“The number of eagle centaurs in the airspace above the Talfipnus territory has decreased.”

The news we were waiting for came after more than two weeks since visiting Talfipnus.

“At first, it was an amount that you could only know by counting, but now the decrease in soldiers is so noticeable at a glance.”

That meant Agila was infected with poison.

“Good, now let’s send this to Vita Agila.”

We tied a book we brought from the White Tiger’s mansion to the large leg of the transmission crane.

It was a book with a tremendously interesting title, ‘Secrets of the Serbian Family,’ which Tesmilion read when researching the antidote for snake venom.

Among them, of course, the details of the snake venom and its symptoms were shown. The parts that could speculate on the formula for the antidote were cut out.

If Agila reads this book, she will quickly realize that the disease spreading within her is Serbian snake venom. They can’t create it except for them.

If that happens, wouldn’t Vita Agila be suspicious of Serbian? In the end, if the alliance is broken, the operation is a great success.

Finally, rumors spread that Vita Agila sent a lot of corpses of dead snakes, saying that they were Serbian, angry and all the way to the tip of her head.

What if it’s true?

Agila and Serbian have clearly split.

It was worth going to Talfipnus.

Even if the rumor was fake, it didn’t matter. Most of Agila’s forces would have been neutralized. Just stopping Agila’s attacks from the air was a big gain.

But I couldn’t just be happy. Idrish gathered the usable soldiers in Central, starting to build a system. Time passed quickly.

Meanwhile, the harsh winter cold had subsided, the patients had almost recovered, and the training proceeded without interruption. I had warm meals every day and lay on a soft bed. Although it was a peaceful life compared to before, anxiety was deeply embedded in my heart.

It felt like the calm before the storm.

It was when I was having a simple breakfast as usual.

In the restaurant where Idrish and I were sitting quietly, a knight rushed in. The man’s chest was heaving heavily. It seemed like he had been running for a while.

“Idrish Atigrado, reporting to you.”

“Speak.”

“Early this morning, Serbian soldiers attacked nearby territories.”

In the urgent report, the sausage I had just swallowed almost popped out of my mouth again.

“We requested swift support. Currently, we are engaging in battle with existing defenses and personnel… but the difference in the number of weapons and soldiers is so significant that it is only a matter of time before we are overwhelmed.”

The place that was attacked was the territory of deer and cow centaurs not far from Serbian, and both lords of the two territories had promised us an alliance.
Idrishi lowered the knife he was holding without a change in expression and wiped his mouth. After a moment of silence, he began giving orders without hesitation, as if he had expected the attack at this time.

“The 1st and 2nd armies will set out for the Taurus and Perus territories, respectively. The 3rd army will stay behind to protect Central. After defending the two territories, gather and head straight to Serbian.”

My heart sank at Idrishi’s words. It meant a full-scale battle.

But I could understand such a decision.

Since Serbian attempted the first attack now, it was also an opportunity to break their momentum and turn the tide.

Defense would be easier than an attack, and after protecting the two territories, Serbian’s forces would be weakened.

Idrishi gestured for me to continue eating and then walked out of the restaurant. I quickly wiped my mouth and followed him.

Idrishi was constantly giving orders to the knight following him, urging him on. Instead of continuing to follow him, I changed direction and headed to my room.

As soon as I returned to my room, I threw my clothes away. Then I called the maid who had been tending to my wounds these past few days.

“Has what I requested been completed?”

“Well… yes, it’s done.”

“Great, it’s not too late! Can you bring it quickly now?”

She seemed hesitant, but without saying anything else, she left the room. When she returned, she handed me what I had requested.

“Here…”

In my hands, I held a pair of pants made with added leather. I specially crafted them to accommodate my thorns.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay? I’m sorry to overstep, but Cecilia is worried.”

The maid hesitated several times before speaking cautiously.

“It’s okay. Of course, it’ll be dangerous and scary, but there’s a reason I must go.”

I’m undoubtedly a burden on the battlefield. I don’t know how to ride a horse or fight, so I might even be a hindrance. Besides, how worried would Idrishi be?

But the duration of the ongoing battle was unpredictable. After the defense was over, we were supposed to head straight to Serbian, and considering the travel time, it would take several days.

I didn’t know how severe Idrishi’s curse would become during that time. To prevent that, I definitely had to go with them.