Lucas followed Robert's direction and arrived at the City of Sanctuary after a few hours of flight. Landing outside the walls, Lucas didn't feel tired in the slightest and his core was still quite full. Truly, the differences in Rank were just unfair.
Seeing the basic guards at the city entrance were Rank 2, Lucas realized Robert wasn't joking around. Not just because mages were serving as guards, but also the fact that they didn't even look that impressed when they saw him.
They treated him with respect, but they weren't scared or even surprised, "Excuse me sir, for what reason are you here?"
"I came to join the Garrison fighting against the Demon Cult."
"I see, then you'll have to go to the tall building next to the church. You'll find it when you see this insignia," pointing to his chest, a symbol of a golden cross in a circle was embroidered in yellow on his white robes.
Entering without issue, Lucas quickly joined up with the local troops. There were plenty of Rank 2 mages and a couple of Rank 3's. Lucas found it strange, despite all the wars and fights, there were still so many mages left. Yet when he inspected them a bit closer, he found all of them to be extremely weak.
'This is odd, even back then we weren't this weak.'
'No shit, these fucks are Rank 2 in name only, buncha losers is all!'
'So their core has gotten far enough, but they didn't train their body and spells?'
'They got those schoolbook ass spells or some shit, they sure as hell look like they would've died from a single punch to the gut.'
As he simply watched the soldiers walking about, someone approached him. "Blond eyes and yellow irises, you must be Lucas. You'll be under my command for the coming battle."
A young mage stood in front of him, he was around his height, with a solid build and a stern look. He was a Rank lower than Lucas, but this time, he didn't have any biting commentary.
'He's good, I'd love to fight this fucker.'
'I'll let you fight when the battle begins, for now, we need to stay calm.'
'Look at his core, it's constantly circulating.'
While some part of Lucas was more than willing to spend the next few minutes examining the person in front of him, it wasn't exactly the most social behavior. Stretching out his hand, Lucas tried to form a bond. "You're right, I'm Lucas, and I'll be in your care."
Grabbing his hand, the young man tilted his head slightly, "No comments on being below someone of my Rank? Or just scared from the higher ups?"
"Are those mutually exclusive?", Lucas joked as he smirked at the man. If he was to follow the orders of someone else, the best thing he could do was make sure they were on good terms. Not that he would follow every order without question, but the better their relationship, the better the orders would be.
The man snickered, "No, of course not. You may call me Douglass, I'm responsible for the city of Sanctuary. It's good to know we've got someone of your strength with us."
"That is surprising though, looking at the amount of soldiers, there should be plenty of Rank 4 soldiers as well, no?"
"Things aren't always as they seem," Douglass held a light smile as he stared at the troops preparing themselves. "Most academies bring the students to Rank 2, the best of the best go to become Rank 3 and the top of those are allowed to progress further. The Holy Kingdom doesn't need every farmer capable of destroying the countryside."
Comparing it to a normal school institution, if everyone who got through basic studies became Rank 2, it was no wonder why there were so many mages. But on the other hand, they weren't as strong as a true mage, they only got that far due to the school, not their own work.
"No disrespect, but they look weak," while Lucas was trying to form a bond, he was going to stay true to himself. If they were going to fight, he would like to rely on others if possible, escaping the dangers himself.
Luckily, Douglass had a similar perspective as Lucas did. "True, most are Rank 2 in name only. Most here are just typical farmers in fancy armor. The last time they fought must've been years ago."
"That's worrying."
"Well, if push comes to shove, you'll have to enter the battlefield as well," Douglass smiled at him as he inspected Lucas a bit closer. "You are strong, from which family do you come from?", there was a strange respect coming from his voice.
He was Rank 4, so no investigative work was needed to know his powers would be brilliant. To even question it was an insult, not that Lucas perceived it so. Yet Douglass could tell the differences between those who worked hard and those who received the position due to luck or nepotism.
Lucas knew he would have to portray himself as a servant for Robert. That was the right thing to do, to keep up his act and to protect his image. Yet his heart fully disagreed. Instead, a feeling that Robert would find some excuse popped up.
'He did grow enough to improvise excuses and reason things out on the spot.'
'Then let's take advantage of that.'
"None, I had a few good teachers that helped me out, but otherwise it's all my own work."
The young man didn't show any surprise or shock as Lucas had expected from his answer.
"I see, well, it stand to reason that if a mage is powerful it's either because of hard work or because of his family. So I'm glad to know you're the former. Come, let's go to the wall, it won't be long before the army arrives."
Lucas went along with it, finding Douglass to be a more respectable man he first presumed.
'Looks like he's got a decent head on his shoulders.'
'Yeah, he at least know those nobles snobs are just cannon fodder.'
Taking a small flight spell, they both skipped the stairs to reach the top of the wall. Outside of the wall was just an open plain, not a tree in sight, which was quite a sight for Lucas, though he did find it strange. He couldn't see a single speck on the horizon, so the army Douglass spoke off wasn't exactly close.
"When the fight starts, you will stay here with me. The moment they send out their strongest forces, I might ask you to go in. But I have a request for you."
"And what might that be?", Lucas didn't like where things were going. He was in a position where he could technically refuse, but he had to follow the man's order. The best he could do was lessen the possible restraints coming from the request him.
"Your spells will most likely destroy the entire place, but I loved these plains for long time. If you could keep the destruction limited, that would be greatly appreciated."
"I'm not exactly in control of the enemy spells though," because while Lucas could try to keep his own might contained and restricted, he had absolutely no say on the enemy forces.
"Of course, I'm not expecting no damage, but a Rank 4 mage is often known to completely overturn the earth wherever they fight. Taking the fight to the higher planes of the sky would be better."
Douglass wasn't speaking from experience, but there were plenty of historical sites one could visit and none had a building that stood up straight. The plains in front of them was such a site. Legends told whatever they wanted, but in the end, the earth was destroyed and needed time to heal. Grass was the only thing that could grow at this point. To Douglass though, the city of Sanctuary held a special place in his heart, one he didn't want ripped out.
Sadly, Lucas had absolutely no experience fighting in the sky so high up. All his battles were mostly done on the ground where he felt in control. Being in the sky, his sense of direction was always in the way, making him miss many of his spells. If he could, he wouldn't go so high, but then again, it was the normal way forward.
"I'll try my best," it was all he could say for now. He had no spells to adapt to the atmosphere or how the lack of air and density effected his attacks.
"That will be enough," Douglass smiled as he stared at the open plains stretching as far as the eye could see. Were it not for the roads going to multiple directions, it would've looked even better.
Time slowly passed as they stood on the wall, waiting for something to happen. Despite nothing happening, the soldiers started to exit the city to form a second wall outside the city. They would be the vanguard against the demonic forces.
Douglass suddenly started to shout commands to his soldiers. Creating walls, checking their wands and weapons, drinking water and eating something small, the soldiers loyally followed his commands. As the walls took form, they merged with one another to close to gaps. Seeing the structures and the precision of their spells and how they interacted with one another, Lucas would've thought they were a professional army.
"Not what I expected from farmers."
"I told you, didn't I? They just went to the academy. One of the courses is basic warfare spells. They were designed so that anyone could use them and work together. It makes it very easy for commanders to switch their troops and knowing what the minimum capabilities are."
"So personal spells aren't encouraged?"
"Not exactly, it's mostly reserved for the top students who go on to become Commanders and Generals. Either way, it's about time to start. I hope you don't suffer from stage fright?"
Douglass asked as the horizon started to grow a black rim. Spreading his willpower far and wide, Lucas was able to see them. The troops were plentiful, way more than what Lucas assumed would arrive.
His willpower should've been enough to scare the weak minded of the group, yet they continued their march without pause. Lucas didn't exactly find it frightening, but he was impressed with their guts. Even he wouldn't mindlessly march forward when a higher Ranked mage scanned him.
"They're quite fearless."
"Are they? I would describe them as idiotic fools," Douglass held no sympathy for them. Lucas could think of numerous reasons, but he was surprised by his language.
'He's got the bite, hey, can I fight him a bit, I'd love to see his techniques.'
'Perhaps at a later time.'
As the troops got closer, the farmers in the attire of heavily armored angels prepared their spells. Large arrays were activated behind the walls. Seeing the complexity of the array, a heartstring of Lucas was tugged as he knew a dear friend that would've loved to study it.
Closing his eyes, he focused on the advancing troops, not willing to get lost in thoughts. The array activated, creating a large shield dome that protected the city as well as the new wall build by the soldiers.
"Do you know why this place is called the city of Sanctuary?"
Shaking his head in response, Lucas often didn't care about the naming sense of places or historical events. He cared about history, to not repeat mistakes of others, but why something was called one way or another was a field of no interest for him.
"The very first Saint was born here. He sacrificed his life to save the people here from a monster wave."
Lucas nodded along without caring all the much, not that he let it show, he was much more interested in the bloodthirsty eyes of the member of the Demonic Cult. They had a strange desire for murder even Lucas found hard to figure out.
"As a reward, he was brought back to life and continued to protect this city until he passed away. He was a beacon of light for many people, who ran to this place in search of safety and comfort. This place was a Sanctuary."
"Interesting."
"I can tell by the tone of your voice that you're not. The point that I wanted to make was that it's all fake. There is no such thing as a monster wave in the first place."
"I'd have to disagree on that part," Lucas didn't want to upset the commander about cultural history since it held a lot of personal attachment. The other topics were completely free to tackle, something Lucas gladly did. "A monster wave can be easily created if you have the patience and power to do so. Simply breed a small but ferocious animal in large quantities, make them hungry and warp their mind to desire blood and they will storm at anything to feed themselves."
Douglass stared at the approaching army with a neutral look. He wasn't scared, afraid nor excited. There seemed to be no adrenaline pumping in his body for the bloody battle ahead. Instead, he turned to face Lucas with the same vacant face.
"Would you be able to incited around a hundred different animals to attack a single place without them fighting each other?"
Shaking his head, Lucas had to give in, "No, that wouldn't be possible, animals and beasts, no matter how influenced by magic will always have instinct. If a rabbit and wolf went mad with bloodlust, they would fight each other. Only when the species are the same there's slightly less chance of such a thing happening. At least for now of course."
"Then my point stands. That monster wave was fake, especially since we're told the monster wave rampaged through multiple villages and towns, yet looking at the history records of those places, there were never any towns to begin with."
They talked as if they weren't about to be attacked by a large field army. About the nonsensical details of historical accounts written down by onlookers and supposed eyewitnesses.
As they reached closer and closer, the army behind the wall started to activate a second set of arrays. Plenty of runes and circles appeared in the sky as they were almost instantly activated. A barrage of spells shot forward, mostly fire and rocks or a combination of the two.
Wind and water were less useful in the circumstances while the rocks were a problem to get rid of and the fire would slow their overall speed. Or so they though, as the members of the Demonic Cult kept their pace no matter the spell fired.
Douglass gave out his order to man the wall and shoot of basic elemental spears. It was quite a colorful scene as Lucas and Douglass looked on from afar, the spells the Demonic members shot off were blocked by the large defensive dome. If it were night, one would think a firework show was happening.
"Odd, typically this is where both sides create defenses and battle from afar," Douglass noted as the members of the cult just kept rushing towards them despite all the offensive spells barraging over them. Many lives were lost, yet they didn't stop their step.
"Squadron 1! Plant the wall full of explosives and retreat! Squadron 2 and 3, activate the traps and buy time for Squadron 1!", having given out his orders, Douglass kept a straight face as he stared at the battle.
Large arrays in front of the wall were activated, covering the plain in explosives, blowing limbs sky high. Dustclouds covered the battlefield as the sound of explosions kept ringing across the field.
Douglass wasn't incompetent enough to let such a valuable tactic go to waste. Despite his traps having killed and incapacitated thousands of mages, there were still plenty coming after them as well.
"They're like a pest. What mage in their right mind would still march forward?", Lucas didn't understand their reasoning. Even he would've had second thoughts by now. Fighting against a guarded place is way harder than defending, that's the basics of warfare, yet the opponent didn't see it that way.
"Do you want me to enter? There are only Rank 1 and 2 mages, I can easily take care of them," Lucas felt an itch to do something. Simply standing by calmly like Douglass frustrated him somehow. He wanted to act, to do something. Sadly, he wasn't the one who planned the tactic and strategies out.
"No, you're to stay here for now," Douglass didn't need to think about what to do. Lucas was a card he had to play carefully, and he knew that well enough. Simply having him here was enough encouragement for the other mages.
Having been denied to enjoy the slaughter, Lucas started to feel annoyed. There were plenty of ways he would be able to contribute to the fight, yet he was ordered to stand down. Having the free time to simply think, Lucas found a few mages at the bottom of the wall casting spells towards their own soldiers. Yet it was clear these were mostly healing and reinforcing spells.
'They don't have to fight, just empower the others. Makes me think of Lord Alastor.'
'At least he wasn't a coward. These losers are too afraid to fight, I can smell it from here.'
His thoughts fought for some time as the wall the soldiers erected was vacated and blown up to deal another large blow to the enemy field army. Without any further protections, the large fight started to break down into individual ones.