Chapter 484: The Stage Had Been Set
At the First Peak of the Kyrintor Mountains, a loud shriek announced its arrival.
The barrier protecting Takam’s Palace opened up and allowed its entry. The Blood Eagle flew in and landed on a balcony where the Sovereign of the Kyrintor Mountains was having afternoon tea.
“Nice to meet you, Scadrez,” Takam said with a smile. “Well, this sure is an ingenious way of talking to me, right, Little Will?”
Scadrez shrieked once, which translated to Will’s message of…
“Good afternoon, Your Excellency.”
“Good afternoon, to you too.”
(A/N: From this point onwards, it will be Will and Takam talking. Since I don’t want to bore you with the Blood Eagle’s shrieks, I’ll just translate them for all of you. Ahem! No need to thank me *wink*)
“Your Excellency, please, tell me. The reason why you asked me to go to the Goblin Crypt, as well as to acquire Five Centennial Beasts for my personal army was to prevent myself from forming an alliance with the Titanic Trollhound, was it not?”
“Prevent? No. I merely gave you an option. You are the one that made the choice, right?”
The Blood Eagle remained silent as if pondering Takam’s words. A few minutes later, it raised its head as William took the initiative to restart the conversation.
“Although I don’t like working with the Deus, I need them more than the help of a Centennial Beast with hundreds of Trollhounds under its command. If I chose the Titanic Trollhound, I would have had no choice but to fight against the organization, leading to mutual destruction.
“By then, the Elves wouldn’t have to do anything. They could have easily conquered the Hellan Kingdom without any kind of resistance.”
Takam sipped the tea in his cup and didn’t affirm or deny William’s statement. Even so, the corner of its lip was raised as it placed the cup on top of the table.
“Little Will, is this the only reason why you want to talk to me?” Takam asked. “It would be best if you get straight to the point. Time waits for no one. Not even to a Demigod.”
The Blood Eagle nodded. William knew that no matter how many times he pursued the matter with the errand that Takam had given him, the Demigod would not answer his question. Since that was the case, it was time to ask the other question he had on his mind.
“Are you going to help us?” William inquired. “Will you help us fight against the Elves?”
Takam shook his head.
“Little Will, although I can easily solve your problem for you, I won’t do that,” Takam answered. “However, that doesn’t mean that I will not help you. First, let me tell you how I can help you.”
William waited patiently for Takam’s words because this was the main reason as to why he sent Scadrez to the Kyrintor Mountains. He needed to know what kind of help the Demigod was willing to give them, and what price they needed to pay in order to acquire its help.
There was no such thing as free lunch in any world, especially when it came to favors done by Demigods.
“One of my abilities is…,” Takam started his explanation.
The Blood Eagle nodded its head after the Demigod finished his explanation. Now that William knew the concrete details, and the conditions for Takam’s help, he would know what to do when that time came.
“Thank you, Your Excellency. I will not forget this favor for the rest of my life.”
“Good. Since both of us have an understanding, it is time for you to hurry up with whatever you are doing.”
“Understood.”
After William’s and Takam’s discussion, the Demigod proposed that the Blood Eagle stay for a day inside his palace to rest. William thought that it was a good idea, since Scadrez had been flying non-stop in order to reach the Kyrintor Mountains before the Elves arrived at the Capital of Gladiolus.
With his matter finally settled, William disconnected his connection with the Blood Eagle and slept peacefully. He was still tired from doing the cleansing ceremony and only put off going to sleep because Scadrez was already near the Kyrintor mountains.
——
A few days later…
“Sir, they are finally here,” Calum reported.
Conner nodded as he walked out of the conference room.
“How is Prince Ernest?” Conner inquired.
The Young Prince would play a pivotal role in this war, and Conner didn’t bat an eye when he provided the Prince with Elixirs to aid his recovery. However, even though the Elixir did its work, the Prince was still unable to make a full recovery.
It was the price that Prince Ernest had to pay in order to use the limited Divinity that the Goddess Astrid had bestowed upon the Hellan Kingdom.
“Prince Ernest is still in a lethargic state. I don’t think he will be able to last long if he sits on the Throne of Divinity,” Calum shook his head as he gave his report.
“It’s fine,” Conner replied. “Have someone take him to the throne. Tie his waist to it if you have to, so that he won’t fall over. I’m sure that he will understand and even thank me for it.”
“Yes, Sir.” Calum bowed before personally going to see the prince.
This was an important matter and he didn’t want to assign it to anyone.
Ten minutes later, Conner arrived at the defensive walls of the Capital City of Gladiolus. On the edge of the horizon, several black spots–that looked like a swarm of bats–hovered in the sky. Conner looked through the lens of his telescope and saw the Flying Eagles that served as the Elves’ flying cavalry.
After checking their numbers, he moved the telescope towards the land. There, he saw the advancing army which looked like a silver tide. It was only two hours away from sunset, but Conner knew that the Elves didn’t care whether it was night or day.
They could see easily in the darkness, because it was one of their racial abilities. However, Conner believed that the arrogant Elves wouldn’t attack in the evening. They were too proud for that.
The Leader of Deus snorted because he didn’t care whether they attacked in the evening or not. It wouldn’t change the results.
Fifty-thousand Defenders, against Five Million plus.
All the members of Deus had gathered in the City of Gladiolus and they numbered thirty thousand. The rest were the teenagers that decided to fight for their kingdom.
Those who were unable to fight had been evacuated days ago. They were sent to the Western Side of the Hellan Kingdom. Although Conner didn’t know why Prince Alaric had made this proposal, he didn’t pry further. He had no use for non-combatants in a war where they would be fighting for their lives.
Just like Conner had expected, the Elves made camp two miles away from the walls of the City of Gladiolus.
Elandorr decided to act his part as the Elven Commander and gave the order for everyone to rest. The Elven Army was very tired from many days of traveling, so they happily obeyed his order.
That night, a lively discussion erupted in the Elven Encampment. Most of them were bets on who would be able to kill the most Humans, or who would be able to take down the flag that fluttered at the highest peak of the City.
All of them were thinking that the Hellan Kingdom was already in the bag. They didn’t even think for a second that a ragtag group of outlaws and teenagers, that didn’t even number past a hundred thousand, would be able to stop their invasion.
The Three Guardians also felt the same way.
Eneru had regained consciousness two days ago, and had narrated everything that had happened to his two comrades. He was well aware about his regression because it was the price that he had to pay in order to escape with his life.
After knowing the hidden ace that the enemy was hiding, Drauum and Ezkalor decided to just observe this war, and allow the Elves and Humans to fight it out among themselves.
Although they were confident in their strength, they were not stupid. They had long lives, but they were not immortal. Any attack that contained a sufficient amount of Divinity could end their lives, just like a sword could end the life of a mortal man.
Eneru had only barely been able to escape with his life. Drauum, as well as Ezkalor, weren’t too impatient to test the Defenders to see if they still had more cards up their sleeves.
“Everything will be settled tomorrow,” Drauum said softly as it stared at the city in the distance.
Ezkalor and Eneru nodded in agreement.
The stage had been set.
The curtain had been raised.
It was now time for the actors to play their part.
Empress Sidonie had a sweet smile on her face as she gazed into the distance. When morning came, she would have the best seat in the theatre. A seat where she would witness the beginning, and the end, of a battle that would decide the division of power within the Southern Continent.