The Pascal Family's Secret

Cleric Awen escaped; all his methods were countered, even the [Divine Art: Kingdom of Heaven] lost its effectiveness.

Before escaping, he imprisoned and took several Gargoyle Soldiers with him.

Cleric Awen's departure was naturally noticed by the Atonement Army. It was impossible to expect these people to have any loyalty to the Church. Their pain dissipated, and they chased after Cleric Awen in the direction he had fled without looking back.

Loren breathed a sigh of relief; the war was temporarily over. But Count Pascal would not give up, and the Gargoyle Legion pursued them relentlessly.

"The Pascal Family, their ancient bloodline can be traced back to the time of the Hero King."

"In that era, they became nobles, owned their own land, and occupied the Pascal Plateau as counts. At that time, the Northlands did not exist. The Danube Province, including all the lands of the present-day Empire, was at a high enough altitude."

"Later, the sixty-third Count Pascal became one of the founders of the Florian Empire, following Emperor Flor, and the Pascal Plateau became the present-day Danube Province."

"After the War of the Deities Across Planes ended, the conflict between the Empire and the Church broke out. Count Pascal betrayed the Church of Dawn and took control of the Gargoyle Legion."

"The history of the Pascal Count Family did not end there."

"Over a long period of time, the nobles had an instinct for reproduction and procreation, and the bloodline of the Pascal Count Family exceeded 25,000 people."

"Nearly seven to nine thousand Pascal Bloodline died in the War of the Deities Across Planes."

"The Pascal Count Family suffered heavy losses. A new count inherited the Noble Title, namely the current Count Pascal. Because of the severe loss of his bloodline, he recalled all Pascal Bloodline."

"This point in time is the time after the Count led the Gargoyle Legion to betray the Church and, together with the Empire, wiped out the Mute Ascetics of the Danube Province."

"In the ten years that followed, of the more than 15,000 remaining members of the Pascal Bloodline within the Count Pascal's territory, more than 6,000 died."

"Count Pascal declared war on the Church of Dawn, furious at the Church of Dawn's Bloodline Curse."

"The curse continued, and in the following five years, fewer than two thousand people of Pascal Bloodline died out."

"Perhaps it was because of the Church of Dawn's curse on Count Pascal that the emperor and the grand dukes at the time had a basic level of trust in Count Pascal."

"But it's still not over even here."

"One decade, one five years, that makes fifteen years. The struggle between the Empire and the Church continued into the fifteenth year, when the most serious internal strife in the Empire occurred, and a large number of nobles died in the process."

"The entire Pascal Count Family, except for the Earl, all the nobles with Pascal Bloodline, the Baron and viscounts, are dead, including their own families within their own territories."

"The Pascal Bloodline now numbers less than five hundred people, and the only noble Noble Title left is the Noble Title."

Of the 25,000 people, fewer than 500 died...

As Ryan listened to the news of the Viscountess's gathering, he couldn't help but gasp in shock. The Viscountess herself trembled with fear as she recounted the news.

So many people! Only a few hundred are left dead. Most of the Noble Title have disappeared, leaving only one Noble Title and territory.

For a noble family, this should be a catastrophe, right?

An ancient family that had thrived for thousands of years almost went extinct.

Such a thing would probably drive any nobleman crazy, but Count Pascal was able to persevere and bring his Earldom and Gargoyle Legion back to prominence, so that even in the present empire, the status and power of the great nobles have not declined.

"Why does that sound so familiar?"

Ryan blinked, realizing that he had recently expressed his anger to the Church of Dawn, severely condemning and retaliating against their "assassination" attempt on him.

"How did the Church of Dawn respond to what happened to the Earl's family?"

"There has been no response."

No response? Does that mean they've admitted it? Ryan looked at his female chief officer in surprise.

"The Bard we sent to visit the nobles in the Danube Province all returned with no response."

"If the Church of Dawn would curse a noble bloodline, it's no wonder the nobles of the Empire have united to fight against it."

Ryan's words made the Viscountess hesitate, and she said:

"But the Archbishop Bard led us to the Northlands told him that there were no curses in the Church's Divine Art, and that power given by God could not possibly contain any curses."

Ryan pondered, "Divine Art has no curses?"

The Church summoned someone? That's impossible; the Church's arrogance should leave them friendless.

If the Church lacks the means to inflict curses, then where did the curse on Pascal Bloodline come from? The Church remains silent on this matter; there must be a reason, right?

"It seems we still haven't found the truth."

Ryan laughed. The Earl's secret had been buried for many years, Imperial Capital couldn't know it. It was normal that he hadn't found it in such a short time.

Just as he was about to reach out and pull the Viscountess over, the butler's voice rang out from outside.

"My lord, news has arrived from the Andara Kingdom."

Every time such a report was given, it gave the butler Bilder goosebumps, followed by an indescribable feeling of satisfaction.

He was the master's butler, the Baron's butler, yet words like "king" and "King" could appear in the mouth of such a butler.

This was all thanks to the honor bestowed upon him by Lord Ryan, allowing him, a mere butler, to frequently hear such a distinguished name mentioned.

"Is the war over?"

Ryan knew the war wouldn't be uneventful the moment the Gargoyle Legion moved.

"Yes."

The butler handed the note to Ryan. Ryan opened the hard note, which was as stiff as a door panel, and the smile on his face disappeared.

"Is the Wyvern Legion really that weak?"

Ryan had long heard of the Wyvern Rider, and it was certain that they were even stronger than the Rampaging Elephant Legion. Ryan would not forget the Rampaging Elephant Legion's devastating victory in the war in the Eastern Kingdoms. But why did the Wyvern Legion lose more than three hundred Two-legged Wyvern in this war?

Over three hundred! One Two-legged Wyvern is enough for a Baron's territory to raise with all its resources. Over three hundred? That Loren Columbus will probably have to go back to the Imperial Capital to be punished after the war ends.

"The Atonement Army is indeed powerful, with three Legendary, over twenty Saint Realm, hundreds of Sky Knight, and more than a hundred Grand Mage?"

Ryan was surprised by the failure of the Wyvern Legion and also felt the pressure that the nobles on the Path of Dawn were under.

Such a lineup can indeed be described as overwhelming.

However, before Ryan could put down the intelligence in his hand, the butler Bilder took the message from the Knight Retainer rushed up in a panic.

"My lord, the Griffin Legion of the Sera Kingdom has crushed the South defenses of the Andara Kingdom. The allied forces of the six counts have suffered heavy casualties, and the Griffin Legion is marching towards the Andara Royal City."

"So fast?"

Ryan stood up abruptly.

From his conversation with Count Pascal, he learned that neither of the two empires' Extraordinary Legion would go south to stop the Sera Kingdom, which made him certain that the southern battlefield would end in defeat for the Andara Kingdom.

I just didn't expect it to happen so quickly.

Andara Royal City.

Previously, the Warthog Orcs from the Northlands had defeated the city from the the North, so even after it was rebuilt, people preferred to move closer to the South city wall.

This time, however, the Griffin Legion came from the south. The raging Magical Beast in the sky put immense pressure on the royal city. When they launched their attack from the sky, people found that the kingdom's army seemed to have no way to deal with the slaughter coming from the sky.

"Traitor, damned traitor!"

Deep within the Royal Palace, King Adams hid in fear in his own palace, watching the Griffin Legion that filled the sky outside, cursing angrily.

"What are those damned nobles doing? They've allowed the army of the Sera Kingdom to appear in the capital! And why hasn't Grand Duke Leta arrived yet? So what if those Witch Ghosts eat people? Can they compare to my safety?"

"Where's Daryl? Bring him back."

Outside, shouts of battle filled the air, and the King's roar was equally deafening. Meanwhile, to the north of the royal city, Grand Duke Leta's Witch Ghost Legion finally arrived to reinforce the city.

"Glory belongs to Sera!"

The roar of the Griffin Knights echoed across the sky and the earth before they swooped down towards the army within the royal city.

Outside the city, Grand Duke Leta was still hesitant, because the Witch Ghosts were uncontrollable and would kill living humans indiscriminately if they entered the city.

"Your Excellency, the King orders you to stop those damned traitors immediately!"

The arrival of the royal bloodline conveyed the King's orders, and Grand Duke Leta no longer hesitated, leading the Witch Ghost Legion into the city to attack the Griffin Legion.

The arrival of the Witch Ghost Legion made the royal city even more chaotic. People feared these strange Witch Ghosts even more than the Griffin in the sky.

The Witch Ghosts did not disappoint them. The strong aura of living people made them unable to resist, and many Witch Ghosts rushed into the houses next door and feasted on the mortals.

"Damn it, let them attack the Griffin!"

Grand Duke Leta was furious, then looked at the Legendary beside him.

Anla Letta took to the sky and let out a roar. The Witch Ghosts reluctantly gathered and pressed towards the battlefield South of the royal city. Their arrival was effective. The Griffin could no longer recklessly and unpreparedly charge into the Witch Ghosts army. These monsters from Otherworld had the ability to kill Griffin.

However, the war still couldn't favor the Andara Kingdom. Grand Duke Leta wanted to get the Legendary involved, but the hundreds of Wind Spirit Guard floating in the Sky-rank left him helpless. That was the Legendary blessing of the [Wind Emperor], meant to counter the Legendary power of the Andara Kingdom.

If nothing unexpected happens, there is also a Legendary wind magic lurking in the shadows, waiting to be unleashed.

Faced with this situation, Grand Duke Leta still felt it was safer to keep the Legendary power by his side.

The King probably thought the same way, so Grand Duke Leta went directly to the kingdom to have the power of the Legendary protect Your Majesty.

The war continued until an hour later, when an even more majestic roar finally came from the eastern sky. Loren Columbus returned with his Wyvern Rider and launched a charge against the Griffin Legion.

The defeat of the Crusader Atonement Army had left this member of the Imperial House seething with anger, and now was the perfect time to vent it. Most importantly, he needed a victory in war to explain himself to the emperor.

With the return of the Wyvern Rider, the Griffin Legion finally withdrew from the skies above the royal city. Faced with even larger Two-legged Wyvern, the Griffin gradually lost control of the air.

After a brief clash, the Griffin Legion began to retreat, and Loren did not pursue them. The Wyvern Legion had suffered heavy losses, and he did not want any further accidents to occur.

The extraordinary war ended in an hour and a half, but the chaos caused by the Witch Ghosts within the royal city took three hours to quell.

When all the war was over, the royal city was filled with smoke, screams and wails.

The King in the Royal Palace was also furious and questioned Loren, asking why the imperial legions had not stopped the Griffin Legion of the Sera Kingdom, allowing the Griffin Legion to appear in the sky above the royal city and shamelessly trample on the dignity of the Andara Kingdom!

The King was naturally furious, and Loren was also somewhat afraid, because while rebuking the King, he had actually written a letter to the emperor to complain. In order to appease King of Andara, the emperor would probably have to make some concessions.

"Your Majesty, after defeating the Crusader Atonement Army, we were about to launch an attack to the south, but we did not expect the Griffin Legion to be so fast. We thought the kingdom's army could hold them off for two hours."

Loren had intended to shift the blame onto Count Pascal, if things went smoothly.

However, things did not go smoothly. The Wyvern Legion suffered heavy losses against the Crusaders, and the arrival of Count Pascal changed the outcome. In this case, Loren could no longer shift the blame to the Count, and could only openly or secretly blame the problem on the Noble Army of the Andara Kingdom, which could not even hold out for a few hours.

Upon hearing this, the King's expression darkened. He also felt it was unreasonable, and he even began to doubt once again whether the nobles had a problem with him as King and whether his King was legitimate.

Adams was always very concerned about this matter.

All parties parted on bad terms, including Grand Duke Leta. His Witch Ghost Legion had caused immense damage to the royal city, surpassing even the Griffin Legion. Although it was the King's order, the nobles certainly could not rebuke the King, especially at this extremely sensitive moment and in front of the equally sensitive King. Therefore, they could only ostracize the Grand Duke.

A day later, the Gargoyle Legion returned, and Count Pascal brought back bad news: the Legendary priest had not been captured, and Gerald Noble Territory was filled with land and people hindering their progress. The Crusader Atonement Army had regrouped and remained powerful.

The Griffin Legion returned to the South, and on its way back, it dealt another huge blow to the morale of the nobles' allied forces. The shadow of war suddenly loomed large, and the southern and eastern directions of the Andara Kingdom felt like a desperate situation was about to unfold.

(End of this chapter)