Chương 97: 9.i

1064th Year Late Hay Turn A Century of Fortunes' Wrath upon Volta The Stricken! Two years atoning for a failure not my own and the spittle of cowards who have not seen war in decades! Two years in such atonement working valorously under derision in the bloody work of pacification of the Nation of Waves. Three years after that of badgering the senate for their leave on what should have been a righteous campaign of justice.

Years spent trading for backing and gaining favors to support the initiative and ensure proper supply and treasure to pay to the legions! All to finally be allowed the right to march north and finally crush the contemptible Volta The Stricken!

Who, as a barbarian monster of some equivalence to our own Magisters and Elementalists, is of course still hale and hearty while I have had to spend years of my finite mortal life simply getting the fools in the senate and my peers in the legions to muster the will to bring righteous vengeance against him! This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

And after spending half a decade upon the endeavor, restoring my standing and securing the campaign, the accursed Volta the Stricken refuses to meet my army with his! It has been nearly a week we have attempted to engage and offer battle and the coward has continued to refuse, arraying with his barbarians away from us in the day, sending forth harassment skirmishers on our lines in the evenings. Striking at our captains and lines with ranged sorcery where our magisters do not stand in counter to him.

I have confirmed he is bleeding out supply and succor for his army as we are but the coward will not accept the offer of battle to settle this. It is infuriating, but not at risk of defeat. If he continues on this path our supply and ration will most assuredly outstrip his own. The barbarians are inferior to the legion in this. If the campaign drags into Grain Turn the men will reap the fields themselves and take every scrap of wheat in forage from the lands and the camp millers will sustain us.

If needed we will outlast this contemptible wastrel and slay him with starvation. It will be a miserable victory though, and in the process the vile feral magister may escape justice again! - Excerpt from the General Aurelia of Cantor's Campaign Journal