Jade Kingdom VS Fearie Kingdom

In the Jade Kingdom Castle:

"Are we really going to attack the Faerie Kingdom, Sir Henry?" Samuel, the King of the Jade Kingdom, asked.

"This is the prophecy bestowed upon us by the God of Shadow," Henry replied solemnly.

"But the Jade Kingdom has only me as a Tier 4 Sky Knight."

"I've heard that the Faerie Kingdom possesses two…"

"Do not be troubled."

"With the assistance of the Shadow God Church, bringing down the Faerie Kingdom will be easy,"

---

In the Divine Continent, within a hidden folded space:

"I've finally discovered a hint of treasure!" whispered the God of Shadow.

He was a new god, having existed only a few hundred epochs ago.

(Epoch= billions of years)

Gods differ from mages and knights.

While mages and knights progress through training by refining their bodies and souls,

Gods are formed through faith and belief.

It's important to note that they are brought into being, not attained.

Over countless epochs, gods can emerge when enough faith and belief coalesce.

Upon his birth, he swiftly gathered believers to bolster his strength.

Unfortunately, being a fledgling god without a foundation, the growth of his following was gradual.

Later, he learned that the Curse Continent was where god-tier beings had clashed and perished.

Certainly, a treasure must lie there.

With an ambitious spirit, he planned to expand his influence into the Curse Continent, only to be promptly repelled by a mysterious entity.

He later discovered that powerful beings were prohibited from setting foot on the Curse Continent.

However, he was not reconciled.

After ceaseless efforts with time, he cultivated a group of believers within the Curse Continent.

With this achievement, he set forth his plan.

Directing his believers to scatter across the land and scour for remnants of treasure left by the fallen gods.

They became his eyes and hands, looking for that trace of possibility.

A few months ago, his devotees were traveling when he suddenly detected a trace of treasure.

Though he couldn't pinpoint its location, he had his followers to dispatch and search manually.

Regrettably, Magnus, the King of the Faerie Kingdom, became aware and dispatched his forces to track down the believers.

This rendered them powerless and unable to locate the treasure.

He could only summon one of his most powerful believers in the Curse Continent, Henry.

With his divine blessing, Henry easily manipulated the King of Jade Kingdom.

As for controlling the King of the Faerie Kingdom, he had considered it.

However, upon probing, Magnus showed an exceptionally resolute will.

After careful deliberation, he ultimately chose the King of the Jade Kingdom, closest to the Faerie Kingdom.

"I trust you won't disappoint me," he whispered as he sensed Henry preparing for battle.

---

After a month of preparation, the soldiers arrived at the edge of the Faerie Kingdom.

Johnson had been sent here by Maximus as Smith took care of training the soldiers.

"Are you the one sent by Count Maximus?" a soldier taking tabulation asked.

"Yes, this is the sigil."

"It's indeed the sigil of the Count of Shadowcrest."

"Go to the assigned location; just follow the army later,"

"Hmm."

Soon, Johnson located his position, waiting for further orders.

"This is quite an experience,"

Having been a general almost all his life, it had been long since he followed someone's commands.

As the day passed, soon, all the soldiers from the Faerie Kingdom were assembled.

The King of the Faerie Kingdom was also present.

"People of the Faerie Kingdom, this time, we are going to fight The Jade Kingdom."

"We need to show that we people of Faerie Kingdom are not someone they can provoke at will," Magnus stated coldly.

Usually, in the Sunburnt Plateau, there isn't much war due to the vast distance between the regions.

As the land is barren and filled with corrupted mana, the only way to establish a Kingdom is by owning a magic crystal mine.

A magic crystal mine is a natural accumulation of mana that forms crystallized stones.

Each piece of magic crystal is worth a thousand gold.

Although expensive, they were essential to power the formation array, keeping the Faerie Kingdom uninfluenced by corrosive mana.

With the Imperial Capital being the center of the formation array, it became lush and filled with vitality and vegetation.

However, as the distance from the capital increases, the effectiveness of the formation diminishes.

The formation barely extends to Moonshadow City, which is why, although Maximus's territory is barren, the crops can still be grown.

"Now, with both provisions and weapons ready, we march!" Magnus yelled.

Soon, the army marched toward the Jade Kingdom in an orderly manner.

---

Three months later, they encountered the Jade Kingdom's army.

Due to the sheer size of their group, the march was considerably slow.

This circumstance is also the reason for the lack of frequent conflicts in this region.

After all, the march alone can nearly deplete one's stocked food.

If war does arise, it typically entails direct face-to-face confrontation, continuing until one party surrenders or is defeated.

"Huh? A cult?" Magnus, having observed the Jade Kingdom's army, questioned.

Usually, one cannot distinguish if someone belongs to a cult.

However, Magnus treated believers of gods as nemesis.

During his adventures in the Arcane Continent, he clashed with numerous followers of gods, making him highly sensitive to divine energy.

His very body had been injured and tainted with divinity, allowing him to easily detect its presence in others.

"How dare you, Jade Kingdom, collude with a cult?!" Magnus yelled, infusing his voice with mana.

It's an open secret that believers of gods are prohibited in the Curse Continent.

"Hmph, I could kill you, and no one would even know," Samuel, the King of the Jade Kingdom, retorted.

"Are you still daydreaming after coming here?"

At his side, Shadow also readied his coercion, poised to strike at any moment.

Shadow was the second tier 4 Sky Knight of the Faerie Kingdom and his friend who shared his life and death.

"Lord Henry, I'll leave one to you," Samuel said, noting the presence of two Tier 4 Sky Knights on the opposing side.

"Hmmm."

"Attack!"

Soon, clashes of swords and displays of power erupted.

The Faerie Kingdom held a significant advantage with superior numbers across all tiers.

Johnson didn't go all out, preserving his strength in case of danger.

The other nobles who joined the war similarly focused on minimizing casualties.

Thus, despite the strength advantage of the Faerie Kingdom, the battle between the two sides remained at a stalemate.

---

On the other side, four Tier 4 Sky Knights were engaged in a duel.

"Heh, how dare you, Jade Kingdom, attack us when you're this weak?" Magnus jeered, sending Samuel flying.

Henry, observing from the sidelines, wore an unpleasant expression.

As Henry controlled Samual using divine power, the latter's fighting instinct and decision-making abilities plummeted.

He was now akin to a chicken in Magnus's grasp, ready to be struck down at any moment.

"Your opponent is me," Shadow attempted to slash Henry, capitalizing on his distraction.

"Hmph, not so fast," Henry muttered as he deftly evaded the sword.

Soon, the confrontation between the four reached a few minutes.

"Huh, I'm done with the warm-up,"

Magnus gathered his mana at the tip of his sword, preparing to execute his renowned move.

Witnessing this, Samuel began to panic.

Slash~

Gathering his power, Magnus tried to sweep toward Samuel's head.

Fortunately, Samuel, having anticipated the attack, managed to dodge it.

However, to his horror, after the sword passed through him, the sword didn't stop moving.

This time, evading was more challenging, and parrying was near impossible.

Magnus's focus was directed away from his sword; attempting to parry would result in death.

The sword in Magnus's grip operated like a controller, with Samuel as the manipulated puppet.

Just as Samuel found his rhythm and prepared to counter, his entire body froze as if experiencing a muscle cramp.

Though it lasted only briefly for individuals of their tier, it was akin to offering their heads to be struck.

Slash~

Suddenly, Samuel's head was sent flying, his consciousness struggling to grasp the unfolding events.

Unbeknownst to him, Magnus had executed a technique called "Check Mate."

This maneuver controlled an opponent's movements, like manipulating a puppet's ligaments and muscles, momentarily freezing them in command.

"Huh?"

"Not good!"

Witnessing the battle's outcome, Henry hurriedly escapes.

"You can't escape," Shadow swung his sword.

"You can't catch me,"

Approaching a shade, he employed a divine technique bestowed upon him by the god of shadow, enabling his escape.

Seeing him vanish in the shadows, Shadow tried to attack the ground in all directions.

Unfortunately, the sun was already setting, casting numerous dark areas that facilitated Henry's escape.

"Where's the other one?" Magnus inquired, unable to locate Henry.

"He escaped," Shadow replied with a somber expression.

"It's alright; I'll report this to the Etherium Embassy. Tier 4 cult activity is prohibited here,"

The Etherium Embassy oversaw the empire's affairs in the Curse Continent.

Meanwhile, the Faerie Kingdom was merely a kingdom and had no direct dealings with the Etherium Embassy.

The cult activity in the Curse Continent was another matter.

---

"Unlucky, I hope the great god of shadow won't hold my failure against me too harshly," Henry muttered as he escaped.

Just as he was on the brink of getting away, he stumbled upon two armies locked in combat.

"Oh? Maybe I still have a chance to change my fate,"

After skillfully navigating the area and conducting a search.

Henry eventually located the quarter where the crown prince of the Faerie Kingdom resided.

"Who's there?!" Felix, the crown prince, became alert.

"Relax, Crown Prince," Henry reassured, isolating the surroundings to prevent outsiders from noticing.

"It's you, the leader of the cult!" Felix exclaimed, a mixture of shock and fear in his voice.

He sensed the overwhelming aura emanating from Henry.

Despite his talent, Felix was merely a Tier 3 Earth Knight due to his youthful age.

"Don't worry, I'm here to discuss a deal,"

"What kind of deal?"

"I'd like you to join our Shadow Church,"

If Felix were to join their Shadow Church, Henry's task would be completed indirectly.

After all, being a crown prince, Felix's words could easily sway his subjects.

At that point, finding the treasure their god had spoken of would be a matter of time.

Directly controlling him was not feasible as Magnus is very sensitive toward divine power.

"No, I'd rather die than believe in your god,"

His father, Magnus, had warned his children about cults, emphasizing that believing in a god was akin to offering their head to the mouth of a tiger.

As long as the god willed it, they could control them like puppets.

Even in death, one's soul would remain under their control.

Felix would rather die with honor than be treated as a puppet.

Without further hesitation, Felix brandished his sword and swung at Henry.

"How dare you!" Henry retorted with anger, deftly dodging the attack.

However, the tent and the isolation he had created were swiftly destroyed, revealing his presence.

"Hmph, ignorant child, I shall end your life," Henry declared, swiftly beheading Felix.

However, even in his final moments of consciousness, Felix had no regrets about his decision.

"The Crown Prince is under attack!"

Before the soldiers could arrive, Henry made his escape.

"Crown Prince!" The soldiers arrived only to find a headless body, causing panic to spread among them.