Southern Legion General Headquarters.
A burly figure stood before the command table, his deep-set eyes fixed on the sandbox floating with pale-blue motes of light.
Under his personal command, the entire Bartoya Province, along with the northern coast of the Whirlpool Sea, had been linked into a single chessboard.
And as the "Death Agent" virus continued to ferment, this game had entered its final stage.
At that moment, the flag representing the 117th Myriad-Man Corps on that orderly chessboard had been marked gray—the color of rebels.
The least resolute pieces had been the first to leave the board, while the ones besieging them were the 10th Myriad-Man Corps of the auxiliary army and the "Iron Crossbow" Rapid Response Force.
At that moment, a pale-blue figure appeared beside the command table. An utterly ordinary-looking man gave a slight nod.
That man was one of the pieces on the chessboard—Heinz, commander of the "Iron Crossbow" Rapid Response Force.
Looking at his trusted subordinate, Tyr asked expressionlessly.
"How has Triumph City reacted?"
Heinz reported respectfully.
"No movement for now."
No movement...
At those words, a flicker of surprise passed through Tyr's eyes, and his expression gradually turned grave.
He left the sandbox and paced twice before the nearby bookshelf. Then he turned his gaze back to the sandbox, his brows knitting tightly together.
There were only two possibilities.
Either Triumph City was mired in internal chaos and unable to extricate itself, or his opponent was even harder to handle than he had imagined.
For the first time since this contest began, he felt truly troubled.
Through the pale-blue motes drifting over the sandbox, he seemed to see his opponent.
It was a man whose emotions never showed on his face, like a seasoned hunter unmoved by his prey's provocation.
The hunting bow was