For Galbarik, it didn't matter whether Vanessa had reached the 7th circle or Alpoi the 5th.
All he cared about was redeeming the pride of the dwarves this time.
The large catapult, which required a thousand spear shafts, had to be far more precise than the medium-sized catapult.
Galbarik personally visited every forge in the estate, creating samples by hand to standardize the specifications.
"Quick, check it! Hurry up!"
Pressed by Galbarik's urgency, Ghislain and his aides promptly prepared for a demonstration.
The soldiers who had previously trained with the assembled equipment gathered again at an abandoned fortress.
With skilled hands, they used Galbanium spear shafts to assemble five medium-sized catapults.
Claude, unable to hide his irritation, shouted loudly.
"Fire!"
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
BOOOOM!
The five medium catapults fired their projectiles accurately in the designated direction, with enough force to partially destroy the fortress wall.
Only then did the skeptical onlookers begin to murmur in admiration.
"Oh, wow! This time, it's precise!"
"The power is decent, too."
"To think a thousand soldiers could manage five medium catapults. This could mean incredible mobility."
Applause erupted as everyone celebrated. Even this level of performance was a remarkable achievement.
But the most critical task remained.
Massive, sturdy fortress walls couldn't be breached by medium catapults alone. To deliver significant damage, they needed the power of a large catapult.
"Assemble it!"
Claude, looking slightly less annoyed, barked the command, and the soldiers began moving busily once again.
They swiftly disassembled the five medium catapults, consolidating all the spear shafts into one.
Because of its size, properly connecting the support structures was crucial. Following their training, the soldiers worked in teams, repeatedly assembling and reinforcing each part.
Thanks to their skill, it didn't take long to dismantle the medium catapult and reassemble them into a large catapult.
Seeing the final product, the onlookers couldn't hide their surprise.
"Wow… it really works."
"Taking it apart and reassembling it is incredible."
"But it's so big… Can it even withstand the impact?"
Though imposing, the skeletal frame of Galbanium spear shafts made it look somewhat flimsy.
There were doubts about whether the catapult could endure the weight of massive projectiles and fire accurately.
"Fire!"
At Claude's signal, the catapult launched its projectile.
FWOOOOSH!
A deafening sonic boom echoed as the stone hurtled toward its target.
BOOOOM!
With a thunderous roar, a portion of the fortress crumbled instantly. Even considering it was a smaller fortress, the destructive power was overwhelming.
"Whoa!"
"That's insane power!"
"With that, even Cardenia could be destroyed!"
The crowd stood up and cheered. With just ten large catapults like this, it seemed any fortress could be razed to the ground.
The demonstration of the medium and large catapult was a resounding success. There would be no problem deploying them on the battlefield.
Galbarik and the dwarves clenched their fists and shouted in triumph, feeling the bitterness of past failures wash away.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!"
Caught up in his euphoria, Galbarik ran straight to Claude.
"You see that?! It worked! Did you see that? Huh? Did you?!"
"Yeah, yeah," Claude replied halfheartedly, nodding.
Spittle flying, Galbarik yelled, "Do you even know how much trouble you caused me? Do you know how worried I was about failing again? I felt like my lifespan was being shaved off in real-time!"
"Lifespans are always being shaved off in real-time."
"...What?"
Galbarik blinked, realizing there was no winning an argument with Claude.
"Anyway! We succeeded! Don't ever look down on us dwarves again!"
"Yeah, yeah."
"You little—!"
As Galbarik lunged at him, Wendy quickly shoved Claude aside, helping him avoid the assault.
Meanwhile, Ghislain ignored the commotion, turning to the spymaster Lowell with a calm demeanor.
"Have you been keeping track of Marquis Rodrick's movements?"
"He's busy subjugating bandits. But with so many scattered groups across the region, it seems to be quite a headache."
"Hmm, that's an excellent situation."
Marquis Rodrick had suffered significant losses during their last skirmish. Most notably, Ghislain's tactic of releasing the remnants of defeated troops rather than capturing or killing them had caused the greatest trouble.
It was a move that both weakened the enemy's forces and created additional problems for them to deal with, all without lifting another finger. Ghislain couldn't have been more pleased.
Even so, Marquis Rodrick, as a major lord of the western region, commanded considerable forces. He would likely recover quickly despite the damage.
"Keep gathering intelligence. The emergence of the Salvation Church will make the nobles rethink their alliances, so it'll take some time before war begins. Marquis Rodrick still has to deal with the bandits."
"Understood."
After issuing a few more instructions to Lowell, Ghislain addressed his aides.
"Direct all the estate's production capabilities toward Galbanium spear shafts. We must finish our preparations before the enemy does."
Food, weapons, and potions were already in ample supply. The remaining tasks were to equip every soldier with new catapults and train the knights using Dragon Heart fragments in mana concentration techniques.
Once everything was ready, they would strike the enemy with the force of a storm.
"When Marquis Rodrick marches, we'll go to meet him."
With the Salvation Church exposed, everything was unfolding even better than Ghislain had planned.
He smiled with satisfaction.
***
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Marquis Rodrick pounded on his chair in frustration, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"You still haven't wiped out those bandits?! When the hell are we supposed to march?!"
Though the main forces of the Marquis were nearly ready to mobilize, leaving the territory unguarded was proving impossible.
An overwhelming number of bandits were wreaking havoc across the region and the vassal lords' territories.
The Marquis Soldiers began by targeting the larger factions, but an unexpected problem arose.
"Why are those pigs joining the bandits?!"
Peasants from small, impoverished vassal estates were instead flocking to the bandits. As a result, even after subjugating one group, another large faction would emerge elsewhere.
For the peasants, it was a logical choice. The bandits were stronger than their own lords, making it safer to join them.
The Marquis attempted to use conciliatory tactics, promising pardons for defectors who surrendered, but no one trusted them.
This was the result of Marquis Rodrick's long history of cruel treatment toward his people.
"Ugh… I should have just killed them all! That damn brat!"
Grinding his teeth, Marquis Rodrick cursed Ghislain. Nearly ten thousand scattered soldiers had turned into bandits, creating an unprecedented headache.
The marquis' vassals kept silent, not daring to speak up and risk their lives.
Finally regaining some composure, Marquis Rodrick turned to his knight commander, Tenant.
"Tenant! Focus on taking out the larger groups first, and leave the smaller ones alone. We'll deal with them after we crush Fenris!"
"Understood."
Despite his rage, it was a terrible decision. Failing to fully subjugate the bandits would only encourage more peasants to join them.
This would further weaken the vassal lords and eventually turn their resentment toward the Marquis family.
But Marquis Rodrick cared little. His priority was restoring his personal honor, not the welfare of the peasants or vassals.
"Handle it as quickly as possible. The longer this drags on, the more my name will be dragged through the mud."
Under the Marquis' ultimatum, his vassals could only lower their heads in submission.
Amid the grim atmosphere, the Marquis family's head butler rushed in, delivering a letter.
"What is it?"
"There has been a major announcement from the royal family."
"Ha, what kind of announcement could a dying scarecrow of a king make? It's probably just Marquis Branford spewing nonsense again."
Rustle.
Marquis Rodrick roughly unfolded the letter, but his expression gradually hardened.
"The duchy has colluded with a cult? And it's been verified and condemned publicly by all four major churches?"
No one knew what strings had been pulled, but all the churches had now allied with the royal faction.
This wasn't just a matter of the duchy being branded as traitors—it was far worse. The marquis himself and his faction could also be tied to the cult and marked as enemies of the churches.
"What is this nonsense? Explain it in detail!"
"Reports indicate that remnants of the duchy in the capital have been captured..."
The head butler relayed everything their information network had uncovered.
As the details sank in, the expressions of Marquis Rodrick and his vassals grew darker.
Tenant, the knight commander, spoke after hearing it all.
"This is a grave situation. Fighting the royal faction alone is one thing, but if we turn all four major churches into enemies, victory in a civil war will mean nothing."
The four churches were the spiritual backbone of the kingdom. While individual priests were often criticized, no one doubted the authority of the goddesses they represented.
If they were labeled as heretics by all four churches, even winning the war wouldn't matter. Governing the kingdom would become impossible.
If they crushed opposition by force, neighboring kingdoms across the continent would seize the opportunity to invade Lutania. It would be nothing less than a true "holy war."
"What in the world was the duchy up to?!"
Even Marquis Rodrick had never heard of these monsters before.
So Duke Delphine, who had remained unseen for so long, had been scheming something so bizarre behind the scenes?
Even as allies, this had crossed a line that could not be tolerated.
The head butler cautiously continued.
"Marquis Branford has demanded that all lords in the kingdom prove their innocence within a month. Otherwise..."
The rest went unsaid. It was obvious—they too would be condemned as a heretical faction by the churches.
Grinding his teeth, Marquis Rodrick crumpled the letter in his hands.
"That bastard, daring to use the churches as leverage..."
Demanding proof of innocence was no different from telling the noble faction to abandon the duchy. It was infuriating, but there was no other choice.
'Sure, if we ally with the duchy, we might win the civil war. Maybe we could even crush the four churches.'
But what would happen afterward? The kingdom would surely become the stage for a "holy war," left in utter ruin.
As expected of Marquis Branford. He had turned the entire situation around in a single move, forcing their hand into a corner.
After pondering for a long while, Marquis Rodrick suddenly smirked maliciously.
"Hahahaha… Well, this could work out nicely."
If this situation was too much of a burden for him, it would surely be overwhelming for the other nobles as well. He decided he would seize the opportunity.
"We will strongly condemn the duchy for allying with a cult. Announce that we are withdrawing from their faction."
"My lord, are you saying...?"
"Yes. We'll use this opportunity to bring down the duchy and take their place."
The duchy was undoubtedly the strongest single faction in the kingdom. But could they really stand against the entire kingdom and the four churches?
Marquis Rodrick was certain it was impossible.
And if the duchy fell?
He could become the most powerful noble in the kingdom as the head of the strongest single faction.
"Hahahaha! Isn't this perfect? Redirect the troops we planned to send against the capital toward the duchy instead. I'll personally sever the head of that arrogant Viscount Josef who dared to order me around!"
To ensure the duchy's destruction, Marquis Rodrick would lend his own forces. If he underestimated them, it could backfire.
'Heaven must be helping me!'
Marquis Rodrick had long suppressed his ambitions because of the duchy's overwhelming power. But now that their downfall seemed imminent, his ambitions rose again.
'I will become the king of this kingdom.'
Though he hadn't voiced it, his ambition was clear from the gleam in his eyes.
Tenant nodded. To anyone, it seemed Marquis Rodrick's decision was the correct one.
However, Tenant wanted to confirm the marquis' intentions regarding the remaining troops.
"Does this mean the other half of our divided forces will still target Fenris?"
"Of course. This works out even better. The royal faction won't side with Fenris once I leave the duchy's faction. There's no reason for them to fight me in an estate war. Isn't that right?"
"Indeed, my lord. They would only unite against the duchy. Fighting you here would mean significant losses on their part."
"Exactly. And now that I've shaken off the duchy's control, I'm free to act as I please."
Both the duchy and the royal faction could no longer touch him. The political and military burdens had been lifted.
Now he could focus solely on annihilating Fenris.
"Subdue the bandits and finish the preparations. I'll personally march into Fenris and burn it to the ground."
A cruel smile spread across Marquis Rodrick's face, and it did not fade.
[T/L: Please support me and read 385 extra chapters: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]