My Celestial Ascension

Inside the Imperial Palace, in the Imperial Capital City of the Lionheart Empire, an uproar erupted as soon as news of the Holy Church’s army moving toward the Lionheart Empire spread throughout the palace.

“Daniel, go and bring Minister Vesta to me at once. We must accelerate our plans immediately. There’s no time to relax in a critical moment like this,” Emperor Philip ordered Crown Prince Daniel, his expression grave.

“Yes, Royal Father. I’ll leave right away,” Daniel replied, nodding with a serious look as the weight of the situation fully settled in his mind.

He quickly left the hall to search for Minister Vesta, who was likely managing affairs on Emperor Philip’s behalf.

After a brief search, Daniel learned that Minister Vesta was currently at the headquarters of the Imperial Knights, inspecting their armory.

The war was drawing near. If the Imperial Knights lacked proper weapons, they would be easily overwhelmed by the Holy Church.

It was wise to double-check the weapons—skill alone wouldn’t be enough to overcome the Holy Church. Their numerical advantage posed a significant threat to the Lionheart Empire.

“Minister Vesta! I finally found you,” Daniel called out as soon as he spotted him and approached without hesitation.

“Crown Prince Daniel? Has something serious happened in the capital for you to come all the way here in person?” Minister Vesta asked, his voice filled with curiosity and concern as he noticed Daniel’s tense expression.

“It’s far worse than that. Imperial Father urgently requests your presence. You must come with me right away—the Holy Church is making its move,” Daniel explained quickly and firmly.

“I see… This is indeed a grave and urgent matter. Let’s not waste even a second—every moment counts now,” Minister Vesta responded, his expression turning solemn.

Moments later, Minister Vesta and Crown Prince Daniel arrived at the Imperial Palace. They proceeded directly to the chamber where the Imperial Family was discussing the looming war.

“Imperial Father, I’ve brought Minister Vesta as you asked,” Daniel announced the moment they entered the room.

“Good. You may take a seat now,” Emperor Philip said with a nod, gesturing toward the sofa.

Minister Vesta gave a slight bow and addressed the emperor respectfully, “Your Majesty, I am at your service. Please give me your orders.”

“Vesta, the Holy Church has begun making their move. They are heading toward our Empire as we speak, and they have a massive army with more than fifty thousand soldiers,” Emperor Philip spoke, his voice resounding throughout the room, creating heavy tension in the air.

Minister Vesta and everyone else in the room gasped at the sheer number of enemy soldiers mentioned by Emperor Philip. It was three times the number of soldiers the Lionheart Empire had.

Emperor Philip took a deep breath and continued, “Furthermore, they have the Ten Holy Knight Commanders with them, as well as a couple of Magic Saints who can cast Tier-8 Magic Spells—powerful enough to wipe out an entire mountain in a single strike.”

There was a heavy silence in the air after Emperor Philip finished speaking. The situation wasn’t in their favor. The difference in military strength was too large, and this would severely affect the morale of their soldiers.

After a moment of silence, Emperor Philip spoke again, “Vesta, prepare the army as soon as possible and station them near the border. Also, make sure to build the camps in the woods.”

“Why the woods, Your Majesty?” Minister Vesta asked with a puzzled look on his face. After all, fighting in a forest would be incredibly difficult.

Emperor Philip chuckled and said, “That’s because we have to use our minds to win this war instead of charging at the enemy head-on. Building camps in the forest will make the enemy think we’re unaware of their advance, which might give us a slight edge in the battle.”

“Also, set up deadly traps along their route. It will keep them occupied for a while and slow them down. At the same time, it will reduce their numbers significantly. We must use everything we have to win this war.”

“I’ll send letters to our allied forces and urge them to send reinforcements immediately since the Holy Church has already made their move. This war… we must win it, or we will lose everything,” Emperor Philip said with a very serious look on his face. The concern about the outcome of the war was clearly visible on his face.

“As you order, Your Majesty. I’ll immediately instruct the Imperial Knights to prepare the army for war. We will set out as soon as the morning sun rises in the sky,” Minister Vesta said and quickly left the Imperial Palace.

Once he left the Imperial Palace, Minister Vesta arranged a meeting at the Knight Headquarters, summoning all the key figures of the military for an emergency discussion.

As soon as everyone had gathered for the meeting, Minister Vesta revealed the news of the Holy Church making a move, shocking everyone inside the room.

Many of them looked at Minister Vesta in disbelief. They had never expected the Holy Church to be the one to make the first move in this war. The situation was indeed very serious.

“Since the situation has already escalated to this point, His Majesty wants to deploy the army immediately. He has ordered everyone to begin gathering the army as soon as possible—we have very limited time,” Minister Vesta spoke, his voice laced with seriousness as he looked at the army representatives of the Empire.

And looking into everyone’s eyes, Minister Vesta continued, “I hope all of you can understand the urgency and do your utmost to rally the army. We don’t have much time. We must assemble the forces overnight.”

“Leave everything to us, Minister Vesta. We won’t disappoint His Majesty. We’ll do our best to gather the army by dawn. By tomorrow, we’ll be ready to head toward the border.”

The army representatives immediately nodded with serious looks on their faces. After all, even a fool could see the dire circumstances. If they didn’t move quickly, it would only hand another advantage to the enemy.

“Very well. I’ll leave the task to all of you. Please equip the army with the best gear—we must give ourselves every chance to win this war,” Minister Vesta said before he left the Knight Headquarters. After all, there was still much work to be done.

After that, he gathered a few hundred soldiers and took them with him to collect the necessary supplies for the massive army. Without proper preparation, the soldiers would be left weak and unable to fight.

Now, he had to focus on solving the issue of feeding such a large force. Sure, they could hunt wild monsters during the march, but that would depend entirely on luck—whether they’d find anything edible or not.

And not all monsters were safe to eat. Some were highly poisonous, and others had toxins that could cause severe stomach issues—vomiting, loose motion, or worse.

If such problems arose, the army’s strength would drop drastically, making them vulnerable targets. In the worst-case scenario, the Lionheart Empire could lose the war because of it.

Thus, Minister Vesta was heading toward the storage houses to prepare the rations. Ensuring that the soldiers had proper meals was crucial if they were to maintain their strength and fight effectively against the enemy.

—

Valeria, who had been focused on deepening her comprehension of Sword Aura, suddenly opened her eyes and looked around the room for Yuan. And when she saw him sitting between his two mothers, a smile bloomed on her face.

‘So he was here the whole time… waiting for me to wake up. How lucky I am to have such a young, handsome, and caring husband…’ Valeria chuckled inwardly, seeing the playful smile on Yuan’s face as he flirted with both Anna and Grace.

Just then, her expression turned serious as a faint trace of Sword Aura appeared at her fingertip. It was invisible to the eye, but she could sense its presence—a misty, indistinct aura.

‘This is unbelievable! Even after all my effort to comprehend Sword Aura, I still haven’t managed to fully grasp its concept. My Sword Aura remains incomplete.’ Valeria sighed heavily, disappointed by the lack of significant progress.

She took a deep breath, calming herself down, then looked at Yuan again and slowly stood up from the floor.

Yuan immediately noticed her movement, turned toward her with a smile, and said, “You’re awake. How much did you improve?”

“Not much… I’ve only made a slight improvement. It’s way harder to learn Sword Aura than I thought. I have no idea how long it’ll take before I can truly master it,” Valeria replied, sighing while offering him a faint smile.

Yuan observed her quietly for a few seconds, his expression thoughtful—as if he were examining her body with his Divine Sense. Valeria could feel his energy probing her, even though he hadn’t touched her physically.

‘Qi Manifestation!’ Valeria gasped inwardly as she realized what Yuan was using on her. Still, she made no attempt to resist. She trusted him completely—with her body and soul.

A few moments later, Yuan looked at her seriously and said, “What you truly need is more real combat experience. Facing enemies in battle will help you understand the essence of the sword and bring you closer to mastering Sword Aura.”

“The battlefield will be the perfect place for you to refine your understanding. Perhaps, in the heat of war, you’ll finally achieve complete comprehension of Sword Aura,” he added with a confident smile.

“I see… That sounds like a good idea. In a real fight, I can go all out without holding back or worrying about anything,” Valeria replied, nodding with a wide grin spreading across her face.

“Oh, I haven’t told you yet,” Yuan said, his tone turning serious. “The Holy Church has already made their move. They began marching toward the Lionheart Empire today. They’ll reach the border within five to six days.”

“W-What did you just say?! The Church is on the move?!” Valeria immediately stood up from the bed, her eyes wide with disbelief.

She had never expected the Holy Church to make the first move. In her mind, they were nothing but cowards. But this was far from normal—something bigger was clearly at play. The Church must be desperate… hungry for revenge.

Yuan sighed and began explaining everything he had witnessed through his Divine Sense, and with each word, Valeria’s shock only deepened. Her mouth remained wide open, stunned by the details he revealed.

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