As the situation was urgent, Sol’s team pushed on through the night in shifts. Sol maintained the coverage of her spiritual awareness in search of ambushing enemies, however to her surprise, there was nothing. The lack of enemies threw a wrench in Sol’s assessment as the situation screamed of bait.

Two more days passed until An’s gaze shifted out the window. In her vigilance, Sol noticed An’s actions and instantly spread her awareness. After discovering nothing, Sol gave An a curious gaze.

“They’re too far out for you to detect.” His eyes narrowed as he counted the numbers internally. ‘Well done, this was a true death trap.’ An thought after he totalled nearly 500 troops laying in wait. It was clear the troops were aware of their progress as they had already started enclosing their net.

“About 500 men nearly 20 kilometers North. They’re well armed and trained.”

“Then our opponent is Prince Roland this time? Prince Elric doesn’t have control over such a large number of troops and Queen Blonsall would never move so many under scrutiny of King Blonsall.”

“Not just him, he’s being helped by someone. I can sense a few Assemblers mixed into the group. It’s hard to tell if they’re a part of his forces, hidden inside, or leading them.”

“If we turn around, can we avoid them?” Sol only knew An as a measure of strength when it came to Assemblers. Although he often bragged to her about his status when instructing her, Sol only had a sample size of 2 to work with.

If she assumed An was more powerful than your average Assembler, then the Assemblers mixed into the assailants were likely somewhere between his and her strength. The margin of error for such a thing was disastrous when applying tactics.

If the Assemblers were closer to An’s strength, then they stood no chance. If they were closer to Sol, however, then there was a fighting chance to be had. Her churning thoughts were interrupted by An’s terrible news.

“No. They started closing the net a day or so ago. Someone must have tipped off Prince Roland about our spiritual awareness. In the lower plane, there’s an upper limit to how far you can monitor due to how thin the magic is. I think it’s safe to say that the enemy is testing the waters.”

“If we can’t run, then we can only fight. Would you be able to focus on taking out the Assemblers?”

“You think you can win a 30 vs 500 fight?”

“If it were normal circumstances, no. With you, there’s a chance. If you can keep the Assemblers from joining in, then the Knights should be able to take out 3 to 5 men each. Since they’re using the blades I’ve sharpened, that number might even rise to 6 or 9. Regardless, the situation isn’t completely hopeless. If you’re able to finish off the Assemblers and then come back to assist us, then we can win this.”

Sol’s eyes flared with a desire to fight. Somewhere within her, she felt a cage beast trying to break free and an immense bloodlust consume her. There was a growing desire for conflict and the hope for an enemy to test her strength against. An rapped his knuckles against the girl’s head.

“Don’t be overtaken by your desires. You’re too weak to fight. The most you can do is run around with a dagger, and I fear you can’t even do that properly.”

Sol felt as if she woke from a dream. There was a moment of confusion as she reflected on herself and even a hint of fear. Where did that desire for battle come from? She felt as if she were consumed for a moment and even started shaking.

“Calm down. Once you get used to your strength, the bursts of emotion will settle down. You’ve only recently stepped into the realm of Assemblers. It will take time for your mind to adjust to your new strength. Remember this Sol, there’s nothing wrong with wanting to test your capabilities. In fact, losing yourself in an impulse is fine as well. The only thing you need to ensure is that you don’t lose yourself during the fact. The impulse should be something you ride like a horse, not something that drags you along like a river.”

An’s calm voice eased the fear Sol felt growing inside her. She already understood there were things she’d have to get used to after becoming an Assembler. Any hesitation could prevent her from surviving her 16th birthday. Thinking such, Sol threw away the fear she felt and became stubborn instead.

An nodded after witnessing her transformation. Every newborn Assembler would have their inner demons come to light. The demons were infinite in variety, however it spoke worlds of the core personality for each Assembler. There were even organizations dedicated to inducting newborn Assemblers and profiling them based on their inner demons.

Often, one could determine what type of cognitive model would suit that Assembler best and adjust the training route to a new model. Not only would that boost the rate an Assembler would grow, it would also reveal if that Assembler was trustworthy or not.

An Assembler’s inner demons were the same as viewing the Assembler naked. Those impulses were the core traits that pushed the Assembler forward. Throughout the past few years, An had suspected he was protecting the correct person, however the bloodlust that leaked from her just now was the best proof.

Even An felt a chill run down his spine for a moment after being exposed to her unconscious bloodlust. Sol’s eyes shuttered open and the abnormal impulses were fully controlled. Her mind picked up where it left off and she moved to issue orders.

Sol threw open her carriage door and halted her entire group. “Sir Leory, We’re about to be surrounded by 500 militia. Abandon the carriage and stock, anyone on foot will pair up on a stronger horse. Before they close the net, we’ll strike their flank. Sir Leory, I’ll ride with you.”

The Knights followed their orders despite doubting the situation. Had it not been their previous experience where their Lady noticed the last ambush, they might not have taken her seriously this time. Even so, the group was well trained and rushed to lighten their horses where possible.

Sol turned to An then commented. “Can you assassinate the Assemblers closest to our southern flank before we engage them?”

“Easily.”

“Good. Go then. This Lady will catch up soon.” Sol’s gaze returned to the efficient knights and moved to mount Sir Leory’s horse. By the time Sol looked back, An’s figure was already gone. Five minutes later, Sol’s unit was rushing west to intercept the west wing of Prince Roland’s forces.

Luckily or unluckily, the ambush area was around a developed region where Sol’s road project already extended. As such, there were paths cutout through the Forest to assist in transporting supplies. Sir Leory and his Knights used the premade paths to race West and within 30 minutes, the first wave of men came into view.

The first strike was rather nondescript. A knight of mediocre skill drew his sword and sliced it from the top of his horse as trained. The enemy defended as one would and yet, to the surprise of everyone who saw the encounter, the Knights blade continued as if the enemy never blocked. Blood spurted from the enemy as his body was nearly sliced in two with ease.

For a moment, the battlefield became silent. Sol’s bloodlust flared after witnessing the gory scene. With a rally cry, she ordered the Knights to push into the enemy ranks. Knights on horseback slammed into the enemy front line and cut down the first wave with ease.

Ten minutes later, the Knights were forced to dismount their horses after they collapsed from blood loss. Now on foot, the Knights pressed on in a one sided slaughter. Their initial momentum was lost, however the damage was already done.

Within those ten minutes, nearly 80 men were taken down. Signal flares were shot into the sky and baleful screams were released by the enemy after they saw the Knights disembark. The militia took the action as a sign of weakness and their enemy faltering.

Local leaders sounded drums and horns to push the militia forward and the battle heated up once more. Although Sol was with the Knights, she remained protected in the group. The 30 men pressed forward while always maintaining an eye on Sol.

Sir Leory stood by Sol with his weapon drawn and observed the small battlefield. Since they engaged the enemy before the enemy could finish their preparations, Sir Leory only had to worry about one front for now. As long as they weren’t surrounded, there was little to fear.

Blood soaked the ground and the battle line pushed forward at an unbelievable pace. Sol felt as if she were jogging to keep up with the group the whole time. The militia weapons were simply no match for the swords Sol sharpened.

Despite their pace though, Sol recognized signatures appearing behind them with her spiritual awareness. Unlike An, Sol was heavily limited in her range and so the enemy was only 500 or so meters from them. She reacted instantly and issued orders.

Sir Leory took the orders and echoed them to the group. “Retreat West!” The Knights performed a final push and kicked the fresh corpses into the enemy blocking their way. The Knight trusted their leader and turned tail to retreat as ordered.

As they moved, Sol caught sight of the East wing of the net. Her lips curled into a smile and she ordered. “First group, Attack!” A group of Knights rotated towards the enemies and rushed at them.