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Despite Emilia obliterating the head of the guy who gave them the order, the Federation's army didn't dare to disobey their instructions, and continued charging towards their goal.
The soldiers continued pouring in through the smoke like an unstoppable tide, and didn't even seem to care if those around them were shot dead or blasted to bits and pieces. They didn't even pause to take care of any wounded from the mines.
Of course, given that they would be slaughtered by their superiors on retreating anyway, it only made sense.
Since they were going to die anyway, it was better to take a chance at glory. At the very least, the future of their families back home wouldn't be in peril. As for camaraderie, sorrow, or trauma… those might only have the chance to set in later.
Long range rifles continued raining death upon the charging forces, and the mines buried underground kept getting triggered one after the other, sending smoke and flesh high into the sky, but the desperate soldiers kept on marching as if possessed.
The guns firing from a distance that was far too close and in a completely different direction from their 'enemy' made it clear that they had no other choice.
Of course, Emilia wasn't particularly sad to see her 'enemies' suffering, but knowing what was coming next, she couldn't really feel any joy in her heart.
"Everyone, get ready."
It wouldn't be long before the enemy soldiers were close enough to be able to shoot at them. And unlike how it was with non-gunpowder ranged weapons like bows, Emilia knew that having the high ground wouldn't provide them with much advantage.
Not to mention, remaining inside this flimsy 'fort' might be even more dangerous than confronting the enemy head-on.
After all, the structure was far from strong enough to be able to withstand the enemy's bombs and grenades, and it wouldn't be funny if they all ended up buried within their own 'fortifications'.
Luckily, they'd already considered this in advance, and made preparations to fight a few dozen meters away from the fort.
Of course, Emilia and the other snipers never stopped shooting as the enemy closed the distance between them. Every life they reaped might end up saving one of their own, after all.
Dixie frowned as she watched the enemy forces get closer and closer. "Princess… we should get away from the wall too."
Emilia had already taken down hundreds of their enemies before the fight had even started, and in the dark-haired girl's opinion, there was no need to take unnecessary risks for a few more.
With how high-profile her princess had been so far, there was no way that the enemy wouldn't aim for her first once they got the chance.
Emilia huffed, but despite her dissatisfied expression, she passed her rifle to the commander waiting behind her before hopping off the wall.
"The 'elixir' has already been distributed properly, right?"
"Yes, princess. We've already equipped all medics and non-combatants with the bottles. And the rest is ready for distribution as needed."
Emilia hummed. "Good."
Two of the commanders followed behind the crimson-haired girl along with Dixie and showed her the 'elixir' that was still waiting for distribution, assuming that she wanted to inspect it.
Although they weren't sure how the pink liquid would be able to instantly stabilize even fatal wounds if administered in time, the commanders obviously had no reason to believe that they'd been lied to.
Such medicine must naturally be extremely precious, and it wasn't strange for their empress to want to make sure nothing had gone wrong with it before their big battle.
After all, if used right, it could very well prove to be the trump card that turned the war in their favor.
Obviously, they had no idea that the light pink liquid was just pure water mixed with a tiny amount of Emilia's blood and some color. In fact, it had really been just water not long ago, and the crimson-haired girl had only 'activated' it shortly after she received confirmation of the enemy's arrival.
It wasn't that Emilia was lazy and didn't like to prepare well in advance, though. She just didn't want to take the risk of her energy and blood returning to her before they were done with their purpose during the battle.
"Alright, the two of you can go. The enemy is just about to strike, so the army will need your guidance."
The two commanders hurriedly saluted her before rushing off, clearly worried about the situation outside.
With only the two of them there, Emilia hummed thoughtfully. "I suppose it won't hurt to increase the concentration a little. Right, Dixie?"
The dark-haired girl was obviously reluctant, but she knew that arguing with Emilia was useless at this point. "… Alright."
The two of them quickly emptied all the glass bottles into the large vat by the side, and the crimson-haired girl pricked the tip of her finger with a needle to drip blood into the water.
A few drops later, her fingertip healed, and Emilia hummed in satisfaction. "… There, that should be enough to heal most wounds, though hopefully the soldiers will be able to extract the bullets before drinking this."
Dixie helped her refill the bottles with the 'elixir', a dreadful feeling in her heart. 'Please don't let her say what I think she's going to say…'
Unfortunately, the more someone dreads something, the more likely it seems to come to true.
"I'll go help out in the trenches, alright? You can stay here and help distribute the elixir to the 'healers', or follow me."
Dixie hurriedly followed behind her in a panic as the crimson-haired girl rushed ahead without even waiting for her response.
"Ahh, if you're gonna follow me, make sure to stay quiet and not stray too far, alright?"
The dark-haired girl almost lost her footing at her giggle. "Y-Your big sister and Noelle will definitely scold us for being stupid!"
Emilia could obviously hear the pleading in her voice, but her determination didn't waver at all. "I know."
She would much rather face their 'punishment' after returning without regrets, anyway.
The arrival of their princess naturally caused quite a bit of confused terror and excitement among the soldiers in the trenches.
The enemy was almost about to enter their range, after all, and it wouldn't be wrong to say that this spot was a thousand times more dangerous than the one where Emilia had been shooting from before.
How could the jewel of their empire be allowed to remain in a place like this? If something happened to her, wouldn't all their determination and sacrifice be in vain?
"P-Princess! Y-You shouldn't be here!"
"We'll take care of those invading vermin on our own, princess, just wait for us to return!"
Emilia just rolled her eyes as she lightly smacked the soldier closest to her on the back of his head. "I'm happy that you're all worried about me, but just trust me and focus on the enemy, okay?"
Normally, the people of Blue Dawn would obey her will without much thought, but this time, they obviously didn't look very willing. What made her move according to her will was 'adoration' rather than 'fear', after all, and the 'weakness' of Emilia's way of ruling them was made distinctly clear at this moment.
'Luckily', however, they had no chance to be 'disobedient' as the commanders started screaming.
"Enemy in range! Fire! Fire!!!"
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