Ten days passed in a flash.
At the foot of the mountains south of Evenmoor in the Argent Mountains stood a port city called Cabhill.
The city sat by the sea and was one of Demacia's major ports.
In the past, when the most heinous criminals were sentenced to the stone crown, they were escorted through this port, put aboard ships, and transported across the sea to the continent of Shurima, beneath Mount Targon.
But now, in Cabhill, the normally bustling port city had issued a temporary ban on sea travel several days earlier.
The streets had also lost their usual noise and were now rather quiet.
Upon the vast sea, warship after warship stood ready. Looking out, the ships stretched one after another in a dense formation, forming an imposing fleet.
A great number of troops had already gathered in the city, assembled across the massive plaza.
Every soldier wore silver-white battle armor, standing in neat formation. Each face was solemn and grave, while Demacia's military banners rose high above the ranks and fluttered in the wind.
So many people gathered together into an incomparably magnificent sight.
Luke had arrived that morning. After finishing his preparations, he had set out south from the capital without stopping and reached Cabhill before noon.
The weather was exceptionally clear today. By the shore, the wind and waves were not small, no longer the gentle breeze that drifted in softly.
Cabhill had now gathered a massive force, ready to depart at any moment.
There were tens of thousands of soldiers in this plaza alone, a true sea of people. Even their quiet murmurs layered together into a complicated hum.
As the commander of this expedition, Luke naturally had to meet them.
After several straight days of travel without so much as a proper rest, he changed into a set of heroic armor and slowly climbed onto the high platform in the plaza.
Accompanied by a roll of drums, he walked forward with steady steps, wearing a silver crown and armor woven in gold and silver.
With his appearance, every gaze gathered on him at the same time, and the plaza silently fell quiet.
It had to be said, Luke was not short, and his build was not bad either. Wearing this armor, he truly carried a measure of wise and martial authority.
His eyes swept across the crowd below, passing over face after face. They had already received news that they were about to march out.
At this moment, their eyes were filled with resolve, as if they had already prepared themselves to offer their lives for their nation at any time.
He was about to shoulder the lives and deaths of these warriors, so he naturally felt some pressure in his heart.
But if he wanted to move forward, he could not hesitate.
After a few seconds of silence, he spoke. "It has been more than six hundred and eighty years since Demacia was founded. Through all these years, we have upheld perseverance, justice, courage, and responsibility. We have paid countless sacrifices for them, yet it is precisely because of the perseverance of our forebears and of all of you that Demacia stands as it does today."
"We believe in never failing our people, never bullying the weak, firmly defending our homeland, and firmly upholding our honor."
"Yet there are always thugs who challenge our limits again and again, trampling on our justice and honor."
He stood at the center of the platform. His clear voice fell over the plaza, not overly impassioned, yet it reached every ear.
Looking around the entire crowd, he continued, "In the Demacian calendar, the year 511, Noxus advanced all the way from the southwest. Its ambition was like a greedy wolf. Its homeland expanded through constant devouring, yet its hunger only grew larger."
"And that was the first true meeting between Demacia and Noxus in history. From then on, nearly two hundred years of war between our two nations began."
"In the year 525, Noxus and Demacia clashed for the first time in recorded history. Neither side knew much about the other. The outcome was nearly a draw, and Noxus withdrew its forces for a time."
"Two years later, Noxus reorganized its army and attacked again. Although that battle also ended in a draw, both sides paid heavy sacrifices and entered a short ceasefire."
"In the year 542, after years of recovery, Noxus attacked once more. This battle ended in Noxus's defeat, and our side successfully held the line."
"In the year 565, Noxus returned again. A large-scale battle did not break out, but small conflicts continued without end."
"In the year 582, another major war erupted, and both sides once again ended in a draw."
"In the year 600, Noxus gathered its forces and launched an attack against us with an army of two hundred thousand. This battle was also our first defeat in the wars against Noxus. Noxus successfully occupied a stretch of land, now known as Trevale."
"In the year 601, Noxus continued marching southwest, and from that moment began sixty long years of conflict between our two sides around the Gates of Mourning."
"In the year 605, Jarvan I personally led the army to war and fought Noxus at the Gates of Mourning. Yet that battle became the most devastating defeat Demacia had ever suffered, and it remains a shame borne by every Demacian."
"The enemy commander led his army straight into our position and murdered the first king by force. In that same battle, we also lost at least thirty thousand soldiers."
"That was Demacia's most painful day. It is a day we must remember, a scar carved into every one of us."
"And afterward, Noxus never once gave up its struggle for the Gates of Mourning. Every moment, it exposed its ambition, waiting for a chance to lunge forward and take another bite from us."
"Over all these years, after fighting them for so long, the number of warriors our side has sacrificed is at least above two hundred thousand."
"What I want to ask is this. We have always been defending our homeland, but is that our fault? What wrong have we committed?"
"The ambition of invaders is endless, so are we supposed to stand beside them forever and keep paying the price?"
As he recalled piece after piece of history, those records written in history books were once again opened in everyone's mind.
That was right. The two sides had already been clashing for nearly two hundred years.
As Luke's questioning voice fell, by the time the soldiers heard this much, flames of anger nearly burst from every warrior's eyes. Looking out across them, it felt as though a layer of heat was surging above their heads.
Yes! What wrong had they committed?
All these years, Noxus had always been the one to stir up war, yet they had paid such enormous sacrifices for it.
Why?
Seeing that everyone's emotions had begun to rise, Luke continued in a steady voice. "I have been thinking. Perhaps it is time for us to break convention, shatter the shackles of the old world, and strike out boldly for once!"
"This, too, is to defend our pride!"
"The ambition of invaders is endless, and sacrifice will never end. This momentum must be stopped."
"I do not know what will happen in the future, but I know that in this moment, standing here, I have no regrets."
"This time, we will make the world know Demacia anew!"
As he spoke, he raised his fist. His eyes shone like the sun as he called out, "So, for Demacia! We must strike!"
"Eastern expedition against Noxus! This battle will be won!"
The moment his words fell, the plaza below exploded with a boom, like a bomb had gone off.
The warriors raised their weapons in unison, lifting them over their heads as they roared, "For Demacia! This battle will be won!"
Their momentum was vast, like rolling thunder sweeping in from afar. A killing aura surged into the sky, breaking straight through the clouds.
Noxus's evils had already ignited every warrior's fury. Their blood surged within them, and they met the coming campaign with intense fighting spirit.
The grand scene could not calm down in a short time. Every soldier roared with all his strength, so loud that even the civilians outside the plaza heard their deafening anger.
Behind the high platform, Lux stared blankly at the scene before her. Hearing it also made her blood boil, and she almost wished she could charge straight into Noxus's stronghold right now and blast them with a bolt of lightning.
She looked at Luke on the platform, also raising his fist and shouting with a powerful voice. For a time, she could not tear her gaze away from him at all, watching him in a slight daze.
On the other side, Tianna was watching as well, the corners of her lips unconsciously revealing a faint smile.
At this moment, there was quite a sense of pride in her heart, as if the boy of her own family had finally grown into a dragon.
After the prewar declaration ended, Luke still could not rest.
Because if they were going to march out, they had to seize this momentum. So he immediately gave the order to board the ships.
At the port, the army boarded in an orderly manner, and ship after ship began to move.
Looking out, every ship was filled with moving heads, and everyone had finished preparing to depart.
Aboard one of those ships, the Valiant, Luke slowly stepped onto the deck.
Watching the waves on the sea rise and fall, the blue surface reflecting the sunlight in glittering ripples, the mood he had carried while rushing here on horseback finally relaxed quite a bit.
Thinking that he could finally rest for a while soon, he let out a small breath of relief.
This expedition had prepared roughly ninety thousand troops. Demacia's army was not as massive as Noxus's, but every one of its soldiers was elite.
The troops stationed at Cabhill numbered sixty thousand.
The reason they had chosen the sea route was because this operation intended to split the army into three routes. Lev would lead thirty thousand troops from the Silverrun River route, passing through Terbisia and Wrenwall.
In other words, the same route Luke and the others had taken last time to reach the Gates of Mourning.
Luke, meanwhile, would lead thirty thousand troops along the sea route, with their target also lying to the east.
As for the remaining thirty thousand troops, they were also extremely important, as they concerned whether Luke and the others would be attacked from behind.
"What a huge sea..."
At that moment, Lux's amazed voice came from behind him.
The girl's eyes widened, and within them shimmered the reflection of the sea. She had seen the sea before, but that had been when she was little.
It had been far less shocking than seeing it again this time, because on this sea was Demacia's enormous fleet.
The scene could be called grand and spectacular in the extreme. Just looking at it made one feel excitement rising from the depths of the heart.
"Drink the seasickness medicine. We're about to set off."
Luke glanced at her and reminded her.
"Oh." Although Lux was somewhat resistant to it, she still obediently took out the seasickness medicine Luke had prepared for her.
Looking at the pitch-black pill in her hand, her brows could not help but furrow. Then, after hesitating for quite a while with a wrinkled face, she finally gathered her courage and tossed it into her mouth.
She had planned to swallow it whole, but that only made it more uncomfortable, so she could only bite it apart first. In the next second, a mask of suffering appeared on her little face, and only after that did she slowly swallow it down.
Her face looked as pale as if she had just fallen gravely ill.
Beside her, the kindhearted Navis handed over the water she carried with her.
Lux gave her a grateful look, immediately took it, and started gulping it down.
This time, Luke had brought Navis along. This rising star of the research world had now fully inherited Wenward's teachings.
Behind her, Sona, Quinn, Poppy, and Miss Yurna boarded one after another.
Once everyone had arrived, Luke took out the Secret Key, opened the panel, and glanced at the messages.
Jarvan IV had just sent a message. "Have you arrived at Cabhill? Although I know you are very confident about this expedition, you must still be careful in everything. I truly regret that I cannot fight alongside you against the enemy, but I will wait in the country for your good news!"
There was much concern in his words, and the corners of Luke's lips curled into a smile.
Jarvan IV had originally wanted to join Luke on the expedition as well, but he had quickly been rejected by the council.
There was no need for Demacia to let both princes run outside and make trouble. Now that Jarvan IV was the next heir to the throne, he naturally had to stay behind and continue tempering himself through government affairs.
After replying, "Don't worry, Brother," Luke began searching through his other messages.
He saw a message sent by a representative from the Petricite Colossus Department.
"The petricite colossus has been transported to Evenmoor."
Seeing this message, Luke raised his head and glanced in Evenmoor's direction.
Evenmoor was located in the mountains above Cabhill, roughly two or three days away, so it was already not very far.
Both sides had set out at the same time, but the colossus was excessively heavy after all, so transporting it would be somewhat more difficult.
"That's about it. Pass the word down. Prepare to depart."
After going through the matters of this expedition once more in his mind and seeing that nothing had been overlooked, Luke gave the order.
Very quickly, word that the fleet was about to depart spread.
The Valiant had already moved forward, arriving at the very front, where it stopped beside another ship, the Dauntless.
Luke looked toward the person standing on the opposite ship and said, "Aunt, then we'll be going ahead."
Tianna stood on the deck and nodded when she heard him. "May the winds be with you."
Garen stood behind her, while she was naturally the commander of the remaining thirty thousand troops.
The reason the army was split into three routes was because Noxus occupied too much territory, and it was not simply limited to the land east of Demacia.
Even on the continent of Shurima, there were also lands occupied by them.
And directly to the east, between the two nations, lay a vast "no-man's-land," where all kinds of small nations and tribes stood scattered. Some were allies, some neutral, and some hostile.
In short, the empty region between the two countries was roughly the size of two or three Demacias.
So if they wanted to send out troops, they definitely could not march through the center. There were far too many variables there.
This was also why, every time the two sides fought, the main area of war was always the Gates of Mourning near the southeast.
Because that was the shortest distance between the two countries.
And Tianna was leading her troops precisely to the continent of Shurima, where she would be responsible for attacking Noxian forces in Shurima.
This would prevent them from circling around by sea and launching a sneak attack from behind.
"Aunt, you too. May the winds be with you."
Luke said the same in return.
Then he moved his gaze away and slowly walked to the bow of the ship. Looking out at the sea ahead, he shouted loudly.
"Raise the army! March east!"
// 20 chapters today! I hope you enjoy it
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