Chapter 700: The Proposal

After wrapping up a series of follow-up arrangements, Hetty left Gawain’s study with the documents in hand. The vast room fell silent except for the faint hum of the ventilation system. It wasn’t until a discordant breeze stirred behind him that Gawain turned his head slightly.

“You’re late again.”

“I was here earlier,” Amber’s figure appeared near the window, strolling toward the desk as she casually replied, “But you and Hetty were talking about all that headache-inducing stuff. I got a headache just listening, so I took a break outside the window…”

Gawain shot her a glance. “How’s the investigation I asked you to do coming along?”

“Just as you expected,” Amber’s expression grew serious. “Among the conscripted laborers and craftsmen near the White Sand Hills, there are Typhon spies. Their infiltration periods are longer than we imagined. One carpenter has lived in the Eastern Territories for twenty years—he fled famine with the local refugees, helped build the lord’s castle, even fought in the army. No one suspected he was Typhon… until my people caught him secretly using record magic to gather intelligence on mining machinery.”

“Mariland mentioned in his report that the Typhon aren’t completely ignorant of our magi-tech equipment. Beyond basic knowledge, their aerial scouts can even remotely identify the flashes when our magi-cannons fire… which means they must have studied footage,” Gawain said. “Ansu and Typhon have been at odds for decades; espionage is routine. During the six months the Eastern Territories were out of our control, those spies must have leaked a ton of information.”

“Can’t be helped. It takes time to fully take over the East. A few months of chaos is more than enough for those spies to do damage. Besides, our ‘national strength deception tactics’ were partly accomplished thanks to those spies—so it’s not a total loss,” Amber shrugged. “But the spies we’ve found are just the tip of the iceberg. There are probably countless others hiding in the shadows of the East, maybe even mixed in with the uncontrolled refugees flooding into the Holy Spirit Plains…”

“This is where the Intelligence Bureau really proves its worth,” Gawain said, looking at Amber. “Unconventional warfare will be the norm between Typhon and Cecil from now on. A lot of the pressure falls on your agents, but I trust their abilities.”

“Don’t worry. The people I train won’t disappoint you when it comes to causing trouble or stopping it,” Amber said with a smug smile. She stepped forward and placed a thick stack of documents on Gawain’s desk. “Also, this just came in from Longwind Fortress.”

Gawain had noticed Amber holding something earlier and guessed it was a report, but he hadn’t expected just one report from Longwind Fortress to be this thick. He was taken aback. “This thick?!”

Amber nodded. “I didn’t expect it either. It’s from Mariland and Philip together. Heaven knows how much they wrote.”

Raising an eyebrow, Gawain flipped through the neatly printed pages. After a moment, he spoke quietly, “It’s a summary of the Paramel incident, along with suggestions and assessments on frontline defenses and the strengths and weaknesses of the magi corps.”

Amber leaned in, curious. “Huh?”

Gawain didn’t mind her proximity—after all, as head of the Intelligence Bureau, she had clearance to read the file. He lowered his head and read the report more carefully.

At the start, Mariland discussed the Typhon Empire’s legion-level spells and the shortcomings of traditional fortresses when facing such foes.

Based on intelligence gathered during previous confrontations in the East, plus Mariland’s subsequent investigations, Gawain finally gained a clearer understanding of the so-called “Extraordinary Legion” Typhon had created—and for the first time, he grasped the full scope of their “legion-level spells.”

In short, these are attacks generated by synchronizing mass-produced supernaturals to cast spells simultaneously, triggering a large-scale magical resonance that pushes basic spell models to their limits and mutates them. Essentially, it’s still a form of “spellcasting technique,” an extension of traditional supernatural arts. But in practice, it has completely transcended the framework of old-fashioned armies, even rivaling the power of Cecil’s magi corps.

Take the Iron River Knights, for example. The Typhon Empire has trained thousands of supernaturals from childhood, teaching them only basic skills like knightly charge, focus auras, and protective spirits. After relentless training, these skills become second nature. Each knight carries a tuning crystal that stabilizes and amplifies their resonance. In battle, the entire order can generate a powerful “resonance field”—their legion’s signature combat skill (spell).

Within this resonance field, magic envelops the knights and creates massive unstable energy zones called “thermal cones” along their attack paths. From the description, Gawain suspected it was a terrifying sea of plasma. The Iron River Knights could slam this high-energy plasma directly against fortress shields. For smaller fortresses, the shield would likely overload and collapse instantly.

Similarly, Typhon’s mage corps can unleash comparable spells. As specialized casters, their attacks are more varied. In battles, they can conduct wide-area bombardments; when assaulting fortresses, they can jointly summon massive thunderstorms or focused energy beams akin to Cecil’s rainbow cannons.

Against such extraordinary legions, traditional, enclosed fortresses appear especially vulnerable.

Typhon’s earliest experimental extraordinary legion formed several years ago, when Duke Selas Loren still commanded Longwind Fortress. At that time, Typhon’s resonance technology and legion training were immature, causing their energy buildup to reveal their intentions. The Duke decisively countered with a dozen waves of knights charging in rotation, supported by numerous mages conducting remote magical counterattacks, breaking Typhon’s assault. That battle record is still preserved in Longwind’s archives.

Just as two rainbow cannons once shattered the shield of Rockhold Fortress, Typhon’s extraordinary legions are shaking the foundations of traditional fortresses.

On Earth, classical castles faded away under similar pressures.

But in this world, thanks to shield and magic network technology, massive fortresses housing extensive infrastructure are harder to retire from the battlefield. After all, when facing anything short of “superweapons” or natural disasters like magical tides, shielded fortresses with self-sustain capabilities remain indispensable. Moreover, with further advances in shield tech, traditional fortresses could regain prominence even against extraordinary legions or magi heavy artillery.

With this premise, Mariland proposed a defensive retrofit plan for the Longwind line in his report to Gawain—

Step one: Retain the series of positions built during the previous “deception operations.” As roads are constructed and supply gaps filled, these will be developed into continuous supply bases. Each base will be equipped with sufficient long-range firepower, forming a main defensive line with Longwind Fortress through overlapping fields of fire. Each base will also serve as an early warning post, supply depot, and maintain backup communication lines to ensure smooth intelligence flow, rapid response, and strong survivability.

Step two: Leverage the road network between bases to maintain several mobile units ready to respond. This guards against Typhon knights finding weak points in the line and bypassing fixed fortifications to harass the rear. Longwind Fortress previously had patrol cavalry for this purpose, but without supply bases, their effectiveness was limited—enough to handle past Typhon forces, but insufficient now. Typhon’s extraordinary legions have grown, and more importantly, they’ve mastered magi-vehicle technology. Their army’s mobility could soon leap forward, making preemptive border deployments essential.

Step three: Mariland’s suggestion surprised even Gawain—

The former commander of Rockhold proposed building a “railway defense belt.”

“We can center on Longwind Fortress and build several rail lines running north-south, connecting all supply bases and border garrisons. Armed trains would patrol these tracks, ensuring mobile firepower can support any point on the border at any time. Typhon’s extraordinary legions pose a huge threat to fixed fortresses, but their effectiveness against moving armed trains will be greatly reduced.

“Considering the high cost of Iron Thrones, it’s unrealistic to deploy many along a single border. We can build simpler armed trains—using mining-style carriages, reducing the number of armory and transport cars, and removing fortress-grade heavy artillery. Weapons would focus on arcane missile launchers and small fragment grenade cannons. Since Typhon’s army is still mainly ‘people,’ these simpler trains are sufficient to inflict casualties.

“The charged rails themselves serve as magic network conduits. Building the tracks effectively lays down the border’s magic network. Plus, the rails have built-in shields, further securing communications along the defense line…”

Gawain slowly set the report down, sighing softly. “We’ve struck gold at Rockhold Fortress.”

Amber wasn’t an expert in warfare, but having been by Gawain’s side for years, she could understand the report’s content. After running through it in her mind, the Intelligence Bureau chief’s eyes widened.

“Holy crap… if this gets built, the Typhon will have to think twice before charging the defense line… Is this what they call the ‘ultimate defense line’?”

“There’s no such thing as an ultimate tactic. The art of war evolves constantly through offense and defense. Typhon may one day find ways to counter mobile defense networks, but more advanced defensive concepts will always emerge,” Gawain shook his head and returned his gaze to the report. “At least for now, against our current enemies… Mariland has come up with the best possible plan.”

Mariland’s proposal preserves the fortress’s role but pushes Cecil’s engineering and technology to their limits. The traditional Longwind Fortress remains a key structure, but no longer the sole core—it becomes a vital node, serving as command center, logistics hub, and frontline industrial base. Meanwhile, the mobile defense network built on modern transport and communication amplifies the magi corps’ strengths, compensating for the still insufficient number of border troops.

What’s more impressive is Mariland’s cost-saving considerations—he noticed the Iron Throne’s firepower is overkill against infantry and proposed simplified armed trains to ease the empire’s financial burden.

After all, rebuilding and upgrading across the country costs money. If Gawain insisted on building seven or eight Iron Thrones, Hetty might just jump off the Whitewater River bank…

Of course, even with these optimizations, Mariland’s mobile defense plan still requires significant investment. But Gawain knew one thing well: everything can be economized except education and national defense.

The former determines a nation’s heights a century from now; the latter determines whether it survives that long.

Gawain turned the page—the thick report still held much more.

Later on, he came across Philip’s full report on that harrowing night at Paramel Heights, along with several pages of lessons learned.

“…Due to our lack of experience, our forces failed to fully leverage the Iron Throne’s capabilities. The Typhon troops’ successful retreat was something we could have prevented, but we missed the opportunity.

“There were coordination issues between the armored train and the fixed land positions, as well as problems with intelligence sharing along the Longwind defensive line. As a result, several observation posts at Paramel Heights couldn’t relay their intel to the Iron Throne in time—though those posts hadn’t actually spotted the Typhon forces, the breakdown in communication was real.

“Our reconnaissance methods under harsh weather conditions were inadequate—the Typhon scouts managed to detect the Iron Throne, yet several of our own observers failed to spot the Typhon scouts. Traditional griffon riders are nearly grounded in bad weather, and tools like hawkeye magic and telescopes are heavily affected by the elements…

“…I recommend developing observation devices capable of detecting life signs, and adding a ‘magic monitoring tower’ function to the Iron Throne to promptly sense nearby hidden supernatural units or traps.

“We need aerial reconnaissance methods beyond griffon riders to supplement our efforts. The current griffon riders are already at their load limit and can’t carry additional protective gear for extreme weather, nor can they bring more weapons. Their limited self-defense armaments are no match for the Typhon forces…”

(End of chapter)