Fifteen lean, round towers dominate the skyline of this massive castle and are connected by large, chunky walls made of sandstone.
Crude windows are scattered thinly across the walls in an asymmetric pattern, along with holes of various sizes for archers and artillery.
A moderate gate with great wooden doors, a regular bridge, and large crenelations guard the last stronghold along this rough shoreline and it's the only way in, at least without taking down the castle walls.
Various large houses are scattered outside the castle gates, surprisingly the rich are comfortable with living outside the gates as well. This castle is relatively new, but it stood its ground with ease and will likely do so for ages to come.
This was the Castle of Echo Nexus Emperor. This newly built Castle was made for the Crown Prince. This Castle was going to be given to Louis as a gift by the Emperor the day when Louis becomes the Emperor. And that day was going to come very soon. Originally, the Emperor had planned to make Louis the next Emperor within 6 months. But all of his plans now had failed. Louis was captured, and their ally was attacked.
The atmosphere of Ostrance City was very tense. Originally, under Emperor Lucca Mcneil's orders, the whole of Ostrance City was preparing for the days when the Crown Prince will officially become the Emperor. The whole city was decorated. On this joyous occasion, the Emperor even reduced the tax on food products.
But all that went down the drain when the news of the Crown Prince is captured by the Istarin Emperor reached the ears of Ostrance. The celebrative atmosphere of the city and of the Empire disappeared.
The atmosphere of the whole city became cold and gloomy.
Ostrance means ⦉The City Above Demigods⦊. The Ostrance City is the capital of the Echo Nexus City. The city of Ostrance was built in the shadow of a rugged volcano and is truly an extraordinary display of wonder. Its wonder is matched by the backdrop of modest hills which have helped shape the city into what it is today.
The riches these hills brought were of great importance, but they were also influential when it came to architectural designs as the vast majority of buildings follow the flowing round shapes of those very same hills and continue the overall aesthetics.
Culture is rising in Ostrance and it has attracted a lot of attention. Countless cultures have left their mark not just on the city's development, but also on the city's identity. What historically was a city of plain, ordinary people has grown into a fusion of everything and it's this that unites the 8 million people to this day.
It's this multicultural identity that has truly left its mark. Hundreds of concession stands, theme restaurants, and restaurants offer a plethora of culinary choices.
Meanwhile within the Royal Castle,
Massive braziers half enclosing each of the ten travertine columns light up most of the throne hall and mantle the hall in warm yellows. The paintings of angels and cherubs on the bowed ceiling dance in the flickering light while marble icons and memorials look down upon the maple floor of this regal hall.
A carmine rug runs from the throne to the doors and is matched by smaller ones on either side of the hall while square dag banners with burnished tassels dangle gently from the walls. Between each banner sits a small altar full of candles, almost all of them have been lit and in turn illuminate the depictions of other leaders of the world below them.
Massive, stained glass windows depicting important royal moments are enclosed by curtains colored the same carmine as the banners. The curtains have been adorned with impressive needlework and decorated tips.
A regal throne of stone sits behind a lavish gate of gilded wood and is adjoined by six rather plain-looking seats for visiting dignitaries.
The throne is covered in complicated marks and fixed on each of the broad feet is a crystal dagger. The comfortable pillows are a dark carmine and these too have been adorned with emblazoned sigils.
Those listening to their royal highness can do so on the abundance of lightly illuminated oak benches, all of which are perfectly aligned in rows. Those of higher standing can instead take seats in the gorgeous mezzanines facing the benches below.
A man wearing a simple white T-shirt and black pants was sitting on the regal throne of stone and resting his body on the dark Carmine pillows. The man was tan-skinned. Under his simple loose clothes, his muscular body was adorned with old scars and marks.
Standing at a height of 6 feet 6 inches, his tan skin and his muscular body made him look like a beast folk even though he is a human. His intimidating eyes and his stoic face made him unapproachable. The man had an Aura of a Ruler around his body. This Aura of his made it difficult even for the nobles of this Empire to tremble in front of the Emperor.
This was the Emperor of the Echo Nexus Empire. His name was Lucca Mcneil. The feared Emperor who controls the whole Dying Isle continent.
As of this moment, The Emperor had an impatient tone on his face. The fall of the Dragon Slayer guild and the news of his son being taken away by the Istarin Empire had pissed off the Emperor.
"Philip, did you send my words to the Istarin Empire?" Asked Lucca to his Prime Minister Philip.
"Your Majesty, by now your words should have reached the ears of the Istarin Emperor."
Hearing this a freezing smile appeared on the Emperor's face. With his freezing smile, some advisors felt their blood running cold. Whenever the Emperor has shown this kind of smile on his face, nothing good has happened. The advisors even felt pity for the Istarin Empire and the Istarin Emperor.
"Philip, do you think my son is still alive." Lucca dearly loved his firstborn. Even though the Emperor had many sons and daughters, Louis always remained his number one favorite. No one clearly knew why Louis was so favored by the Emperor. The Emperor would go as far as to personally teach Louis about cultivation. This isn't something that he did for his other children.
The Emperor has carefully raised his son to take his throne and manage the Empire so that Lucca can rest. Despite looking like a middle-aged man, Lucca was over [700+] years old. Lucca is a man who had seen the rise and the fall of Empires. He and the Echo Nexus Empire managed to survive and become the Superpower of the Dying Isle continent because of his cautious and sly nature.
"Your Majesty, there is no need to worry. I am sure not even the Istarin Emperor dares to do any harm to His Highness." Little did Philip and Lucca know that Aditya had crippled the Crown Prince's cultivation. And each with passing second, his sufferings were only growing. As two Dragonians were constantly torturing the Crown prince.
The Emperor was waiting for the other Emperors to arrive. It was no hidden fact that any force that messes with the Echo Nexus Empire or with any of its allies will face wrath from the whole alliance. The head of the Alliance was the Echo Nexus Empire.
'I wouldn't have called for this meeting if I hadn't heard this news.' Along with the news of his son being taken away, Lucca also got the news about how the Istarin Empire managed to defeat three Western Empires within a single night and had taken total control over them. This news greatly bothered the Empire.
Lucca wasn't a fool. If he was then he wouldn't have lived for [700+]. Hearing the news, he knew that he needed to reevaluate the military strength of the Istarin Empire once again.
The plan of attacking the Istarin Empire was called off. 'It wouldn't be wrong to assume that the current Istarin Empire is even stronger than the Echo Dominion Empire. If it is, then fighting the Istarin Empire alone would leave us weakened. It would be better to fight Istarin Empire using The Oracle Alliance.' Lucca knew once the Echo Nexus Empire loses its strength it would lose its position and powers that it currently holds. This is something that Lucca wanted to avoid at all costs. So he was going to use the Oracle Alliance to fight this war.
The Oracle Alliance was an alliance formed between the 11 Empires and the Dragon Slayer guild. The Dragon Slayer guild was an unofficial member of the Alliance. The Echo Nexus Empire added the Dragon Slayer guild to the alliance for its protection. The Alliance members benefited from the Dragon Slayer guild. So no one raised any objection. The head of the Oracle Alliance was the Echo Nexus Empire. It is an Alliance that was formed between the friends of the Echo Nexus Empire.
The Oracle Alliance was the Echo Nexus Empire's biggest strength and the Echo Nexus Empire was the Oracle Alliance member's biggest strength. The whole alliance was more like a one-sided dominance. The other 10 Empires had to listen to the Echo Nexus Empire no matter what.
If any party, faction, Empire, Kingdom, Dynasty, or foreign power attacked any member of the Alliance, every other member of The Oracle Alliance will deploy its military to fight.
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