Trenches, Guns, and Magic

Lieutenant General Georg von der Marwitz's most glorious moment in his life stopped at Haelen in August 1914.

At three o'clock that afternoon, he commanded over four thousand cavalrymen in launching the largest cavalry charge since the war began on the plains of the County of Flanders.

It was also the last cavalry charge of such scale.

The metallic ring of dragoons unsheathing their sabers converged, and in that moment, he felt he was the reincarnation of General Zieten under Frederick the Great.

A forest of lances, the thunder of hooves—that image still appeared in his dreams to this day.

The iron hooves of four thousand warhorses shattered the ground, the kicked-up dust obscuring half the sky.

The charge achieved its tactical objective: a hole was torn in the flank of the Flanders United Kingdom Army.

But the price was nearly a thousand warhorses and over eight hundred cavalrymen left forever on that plain.

The increasingly dense rifle volleys, heavy machine gun crossfire, and barbed wire turned the once-invincible cavalry charge into an expensive gamble.

The golden age of cavalry visibly drew to a close. The scenarios where Marwitz and his cavalrymen could play a role grew fewer and fewer.

Ultimately, one proud cavalry division after another was forced to dismount, taking up rifles to struggle in muddy trenches like infantrymen.

He himself was forced to transition helplessly from a cavalry general to an infantry commander.

But among the star-studded ranks of the Saxon Army's infantry commanders, what good assignments could a former cavalry general who switched careers halfway get?

The answer was: what others picked over.

The major campaigns planned by the Army General Staff never fell to him, and he had no share in the key defense sectors on the Western Front.

Lieutenant General Marwitz had prepared himself mentally to quietly wait for retirement in some secondary defense sector, until the war on the Balkan Peninsula required troop reinforcements...

Coincidentally, the Empire also launched a large-scale offensive on the Eastern Front simultaneously, drawing away a massive number of elite troops and frontline commanders.

This war was also an examination for army generals. Many generals who usually coasted on seniority but lacked real ability were exposed one by one.

So the Army General Staff looked around and found that among the available generals, Lieutenant General Marwitz was actually among the more capable fighters...

Therefore, the mission of leading the replenished 48th Corps to reinforce the Balkan Peninsula fell on Lieutenant General Marwitz's head.

After all, compared to some other army generals, Marwitz, with his cavalry officer background, was still the type who dared to fight and charge.

Of course, this had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that his father had once served as the Director of the Operations Department of the Army General Staff.

Absolutely nothing.

Lieutenant General Marwitz began prepping his troops the very day he received the order. He viewed this mission as the last opportunity of his military career.

If fought well, he might even take another step up... But if he botched it, he really would only be able to go back to his hometown to raise horses.

So when he led the vanguard of the 48th Corps through the passes of the Carpathian Mountains and arrived on the Wallachian Plain, his mental state was quite hyped.

At this time, Morin was leading the main force of the Kampfgruppe to block the Romanian reinforcements on the other side of the city, so Lieutenant General Marwitz did not immediately meet this "military superstar" who was the subject of various "legends."

However, the blood-red pillar of light shooting up into the sky from within Bucharest, and the eerie sky-curtain that subsequently spread out, gave him a solid, rude awakening.

Even before departure, he had learned through the General Staff's briefings that this time they were facing "vampires"—supernatural units that previously only existed in folklore—and had prepared himself mentally.

But this spectacle unfolding before him, as if the age of mythology had descended, still far exceeded his imagination.

The blood-colored dome shrouded the distant city, radiating an ominous light. Even the air seemed permeated with a faint, sickly sweet, metallic scent.

Faced with this sight, the brave cavalry general could only rein in his horse, which pawed the ground uneasily.

"General... is this what we have to fight next?"

Lieutenant General Marwitz's chief of staff, a colonel who also hailed from a traditional military family, stood beside him, not even realizing his own voice trembled.

He had long since lowered his binoculars, because an anomaly of that scale required no optical assistance to see.

Marwitz was silent for a moment, then nodded slowly.

He remembered the private telegrams sent to him almost simultaneously by Chief of the General Staff Moltke the Younger and Minister of War Falkenhayn just before he led his army out.

The wording of the two military bigwigs was astonishingly consistent. Both very tactfully reminded him to communicate more with Colonel Morin upon reaching the front line and to coordinate well with his actions...

The telegrams also specifically emphasized that the front line might present "sudden situations that conventional military theory cannot handle." At those times, he would need to rely more on Colonel Morin's on-the-spot judgment.

At first, Marwitz felt these two bigwigs were making a mountain out of a molehill, overestimating that young man.

After all, he was just a colonel. Even if highly regarded by the Crown Prince, could he turn the heavens upside down?

But now, looking at the eerie spectacle in the distance that nearly dyed the sky red, he finally understood the weight of every word in those two telegrams...

How was that an exaggeration? That was simply being as implicit as possible!

However, Lieutenant General Marwitz was, after all, a professional soldier who had weathered great storms.

After his brief shock, he quickly settled into the role of commander.

"Pass down the order: officers at all levels are to tighten discipline. Have the NCOs get moving and maintain troop morale!"

"Yes, General!"

After issuing the order, he dismounted, threw the reins to his orderly, and strode toward the temporary command post where the Kampfgruppe officers responsible for coordinating with him were located.

Following a brief but highly efficient communication with the several stay-behind Kampfgruppe officers, Marwitz gained a clearer understanding of the current situation and quickly entered the state a commander should be in.

Pointing to the outline of Bucharest on the map, he said in a deep voice: "If the city looks like this now, I believe order must have completely collapsed. I worry... there might be a massive number of civilians and routed soldiers escaping, charging our defense lines, so we must prepare in advance."

Hearing this, the stay-behind Kampfgruppe officers secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Good, the rear didn't send an incompetent fool over.

For these officers who had worked under Morin for some time, their private standards for evaluating superior officers had long been raised considerably because of Morin.

So when recalling some of the generals who had commanded them previously, they now seemed rather rigid...

And facts proved Marwitz's prediction correct.

Not long after the order was transmitted to the frontline positions, an urgent alarm came from the forward observation posts.

On the main roads leading from Bucharest to their positions, a densely packed tide of humanity appeared. Crying and running, they surged toward the Saxon defense lines.

Thanks to Lieutenant General Marwitz's stroke of genius in providing early warning, when the first wave of refugees surged to the front of the positions, the Saxon Empire's defense line did not show the slightest bit of chaos.

In front of the barbed wire, pre-prepared loudspeakers began playing appeasing messages in stiff Romanian on a loop, telling the refugees to remain calm, not to rush the positions, and to pass through the designated corridors in an orderly manner.

Of course, for those targets who couldn't understand, a burst of bullets sweeping the ground in front of them could also instantly help them complete the "translation."

And at the entrances to the various designated corridors, fully armed soldiers were standing by.

At the very front were rows of soldiers holding silver crucifixes and strings of garlic gathered through various means.

This image was somewhat comical, but no one could laugh at this moment.

Because the suppressive effect of silver on vampires had become the consensus of frontline soldiers after several nights of actual combat.

This was also the simplest and most direct method for verifying vampires outlined in the temporary manual issued by the Kampfgruppe command post.

As for the garlic...

This was an "anti-vampire artifact" dug up from Romanian folklore. Although they didn't know if it worked, having an extra layer of insurance couldn't hurt.

These soldiers responsible for inspection wove through the lines of refugees, waving these things in front of everyone's faces.

"Don't move! Raise your hands! So what if I make you smell garlic? It's good for you!"

"Hey! You in the uniform! Don't hide! Come here! Let me see if there are any bite marks on your neck!"

The scene was a bit ridiculous for a time, but the effect was surprisingly good.

Although the vast majority of civilians and routed soldiers were somewhat bewildered by this display, seeing the Saxon soldiers acting as if facing a formidable enemy, they knew they were guarding against something terrifying, and very cooperatively accepted the inspections.

Behind these "inspectors" were soldiers holding rifles with silver-plated bayonets mounted, as well as flamethrower teams ready to spew fire at a moment's notice. Their muzzles and nozzles were firmly locked onto every refugee passing through the corridor.

The Romanian civilians who had luckily escaped the city had, at this moment, long forgotten that these foreign soldiers before them were the enemies who invaded their homeland.

After experiencing a bloody and terrifying escape, these heavily armed, tightly formed Saxon soldiers seemed to them like saviors descended from heaven.

People cursed the monsters in the city, then gathered around the Saxon soldiers, crying and shouting as they recounted the horrifying scenes occurring within.

"Monsters... there are monsters everywhere! They crawled out of the sewers, biting everyone they saw!"

"My neighbor... he lived right next door... last night he suddenly smashed open my door. His eyes were red, and his strength was terrifyingly great..."

"Oh God, please save us! That's no place for people, it's Hell!"

Listening to these chaotic descriptions from the civilians' mouths, the Saxon soldiers on the positions felt anger, but their hearts also inevitably drummed with fear.

Although they were mentally prepared, hearing the survivors' accusations with their own ears still caused them palpitations.

However, the grassroots NCO system that the Saxon Army took pride in served as a stabilizing force at this moment.

Especially among the instruction unit personnel left behind here, the veterans and NCOs who had been constantly influenced by Morin quickly reacted and immediately began using verbal guidance on the young soldiers around them.

"Did you all hear that? Those things in the city can no longer be considered human! They are slaughtering civilians, slaughtering unarmed women and children!"

"This war we're fighting now is no longer just for the Empire! We are protecting these innocent people, protecting ourselves! We are fighting for humanity!"

This unadorned, even somewhat "politically incorrect" morale-boosting speech actually had an unexpected effect in this special environment.

When the soldiers saw the gazes of hope and gratitude cast by those Romanian civilians, an unprecedented sense of responsibility spontaneously arose within them.

The courage rising in their chests quickly overpowered their fear of the unknown monsters.

So when Morin, leading a group of officers, took a wide detour and finally returned from the southeast positions, what he saw at the Kampfgruppe's rear assembly area was a scene of magical realism: the enemy and our forces sharing a "united hatred against a common enemy."

Saxon soldiers were sharing their rations and water with those traumatized Romanian refugees. Medics were bandaging wounds for the injured, and engineers were setting up a temporary refugee camp.

And those Romanians who had just viewed the Saxons as mortal enemies were now expressing endless gratitude to them.

"Wait... what happened on the position while I was gone?"

Morin looked at this somewhat surreal scene before him, turning his head to ask an officer left behind here.

This officer was also looking like he didn't know whether to laugh or cry, briefly reporting the series of actions taken by Lieutenant General Marwitz after his arrival.

"...So, General Marwitz anticipated the appearance of the refugee tide as soon as he arrived, and made preparations in advance? If so, I must say this general truly has some skill."

After hearing this, Morin couldn't help but look upon this allied commander he had yet to meet with greater respect.

The contingency plans he left behind also considered the refugee issue, but Lieutenant General Marwitz's reaction was even faster and more comprehensive than he anticipated.

"Let's go. Let's meet this reliable allied commander."

Soon, in the temporary command post behind the positions, Morin finally met this Army Lieutenant General.

The other man maintained a very good physique, his back straight as a ramrod. The gray general's service uniform on him didn't have a single wrinkle. His gaze was sharp. At a glance, one could tell he was a traditional Junker officer who commanded troops extremely strictly.

Morin originally thought the other party, being an Army Lieutenant General and of Junker noble birth, would put on some airs.

But unexpectedly, upon seeing him, Lieutenant General Marwitz proactively extended his hand.

"Colonel Morin, I've heard so much about you... I've heard far too many rumors back home about you and your heroic unit."

"To be honest, if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, it would be very difficult for me to imagine that you and your troops have been fighting in such a special environment..."

Lieutenant General Marwitz's words came from the bottom of his heart, actually making Morin feel somewhat embarrassed.

He controlled his hand, which wanted to scratch his head awkwardly, and smiled modestly: "Your Excellency Lieutenant General, you flatter me. These are actually just small scenes... you get used to it."

"Small scenes?"

The smile on Lieutenant General Marwitz's face stiffened, stormy waves surging in his heart.

He glanced at the blood-red sky outside the tent, a thought flashing uncontrollably in his mind: If this is considered a "small scene," then what the hell is a "big scene"?

However, he quickly returned to normal. This seasoned general also didn't dwell on this issue.

The corps' worth of reinforcements led by Marwitz greatly alleviated the Morin Kampfgruppe's severe shortage of troops, and also afforded the instruction unit and other veteran units, who had been fighting continuously for many days, a precious opportunity to rest and reorganize.

Morin didn't hide anything, providing Lieutenant General Marwitz with a detailed explanation of the intelligence he gathered by personally infiltrating the city for reconnaissance, as well as the combat situation of intercepting the Romanian reinforcements.

When he heard that Morin actually led men to infiltrate the "heavily guarded" enemy capital of Bucharest and even took a stroll near the Old Royal Palace, Marwitz's look toward Morin changed completely.

He finally understood now why the military high command valued this young man so much.

The battle record of this young man with numerous honorary titles truly wasn't blown out of proportion relying on connections with the Crown Prince; he fought for it with his life on the line...

After a frank communication, the two quickly reached a consensus on the operational plan.

Lieutenant General Marwitz completely agreed with Morin's proposed plan: continue to maintain the siege posture around Bucharest, utilize their numerical advantage to thoroughly control the surroundings of the city, and then wait for the "professional team" sent by the Holy See to arrive before launching the final general offensive.

After all, when it came to fighting "vampires," it was better to listen to the experts.

And on the second day after they reached this consensus, accompanied by a low engine roar, the L16 armored airship, responsible for transporting follow-up personnel and supplies, slowly landed at the newly cleared forward base behind the positions.

The team from the Holy See had arrived.

As the two highest-ranking military commanders at the front line, Morin and Lieutenant General Marwitz naturally had to personally go to the airship landing platform to receive them.

This wasn't just out of politeness; to some extent, it could also be considered an important diplomatic event, representing the Saxon Empire military's high regard for this ally.

When the massive hull of the L16 armored airship cast its shadow on the ground and slowly came to a steady halt on the constructed field landing platform, the first to walk down was a team dressed in the traditional attire of Holy See clergy.

Morin's attention was immediately drawn to this group of people.

The entire team numbered over eighty.

Walking at the very front were thirty exceptionally muscular "macho men."

Calling them macho men was primarily because visually, every single one of them approached 2 meters in height.

Shoulders as wide as walls. Even wearing loose clerical robes couldn't hide their explosively muscular outlines.

Morin even felt that, just looking at their physiques, these men were perhaps even a bit bulkier than Klaus and the others who had been injected with the modification serum.

In short, these were absolutely not physiques a normal human could achieve through natural growth and exercise...

Behind these "human tanks" were over fifty ordinary clerics of relatively normal builds. They carried various cases in their hands, looking like personnel responsible for technical support and logistical assistance.

However, to Morin's slight disappointment, not a single one of the beautiful and holy church nuns wearing nun habits he imagined appeared in the team.

Sure enough, works of literature and art were all deceptive.

Besides the personnel, a large batch of massive wooden crates stamped with the crossed keys emblem of the Vatican was successively unloaded from the cargo bay by the soldiers on the airship. Every crate looked incredibly heavy.

Morin and Lieutenant General Marwitz exchanged a glance, both seeing a trace of seriousness in the other's eyes.

It seemed the Papal State was playing for keeps this time. At least judging from the aura of this team, they were completely extraordinary.

Soon, the two met the leader of this Holy See team.

He was the man walking at the very front of the thirty muscular men. His physique was the burliest of them all. His bronze skin was covered in dense, fine scars. On his chiseled face, his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's.

"Cristiano... Vatican Holy See Congregation for Exorcism and Purification, Second Bureau Executor."

The muscular man's voice was deep and resonant. He gave the two a chest-touching salute unique to the Holy See. While the movement was clean and crisp, it also carried an iron-blooded, military aura.

And Morin, for once acting very properly, alongside Lieutenant General Marwitz, engaged in a conversation with the other party using diplomatic protocol.

After brief pleasantries, Cleric Cristiano dispensed with any nonsense and cut straight to the point.

He looked up at that blood-red sky in the distance, his brow furrowing tightly.

"Gentlemen, the situation here is far more serious than we imagined."

"When we boarded the airship within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the intelligence we received only stated that vampires had appeared in Bucharest... But just now from the sky, we saw the entire city enveloped in a massive 'Domain'."

"In the ancient records of the Church, our predecessors called this kind of special domain the 'Blood River'..."

Morin's heart stirred upon hearing the keyword "Blood River."

This term matched perfectly with the information he saw in the system interface.

This indicated that the Holy See's understanding of vampires and related supernatural phenomena was far deeper than the outside world imagined.

Cleric Cristiano's expression was exceptionally serious at this moment as he continued: "According to the campaign records preserved by the Church regarding the last time we dealt with this situation—namely, the suppression of the out-of-control Wallachian Voivode Vlad III over four hundred years ago—when facing the 'Blood River'... we must race against time. The earlier we take action, the better."

"Because once the 'Blood River' is activated, it acts like a living creature, continuously devouring the life and flesh of all non-vampire beings within its domain to strengthen itself."

"If we cannot destroy it in the early stages, once we fall into a stalemate... the vampire creatures buffed by the 'Blood River' will only become stronger and harder to deal with."

Cleric Cristiano's gaze swept over the two Saxon officers present, informing them of the severity of the problem.

"Back then, after 'Vlad the Impaler' activated the 'Blood River', in an extremely short period of time, it devoured tens of thousands of friendly soldiers fighting alongside him, as well as an even larger number of pagan prisoners."

"And that time, the hastily organized allied encirclement force nearly faced total annihilation because they severely underestimated the power of the 'Blood River'."

"Ultimately, the Holy See paid the grievous price of fifteen Supreme Paladins sacrificing themselves, along with massive casualties among the allied forces, to barely seal away the Impaler—who not long before was still hailed as the 'Shield of Christ'—along with his 'Blood River'."

After hearing this, Lieutenant General Marwitz's expression had turned quite ugly.

He originally thought he was only facing a group of rather troublesome supernatural creatures.

But looking at it now... this was fundamentally a mythological-level war.

These enemies possessing supernatural power were clearly not a bit easier to deal with than those Britannian Highland Mages they faced on the Western Front, even becoming more eerie and lethal under specific environments.

As a pragmatic commander, Lieutenant General Marwitz immediately made the most correct decision at present.

He looked at Morin and Cleric Cristiano, saying in a deep voice: "Gentlemen, in the realm of the supernatural, I am merely a layman... Therefore, in the upcoming operations, I will completely trust and cooperate with your professional judgments."

"My troops will be responsible for perimeter blockades and auxiliary attacks, clearing all obstacles from the mortal plane for you... if there are still such forces left in this city..."

"As for how to deal with those monsters in the city, and that 'Blood River'... I leave it to you professionals."

This frank and wise attitude immediately won the goodwill of Morin and Cleric Cristiano, because the situation right now clearly required a division of labor and coordination.

And none of the three had a personality that liked to drag their feet, so they quickly reached a consensus: they must launch a general offensive against Bucharest as soon as possible.

"Then, Your Excellency Cleric Cristiano, regarding how to destroy the 'Blood River', does the Holy See have a relevant plan?"

Morin asked this more professional individual directly.

"Of course." Cleric Cristiano nodded. "Although there is a certain level of risk, there is indeed a standard 'cut the Gordian knot' solution."

Upon hearing the other party's answer, a flash of inspiration hit Morin, and he blurted out in a somewhat excited tone: "Is it a decapitation strike? Using this method to directly kill the controller of the 'Blood River'?"

Hearing this, a burst of light instantly flared in Cleric Cristiano's eyes, and a "meeting a kindred spirit" look appeared on his face.

"Colonel Morin, it seems we are on exactly the same page!"

This militant cleric, who clearly also enjoyed charging enemy lines, paused before continuing: "Exactly! Just like the campaign to seal Vlad III back then, when our predecessors finally killed that 'Impaler', the 'Blood River', having lost its guide, quickly collapsed on its own."

"We originally thought this terrifying anomaly had been completely buried in the dust of history... we never expected it to see the light of day again in the Kingdom of Romania today."

Since the conversation had reached this point, Morin then briefly recounted his infiltration of the city for reconnaissance and his judgment that King Ferdinand I of Romania was highly likely the mastermind behind the scenes.

This experience made Cleric Cristiano's attitude toward him even more friendly and admiring.

"I see! No wonder His Excellency Maurice, Archbishop of Paris, was full of praise for you within the Church..."

"To be frank, Colonel Morin, you are actually highly praised within the Vatican right now as well. Quite a few Cardinals believe you are a 'Saint walking the earth'..."

Morin: "???"

The situations mentioned by Cleric Cristiano truly surprised Morin somewhat. He never expected his reputation to have reached that theocratic nation.

Especially this "Saint walking the earth" business... That's way too exaggerated!

Where have you ever seen a "Saint" who likes to date an older women like him?!

Moreover, in the Church's stories, the final fates of those Saints were clearly not what Morin wanted...

Back to the main topic. Since the target was clear, the next question was how to execute it.

And this operational meeting for a "Decapitation Strike" against the vampires, co-chaired by a senior officer of the Saxon Imperial Army and an Executor of the Vatican's Congregation for Exorcism and Purification, proceeded unexpectedly smoothly.

Morin, Lieutenant General Marwitz, and Cleric Cristiano—these three individuals representing the core figures of the Saxon Empire's rising new forces, the traditional military, and the Holy See's militant order respectively... showed a high degree of unanimity on the core objective of "taking out the vampire boss as quickly as possible."

Lieutenant General Marwitz called in his chief of staff, while Morin called Kleist and Manstein. Gathered around a temporarily unrolled field map, the group quickly finalized the rough operational plan.

"The 48th Corps under my command, plus the troops left behind by the Kampfgruppe, will be responsible for launching a full-scale offensive on the frontal battlefield."

Lieutenant General Marwitz, holding a pencil and drafting tools, drew several massive attack symbols on the north and west sides of Bucharest on the operational map.

"We will use concentrated artillery fire to open attack corridors and draw the attention of most of the low-tier vampire creatures within the city."

Cleric Cristiano nodded, taking up the thread: "I will lead my clerics as the core ground assault force, attacking all the way to the vicinity of the royal palace, while simultaneously clearing an attack path for the main force."

"The two armored airships, L15 and L16, will provide continuous fire support and real-time battlefield reconnaissance from the air, while issuing early warnings via broadcasting equipment."

Morin added, his gaze falling on the location of the Old Royal Palace on the map.

"When Your Excellency Cleric Cristiano's troops push to the vicinity of the Old Royal Palace and clear the perimeter, I will lead the 'Thunder Warriors' in a direct airdrop from the airships into the interior of the royal palace."

"Then our two elite squads will rendezvous and execute the final decapitation strike on Ferdinand I and any other High-Tier Vampires that might be present."

The entire plan was clear, decisive, and full of the sharp Saxon style.

Cleric Cristiano, who loved a good charge, was very satisfied with this plan, but he immediately raised a new issue.

"Since we are dealing with vampires, especially potentially High-Tier Vampires, we will need some... more efficient 'special weapons'."

Hearing this, Morin initially thought the other party was going to bring out some Holy See-specific gadgets.

Like some high-power holy water bombs, special enchanted bullets, or some kind of immensely powerful blessing scroll.

However, Cleric Cristiano's next request made Morin feel things were starting to develop in a strange direction.

"Colonel Morin, I need to borrow a batch of trucks in relatively good condition. Please rest assured... as the Second Bureau responsible for field missions, we learned how to drive radiant crystal vehicles long ago."

Cleric Cristiano said: "Additionally, I need to borrow those factories you requisitioned in Ploiești, especially the casting and machining equipment inside."

Although somewhat confused, Morin readily agreed.

Then he watched as those auxiliary monks of the Holy See began carefully lifting objects wrapped in thick burlap, shaped distinctly like massive crucifixes, onto the beds of the trucks.

"Your Excellency Cleric Cristiano," Morin walked up curiously, pointing at those tightly wrapped crucifixes, "these are...?"

"Enshrined beneath the dome of the main hall of St. Peter's Basilica is a batch of pure silver crucifixes, used to commemorate those Saints who burned themselves so the Lord's light could sprinkle across the earth."

A trace of piety appeared on Cleric Cristiano's face, but the words he spoke made Morin's eyelids twitch violently.

"We brought five of them with us this time."

Morin's heart skipped a beat, and an absurd thought suddenly popped up.

He probed tentatively: "You guys... you aren't planning to haul these things into a factory and melt them down, are you?"

Hearing this, Cleric Cristiano revealed a gratified smile of "this child is teachable," and nodded vigorously.

"Exactly! Colonel Morin, it seems we indeed share many common topics..."

Morin felt his worldview undergo a minor shock.

"Wait a minute! These... these are holy relics, aren't they? Just melt them down like that? Won't the... er, that 'holy power' attached to them disappear?"

Holy shit, these are treasures enshrined in St. Peter's Basilica!

The other party being so nonchalant about it, to Morin, was like taking one's own ancestral tablets and using them for firewood. This operation was far too wild...

Facing Morin's doubts, the color of piety on Cleric Cristiano's face deepened.

He placed his hand over his chest and said in a tone that sounded like he was praying: "Colonel Morin, please remember... True power originates from our devotion to the Lord in our hearts! Silver is merely a medium bearing this devotion..."

"As long as the heart is sincere, then what difference does it make whether the silver is cast into a crucifix or into a weapon that can more efficiently purify the sins of the world?"

"Sincerity brings spirituality..."

Morin: "..."

This time, he was completely speechless.

Morin finally saw it: the Vatican Holy See of this world was clearly somewhat different.

Although they genuinely possessed some supernatural powers, these church members were devout to the extreme, while simultaneously being pragmatic to the extreme.

This inevitably reminded Morin of Bishop Maurice, who fought alongside him in Paris.

That old man who "stole the warhammer"—back then, he also directly had his clerics apply holy oil to the instruction unit soldiers' weapons to buff them...

Ultimately, in the factories of Ploiești, the clerics from the Vatican used concrete actions to give Morin and the others a solid, massive shock.

They actually cut apart those five massive pure silver crucifixes, sent them into different furnaces, and the molten silver was cast into components of various specifications.

Then, with the cooperation of the professional technicians brought by the Holy See and the original craftsmen of the factories, mixed with a large amount of aluminum powder urgently requisitioned from other warehouses, as well as some other alchemical materials carried by the clerics...

A batch of peculiarly shaped "bombs" was rushed into production.

Beneath the special casings of these bombs, engraved with prayers, the interior was filled with a mixture of silver and aluminum powder, with a miniature magitech trigger mechanism at the core.

"Silver-Thermite Bomb."

Cleric Cristiano showed the finished product to Morin, a satisfied smile on his face.

"Purifying fire prepared specially for High-Tier Vampires... Once detonated, it can instantaneously generate high temperatures of around 2500 degrees, enough to melt through a vampire along with the earth beneath his feet... And the presence of silver will ensure their spirit bodies cannot escape either."

Looking at those Church weapons radiating a dangerous aura, Morin silently observed a half-second of silence for the vampires in the city, while also unable to help but sigh that the Holy See had indeed sent a "professional team."

Too professional...

Getting one of these things to the face, let alone a vampire, even a Blood Dragon would probably be burned to ash.

The Church's methods in this world were truly unconventional.

And while the clerics were busy manufacturing "weapons of mass destruction," the mechanics of the Morin Kampfgruppe weren't idle either.

Following the requirements of Morin and Cleric Cristiano, they performed drastic modifications on the thirty-odd radiant crystal trucks available in the Kampfgruppe.

Thick additional steel plates were welded to both sides of the cabs and beds, and massive obstacle-clearing plows, welded from train tracks and steel beams, exuding a heavy "Wasteland Punk" vibe, were added to the fronts of the vehicles.

These trucks, modified to look like steel behemoths, would be handed over to those auxiliary monks of the Holy See to drive, serving as personnel and equipment transport vehicles for the Church's assault force to rampage through the streets of Bucharest.

All preparations proceeded methodically in a tense yet highly efficient atmosphere.

At noon on the second day after the Holy See team arrived, as the last batch of silver-thermite bombs finished loading onto the trucks, the final general offensive commenced.

Although the midday sun hung high in the sky, the sky above Bucharest remained shrouded by that ominous blood-red hue.

According to Cleric Cristiano, this was exactly one of the major functions of the "Blood River"—to isolate most of the sunlight harmful to low-tier vampires, allowing Blood Servants to operate during the day as well.

As for Blood Thralls and other higher-tier vampire creatures, they wouldn't need to expend extra energy to counter the lethal effects of ultraviolet rays.

Yes, ultraviolet rays... This was the exact term used by this macho cleric.

Morin never dreamed he would hear such a scientific explanation from the mouth of a churchman.

The horn for the general offensive was formally blown when the hands on Morin's pocket watch reached 12:30.

The two artillery brigades subordinate to the 48th Corps, along with a portion of the artillery deployed by the Kampfgruppe, began their roar.

Due to concerns about unknown interference or attacks the "Blood River" domain might have on ordinary aircraft, Morin also canceled the aerial reconnaissance missions of the "Taube" reconnaissance aircraft.

This left Richthofen and his team filled with regret, only hating that they couldn't participate in this great battle up close.

Taking their place was the relatively thicker-skinned L15 armored airship... It would conduct direct close-in aerial reconnaissance, providing the most intuitive battlefield intelligence for the ground forces.

Inside the spacious cargo bay of the airship, Morin and the fully armed "Thunder Warriors" waited quietly.

Klaus and his twenty-six comrades, clad in gray Mjölnir, stood solemnly in their drop positions like silent statues.

And Morin, besides his conventional weapons, carried two extra longswords on his back.

One was a steel-boned, silver-edged longsword forged by a certain famous blacksmith in Ploiești.

The other was one of the Vatican Holy See's Holy Swords, lent to him by Cleric Cristiano after careful consideration.

It was said that fragments of the Holy Lance that pierced the side of the Saint were incorporated into the blade, while the relic bones of another Saint were sealed within the hilt.

In Morin's view, this thing was a genuine, bona fide "artifact"...