Chapter 159

"Why am I always the one standing?" Everson scratched his head, muttering to himself. Was the Grand Duke a little too excited today?

Inside the tent.

Magana pulled out another map of the Empire and spread it out, excitedly calling out, "Ryan, look! Our troops are here now, Kalkart is here, Baron has less than 50,000 men left... Do you think we could possibly launch a boomerang? Anyway, I only promised that guy we'd retreat, and my withdrawal from Baron was a retreat, I never said I wouldn't come back, right?"

Once Magana was certain that Ryan was safe and sound, with all his parts intact, her mind started working again. After all, this was the perfect opportunity.

"Oh right, and the Holy Blood Legion too. They've entered the city too. I'll send my army to charge in and kill them all! That Vainay, that Shally, they're all in cahoots, kill them all!"

The Grand Duke was full of fighting spirit and couldn't wait to lead his men to rush over and wipe out the Holy Blood Legion.

Ryan quickly grabbed her.

"Your Grand Duke, let me analyze this rationally."

"You say."

"Although I didn't witness what happened in Baron firsthand, based on what you just said and the current situation, I think now is definitely not a good time for a major offensive."

"Oh?" Magana crossed her arms and nodded slightly. "Why?"

"It's simple, we can't afford to win."

"Can't win?"

"It's not that we can't win, it's that we can't afford to win this war. Even if we win, the entire empire will be a mess. The Southern Territory will immediately riot, the imperial army will completely run rampant, and the Gate of Janus will also regard us as enemies. It's like we've only won an empty shell, but at the cost of the lives of our iron-blooded brothers and the endless losses of facing war."

"This..."

Magana hesitated.

Thinking about it carefully, it really is true.

The Southern Territory belongs to 'Vainay,' and the Imperial army is heavily controlled by Kalkart. Gate of Janus will certainly not give up, and the entire Empire will not benefit at all.

"Not only that, during my time in captivity, I also learned a terrible secret!" Ryan lowered his voice and said, "Grand Duke, do you know how many people the Holy Blood Legion has now?"

Magana tilted her head. "Ten thousand?"

"Be bold, add a zero."

"One hundred thousand?!" Magana was stunned. "How is that possible? The Holy Blood Legion has only been established for a short time. Besides, there simply aren't enough resources to support so many soldiers!"

Magana knew the Holy Blood Legion's combat strength. Those soldiers, endowed with special powers by the Will of War, had a faster formation speed and a higher growth ceiling than the Iron Blood Army. Although she was unwilling to admit it, the Holy Blood Legion was indeed more powerful.

There's no way around it; that's the effect of the war route. She's Chosen of the Gods of the death Faith Path, and she can't do what 'Shally' did.

"See, you didn't know that, did you?" Ryan continued to pledge his loyalty. "Those were all just appearances. Just like before the Baron War, nobody knew that Vainay was hiding so deeply. I clearly heard the conversation between that Shally and Vainay. And it's not just the Augustus Empire; the neighboring Kingdom of Lotte is also a secret base that the Holy Blood Legion is secretly developing. If you don't believe me, send someone to investigate whether the Holy Blood Army has been active in the Kingdom of Lotte!"

"I reckon that the Kingdom of Lotte will soon pledge allegiance to the Augustus Empire. Vainay is a terrifying person; she has already laid out her plans. Once she gains control of Augustus, she will use the Kingdom of Lotte as a springboard to seize control of the Northern Coalition."

Magana was taken aback. "The Kingdom of Lotte? She's actually extended her reach there?"

"Yes, I don't know the specifics either. I dug all this out with great difficulty. So I advise Grand Duke, Your Excellency, not to act rashly. As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. Vainay and out, but how much do we know about her? Too little!" Ryan sighed heavily, his face full of self-blame. "But in the end, it's all my fault. If I hadn't fallen for Shally's trap, Your Grand Duke wouldn't be in such a difficult position. Perhaps you would have already taken the Grand Duke."

"This has nothing to do with you." Magana waved her hand. "It's all because that Vainay is too insidious. Shally, to seduce you. Lord Ryan, you are a loyal and righteous person. It's normal for you to be deceived. You are the victim. I don't Grand Duke you. We should hate those who bullied us."

Ryan was stunned.

No, Your Grand Duke, if you put it that way, I'll be truly touched.

Ryan, you deserve to die.

"No matter how you look at it, it's all the time's fault."

The Grand Duke and I are of one mind, and I use my brain with the Grand Duke... To be honest, if it weren't for the cheat code of having unlimited alt Alts, Ryan would really want to follow the Grand Duke for life.

"Your Grand Duke, rest assured, I will never forgive Vainay!" Ryan patted his chest. "One day I will make her kneel down and sing 'Conquer'."

"Hmm, that's quite impressive. So, Lord Ryan, what do you think we should do now?" Magana praised.

If we can't fight, then we can only retreat and return to the Western Territory. But if we don't fight now, will we have another chance later?

A hundred thousand Holy Blood Legion! I reckon it won't be long before the Empire is rectified and stabilized.

"It's actually quite simple," Ryan said. "Grand Duke, are you any different from the Emperor now? Actually, no. In the Western Territory, you are the uncrowned Emperor."

"An uncrowned queen? Hmm, that sounds impressive." Magana laughed.

"Of course, look at Vainay. She can manipulate Caslathdi with ease, but would she dare to manipulate you? Definitely not. You are what she fears most right now. So I'm certain that once she becomes the new queen, she will promise you even more benefits. As for you, Grand Duke, whatever you get, just take it. It's free money."

"So, you're just taking all the benefits but not doing a single thing, right?"

"Yes, yes, I estimate that the Augustus Empire and the Northern Coalition will soon be at war. Your Grand Duke, you only need to secretly develop your power, sit on the sidelines and watch the tigers fight. When they are both exhausted, you can come out and reap the rewards. First take down Augustus, then break the Northern Coalition, and become the true Empress of the Northern Continent in one fell swoop!"

Magana's eyes lit up.

"Lord Ryan, you truly live up to your reputation!"

According to this plan, she is about to unify the Northern Continent.

"Then let's head back to the Western Territory now!"

"No, no, there's no rush," Ryan said. "Western Territory 're not in a hurry to return to the Western Territory. Let's see how Vainay plans to stabilize the Empire. We can also use this opportunity to secretly win over some people and lay the foundation for the future. In addition, you can have the Ironblood main force blockade the Tartar Defense Line. We must not let the Western barbarians take advantage of the situation. The Western Territory is our homeland, and we must not lose it. In fact, if you, Grand Duke, can conquer the Western Territory and the Great Plains, then no matter how vast the world is, Vainay will respectfully call you Grand Duke."

"Clearing out those barbarians... that's probably a bit difficult. The grasslands are too vast, and they don't even have a city."

"Actually, it's not that difficult. If you can't get rid of them, you can subdue them and defeat them one by one."

Although it is called a vast grassland, the environment is actually very harsh. Less than one-third of the entire grassland is truly suitable for animal husbandry. Therefore, the western barbarians are in a state of lacking everything.

Otherwise, why would they have nothing better to do than launch a daily offensive against Magana, who is guarding the Western Territory?

Where there is demand, there is also weakness; that's human nature all along.

"Dry!"

Magana delivered the final blow.

Planning is too far ahead. Just do what you have in mind. Anyway, I'll have nothing to do after returning to the Western Territory. I might as well fight the Western Barbarians as training.

"Ryan, your ideas are more to my liking. Although Ina is Grand Duke, I always feel that everything she says is a little lacking. However, you should also reflect on yourself and not be fooled by those women again, understand?" Magana raised her hand and patted Ryan on the shoulder. "You are going to do great things with Grand Duke, so you should focus on important matters."

"You're right, Grand Duke. I will definitely work hard from now on."

"So Grand Duke 've been thinking, how about we go ahead with the engagement ceremony? From now on, you'll be Grand Duke fiancé, and let's see which woman dares to cause you any trouble!"

"?"

Ryan was taken aback. "Your Grand Duke, should the engagement plan continue?"

"Of course." Magana put her hands on her hips and said proudly, "Grand Duke said I would make you famous and renowned, and I will definitely do it." Then, a brilliant idea flashed in her eyes, and she exclaimed, "I've got it! Let's hold our engagement banquet right here in the Imperial Capital!"

"Everson! Everson!"

"Your Grand Duke, they're here!" Everson rushed in excitedly. "Your Grand Duke, Ryan and his brother, have you made your plans? When do we start the killing?"

"Get ready, I'm going to have my engagement party."

"What... to do?"

Watching Magana stride away, Everson scratched his head and looked back at Ryan: "Brother Ryan, what did the Grand Duke just say he wanted to do?"

"Engagement banquet".

"You're with the Grand Duke?"

"Um."

Everson paused for a moment, then patted Ryan on the shoulder with a look of sympathy. "Take it easy, brother. The entire Iron Blood Legion thanks you."

"You... sister."

Ryan's lips twitched slightly. "Everson, from now on, you should just do a handstand outside every time you have a meeting."

Actually, Ryan doesn't care about engagements or anything like that; he's fine with marriage.

What's wrong with Magana? She's ranked highly in popularity in the game. Go ask around and see how many people are willing to buy her ring for 648.

A legal loli with a gentle heart, you can pick her up and charge at her without any problem, that alone makes her far superior to countless so-called heroines.

Of course, Ryan didn't expect that Magana would still remember the engagement, and that she would be so reckless as to want to hold it in the Imperial Capital? As expected of the Grand Duke, he couldn't have come up with such a plan even if he racked his brains.

In fact, although his arrival in the Imperial Capital did not cause a sensation on the surface, many forces were secretly watching him.

After all, the events in the Southern Territory had caused quite a stir back then. Everyone thought that Ryan was a vassal of Caslathdi, but now that he has returned and his identity has been revealed, everyone knows that he was actually a lackey of Grand Duke Magana.

This whole affair was truly a case of an insider infiltrating a rival's camp and becoming a trusted advisor. In no time, the story of Magana x Ryan x Caslathdi became gossip among the nobles of the Imperial Capital.

However, because Caslathdi had not shown up, the news and gossip did not spread. On the contrary, when the Iron Blood Army announced the Grand Duke's will, everyone fell silent.

"Magana, who wields considerable military power, is planning to hold her engagement party in Baron? Is it true?"

"Perhaps they are playing a much bigger game?"

"It's also possible that it was just a moment of impulsiveness."

"Ryan? Who?"

Perhaps it's because Magana usually does so many earth-shattering things that when the news spreads, some people actually find it quite reasonable? It's as if any outrageous thing becomes not outrageous once it's associated with Magana.

However, Magana deliberately scheduled the engagement banquet before the 'Vainay's' ascension to the throne, intending to annoy 'Vainay'. Some people were waiting to see what would happen and whether a fight would break out. Unexpectedly, 'Vainay' immediately expressed its support for the Grand Duke and Ryan's engagement banquet, and even offered to vacate the palace to host it for them.

For a moment, the people of Baron were a little confused.

So, is Magana actually the confidante of 'Vainay'?

Thinking about it carefully, if it weren't for Magana leading the Iron Blood Army in and wreaking havoc, even with the support of Gate of Janus, 'Vainay' wouldn't have been able to do anything... Hiss! The smell of conspiracy is coming through.

Surprisingly, because of this incident, those forces that were secretly plotting against each other have all quieted down.

After all, Magana's Iron Blood Army is right here.

Furthermore, after the Holy Blood Legion entered the city, 'Vainay' immediately deployed them to the area around the castle, replacing the original royal guards. The ten thousand bloodthirsty warriors dealt a heavy blow to the psychological defenses of the nobles of Baron, and some began to waver and consider taking sides.

Ryan didn't care about the rumors and speculations outside. His original intention was to keep the Grand Duke in Baron for the time being to stabilize the situation, and then, after 'Vainay' officially took the throne, he would take the opportunity to propose the High Lord Council and bring the Grand Duke directly into it.

However, this engagement banquet gave him an idea. The day after the news broke, he had 'Vainay' send out invitations to Magana, Caslathdi, 'Lin Qi', and many influential nobles in the Imperial Capital to attend the Imperial Conference under the pretext of discussing the future development of the empire.

The empire has just experienced a coup, and there are too many unresolved issues within it. At this time, it truly needs a decisive opportunity to bring things to a head.

On the one hand, it was to urge those still wavering nobles to make a decision quickly, and on the other hand, it was to take this opportunity to pass the High Lord's decision proposal, while Magana was still around, her vote was crucial.

"What's this guy up to now?"

Magana held the invitation in her hand. She hadn't planned to go, but then she thought that the other party had just given her face, and all the forces had been invited. If she didn't go, what if these people were secretly discussing something shady?

After thinking it over, Magana still decided to go, and not only that, she would bring Ryan along. Just imagining how Caslathdi would react to her and Ryan made Magana incredibly excited.

Princess, Saintess, future emperors—watch me unleash Ryan and set the world apart!

"Ryan, come with me to the castle. You will speak on my behalf at Grand Duke meeting later."

Second update~ The update is a bit late, mainly because a few chapters were stuck in the review process, and then I had to revise and resubmit them. Overall, it's okay, just Weinei. The group hasn't been created yet; I feel like managing too many groups would be overwhelming. I'll wait and see.

Please vote for me at the end of the month!

A bounty will be offered at the end of the month [Updates will be posted earlier].

As the title suggests, I didn't want to start writing this, but I just couldn't keep up. So far this month, I've already updated 320,000 words, which is more than 10,000 words per month on average, far exceeding the Hedgehog Cat standard.

But I still want to try my best to climb the monthly ticket rankings, because I'm really close to it. If there's any hope, I want to give it a shot, so I decided to offer a bounty.

The bounty rules are a bit different from the usual ones. The goal is to reach the monthly ticket ranking. If you can reach the monthly ticket ranking this month, you are guaranteed to update more than 15,000 times a day for a week in the following month!

Although the reward rules are somewhat cunning, we simply can't afford to offer rewards based on the number of votes, since our daily updates are already over 10,000 words, so there's no other way.

That's all, back to writing!