The Holy Court, inner hall.
The table was inlaid with golden patterns, while the central area was covered by a large expanse of dazzling gemstones.
The Holy Descendant King sat at the slightly elevated head seat, while two of the five duke chairs were currently empty.
Su Xiao, the Old Duke, and Madam Moon Wolf were all present. It had been one day since the Ironfeather King had died.
The Northern Alliance had launched an attack. On the very day the Ironfeather King died, the Northern Alliance broke through Serra's border defenses. One hundred and fifty thousand polar cavalrymen charged straight in, smashing through seven lines of defense before stopping to regroup because their supply troops could not keep up.
Under normal circumstances, news of such a war would reach Arlans City within three hours. The dukes and the Holy Descendant King would be the first to learn of it, after which they would make a decision.
Yet on that day, the Empire's upper echelons knew nothing about it. The reason was that the soldier responsible for delivering the battle report was assassinated the moment he reached Arlans City. None of the twelve soldiers who arrived in batches survived.
It was no longer possible to determine who had orchestrated the ambush, and there was no time to investigate. The officials of Arlans City made up for that with their subsequent actions.
At the Empire's final moment of life or death, the officials finally set aside their greed. They endured the assassins' attacks and sent people to the front lines for information. Twenty-seven waves of people died before they finally verified the battle report. Note that it was not twenty-seven people who died, but twenty-seven waves of people.
The next morning, the battle report finally reached the Holy Court. As for