Chen Yu hopped onto the fortress crenellations in the light rain, looking out over the interior. In the very center, he could see warm light glowing from the windows of the relatively intact council hall, a sign that the negotiations had begun.
Since both sides had come with clear objectives, their bottom lines and demands relatively distinct, the negotiations did not last very long.
About an hour later, the lights in the council hall were still on, but Count Brand had already come rushing through the rain.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Good news!" Count Brand flew before Chen Yu, flapping his wings. He puffed out his chest and reported with pride.
Although the negotiation process was arduous, with both sides sparring over details and the Slime Kingdom making a number of compromises, the final agreement essentially fit the framework Chen Yu had envisioned.
As of today, the Slime Kingdom and Princess Louisa von Whitman, fourth princess of the White Horse Kingdom, had reached a formal agreement.
At a seven-to-three ratio, they would form a "Reconstruction Legion," a mixed force of monsters and humans, to fully support Princess Louisa’s military campaign to restore her nation within the White Horse Kingdom.
The Arevalo Knight Order, along with the remaining knights and soldiers of the Garrison Legion, would be reorganized into the "Second Guardian Corps," with Raven Arevalo serving as its commander.
The monster units provided by the Slime Kingdom—including the Stone Golem Army, the Poisonous Sting Bee Legion, and the Metal Slime Squad—would form the "Third Oathsworn Legion," with Celeste serving as the nominal commander on behalf of the Slime Kingdom.
Princess Louisa would be the supreme commander of the Reconstruction Legion, with Raven and Celeste as her deputies.
On the surface, this Reconstruction Legion was completely free from the Slime Kingdom’s direct control, appearing as a restoration force led by humans.
But both sides knew full well that the monster legions answered only to their great Slime Majesty.
Including the monsters in the Reconstruction Legion was, in reality, a check on Louisa, meant to prevent her ambition from growing, slipping out of control, and leading her to tear up the agreement.
The agreement also contained a crucial hidden clause: should the restoration succeed, Louisa would formally swear an oath, and the White Horse Kingdom would become a vassal state of the Slime Kingdom.
Confident in himself and the future growth of the Slime Kingdom, Chen Yu wasn’t worried about Louisa going back on her word. At its current rate of development, it was only a matter of time before the Slime Kingdom’s strength surpassed that of the White Horse Kingdom, which was fractured by internal conflict.
In that case, it would be no injustice for the White Horse Kingdom to become a vassal state.
As for why Louisa would risk having her kingdom "usurped" by monsters just to secure this agreement, the truth was she had no other choice.
Even if Chen Yu had been willing to let the remnants of the Garrison Legion go with her, she would only have a force of just over two thousand battered and demoralized knights and soldiers. With them, forget fighting the Demon’s Claw and its faction occupying the Royal Capital; she likely couldn’t even contend with the entrenched dukes and their powerful armies. That was to say nothing of the other "Reconstruction Armies" formed by the princes, who would likely garner even more support from local factions.
The political waters of the White Horse Kingdom ran deep; there were far more Extraordinaries than it appeared on the surface.
Even the deans of the major academies in Fey City Smaragdum were Extraordinaries. It was likely that the ancient noble families, with their even more deep-rooted power, had more of them hidden away.
Without powerful external support, Louisa’s path to restoration would be next to impossible.
With the negotiations concluded, Louisa took up temporary residence in the fortress and began organizing the army now under her official command. Meanwhile, an excited Count Brand went to find Celeste to boast about his "diplomatic achievements."
Just then, Yano came to find him.
The man had two dark circles under his eyes; clearly, yesterday’s victory and his newly acquired power had not granted him a peaceful night’s sleep.
With both the Stone Golem Army and the Stone Clan under his control, he had become the Grand Duke of the Stone Race in every sense of the word.
Yet he did not covet this power. Right now, his face was etched with a deep, unshakable sorrow.
"Boss." Yano wrung his hands, his voice laced with worry. "The Kingdom is in such chaos right now, so Fey City can’t be safe. Lola and the children are still there, and I... I’m worried something might happen to them..."
The new Grand Duke’s thoughts were still solely on his wife and children.
Chen Yu split off a small Slime Avatar that hopped onto Yano’s shoulder. "Don’t worry," it said, consoling him. "I’ve already sent a squad of Poisonous Sting Bees to scout Fey City."
"If you leave now with a Gargoyle escort, you should get concrete news about them very soon."
"I’ll keep an eye on things here. You can leave without worrying."
Chen Yu knew he was worried about the Filth Descendant Army and the Goblin Army to the west of the Dark Land.
’But honestly,’ Chen Yu thought, ’if that Filth Demon sees me and doesn’t run, I’ll have to commend its courage.’
Yano’s worried expression eased considerably, and a wave of warmth washed over him.
He nodded firmly and said with genuine gratitude, "Thank you, Boss!"
After expressing his thanks, he hesitated no longer. Escorted by a squad of elite Gargoyles and Poisonous Sting Bees, he immediately departed from Storm Fortress, flying swiftly toward the northern part of the Kingdom.
Not long after Yano’s departure, Arthur approached.
Chen Yu assumed he was there to discuss the finer details of the negotiations or matters concerning the formation of the Reconstruction Legion.
But instead, Arthur performed a standard knightly salute and reported in his hoarse voice, "Your Majesty, there’s been an incident in the fortress prison."
"The knights on guard duty reported that a short while ago, Legion Commander Simo and the assassin, Allen... died."
"What?!"
’Two important Extraordinary captives, dead just like that.’ His first thought was that a Demon was behind it.
"What about the Iron Cavalry Demon?" Chen Yu pressed immediately.
Arthur recounted steadily, "He is unharmed. According to him, Casaric reforged Simo’s and Allen’s imprisoned souls, both as a punishment and to reclaim his power, which led to their sudden deaths."
"This likely means that those in the Burning City have learned what happened here and have already responded."
"Let’s go see."
Chen Yu hopped onto Arthur’s shoulder. He followed the knight down from the wall and deep into the fortress, proceeding through a dark corridor barely lit by torches until they reached the underground prison for high-value inmates.
The first thing he saw were two rows of knights in armor bearing the Arevalo crest, standing solemn guard on either side of the prison passageway.
Calvin was squatting before two corpses outside a cell, his brow tightly furrowed in silence.
Behind him, Anna stood stiffly, her face a little pale and her eyes filled with a trace of fear.
This suggested that the manner of their deaths was far from ordinary.
Seeing Arthur return with Chen Yu, Calvin stood, offered a salute, and silently stepped aside to give them room to observe.
Only then did Chen Yu get a clear look at Simo and Allen’s bodies on the floor.
Both bodies were twisted into unnatural positions, as if they had undergone a violent struggle and immense pain before death.
Their faces were contorted, eyes bulging wide with the lingering remnants of absolute terror and agony. Their mouths were agape, as if locked in a silent scream.
They had clearly been subjected to immense torment before death, a suffering that far surpassed physical pain.
"Calvin, this is no sight for a child. Why’d you bring your little sidekick along?" Chen Yu said.
Calvin was taken aback, not expecting His Majesty to be concerned with such a matter. He placed a hand on his chest and responded, "Your Majesty, this is a cruelty that every knight must face. Besides, Anna is already eighteen. She needs to experience these things."
Beside him, Anna nodded quickly. "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty," she said in a small voice. "I... I’m alright."
Chen Yu glanced again at the two wretched corpses. ’I’m almost certain this is the handiwork of that Great Demon, Casaric.’
’It’s a punitive execution based on a Soul Contract,’ he concluded. ’It reclaims a portion of his power while also serving as a deterrent to any other potential "traitors."’
’As the Demon’s key pawns in the Garrison Legion, Simo and Allen must have known a great deal of inside information.’
’What a shame...’ Chen Yu felt a pang of regret. ’They’re gone, just like that, before I had a chance to pry more intelligence about the Demon’s inner circle from them.’
Just then, a cold voice drifted out from a dark corner deep within the cell. "Lord Casaric does not tolerate betrayal in any form, not even from an Extraordinary Puppet."
Chen Yu peered inside and saw the Iron Cavalry Demon, Yax, bound securely to the wall by thick chains.
His head was bowed, but his eyes, burning with sulfurous flames, met Chen Yu’s gaze.
Yet Yax could see no fear or surprise in the eyes of this perfectly round Slime.
On the contrary, those tiny eyes seemed to sparkle with a gleam of keen interest.
It sent a chill down his spine.
He felt less like a captive and more like a rare toy that had been targeted for disassembly and study.