Heading to Pelangi Fortress

It took half a day before Benedict made it to the next town over. It was a quaint little town of around a couple hundred residents, small enough that it went unnamed. Without a horse, that distance would have normally taken someone half a week to traverse. His speed was close to the peak of normal human standards, as expected of one touching the precipice of Fundamental Realm Master. He wiped the sweat off his brow and entered the local inn. It was a lot busier than the outside, which made Benedict pleasantly surprised. People were cheering and drinking, even dancing, as they partied for unknown reasons. More than half the patrons were celebrating like their last night out. The infectious mood affected Benedict too, as he inadvertently smirked.

He took a seat at the bar, saying, "Do you have a room available for one night? I'm also pretty hungry so you can give me whatever food you have."

"Not a problem." The barmaster returned with some local delicacies. "I haven't seen your face around here. Where are you headed?"

"The capital for now," Benedict replied. "Was there any big news recently?"

"Besides war breaking out again, I can't think of anything else."

Benedict nearly spat out his food, his shock was apparent. "What? Don't joke about that kind of thing, barmaster." It instantly soured his mood.

"I was I was joking. I'm surprised you haven't heard since everyone's talking about it," the woman gave him a weird look.

"You're serious?"

"Even I wouldn't joke about something like that," the barmaster smiled wryly. "I don't have that poor taste in humor. If you don't believe me, here's the official notice from the kingdom." She grabbed a paper from the wall and handed it over.

Benedict read it skeptically, but his suspicions turned into depression quickly. "I knew it was bound to happen but isn't this too quick?" he frowned with a depressed face. "How did this happen?"

"I wish I knew… But I did hear some rumors from the soldiers back there," she pointed with her finger to the party-goers. "They said that the Imperial Council suddenly attacked the Li Family. Five fortresses were taken overnight."

"Five fortresses? Are you sure you didn't hear wrongly?"

The barmaster shrugged. "You're free to ask them yourself. I'm just repeating their words."

"No, no, it's fine," Benedict waved with his hand while thinking. He served in the military for many years and participated in his own fair share of battles. This allowed him to gain a sense for these types of things. Five fortresses overnight… No matter how it sounded, it was insane to believe, much less imagine!

"Oh, you also probably haven't heard of this, right? Princess Elizabeth, the heir apparent, will be leading the military campaign to the empire."

The boy froze, dropping his fork. He tried to process those words again but failed. It was like the saying, 'what goes in one ear comes out the other.' While news of the civil war came as a shock, Elizabeth becoming the Royal Army General was ten times more shocking. Benedict could not make heads or tails of it! Was the world going mad? Just what was happening here?

Upon noticing his distress, the woman asked, "Are you alright? You're as pale as a ghost."

"This… Are you sure that Elizabeth… No, Princess Elizabeth… is headed to the Xingyuu Empire?" Benedict slowly pronounced every word, afraid that the barmaster misunderstood him.

"I'm just as surprised as you, but I'm afraid it's true. To be honest, no one knows what the kingdom is thinking. They went through all that trouble for Her Highness, and now this… Still, I have to admire Her Highness's courage! She has this woman's approval!"

Meanwhile, Benedict was lost in his own thoughts, so he ignored what she said. His mind was a mess. He could not understand what was happening still! They went through all that trouble in the Xingyuu Empire, risking their lives, before finally escaping from that nightmare. It would not be an exaggeration to say their survival was a miracle above miracles! Were it not for numerous coincidences, then their lives would have been forfeited a long time ago. Despite that, Elizabeth was willing to return to that land? It made no sense whatsoever!

"You're looking really bad right now. I'll get you some water," the barmaster rushed away.

Benedict refused to believe her words and walked over to the band of soldiers partying behind. The captain of this merry bunch was busy with a scantily clad woman sat on his lap. They were cuddling very affectionately with the stench of alcohol abundant. His hands fondled her assets aggressively, leaving the woman in a deep red blush. The other people were also having their fun, drinking and partying to their hearts content. However, a very subtle somber air lingered. It was not too surprising though, since they were low-ranking soldiers and war broke out again. At any moment's notice, they might turn into fodder, turning into corpses that paved the road for others. If so, they would party like their last night, because it might really come true.

"More! Where's the waitress? We need more alcohol!"

"Captain, you already spent your month's salary. Aren't you worried you might go broke soon?"

The captain chuckled. "Since when did you have to care about this old man? Forget it! We're partying until dawn and all drinks are on me!" leading the ten soldiers to cheer. When he was about to continue, he saw Benedict standing there like an idiot. Coupled with Benedict's current beggar-like appearance, it made the captain grimace. "Get out of here, brat. I don't have any scraps for you," he snarled.

"You're soldiers, right? Can you tell me news about Princess Elizabeth's role?" Benedict asked politely. "Is Her Highness really… headed to the empire?"

"What's it to you, kid? Beat it!" the captain waved his hands dismissively. "If you don't move it, we'll move you."

Two of his men walked up with furious expressions because their precious relaxation time was ruined. From the way they were acting, they were borderline thugs. They were big too and their stature caused Benedict to look like a child. Without waiting for a response, they reached out. On the other hand, Benedict's face also dulled. He was in no mood to play around. Channeling a hint of his Martial Energy, his aura abrupted soared to a monstrous level! A person's aura was directly proportional to their Rank. While Benedict was far from the Perception Realm, he wielded Martial Energy, something that few others understood. This made his aura swell to something equivalent to Grand Knights of the Realm!

Everyone in the bar simultaneously stepped back in fear, as their instincts screamed at them to run. It was a fundamental reaction to the strong, an instinct to survive! Benedict might appear harmless, and even weak, but the tremendous pressure he exerted crushed any idea of resistance the soldiers had. In addition, these were normal soldiers, not trained knights, meaning their mental strength was much weaker! The other patrons charged out of the restaurant, leaving the soldiers and Benedict alone. The woman sitting on the captain's lap went one step further and fainted. The sharp piercing aura abruptly sobered all the soldiers up, while the captain realized he hit a wall this time. Benedict was not someone to offend!

Benedict gave a wry smile. He had few chances to meet normal people, so he inadvertently released more of his aura than intended. Restraining his aura again, Benedict resumed the appearance of a beggar. However, this time, no one dared to look down on him. He was a wolf in a sheep's clothing!

Because of this, the captain quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, brother. I didn't realize that you were a phoenix above men. If I knew that, then I wouldn't have tried anything against you."

"It's alright," the boy replied. "I also went too far."

The captain exhaled, as if a weight had been lifted from his chest. He spoke freely, "You wanted to find out about Her Highness? If that's the case, then the rumors should be true. We heard from our superiors that Princess Elizabeth would be taking command of the Xingyuu Empire's operations as Royal Army General. Her Highness should be arriving in Pelangi Fortress in a month. Because of the war summons, we're headed in that direction too."

"It's really true?" Benedict asked incredulously. "Do you know why that happened? How did Princess Elizabeth get involved in this mess?"

The soldiers said nothing, but their response was enough. No one knew! They were the bottom rung of the military so if they heard anything, then that would be truly strange. The captain hesitated, but eventually spoke, "If you want, you can join us in heading to Pelangi Fortress. You can confirm for yourself if Her Highness will be presiding or not."

The boy became conflicted as well. On one hand, he wanted to go home and visit his family. Despite sending a letter, that was months ago and there was no guarantee that they received it either. Regardless of the estranged relationship with his father, he did not want to worry his family. Furthermore, he disappeared from Algard right when the Lannisail explosion engulfed the capital. Thousands were killed with many more injured from the monstrous shockwave. It would normal if he were considered deceased! Of course, he had yet to learn the truth of the matter, such as how his father banished him from the Hawken Household in front of the Grand Nobility. Benedict Hawken was a Hawken no more!

Ultimately, he gritted his teeth and agreed. This matter was too important to him. Even now, he did not fully understand the emotions he had toward Elizabeth and the fact she carried an uncanny resemblance to Isabella made it ten times worse. However, he made a vow, a knight's vow, one he swore on his life! He promised Elizabeth's mother that he would protect her, no matter what! She might appear safe with the army protecting her but look at Lord Korogin. He was defeated by Emperor Lianghu in their final battle! And this was no longer one battlefield, but an entire war theatre! The Alzar Kingdom would slaughter their way into the Xingyuu Empire! So, there was no promise of her safety. In such a situation, how could Benedict not be moved? Therefore, Benedict joined the captain and his men and headed for Pelangi Fortress!