A few days later, when Elara called Kristof, Damon and Oswyn into the palace for a secret discussion about the matter, an urgent report suddenly arrived from a division of the army stationed in Marigold City. The elite squad that had secretly gone south had finally returned. But only half of them made it back, and all were seriously injured, with some even unconscious and carried back by warhorses.
The barely conscious soldiers said the first thing upon return was that Marigold City should immediately enter full military lockdown. The news they brought back confirmed the situation outside the southern borders was far worse than what Carnation had reported.
Besides the mid-sized vassal states of Jingguang and Zhoumu, which were already in chaotic warfare, the smaller third-tier kingdoms closer to Plumera Kingdom, like Weiguo and Ganguo, had also fallen into the same kind of violent conflict.
Francis' elite reconnaissance squad was ambushed when they entered Weiguo and Ganguo. That was why they ended up in such bad shape.
Normally, as elite forces of Plumera's military, they were equipped with the latest steel weapons and armor developed by the military engineering division. Even with fewer numbers, they should not have been easily ambushed by regular soldiers.
But the berserk soldiers they encountered were extremely strange. Their skin had somehow become unnaturally hard, far tougher than the wooden armor they wore.
The steel weapons could pierce their wooden armor, but when they hit the soldiers' skin, they faced great resistance. It was as if they were striking not a human body, but some solid, unexplainable mass. The texture was disturbing.
These berserk soldiers not only had unusually strong defense, but they also showed no pain or fear when struck. They continued to attack wildly, as if they would not stop until all the elite soldiers were dead.
The squad only had fifty people and were surrounded by tens of thousands of such strange, crazed soldiers. It was nearly impossible to escape. Fortunately, though the enemy's defense was strong, their weapons were primitive, made of stone or wood, and couldn't pierce the elite's steel armor.
Protected by the steel armor, the elite squad fought against the berserk soldiers for three whole days before most of them finally broke through the encirclement.
However, they were still chased by the berserk soldiers. To ensure the critical information could be delivered back to Plumera Kingdom, some of the elite squad chose to stay behind and sacrifice themselves to hold off the enemy, allowing the rest to return to Marigold City with the report.
After reading the report, Elara remained silent for a while, then put the letter away and ordered Uno to summon Francis, Damon, Kristof and Oswyn.
That night, the five of them held an emergency meeting that lasted most of the night.
The next day, Francis personally led 200,000 troops south to Marigold City.
Due to the strange nature of the berserk soldiers, Oswyn also brought officials from the medical division skilled in poison and gu techniques along with the army.
After Francis and Oswyn departed, Elara handed over the palace affairs to Mathias, Scholar Fu and Kristof, then secretly went south with the Wei Clan members as well.
On the way south, Elara kept carefully reading the secret report sent by the advance unit from Marigold City. The sudden events outside the southern border gave her a strong sense of unease.
That uneasy feeling only grew stronger once she arrived in Marigold City.
To the south of Marigold City, the southern border used to be close to two third-tier kingdoms: Zhihai Kingdom and Yusa Kingdom.
On the day Elara arrived, both kingdoms sent panic-stricken envoys to Marigold City, pleading Plumera Kingdom for military aid.
Their reason for seeking help was also the berserk soldiers.
Faster than Elara had imagined, the berserk soldiers from Weiguo and Ganguo had already broken through the southern lines of Zhihai and Yusa Kingdoms in just a few days. They had taken several southern cities and were continuing to invade northward.
Even Plumera's elite steel weapons had a hard time killing these soldiers. The two small kingdoms of Zhihai and Yusa could not possibly withstand the fierce onslaught.
If nothing was done, both kingdoms might fall completely within two months.
Once they did, Plumera Kingdom would be next.
Marigold City, as the largest southern city in Plumera, had been the center of Elara's southern development efforts. In economy, military, agriculture, science, education and defensive construction, it had caught up to Plumera City.
In the past few months especially, the city and its gates had undergone many enhancements. Elara had personally taught the nine departments more knowledge and provided various intermediate skill books to help them build more powerful defensive and offensive equipment.
Now, Marigold City was like an iron fortress. No enemy could easily break in.
Even so, when thinking of those berserk soldiers from Weiguo and Ganguo, Francis still didn't plan to just wait passively inside the city.
They still knew too little about the berserk soldiers. If they let them approach the city and something unexpected happened, the consequences could be disastrous.
So, after receiving the calls for help from Zhihai and Yusa Kingdoms, Francis immediately asked Elara for permission to lead ten thousand fully armed elite troops on a reconnaissance mission.
With the intel the advance team had risked their lives to deliver, Francis would lead the force with extra caution and gather more detailed information from the frontlines.
The remaining 190,000 troops were temporarily stationed in Marigold City. They guarded the city while waiting for news and stayed alert for any movements from outside the southern border.
Elara also agreed with Francis's plan.
Before nodding in agreement, Elara took out the [Ancient-Type Sound Transmitter] she brought back from Dahlia Kingdom and gave Francis a diamond-like earring that worked as a long-distance communication device.
"Do you have an ear piercing? If not, just clip it on your earlobe. If anything happens or you get any news, speak into it directly. No matter where you are, I'll hear it."
The next day, Francis, with a small white earring on his earlobe, led 10,000 fully armed elite troops and secretly entered Gladiolus Kingdom's borders heading south.
With the Sound Transmitter, Elara could stay updated on Francis's troop movements and had a clearer understanding of the situation outside the southern border.
However, those Puppet Soldiers turned out to be far more dangerous than anyone had imagined.
Once Francis led his elite force into the central area of Gladiolus Kingdom, he found the situation was much worse than expected.
The mad soldiers hadn't just taken over a few southern cities, they had already seized half the territory of Gladiolus Kingdom.
And their numbers were not just the 30,000 mentioned by the Carnation Envoy. There were 70,000 to 80,000 of them.
That was more than double what had been reported.
After Francis reported this, Elara immediately told him to find a safe place to hide. She would send 50,000 reinforcements right away.
As she spoke, she walked quickly toward the military headquarters, ordering her men to bring the Carnation Envoy in front of her.
But when the envoy heard Elara's harsh questioning, he looked even more shocked and terrified than anyone else there.
Clearly, he had no idea those Puppet Soldiers had already taken over most of his country.
Once the Carnation Envoy snapped out of his shock and fear, he collapsed to his knees before Elara could press further and began wailing uncontrollably, as if his nation was about to fall completely.
Seeing him like that, Elara knew she couldn't get any more useful information from him. The situation with the strange soldiers had gone far beyond anything anyone expected, including the envoy from Gladiolus Kingdom.
She waved her hand and had him taken away again.
The next second, the earring on her earlobe suddenly started transmitting sharp, clashing battle sounds.
Elara stopped in her tracks.
"Your Majesty, these enemies truly are strange. Not only do they have unusually tough bodies, but their senses are sharp like wild beasts. They detected us from three miles away and started chasing us with incredible speed."
"But I just tested it. The weapons in their hands are still ordinary. They can't pierce our steel armor. As long as we channel inner energy into our steel weapons, we can easily cut through them. Even soldiers without inner energy can defeat them by hacking more forcefully a few times."
"They've surrounded us. Your Majesty, I'm engaging them now."
Elara listened to the increasing noise of weapons clashing and horses neighing through the earring. Her brow furrowed deeper, but she said nothing.
Francis's tone was calm and steady. He didn't seem to see the Puppet Soldiers as a real threat. But most soldiers in the army didn't possess inner energy. Normal training never required them to practice it.
After all, warriors and soldiers were fundamentally different. Even though Francis's 10,000 troops were elite, it was impossible for every single one to have inner energy.
And they were up against 70,000 to 80,000 of those mad soldiers.
Elara's brows furrowed further. She rushed to the Marigold City military base, quickly mobilized 50,000 fully armed elite troops, and ordered them to head at top speed to the central region of Gladiolus Kingdom.
Three hours later, about two hours after the 50,000 troops left Marigold City, Elara's earring transmitted Francis's voice again.
He was breathing slightly hard, as if just finishing a battle. His voice was a bit hoarse, with a slight electric tingle as it passed into her ears.