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Chapter 353: Asking for Help

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

In the chapter of Romance of the Three Kingdoms entitled Three Heroes Combat Lü Bu in Front of a Tiger Cage Fort, Liu Bei dared only to chase Lü Bu and hit the hind quarters of his horse. Once Lü Bu turned around to fight back, Liu Bei immediately ran away. At that moment, Anfey was in a similar situation to Liu Bei. He was extremely skillful with a spear as long as 12 feet. He kept a distance between him and Ernest. He dared not get close to him.

The main force confronting Ernest was Suzanna. Although she felt the pressure from Ernest and was sweating profusely, she still had her momentum and countered Ernest's strikes. Once Ernest stop pressuring her in the attack, she would start a aggressive attack in case Ernest got the chance to attack Anfey.

Against this cooperating couple, Anfey and Suzanna, Ernest seemed busy defending himself. It was a "friendly competition," so Ernest could not fight with his full force, otherwise he could had taken Anfey's strikes simply with his combat power and defeated Suzanna afterwards.

Suzanna had a variety of sword skills. They looked perfect. Anfey was having some problems. He could attack with fast speed and change his strikes swiftly. He only attacked the areas below the knees, which disrupted Ernest's plan of attack. The strikes were to kill the opponents, not to interrupt them. Anfey attacked in a dirty way.

It was obvious what Ernest thought of Anfey's attacks. Anfey had been attacking with full force. As he changed his moves, he did not forget to give Shinbella a look and ask her to join the fight. Shinbella was very excited watching them fight and wanted to join in anyway. She raised her gigantic sword and joined the fight without any concerns after Anfey gave her the signal. It was the first time for Shinbella to watch top powers fighting. How could she not get excited when she was offered a chance to join the fight?

Ernest could not help sighing. If Shinbella joined the fight, he would get exhausted or annoyed to death by Anfey, so he decided to fight with full force.

The combat power on Ernest suddenly brightened. He thrust his sword out and clashed with Suzanna's in the air, resulting in a huge clashing sould. When the swords clashed, the fighters would get rigid, no matter how powerful they were. How long the rigidity would last depended on the power of the fighters and the protection of combat powers. Ernest was much more powerful than Suzanna in terms of those two factors. Ernest had made his second strike before Suzanna could take control of her sword gain. Ernest swung his sword against Suzanna's sword, and then made a third strike.

Suzanna could not hold her sword anymore. Her sword flew out. At the same time, Ernest turned around to avoid Shinbella's sword and Anfey's spear at his ankles. He swung his sword at Shinbella's gigantic sword.

Shinbella was not as good as Suzanna. In addition, Ernest calculated the time so well that with one strike Shinbella's sword was sent to the ground.

As Ernest was ready to strike at Anfey, Anfey sent out wind elements. He stood there with bare hands. Anfey looked calm and said, "Let's stop here today. I am exhausted." Although he said he was tired, his breath was slowly and regular. He did not show any trace of being tired.

"You…" Ernest did not know whether he should laugh or cry. He had been treating Anfey like his son. Even though Anfey was his opponent now, he could not attack him when he had no weapons.

Suzanna quietly walked over and picked up her sword. She looked a little upset.

"Suzanna, you emptied your combat power at the end, otherwise Uncle Ernest would not win that easily." Anfey knew what Suzanna was thinking.

Ernest thought for a second and nodded. "Anfey is right, Suzanna. You have made huge progress."

"Really?" Suzanna finally smiled. She could ignore what Anfey said because he knew Anfey was just trying to comfort her. However, Ernest never lied about anything, not even when he was trying to comfort someone.

"Of course," Anfey said. He turned around and saw Shinbella looking even more upset than Suzanna. Suzanna had fought with Ernest for a while, but Shinbella lost the game just as she made her first strike. It was easy to imagine how frustrated and upset Shinbella was. "Shinbella, you do not have to worry too much about it. Uncle Ernest was the best among all the master swordsmen. In addition, you are still young." He continued, chuckling, "Shinbela, I still do not know how old you are."

"I am 25," Shinbela answered in a low voice.

25 years old? She would be considered old in the magic world. Anfey remembered all the information about Shinbella. He moved his eyes away from Shinbella because he did not want Shinbella to see his sympathy towards her.

"Anfey, I have to remind you that the Chapter of Salvation could possibly bring us dangers," Ernest said, suddenly changing the topic.

"Danger?" Anfey was shocked for a second. If the Chapter of Salvation could bring danger to them, Alice should have known about it even though Anfey did not notice it. He started to understand Alice better after hanging out with her for a while. "What danger? Alice…"

"I am not denying Alice is a very smart girl, but you are still young. You see things differently than me. Young people always think they can challenge anything, especially you guys who do not lack confidence," Ernest said slowly. He rarely talked so much. It seemed like he could not hold out any longer. "I have met the people from churches. I do not know much about them, but I do know more than you guys. Didn't some of them try to attack Bergkamp for the Chapter of Salvation? I can tell you this. If it happened once, it will happen again for the second or third time until they get what they want. Right now the Chapter of Salvation is in your hands, and you will be their target."

"Could those church people spare any time from death spirits to come after me?" Anfey frowned.

"That depends on the issues. If it was about the successor to the pope, no one would guarantee death spirits would be their priority," Ernest said. "In addition, necromancers are interested in the Chapter of Salvation as well. Last time, many zombies escaped, didn't they? Those necromancers should know about it as well."

"This world is so complicated. Necromancers and death spirits should be allies. Church of Light and other bodies on the Pan Continent were allies. However, the reality was not like that. Those evolved zombies with intelligence have fought to defend their rights and benefits. There were fights in the Church of Light over the succession of the pope. It is…" Anfey said with a bitter smile.

"Could death spirits fight? Did you find out about it from that zombie?" Ernest asked.

Anfey nodded.

"That is some news!" Ernest let out a short laugh. "Humans are complicated creatures."

"Uncle Ernest, are you saying…" Anfey said.

"We will have guests soon," Ernest said.

"What should we do?" Anfey asked.

"We'd better send people to ask for help. Moramatch is not too far from Blackania City. King Yolanthe knows the value of the Chapter of Salvation better. He will send troops out to help."

"There were death spirits everywhere in the Transverse Mountains. Few people could pass through safely." Anfey paused for a moment, then said, "Uncle Ernest, you are the best candidate for that, but you cannot leave here. The mercenaries would be out of control if you were not here." Even though it was clear that Moramatch was the last defense against Transverse Mountain, mercenaries were motivated to fight with death spirits because they believed in the top powers. Ernest could not leave at the moment.

"Did you forget those two druids of Shadow mercenary group?" Ernest smiled. "They were great with stealth. I did not even notice them before."

Anfey's eyes brightened. He turned around and said to Suzanna, "Suzanna, can you find them for me?" Anfey might not think of everything, but after being reminded, he would not hesitate to take action. "Time is everything" might be just a slogan for some people, but Anfey truly believed in it. He was used to calculating his time to seconds.

Shortly, Long and Ling showed up in the fighting arena. Anfey took the time ask Shinbella to write a letter when Suzanna was trying to bring Long and Ling to Anfey. As he folded the letter, he said with a smile, "Long, are you feeling better?"

"Master, don't worry. I am absolutely fine now," Long said firmly.

"This letter is very important. We cannot let anything happen to it," Anfey said slowly. "If you meet zombies, do not fight them. Get to Blackania City as fast as possible. When you come back, we will count it as one important accomplishment you made for us." Anfey's words had deep meaning. If Long and Ling's face changed, it meant they were not ready to work for Anfey. If they acted excited, it meant they already had the intention to work for him.

"Master, I will remember what you just told me," Long said, carefully taking the letter from Anfey.

"If you do not need to prepare anything for the trip," Anfey looked up to check the time, "you should leave now."

Long and Ling hurried away. Anfey was quiet for a moment, then said, "Shinbella, do you know where Alice is?"

"She should be in the underground city right now," Shinbela said.

"Could you go get her for me? I need to discuss something with her," Anfey said.

Chapter 354: Bone Nymphs

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Anfey!" Blavi called hurriedly as he burst into Anfey's room, panting. Anfey jumped off his bed and hurried after Blavi. He knew that something must have gone wrong, or else Blavi wouldn't be so panicked. The two left the house and rose into the air with levitation spells, quickly flying towards the mage tower at the center of the town.

"What's wrong?" Anfey asked when he landed. One of the mages moved aside to show him the Eye of the Sky. In the Eye, a mage was fighting a group of zombies. Nearby, a few necromancers were observing the fight. The necromancers' identities were unclear, but the mage was very familiar.

"Is that Entos?" Anfey asked. Blavi nodded.

The only time Anfey had seen Saul fight was when Saul attacked the bone dragon in an ambush, and he did not consider it a real fight.

Mages who use dimensional magic were the hardest to fight. Even though a lot of people did not know why dimensional magic was the most dangerous, everyone agreed that it was the most powerful. There were only a few senior magisters in the world, and senior magisters who focused on a single branch of magic were even more rare.

Entos was Saul's best student and spent years training in the Forest of Death and Wilderness Plain. His every movement and every attack was a display of power and a reminder of why dimensional magic was considered the most powerful magic.

The three necromancers fighting against Entos were all very powerful as well. None of the spells they used needed buffer time, including spells to summon bone lances. Dozens of bone lances streaked through the air towards Entos. Dozens of Nets of Decay covered the ground, layered on top of each other. Walls and cages made of bones appeared out of the ground like trees. The necromancers pelted Entos with other spells as well, hoping to slow his movements. Aside from magic, the necromancers also had thousands of zombies on their side. The zombies surrounded the mages, growling and clawing the air.

Entos, however, held on. He ducked the attack from the necromancers and fired occasion spells at time. He was skilled at dimensional magic and was not afraid of being trapped in cages. Every time he teleported, he would teleport to a location where he would not be discovered easily. After the necromancers spotted him again, they would have to change their formation to attack him.

If Entos wanted to escape, the necromancers would not be able to stop him. However, he was not escaping. He wasn't even using a magic shield. Was it because he could not or because he was overly confident? Without a magic shield, even the zombies' attack could be deadly.

Entos appeared to be at a disadvantage, but in reality he was the one controlling the flow of the fight. He only teleported when the necromancers' spells materialized. Then he would flee and use a spell to cancel out the effects of the spell used against him. This way, Entos was depleting his magic at a much slower rate than the necromancers. Sooner or later the necromancers will use up all of their magic.

The necromancers were not cooperating with each other at all. They would protect themselves first and attack Entos, trying to slow his movements, then they would try to kill him. Because of this, Entos was able to cancel out all three necromancers' magic with just one spell.

Entos must have decided to fight alone because he knew the necromancers would not cooperate with each other. As long as the necromancers fought as individuals, they would not post a threat to Entos. Had the necromancers cooperated and fought together, Entos would have been forced to seek help.

"Christian," Anfey turned and said, "can we dispatch some backup?"

"Ernest is on the way," Christian said.

The mages suddenly gasped. Entos grabbed a nearby tree and was trapped by a bone cage. A pool of green mud appeared under him. It was an acidic swamp, a staple of death magic. Rumor was that an acidic swamp turned a man into a pile of bones in a few minutes. Two bone lances flew through the air towards Entos.

Suddenly, Entos disappeared from the cage and reappeared from behind a tree after a few seconds. He waved his hand and used a flame spell that easily killed more than a dozen zombies.

One of the necromancers waved his hand impatiently. When his two companions were using negative-effect magic, he summoned a bone lance. Entos froze, then quickly teleported away. He reappeared behind the necromancer and smashed his magic staff into the necromancer's head. The sword shattered the necromancer's shield and went through his neck, sending the man's head flying. Strangely, there was no blood. The necromancer did not fall, either. Instead, he only kept flailing his arms.

Entos was clearly shocked by this. He took a few steps back and teleported again, reappearing far from the necromancer he had just beheaded.

The headless necromancer stumbled for a few moments then crouched down, hands searching through the grassy ground. After a few minutes, he stood again and held a skull. He held the skull carefully and placed it back onto his neck. Then he shook his head, testing if the skull was going to stay on his neck this time.

Entos stared at the necromancer with a mixture of horror and shock.

"My god," Christian whispered in horror. "That's a bone nymph!" The other mages turned, gaping in horror, when they heard what he just said.

The wounded bone nymph appeared to be very angry. He ripped off his cloak and looked around, searching for Entos. Suddenly, a bright sword radiance ripped through the air and flew towards the bone nymph, slicing through the surrounding zombies. Before the bone nymph could properly react, the sword radiance had already reached it. The creature disappeared in a flash of blinding light.

Entos appeared behind another necromancer and raised his sword. He brought the staff down onto the necromancer's head. Clearly, he already realized what he was dealing with. The bone nymph's head fell to the ground and rolled into a bush. Entos jumped away and waved his hand, sending bolts of lightning towards the skull, trying to destroy it.

The third bone nymph jumped, shocked by the speed of its companions' demise, and tried to flee. However, it was not as fast as Ernest's sword radiance. Before it could get to the forest, the sword radiance caught up to it and shattered its body.

"Why is he here?" Christian asked, curiously. "Did Ling and Long already arrive at Blackania?"

"They only left two days ago," Anfey said, frowning. "Maybe something happened. Let's hope it's not something horrible."

Chapter 355: The First Victory

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Not long after, Ernest and Entos walked into Moramatch together. To show respect for Ernest, Entos walked a little slower so he would be behind Ernest. At the same time, Ernest thought highly of Entos and occasionally talked quietly with him. He looked casual and did not take a posture of higher status. In fact, they were about the same age. Yet Entos was Saul's student, so he was ranked lower than Ernest.

Entos felt amazed by what he saw as he looked around Moramatch. The town used to be Band of Brother mercenary group's territory. Anfey had rented it from Band of Brother mercenary group. Entos had some memory of this notorious town. It seemed that Anfey had many capable people working for him. That was why they could build Moramatch into such a fort in a brief of time.

Entos and Commander Marino had made an agreement to break the unfair contract between Anfey and the Band of Brother mercenary group. They wanted to just give this town to Anfey. When Anfey and Band of Brother mercenary group signed the contract, Entos had just left the Country of Mercenaries, while Marino had never heard of Anfey. Word of this contract had been kept from Entos and Marino. In fact, such a lease would not have troubled them anyway. Of course, they would definitely investigate to find out who had done that to Anfey. Entos could not bear anything unjust.

"Bro Entos!" Christian walked up to Entos with a smile. He had dozens of mages behind him. Most mages looked respectful. After seeing the intense fight between Entos and the Bone Nymphs, no one dared to underestimate this enigmatic mage.

"Your majesty!" Entos bowed and responded respectfully.

"Bro Entos, what are you doing?" Christian hurried over and held Entos up. He looked a little awkward. It might be because Entos grew up in a big family and disliked the complicated courtesies. He preferred that everyone felt comfortable with each other and built their bonds together, at least among his peers.

"Your Majesty, where is Anfey?" Entos asked with a smile.

"He has been waiting for you in the conference room. Let's go find him. I will show you the way," Christian said.

Christian walked with Entos to the conference room. As they walked some distance, the mages were still in shock. They started to whisper to each other. They did not think their commander could be a prince.

The isolated Town of Moramatch had developed into a society. As a society, there were different social positions in it. Most people in high positions from different areas had come to Moramatch. They did not feel good about being isolated in this small town and all hoped to receive message from the outside world.

Entos slowly took a seat Anfey had saved for him. Entos scanned the conference room. He was a little shocked when he saw Alice. He could not help raising his eyebrows when he saw Shinbella. He finally laid his eyes on Anfey. Any young senior swordsman would be valuable in any group. It was not long since Anfey left Blackania City. How could he recruit another senior swordswoman? If Anfey's group continued to develop with this speed, in ten or twenty years in the Country of Mercenaries, those four super mercenary groups could possibly disappear.

"Bro Entos, did you see Long and Ling?" Anfey asked.

"Who are they?" Entos responded in surprise.

"They are actually the Shadow mercenary group. I sent them to Blackania City to ask for help," Anfey slowly answered. He knew Entos would be surprised.

"Is Shadow mercenary group working for you now?" Entos felt a little helpless. Of course, Entos knew about Shadow mercenary group. Band of Brothers mercenary group tried to get in touch with Shadow mercenary group but did not even see who they were.

"Not really working for me. We gather here to work together to get through this difficul time. Entos, you are here for…?" Anfey asked in a low voice.

"It's a long story," Entos sighed. "You know necromancers attacked Tumen Commercial Union, don't you?"

"Yes," Anfey said.

"With the great leadership of King Yolanthe, Vice General Miorich led a group of palace guards into Scared City to help Tumen Commercial Union and pushed all the death spirits under the sea."

"It is not possible," Alice could not help yelling out. No one in the conference room knew more than her about the countries on Pan Continent. Every country had its own information agency. Alice had many contacts in these agencies. As far as she remembered, Tumen Commercial Union was very weak militarily and totally relied on Maho Empire. They did not even have their own military. Of course, Maho Empire did not allow them to build their military anyway. When necromancers posed threats on Pan Continent, flame strategy had been used in half of the continent. Even Ellisen Empire and Shansa Empire were in passive positions. It was not possible that Tumen Commercial Union had been the first country to defeat death spirits, even with the help of palace guards from Maho Empire.

"Not possible?" Entos gave Alice a long look. He said with a smile, "It's not only you guys who are surprised, but also our king. After their victory, the king commented that Tumen Commercial Union did a wonderful job with political reforms. Maho Empire still has strong control over Tumen Commercial Union, but they overcame many disadvantages. They did a wonderful job helping civilians gain wealth and empowering them."

Ozzic and others did not understand what Entos said. Perhaps only Anfey and Alice could understand the main idea of what Entos said in the conference room.

"You do not get it? Let me put it this way," Entos said with a chuckle. "Anfey, you have stayed in Sacred City for a while. Is Sacred Ctiy busy and prosperous? Do you know how many wagon Sacred City has?"

"How could I know?" Anfey shook his head.

"Every 37 people owns a wagon and every 11 people owns a horse in Sacred City. Tumen Commercial Union is a very populated country. Every four people owns a wagon, which means every household has a wagon, and everyone owns a horse in Tumen Commercial Union," Entos said.

"How could they have so many horses?" Ozzic asked in surprise.

"Because they have money," Entos emphasized. "Think about it. How many of the merchants who come to the Country of Mercenaries to do business are from Tumen Commercial Union? They have very robust transportation ability. After the Death War broke out, they gathered their civilians in a few big cities with unbelievable speed. They also have an amazing stock of weapons and are not afraid of a protracted war. Their few big cities are connected with magic arrays. Those cities supported each other when it was needed. No other countries could do what they did. The Country of Mercenaries was rich in magic crystals, but how many magic crystals were in mercenaries' hands? They worked hard to hunt for magic crystals, but merchants have the real wealth. Mercenaries do not possess many magic crystals. Even with hundreds years of accumulation, they still do not have many magic crystals in their hands."

"Master Entos, I understand how civilians are getting rich, but I do not quite understand what is empowering them," Alice said quietly.

"The merchants would not give all their security jobs to mercenaries. They definitely have their own bodyguards. Has any of you seen a merchant wagon without security or bodyguards on the road?"

Alice slightly nodded.

"Smaller merchant wagons have about a dozen or more bodyguards," Entos said. "Large merchant wagons have even more guards. A rich merchant even could have hundreds of bodyguards. A merchant would not just have a merchant wagon without guards. Similarly, Tumen Commercial Union would not just have merchants. Put all these bodyguards together, and the number is huge. They have contributed a lot in other areas as well. For example, at the Sacred City mage academy, many civilian students are sponsored by Tumen Commercial Union."

"That is true," Anfey said bitterly. For one, Doris was sponsored by a merchant, but that merchant wanted to marry Doris. That was why Doris wanted to become a senior mage. Only as a senior mage could she fight against the merchant and her own family.

"Without this Death War, no one would know the fighting potential of Tumen Commercial Union. People only know about their wealth: even King Yolanthe said he neglected Tumen's fighting ability." Entos smiled. "Necromancers attacked Tumen Commercial Union for their large armory. Even though they could not use it, they wanted to destroy it to weaken the humans' fighting ability. They did not expect to run into troubles right away."

"So Tumen Commercial Union was their important target? They must have sent out a lot of necromancers, right?" Anfey asked.

"Of course," Entos said. "The king was so worried about the necromancers robbing the wealth of Tumen. He sent Vice General Miorich to lead a group of palace guards to help as soon as he found out. Archmage Saul and Dean Steger organized a temporary Sacred Mage group. Eagle Eye King Mangzo and Reaper Wolf King Manstuly led druids to join the battle. Tumen Commercial Union also organized a military composed of over one hundred thousand people. There were a large number of mages in the troop. Even though necromancers were powerful, they were beaten for sure."

Anfey was shocked for a second. He knew who Yolanthe was. After noticing the potential fighting ability of Tumen Commercial Union, Yolanthe definitely would plan something for them. Right now there were so many people in this conference room, Anfey could not ask.

"I have to congratulate King Yolanthe for sparing his effort. Where would King Yolanthe put his effort to now?" Alice asked with a smile.

Entos was shocked and give Alice a long look again. He turned to look at Anfey. "Anfey, would you like to introduce this young lady to me?"

Chapter 356: Yolanthe's Hand

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Anfey hesitated and did not say anything.

"I am just a servant," Alice said with a smile.

Entos rolled his eyes, clearly unconvinced. "Do you take me for a fool, woman?" he asked, shaking his head. He could tell from the way others treated Alice that she was no mere servant.

Anfey frowned and was not sure what to do. He wasn't the only one who knew who Alice was, and he knew he could trust Entos. He could keep the secret away from Entos, but he could not lie. Finally, he sighed and shook his head. "I will tell you later," he said.

"Well," Entos said, turning to Christian. "I am here to congratulate you, Your Royal Highness."

"Me?" Christian asked, surprised.

"His Majesty had recently acquired support from Pope William," Entos said. "A backup army will arrive at Country of Mercenaries soon to launch a full-scale attack on the necromancers. You have been selected to oversee this army."

The mercenaries were not from Maho Empire and did not care for the political implications of this appointment. They looked at Christian, who was grinning widely at the news. The first pope, St. Robin, once said that all humans should band together in the face of a common threat. Necromancers were one of the only things that could unite all the kingdoms. However, even such an alliance was not without political implications. St. Robin believed that all the kingdoms should unite around the Church of Light. Of course, the mercenaries did not care for the political struggles of another nation.

"Which army?" Christian asked, curious. "How many men are coming? Who's the commanding general?"

"It's a newly formed legion called the Shield of Light legion," Entos said, "led by the Knight of Light, Fernando."

"Fernando?" Christian asked. "Who is that?"

"He's sent by the pope."

Christian nodded. Yolanthe and Pope William must have fought over control of this new legion, but Yolanthe had lost to the pope, and the pope was able to appoint one of his men as the commanding general. But did Yolanthe really fail? If Yolanthe had appointed a general from Maho Empire to lead the legion, it might have caused disagreements among people of other nations—especially Ellisen Empire and Shansa Empire, which were still recovering from the effects of the last war. If Fernando, a man appointed by Pope William, was to lead the legion, then the other nations could not argue against the appointment, unless they want to contradict the pope's will. Even though the pope did not have concrete political power, he was a beacon of hope among the common people, especially during a war against the necromancers. The zombies were not as afraid of light magic as before, but the Church was still the most important asset. No one could deny the effectiveness of the Church's army.

Allowing Fernando to command the army did not mean that Yolanthe had no influence over the legion. The legion formed at Yolanthe's command, and he still had ways to influence it.

"The legion is composed of people of different nationalities, am I right?" Alice suddenly asked.

"Mostly men from Tumen Commercial Union," Entos said. "It also contains the remnant of the Sacred Flame Crusade, some of the palaces guards and guards from Blackania City." Entos paused, then added, "It also has its own mage's platoon."

"Mage's platoon?" Anfey asked, shocked. An army's mage's platoon was very different from his so-called mage's platoon. In order to have a mage's platoon, there must be hundreds of mages.

"What, are you surprised?" Entos asked.

"Who leads it?" Christian asked. The head of a mage's platoon had almost as much power as the commanding general of the legion.

"Who do you think it is?"

Christian frowned, thought for a few moments, then shook his head. The legion was very important, but it was still not one of the major legions. Yolanthe would not have Saul or Steger lead it, but it would still have to be someone important.

"Who is it?" Christian asked.

Entos jerked his thumb towards himself and said with a grin, "This guy."

The room fell silent. Alice frowned, but Christian and Anfey wanted to laugh. Clearly, Yolanthe made this decision because he had made an agreement with Band of Brother mercenary group. He had met the leader of Band of Brother mercenary group, Marino, back in Sacred City. Marino wasn't there to attend Anfey and Suzanna's wedding, and he must have met with Yolanthe while he was there. The outbreak of the war with the necromancers deepened the relationship between the two.

Yolanthe had the ability to offer help. As long as he had Band of Brother mercenary group on his side, he had a powerful asset.

Even someone like Anfey could understand how important it was to control the Country of Mercenaries. Previously, none of the powerful nations cared much about the Country of Mercenaries, and there were rarely any guards along the Country of Mercenaries' borders. This was why Shansa Empire could cut through Country of Mercenaries without anyone noticing and surround Blackania City. If Yolanthe could control Country of Mercenaries, then he would have a powerful ally.

"I've told you everything I need to tell you," Entos said. "You must prepare for the arrival of the legion, Your Royal Highness."

"Prepare for what?" Christian asked with a sigh. He never thought he would become an overseer of a legion. This entailed considerable responsibility and he must approach the matter with a serious attitude.

Entos shrugged. "I don't know," he said. He turned to Anfey and said, "I heard that you are close to moving up a level."

Anfey shrugged. "I just learned how to use large fireball magic," he said, "but so can everyone else in the city."

"Who knows? Come, try attack me with it."

"What?"

"Attack me," Entos said seriously. "With large fireballs."

"Here?"

"Don't worry," Entos said.

"Wait," Blavi suddenly stood up and said. "I have to go."

"Wait for me," Ozzic said, scrambling up. "I have to go do something as well."

"Me too," Alice said. She tapped the ground a few times, signaling the dwarves to retreat.

"Then I'll be going too," Christian said. He lingered for a few moments then hurried out of the room. Suzanna glance at Anfey and Entos and jogged out of the room after Christian.

Entos frowned as the room emptied. "What's wrong?"

"Don't worry," Anfey said. "Aren't you going to use shields?"

Entos waved his hand. "I'll be fine," he said.

Anfey nodded. He took a deep breath and waved his hands, feeling the fire elements gathering. After a few moments, a dozen large fireballs appeared in the room. The room burst into light.

"Hopefully Entos got out in time," Blavi said with a laugh, observing the room at a distance.

"I'm sure he's fine," Christian said. "He's renowned for his teleportation."

"It's a shame," Alice said. "What a waste of money. I was fond of that table."

Chapter 357: The Real Manipulator

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

A person suddenly appeared a dozen yards away on the east side of the conference room. It was Entos. He had escaped with Instant Transportation Magic. He was stunned to see the strong fire in the conference room. The magic shield he had released disappeared. There were a few black spots on his gown, which was obviously burned.

The door of the conference room was shattered into pieces by the pressure of the fire. Anfey's outline started to show in the flames. He walked in slow motion on the stone stairs. Countless flames were revolving around Anfey. It looked like they were caressing him and unwilling to leave him. Besides the Black Dragon and Gold Dragon of legends that could ignore magic, no one else could walk in the fire without any protection. Everyone saw that Anfey did not have any protection.

When Anfey stopped at the door of the conference room, the fire dimmed and went out. Gusts of white and black smoke flew out of the conference room. Everyone was looking at Entos. Anfey's control over elements had turned magic principles upside down. They could not evaluate Anfey's fighting ability, so they hoped to seek out an answer from the more-knowledgeable Entos.

Magic is a double-edged sword. There were many incidents in which mages got hit by their own magic spells or hurt by their own magic. A mage could release a firewall, but it did not mean he could stay in the firewall. Outside of legends, no one could do what Anfey did.

"Anfey, attack me with big fireballs." Entos had woken up. This time he looked very serious. He not only released a magic shield, but also two layers of a magic dome to cover himself.

"I have used up my magic power," Anfey said with a shrug.

Entos almost fell to the floor. He stood there, shocked for a moment, before he suddenly asked, "You had that chemical…" There was no comparison between small fireballs and big fireballs. Anfey had made huge progress. Entos suddenly remembered the chemical Archalchemist Jacob had made.

"Yes, but I only had a very little bit of it. I only wanted to see what changes it could bring in me," Anfey said.

"Don't you think it is kind of a waste?" Entos smiled bitterly.

"Don't worry, Bro Entos. I am just testing it. I have to save the rest for the little unicorn." Anfey changed the topic with a smile. "Oh, right, Bro Entos, did you see Niya?"

"Niya?" At the mention of Niya, Entos could help but have a weird look on his face. It was a mixture of love and helplessness. "She is still in Violet City."

"She should be fine, right?" Anfey asked.

Entos gave a chuckle, then said, "In fact, Niya only left Sacred City for a short time. She did not come with us. She was good. Most of time she stayed in the garrison residence and did not go anywhere else. At most, she only fooled around with Shally and the little unicorn at the worst."

"That is good, otherwise Riska and others would have no control over her." Anfey felt relieved. "Bro Entos, the Transmission Portal…"

"Professor asked me to do it so I dared not wait or make any mistake with it," Entos said. "If I was not busy with the Transmission Portal, I could have come earlier. The professor was worried about you. Even the king has asked me about you a few times."

Christian was touched. It was said that royal families do not really care about each other. This was nonsense. The king was a human being with emotions. The only difference was they are better at controlling and hiding their emotions. On the other hand, a robot-like emotionless king would not necessarily be a good king.

Entos looked around and found he knew everyone except for Alice. He asked slowly, "Anfey, would you like to introduce this young lady to me?" He stared at Alice. One couldn't blame him, since Alice had showed off her talent too earlier.

Anfey looked at Alice and found her a little nervous. He stayed quite and realized what Alice was worried about. He had saved Alice, but he was just a mercenary group commander, quite different than other politicians who had so much power that they could change the whole direction of a country. Anfey had showed his moral principles and bottom line at times. Alice had this hatred in her and wanted to find a person or a group to rely on. Anfey was Alice's only choice. Both Anfey and Alice knew it was not possible for Alice to start her own organization or try to use Anfey as a stepping stone. Alice would rather take blame than do any petty action, while Anfey would rather be wiped out than see anything happen to Alice. They understood what attitudes each had towards the other.

Alice wanted to work for Anfey, and did not have any desire to work for others. The cruel lesson she learned still hurt. She did not dare to trust anyone else. She felt like someday she might be tossed away when she was not useful anymore.

"Bro Entos, well…" Anfey thought and said slowly. "If you want to know about her, you'd better ask her. It will be her decision if she wants to tell you who she is. I think I need to respect her for that."

Alice smiled. Despite trying hard, she had never been able to understand Anfey. She understood Suzanna, Christian, and Blavi. When everyone thought she was good, she would become one of them in the end, and then she would not be dumped, as Anfey would never leave Suzanna, Christian and the others. Even when someone tried to do something to Anfey, Suzanna, Christian and others would not let that happen.

Of course, Alice was smart enough to know she had to do things for others first to show her sincerity. In fact, Alice's unconditional trust in Anfey allowed the whole group to have a good vibe. However, Alice herself did not know that Anfey and the rest of his group did not totally trust each other at one point. After many difficult times, they became close companions. Entos called Christian "your majesty," even though Blavi never did. They had developed a bond that was similar to family members.

"Ok." Entos was angry but found it funny at the same time. "Blavi, would you like to introduce that young lady to me?"

"Me? I know nothing." Blavi immediately waved his hands.

Entos laid his eyes back on Christian. Christian smiled uncomfortably and shook his head. He had a different experience than Anfey, so he viewed things differently. Anfey cared about Alice's loyalty, while Christian saw Alice working very hard every day, as Moramatch had been experiencing changes every day. The weapons dwarves and gnomes made were getting better and better. Alice contributed to these changes. He agreed with Anfey. Alice had done so much for them that they needed to respect her wishes.

Entos was shocked for a second. He squinted. Christian had grown up and had his own secrets now. Thinking about how shy Christian had been when he was little, Entos was amused by it. He could not help breathing a long sigh.

At the same time, a dwarf excitedly ran over. When he was still pretty far from them, he started to yell, "Master, we made it, we made it."

Anfey raised his eyebrows and looked excited. "Let's go. Take us to have a look. Christian, can you show Bro Entos around the town. I will be back soon."

Christian nodded. "Sure."

Seeing Anfey, Suzanna, and Alice walking in the distance, Blavi suddenly asked, "Bro Entos, do you think if Anfey can control magic?"

"Can you do what he did?" Entos asked casually.

"I cannot, unless I release a magic shield to protect myself, otherwise I would be burned to a crisp," Blavi said.

"What you asked did not make sense." Entos paused. "As a senior magister, I do not want to see a person on Pan Continent who has the ability to control elements. However, if he were Anfey, I would like to see how far could he go."

"Anfey's magic attacks were fierce, but his weakness was also obvious. He used up his magic power all at once and did not have the power left to continue the fight," Blavi said.

"Don't forget, Anfey is also a good swordsman." Entos broke into a smile. "Can you used up all your magic power at once?"

"No." Blavi suddenly remembered a problem, and he broke into a cold sweat. Theoretically, he could use up his magic power at once, but the strong element surges would tear his telepathy and even his body into pieces. Anfey acted like nothing had happened to him. How strong could his telegraphy be in that case?

"You thought about it, huh?" Entos raised his eyebrow and asked with a grin.

"Yes." Blavi could not help sighing. He wondered how Anfey could reach this level, since they were about the same age. How could Anfey's telegraphy could be strong enough to control element storm?

"You guys are lucky, really lucky," Entos said slowly.

Blavi did not understand Entos, while Christian got some of it. If Anfey could become a legend, they would be witnesses of this legend and be part of it. It would be such an honor for them.

Anfey stopped walking and frowned. "Alice, what do you think?"

"Me?" Alice had a beautiful smile on her face as usual.

"It is not a good thing to let others know about your talent too soon. I think you should have known that," Anfey said casually. "No matter whether you were trying to test me to see if I could protect you or for some other reason, please don't do that again."

"I am sorry," Alice said

As Alice apologized to Anfey, she admitted her real purpose. Anfey suddenly turned around and wanted to scold her, but found she had an even brighter and more sincere smile than usual. He swallowed whatever he wanted to say and sighed, "Let's go."

Chapter 358: Haunted

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Anfey lay on a tree branch with his eyes closed, listening to the clamor of the town below. Suzanna sat on a nearby tree, watching the dwarves and the gnomes at work, her hair billowing in the soft breeze. She turned to Anfey, who was grinning, and said, "You look happy today."

Anfey shrugged and sat up. "How can I not be? It's finally our time to shine."

Entos was a sly person, but he still gave away a considerable amount of secrets when pressed. Of course, he could have done so on purpose. Band of Brother mercenary group had long been a partner of Maho Empire. When Entos first arrived in the Country of Mercenaries, many mercenary groups wanted him to join them. He rejected all the other invitations and joined Band of Brothers mercenary group. This was largely due to the good relations between Band of Brothers mercenary group and Maho Empire.

However, the situation was different for Marino. Marino's wife had been killed by an assassin as she was trying to protect him, leaving a three-year-old son. Marino couldn't bring himself to remarry and did not have another child. When his son was thirteen, the child fell off a tree and hurt his head, causing his development to delay.

The four super mercenary groups had never known real peace. Marino worried that his son won't be able to survive once he was gone. Yolanthe understood Marino's sentiments and was using it to his advantage. Yolanthe promised Marino that he would be made a duke if he could assist Yolanthe in taking over Country of Mercenaries.

A duke has much more powerful than the head of a mercenary group. Marino didn't care about fighting for freedom. He needed to secure his power to ensure safety for his son.

As king of one of the three most powerful empires, Yolanthe was much more approachable and much more likable than Ellisen Empire's Edward and Shansa Empire's Philly. Marino knew that as long as he did what he was told, Yolanthe would reward him.

Marino's attitude and his relation to Entos secured Marino's loyalty to Maho Empire. Anfey knew he had to find a way to place Christian in charge of the Shield of Light legion.

Anfey knew that Yolanthe wouldn't rush the decision of appointing an heir. Wester had his opportunity to shine, and Grandon got an important military apopointment when he was sixteen. Christian cared only for magic and told Yolanthe long ago that he did not want the throne. It was hardly up to Christian, however, as the nation would come first.

Suzanna ran her fingers through her hair and sighed. She was very conflicted. She had hoped that she would be able to find a peaceful life after she was married. She didn't care about power or revenge. She wasn't like Alice.

She knew she had to protect her friends, however, and she would not abandon them. The only way she could be useful was to keep fighting.

Suzanna was not every good at communicating with others. She enjoyed being alone much more than being with other people. She was used to keeping her emotions to herself.

"Lady Suzanna, Lord Anfey!" Ozzic called as he jogged over to the tree. "Long and Ling are back." Anfey and Suzanna jumped out of the tree. "They said they needed to report to you directly."

"Directly?" Anfey asked. "Interesting." He turned and saw Ling and Long walking towards him. He smiled and waved them over.

"We gave the letter to General Augustus," Long said quietly once he made sure other people were out of earshot.

"And there's no reply?" Anfey asked, surprised. The last time he saw Augustus, he was friendly. They had no conflicts and it would be polite to give a reply.

"General Augustus told us it was inconvenient to send a reply with us," Ling said. "We were searched when we left the city."

"Augustus is in charge of Blackania City," Anfey said, curiously. "If he wanted to protect you, who would search you? What's General Baery doing?"

"General Baery was in the city, but we didn't see him," Long said. "My lord, what is your history with Marquis Djoser of Violet City?"

"Marquis Djoser?" Anfey repeated, shocked. "He's the one who searched you?" He was very confused. Marquis Djoser hardly had any power, especially in a city governed by August and Baery.

"He had a dozen priests with him and he insisted on searching us," Long said. "He said he didn't want any spies leaving the city. We resisted, of course, but there were only two of us." Long sighed and shook his head. "We thought General Augustus would help us, but his people never intervened. It was just easier to let them search us."

"General Augustus wanted us to tell you that the Marquis had joined the Shield of Light legion," Ling said. "We heard that he is close with Fernando."

Anfey pursed his lips. Prince Wester must know that Yolanthe planned on taking over control of Shield of Light legion and casting out Fernando. Marquis Djoser was working for Prince Wester, but he must have not yet told the prince about his relationship with Fernando. If Fernando fell, the Marquis might fall with him. If it really came to that, it would be unlikely that Prince Wester would try to save Marquis Djoser.

"When is the backup arriving?" Anfey asked.

"In a few days," Long said.

"The backup is the Shield of Light legion, isn't it?" Suzanna asked quietly.

"Yes, my lady."

"What else did you find out?" Anfey asked. "Did you find out how many Knights of Light there are?"

"Four hundred, at least," Long said. "That's just part of it."

"That many?" Anfey asked, surprised.

Long nodded. "My sources are as accurate as they come."

"I didn't know you have sources in Blackania City," Anfey said.

"There are still a lot of things you do not know about us, my lord," Long said. "This information was given to me by a member of the Roaring Death legion. As you should know, my lord, those soldiers are famous for their bravery and their loyalty. I trust this information."

Anfey nodded. "How is the relationship between the two legions?"

"Precarious," Long said. "There's tension between the two, but there has not been any outright conflict."

"Because they don't want to make it look like Yolanthe is making things more difficult for the priests and the knights, I wager," Ling said. "The situation is too tense right now for there to be infighting."

Anfey nodded. "I think you're right," he said. "What else did you hear?"

"Scarlet was heading north with her army," Long said. "But they disappeared soon after leaving. No one knows where they are. We must keep our guard up. The world is in chaos right now, and no one knows whether she will take advantage of that." Long paused, then added, "Violet City is a commercial city. Fernando does not have the right to decide what happens there."

Anfey nodded. "You did well," he said. "Who told you this?"

"I cannot reveal my source's name," Long said, shaking his head.

Anfey nodded. "Go get some rest," he said. Long and Ling nodded, then turned and disappeared into the town.

Chapter 359: The Biggest Dream

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

No matter how questionable the "good" relationship between Yolanthe and Pope William was, their generals and soldiers still maintained military protocol. Four days later, a large force looking like a long snake appeared in the Eyes of Sky. It was inevitable to have malicious competition between Yolanthe and Pope William's militaries, but that would not stop them fighting together against their common enemy when the time came. If Anfey had already sent for help, it meant Moramatch faced some serious threat. If they went to the Country of Mercenaries, they would not get any supplies among death spirits. They could not lose Moramatch, since it was the most important transfer field. They heard Anfey had thousands of mercenaries in Moramatch who were important to Fernando since they were locals. They were familiar with the surrounding geography. Even if they did not join the battle, they still could serve as guides and be helpful for the battle.

That was why Fernando decided to send his troops out to help Anfey, even though Marquis Djoser had criticized Anfey a lot. Fernando even contacted General Augustus in Blackania City. They agreed right away that Augustus would send out 20,000 border guards as the frontiers of Shield of Light unit to help Moramatch.

Yolanthe had agreed with Anfey to send 20,000 soldiers, but Augustus spent some time deciding who would serve in this troop. First of all, he had to ensure a strong fighting ability. Second, they had to be loyal to the country. In order to completely avoid the influence from Knights of the Light, Augustus even ordered four generals with great prestige to lead this troop. With their leadership, Knights of the Light could only give instructions at most, but they would not have any control over this troop.

Efficiency was the key to the war. Yolanthe asked Miorich to lead palace guards to help immediately after Yolanthe heard that Tumen Commercial Union had been attacked. Yolanthe was not panicking, but rather taking advantage of time. Knowing Moramatch was just ahead of them, seeing a showdown of people on the wall and hearing the cheering in the distance, about a hundred Knights of the Light in the front of the troops all looked relieved. Those in the front consulted, and then about half of the Knights of the Light rode back rapidly. With instructions from Knights of the Light, five thousand cavalry were divided into two groups. One group continued to march to Moramatch, while the other group went back to help with the transportation of arms and supplies.

Even though about 15,000 cavalry travelled with the arms and supplies, they didn't seem strong enough to Knights of the Light. The soldiers in Death Roaring Legion were more popular in comparison. In fact, the Knights of the Light had suggested to Fernando that he press Baery to lend a unit of his military to Fernando. They had no idea if Fernando had tried to convince Baery. They only heard a rumor that one night General Baery waved his sword and chased Fernando for about a dozen miles. Fernando hid in a female farmer's house and finally escaped from Baery. Coincidentally, Fernando stopped them talking about taking Death Roaring Legion since they heard that rumor.

There had been many prestigious but hard-to-track master swordsmen. They were on the same level but had different levels of fighting ability. Ernest definitely ranked number one. When he travelled, he had challenged archswordsmen at his level, but never lost a fight. Some defeated swordsmen who were resentful towards Ernest talked behind his back, but not everyone was so resentful when they lost fights. Some people were convinced that Ernest was better with sword skills. Although Ernest had his critics, no one could challenge his ranking in terms of sword skills. The commander of Glory mercenary group in the Country of Mercenaries ranked second, since he killed two Fire Series archmages in his debut fights. Baery ranked third, taking Master Swordsman Philip's place, as Philip was now too old to hold that position.

All the Knights of the Light knew that Fernando was a seventh-level Knight of the Light, but he would never be a match for Baery. Therefore, there was truth in the rumor. Of course, they would not stupid enough to ask Fernando about it. They kept these speculations to themselves.

When Anfey heard the cheering, he was standing in something of a tornado. It was nothing like a natural tornado. Rather, it was about a hundred yards high, with lighter winds than a natural tornado. It could only suck in insects, birds and other small-sized animals. Anfey could keep absolute still in the center of the tornado. His hair did not even move. After a while, he held his hand out in the air. The swirling tornado looked like it was drawn by a strong attraction, sucked in with a fast speed and turned into a crystal-clear, glaring spear in Anfey's hand.

Anfey thrust his spear out. He was so fast that there were countless shadows created by the spear. It was a cloud of shadow at first and then turned to a larger area of shadow. Only Suzanna and Shinbela could barely see Anfey's moves. Mages like Christian, Blavi felt dazzled by the moves.

Anfey ended his show and put the spear back. The gigantic rock in front of him made terrifying cracking sounds and turned into countless pieces of gravel everywhere on the ground. "What are those mercenaries yelling?" Anfey asked in surprise. He dragged the spear on the ground and walked back.

"I do not know. Let's go and check," Suzanna said quietly.

"Anfey, wait." Blavi hurried over. "Let me see your spear. Wow! Nice!" Blavi only paid attention to the appearance of the spear but did not see that one end of the spear had stuck underground as he dragged the spear. Anfey did not put any strength on it. He would not waste his energy, which suggested the significant weight of the spear.

"Here you go." Anfey passed the spear to Blavi. This spear could not instantly disappear, as other weapons he instantly had made. This spear would take some time to disappear, and would take a little longer to disappear when not under the control of Anfey's telepathy.

Blavi excitedly took the spear from Anfey. The spear had fallen to the ground just as he felt the weight of the spear in his hand. Anfey could make actions as fast as he wished. He held one leg out with a lightning speed and grabbed the spear with his foot. Even though Anfey caught it with his foot, Black Eleven's foot was scratched by the spear. He opened his mouth wide as he grabbed Anfey's arm tightly. To be more accurate, he pinched Anfey's arm as his eyes got watery. If there were no ladies, he would not keep from crying.

"How could it be so heavy?" Blavi almost cried.

"Is it heavy?" Anfey was shocked for a second and smiled. "It was indeed heavy for you." Anfey lifted his foot and tossed the spear in the air. With a huge crashing sound, the spear fell on the ground after one flip in the air. This time, everyone saw something unusual. The whole spear almost buried in the ground. If a person looked at it upside down, it would be hard for him to see anything.

"Let me try." Ye got excited even though he usually did not talk much. He walked over and slowly squatted and dug his bare hands into the dirt. He grabbed the shaft of the spear and slowly got up on his feet. He did not finish standing until he released his combat power. It surprised everyone even more when they saw Ye had to pull the spear out with his combat power.

"Let me do it." Shinbela slowly walked over when she saw Ye pulling the spear up with combat power.

"Sure." Ye responded immediately. He looked like he lacked courtesy. He should have passed the spear to Shinbela like Anfey passed it to Blavi. He still stood there, waiting for Shinbela to pick it up herself.

Shinbela was not a stupid girl. She had been hurt by Manlyn only because she was a nice girl and did not know how to protect herself. With every step, her combat power grew stronger. As she walked up to Ye, she released all of her combat power. She grabbed the shaft of the spear, slowly taking it from Ye.

Shinbela swung it a few times. The spear tore through the air and made thunder-like whooshing sounds. Ye had moved pretty far from her. Shinbela looked a little weird. She stood there for a while. This spear's weight was beyond her imagination. She noticed that there had been no noise when Anfey swung it. It looked like a quiet viper, trying to snatch someone. Shinbela had no idea how Anfey did it.

Shinbela slowly raised the spear over her head and swung it down. She was not only a senior swordswoman, but a well-rounded fighter. Except for Anfey, no one in the group could be called well-rounded. Knights and swordsmen were in two different fields. The way Shinbela swung the spear was similar to the way she swung swords. With a huge sound, a cloud of dirt appeared in the air. There was a deep ditch created by the hit of the spear. It could only be called a "hit" since the tip of the spear was stuck underground a few feet deep. Only half of the shaft diagonally pointed at the sky above the ground.

"Anfey, someday, when you release the Meteorite magic, I do not know what kind of weapon you could create," Christian sighed. What weapon would Anfey create with more advanced magic if he could already make such an amazing weapon with Tornado magic?

"Meteorite magic? I like teleportation spells better than Meteorite magic," Anfey said. "That is my biggest dream."

Entos was watching them, smiling. When he heard what Anfey said, he asked, "Anfey what do you mean? Why are you mentioning teleportation spells in front of me. Are you trying to take the job away from me?"

"Bro Entos, you misunderstood me." There was some cunning in Anfey's look. "You have mastered teleportation spells, and do not need a magic wand anymore. How could I take the job away from you?"

"I…" Entos almost cursed in front of ladies. Anfey had misspoken. He meant to remind Entos that he did not need wand anymore.

Chapter 360: Conflicts

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The conflict between the mercenaries and the Knights of the Light had already passed by the time Anfey and Suzanna arrived. There was still tension, however, because the knights wanted to take over the defense of the city from the mercenaries.

This was a very negotiable matter, but neither the knights nor the mercenaries were very patient with each other. The knights knew they were there to save the mercenaries and did not like the mercenaries' attitude. The mercenaries did not like the knights taking over their job and did not want to back down easily.

Ozzic did not like being treated like a lesser man. He was very proud and ambitious and did not like being ordered around by other people, especially people he had just met a few minutes ago. He was also very irritable and would often lose control of his temper. He did not like the way the knights were talking to him and his men and grew very angry. He even threatened to draw his sword.

One of the knights saw Ozzic's movement and drew his own sword. The other knights did not want there to be a fight, but felt obligated to support one of their own. The mercenaries saw the knight's sword and all jumped to Ozzic's defense.

The mercenaries did not lack loyalty and the will to fight. They didn't care if it was Ozzic who started the conflict. They needed to protect one of their own.

Since the knights did not want to fight the mercenaries in the first place, they did not move to attack. The mercenaries saw that the knights weren't moving and did not want to be the first to attack. However, neither side lowered its weapons.

Both the knights and the mercenaries knew that they should not fight. Their responsibility was too great for petty fights right now.

"Wait," Anfey called. Several of the knights saw the opportunity and grabbed the sword from the first knight who drew his weapon. The mercenaries lowered their weapons and Ozzic quickly bowed to Anfey and Suzanna. "What happened?" Anfey asked.

"They, apparently, don't know how to act properly in other people's territory," Ozzic said angrily.

"You must be Anfey," one of the knights said, stepping forward. "These mercenaries never stop."

"Liar!" Ozzic said. Anfey tapped him on the shoulder and shook his head. He did not expect the knights to be so rude to the mercenaries, but he did not expect the mercenaries to act so improperly, either. Whatever conflicts they had, the most important thing right now should be building an amicable relationship so working together in the future would be easier on both sides. The knights and the mercenaries' actions did the exact opposite.

Most of the knights had already put their weapons away and were murmuring to the few that did not, trying to calm them down. Clearly, like the mercenaries, the knights did not want to fight, either.

"I am," Anfey said. "I would say welcome to Moramatch, but I see you've already met our people." Ozzic glared at the knight.

"How I control my people is my business," Anfey continued, ignoring Ozzic, "and you have no right commenting on it."

"Are you threatening me, my lord?" the knight asked, clenching his teeth.

"Of course not," Anfey said, smiling. "Why would I?" The knight stared at him for a few seconds then took a deep breath and returned his sword to its sheath.

Anfey sighed with relief. He did not want to fight the knights because he knew that it would do him no good. The best thing for him and the town right now was to coexist with the knights peacefully. Infighting would only lead to trouble.

He did not know why the knights were so bold, but he knew that someone must have told them some unpleasant things about him. He couldn't change that; the only thing he could do was to prove to them that he was not a horrible person.

The knight that challenged Anfey did not back down easily.

Suzanna and Shinbela appeared and joined Anfey. They were bolder than the mercenaries and did not need Anfey's order to attack anyone. Entos appeared in the air and landed between the mercenaries and the knights, his eyes wide as if curious about what was happening.

"Martin, stand down," a voice among the knights called. The knight in front cringed then turned to the man who had just ordered him to stay back.

A man in white armor appeared on horseback. He rode to the front and jumped off, smiling. "My lord, my lady! Do you remember me?" the man asked, grinning. His tone was relaxed and was clearly trying to ease the situation.

Anfey froze. He remembered this man from Augustus's mansion, back in Blackania City. "General…?"

"Mecamela," the general said, taking off his helmet. Shinbela and Suzanna relaxed visibly. No one wanted to fight, but the situation came to a point where it would be considered shameful to back down. Neither side wanted that, and the situation had come to a standstill. Anfey was glad that the general came to resolve the situation. Clearly, Martin was too.

"I apologize for not introducing myself last time," Mecamela said with a grin.

"I apologize as well," Anfey said, smiling. He walked over and shook hands with the general.

"Don't worry about that," Mecamela said. "Trust me, my lord, you don't need to introduce yourself." He walked towards the town and out of the knights' earshot. "I need to talk to you," he said in a hushed voice. "Alone. This is an urgent matter."

"Urgent?" Anfey asked with a frown. "Then let's go to the tent over there." Mecamela nodded and followed Anfey. Suzanna wanted to follow but Anfey stopped her.

"Don't worry," Mecamela said. "I promise not to do anything, my lady."

Once they were alone, Anfey frowned and asked, "What do you want to talk about?"

"I have an order from His Majesty," Mecamela said. "Lady Suzanna is to return to Sacred City immediately."

"What?" Anfey asked, shocked.

—

Sacred City appeared gloomy under the setting sun. Yolanthe sat on a rocking chair, wearing a simple robe. Across the room was a bed and in the bed was a woman. The woman was old, her hair peppered with grey. Two maids were busy cleaning the room.

"Don't worry," Yolanthe said softly. "Suzanna will come back."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," the woman whispered. She had seen too many deaths on her way to Sacred City. She did not know why Yolanthe was protecting her or her daughter, but she was very grateful. She knew that without the man in the chair, she would never see her daughter again.

"Don't worry yourself too much," Yolanthe said. "Rest. Regain your strength."

"Will…will the man she married return with her?" the woman asked. She didn't want to trouble Yolanthe, but she wanted to see what kind of man her daughter married.

"I'm afraid not," Yolanthe said, shaking his head. "Anfey has a very important job he cannot step away from. We need control of Country of Mercenaries in order to completely destroy the necromancers' force."

The woman smiled. "I know, Your Majesty," she said. She lied back down and sighed, closing her eyes as if she was exhausted.

Chapter 361: Secret Meeting

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The moon hung in the trees. Tonight was quite different than usual in Moramatch. It was super quiet, especially the mercenaries near Anfey's room. They dared not talk. They even tiptoed in case they made any noise as they walked.

In fact, Anfey and Suzanna had a lot in common in their personality. Neither of them were good at expressing themselves. After they got the secret order from Yolanthe, they did not have any good communication until they had to say goodbye to each other, even though everybody tried to give them some time alone. If this happened to a couple who had experience ups and downs, they probably would have cried. Suzanna was a tough girl. She never used tears to show her sorrow or attachment. She chose to be quiet. Anfey was even tougher than Suzanna. Sometimes, it was not a good thing to be too tough, because they could not vent their emotions. It would cause trouble for them sooner or later. Luckily, Anfey and Suzanna could take more than regular people. Suzanna had cruel training when she was little, while Anfey was an assassin who used to work on his own and learned to live with loneliness. Being apart was not bad enough to cause them to lose their manner in front of others.

Upon parting, Anfey forced a word out: "Come back soon." Suzanna said quietly, "Take good care of yourself."

This conversation was neither passionate nor romantic, no matter how one looked at it. The conversation did not show their deep relationship, nor their unwillingness to part. However, mercenaries had noticed the difference in Anfey. After watching Suzanna disappear from sight, Anfey started to look gloomy. The anger showed between his eyebrows. He turned around and saw two followers of Knights of the Light in an argument with mercenaries over tents. Anfey scolded the knights without even bothering to asked what was going on. The poor knights sulked away to report to their supervisors what Anfey had done.

Even carefree Blavi noticed Alice was not emotionally stable. Smart Alice hid herself in the underground city after she dealt with the confrontation with Knights of the Light. No one else dared bother Anfey, so Moramatch was super quiet that evening.

Anfey sat on the bed with his legs crossed. He kept wiping the sword for a long time. This sword was made by dwarves, so the quality was exceptional. Every country had their own large amount of dwarf craftsmen, but they suffered disdain from others. The dwarves in Moramatch enjoyed a lot of freedom, so they had a much better work ethic. They put more effort into the sword-making when they knew the swords were for Anfey, Suzanna and a few others. These swords were the product of their hard work and would not have any quality issues.

Anfey locked his eyes on the sword but was lost in thought. A couple always developed their own habits. After receiving others' blessing for their relationship, Suzanna had been taking care of his daily life. His clothes were always clean. Suzanna would clean his room in the hotel, find clean and comfy dry straws if they staying in the wild, bring him food at dinner time, and even cut meat and bread into smaller pieces for Anfey's convenience if Anfey did not have time to eat. She was careful with cutting and not making any noise in case she interrupted Anfey. Anfey liked to have a late night snack, so Suzanna always prepared it for him, even in the wild. Suzanna could always pick some tasty wild fruits for Anfey's late night snack.

Suzanna's departure disrupted their routine, which made Anfey feel uneasy and lonely.

Someone knocked on Anfey's door. Anfey could not help frowning and asked coldly, "Who is it?"

"It is me." Black Eleven's voice rose outside of the door.

"What's wrong?" If this had happened in the past, Anfey would have already opened the door and let Black Eleven in. He was never pretentious nor posed as important person, but right now he really did not want to be bothered.

"Master, someone wants to see you," Black Eleven said with a helpless tone. He knew this was not a good time to talk with Anfey, but he had no other options.

Anfey was quiet for a second before he said slowly, "Come in."

The door swung open. Black Eleven escorted a person covered from head to toe with a cloak. As Black Eleven closed the door, the person took off his cloak and showed who he was. He kneeled at Anfey, "Master."

"It is you!" Anfey could not help looking surprised. The person in front of Anfey was the same arrogant Knight of the Light, Martin. Anfey looked at Black Eleven, "Armin, what is going on?"

"Should I tell Anfey, or should you?" Black Eleven shrugged.

"I think it's better you tell Master Anfey." Anfey did not respond to him, nor asked him to stand up, but the guy looked easier and more relaxed with a smile. He looked like he did not care much. To be honest, Martin looked a lot more pleasant now. During the day, many mercenaries wanted to swing their fists at his stinky face.

"Martin works for the king," Black Eleven said quietly.

Anfey was smart and had a quick response. This one simple explanation was good enough for him to connect all the suspicious dots in his head. Within a short time, Anfey had already figured out what had happened.

Yolanthe had an agreement with Pope William, but that was only for the time being. He would never let Church of Light expand on this territory. The most effective way was to pick fights between mercenaries and Church of Light and create antagonism. Martin would not be the only spy.

Yolanthe could think of controlling his military and not having any conflict with mercenaries. So could Pope William. If Pope William could not think in a sophisticated manner and only use force, William would not have become pope. Yolanthe was more strategic, so he not only predicted what William would do, he also planned ahead to ruin William's plan.

With Martin in Knights of the Light, Church of Light would make more people dislike them. Anyone who had contact with Shield of Light legion would likely prefer Maho Empire's military and hate those arrogant Knights of the Light. The antagonism would turned to fighting sooner or later. Even though Fernando tried to appease to Maho Empire, he could not simple accomplish that. If the situation continued, Knight Fernando could only use force to protect Church of Light's benefits. Martin and his fellows picked bloody fights to make the antagonism even worse, which meant Fernando would lose more battles. It would be inevitable for Fernando to be fired.

Anfey could not remember how many times he felt he admired Yolanthe so much. After he went quiet for a while, Anfey said slowly, "You are Martin. How long have you been working for the king?"

"I am an orphan. Without the king, I could have starved to death," Martin said. "When I was a teenager, the king sent me to the church and helped me become an apprentice knight. It has been about ten years from that time."

Anfey had a bitter smile on his face. Ten years ago? Yolanthe might not need people like Martin until they died because there was no opportunity to fight with Church of Light. However, Yolanthe planned cautiously for every step, not afraid of spending money on people, or wasting his own time just for one possibility.

A top power could have the control of his own life, but that was it. Anfey tried to be a top power so he could control of his own life. Yolanthe actually controlled many other people's lives, like Martin. His youth, even his life had been dedicated to Yolanthe. How many people were like Martin and how many people's lives were dedicated to Yolanthe?

"Did the king ask you to see me?" Anfey asked slowly.

"The king has told me to show my real identity when it is needed," Martin said.

"Is it the time you are talking about?" Anfey asked.

"Master, I have not completed my job yet, but I am worried about what you would do to me." Martin hesitated for a second and looked like he was trying to find an appropriate way to say it. "I am afraid I would be killed by you some day. It would be a sad joke." Martin smiled bitterly. He was obedient. Anfey did not ask him to stand up, so Martin had been kneeling as he talked. Compared with his arrogance during the day, Anfey had such a strange feeling towards him.

"Hehehe, to be honest, I did want to kill you," Anfey said.

"The subordinates of Hilde have died." Martin felt Anfey did not understand, and reminded him. "The two guys you kicked. Hilde tried to fight you. Hehehe, but he was convinced by Captain Stephens."

"Ok." Anfey paused. "How many people do you have? Can you give me a list?"

"Well…" Martin was shocked. Anfey was asking a little too much. That was not just a list of names, which represented past decades of hard work of Maho Empire and Yolanthe.

"First of all, I am worried about more misunderstandings. Secondly, I could work with you. There were some mature people in Knights of the Light. I could help you kill them and you will have the total control of the situation," Anfey said calmly.

Martin's eyes brightened. He said hesitantly, "I have to get permission first."

"Up to you." Anfey nodded. "Please get up. Do you have anything else?"

"No. That is all." Martin stood up and smiled. "Master, I will continue to mess around in the town tomorrow. I hope you will not get angry."

"I got it. I will ask those mercenaries not get involved and let you guys mess around for a few days, but do not over do it. If you let those mercenaries get wild, you will be in trouble," Anfey said.

"I understand, Master." Martin bowed.

Chapter 362: Barrier

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Anfey rarely dreamed when he slept. For him, sleep was necessary to keep himself energized. As long as he could get adequate sleep, he could make sure that he could stay fully aware of his surroundings and the dangers that may lurk within. Dreams were rare, and he almost never remembered them. This night, however, he had a vivid dream. He became a large giant. He moved his hand and saw himself destroying the world, turning it into puffs of elements. Soon, everything around him became elements and even he himself was no more than groups of loose elements.

Sudden, rapid knocks on his door woke him up and put an end to his strange dream. "Who is it?" he asked.

"It's me," Alice's voice said.

"What is it?" Anfey asked.

"I need to talk to you," Alice said.

Anfey sighed and pushed himself up. "Come in," he said. Alice walked into the room and he saw her eyes narrow when she saw him. He looked down and realized that his blanket had slipped off of his shoulder and he was half naked.

"This room is cold," Alice said. She glanced at the hearth and the dying fire and sighed, walking over to reignite it.

"Wait," Anfey said, shaking his head. "Leave it. I can handle this." He grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head.

Alice turned and smiled. She sat down primly on a chair near the hearth and folded her hands over her lap. She did not say anything and only stared at Anfey. Her large eyes were emotionless. Anfey frowned under her gaze. It still bothered him that he could not read her emotions.

"What is it you want to talk about?"

"Nothing," Alice said softly. "Just wondering why you're still in bed." She stood up and walked to Anfey, who was putting on his leather armor. "Let me," she said softly, helping Anfey lacing up his armor.

"I was tired last night," Anfey said. He did not push Alice away.

"It's a shame that you do not have anyone to take care of you when Lady Suzanna is gone," Alice said. "Why don't you let Shinbella take care of you?"

"No," Anfey said, shaking his head. "Shinbella is too important to take care of someone like me. Plus, I don't need any maids."

"You're a count, my lord. It is only natural that you have maids," Alice said. She paused then smiled as if she had stumbled across a secret. "Are you worried about what Lady Suzanna would think?"

"I have maids," Anfey said with a sigh. "I don't need them, like I've just said. It's dangerous for them to be here anyway. I can take care of myself."

"I can see it with my own eyes," Alice said. "Lady Suzanna took care of you when she was here."

"That's different," Anfey said.

"Of course," Alice said. "Of course." She smiled and took a few steps back, inspecting her work.

Anfey did not say anything and watched Alice helping him dress. When he saw Alice grab the comb on the table, he hesitated. "Wait," he said, reaching over. "I'll do it myself."

It was customary that a married man's hair should only be taken care of by his wife. The implication of Alice combing his hair was very dangerous to his reputation.

"It's not something you should do by yourself," Alice said. She looked at the ground but did not put the comb down. When Anfey saved her from the slave runners, she had tried to seduce him. After she learned of his relationship with Suzanna, she tried to stay away from him lest her emotions cause a rift in their relationship. She thought that Suzanna's absence would be a good opportunity for her.

Anfey did not expect Alice to be so insistent. He sighed and sat down on the chair, beckoning her over. He was not one to respect customs, because he knew that, in the end, customs did not matter. He didn't know what would happen in the future and knew that he and Christian must rely on Alice. He didn't want their relationship to be too tense.

Alice smiled and began combing his hair. There were a lot of ways for her to find someone to depend on, but there were very few people that made her feel safe. She was a princess, and she knew Anfey and his friends would never truly accept her. Anfey could allow his friends to practice magic and grow their power, but he wouldn't let her. She felt uneasy even keeping Kumaraghosha close, let along grow her power.

Alice wanted to develop their relationship because she knew that if they became closer, Anfey would be more likely to help her with her revenge. She believed that she could convince him.

"Have you ever combed anyone's hair before?" Anfey asked.

"Not hair," Alice said. "Beards, yes. I was very close with my father."

Anfey sighed. "Be more gentle," he said. "Hair is very different than beards."

"I see."

"Make sure no one comes in," Anfey said. Alice froze and tossed the comb on the table. Anfey, confused by her sudden change in attitude, turned and looked at her.

"Is that who you think I am?" Alice asked, frowning. "A sly, calculating woman?"

"There's nothing wrong with that," Anfey said with a shrug. "In fact, I applaud you for that."

Alice shook her head. "Kumaraghosha's outside."

Anfey nodded and closed his eyes.

Suddenly, he heard Ozzic's voice ask, "Where's Lord Anfey?"

Alice started, jumping up from her chair. She didn't expect Ozzic to come at that moment and was frustrated that he foiled her plan.

"Wait," Kumaraghosha said. "You can't go in."

"Why not?" Ozzic asked. "I need to see him. I have urgent business." Ozzic sounded very angry.

Alice frowned. "What could he be doing?" she whispered.

"Who knows?" Anfey said with a smile. "Let's see."

Ozzic pushed open the door and marched into the room, panting. When he saw Alice in the room, however, he froze. Then he turned and quickly walked out of the room.

"Wait!" Anfey called.

"You called me, my lord?" Ozzic poked his head into the room and asked. Clearly, he knew that he had seen something he shouldn't have.

"What do you want to talk to me about?" Anfey asked.

"It's those knights, my lord!" Ozzic said, frustrated.

"Wait a few days," Anfey said. "Be patient. Everything will resolve itself. Don't cause any conflicts."

Ozzic sighed, then nodded.

Suddenly, they heard another voice outside. "I need to talk to Lord Anfey immediately!"

"What's Orsie doing here?" Anfey asked.

Ozzic stood and opened the door, muttering something to Orsie. Anfey frowned.

"They're too impatient," Alice said.

"You're right. Which means I have to give him a small nudge."

"You mean…"

Anfey smiled. "Just wait and watch."

Chapter 363: Request and Demand

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

One education was to help students mature with different strategies, even with the hope that students could end up better than their teachers. Another type of education tried to fool students so they would listen to the teachers blindly and forget about fighting back. The students were more like penned sheep.

The two approaches to education had their own strengths and weaknesses. The former could speed up the development of society and strengthen the social dynamic in general, but it also made someone aspiring to climb the ladder work very hard to get what they wanted, because someone was always better and they could be easily surpassed and forgotten. The latter type of education could cause society to move backwards, but the upper classes were in much better shape. They only had to manage a group of sheep. There was nothing to make them nervous. It was not easy to turn sheep into wolves, because they had given up too much just struggling for enough food and shelter.

When 4,000,000 were under the leadership of 100,000 knights, no one could know whether this was planned or accidental.

The education in Mage Union and Church of Light were quite different. Church of Light cared more about beliefs. There were many contradictions among different theologies. For example, other races believed God created the world, while Church of Light did not mention the god who created the world, rather contributing all the glories to God of Light. Religious believers did not need learn about the truth behind a religion, only about its beliefs. Of course, there would always be some talented people who were hard to deceive. The church would recruit them, assimilate them and have them become part of the administrative team. This method was smart. A person could refuse to work for others but would definitely work for their own interests.

Mage Union seemed to have more freedom. They did not require students to believe in anything. They only instructed them to feel the element surges and learn to control them. They did not require students to owe them anything, nor did they interfere with students' freedom. When the students were qualified to train outside the academy, they could go anywhere they wanted, even becoming a priest in Church of Light.

Because students had differing talents and abilities, many gave up half way through the academy. They had to make a living, so they became businesspeople, tried to practice combat power, or even went home to become farmers. Such were their options when they gave up the academy. Some people were just average students when they practiced magic, but could become famous priests in a short time. Slanbrea was a good example.

No could Priests or Knights of the Light be apart from the constraints of the church and do something else other than being Priests or Knights of the Light. Otherwise they would face serious punishment, or even endless pursuit until being killed.

Anfey had heard stories about the historical situation from Ozzic and Ossie during their travels. He was worried about Martin at the beginning, but felt relieved when he saw how he provoked Knights of the Light. It was undeniable there were some drawbacks to bondage education. Bondage education did not ask believers to differentiate right from wrong and only asked them to believe in the religion and follow the instructions of the church, so it stopped the believers from developing their talents. They were indeed unified. That was also why Martin could stir up the Knights of the Light as he wished, even though he was not a mature spy yet. Anfey had no idea what decisions Captain Stephens would make, but the Knights of the Light whom Martin brought over all looked naïve and ignorant.

"Who is the guy looking more provoked than Martin?" Anfey asked quietly.

"Maybe Hilde." Ozzic was not sure who he was.

Anfey nodded and slowly walked toward them. He yelled, "What is going on here?"

The mercenaries who were in conflict with Knights of the Light suddenly made way for Anfey. Tiger stood at the front of the mercenaries. When he saw Anfey, he gave a dirty look to the Knights of the Light facing him. He stuck his ax in his belt and got close to Anfey. He said quietly, "Master, they want to enter the underground."

No wonder Ozzic and others were mad. The underground city held the most important secrets in Moramatch. Even Ozzic had very few opportunities to enter the underground city: how could they let others get in?

"We have to ensure the safety of all arms and supplies, on orders from Fernando," the Knight of the Light named Hilde yelled. "Here is the order. You can read it yourself, but move first!" Hilde took out a sealed envelope and shook it in the air.

Elizabeth hesitated for a second because she did not know whether she should take it. After seeing Anfey nod, she went over and took the envelope. She turned around and passed it to Anfey.

Anfey casually opened the envelope. There was no order inside. It was just a letter to Anfey from Fernando. The letter showed a lot of respect to Anfey. The main point of the letter was to ask to if he could leave the arms and supplies in the underground city for the sake of safety. Only talented and smart people could be recruited to the church administration. Slanbrea was one of the them, as was Fernando. In terms of management, those Knights of the Light were not comparable to Fernando. He used a friendly and compassionate tone in the letter, which made the reader feel good.

If Fernando had been a newbie without consideration of others, Yolanthe would not have wasted time on him. There would be no point for Yolanthe to plan anything. Yolanthe could fire him at any time. Pope William recruited Fernando. Logically, Pope William should be allied with Yolanthe, yet it was not clear Fernando was acting in the king's best interests.

Anfey put the letter back into the envelope with a smile, passed it to Elizabeth and signaled her to give it back to Hilde. Anfey said calmly, "You guys perhaps misunderstood." No wonder it was said to be easier to talk to the big boss than his assistants. Most of the time, a big plan was ruined as it was carried out by these lower-level people. If Anfey had never dealt with Church of the Light, he would have agreed with Fernando when he read the letter. However, the attitudes of these Knights of the Light would definitely have changed his mind.

"Anfey, what do you say? Don't forget this is the order from Knight Fernando. Do you dare to act against him?" Martin stood up and yelled.

Anfey stepped up. Without anyone seeing how he did it, he had already moved more than a dozen yards. He raised his hand and slapped Martin really hard. Martin rolled on the floor like a ball.

"I told you yesterday. You should add "Master" before my name. If you have such a bad memory, I do not mind reminding you a few more times." Anfey stood in front of dozens of Knights of the Light, but looked calm and not threatened by them. "You made a mistake. Moramatch is my territory. Do you understand?"

Martin looked at Anfey as he covered his cheek with a hand. He did not understand why Anfey slapped him. He was shocked and could not make a sound. Instead, Hilde yelled loudly, "Master Anfey, you are not only acting against Archknight Fernando's orders, but also attacking a Knight of the Light in public. What do you want?" He was smart enough to add Master in front of Anfey's name. He was just a paper tiger. Did he want this confrontation to reach the point where there would be a fight in Moramatch? They could only wish, since the border guards of Blackania would not listen to them. If they fought with thousands of mercenaries, it was obvious which side would lose the battle.

"Don't panic over it. I was just teaching him some manners," Anfey said calmly. "In terms of Fernando's orders, Alice, bring the contract to me," he said with a chuckle.

Alice, who just arrived, smiled and took a piece of paper from her Dimensional ring. Anfey was shocked for a second. He wondered when Alice got a Dimensional ring. He had never noticed it before, but it was not a good time to talk about it. Anfey held the contract out and shook it in front of Hilde. He said casually, "Can you read? I have had absolute authority in Moramatch for two years."

"Master Anfey, this is a special time. We are at war now," Hilde said.

"So what if we are having a war now? Should not my rights be protected during wartime?" Anfey said coldly. "If you go to Sacred City in Maho Empire now and tell them we are at war, would Sacred City be yours?"

Hilde did not immediately think of a response. Mercenaries laughed at him.

"You could be either guests or enemies in Moramatch, but would never be a host." Anfey gave the contract back to Alice. "Do you understand?"

"Master Anfey, if anything happens to the arms and supplies, who is going to take responsibility?" Hilde asked.

"It is funny. I am not your general. Why are you asking me that. I know one thing: you have to listen to me in Moramatch. Otherwise, get out of here," Anfey said.

Hilde was embarrassed, mad and upset. The color of his face changed frequently, but he dared not talk back to Anfey. This time they had come with an excuse: with Martin's words, they wanted to vent their anger with the help of Fernando's letter. If Anfey did not agree with their request, they would cause trouble for Anfey.

"What are you standing there for? Do you need me escort you out?" Anfey showed disdain in his tone.

"Master Anfey, I will report what happened today to Archknight Fernando as it is," Hilde said, taking a long breath.

"Not only Fernando, but even if Pope William were here, he would have no right to take my rights away," Anfey said coldly.

"Good." Hilde forced that word out. He turned around and helped Martin up. They walked out together.

Anfey quietly watched the Knights of the Light walking away. He slowly called out, "Armin."

Black Eleven hurried over, "Master?"

"Find a way to tell Martin that he should not have acted so actively. People could find something suspicious about him," Anfey said very quietly.

"I got it," Black Eleven said.