Chapter 383: Preparation Time is Over
To say that I wasn't surprised would be lying. Of all the things I expect Mars to do.
Marching straight at me was the last thing on my list.
It can't be that simple, especially after all that mental torture I had subjected his men to. But this was just another proof of what kind of a god Mars was.
A soldier.
A warrior.
A Roman General.
Even after losing a chunk of his men and losing most of his resource nodes, his instinct told him to chase the enemy directly.
However, after watching for some time using my spiders and my vampires, I realized that his movement wasn't as straightforward as it seemed.
"Interesting."
Mars' main force was, of course, moving in a straight line, cutting through the trees like an axe to wood, no doubt wanting a quick, direct confrontation. But their movement was slow, too slow, even with the map's debuff, it wouldn't be this slow.
Again, this was part of his plan. To draw all of my attention to the main force while small detachments of troops spread around the forest, capturing the nodes that I missed that were located south of his camp, and attempting to recapture some of the nodes that I took.
However, that wasn't what interested me the most; their speed and behavior were suspicious. They appeared as if they were racing time to catch something, or catch up to something, to the point that when one of my vampires attacked a small group, capturing one soldier, the rest didn't attempt to save their comrade; instead, they sprinted toward the node with more aggressiveness. The eagles, too, never stopped flying all over the map, either.
Even the captured soldier tried to buy time for the detached group so that they could complete their task.
"Glory… glory to Rome," he rasped. His chest heaved with the last of his strength, lips curling into a fanatic grin. "We… endure."
I narrowed my eyes. That wasn't the expression of a man defeated. Not even the kind of empty worship NPCs usually displayed toward their commanders. No… There was a true emotion of a real being, not some game character.
"What is your game, Mars?" I wondered, my eyes scanning the map. "Are you this desperate to rebuild your army?"
By luck, the very next second, there was a game announcement that explained why Mars was in such a rush.
Ding!
[Players, the initial stage of the game will end after 3 in-game hours, all resource nodes will become unavailable to be captured, and all remaining resource nodes that have already been captured will no longer generate additional resource points.
Only the command tent remains active.
+100% resource generation for the next 3 hours.]
"Ahhh… so that's the rush to get their hands on the rest of the resource nodes," I said, nodding.
I understand now, Mars did this to boost his resources to the very end, and it seems that he failed to mention this to me before. I can't blame him, though; everyone was entitled to keep their cards closer to their chest and not show all of their aces, even if it was just a game mechanic.
Since there was no point in hoarding the resource points anymore, I flew back to my camp and spent them all.
I upgraded the command tent, unlocking the next tier of the troops. I focused on three units, the legionnaires, who were the next tier of spearmen, fully equipped with the standard Roman armor, a spear, a shield, and a gladius, or a small sword.
For the archers, they had more upgrade options, like crossbow unit, longbow, and shortbow, which differed in shooting distance and accuracy. I decided to summon longbow units and shortbow units, especially the latter, since in a dense dark forest, having better agility and accuracy can really come in handy, especially during ambush attacks.
As for the swordsmen, the next optimal upgrade was, of course, the gladiators, Roman warriors who specialized in close combat.
For the next three hours, these were the three units I chose to focus on; the rest were almost useless in this map, like the cavalry unit or the siege weapons.
And with the resource buff active, I managed to build quite the army, close to four thousand troops, disciplined and armed, standing ready under the crimson banners of my camp. It was beautiful—but dangerous.
Numbers were one thing, loyalty another. Feeding them, keeping them steady, keeping them mine—that was the true battle.
Fortunately, my horny mind always finds a way.
Gulp! Gulp!
"Line up," I ordered, my voice rolling through the command tent. "Those chosen will step forward."
A group of women obeyed, mothers and wives reborn as soldiers, their eyes blank with loyalty, yet their bodies still rich with my divine gift. I stepped toward the first one, tilting her chin up, and without hesitation pressed my lips to her breast.
Warm liquid spilled onto my tongue, sweet and heavy.
"Hmm…" I purred, savoring it, licking a stray drop from the corner of my mouth. "The taste is good."
The woman shuddered, moaning softly as my hands roamed, teasing, coaxing more of that life-giving nectar from them. My soldiers looked on—not with shame, not with doubt—but with a hunger that matched my own. The sight of their general feeding bound them tighter than chains ever could.
"Perfect," I whispered, releasing the woman with a gentle kiss to her trembling lips. Another stepped forward immediately, eager, offering herself as if it were the highest honor.
I drank again. And again. Each taste sweeter than the last, my body humming with energy, my army feasting through me. The women melted in my hands, sighing, moaning, collapsing in bliss, but I held them steady. To them, it wasn't degradation—it was sanctification. They were part of me, part of the goddess's will, nourishing not just themselves but the legion at large.
I blessed these women with lactating skills. A special kind of skill in my horny arsenal allowed female reproduction to pump mother's milk with almost magical speed and without limits. These women will help me feed the army, saving the food resources for when the two armies meet.
"Now this… this is the true efficiency." I chuckled, licking the last sweet drop from my lips.
The women trembled, their breasts still heavy, milk dripping in shining rivulets onto their armor. My touch had made them sacred vessels, and they knew it. Their eyes burned with pride, as if being used in this way was the highest rank I could bestow.
"Drink." I turned toward the rows of soldiers waiting.
And they obeyed.
Legionaries lowered their spears, pulling one woman close, drinking greedily as milk spilled down their chins. Archers bent to cup the breasts of another, tongues lapping hungrily. Gladiators, those blood-hungry beasts, latched onto the sacred milk like newborns, moaning in between gulps.
The camp was filled with the sounds of slurping, sighs, groans of relief, and, of course, a nice big orgy because why the hell not?!
I started it when I dropped one woman on top of another, growing two dicks and fucked them both until my white seed spilled all over my thighs. And soon more joined her.
The orgy raged like wildfire. Moans, cries, and the clashing of armored bodies filled the crimson glow of the camp. My soldiers were no longer just men and women of steel—they were zealots, chained not by discipline but by lust, hunger, and devotion to me. Every thrust, every swallow, every gasp was an oath of loyalty carved deeper than any vow Mars could ever demand.
But as I lay sprawled across the writhing pile of flesh, drinking, fucking, and feeding all at once, my eyes never left the map hovering before me.
This game is far from over. And when the game system dinged again, marking the end of the first 24 hours of the game and with it our resource nodes.
The time for preparation was over. Now is the time for war.
....
One hour later.
The two armies meet, mine to the north and Mars to the south. We chose that clearing in the middle of the map since it was the only place that could serve as a battlefield.
And I must say Mars really did an amazing job during the buff time. He managed to build an army that numbered more than I, six thousand strong.
"How the hell did he manage to summon more troops?" I genuinely wanted to know how Mars did it. From what I saw, his resource nodes were nowhere near enough to account for six thousand troops. So he's definitely hoarded before, or he knew a game mechanic that I wasn't aware of.
Anyway, no matter what, I'll be the winner in the challenge. It would be better to win with my current army and strength, but if I'm forced to win, well... my immortal army is always ready to answer my call.
I stepped forward, gazing down on the armies. To my right were the two commanders that I chose as generals, the female vampire archer and a male legionnaire.
"Prepare for battle, proceed as we planned."
"Yes, General!"
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