Teena suddenly fell to her knees while continuously chanting a long incantation that seemed endless. This high-level magic would deplete her mana, which is why Elder Olva requested help from someone capable of using intermediate-level magic. Although it could endanger their life, only they could repair the magic dome.
It could be felt that her body weakened with each word spoken, like her soul being sucked out. Teena struggled to endure, trying to focus on the long magical phrases in her mind, or the words would vanish and turn against her.
"Teena, are you okay?" asked Heyla, who hurried over and knelt beside her, channeling mana through her hands on Teena's shoulders. A greenish light began to form there, with Heyla wincing as she felt the mana in her body being quickly drained as well. At the same time, a thought occurred to her about the Constructs.
Glok and Reyn continued to face those who managed to set foot on the wall, while Rako used long-range attacks to assist from behind. Their trio's combination created a strong defense that frustrated the knights, who couldn't find any weakness among them. Glok, with his burly body, served as both a shield and the main attacker. Meanwhile, Reyn used the knights' swords with agile movements, parrying every attack on Glok so he could stay focused on his opponent. Then, Rako's long-range attacks prevented the knights from using their magic or arrows.
They could feel the high-level magic nearing completion through the increasingly dense mana not far behind them. The golden light above was also growing brighter, giving them extra energy to keep moving forward against the enemy, despite their bodies being drenched in sweat.
Not long after, Teena raised both hands, completing the spell with a collection of golden mana that now slowly moved towards the hole. The knights glared, realizing that if the dome closed, they would have no way to enter, as the new cannons were gone along with the five Commanders who possessed them.
The Copperhaven knights quickened their pace, their eyes filled with determination, solely focused on bringing victory to Copperhaven. They would not allow a defeat to tarnish the kingdom's name. Even if it meant sacrificing themselves, they would not let their leaders' plans fall apart.
The golden light began to appear at the edge of the hole, slowly sealing it, with a broad smile from Veyrain's side. After a long struggle, they could finally breathe a sigh of relief, if only for a moment.
The remaining Homas sped up their pace until the machines became hot and glowed red. Smoke began to billow from within, but they didn't care, continuing to move forward with focused eyes on the hole.
Unfortunately, the Homas were not fast enough, and the hole finally closed, followed by an explosion less than three seconds later. The explosion was caused by the remaining Homas, which failed to avoid impact, striking the magic dome at high speed. The drivers and passengers were thrown backward before disappearing behind the trees.
"YES!! FINALLY! WE DID IT!!" Glok shouted joyfully, and the others joined in.
They cheered, raising their weapons high, and the celebration quickly spread, with the kingdom's inhabitants joining in the joyful shouting as they witnessed their success. The cheers even reached the mixed forces and the elders, who immediately broke into wide smiles, while Zayn and the remaining Copperhaven knights stood stunned, unable to believe they had failed.
Outside, Elven's Heart could also feel the happiness emanating from within the kingdom. They cheered too, raising their roots high, creating a terrifying sight for the Copperhaven forces, who finally realized how strong the elf race was. Their steps halted in place, no longer desiring to advance against the Veyrain kingdom, which they could no longer enter.
However, suddenly from the direction of the western trees, a strong wind blew. An airship appeared, emerging from an illusion they had created, with the Mana Stone from the Commanders' ship clearly visible on the deck, tightly secured with chains and glowing brightly.
The eyes of the Copperhaven forces brightened once more, seeing a new hope. They quickly retreated, realizing that a massive explosion was imminent, one that would not only destroy the magic dome but also the kingdom's walls, giving them a second chance at victory.
Glok and the others saw it, shocked that there was still an airship left, one different from the previous ones. It was smaller, sleeker, and resembled a headless bird more than an airship. They could see the collection of high-level Mana Stones and quickly scrambled to figure out how to stop it before it reached the kingdom's walls, or they would all meet a grim fate.
"What should we do now!? We're out of mana!" shouted one of the elf soldiers, watching the approaching airship. His body was completely drained of energy, and seeing yet another threat after all their efforts made him collapse, feeling like giving up.
"We're going to die, we're really going to die."
"What's the point of fighting if this is the end?"
"I'm exhausted, I can't stand anymore. Maybe it's time for Veyrain to-"
Before he could finish his sentence, an explosion occurred from the direction of the airship.
They stood up, rushing to the parapet to see what had happened and found thick smoke rising from the left side. There, a newly formed hole revealed crew members being thrown out from within. They then remembered that they still had one weapon that could stop the airship.
"AILORD! DON'T LET THEM GET CLOSE! FACE THEM!!" shouted the elf soldiers.
Glok and the others saw this and rushed there, joining in with shouts of their own.
"AILORD! I BELIEVE IN YOU!! FINISH THEM ALL!!" (Glok).
"I TAKE BACK EVERYTHING I SAID! I BELIEVE IN YOU, AILORD!! BRING US VICTORY!!" (Reyn).
"AILORD! DON'T GIVE UP!! WE ARE HERE TO SUPPORT YOU!!" (Teena).
"KEEP MOVING FORWARD, AILORD! NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS FROM NOW ON, WE WILL ALWAYS BE BY YOUR SIDE!" (Rako).
"AILORD!! ANNIHILATE THEM!!" (Heyla).
Not only them, but the elf inhabitants also emerged from their hiding places, rushing up to the wall to cheer for their last hope. They couldn't see who they were cheering for, but they knew it was the iron Construct that had been tirelessly moving in and out of buildings to rescue the kingdom's citizens. Even in great danger, it continued to help them, giving them a second chance to keep walking the path of life. This time, they would give it the encouragement to keep moving forward, to achieve victory not just for them, but for all the races on the continent. With this, Copperhaven would no longer dare to act so arrogantly.
Ailord didn't know how, but he could hear all their shouts, hear all the hope now placed on him. This was the final step before they could claim victory against the most feared army on the continent.
He could feel his body stiffen again, with the familiar pain slowly trying to take over. However, hearing all of that, he kept moving forward, fighting against the ship's crew, who appeared so desperate that they disregarded their own lives. Several times, they jumped over him and self-destructed to prevent him from reaching the control room.
The reason Ailord was going there was to find the body of the Commander, whom he hoped was still alive. If not, he would give him a proper burial, not leaving him with these ungrateful people. A leader like that deserved an honor.
He destroyed the door in front of him and stepped into the control room, where smoke had already gathered at the ceiling, waiting for its turn to escape through the front windows. He saw again the crew members he had killed mercilessly, without giving them a chance to speak. Though they were people who deserved it, there might have been one or two who still had hearts like the Commander.
But Ailord could only keep his heart strong, letting the past remain in the past. From this, he could learn from his mistakes and become a better person.
Not far ahead, Ailord saw that the ship's steering controls had been completely destroyed, leaving no way to steer the ship away from the kingdom except manually. He looked around, not finding the Commander's body, while the kingdom of Veyrain loomed ever closer.
A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he accepted the fact that the Commander was gone.
Just as he was about to step out, one of the crew members appeared behind him, shouting, "The Commander is in his quarters!"
Ailord's eyes widened as he saw the young girl clutching her left arm, blood streaming down it. "Show me," Ailord responded, prompting her to swallow nervously, recalling how terrifying the figure before her was.
She ran inside, followed by Ailord, and they arrived at a room with an open door. Inside, behind a large, thick wooden desk covered in deep scratches resembling sword swings, the Commander sat in a high-backed wooden chair, gazing at Ailord. It was evident from his weary eyes that he wouldn't survive long, especially with the fresh wounds visible on his body.
"I knew you would come back," he said weakly. "Vice Captain Luna told me about someone interesting."