Riches and Bitches: I have a gate to an isekai and leveling-up system!

"What the hell is going over there?!"

The wrath of the Commander General was unlike anything any of his officers have experienced in the past.

The man's… highly emotional character was something they were all aware of. And in normal circumstances, the general aides were always prepared to soothe the man's feelings with great booze or eager women…

But out here, far beyond the furthest stretches of where the empire still had anything to do with the imperial culture, laws, or politics, getting one's hand on a bottle of good booze was a challenge. And getting a night woman into the legion camp…

Stuck at the end of the world, fighting a war absolutely no one in the empire cared about with the exception of those who never saw war in their entire lives, general aides found themselves at an impasse. Stay tuned to empire

The alcohol was a commodity so precious even they, despite the general's direct approval, couldn't get their hands on it. All of the legion reserves were now in the hands of the medicinal core, serving as a disinfectant for the wounds that were still treatable.

When it came to the women, though… Not even the commanding general would dare to lay his hands on any of the officers or simple soldiers, knowing full well what kind of a merciless attack it would be against the legion's morale.

They were already taking heavy losses trying to take this damned fortress that continued to oppose the imperial authority for years. Still, as proved by the recent assaults, as costly as it was, charging at the walls and exploiting their overwhelming numbers advantage was a valid tactic.

Or so, everyone thought, before some sort of a flying bowl appeared in the sky before cursing all those below it to simply vanish, turning them all into nothing more but a mist of blood.

Back then, the officers had no other choice but to call the assault off. Even if the direct losses from this unexpected and unexplainable attack weren't all as massive as one would expect…

Not even the perfectly loyal veterans of the legion would go against an enemy that could indiscriminately turn their friends and brothers in arms into a crimson mist that then covered the entire area.

It took great courage or even greater fear to charge to one's likely death, all in the bid to fight for something greater than oneself. But doing so when the bloody mist that used to be your friend made breathing nearly impossible? Doing so when some sort of strange entity was capable of easily raining down death literally from the skies…?

A figure suddenly introduced upon the insides of the commander's tent.

'One of the guards?' Hugo thought, glancing over in the direction where the figure pushed the cloth of the tent's entrance aside and stepped inside.

"Sir! A high-priority report from Strategist Carlan!"

The guard stepped inside, ignoring all the rules of etiquette and military drill.

In his hand, there was just a single, bloodied scrap of paper with a few words hastily pained with blood, as opposed to a small piece of chalk all officers were expected to carry with them at all times.

"Give it!" Holding himself back from snapping, the commander-general reached out and pulled the paper out of the guard's hand.

Not waiting for the general's response and eager to escape from his view soon enough to let the man forget about him, the guard hurried outside, leaving before the general could even finish the note.

At first, the general's face contorted as he read through the note's content. Then, it froze.

And then, to the horror of all those gathered at the tent, this emotional commanding general of fifteen and sixteen legions… calmed down.

"This isn't good," the old man muttered under his nose while reaching out with his free hand to rub his chin. "This isn't good at all."

Raising his eyes, the general looked at the people gathered in the tent with a sense of confusion, before shaking his head and tossing the bloody note onto the huge, round table in the middle of the tent.

"Check it out yourselves," the general ordered before heavily slumping down onto his portable chair and then leaning forward only to hide his face in the palms of his hands.

Curious, Hugo gulped down his saliva along with all the fear he could shove down his throat and leaned over the table, taking a peek at the bloody note that managed to achieve what no bottle of booze or a woman skilled at the arts of the night could.

"Waves one through three are done for. The enemy unleashed a god. People are dying the moment he points a black, metal stick at them. The corpses explode and turn into a rain of blood and shattered bodyparts."

The first line of the note read, providing the pretty much clueless headquarters officers with some insight on how things looked far away from their place, where the fighting was actually going on.

And while scary all on its own… this wasn't a message that could make their general even blink in frustration!

He was one of the three generals privileged to lead more than just a single legion within the entire empire. Be it a monster, god or a prideful kingdom, no one ever managed to withstand the combination of the man's strategic genius and the mortal efficiency of his troops.

And yet…

"Unable to hold, unable to attack. The crowding issue grows bigger with every passing moment. Fifteenth legion fully annihilated."

The second line on the note was much worse than the first.

'If they can't hold or attack, what else is there for them to do?' Hugo thought, gritting his teeth as he gulped his saliva down again before leaning a bit more over the table and glancing down at the third and last part of the message.

"Officer Carlan succumbed to the enemy magic. Forward units of the Sixteenth Legion annihilated. Crowding reached the point of no return. The fifteenth legion is lost. Stepping onto the ramp or through the first gate means instant death. Official retreat advised.

Unofficial retreat ongoing."