Azekiel stepped inside. The guard followed behind him, still keeping his spear ready to attack in case he tried to pull something dangerous against the General. Even until now, they weren't sure that Azekiel knew General.
"Greetings, General." Azekiel stepped inside the main hall where a meeting was taking place.
The old General raised his eyes and gazed at the young man in the distance. As soon as his eyes fell on Azekiel, his jaws dropped. He stood up from his seat with a horrified look on his pale face.
He wasn't the only one with the reaction. All the seniors of the Army who were sitting in the hall with him had the same reaction. They had seen Azekiel on the battlefield.
The old man noticed the Guard who had his spear aimed at Azekiel. "You idiot! Lower your Spear!"
Being a subject of the General's scolding, the Guard lowered his spear, wondering just how special this man was for everyone to react like this.
The General knew just how strong Azekiel was. He had seen him in complete action and knew if Azekiel wanted, he could kill them all before they could even have a chance to speak. Despite that, they were standing perfectly fine. That could only mean Azekiel wasn't here to kill them.
Moreover, they already knew that Azekiel was no friend of the Empire of Greed. So he had no reason to attack them.
The General slightly calmed down, realizing that Azekiel had some other motives in coming here that didn't involve killing him.
"You can leave," he commanded the Guards. "Close the door on your way back. No one is allowed to disturb us."
The Guards affirmed and left the hall, leaving only the highest echelon of the army officials.
After the guards left, the General lowered his head. "Greetings to Senior. I don't know who you are, but you're certainly similar to our Emperor. He is also strong enough to decimate armies. I deeply apologize if our army offended you in some way. It wasn't our intention."
"What purpose brings the Great King here?" he asked. "We will help you in any way we can, even though it's a War time for us."
"This is a War you aren't going to win," Azekiel lazily stated as he picked an empty chair and took a seat. "I've seen your position on the battlefield. You would've lost that battle, and before long, the Empire would be sieged."
"I don't believe that." The General shook his head. "We already sent a message to King Michael. It's only a matter of time before he comes back. Under his command, we will once again be dominating the enemies. We just need to hold on until then."
Azekiel scratched the back of his head. "If you're waiting for Michael, it's going to be a really long wait that will never end. Michael isn't coming to save you this time."
"He will certainly come! This is his Empire! He will not let it fall. I know what kind of a person he is." The General also sat, facing Azekiel.
Azekiel tilted his head a little to the left, slightly amused. "Doesn't he need to be alive to come to your rescue? I'm sure he's already busy enough on his journey to hell. He won't have time to come to rescue you. And even if he does, I doubt a spirit could save you."
"W-what are you saying? Are you saying that our King is...?"
"Yes. Your King died already," Azekiel responded calmly.
"Nonsense!" The General's fist landed on the table brutally as he stood up.
It was only after he showed his outburst that he realized that he had made a mistake. He couldn't show his outburst before another King and make him angry.
"I-i apologizes for my conduct, but I don't believe it's possible." He lowered his head slightly and sat down again. "Our King can't die. He is so strong! He is like a God! Gods can't fall."
"You're wrong. Even Gods can be slain if they are facing another God," Azekiel calmly answered. "If you don't believe me, you can look at his dead body. I mean, it's not like you'll have to walk too far to see it."
"Wha... What do you mean by his dead body?" The General's face went dark as he heard the implications behind these words.
"Fifty of my men are waiting outside the Empire. I had a feeling that you weren't going to believe me. That's why I've made one of them bring the body of Michael. You can see with your own eyes. Your King is dead, and so is your Empire. If there is someone who can save your Empire now, it's me."
"You can't be telling the truth. It's not possible! It's just not possible! I saw the glory of King Michael with my own eyes. How can he die?"
"If you don't believe me, tell a soldier outside to call one of my men who is carrying the biggest sack. Tell them to let that man come here without checking what's in the sack. It would be quite bad if the soldiers saw what's in the bag, you know, for the morale."
Even though the General didn't want to believe Azekiel, he also couldn't see a reason for Azekiel to lie. It wasn't as if he needed to lie to force them to do anything. His heart thumped as he thought of the possibility. If their King was really dead, it meant they had really lost this war.
Even though he didn't want to see the dead body of his King, he also couldn't ignore the possibility. He stood up and left the room.
Outside, he commanded one of his men exactly as Azekiel asked him to do.
"And hurry," he added before he stepped inside.
The soldier ran through the crowded streets of the town, racing to the output where the fifty men were waiting on horses, under the strict observance of the soldiers.
A new soldier arrived and commanded the outpost soldiers to let one of them in without checking.
Warren got down from his horse. He was already told by Azekiel what was going to be happening. As soon as he saw a soldier running to the post, he understood everything. He got down his horse and took the heavy bag with him, which seemed to carry a weight of around seventy kg.
He followed the soldier who got him an entry without being checked.
Even though the soldier was told not to check what was in the bag, he was still really curious.
He couldn't help but ask, "What's in the bag?"
Warren smiled wryly. "Believe me; you don't want to know."
The soldier grew even more curious, but he didn't ask again.
Warren was brought to the mansion and allowed to go inside. He was taken to the hall where Azekiel was waiting with the others. The soldier once again closed the door and left.
The old General gazed at the sack in the hands of the young man. His feet started trembling as he took a few steps closer to the bag.
With trembling hands, the General opened the sack.
