Chapter 140

The battle began in the next second.

"She, she, she, she, she..."

Amabena was speechless with astonishment as she watched Motis wreak havoc.

How is this guy so amazing!

"It's alright, let's sign the contract. Let me see... how about this?"

Ryan calmly wrote down the contents of the contract.

This is a fair trade.

Since he'd run into this mess, Ryan might as well take this opportunity to control the Kingdom of Lotte and then infiltrate the Northern Coalition.

Moreover, with the Kingdom of Lotte as a safety net, he has more room to maneuver in his plans within the Augustus Empire. It can be said that he has an extra way out, and it is even possible that he could have the Kingdom of Lotte send troops to help his Alts at the right time.

It just so happens that Amabena is a talented individual. As long as the power is in his hands, he can completely control the emperor and command the princes... Oh no, Amabena probably wouldn't care at all. If the Kingdom of Lotte is thriving and she is not in any danger, she would be happy to give Ryan a back massage, a leg massage, or even pour him some water.

What?

The dignity of the king?

Nothing exists, nothing is real, I, Amabena, just want to live a good life!

Ryan can just bring over 'Shally's' Holy Blood Legion. The Holy Blood is already spreading out and developing secretly throughout Augustus, so bringing a portion over won't have any impact.

It wasn't that he looked down on the military strength of the Kingdom of Lotte, but rather that the Holy Blood Legion, led by 'Shally,' was simply not on the same level as ordinary armies. Moreover... well, the Kingdom of Lotte didn't really have much military strength. It used to be very strong, but its wealth had been basically squandered by Amabena's father.

In the game, the Kingdom of Lotte is in a rather delicate situation. Internally, various nobles are vying for power, while externally, members of the United Nations also want a piece of it, making it beset by internal and external troubles.

What United Nations? It's been rotten for ages. If Augustus hadn't been rotten himself, the Northern Continent would have been left with only one overlord. What a pity, it's all the Old Emperor's fault.

But there's no Kansai!

He, Ryan, is determined to climb to the top step by step!

"Come, Your Majesty, please take a look and see if there are any problems." After the contract was drafted, Ryan handed the contract paper to Amabena.

Actually, he was a little worried about whether she would sign it. After all, such an important document shouldn't be signed so hastily... Oh my god, she signed it! She really signed it! She signed it without hesitation!

"I read it when you wrote it, there's no problem, so let's leave it at that!" Amabena signed her name.

Then a drop of blood was dripped, and judging from her pained expression, anyone who didn't know better would think she had cut off a piece of flesh.

"Aren't you going to hesitate? Or do you think my conditions are too demanding?"

"Tough? Not really," Amabena said matter-of-factly. "Anyway, I have nothing left now, and going back would just mean certain death. Although I don't know what you're planning, even if you destroy the kingdom, I won't lose anything. On the contrary, if you can help me regain my power, then you'll be my father!"

"Uh, no, no, it's not that bad."

Ryan was speechless, thinking to himself, "You didn't call me 'Dad' in the game either..." Although he hadn't played to that point, he had read the information, and this character did seem much more 'lively' than in the game.

"I'm serious, Ryan, I'm counting on you!"

"Ah, very good... Hmm, your choice is very wise."

After a moment of silence, Ryan nodded and said, "Damn it, what kind of operation is this? It's a bit beyond my understanding. He even prepared a hundred reasons to trick Amabena into boarding the ship."

"However," Amabena's tone shifted, "If possible... I still hope the Kingdom of Lotte can become better, so Lord Ryan, I entrust the kingdom's people to you."

"Don't worry, it won't do me any good if I destroy the kingdom, will it?"

According to the contract, he helped Amabena regain power and clear away obstacles within the country, Amabena promised to listen to him in governing the kingdom.

From the perspective of a contractual relationship of equality, it is actually quite fair, because Amabena has nothing left but the title of king.

Furthermore, if Ryan fails to fulfill his obligations, Amabena will not be required to fulfill the terms of the contract.

But because Ryan was confident he could complete the task, he always felt he had gotten a great deal, and Amabena was the kind of person who was sold out by him and still counted the money together.

Turning his head, he saw the king staring at him with wide, expectant eyes.

"So what do we do next? Ryan, quickly use your invincible firepower to think of a solution!"

With the contract in place, they were now in the same boat, partners, so Amabena wasn't worried about Ryan doing anything bad to her.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. The firepower is on its way on horseback. Let's leave here first, or the pursuers will come again."

The Bounty Hunter has been killed by Motis, but the pursuers are definitely on their way, so this place is not safe.

"Where do we go then?"

"How is Aster City?"

"Aster? There are too many people in the city, aren't there? What if we get discovered..."

Ryan thought to himself that these Bounty Hunter didn't know him at all, and how many people on the border knew him as the new king? In the pre-internet era, news traveled very poorly, and the princes and ministers, in order to get rid of Amabena, this cheap queen, would not let the news of her ascension to the throne spread far. Therefore, Ryan was certain that it would not matter even if Amabena walked into the city gate with her head held high.

However, it's best to wear a hat just to be on the safe side.

"There are hotels, restaurants, and all kinds of delicious food and drinks in the city, plus comfortable beds and hot baths. You've been starving for three days straight, haven't you?"

"Stop talking!" Amabena said with a serious face. "I'm going to inspect the territory now."

"Then let's go."

On the way to Aster City, Ryan listened to Amabena explain the current situation of the Kingdom of Lotte, while ordering Motis to go and farm in the wild. At the same time, he switched to the game and asked Shally to gather a part of the Holy Blood Legion to come over first.

Although Motis has good attributes, his level is too low. The King of the Wild Hunt path has a lot of room for growth. Once he reaches a higher level, the skills he learns will definitely be incredibly powerful, and he will certainly not be worse than Shally, the Blood God's Chosen.

Therefore, her top priority is to work hard.

The Holy Blood Legion can develop anywhere; its small size makes it easy to infiltrate. The only problem is the equipment. Ryan plans to develop first and gather enough troops. Even if he doesn't have more than five thousand or ten thousand, he is confident that he can protect Amabena and get her to the royal city.

Although the Kingdom of Lotte still bears the name of a kingdom, its national strength has declined, and the major lords have become powerful and independent, even refusing to pay taxes. It is on the verge of collapse.

Therefore, the number of troops in the royal city would not be large. According to Amabena, in the territories of the various lords, there was one Grand Duke with 50,000 troops, while the others had at most a few thousand or tens of thousands of troops.

Now it's that Grand Duke who wants to kill her.

Believe it or not, although Amabena seems useless, she is very knowledgeable about the situation. She knows exactly who is hostile to her and wants to become queen, and which noble territory has more soldiers and which has fewer.

"There are always treacherous people trying to harm me!" Amabena said to Ryan more than once. "So I have to find out who wants to harm me, otherwise I'll die without knowing why."

Ryan thought to himself, "You're absolutely right."

It will take 'Shally' three days to arrive, so he can take a break here.

Ryan switched to the 'Vainay' character interface and found that the army had already set off north.

However, the paladin army did not join them, but instead arrived at the northern border ahead of time and set up camp.

Cardinal Andeni, the head of the Gate of Janus, publicly declared that they would eliminate the threat of the Blood God from the Augustus Empire.

However, this statement was quickly met with opposition from within the Empire. The Burning Covenant, whose main area of activity was the North, condemned Gate of Janus as a barbaric interference in the regime of another country.

The Burning Covenant is the official Supernatural Being force of the Augustus Empire, but it is also openly operated by ordinary people, similar to religious organizations like the Gate of Janus and the Blood Cult, who preach faith in the Sun God to their subjects. However, the Burning Covenant is relatively new, so its religious influence is mainly concentrated in the northern region, allowing Supernatural Being to remain hidden throughout the empire. Furthermore, due to the Old Emperor's own professional background and his control of imperial power, he wanted to control the power of the Burning Covenant but did not want its religious influence to become too great within the empire.

'Vainay' investigated the historical records of the Augustus Empire and found that the country did indeed worship the Sun God, but as the religious power declined, the faith fell into silence until the Burning Covenant came into being.

This is equivalent to the beginning stage of the game. Ryan remembered that there were side quests in the early part of the story to help the Burning Covenant develop. He guessed that later on, they would also have to squeeze out the infiltration of Gate of Janus.

This involves a struggle for faith among gods.

Speaking of which, would the Sun God really protect the Augustus Empire? It's uncertain. The Old Emperor followed the Divine Path, and the Gate of Janus were blooming everywhere. The Burning Covenant a flickering candle in the wind amidst this vortex. How could it possibly have the right to compete with the Gate of Janus?

Unless the Old Emperor supports a path where the imperial regime confronts religious forces, this wave is clearly the Old Emperor using the pursuit of fire to put pressure on the Gate of Janus, and then secretly conducting negotiations.

There were many variables, so Caslathdi didn't want to wait any longer. She planned to break the deadlock with war and not give her old father much time.

Compared to the situation in the Southern Territory, the situation in the Western Territory was much better. After all, the army was all Magana's own. After listening to Ina's advice, the Iron Blood Army wiped out all the surrounding towns in just one day... In fact, they didn't fight at all, they just traveled. Wherever the Iron Blood Army went, they were welcomed with white flags and the French salutes were quite standard.

Ultimately, the Ironblood main force surrounded the Zijin City, summoning troops under the pretext of 'Remove the Emperor's Evil Advisors.' Currently, some people in the Zijin City are preparing to defect, but due to the Royal Guards stationed inside, they are temporarily locked in a stalemate.

'Ina' estimates that the city gates will be wide open in three days at most, and the Royal Guards will likely withdraw, but the city will come under Magana's control.

Once a precedent is set, the iron-fisted army will advance triumphantly, which is far better than suppressing with bloodshed.

With the Old Emperor busy dealing with the Gate of Janus, the Iron Blood Army's advance will proceed smoothly for the time being.

As for what happens next, who cares? Let's conquer the territory first.

Anyway, the Holy Blood Legion still needs time to develop. This wave will probably depend on how the Burning Covenant operates... Speaking of which, Ryan still doesn't know who the leader of Fire Chaser is. Although they obey the Old Emperor's orders, the purpose of Fire Chaser was to maintain the stability of the empire, and only later did religious forces develop. So, things will get interesting from here on out.

Da da da da.

One day later.

The carriage successfully entered the Aster City.

Amabena lifted the carriage curtain and cautiously peeked out, keeping a watchful eye out for anyone who might try to assassinate her.

"Don't worry, there aren't that many assassins on this border," Ryan said speechlessly.

"Where's your capable subordinate? The cool one, where did she go?"

"Oh, she's not one of my subordinates, just Bounty Hunter I hired. She left after completing her mission."

"What are we going to do then?! Why didn't you keep her?! You could have at least given her money! Σ(⊙▽⊙"a)"

"Don't worry, with a hat on, who will recognize you? Why waste the money?"

Ryan was very familiar with this tactic; he had swaggered into Silver Peak City back then.

But... hey, hey, hey, move your umbrella away a bit, you're blocking my view outside!

After some commotion, the carriage stopped at a hotel. Amabena covered herself up completely and walked almost right next to Ryan, glancing around every now and then.

Ryan shook his head at his guilty look.

"Boss, two rooms, please," Ryan said.

The boss looked at Amabena with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong with her...?"

"He is my father, and I am his daughter now!"

Ryan: "?"

"Oh, I see, I understand." The owner smiled and processed Ryan's check-in.

No, what do you know?! I'm not her dad! You think I'm playing those rich, powerful games?!

"Please, please." Amabena grabbed Ryan's arm, which was trying to stop her, her eyes brimming with tears.

"... Tsk."

Ryan was speechless. Just how afraid of death was this girl?

Fine, father it is then.

After checking in, Ryan went to his room. To his surprise, the room was large and well-equipped, though a bit expensive. But it didn't matter; he had plenty of money anyway.

"I'll rest for a bit, then I'll take you out to eat later."

Ryan was also a bit sleepy after staying up all night.

Amabena nodded and quickly went into the room and closed the door.

"Phew~ I'm exhausted."

Ryan lay in bed and habitually opened the game.

As soon as I switched to the character interface for 'Lin Qi', a message popped up—

"The Pope has entrusted me with representing the Gate of Janus to speak with the Emperor of the Augustus Empire. She wants me to find a way to uncover the secrets of the Blood God's ritual and reveal them to the world."

Whew~ First update finished at noon. Time to grab a bite and get back to writing! Requesting monthly votes! Requesting your support!