บท 14: Beginning of Victory

Twilight cast its last rays of sunlight over the horizon, painting the sky with golden and orange hues.

The landscape revealed a vast city surrounded by humble-looking rustic dwellings constructed from materials that harmonized with wood and clay. Though it might appear like a wild village at first glance, this settlement stretched hundreds of times the size of a typical village.

In the heart of the city, an imposing circular structure stood majestically. It was evident to any observant onlooker that this grand building could be none other than the residence of a monarch, the epicenter of power in that region.

The entire area was populated by cultivators, men, women, and even children who had not hesitated to embark on the path of cultivation when the opportunity arose, although there were hardly any left.

The atmosphere was fraught with tension, and nearly two-thirds of the houses in that small city were completely empty. In some places, most of the inhabitants were gathered, and it was hard to find someone without recent injuries or signs of battle.

Surrounding the city, there stretched a barrier resembling a stone wall. This barrier had been erected as the first line of defense. Along its entire vast circular expanse, groups of people stood still, their gazes cold and devoid of emotion.

They displayed an infinite variety of forms and sizes, some sporting horns, others exhibiting wings. Their appearance ranged from just over a meter to five meters in height, but they all shared a common feature: a glowing slave rune on their foreheads with a sinister red gleam.

Most of these creatures seemed to be in a moribund state, many of them missing limbs and bearing gruesome exposed wounds. Silence pervaded among all, even as they writhed in pain. All had been forced to fight on different battlefronts the previous night. The wounded were brought to the front, forming the first line of defense, and those who could still move when night fell were sent as the first group in explosive suicidal attacks, using up the remainder of their QI.

However, this was considered luck for them because, internally, everyone knew that the end of their lives was much closer and would be much more terrible.

*Roar!*

Before night completely covered the sky, a wild roar echoed among the slaves.

Sounds of chains releasing and falling were followed by the dreadful noise of flesh being torn apart. The roars came from other slaves, but they weren't just ordinary captives. Instead, they were the wild demonic beasts, the elite among them.

The normal slaves who served a purpose were pushed to their limits, whether as fodder shields or, worse than that, as food to strengthen the beasts! Those who died this way did not die quickly; they were opened up and eaten first, having their blood drained and then everything else.

Nothing was wasted. Among the slaves, there were many with beastly appearances but also those who resembled the city's inhabitants. Anyone found living outside the city's domains was captured and enslaved, including children who did not escape the fate awaiting them.

In the city center, with little time left before the start of a new night of battle, the highest-ranking generals and the king gathered strategically. Each person's information was shared and debated while tension mounted, with everyone offering their opinions to turn the tide.

"As I mentioned before, the useless savages are not enough. Recently, I killed a black mage, and among his belongings, I found a book with various refinement methods. We should use them differently," said a bearded, imposing man.

"The incident in the western battalion is still not well explained. The most likely scenario is that we have an infiltrator among the army ranks who caused the extermination. Without locating them, we cannot make bold moves without assurances. We should wait for an opportunity," replied another man with a stern expression. This incident was obviously the one Bruno and Alm caused.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps from outside caught everyone's attention. The king, wearing an impressive armor that gleamed as if made of golden metal, broke his silence and allowed whoever was outside to enter. It was a scout bringing fresh and urgent news.

"My king, several scout groups from the west zone are reporting strange movements," he said quickly, capturing everyone's attention in the room. "The forest is being consumed by black flames, and a black blade rises in the skies, causing destruction wherever it goes. They are not moving toward the observation posts, so several men risked their lives to bring this disturbing information."

A shiver ran down everyone's spine in the room, anxious for any clues they could gather. The enemy was clearly orchestrating some sinister plan once again.

"While the report from one of the scouts initially seemed unbelievable, others managed to survive and confirm the same events. There is no doubt about it," concluded the scout with a serious expression.

"In the western forest, the dracolich and the demon empress are battling each other!" exclaimed the scout, wide-eyed. "Hundreds, if not thousands of skeletons are equally clashing, creating a vast zone of destruction."

Suddenly, one of the generals interrupted sharply. "Are you truly sure about it? This is very serious!"

"After the information reached the higher-ups, the shamans used their techniques to verify the memories of the scouts. They bravely sacrificed themselves for this. Here is the evidence," replied the scout, quickly sending a blue crystal to everyone.

The images within the crystal left no room for doubt. They had all faced the dracolich and the demon empress hundreds of times, and at this moment, a piece of information that had seemed insignificant before surfaced in everyone's minds: before the war erupted years ago, the empress and the dracolich were mortal enemies.

"It seems the queen didn't have such deep control over those two after all," commented another general. Those four commanders were supposed to be under the queen's orders. Yet, two of them were battling each other. One can understand the shock on these high-ups' faces.

Suddenly, another man rushed in with new information. "My king, the army of the Death Knight that was in the south is rapidly moving toward the west!" And just like that, the third commander of the Death Armies appeared as well.

The news nearly made everyone jump out of their seats. After a few seconds of thought, the king rose from his high chair and expressed what everyone was thinking.

"Gather everyone who can fight from all the scattered locations. Leave only the wounded in the city. This is the opportunity we've been waiting for, the beginning of victory."

"If we're lucky, the end of the war might happen today. We'll attack with everything we have and kill the wounded generals once they finish with each other! If we are lucky, the head of the black queen will be next!"