VOLUME 12: CHAPTER 13

After declaring his will to establish a coalition of nations, Lark set out the next day for the Empire.

First, he decided to stop by the Fork Meadow, a vast grassland to the East of Golden Wheat City. A territory that served as the border between the Youchester Duchy and the Dwarven Kingdom.

Lark brought the Scylla, and Agnus, in his human form, with him. Their group flew toward their destination at top speed.

"Remember, hatchling," said Blackie ruthlessly. "You are my slave now! For a decade! Remember that! Do not move or speak unless I command you to, do you understand?"

Dragons were prideful creatures, and they always made sure to follow the pact made under dragon oath, no matter what.

Agnus couldn't even retort, and the best he could do was glare and show his anger to his new master. Still, despite his vexation, he nodded his head regardless. His brashness and arrogance back then were pricy lessons Agnus was going to learn for the next decade.

"Blackie, stop taunting him," said Lark. He sat on the ostentatiously grand golden throne on top of the Scylla's body. "We'll be meeting his tribe soon. I don't want any unnecessary fights between our two groups."

Blackie confidently replied, "It wouldn't happen, God Evander. That hatchling doesn't have the courage to tell his father and older sister he lost our bet."

It was true. Lark also knew that Agnus would probably rather die that openly admit to the other dragons that he'd become the slave of an Earth Scylla.

Still, it didn't feel right seeing Blackie openly bullying the young dragon like this.

Lark sighed, "Just don't start any unnecessary fights."

The Scylla didn't object to this and immediately followed Lark's command.

"As you will, God Evander," said the Scylla.

They flew for hours, and finally, they arrived at the Fork Meadow. Beyond, they could see the massive mountain range where the dwarves lived. Below, they could see the vast grassland and the army camp that had been prepared by the soldiers.

The moment Lark's group appeared in the sky, the dwarves and elves started coming out of their tents. And as though they'd practiced it several times before, the warriors smoothly moved into formations.

The Scylla landed on the ground, sending out a strong gust of wind. The flags symbolizing the Dwarven Kingdom and the Elven Kingdom fluttered.

The moment Lark disembarked, the army from the Dwarven Kingdom and the Elven Kingdom greeted him.

"We've been awaiting your arrival, King Lark!"

"We've been awaiting your arrival, King Lark!"

It was amazing that the dwarves and the elves said these words in unison, as though they'd agreed on it beforehand.

There were five thousand soldiers in this small army.

A hundred dwarven power suits, four thousand elite dwarven warriors from the Dwarven Kingdom, and a thousand elite archers from the Elven Kingdom. Moreover, the so-called guardian deities of the Dwarven Kingdom – the Ancient Fire Dragons – came with the army.

Vulcan and his daughter, Shahaneth, were among the first ones to greet Lark.

"It's been a while, King Lark," said Vulcan, smiling.

For a moment, Vulcan's gaze landed on Agnus. He noticed the stiff expression of his son, but decided not to delve deep into the reason.

"Yes, it's been a while. Vulcan, Shahaneth," said Lark. "Thank you for listening to the unreasonable request of mine."

"Unreasonable?" said Vulcan, laughing. "Of course not! We pledged our allegiance to you, King Lark. This much is natural!"

As soon as Lark returned from the United Grakas Alliance, he contacted the Elven Kingdom and the Dwarven Kingdom, asking them for reinforcements for the Empire.

Naturally, the Dwarven Kingdom and the Elven Kingdom complied to his request. The dwarves always followed the will of the Dragons, while the elves wanted to repay Lark for helping them solve the problem of their declining birthrate.

The number of children being born in Aerith drastically increased since Lark started supplying them with bloodstone water. Now that the fertility rate of the elves had become on par with those of humans, there was no longer any fear of their race going extinct in the near future.

According to the advisors of King Melandrach, a hundred years from now, the Elven Kingdom would probably have twenty times its current population.

Lark turned to the commander of the elves, "Commander Khuumal. It must have been an arduous journey. Thank you for coming all the way to this place."

Commander Khuumal was the strongest elf in Aerith. To show his sincerity, King Melandrach ordered him to accompany the one thousand strong elite archers.

"Not at all, King Lark," said Commander Khuumal. "Rather, I'm glad I have the opportunity to be useful in this war. Fighting the demons in another nation is a lot better than fighting them in elven lands."

Although elves were deceitful, they were loyal and patriotic to their homeland. Lark knew that Commander Khuumal meant those words. If they could prevent the Elven Kingdom from being invaded by the demons in the future, these elves would probably be willing to die in another nation's soil.

"Elves," Vulcan said to Lark. "I got to admit, I was surprised when I heard that you've allied with these long ears. Well, I guess the more reinforcements, the better."

The elves frowned.

They did not like being called 'long ears' by the other races. Long and pointed ears were the mark of royalty in Aerith, and casually speaking of it was derogatory and insulting to the elves.

"Vulcan…" said Lark.

Vulcan looked at the elves and clicked his tongue. Even without him speaking out loud, it was apparent that he was thinking of why he should consider the feelings of these lower lifeforms.

Even the dwarven king had to prostrate before him, and Vulcan couldn't see any reason why he should treat these elves differently.

Vulcan said to Lark, "Fine. I'll refrain from saying anything for now."

Vulcan believed that the army from the Dwarven Kingdom was enough for this war. As long as Lark fought together with the Ancient Fire Dragons, he believed it would be enough to ward off the demons.

Vulcan believed that there was no real merit in bringing the elven army here.

As though he could read Vulcan's thoughts, Lark said, "I plan on announcing my intention of forming a Coalition of Nations in the Empire. To do that, I need to bring both the dwarves and elves with me."

"Hmm… I understand. A coalition. Of course," said Vulcan. "And the beastmen?"

"Now is a crucial time for their country," said Lark. "They'd just directly suffered from the demons' attack. I can't take their soldiers with me to the Empire."

"Haaa, how useless," said Vulcan. "They'd been saved by King Lark and they can't even send reinforcements when they're needed. What a pathetic bunch."

It wasn't true, but Lark decided not to argue with Vulcan any further. For some reason, it felt as though he was dealing with a full-grown Agnus. The way the father and son looked down on everyone was exactly the same.

Would Agnus become like Vulcan once he grew up?

Well, he probably wouldn't, as Blackie would make sure to instill into him the meaning behind the words 'meek' and 'subservient.'

A decade was short from the perspective of a dragon who could live for a thousand years, but it was still enough time to mold the character of a hatchling.

"King Lark," said Commander Khuumal. "I apologize but… how are we going to reach the Empire in time?"

Vulcan snorted at the question of the elf.

Lark patiently replied, "We'll be flying there, Commander."

Commander Khuumal was perplexed by Lark's answer. He knew that the Scylla, the Dragons, and Lark were capable of flying. But how were they going to take these many soldiers with them all the way to the Empire?

"I'll end up expending a lot of mana for this, but the presence of the dwarves and the elves are needed if we wish to properly establish the existence of an alliance. I need to show everyone that the Dwarven Kingdom and the Elven Kingdom are part of the coalition."

The compartment underneath the golden throne on top of the Scylla's body opened. From it, five adamantite cubes the size of a head flew out and hovered right next to Lark.

They were the cubes Ninirukiriri had just recently crafted. For several days, Lark kept storing mana in these cubes to avoid depleting the mana in the Sword of Morpheus.

They were basically upgraded versions of the mithril cubes. Not only were they capable of storing more mana, they were also far more durable.

"Four cubes," said Lark. "I'll end up using all of the mana from four cubes to transport all of us here to the Empire."

Four cubes seemed a lot, but it was still far better than directly using the mana inside the Sword of Morpheus.

"If everyone is ready," said Lark. "Shall we start?"

Lark started activating the adamantite cubes. The runes on its walls glowed. From them, mana started seeping out.

"W-What's happening?"

"We're… we're floating?"

First was simple levitation magic.

Second were barrier spells.

With precise calculation and manipulation, Lark cast levitation spells on everyone, before protecting their bodies with translucent mana barriers. Translucent bubbles enclosed the bodies of the elves and dwarves – the power suits included – as they floated in the air.

Soon, it dawned on everyone that this was the method they would use to reach the Empire quickly.

The mana consumption aside, it was surreal that a single magician was capable of transporting a five-thousand-strong army on his own. Even non-magicians knew how much control over mana was needed to pull this feat off.

Lark flew and landed softly on Blackie's back. As he'd gotten used to it by now, he confidently sat on the golden throne.

"If everyone is ready," said Lark. "We'll depart immediately."

Blackie wagged its tail excitedly.

"Coalition army," said Lark, "to the Empire."

"As you command, God Evander!" roared Blackie.

The seven-headed monster jumped up, flapped its wings, and flew toward the direction of the Empire. Following right behind it were the dragons in their human form, the warriors from the Dwarven Kingdom, and the elite archers of the Elven Kingdom.

***

[The Great Empire]

After hearing that the lukasian ambassador had chosen the Fifth Prince, Emperor Sylvius Lockhart Mavis summoned Reginald, the Fifth Prince, and the First Prince to the throne room.

"We greet the Sun and Moon of the Empire, His Majesty, Sylvius Lockhart Mavis!"

The three knelt before the throne after ceremoniously greeting the Emperor.

Emperor Sylvius said, "The three of you may stand and raise your heads. I want to see everyone's faces."

Following the Emperor's command, the three slowly rose to their feet. As the princes had a higher standing than Reginald, they stood together in front, five steps ahead of Reginald.

"Rykard," said Emperor Sylvius.

The stubby prince flinched, "Y-Yes, Your Majesty!"

Had Reginald not known the real him, he would have believed the cowardly façade the Fifth Prince was showing.

Reginald already knew by now that the Fifth Prince was also vying for the throne. And the pathetic expression he was showing everyone currently was just a mask he used to fool people.

"You look… how should I say this? Refreshed?" said Emperor Sylvius in an amused voice. "You must have felt good that the ambassador chose you over your older brother."

At those words, the face of Prince Lysander, the First Prince, contorted. He gazed sharply at Prince Rykard.

"Ah, o-of course, Your Majesty," said Prince Rykard. He sounded so flustered as he stuttered. "I-It's an honor to have been chosen by the ambassador!"

A subtle smirk started forming on the Emperor's face. He must have found it amusing that Reginald chose such a pathetic prince.

His youngest son couldn't even look him properly in the eye.

How could that damn fool even lead the soldiers?

As expected, the only way for the Empire to remain strong in the future was to root out such pathetic sprouts. Even though Prince Rykard was his son, the Emperor did not feel any fatherly love for him. All he saw was a pathetic offspring who did not deserve the name Lockhart Mavis.

"Reginald," said the Emperor.

"Your Majesty."

"Did you know? When the parasitic demons attacked us, only Prince Quinn moved to protect the citizens of the Empire. These two princes, especially the Fifth Prince, hid inside his estate. He locked his doors, refusing to come out, as he ordered all of his soldiers to protect his life."

It was no longer possible for Reginald to rescind his decision at this point. So, the Emperor decided to toy with the ambassador by revealing how incompetent the prince he chose.

Just to make Reginald suffer, the Emperor openly mocked his own son.

"Sometimes I wonder if my blood truly runs in his veins," said the Emperor. "When I was his age, I've been going out in battlefields and winning wars for my father."

The Empire had no need for weak and incompetent people. Emperor Sylvius believed that this was a godsent opportunity to get rid of the demons, the lukasian army – particularly the Lord Knight – and his pathetic son, all at the same time.

The duel between the Lord Knight and Sword Saint Isaac Segarus showed that the Blackstone Knights would be useful in battle, and Emperor Sylvius planned on using them to their fullest. He would wring them dry, then throw them away once they'd served their purpose.

"Reginald, tell me," said the Emperor. "Is there a particular reason why you chose Rykar over Lysander?"

Before coming here, Reginald had already prepared an answer for this expected question.

With a straight face, Reginald said, "I've tried meeting with His Highness, the First Prince, first, but I was turned down at the door by his guards. I do not wish to lie to Your Majesty. So, if I were to give a reason, I chose the Fifth Prince since he's the only one I managed to meet in the first place."

The Emperor had surely heard already of how the guards shunned the ambassador before he could even meet the First Prince. Knowing this, Reginald decided to use this as the reason on why he chose the Fifth Prince.

"Hahaha!" laughed the Emperor. "Is that so? Of course, of course. It's not like you have a lot of leeway in these matters, right, ambassador?"

The Emperor was subtly insulting him, but Reginald remained expressionless regardless.

"It is as Your Majesty says," said Reginald.

The Emperor felt exhilarated seeing the ambassador from the damn Kingdom of Lukas act subservient.

Indeed, this was how things should be.

"Chamberlain," said the Emperor. "The decree."

The chamberlain, who'd been silently standing several steps below the throne, took out a scroll and unrolled it.

The chamberlain cleared his throat and read the scroll's contents, "His Majesty, Emperor Sylvius Lockhart Mavis, is benevolent. He does not lie, and is always true to his words."

Unlike the decrees from the other kingdoms, the decree from the Empire always started by praising the Emperor.

"He is wise, magnanimous, pious, and cares deeply for his people," continued the chamberlain. "Listen, his subjects. The Emperor hereby decrees that the lukasian army shall be incorporated into the army of the prince the ambassador has chosen."

The chamberlain paused. He took a deep breath, and in a high-pitched voice, continued, "Tomorrow, the combined forces of His Highness, Prince Rykard, and Ambassador Reginald, shall depart for the Town of Cirno. The strategic point located west of Volkheim City and Meredith City. They shall recapture the Town of Cirno, reinforce it, and use it as a rallying point for future reconnaissance missions."

Hearing this, Prince Rykard froze. Prince Lysander smirked.

The decree was basically telling them to die.

That place was not only teeming with demons. It was located very near Meredith and Volkheim, and the risk of being surrounded and swarmed by enemies was very high.

According to reports, the lands near Meredith and Volkheim had already been turned dead and barren by the demons. Naturally, Cirno was included in this.

The Emperor was blatantly trying to eliminate the lukasian army, together with the Fifth Prince, at this point.

It was disgusting.

Even Reginald Vont, who believed in the strength of the Lord Knight, started feeling uneasy.

"This is the will of His Majesty, Emperor Sylvius Lockhart Mavis," said the chamberlain. "As the Seven God's chosen, it is also the will of the heavens."

The announcement of the decree ended. After bowing to the Emperor, the chamberlain returned to his post.

The Emperor expectantly gazed at Reginald, as though waiting for him to protest. But in the end, to his dismay, Reginald simply accepted the mission entrusted to him.

"I've received His Majesty's decree," said Reginald simply.

"I-I've received His Majesty's decree," said Prince Rykard with a slightly pallid face.

Both of them were uneasy, but they knew that it was too late to back down at this point.

They realized that they severely underestimated how much of a madman was the Emperor. As long as he could achieve his goal, he didn't even bat an eye when asking his son to undertake this impossible mission.

The Emperor was about to dismiss the two from throne room when the door burst open.

The royal guards were about to unsheathe their weapons, but stopped upon seeing a familiar face.

It was a disrespectful act that warranted the death sentence, but Emperor Sylvius remained silent as the one who'd just entered was none other than General Lazarus.

The normally stoic general looked grim for some reason. Briskly, he walked toward the throne.

"Lazarus, what is this about?" said Emperor Sylvius.

"Apologies, Your Majesty," said General Lazarus. "But it's an urgent matter."

It was rare to see the general this agitated. He even looked slightly pale, and beads of sweat had formed on his forehead.

"An army," said General Lazarus. He huffed, as though he had run all the way here upon receiving this news. "An army has arrived right outside the capital!"

"An army?" said Emperor Sylvius.

"Yes, Your Majesty," said General Lazarus. "They call themselves the Coalition Army. Dwarves, elves, dragons, and the King of Lukas is here!"

Everything the general had just said didn't make sense.

Coalition army?

And what was this nonsense about dwarves and elves appearing at their doorstep? Moreover, dragons? And as though it wasn't enough, the King of Lukas arrived with them?

Everything sounded so preposterous that the entire throne room fell silent.