As an "old monster" who had participated in the War of Gods and Demons, no one in this world understood better how to inspire people.
Even under these circumstances, a fighting spirit emerged on the faces of every soldier.
They did not necessarily believe in Leo, but they knew his words rang true.
Their families, loved ones, and children were behind them; they had no choice... They had to fight!
"Boom!" Every soldier raised their arms, thumping their chests.
A satisfied smile appeared on Leo's face as he slowly raised his head, looking at the soldiers in front of the city gates.
"Open the gates," he commanded, raising his arm.
Hearing this, two soldiers nodded and then slowly began to open the city gates.
...
At the encampment of the Blueyard Kingdom's army.
This army, too, was already arranged in formation, ready to launch the first attack of the day.
At that moment, they saw the gates of Jacques slowly open, and an army began to pour out from within.
Everyone was stunned, slightly bewildered.
The commander of this army, a general renowned across the continent, also looked puzzled.
"Do they want to end this war quickly?" he mused after a moment, turning to his lieutenant.
"A band of weary and defeated soldiers; unless they are coming to surrender," the lieutenant replied with a smirk.
A smug smile spread across the general's face.
He narrowed his eyes and raised his right hand, declaring loudly, "If they dare to make a move, let the army of the Blueyard Kingdom crush them underfoot!"
"Let the world see what we want to do! Let the king of Lionara start to tremble! Let the whole continent be shaken by our might!"
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
"..."
His army erupted with a formidable killing intent.
Leo faced the approaching army, bursting with a thunderous killing intent, his expression impassive.
Some soldiers, unsettled by the enemy's momentum, showed panic on their faces.
Though prepared to die, not everyone could face death without fear.
Beside Leo, Lilith was taking deep breaths, clearly tense.
"Afraid?" Leo turned and asked.
The soldiers behind him didn't immediately answer. After a few breaths, one soldier mustered his courage and shouted, "There are no deserters here!"
"There are no deserters here!"
"Please give the order, Commander, let us charge!"
"The last charge of my life must end in death!"
"We will not retreat, for behind us is our homeland! If they want to invade the capital, they must step over our dead bodies!"
"..."
The faces of each soldier grew increasingly filled with anger and a tragic determination.
"So?" Leo raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Kill!"
"Kill!!"
"..."
Though less than five thousand in number, their boundless fighting spirit and killing intent still surged, setting the sky ablaze with passion.
A satisfied smile appeared on Leo's face.
He slowly turned, lifting his head to look at the enemy army now moving towards them.
Then, Leo slowly closed his eyes and made a wish in his heart: "I wish... to increase my strength tenfold."
Immediately, several names appeared before him.
Without hesitation, Leo chose Lilith. Instantly, he felt a massive surge of energy flowing into his body, both his elemental force and aetherforce expanding tenfold.
This meant he now possessed the strength of an intermediate knight and an intermediate magus!
The corners of Leo's mouth lifted slightly as he turned to look at Lilith.
As he had expected, her strength had also grown immensely.
Initially an apprentice knight, she had the power of a basic knight in her Rose Knight state.
Now, with a twentyfold increase in her strength, she equaled an advanced knight!
Feeling the growth in her aetherforce, Lilith appeared bewildered, not understanding what had happened. She instinctively looked towards Leo.
Leo, however, did not explain to Lilith.
He lifted his head again, focusing on the enemy army before him.
Merely enhancing his and Lilith's strengths was not enough to tilt the scales of this war in their favor, but fortunately, he had another trump card – the Cursed Heart!
As an almost heaven-defying hell magic, Cursed Heart could cast both group and individual curses.
With Leo's current strength, he could even curse a divine knight to death.
However, he had no intention of doing so.
Closing his eyes, Leo decided to cast a group curse on the approaching army of fifty thousand.
After estimating his current elemental force, Leo unleashed his curse: "I curse the enemy soldiers' courage, speed, and strength to be reduced by one-third."
This was his limit.
He had initially planned to cast a more severe curse, but that would have completely drained his elemental force.
When he truly ascends to an advanced magus, or even a saint, the number of people he can curse could rise to encompass an entire nation, even a whole continent!
"What's... what's happening to me?"
"Why are my legs starting to give out?"
"The strength in my arms!"
"..."
Across the battlefield, some soldiers began to feel discomfort due to the curse.
The general of the Blueyard Kingdom's army looked around, sensing something amiss.
But Leo didn't give him time to ponder.
With all preparations complete, Leo let out a fierce roar: "Attack!!"
"Kill!!"
A wild killing aura instantly enveloped his army.
As Leo spurred his mount forward, with Lilith by his side, two hundred knights closely followed, charging ahead.
All soldiers maintained formation, gripping their weapons tightly, eyes blazing with intense killing intent as they charged fearlessly.
Meanwhile, the previously high-spirited enemy army began to panic.
From the general to the foot soldiers, the courage in their eyes and the energy in their bodies seemed to be fading.
This unexpected turn threw everyone into disarray, fear clearly etched on their faces.
As they watched Leo and his army charging towards them, it was as if they were seeing a mighty horde, even demons crawling out from the depths of hell.
"Kill!!" Leo roared again.
His roar echoed across the sky, spurring the knights and soldiers behind him to charge even faster.
"Form defensive lines! Form defensive lines!" the Blueyard Kingdom's general, still relatively composed, shouted orders.
But Leo didn't give them the chance to form their defenses.
"Boom!!"
Leo and his army pierced through the enemy's heart like a sharp sword.
Then, like parting the sea, the Blueyard Kingdom's army was split open, allowing Leo's force to rampage forward unopposed.
With a swift thrust, Lilith instinctively swung her longsword amidst the neighing and clashing of iron.
A head soared into the air, its eyes wide in despair and helplessness.
A drop of blood splattered onto her face.
For some reason, a barrier within Lilith's heart seemed to be struck forcefully, beginning to loosen.
With the strength of an advanced knight, Lilith continuously swung her sword.
She followed Leo's lead, protecting him while reaping the lives around her.
Heads fell, lives extinguished like weeds underfoot.
"Boom!"
At a certain moment, a dull sound erupted from Lilith's chest.
She had finally broken through her barriers, ascending to a basic knight.
Simultaneously, entering a trance, Lilith manifested her Rose Knight form.
With a burst of flames, a strikingly enchanting armor materialized on Lilith, making her appear both mesmerizing and terrifying.
She continued to brandish her sword until it was blocked by another.
"Clang!"
The general of the Blueyard Kingdom raised his sword, his eyes filled with grief and shock.
His army was on the brink of collapse, and as a general, he had to halt the enemy's charge at this crucial moment.
"Be careful!" Leo called out softly.
He sensed that this general was a divine knight.
Thus, he advanced with his sword, ready to join Lilith in combat.
But before he could act, an unbelievable scene unfolded.
"Crack!"
The general's sword shattered.
Then, the aged divine knight's neck was swiftly slashed by Lilith's blade.
He had underestimated Lilith and overestimated himself.
Despite being a divine knight, his years had taken their toll, and his vigor had waned.