Chapter 249
After conquering another town, Darius stood proudly on the city wall and ordered the city's lord to personally replace the Demacia flag with the Noxus flag.
This is now Noxus territory.
Noxus, unmatched power!
After the flags were changed, Darius kicked the city lord down the stairs and then surveyed the town with the air of a conqueror.
The resources here are far richer than those in Noxus... Although Noxus has the largest territory, the output of various resources is extremely scarce. If it doesn't sustain itself through war, it probably won't last long and will have to reduce its army size.
Chen Ce made a wise choice.
By acquiring Demacia and using their resources to fill Noxus's void... only in this way can the empire grow stronger and stronger!
"What a beautiful landscape... Now it all belongs to Noxus."
Darius nodded in satisfaction, but did not rush to order his soldiers to prepare the army and capture the next town.
Because they're going to be staying here for a while.
Because they are about to face their strongest opponent—well, at least the strongest in Demacia, a weak nation.
[Dauntless Vanguard]
The last elite force of Demacia.
Although those few people are insignificant compared to the Empire's 50,000-strong army, they still need to be taken seriously... Let's try to minimize casualties; Noxus isn't exactly wealthy right now.
Besides, this was also Chen Ce's intention.
They awaited the arrival of the Demacia general with his army in Tobicia.
What was their general's name again...? I think his official title was "Grand Marshal"? I heard he was a woman... Ha, how ridiculous.
Let's wait and see...
Trifarix Legion rested in Tobicia for two full days.
This mineral-rich city has been completely occupied by Noxus. All the surviving soldiers and citizens have surrendered, and Noxus soldiers can be seen patrolling the streets.
And the flag of the Trifarix Legion.
For the past two days, Darius has been standing on the city wall, gazing into the distance.
Finally, before sunset on the third day, he saw a row of black dots on the horizon.
This was followed by a slight tremor in the ground and some dull thuds...
Undoubtedly, it was a large army.
But compared to the Trifarix Legion? Hah... it's laughable.
The Dauntless Vanguard... Come on, let the warriors of the Empire witness the power of this legion.
Please don't disappoint us too much, Grand Marshal of Demacia...
"Everyone—prepare for battle!!"
Darius dispelled the soldiers' lethargy with a loud roar.
Noxus conquers Demacia...
Today!
Chapter 101 Become an Obedient Dog, Tianna
As evening fell, Tianna's Dauntless Vanguard finally arrived in Tobicia.
Her scouts told her that Tobicia had fallen completely, and the defenders on the walls had all been replaced by those damned Noxus —judging from their armor and the insignia on their chests, they were none other than Noxus's most powerful and emerging legion— the Trifarix Legion.
The city walls were lined with Noxus soldiers, ready for battle. Various heavy crossbows and cannonballs were already mounted on the crenellations, and there were also many unfathomable "Black Mage"... They had the advantage of perfect timing, location, and manpower.
And these are only a tiny fraction of their massive army.
Tobicia... harbored no fewer than 50,000 Noxus soldiers!
Tianna surveyed her army, a profound sense of powerlessness rising within her even before the battle began... The individual combat strength of her Dauntless Vanguard might not be weaker than that of the Trifarix Legion, but the difference in numbers... was simply too great...
Fifty thousand Noxus soldiers... fifty thousand... that's two or three times her number...
The attack happened so suddenly that she didn't have time to mobilize too many troops. She could only call upon the Dauntless Vanguard, the garrison of the Great City, and troops from several surrounding cities... In contrast, those damned Noxus seemed to have prepared their attack plan in advance...
With such a large numerical disadvantage, and the fact that her side is now on the offensive... the chances of winning are extremely slim...
With those terrifying heavy crossbowmen and Black Mage around, even getting close to the city walls would be difficult, let alone breaching them...
Why... why...!
Tianna, her face grim, ordered the troops to set up camp, intending to ascertain the situation before making any further plans—a rash attack would only result in the needless destruction of the entire army.
She paced back and forth in the makeshift tent, her eyes glancing around every now and then. She couldn't see anyone else, but she knew that terrifying young man was definitely nearby.
Yes... he followed us... he was hiding in the army... he was watching everything from some dark corner...
"Scout!" After a moment of unease, Tianna steadied herself and called out to the soldiers.
"Take my letter to the Noxus leaders! I need to negotiate with them!"
"Yes!" The scout took the letter, immediately mounted his horse, and prepared to go to the city wall to request negotiations.
Just then, another person walked in from outside the tent.
Eldred, commander of the Mageseeker Order.
"This is too strange..." The thin nobleman, slightly hunched over, looked both humble and wretched. "Why would those Noxus attack at this critical juncture? Did they know about the mage's rebellion beforehand?"
"Eldred..." Tianna looked at the person who had arrived and immediately felt a surge of anger.
Regarding Noxus's sudden attack, her first suspect was Chen Ce, and the second was this man...
Although she had no concrete evidence, she was perfectly certain that the wizard rebellion was instigated by Eldred... and that the assassination of the king was something he orchestrated himself...
If Noxus received advance notice, then only this treacherous fellow could have sent the message beforehand...
"This matter has absolutely nothing to do with me... Please believe me, Grand Marshal." Eldred dared not look Tianna in the eye, but he had already guessed that he was being suspected—or rather, that's why he had come here on his own initiative.
"I am deeply sorry about what happened to Your Majesty... but I had absolutely no knowledge of Noxus's attack... Please believe me, I am just as surprised as you are."
"Even if this has nothing to do with you..." Tianna took a deep breath, her anger almost unbearable. "Why did you act on your own? Are you forcing me into that dangerous position...!"
"But danger always comes with greater opportunity... With your ability and prestige, you should stand higher." Eldred lowered his body even further, but a hint of arrogance was hidden in that humble posture.
It's as if to say... Now that you have this power, shouldn't you thank me? I did for you the things you didn't dare to do.
Tianna was even more furious.
But she couldn't raise her sword against him at such a crucial moment.
After a moment of silence, Eldred continued in a self-satisfied tone, "Your Excellency Grand Marshal, even though the situation is dire, we are not yet at our wits' end... This is better than before. Tell me, have I done anything wrong?"
"I really want to chop your stupid head off right now..." Tianna's teeth were chattering.
Eldred simply smiled casually, "Well... I must remind you, Your Excellency Grand Marshal... I have some confidential documents in Great City, which I believe are only accessible to the two of us. Yes... those things cannot be seen by others, otherwise it will cause a lot of trouble."
Upon hearing Tianna also fell silent for a moment.
Are you threatening me?
"No, no, no, of course not... I just hope that you—the Grand Marshal who stands at the pinnacle of power in Demacia —can cooperate with me more in the future. I believe this would be a win-win situation."
As he spoke, Eldred finally raised his head, his eyes gleaming with smugness.
"I wouldn't presume to say we're on equal footing, but... perhaps we should start showing each other respect from now on, shall we?"
Upon hearing this, Tianna finally couldn't contain her anger any longer.
Thump! She slammed her sword heavily on the table, a cold glint already sliding out of its sheath.
"You dare call yourself worthy! You damned idiot!"
The Grand Marshal was enraged.
Normally, Eldred would have tucked his tail between his legs and bowed his head in apology like a dog, but now... he has his own trump card.
"Calm down, my esteemed Grand Marshal." Eldred smiled and straightened his back, but didn't push his luck too far, simply and casually walked out of the tent. "We'll get along well from now on... I look forward to it."
"After all... we're husband and wife, aren't we?"
"I hope you will also give me the respect I need."
After saying that, Eldred walked away on his own.
Tianna could only stand there, seething with anger.
Soon, the scout she had sent to find the enemy leader arrived on horseback at the foot of the city wall.
"I am an emissary of Tianna Crownguard, Crownguard of Demacia, and I have a letter from the Grand Marshal! Please come and collect this letter, Noxus general!"
Upon hearing this, the Noxus soldiers on the city wall burst into laughter.
With a wave of his hand, the squad leader signaled several soldiers wielding heavy crossbows to fire a bullet through the heart of this reckless Demacia envoy—they had already conquered several Demacia towns and were currently in a very favorable position; why should they accept his letter or negotiate peace?
You want to talk? Give me the king's head!
The soldiers prepared to fire their heavy crossbows.
But just then, their general walked to the crenellations of the city wall.
"Wait." Darius, the Hand of Noxus, interrupted the soldiers' actions and then stepped onto the ramparts on his own.
Then, he jumped directly off the city wall, which was as high as three stories.
Thump! The heavy armor hit the ground with a loud thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Anyone else wearing such heavy armor would have been killed or at least had a broken leg if they jumped from that height, but Darius was completely unharmed.
His physical abilities were almost at the peak of ordinary human capabilities.
He walked slowly toward the Demacia envoy, his terrifying aura causing the latter to break out in a cold sweat—with each step forward, he seemed to grow several times larger, until he became as insurmountable as a mountain.
"Come on, let me see what's so ridiculous..."
Darius casually took the letter from the other person's hand and glanced at it casually a few times.
Then he crumpled the letter into a ball of waste paper.
"Want to talk to our leader? Ah... Grand Marshal of Demacia, your brain is even more stupid than a cowardly dragon lizard."
Darius couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Mr. Chen Ce, the leader of Noxus... hasn't he always been in Demacia?
These idiots don't even know who to negotiate with... How did they even build such a large country?
"Go back and tell your Grand Marshal..." Darius shouldered his giant axe, but did not kill the messenger before him—he was ruthless, but he also had principles.
"I'll give you five minutes to prepare, and then... let's fight."
As soon as the words were spoken, the Demacia envoy turned pale, while the Noxus soldiers on the city walls erupted in cheers.
"Noxus! Noxus! Noxus!"
"Demacia is annihilated! Victory belongs to Noxus!"
Noxus, none can stop them!
The Noxus soldiers raised their arms and shouted, their fighting spirit almost tangible.
Upon seeing this, the Demacia envoy hurriedly rode back in disgrace.
Soon, angry shouts also came from the Demacia army.
Darius nodded in satisfaction upon seeing this—what he desired was a war to wipe out Demacia, not a "playing house" war that came without any effort.
After conquering several towns in succession, his only expectation for Demacia rested on the Grand Marshal—he hoped the other party could surprise him rather than surrender without a fight like a coward.
"Come on, don't let me down..."
Unlike other generals who hid behind their troops, Darius stood in front of everyone, wielding a giant axe.
Before the city gates were even opened, countless Noxus soldiers stood on the city walls, ready for the first wave of large-scale long-range attacks.