Lyra, who had returned to the territory, reported to Toji Hisami and then set off again with the cavalry.
To lure a large force of lizardmen into attacking, cavalry was the best choice.
There were only about ten horses in the territory, and all of them were ordinary draft horses. Yet the cavalry’s self-taught skills made up for the lack of true warhorses very well. After mastering the "Knight’s Charge" skill, they had also acquired the passive "Riding Training."
Now, as Lyra charged toward the lizardmen’s habitat, everyone’s blood was boiling. They felt no fear.
A soldier who has never seen blood is not a true soldier, the lord treated them so well, and they had learned so many skills. Simply rolling iron during daily training could no longer satisfy the restless hearts of these men.
In less than half a day, they rushed into the lizardmen’s territory.
Lyra waved her hand, the cavalry lowered their spears and charged, the crude wooden fence built by the lizardmen could not stop them at all.
After the horses kicked the barrier aside, the riders stabbed several lizardmen to death in quick succession.
The attacked lizardmen fled back into their caves in panic.
Shortly afterward, a deep horn sounded.
A large number of lizardman soldiers armed with crude weapons poured out. The tall lizardman leader made his appearance last. At a glance he locked onto Lyra and the cavalry who were still fighting.
The moment he saw Lyra, the lizardman leader’s eyes lit up with greed.
"Waa-gaaa!!"
He pointed at her and roared. The lizardman army immediately charged forward with wild cries.
Lyra saw the aggressive eyes and gestures of the leader, a look of pure disdain appeared on her iceberg-like face.
The lizardman leader was enraged by her attitude and immediately rushed toward her with his axe raised.
Seeing this, Lyra turned and retreated with the cavalry.
It was said that lizardmen carried thin dragon blood. Not only were they strong, but they had also inherited a great deal of lust, the leader wanted to capture Lyra for himself and was practically wishing he had more legs to chase her faster.
Almost the entire camp’s soldiers pursued them. A rough count put their numbers at over one hundred and nearly two hundred.
Lizardmen possessed strong reproductive capacity. If left alone for too long, their numbers could easily double.
-------------
Beneath the territory wall, Toji Hisami stood at the gate with his hands behind his back.
Because of limited materials and time, he had not built a wide wall that could allow horses to race along the top. The base of the wall was only about one meter thick at most, tapering upward into a cone shape. Still, it was more than enough to stop ordinary lizardmen.
In front of him, the territory soldiers were already gearing up, excitement written clearly on their faces. Even the peasants working in the rear kept glancing over, as if watching a spectacle.
Toji Hisami was slightly dumbfounded.
After a moment of thought, he ordered all civilians and workers to stop what they were doing and gather at the city gate, he wanted them to witness the coming battle with their own eyes.
In his view, simply being able to work was not enough, only those who could remain calm in the face of real combat could be considered qualified members of a growing territory. As the territory expanded, battles would become inevitable.
In the worst case, enemies might even reach the core, if the people of the territory could stay composed under such pressure, future development would not be greatly affected.
Kael also stood to the side with his arms folded. As a mage apprentice, his knowledge far surpassed that of ordinary residents, with Lyra present and looking at the soldiers’ bearing, he did not believe the lizardmen could pose any real threat to the territory.
In particular, one young man among the infantry was holding a massive greatsword with both hands. The weapon alone looked extremely intimidating.
Toji Hisami noticed him as well and immediately used his lord authority to open the other’s information.
[Li Xuan, Warrior Profession, 20 years old, LV3]
Talent: Great Strength (additional 50 % increase in physical strength with each upgrade)
Life: 45+10 | Physique: 65+10 | Attack: 65+10 | Defense: 30+10
(Exercise twice to improve attributes)
Specialty: Basic Fighting Skills LV4
(Complete fighting training one hundred times to upgrade)
"He’s actually a talented young man."
Toji Hisami realized this youth was one of the individuals rewarded by the highest-dimensional power when the territory was first promoted to Level 1. Unexpectedly, among the pile of ordinary "white boards," a true talent had appeared.
The Great Strength talent was excellent for a warrior. No wonder the young man was carrying such a heavy greatsword. One solid hit from that weapon would be enough to shatter bones.
This discovery surprised him. He immediately scanned the other residents and found several more with innate talents.
As long as these people developed well, they would certainly achieve extraordinary things in the future.
"I still need to upgrade to a Level 5 territory as quickly as possible and appoint an affairs officer after unlocking the job authority. In the future, these good seedlings must be registered and cultivated specifically."
Just as he was thinking this, a loud noise rose in the distance.
Lyra and the cavalry appeared on the horizon. Behind them billowed thick dust, the pursuing lizardmen.
"All soldiers, form ranks and prepare for battle!"
Lyra’s voice carried clearly from afar.
The territory soldiers, already prepared, moved with swift precision. Using the city gate as their stronghold, they set up three lines of defense in front of it.
The battle was about to begin.
In truth, Lyra alone could have annihilated this lizardman army. But Toji Hisami wanted the territory’s own forces to gain experience, so he naturally would not let her handle everything by herself.
Seeing the soldiers’ impressive posture, he nodded secretly, facing a numerically superior enemy without fear was already enough. The requirements for new recruits could not be set too high.
Inside the city gate, most of the residents clasped their hands and watched nervously, this was the first large-scale attack they had faced since arriving in the territory. Everyone wanted to know whether the territory truly possessed the strength to protect them.
The people summoned by the highest-dimensional power were relatively stable, those recruited through the Population Hall, however, might lose trust if the territory proved too weak.
Lyra and the cavalry were extremely fast. They joined the defensive line at the gate in less than a minute.
The lizardmen who had been chasing them hesitated when they saw the tall city wall, the three-meter-high barrier that Toji Hisami had ordered built clearly put great pressure on them. Even the lizardman leader seemed momentarily uncertain.
Seeing that the enemy was likely to retreat, Lyra raised her eyebrows and stepped forward once more, her graceful figure stood at the very front. She reached out toward the lizardman leader and made a clear gesture of slitting her throat.
"Roar!"
The leader was completely provoked.
The total number of territorial guards was only a little over twenty, nothing compared to his "great army." How dare this purple-haired woman look down on him?!
Attack!
Attack with everything!
Kill the men for food! Take the women back for pleasure!
That purple-haired one is mine!
"Waa-gaaa!!"
The lizardmen roared, waved their crude weapons, and charged toward the territory.
Lyra calmly retreated to the rear of the formation. From the lizardman leader’s perspective, this looked like she had been frightened. His confidence and courage instantly swelled.
On the territory side, the soldiers watched the lizardmen charging closer.
The front row raised large wooden shields wrapped in iron and thrust them into the ground, forming a solid protective wall, the archers behind them took arrows from the quivers standing in front of them, drew their bows, and raised them high.
"Three hundred meters!"
"Two hundred meters!"
"One hundred and fifty meters!"
Li Xuan, still holding his massive greatsword, formed a pergola with his hands over his eyes and continuously called out the distance.
When he shouted "One hundred!" the archers immediately released their arrows.
This volley gave Toji Hisami another pleasant surprise.
It was the "Continuous Shooting" skill!
The archers loosed one arrow after another with less than a second between shots, rotating in groups of five. They launched a true rain of suppressing arrows.
The attacking lizardmen had never expected to face archery of this level. The front ranks fell in droves.
The lizardman leader behind them was both shocked and furious, he immediately gathered the remaining soldiers, seized the gaps between the arrow waves, and charged forward at an even greater speed.
In his imagination, the fragile human militia would never withstand their onslaught.
The result was a series of heavy impacts.
The lizardmen slammed into the giant shields and were knocked flying, even the leader himself felt his arms go numb from the collision.
Before he could recover, a gap opened in the shield wall.
Li Xuan charged out, carrying the greatsword that was nearly half the size of a door panel. He spun with the momentum and brought the weapon down in a devastating arc.
Clang!
The lizardman leader’s giant axe was knocked flying. His entire midsection was left wide open.
What followed was simple.
Li Xuan used the momentum of the greatsword to spin once more and strike again. The lizardman leader did not even have time for Lyra to intervene. He died tragically at the hands of a young human warrior.
The moment their leader fell, the lizardman troops fell into complete chaos.
The cavalry, who had been waiting impatiently, immediately charged out in formation and cut off the enemy’s retreat. The shield-bearing infantry pressed forward steadily.
All the citizens of the territory watched as the lizardman army was wiped out by their own garrison, and wiped out with almost effortless ease.
Many residents stood with their mouths open, not even knowing what expression to make. Those summoned from the Population Hall were especially shocked.
The battle began quickly and ended just as quickly.
Not long afterward, only bloodstains and corpses remained in front of the city wall.
"Alright, alright, stop staring. A few of you come and dig a pit to bury these stinking lizards."
When Kael noticed Toji Hisami’s slightly raised eyebrow, he immediately took the initiative to shout orders. Even some of the ordinary civilians walked out of the city gate under his command and began cleaning the battlefield.
"How was it, my Lord?"
Lyra stood beside Toji Hisami and asked with a rare smile on her face.
Unsurprisingly, the S-class heroic soul was very satisfied with this battle. Both the quality of the garrison and the individual combat effectiveness of the soldiers had been outstanding.
Toji Hisami nodded. He was also very satisfied.
"Very good, you took the lead excellently."
"Go and capture all the remaining lizardmen at their base camp. We’ll use them as laborers."
Although the lizardmen were short in stature, they were still quite strong. Their endurance was a little lacking, but that was not particularly important when using them as slaves.
After today’s battle, he finally had a clear, intuitive understanding of the combat power of his territory.
In that case, they would continue to push even harder.
Although the current territory level still restricted the construction of advanced professional buildings, he possessed enough knowledge to compile teaching materials himself. As long as the logic was self-consistent, he could let Lyra take charge of the training. The soldiers could study the materials in advance.
With the talent of Heaven Rewards Diligence, they might even be able to upgrade their professions or change classes ahead of schedule.