NOVEL NEXT Chapter 273
At the very moment the Magic Tower began to be assembled on the western maritime island, Sally Jeffrey, under Jenis’s orders, announced a conscription level so severe that it would require sacrificing an entire harvest and prepared to move the army north. As a result of Jeffrey’s decision, the southern coastal defenses had effectively become abandoned. The Demon King received this report and smiled, realizing his expectations had been met.
“Indeed. The relocation of the Magic Tower is indeed a defensive measure. The enemy aims to prevent our forces from launching a surprise attack from the western coast by utilizing the Magic Tower, focusing all their strength on the southern frontline to crush us. We must brace for battle. Reinforce the defenses in the south and east! I will not let the enemy have their way.”
“I will not slacken my vigilance.”
The Succubus Queen reported. Since the queen wars, the Demon King, particularly affected by his mother, nodded in agreement.
“It’s always a good thing not to let your guard down, Mother! There probably won’t be any trouble! When the real battle begins, you too must join us on the southern frontline, so please keep that in mind.”
“I will not disappoint you.”
The Succubus Queen nodded. Meanwhile, Jenis Harker, who had successfully deceived the Demon King with her movements, was also acting very cleverly.
“The cargo coming from Eramenia needs to look like a fleet’s assembly. If the enemy discovers we are hiding cargo, they might become suspicious. However, the Demon King likely doesn’t believe we would launch a landing operation, so gathering ships near the Magic Tower won’t raise significant suspicion.”
Jenis instructed the Elf officers with great urgency. The Eramenian forces, agreeing to Jenis’s commands, nodded and withdrew. Jenis disclosed her movement to the Magic Tower only to a select few and acted secretly.
The other wizards, excluding Jenis, remained at the Empire Workshop, focused on producing weapons needed for their operation. In the meantime, Jenis sat alone in the Magic Tower, preparing for the total offensive operation against the Demon King that would soon commence.
On another note, at Jenis’s request, there was another active movement to divert the attention of the Demon King’s army. The resurrected Empress, adorned with a splendid shield, mounted a massive black horse and declared her reunion with the Royal Guard’s central force, initiating her speech.
“People, no, all citizens of the Empire!”
The Empress cried out.
“I do not doubt that you have suffered for ten years. Countless pains, the encroaching poverty, the fear of death, and the threat of ruin. The fact that I have not been able to protect you from this threat, named the Iron Wall, for ten long years is entirely my fault. I will accept the blame. But now, believe my words!”
No free person dared to harbor discontent against the great hero of the nation, the undefeated general, and the Emperor of the Empire.
“What I mean by believing is that, as you survive this era, you will ultimately come to realize what it truly means. We are living in a pivotal moment of transition to a completely new era. This is a glory that countless generations before you could not enjoy, a unique fortune that only the chosen generation can witness, an opportunity to etch your existence eternally in history. One day, your children, your grandchildren might ask you: ‘Father, Mother, how horrific was the war you experienced in your youth? Grandfather, Grandmother, it must have been incredibly hard and laborious.’”
Rose paused for a moment to catch her breath.
“I understand hardship. I know the effort. But if your children were to ask such questions, stand tall and proudly say: ‘Ah, you know nothing, child. You have no idea how dazzling it is to witness a homeland that was once plunged into darkness rising like the sun. You do not know how great it is when our country’s fate, which flickered like a candle in the wind, ignites like oil-soaked firewood!’ Proclaim it proudly and arrogantly. That you were here in this moment. That you lived in this era. That you stood alongside Emperor Rose Caprice, who wielded a weapon and spoke here! That you witnessed the invincible Emperor advancing north with his weapon! And amidst her proclamation of the Demon King’s downfall and the Empire’s perfect revival, you cheered heartily along with others for His Majesty!”
Upon hearing this, the crowds raised their hands to cheer for Rose, but the Empress raised her fist to halt them.
“Save your cheers. Wait until I announce the death of the Demon King, then you shall shout what you need to shout. At this moment, humans, prove to me what your existence is for, play the march!”
At Rose’s command, the military band loudly drummed to send off the Empress’s retinue. The gathered crowd began tossing flowers and waving flags as they bid farewell to the Empress. The resurrection of Rose Caprice didn’t need to be this grand, but this procession had quite the desired effect.
The Demon King, upon seeing the Empress’s proclamation of reunification and the movement of the Jeffrey family’s troops, completely forgot about the relocation of the Magic Tower and began to fixate solely on the maneuvers of the united forces. Deceiving the Demon King requires extreme patience, immense insight, and a touch of luck.
After almost being completely ensnared by the Demon King last time, Jenis finally succeeded in cleverly tricking the Demon King into believing that the relocation of the Magic Tower was not for an attack. The Demon King was wholly convinced of this, and he anticipated that the ensuing offensive would merely be bolstered by a small contingent of Eramenia forces and the elite guard of Rose Caprice.
The Demon King’s dilemma was about what scale the enemy would attack from the east and south.
Violet Moriarty was already contemplating various scenarios, fretting over how to deploy the Terkeon Empire Army to respond effectively to each situation.
How could she utilize the powerful yet still unreliable heavy riflemen? What purpose could the still present Shadow Knight Order serve? How should she deploy the numerically superior but poorly trained orc army for optimal effectiveness?
The Demon King even considered concentrating all his forces in the south at the risk of greatly weakening the western defenses, but that plan was scrapped due to the Succubus Queen’s opposition, who reminded him that the risk of internal strife still loomed.
The Succubus Queen couldn’t shake her suspicions regarding the Dragon Lord for various reasons.
The Mage Emperor’s mother was also increasingly troubled by complex thoughts.
What impact would revealing the Dragon Lord at this point have? This dilemma was particularly worrisome because if the Dragon Lord sensed the unjustifiable suspicion from the Demon Castle, there was a real threat of betrayal, which could position the Dragon Lord alongside the enemy.
One must not be too hasty in suspicion. If one intends to execute purges, one must do so with definitive proof swiftly; otherwise, it is safer to not show any signs of doubt.
For various reasons, the Succubus Queen feared that unnecessarily provoking the Dragon Lord could end up harming the Demon King. She had considered discreetly revealing to the Demon King what she had seen several times, but she hesitated, unsure of what consequences it might provoke. If she inadvertently revealed her doubts to the currently troubled Demon King, who knew what reckless entity might arise from the shadows?
Merely having met Bernard Silverpoint once wasn’t sufficient to raise serious suspicion. It could, rather, be part of Jenis Harker’s scheme.
What if this was an intentional ploy to show the united forces’ lion and dragon making contact, heightening suspicion towards the Dragon Lord and causing internal divisions within the Demon King’s army? The more one reacts, the more one falls into the enemy’s intentions. It was strange that the Dragon Lord would join the united forces, given that he had the Demon King nearby. However, given that he seemed to want to avoid a full-frontal confrontation with Audrich, it was entirely possible he chose to spare Bernard, who held a high status within the Empire.
But what if there was indeed some deal? If that were true, acting quickly was imperative to avoid a substantial disaster. Even if it were factual, more evidence and a firmer scenario were needed for direct action.
In the end, the Succubus Queen had no recourse other than to concentrate her attention on gathering tidbits of information across the corners of the continent.
Information gathering and observation were critical. Sometimes, small pieces of information could forever change the fate of the continent.
The Emperor’s retinue, the reinforcement of troops from the southern alliance, the rumor that the Emperor and the Baron would compete for achievements in this war while engaging in the power struggle, concerns about whether the Jeffrey Ducal Territory could endure a year without food supplies, rumors indicating that a large quantity of food aid from Eramenia had already been promised, and so on…
There were plenty of noisy pieces of information, yet none of them were of the type the Succubus Queen was searching for. Despite obtaining several valuable insights regarding news within the Empire, the Demon King’s mother often found herself frustrated, asserting that it was not what she was looking for. Meanwhile, the Magic Tower was steadily preparing for war, while Jeongjae and Rose conferred on military command authority after their meeting.
The conference went smoothly. While Douglas Koesernis independently handled the command of the southern alliance forces, Rose promised to take over the command of the central army while respecting as much as possible the structure and system that Jeongjae had set up. The Eramenia forces also bolstered their numbers, finally assembling an extraordinary army of 20,000. Alex led the Royal Knight Order to join under Margaret’s command. The cavalry’s mission significantly differed from that of the infantry.
Jenis explained that the Demon King would have likely pierced through the main strategy already, so there was no reason to conceal that. While the main forces swiftly advanced toward the Demon Castle, the cavalry, known for their maneuverability and breakthrough capability, would block reinforcements, between the eastern coast and the Demon Castle, an approach that anyone could easily imagine. It was undoubtedly the most reasonable tactic available at the time, a standard deployment that did not even require secrecy.
As such, Margaret did not shy away from revealing that she had formed the entire Eramenia army of 20,000 into a cavalry force, joined by the Royal Knight Order to create the most powerful cavalry unit on the continent. Upon hearing the news that Margaret was leading an overwhelming force of fairy cavalry, the Demon King couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine, rendering him sleepless that night.
Jean Helmut was also preoccupied with finding ways to effectively hinder enemy movements by tossing a minimal number of orcs as meat shields before the enemy. He concentrated on reinforcing the southern fortresses, where fierce attacks were expected, and put considerable effort into constructing artificial moats or trenches to limit the cavalry’s movements.
It seemed no one was paying attention to the west. Jenis, who saw through all this with her crystal, rejoiced.
“The time has come. It’s finally time to bring everything to fruition.”
Alone in the Magic Tower, the half-elf Great Sage prepared a grand spell using Reina’s red eyes, licking her lips in excitement.
An overwhelming thrill enveloped her body. The pains of the past and the suffering she had endured now felt as if they could finally be released. It seemed the time for resolution had arrived. With a single word from Jenis, the discontent marionettes of the demon tribe stacked like mountains would rise in rebellion.
Even if she could not permit the united forces to set foot on her land, the Dragon Lord was prepared to look the other way for those passing through the skies.
An airship was being transported from Eramenia to the Magic Tower. The Magic Tower, being sufficiently tall, would allow the fairy hydrogen airships to easily traverse and soon dash through the territory of the Dragon Lord into the heart of the Mage Empire.
The airship also served as a signal. When Jenis’s informants spotted that airship, it would be considered the commencement of operations, and they would swiftly launch the grand uprising against the Demon King. The elves of Eramenia, at Jenis’s behest, promised not to engage in hostile acts against the Dragon Lord or the demons who joined the uprising, albeit with some dissatisfaction, they were determined to uphold that promise.
Once the rebellion occurs and the Demon King’s army loses control, there would also be an opportunity to land forces on the steep western coast of the Demon King’s territory. While it is typically challenging to dock in such rugged terrain, it wouldn’t be impossible with no defensive forces present.
Meanwhile, the central Northern Expeditionary Force would steadily advance, clearing the way toward the Demon Castle. The enemy could not possibly fend off all three flanks of attack. Checkmate was near; she was almost victorious!
“Father, at last, I have completed a work worthy of a masterpiece. Hero, I have proven that I was right. Now I can conquer the west. I can sever the east. The Demon Castle can finally be toppled. So, now that I will achieve perfect victory, please fade away from my heart. Along with the black iron chains that bind my heart, disappear beyond the depths of my memory.”
But she must not become too excited. It was not over yet. No, this was only the beginning.
The operation for the decapitation of the Grand Lord was about to commence.