was the one experiencing the consequences firsthand.

"Oh, Aya, looks like he's awake," a girl's voice came from behind him, and as he raised his head, he saw a girl standing in front of him, shielding him from the sun, her face in shadow.

"Quite fast... but for a human grand knight, it's within the normal range, right?" Tiran remarked, leaning on a captured magitech cannon with the sword he took from the commander.

"I actually recovered quickly. Do you think all grand knights are as powerful as my Justice and Guffett? If it weren't for this, he wouldn't have been able to withstand your magic," Aya explained.

"I've lost. Go ahead and kill me," the commander said after accepting his defeat. The strength of these two was simply beyond his reach, and perhaps only that cloaked man who came with the Mastonians could match them.

The only regret he felt was that his army, equipped with a large number of magitech weapons, was completely defeated before it could truly showcase its power, and...

Glancing towards the direction of the port beacon city, the commander realized that there was no hope of reinforcement coming from there either. The forces advancing on land were unable to resist, let alone the landing parties from the transport ships and landing crafts.

"Do you really want to die so badly?" Aya asked with a touch of disbelief.

"Not everyone is as cowardly as you," Tiran added with a smirk.

"I prefer to live. I'm my parents' only son..." the commander muttered, trying to justify his desire to survive.

"Your reason is quite relatable," Aya said, understandingly.

The commander watched the banter between the two with mixed emotions, silently urging them to show some respect. After all, he was still there! And just who were these two and why were they here?

"As for you, perhaps hold off on the death wishes for now. You seem like a high-ranking officer; why are you so quick to seek death? Are you one of those constantly shouting 'the Emperor will shatter like jade,' you BAKA?" Tiran taunted.

Tiran bent down and patted the stubbly face of the man, "Since you're a general, you should know a thing or two, right? For example, I can see there's a discrepancy between the total number of soldiers on both sides and the ones who attacked Belgen. There seem to be two or three thousand missing, don't you think?"

"Hmpf."

The commander sneered and remained silent, determined not to reveal any information. Even though he himself didn't quite understand the order to split forces and attack a noble castle, leaking information was a different matter.

"So stubborn, huh? A real headache... I'm not very good at torture, to be honest..."

The commander continued to smirk inwardly, prepared to endure even torture and not utter a word.

"But after careful consideration, aside from the lighthouse and the arsenal nearby, there don't seem to be many other targets left. So, you guys... didn't happen to go wreak havoc at my lady's place, did you?"

Tiran squatted in front of the commander and forcefully grabbed his face, showing a menacing expression.

"...Are you...?" Hearing Tiran's question, the commander's eyes also revealed a hint of surprise. But upon closer thought, there seemed to be no other super-powered combatants besides the Silver War Maiden and Milanía.

However, whether he spoke or not didn't matter. Being powerful didn't mean they could read his mind.

"It is true that they went to strike Gilliast. We need to move quickly; mercenaries and guards are no match in terms of equipment and numbers." Aya suddenly interjected.

"??!"

"Understood. Well then, thank you." Tiran waved his hand, ready to leave.

"Oh, I forgot to mention, this guy can read minds, especially useful against martial artists with weak mental resistance."

A strong sense of powerlessness surged within the commander. This guy...

"However... it might be a bit difficult to rush over there right now."

Just as Tiran was about to leave, he stopped in his tracks.

"That person must be the Holy Rank who broke through the defense line at Belgen, right?"

Aya's gaze also caught sight of a figure paddling a boat across the waves from the sea, "I'll hold him off. You go back to the castle?"

"Are you sure? Don't forget that the 'resonance' rule can only be activated when both of us are present."

"Don't worry, I'm tough as nails, remember? If I can't win, I can still run." Aya gave a thumbs up, turned around, and walked towards the shore, but suddenly turned back to remind seriously, "Don't forget to take these cannons, I still owe money and these treasures are my only hope."

"...Can't you show some dignity? Just a bit?"

The princess couldn't help but sigh, rubbing her temples.

Do you really pretend I don't exist? The commander, lying tied on the ground like a worm, looked expressionlessly at the two, a myriad of emotions running wild in his mind, giving up on thinking altogether.

...

The muzzle of the magitech cannon flashed and spewed beams of destruction, ruthlessly destroying the walls of Gilliast Castle one shot at a time. The outer walls, built on a foundation of giant rocks and bricks, had excellent resistance to physical attacks, but were no match for the bombardment of magical explosive shells. Especially under the skillful manipulation of the gunner, relentlessly targeting the weak points of the walls, it only took a few shots for them to start crumbling.

"Release the arrows!"

"Free fire!"

Behind the outer wall, on the front lawn, the castle guards' archers pulled out the arrows previously inserted into the soft grass and nocked them on their bowstrings under command. Following the signals from the spotters, they let loose a rain of arrows towards the outside, while the mercenaries and other soldiers standing unsteadily on the battlements began returning fire with their own bows and arrows.

Unfortunately, relying solely on conventional archery could only inflict damage on average soldiers. Glaucius' soldiers raised their shields to fend off the arrow rain and advanced towards the outer wall. Meanwhile, a translucent light blue barrier rose from the magitech cannon positioned in the rear, deflecting the arrows without depleting its magical reserves.

Justice was well aware of this fact as he stood on the city wall, feeling the impact of each blast from the magitech cannon that shook the entire structure, threatening to breach the wall with each successive shot.

Conventional arrows were ineffective, and their only chance lay with the half-Elf archers hidden behind the low walls, silently chanting spells to gather wind elements and enhance their protection. Among them, a half-Elf archer capable of chanting a single-target spell comparable to a powerful magic spell, called Wind King's Arrow, held the most promise of remotely destroying the magitech cannon. Even if their forces were at a disadvantage, relying on the outer wall could buy them some time if they could destroy the cannon.

However, if this singular remotely effective method failed, then they would be left with no choice but...

Glancing down at the Sword of Growth still sheathed, Justice had begun charging Chi into the sword simultaneously with the half-Elf archer. So far, they had increased its power to three levels. In theory, charging ahead with full speed was a possibility.

However, charging in alone, even if they destroyed the magitech cannon, would be risking their lives, trapped deep in enemy territory. While high-ranking knights were formidable, the best-case scenario in such a situation would be fighting until exhaustion after killing as many enemies as possible with all their Chi unleashed.

But as the steward of the Crown Prince, it was his duty to safeguard the castle until the Prince's return.

"How's the situation?"

Justice looked at the half-Elf archer with an inquiring gaze. Just as the archer finished chanting their spell, a faint green light shimmered on the arrow in their hand, to which they nodded affirmatively.

Excellent.

Relieved, Justice observed the changes below once more, only to realize that the cannon in the distance had already aimed directly at their position.

"What...?"

Before he could react to the imminent danger, a blazing beam of light shot out from the cannon, heading straight towards Justice and the half-Elf archer.

Whether it was due to detecting the magical energy gathering, the rich concentration of wind elements, or simply a coincidence, Justice had no time to ponder this. He instantaneously shifted his attribute enhancement from speed to magical resistance and swiftly positioned himself in front of the half-Elf, raising the Sword of Growth.

"Scream!"

The tremendous pressure from the blade made him roar in agony as their defense shattered the merlon in front of them. The torrent of magic power washed over the blade of the Sword of Growth, causing even the sword, protected by three layers of magical resistance, to emit a painful groan.

The tide-like pressure pushed Justice back step by step, trembling as he exerted himself to a hundred and twenty percent, his face, neck, and arms bulging with veins.

"Take it down."

Facing the rapidly weakening Justice, the half-elf archer behind him was told in a deep voice, each word emphasized by Justice's stern gaze fixed on the magical torrent still surging on his sword blade.

"Get lost, you bastard!"

The normally polite steward finally cursed out in anger, using all his remaining strength to twist the sword handle and channeling his Qi to command the magical flow to change direction under his control.

The cannon blast aimed straight at the city wall was redirected by this sword, miraculously shifting its trajectory towards the sky behind.