The timing couldn't have been worse.
The meeting hadn't even ended yet. The Elders, along with the main parties who worked together with them to lead the armies, were still trying to find a solution to their current problems.
But alarm bells rang.
Throughout the entire stronghold, the sound of warning was clear to all.
The Divine Order was staging an attack. Not just any attack, but a full frontal onslaught that left no room for counterattack.
And the worst part?
"We've received news from the others. This attack has surrounded the entire principality. It isn't just on our border."
If someone stood above Aeria and looked down on it, no matter which direction they looked, they'd see the Divine Order's people on the border.
Clashes had already begun. It hadn't escalated to a full-out war yet, but it would be there soon enough.
"DAMMIT!"
Perseus slammed his fist against the table.
"These bastards won't give us a single moment of rest!"
He was pissed. He was losing hope. But he couldn't focus on that right now.
"Tell everyone to prepare for mobilization. We'll be preparing to confront their armies from now on!"
If confrontation was what they desired, confrontation was what they would get.
"Regardless, we cannot win against them. We've been doing our best to hold out until now, but under an assault like this, we will either be exterminated or driven back until we've lost the entirety of Aeria."
That was reality,
They only had two options.
"Either we continue to play passive and protect as much as we can, even if that ends up being no more than a single city, or we fight! We fight until our last breaths and make sure that those who come after us will not face the same powerful armies we are facing today!"
If one thing was certain, it was that the Divine Order couldn't dedicate all its resources towards conquering Aeria.
With the sizes of the armies growing each day, they'd probably already reached their limits on what they could assign, but since those limits far exceeded what the defenders of Aeria could handle, it wasn't a problem.
Perseus knew it was hopeless, but he refused to lose hope.
He didn't think retreating here was the right option.
"Our people will die no matter what. With every time we are pushed back, thousands of soldiers will die protecting our rears. Should we sacrifice their lives for a meaningless and pyrrhic victory, or should we carve a path for our reinforcements to walk?!"
He didn't know who it would be, but he was sure somebody would come.
Whether it be from the main palace, from other principalities, or even from within Aeria itself, he was sure somebody would appear to stand up against the Divine Order.
Because that was the kind of place the Southern Region was. They, unlike others, truly had a sense of community that held them together. They weren't the type to abandon each other.
And though nobody could come in time to save them, Perseus was certain somebody would arrive by the time they died.
In that case, wasn't it better for them to use their lives to guarantee a path to success for those people?
Wasn't it better to bring down the enemy's number so others didn't have to struggle like so?
As he expressed his feelings, others gradually voiced their agreement as well.
Nobody wanted to die meaninglessly, but in a situation where they had no choice in the matter, they'd much rather do something potentially great than something cowardly in their last moments.
The armies of every border gathered. It wasn't just Perseus and his group in the south.
They were no more than a ragtag group of bandits in front of the full force of the Divine Order's armies, but they gave off an aura of valiance that the enemy could never possess.
Because they weren't fighting for greed. They were fighting to protect their homes, their families, and their livelihoods.
Perseus stood before his army along with Monique and Fidora. He looked at each and every person present, acknowledging the emotion in their eyes.
He wasn't the type to give speeches, nor was a speech necessary here.
They all knew what he wanted to say. Saying it again would be pointless.
Instead, he raised his sword to the sky. He flared his aura, letting his mana run wild. And he shouted.
"KILL!"
The raw emotion they all shared. The only thing they wanted to do.
""KILL!""
The army responded to his call.
Together, they exited the stronghold and faced the enemy proudly.
"DIVINE ORDER SCUM!" Perseus roared.
He didn't care that they were a mere 300,000 facing over 3,000,000 troops.
He didn't care that there were over 10,000 Demigods on the enemy side.
He didn't care.
He just shouted at the top of his lungs.
"TODAY, WE WILL SHOW YOU THE MIGHT OF OUR VOID PALACE! FACE THE RAGE OF THE SOUTH!"
He didn't care if they could hear him.
He didn't care if they were provoked or disgusted by his words.
He didn't care.
He just wanted to see their heads at his feet.
"CHARGE!"
300,000 troops moved as one.
And on the other borders, similar scenes displayed themselves.
The entirety of the Aeria Principality's combat power only amounted to a single army of the Divine Order if one excluded Divinities, but none of them showed fear.
It wasn't just people at the lead like Perseus. Even the most common soldiers had the same pride and rage in their hearts, motivating them to kill until the moment they died, and then keep killing.
The gap of a few thousand kilometers would close itself in an instant now that they'd begun moving.
And that was the situation Damien arrived to see.
He stood above Aeria and looked down on it. No matter which direction he looked, he saw the Divine Order's people on the border.
He saw the valiant troops of the Aeria Principality making their last stand, and he saw the 12 Elders who stood in front of them as generals.
And he smiled.
'I'm proud.'
He was proud of his people. It was a feeling he had several times since he arrived in the Southern Region.
But his smile wasn't completely pure. Deep within it, there was a boiling rage that no mortal could bear.
'The Divine Order…'
They really had some nerve.
He couldn't believe the scene he was witnessing because of them.
Though…
'...I don't see any Gods in the crowd.'
Not only in the crowd, but in the general vicinity, there wasn't a single God present.
Which meant…
'...it's my time to shine.'
Damien had been in this position before.
When he was at the extreme peak of 4th class, and even before that, he'd been here.
He was so far above his peers that they were like ants in his eyes, yet those stronger than him were strong enough to crush him like an ant himself.
But, right now, the second half of that statement didn't matter.
What mattered was that Demgods didn't stand a chance against his power.
No matter how close they were to establishing Godhood.
He raised his arm into the sky, his mana billowing around him.
Clouds gathered in the air, not because Damien changed the weather, but because his mana was heavy enough to change the atmosphere.
This much of a scene was only natural.
Before the Divine Order got news of what he'd done to their little spies…
…he would show them who he was.
He would properly introduce them to the monster that was Damien Void.
