Fifteen People (I)

Night fell quietly, and before long it was midnight. All forces had assembled.

No one knew how many people would be unable to sleep over this. After all, tonight's battle would completely reshape Reastmia's situation. Would Negary, master of Rea, sweep aside Rea's other major powers and rule Rea alone? Or would the forces of the two great kingdoms defeat Negary and thoroughly change Rea's dominant power?

Most people believed the two kingdoms had better odds. After all, they were two nations backed by their states, while Negary had risen only ten years ago. His foundations could not possibly compare to those of the two kingdoms.

Yet those who had once recognized Negary's greatness merely smiled. By ordinary logic, the two kingdoms indeed had the better chance of victory. But whenever they thought of that figure, terror rose from the depths of their hearts.

That ultimate ominousness—before him, humans seemed no different from food eaten every day. An inborn sense of danger frantically warned everyone who saw him: danger, danger, danger. Lie down and do not move, or run for your life. Pray without cease that you had not drawn his attention, because that was something beyond humanity.

The only way to put their hearts at ease was to submit to him, to offer him their foreheads. Then they would no longer panic, no longer feel uneasy, because they had become his possessions. Once they had sunk into hell, would they still fear going to hell?

Chris raised his head and looked through the window at the sky. Thick clouds concealed the moonlight, carrying a hint of ill omen. But the arrow was on the string and had to be loosed. If they did not act today, Negary might recover.

When he turned around, he saw the forces they had assembled. The Divine Grace Church had Bishop Austin, two priests, and three holy knights—a total of six people. In addition, the merchant Gelosk had brought three guards, all trusted confidants.

There was also Jason Todd, recruited to avenge his family, as well as four people they had encountered along the road, one after another, hiding their faces and concealing their identities. They were dressed differently, presumably people from the Rea region who wished to resist Negary but did not dare truly step forward. Of course, spies among them could not be ruled out.

Including Chris himself, but excluding the merchant Gelosk and the mother and daughter Isabella and Nara, there were fifteen people heading for Rea's Forbidden Land, where Negary was located.

There were likely quite a few people gathered over in the Kingdom of Roas as well. To be honest, with this group assembled, even if the Sub-Dragon from back then were resurrected, this lineup could beat it to death alive.

"There is only one problem now—the crows," Chris said gravely. "These most common birds in the Rea region are under Negary's Domination Pathogen. Once they attack by the hundreds or thousands, even an army of a hundred men would be easily slaughtered by them."

"If we have no way to restrain those crows, this operation will end in failure one hundred percent of the time."

"Rest assured, Mr. Chris," Gelosk said with a smile. "Before coming here, we had already sent people to buy up large amounts of Smoke-Knot Grass. It should be burning by now."

Smoke-Knot Grass was a special kind of dry grass. Some pastures deliberately cultivated it. Its main use was that once ignited, it produced great quantities of smoke. The smoke lingered in the air. Humans were unaffected within it, but birds simply could not survive. It was generally used during the autumn harvest to keep migratory birds from pecking at crops. Now, it was being used to counter Negary's crows.

Seated upon the Bone Throne, Negary stretched out a hand. Without anyone noticing, a haze had already gathered around him. The smoke was not choking, though its smell was somewhat strange. But judging by the restless crows behind him, it was abundantly clear who had stirred up this smoke.

"It seems there is no need to keep holding back." Negary smiled and waved his hand. Countless crows surged from the trees like black clouds and flew into the sky.

Outside the Forbidden Land, someone stood on high ground specifically watching the situation there. Upon hearing the cries of a great number of crows, he understood that they had left the Forbidden Land and hurriedly sent someone to deliver the news. Gelosk received the message very quickly.

"Everyone, the crows have left the Forbidden Land. We have bought up all the Smoke-Knot Grass in this area. It can burn for three hours, and with the time the smoke lingers, it should last roughly six hours—until sunrise."

"In a moment, I will take Isabella and Nara somewhere safe to hide," Gelosk said. "May the Lord's glory shine upon you all."

The group exchanged glances, then walked out of the courtyard. The Enforcement Squad standing guard outside noticed the movement and immediately surrounded them, raising their spears as they sternly demanded, "Chris Mordo, are you planning to violate the ban and admit to assassinating Chief Komoro?"

"Sorry, we have no time to waste here with you." Chris sighed. His body moved without hesitation. Rhythm Fist struck from angles they could not comprehend, leaving them no time to react. No matter how they tried to defend, everything felt strange and wrong.

With just a few casual moves, he knocked the enforcers unconscious. Though these enforcers were considered Negary's subordinates, they had committed few crimes. There was no need to kill them.

"Let's go." The group split into several small teams and headed, slightly spread out, toward the south of Rea's Forbidden Land.

The sky had already been filled with heavy clouds, and now there was also thick smoke, further reducing visibility. They had no choice but to act at night. In the end, their actions held no righteous cause. If they won, they could naturally denounce Negary's evil and properly deal with the problems left behind.

There were quite a few clever people in Rea, but most were ordinary folk. Their lives depended on this region. If these people had no righteous cause and openly prepared to stir up war, they would soon learn what the fury of the masses meant.

By switching to nighttime, their vision was affected, but their movements became far more convenient. The group remained silent and soon arrived not far from Rea's Forbidden Land.

A wall and watchtowers had been set up around the outer perimeter of the Forbidden Land, with quite a few people patrolling above them.

"Should we force our way through?" Austin asked, and Chris was just about to nod.

A person in the group wearing an Iron Mask, carrying a bow, and walking with a slight limp stepped forward and lowered his voice. "Follow me. Someone will open a gate for us. Make haste."

After saying that, the person took the lead toward one side of the wall. Chris and Austin exchanged a glance. Austin nodded, and several of them followed the Iron Mask in that direction. They were prepared to force their way in anyway; the situation could hardly get any worse.