Outside the tent.
The Grand Knight of the Hell Riders remained silent, his eyebrow above the single eye knitting together in a frown.
She listened to the conversation between the Elector Count, the High Priest, and the Grand Knights.
They were discussing whether George had fallen and if he harbored malice.
They were deliberating a plan that could detect if George had fallen, yet still convince him to agree.
The Grand Knight of the Hell Riders interjected:
“As long as he firmly believes he is fighting for the Order race, fighting against the Armies of Destruction, then all detection plans in the world are ineffective.”
A High Priest looked at her; he was a follower of Sigma, as evident from his shining bald head adorned with a steel ring, since Sigma’s followers believed that being bald helped them communicate with the true deity.
He glanced at the Grand Knight of the Hell Riders’ glimmering silver hair and scoffed:
“Some say that women with long hair lack insight. I didn’t expect the esteemed Grand Knight of the Hell Riders, Lady Irina, to be one of them. I’m quite disappointed. I’ve seen many cultists who claim to work for the good of the world, especially the followers of Nargul.
“What they think is good, however, is making people grow tumors and have maggots on their skin.”
The Grand Knight of the Hell Riders replied:
“I’ve seen many fools, especially those who consider themselves smart, particularly a follower of the Lord of Change. He thought he could exploit the power of the Lord of Change for nothing. He believes others are the ignorant masses who don’t understand his good intentions, thinking he’s fighting against Chaos.
“Smart people often become arrogant, looking down on others, and fall into the traps of the Lord of Change.”
The High Priest thought her reasoning made sense: “You mean George.”
“And others.”
“Who?”
The Grand Knight Irina said, “Someone whose height doesn’t reach my chin and whose head is completely bald.”
“You!” The High Priest clutched the bronze-bound holy book in one hand while pointing at Grand Knight Irina with the other, “You masochist! Executioner!”
At this moment, the tent flap opened, revealing the emperor, who had a dignified appearance. He said, “Everyone, please come in; I have made a decision.”
They all entered one after another.
Grand Knight Irina took a moment to look at George and said, “It seems you’ve convinced the emperor by some means.”
“Oh? How did you see through that?”
“Because you look quite pleased.” As Grand Knight Irina said this, she slowly sat down.
In the center of the round table lay a hand-drawn map of the empire. Across it, the empire’s territories were covered with markings of the Armies of Destruction—a shield emblazoned with a Chaos symbol, which spread across half of the empire like black mold.
In the occupied territories, the cities’ names were marked with a symbol of ruin, stark white like skulls. Whenever the empire heard news of slaughter and destruction from refugees, they would add the ruin symbol beneath the town’s name.
Now, all city names in the fallen regions bore the ruin markings, presenting a terrifying sight.
The emperor glanced at the map, lifted his head, and surveyed the crowd.
Grand Knight Irina saw no trace of fear on his face, which gave her confidence that as long as the emperor was wise, he could be persuaded to reconsider.
“Everyone.” The emperor declared, “I have decided to approve George’s plan.”
“What?! He has conspired with the demon king.”
“Absolutely not.” The High Priest stood up angrily, hitting the table hard: “By Sigma above, you are blaspheming Him.”
“All I know is that surrendering the empire’s lands to the Armies of Destruction is the greatest act of blasphemy.” The emperor said calmly, “We cannot retreat any further; we must confront the Armies of Destruction at the river.”
“Perhaps, I agree.” Grand Knight Irina stood up: “I would rather fight the demons to the death, even if my soul may be tainted, may be tormented. But, can you tell us what George’s plan is? So we can cooperate, right?”
The emperor shook his head: “As long as no one knows, that will be the best cooperation.”
They uneasily looked at each other, feeling increasingly certain that George must have fallen and used something strange to alter the emperor’s thinking.
“Forgive me, this is for the empire.” The emperor said: “Before we engage in battle, I will inform everyone of the battle plans.”
“Your Majesty.” An imperial general lowered his voice, his tone somewhat agitated: “The imperial soldiers cannot spill unnecessary blood for an unclear plan…”
Grand Knight Irina closed her single eye.
No wonder the hero George appeared so confident, vanishing before her eyes to serve the demon king Jima.
She ignored the emotional outburst of the imperial general. She firmly believed that the more emotional someone was, the less useful they would be.
At that moment, the sound of hooves echoed from outside the tent.
“Report! Report!” A panicked voice rang, “A letter from the Nuvi Army.”
“Good, the messenger.” The emperor said: “Put down the letter. Have him rest well and reward him for his loyalty.”
The messenger’s panic diminished significantly; he bowed and said, “Yes! Your Majesty.”
Grand Knight Irina, close to the doorway and near the letter lying on the table, which bore a wax seal, was summoned by the emperor: “Lady Irina, you read it.”
Grand Knight Irina took the letter, broke the seal with her bare hands, and looked at its contents. Cold and ruthless as she was, even she couldn’t help but be momentarily stunned. She took a deep breath, reflecting on her own weakness, and read in a calm, emotionless voice:
“Esteemed and rightful Emperor, rightful heir of Riek, Sigma reborn…”
“Let me put it simply. The entirety of Steel County has fallen. The latest reconnaissance cavalry report indicates several massive Armies of Destruction advancing towards Nuen County, numbering at least one hundred thousand, and in the sky, the sounds of hundreds of demonized scorpion-tailed lions can be heard.”
Suddenly, everyone fell silent.
Someone murmured, “How can this be? I know the Elector Count of Steel County, and such a large army was stationed in the city-state; how could they be wiped out all at once?”
Grand Knight Irina calmly stated, “The letter speculates that it may be due to the underground cult within the city that facilitated the demons’ direct teleportation into the city walls.”
“Is the Elector Count of Nuen County certain?”
“The letter also mentions that they have received many refugees from Steele County, including those from Mute County.” Grand Knight Irina meticulously reviewed the thick letter, “The halfling elder from Mute County said they witnessed undead armies fighting the Armies of Destruction. If this is not a rumor, even the legendary Midnight Aristocrats cannot hold back the Armies of Destruction.”
The imperial general stood up, his face pale, looking at the map, trying to confirm something; he rubbed his eyes and blinked.
“Stop looking.”
Grand Knight Irina took out a banner representing the Armies of Destruction from a nearby box and draped it over Steele County, signaling that it had fallen. She then placed smaller flags along the border of Steele County and Nuen County.
This indicated that an Army of Destruction might be present there.
Perhaps her calmness angered the imperial general, or perhaps her complete lack of worry as she casually placed the flags on the map.
“What do you know?!” the imperial general shouted, his moustache twitching upwards, “This army could be heading to Nuen County or could cross Nuen County and storm Adolph! The imperial capital! There’s no terrain of danger in between; by Sigma, we must confirm.”
“Confirm what?” Grand Knight Irina said: “Since the Armies of Destruction broke in through the Obsidian Pass, hasn’t the empire already had no defenses left to safeguard?”
“What do you understand?”
“All I know is that you are weak and unwilling to face reality.” Grand Knight Irina replied while moving: “Don’t deceive yourself. The borders of Wissen County, Aivie County, and Steele County have all fallen.”
These territories were lands in the southern empire.
Everyone looked at the map, updated by Grand Knight Irina, filled with expressions of panic, clenched jaws, and sweating brows. Even George was anxiously tapping on the table, feeling that the powers of Terra must be unleashed soon.
From the updated map, it was evident that the once half of the empire had fallen—technically speaking, over half of the territory had succumbed, but everyone comforted themselves by saying only half of the empire had fallen.
Now, the empire was left with one-third of its area; it was burning, and it was about to turn to ash!
Grand Knight Irina looked at the imperial emperor, whose face was expressionless, quietly observing the situation.
Grand Knight Irina greatly admired that among those present were seasoned generals, yet their gazes flitted away, unwilling to confront the grim reality of the updated map. Only the imperial emperor could stare directly at this bleak reality.
“Your Majesty.” Grand Knight Irina said firmly, looking at the emperor: “Adolph is vulnerable; the capital cannot fall. We can retreat back to Riek County to defend Adolph, leaving behind scorched earth in Hawk County.
“Look, there’s the Vanguard City beneath Taralabek, and today’s news has reported that a large number of demon legions dispatched by the Eternal Chosen are crossing the river towards Taralabek, presumably to coordinate with the demon king Jima to take down Taralabek.
“Once Taralabek falls, we will lose the supplies from Taralabek and become a bulge, which can be annihilated at any moment.
“Time is running out, Emperor; we must make difficult choices again, incinerate Hawk County, leaving nothing corrosive for the Armies of Destruction to delay their advance, and then return to defend Adolph.”
Her reasoning was sound.
In an instant, even the imperial generals present secretly admired this seemingly young yet wise knight.
Only then did the imperial emperor snap out of his daze.
He had been submerged in fear, drowning in the brutal reality, which loomed like dark water beneath icy depths that could engulf a person.
He raised his head, locked his gaze with the Grand Knight Irina; he was terrified but dared not show it, almost blurting out:
“Flee? Where else can we escape to? Flee to Adolph and surrender the empire’s territory to the Armies of Destruction? No matter how many times we escape, unless we face the army of the Eternal Chosen head-on, we will eventually perish; our doom will come sooner or later.”
He spoke rapidly, releasing all the previous deceitful words he had kept hidden from the public, not even aware of what he was saying.
“Nord County and Miden County have been resisting the unending invasions from the North, and the beastman armies marching out of the forests; if we withdraw, they will fall.
“And then we will have nothing but a capital, devoid of the empire, which holds no meaning.”
The emperor was like a drowning man in an ice hole, grasping onto the straw known as “the powers of Terra” without letting go.
Only mushroom clouds and the destructive powers on the screen could vanquish the Armies of Destruction.
He was merely a counterfeit; what power did he have to face the Eternal Chosen?
The more panicked he became, the more resolute the emperor grew, pointing emphatically at Hawk County and the river confronting the front line, saying:
“Here, I will face the Eternal Chosen directly! Here, I will destroy his invincible legions!”
He was a born orator.
After finishing, the High Priest could not help but applaud, his bald head turning red from excitement as he said, “This is Sigma reborn.”
Yet part of the audience did not clap, most of the imperial generals looked worriedly at each other.
Grand Knight Irina began to waver slightly; if the emperor believed so deeply, perhaps she was wrong?
She took a deep breath, steadying her conviction.
In the end, those supporting and opposing the emperor were split, approximately seven to three.
Grand Knight Irina quickly exited the meeting to apply for a mission to support Taralabek, following behind the demon army moving south.
She believed the demon king Jima would besiege Taralabek and also believed she could find more evidence.
The bleak situation would hopefully bring more people to her side, and at that point, she could persuade the emperor.
Only she needed to hurry, hurry.
Otherwise, if the demon king Jima’s conspiracy succeeded, the empire’s last hope would perish in Hawk County and make those damned demons exceedingly pleased.
She hated demons more than anything.
