It was the 3rd meeting already. Now, with just the representatives of the three remaining kingdoms in the union, the Odelia King said,
“I couldn’t believe what I heard this morning. Is that really true? No, how the hell did he infiltrate Rascal and take out so many troops in just an hour? I know that Roman Dmitry isn’t an ordinary person, but it’s beyond common sense.”
“I can’t believe it either. It was 10,000 troops. It’s unusual for Kronos’s land to be invaded, and now Roman Dmitry proved that he wanted war, not just by declaring war, but through actions. They are truly trying to deal with Kronos without the help of the Kingdoms’ Alliance!”
The Umberto King chimed in. The destruction of Rascal was shocking news. The people were sure that Dmitry would stick to defense like the west of Cairo, but the events of the night were refreshingly shocking.
It was not only shocking that 10,000 people got massacred with just a small number of troops, but the fact that they made the decision to invade Kronos’s land first was absurd.
Just how?
What was Roman’s true identity?
Against the Kronos Empire, whom others wouldn’t even dare to look up to, Roman didn’t back down, despite having a small nation.
The Frank King said,
“…but this incident made me think that Kronos might not be as supreme as I thought. Roman Dmitry ruled out any involvement in the alliance. Why? Isn’t it his sincerity to show that he can deal with Kronos with just the strength of Dmitry? And by destroying Rascal, he proved that Kronos is no longer so invincible.”
He looked up, and tried to understand the circumstances of the case. The Frank King, who didn’t understand Roman Dmitry, saw the possibility that he might have a chance.
At those words, the two Kings reacted as if a war had started.
“What are you talking about? It should never be. Your opponent is now Kronos! With a loss of just 10,000 troops, do you think the situation would change so drastically? The troops of Rascal are just a small fraction.”
“Right, Frank King. Roman Dmitry clearly showed a shocking result that hadn’t been seen before, but if you think about it differently, it can also be interpreted to mean that if you don’t take the risk, you won’t win in the first place. Take a look at the history of the continent. People who were dissatisfied with the system of the Kronos Empire always appeared and raised their voices, but they never died from expulsion.”
It was an overly violent reaction. The words of the Frank King certainly held meaning, but the other two didn’t accept them.
After the second conference, the two kingdoms contacted the Kronos Empire. They already had no option of uniting with Dmitry again.
But the Frank King didn’t back down.
“No. I don’t think so. As you all know, the Phoenix Magic Tower, which originally belonged to Frank, moved to Dmitry. At that time, I was very upset, but when I sent someone to find out more about it, the Phoenix Magic Tower continued to develop at a really fast pace. Frank and Dmitry have different situations. But if they are those who produce different results under the same conditions, they may be able to cause the downfall of Kronos, which was thought to be impossible. Furthermore…”
It wasn’t just the public rumors. The most important reason for the Frank King to move was the cause of Roman’s declaration of war.
“When Roman Dmitry defines someone as his own, he never lets go of the hand that he chooses to hold. Rather than trembling in anxiety every day under the Kronos Empire, I would rather follow Dmitry if there is even a bit of chance.”
“No, Frank King!”
It was a mess. The place where they were supposed to talk turned into a sad attempt by the two Kings to convince the Frank King.
There was no concession to others. Frank also wanted to move the entire Kingdoms’ Alliance, yet he had no choice but to leave like Redford in the face of excessive resistance.
“I apologize, but I need to talk with Dmitry at least.”
And so the Frank King left. With that, the third conference also ended in a mess.
It was a mess. After the conference, the Odelia King had a thought. The conference of the kingdoms had now lost its meaning, and it had become a foreign alliance that was shocking even to call an alliance.
What did this mean? If even the Frank Kingdom sides with Dmitry, from then on, Dmitry wouldn’t be the only one that would get destroyed.
‘The moment the Dmitry union is defeated, the Kronos Empire will realize its ambition of conquering the continent.’
Despite knowing the problem, there was no other option. So the Odelia King contacted the Kronos Empire to live.
“…this is how things turned out. Dmitry now has the support of Cairo, Redford, Hector, and the Frank Kingdom. The scale of the all-out war against Dmitry has grown to the point where it can be called a continental war, and I heard that the 10,000 troops of Rascal were destroyed in a surprise attack. Please tell us the correct answer. In order for Odelia to live, what should I do now?”
It was an earnest question. Baron Charlton, who was on the other side of the screen, said with a relaxed face.
[Odelia King. The King’s worries were wrong from the start.]
“…what is that?”
[Even if the entire Kingdoms’ Alliance supports Dmitry, the Kronos Empire will go ahead with the war. Rascal’s incident angered His Majesty. An order has been spread throughout the empire on a scale that will go down in history. Do you know what it means? It’s not just about punishing Dmitry but wiping it off of the continent’s map.]
The Odelia King was shocked. If Kronos put their lives on the line, the situation wouldn’t change no matter how desperate the Kingdoms’ Alliance was.
What he was worried about was Kronos’s decision. If they engaged in this war with an unclear attitude, only the Odelia Kingdom, which betrayed the Kingdoms’ Alliance, would be in a difficult position.
So Baron Charlton’s words gave him assurance. Relieved, he asked in a calm voice,
“Tell me what Odelia should do.”
At this point, Baron Charlton opened his mouth as if waiting.
[Finally, the Odelia Kingdom has something to do.]
What he heard was right. In this world, there is no such thing as peace without a price.
A few days after that.
In the 1st defense position, a long procession rushed to the front line bordering Cairo. Baron Baros, who was in charge of the defense camp, ran in a hurry when he saw them entering the castle gate.
“You went through a lot of trouble to walk here.”
“The situation?”
“As soon as Rascal’s situation was settled, soldiers were sent out to capture Roman Dmitry, but there was no trace of him. So the soldiers moved once again. If Dmitry is attacked, Roman Dmitry will have no choice but to eventually show up.”
“That rat. Well, you did a good job. No matter where he is, he can’t change it anymore.”
It was Duke Bamford, the commander of the Kronos Empire. As a veteran who led numerous battles to victory, he was called a military symbol in the Kronos Empire.
Just by looking at him, one could tell how determined Kronos was.
With him in the lead, about 30,000 troops reached the 1st defense position, and more than twice as many troops arrived.
He took a step. Then he gave the command and gave them the details.
“Currently, Dmitry is concentrating on the Western Front, allied with Cairo. From the fact that he secured supplies and paid attention to Magic Defense, it is presumed that he had been preparing for a siege and plotting ‘some kind of plan,’ but we haven’t yet been able to figure out Roman Ditry’s exact intentions. In the case of the other kingdoms, Redford, Hector, and Frank have expressed their interest in helping Dmitry, while Odelia and Umberto seem to side with us.”
“The world has gotten so much better. To think that so many kingdoms would rebel against Kronos.”
“Roman Dmitry is the problem. As he destroyed Rascal’s troops, he seemed to have decided that in the case of Frank Kingdom, he could deal with the empire.”
Duke Bamford laughed.
That had to be it. A fight could only last if the strength of each side was somewhat similar, but the Kingdoms’ Alliance, including Dmitry, had fallen into an illusion.
Kronos mobilized hundreds of thousands of troops in this war. Aside from their overwhelming numbers, this was the first battle in which all of Kronos’s knights and mages would be mobilized.
The history of the continent, as people said, was usually decided by Kronos revealing ‘some power.’
But the Emperor made a decision this time. Even if Roman Dmitry were a monster who could slaughter tens of thousands of people alone, from now on, he would learn what it means to be involved in a war of nations.
It was the history of the Kronos Empire, which had been built for years. And Duke Bamford, who was a part of it, was able to give orders with confidence.
“About ten days from now, as soon as everything is ready, an all-out war will start against Dmitry. This war is the starting point of our continental conquest, and we need an overwhelming result, not just a victory against Dmitry.”
“Yes.”
Right now, from this moment on, it is no longer a topic that can be avoided.
On the 3rd day, a problem occurred in the 1st defense.
“Euk!”
“Cough, cough.”
At first, they thought it was just a simple disease. However, the number of people coughing and puking increased, and it quickly spread through the troops.
So Baron Baros reported the series of events.
“Since this morning, the condition of the soldiers has been strange, and they are displaying symptoms like puking, fever, coughing, and collapse one by one. The number of soldiers who showed abnormal symptoms reached 10,000, and about 300 of them died before they could survive. It is clear that Roman Dmitry is up to something.”
With this series of events, Duke Bramford intuitively saw the starting point of the problem.
“They used poison. Immediately order the soldiers to identify the exact source of the poison, such as wells, and block them. And call the mages of Behemoth. With their skills, they should be able to solve the poison spreading to the soldiers.”
“I understand.”
And his expression distorted.
Poison!
When did they use poison? Since Duke Bamford had such an experience on the battlefield, he judged that there was a high chance that they used it on the water well. That must have been how the poison spread to the soldiers.
Realistically, people had no choice but to consume water and food, so the well was the right place when it came to poisoning everyone.
That was why the well was strictly guarded, but he couldn’t guess just how the well got contaminated with poison. So he first had to solve the problem at hand.
Duke Bamford hurriedly moved, and he looked at the mage who was examining the patient.
“Do you think you can cure it?”
It was Mateo, a Behemoth mage. He was an expert in poison, and he accompanied Mateo to solve the situation.
And with a confident expression, he said,
“Do not worry. Poison is my expertise.”
“As I thought!”
Everyone trusted him. Mateo received the trust of the people and specialized in detoxifying the mind.
“Cure Poison.”
Wheik.
Flames rose. Mateo, who raised his mana, skilfully moved the aura to detoxify the body. The person who used the poison had to be Roman Dmitry.
However, after receiving the mysterious poison through Baron Charlton, the mages of Behemoth became really passionate about deciphering it.
Because of that, they could solve the problem. The more advanced Cure Poison gave him confidence that he could decipher the poison.
But 10 minutes passed.
20 minutes.
30 minutes too.
There was no sign of detoxification.
Mateo, who had been looking at the patient for a while, looked up at Duke Bamford with a face of despair.
“…it seems to be difficult to break it down with my skills. We need the help of the tower master to solve this problem.”
His face looked like he was about to burst into tears.
It was hopeless. The poison used by Roman Dmitry was a difficult problem that was completely different from the last time, and it couldn’t be solved in a short time with just the knowledge in this world.
