Wizard: I Can Refine Everything-Chapter 224 - 8 The Situation of the War

The mechanism of action for the enhancement hormones was still a mystery to Richard, but not understanding the black box mechanism didn't hinder his use of them.

As the hormones traveled through his bloodstream, Richard could feel his cells becoming slightly more active than before.

Such subtle changes might go unnoticed by anyone who wasn't a wizard specialized in improving their physique. Yet over time, cells would gradually strengthen, leading to an overall enhancement of physical condition.

"It's cumulative, a passive evolution. Once you reach a certain level of life, you don't even need to exercise; just sleeping could bring your physique to its peak. It's undeniable, Giant Dragons are indeed a nearly perfect race," Richard exclaimed in admiration.

But even such perfect creatures like Giant Dragons were merely the biological products left by some Pioneer civilization. Those traits Richard marveled at might just be the result of the Pioneers tweaking biotechnology.

At that thought, Richard couldn't help but shudder.

What kind of terrifying adversary had a civilization so powerful encountered that it turned the entire civilization into merely a wave in the river of history?

Richard shook his head to clear these thoughts from his mind.

He was merely a Second Ring wizard, these issues of the rise and fall of civilizations were too remote for him, pondering them was pointless.

Stepping out of his room, Richard prepared to catch up on the current state of the war.

After all, he was a technical advisor, and if possible, he intended to drum up more business.

Magic Essence was something, after all, that even a Great Wizard would never find excessive.

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Walking up the metal staircase, Richard quickly made his way to the ground level.

Compared to three months earlier, the Floating City had undergone significant changes.

The construction belt around the Floating City was essentially complete, with logistics wizards conducting special works on some buildings. Having experienced the Insect Nest World, Richard knew that these buildings themselves were prepared fortresses, representing the Floating City's last line of defense in dire times.

As Richard walked through the Floating City, he felt somewhat out of place among the busily working wizards.

After inquiring around, Richard located the whereabouts of the merchants accompanying the army in Floating City.

The war had just begun, and the wizards didn't have enough spoils of war yet, so the merchant area was quite deserted.

Richard browsed inside for a while and finally stopped in front of one of the shop doors.

He glanced at the signboard and then pushed the door to enter.

"Welcome, what would you like to exchange?"

As soon as the door opened, a poised and beautiful mechanical clerk greeted him.

Richard waved his hand: "I'm looking for Bob."

"May I ask who is asking for him? To meet with Mr. Bob, you need to provide..."

"Hey, Richard, long time no see."

The mechanical clerk was interrupted as Bob walked out from the back of the store.

"It's been a while, have you come back from the front with some good loot?"

Richard shrugged, his tone slightly exaggerated, "Been back for a while now, those Fire Lizards are no pushover natives. Right when I got to the front, I ran into a squad of Second Level Fire Lizards, almost got left there."

"Ssss, impressive. Truly worthy of being a Black Wizard," Bob exclaimed, unable to help himself from giving Richard a thumbs up.

In this era of great expansion, wizards greatly respected the strong.

"Too kind, too kind. You probably wouldn't do much worse yourself if you were up there," Richard said modestly.

"No, no, no, I definitely would've been left there," Bob shook his head repeatedly, "You came back early and might not have heard the news. That squad of Second Level Fire Lizards you ran into are elite troops among them, called the Imperial Guard Dragon Warriors.

Their battle strength might be somewhat weaker than ours, but when they appear, they come in groups of ten, and in city battles, they've killed quite a few of our people."

"Imperial Guard Dragon Warriors?" Richard asked, curious about the odd term that was clearly a transliteration, "Are those the ones with the gold masks on their faces?"

"Yes, that's them. You encountered them, didn't you?"

Richard nodded and then asked with curiosity, "With the Fire Lizards targeting us like this, doesn't the command have any countermeasures?"

"Countermeasures? Of course, there are." Bob pulled over a stool for Richard, "Command sent the Black Wizards to fight in the city battles.

City battles, where individual combat ability is crucial, are just right for Black Wizards.

Now, Black Wizards have become the main force at the front line, a first for me to see."

Richard wasn't surprised; his intuition also told him that Black Wizards were better suited for urban combat. Black Wizards had strong individual combat power and survival ability, and even in danger, they had a higher likelihood of surviving than White Wizards.

After all, Black Wizards usually operated behind enemy lines, facing such asymmetric battlefields all the time. In some cases, urban combat was even easier than the typical battles Black Wizards were accustomed to.

"With Black Wizards deployed, our progress must have sped up, right?"

Bob waved his hand, "Can't compare to usual. We've hit hard resistance this time. These Fire Lizards are tough to deal with; in over three months, we've only taken down about a dozen cities. Moreover, the more we fight, the more dispersed our forces become, and the slower our advance is.

At this rate, we'll have to stop before long."

As he spoke, Bob suddenly sighed deeply, "Making money this time seems to be a bit difficult."

Listening to Bob's somewhat disheartened words, Richard couldn't help but shake his head.

These wizards, accustomed to easy victories, were defeatist strategists. It was a good thing Bob was part of the merchant group accompanying the army. If he had been a frontline White Wizard, simply based on his earlier remarks, the difficulty level of the tasks he received would have increased.

Undermining the morale of the troops was something commanders despised in any world.

"Don't be so pessimistic, Bob," Richard said lightly, "If we're fighting hard, the Fire Lizards must be having an even harder time.

I heard the Fire Lizards are divided into three nations; that's a point we can exploit."

Once the front line stopped advancing, Black Wizards would be sent behind enemy lines for sabotage missions—at that time, assassinations, destruction, or even manipulating some of the top Fire Lizard leaders were all possible.

In past wars, wizards had often taken advantage of conflicts within the natives' own race to speed up the war and reduce casualties.

...

In the heart of the Morick Empire, within a massive Pyramid made of obsidian adorned with gilded patterns of extraordinary beauty.

"Harash," the Fire Lizard King Morick asked from his throne of pure gold, his draconic eyes sternly scrutinizing his Grand Marshal he had personally elevated, "why have my Imperial Guard Dragon Warriors suffered such grave losses lately."

Kneeling on the ground, Haras trembled involuntarily under the weight of the King's Dragon Power.

He knew his sovereign had grown angry.

With his head lowered, Haras narrated the reasons for his actions as calmly as possible.

"Your Majesty, it is a strategy to deplete the Wizard numbers. Wizards are far stronger than us individually in combat. Without using elite strategies, our soldiers wouldn't even have the capacity to reduce the Wizard numbers in small-scale battles."

Silence, a long silence.

Haras stared at the golden patterns on the obsidian floor, the Dragon Power in the great hall not dissipating in the slightest despite his explanation.

The Fire Lizard King was very dissatisfied with his explanation.

"Haras, what was the last thing I said to you when I gave you authority?"

It was only after a prolonged silence that the Fire Lizard King finally spoke.

His words sent a shiver down Haras's spine.

He clearly remembered the last thing the Fire Lizard King had said, but he had been trying to minimize the losses.

"Your Majesty, I remember," replied Haras with a quiver, "You instructed me to minimize the losses to prepare for the threats from the other two empires. But I..."

"Is this how you minimize losses? Treating my Imperial Guard Dragon Warriors as if they're stones to be carelessly thrown away?"

The Fire Lizard King interrupted Haras's rebuttal and slowly closed his eyes.

"Haras, go rest. Leave the battlefield to Donar."

"…Yes, Your Majesty."

Leaving the palace, Haras handed a Golden Dragon Horn to a servant of the palace.

"This is the Grand Marshal Order, give it to Marshal Donar later."

"Yes, Lord Marshal," replied the hooded servant respectfully.

Haras sighed with a wry smile: "I'm no longer Marshal, I am now General Haras."

The servant looked up at Haras, his tone gentle yet firm, "My lord, all of Morick Empire's fire lizards know of your talents. You are simply stepping down from your position temporarily."

Haras scrutinized the servant before him and suddenly snatched the hood from their head.

"Your Highness, you flatter me," Haras nodded.

But the Princess looked at Haras with earnest eyes: "I'm serious, Lord Haras."

Haras said no more and turned to walk toward the gates of the palace.

Stepping down temporarily?

Haras sighed as he gazed up at the two red suns in the sky.

Let's hope so.

...

"Father, you've been relieved of duty as Grand Marshal?"

Azuhan looked at the composed Haras before him, feeling that the world was absurd.

His father, the great Haras, had been removed from such a vital wartime position and ordered by the Fire Lizard King to go home and rest.

Had the Fire Lizard King lost his senses?

"His Majesty does not approve of my war strategy and has decided to let Marshal Donar take over," Haras said calmly, "It's fine, I could use a rest. I have fought many years of war, coming home to rest is not so bad."

"But Donar compared to you, Father…" Azuhan wanted to defend Haras, but seeing his father's tranquil face, he swallowed his words.

From a young age, Haras had taught him, events that have already occurred cannot be changed. Instead of dwelling on why things happened, one should focus on solving the issue at hand as efficiently as possible.

"Father, I want to join the military!" Azuhan suddenly spoke after a moment of silence.

"I forbid it," Haras replied calmly.

"Why!?" Azuhan looked at his father puzzled, "I'm strong enough, even the Imperial Guard Dragon Warriors are no match for me."

"It's simple, you're still not strong enough," Haras seemed to have anticipated his son's question, "The battlefield now is not like before, even the Imperial Guard Dragon Warriors are just slightly larger cannon fodder."

After speaking, Haras added:

"Don't think about enlisting secretly, I might no longer be Grand Marshal, but I still have some influence in the military."

...

Azuhan puffed up with indignation.

Haras looked at his son, unswayed.

"Go out if there's nothing else; socializing with some young ladies is a contribution to the war effort too. Increasing the number of fire lizards is also a contribution to the war. This war... I fear it's going to last a very long time."