Chapter 191 - Transition of Tactics (2)
4
Azell’s party left the mountain peak of Laus, and they started moving in earnest after 10 days.
The leaders of the Plain of Darkness became very frustrated when this occurred.
It wasn’t too hard to locate them. They just needed to ascertain the location of the Vitan’s Chalice to find them.
Moreover, they didn’t have to be worried about it being a trap. They confirmed on three occasions that the tracking ability was working perfectly.
However, they couldn’t catch up to Azell’s party.
“It really makes one shudder. I never expected them to move in this manner…....”
Kieren, who was the successor of Dragon Demon general Baldazark, mumbled to himself.
Azell’s party moved as if they didn’t have a destination in mind.
Azell’s party was already moving at a transcendent speed, but now they were going all over the place. They looked as if they were going in one direction, yet they suddenly changed direction in the opposite direction. The Plain of Darkness couldn’t catch up to them.
The Road of Emptiness wasn’t all-powerful. The waypoints were fixed, and the number of people it could transport was limited.
Basically, the Plain of Darkness couldn’t predict the path taken by Azell’s party, so they couldn’t concentrate their forces in one place. On top of that….
“Eight locations were destroyed in just 10 days…...”
Niberis was facing him, and she couldn’t believe the report she was reading.
She didn’t know why, but…. No, Azell’s party definitely had a hand in doing this. The Guardian Shadows had changed up their fighting style.
Until now, the Guardian Shadows had reacted in a strictly defensive manner. When Dragon Demon king worshippers were detected, the Guardian Shadows would intercept them in a defensive move.
However, the Guardian Shadows had completely flipped to take an offensive approach. When the route of Azell’s party was predicted, the Plain of Darkness mobilized to send troops towards them. However, the nearest waypoints were destroyed before that could happen. It was done by the members of the Guardian Shadows organization and several hundred Guardian Shadows.
It was like Kairen and Beorein within the Rulain kingdom. Each kingdom possessed members that were part of the Guardian Shadow’s organization. Moreover, all of them were skilled fighters. The Dragon Demon king worshippers couldn’t take them lightly. These members led over 100 Guardian Shadows to attack the waypoints. There was no way the Plain of Darkness could defend against it
Moreover…….
“The information regarding the forgotten techniques have been spread amongst them. I’m sure of it.”
Kieren’s face hardened as he spoke.
Not all of their forces were completely wiped out in the fight against the Guardian Shadows. Some had run away with their lives intact.
This report was the result of gathering all accounts from the survivors. The Plain of Darkness realized that their advantage in skill over the rest of the world was diminishing.
The organization called the Guardian Shadows were contacting strong people in each nation, and they were given key points to the forgotten techniques.
To be precise, the information was being delivered even at this moment.
“White Sword Count Rakadi of the Liros kingdom. It is true that he is a very skilled, but he wasn’t at a level where he could take out two of our senior officers by himself.”
Rakadi was like Kairen. He was a Dragon Majin, yet he was a lord of a human kingdom. He was the count in the Liros kingdom.
He was a very skilled Dragon Arts pract.i.tioner, and he was given the nickname of the White Sword Count. The loss of his parents at the hands of the Plain of Darkness had made him join the Guardian Shadows. All the members of the Rakadi tribe were very skilled, so the Plain of Darkness had paid special attention to them.
This was why they had a lot of information regarding Rakadi tribe. However, in the recent attack at the waypoint of the Road of Emptiness, the Rakadi tribe’s power greatly exceeded the a.s.sessment made by the Plain of Darkness.
It didn’t mean that the Rakadi tribe had learned and used the forgotten techniques in such a short amount of time.
They were like the Dragon Sword Count Kairen of Tarantos. They might have lost their techniques, but aside from this fact, they had cultivated scary amount of skill. Their resistance became much stronger just from knowing what kind of techniques were being used by the elite troops of the Plain of Darkness.
Niberis spoke.
“However, they aren’t the true problem.”
“…yes.”
Kieren threw down the report as he let out a sigh.
“Great sinner Azell Karzark.”
In the past 10 days, eight waypoints to the Road of Emptiness was destroyed.
Azell had personally destroyed four of them.
“The Sky Splitter, Storm Dragon’s Wing, Crying Phoenix….. Each and every one of them are ridiculous Dragon weapons.”
It was true that the ability of Azell’s party to travel was ridiculous. Each member were capable of moving quickly, yet they were using Vitan’s Chalice at strategic moments to travel a great amount of distance.
On the other hand, Azell’s ability to move was incomprehensible from a common sense point of view. The Storm Dragon’s Wing’s gave him speed equal to a flying dragon, and he was able to move fly freely through air. Moreover, he could locally control the pressure to create violent gales.
The Crying Phoenix was the only Dragon weapon that was capable of fighting by itself. Its battle capabilities changed depending on how much power its owner possessed. However, if the legends were to be believed, this weapon was scary in the hands of Azell. It was as if a Dragon that possessed wisdom was using its magic.
One of the terrifying abilities of this Dragon weapon was its mobility. Even if the owner was asleep , it could move through the air with its owner in tow.
The Plain of Darkness couldn’t find a solution to this problem.
They could only defeat Azell’s party if they concentrated their elite troops in one place. However, Azell’s party wasn’t giving them the opportunity to do so.
“We are taking way too much loss when compared to their loss.”
It wasn’t as if the Plain of Darkness was being beaten unilaterally. They were causing the continent to fall into chaos, and they induced the fight between human nations. Humans were suffering under self-inflicted wounds. The Guardian Shadows were trying to put this matter to rest, but the side had been split. It would be difficult for them to st.i.tch up the situation.
Moreover, the Guardian Shadows weren’t winning in overwhelming fashion.
“The fact that our side can’t win if we don’t step forward means that the situation is serious.”
The Plain of Darkness had reacted to the their opponent’s moves. They had dispatched elite troops at each waypoint, and when a battle occurs, they would sent more troops as support.
Niberis and Kieren had been inserted into this place, and they were able to defeat the Guardian Shadows. The members of the Guardian Shadows were strong, but they were helpless against two Dragon Majins using their powerful Dragon weapons.
“Laura…….”
Niberis mumbled to herself. Her words carried anger.
Why did their enemies know all the waypoints to the Road of Emptiness?
The answer was obvious. Laura knew where all the waypoints were located at.
Kieren spoke.
“This is a very serious problem.”
“You don’t have to tell me it is a problem. I already know.”
“That isn’t what I meant.”
At his words, Niberis glared at Kieren. She had an ill-humored expression on her face. However, Kieren was serious.
“Our enemies know our secret. Moreover, they are attacking us with all their might. That is serious in itself, but that is not what we should be truly fearing right now.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Niberis…. After the Dragon Demon war ended, this is the first time we’ve fought a defensive battle.”
“What?”
“We were always the one to attack. We just had to demonstrate that the defense set up by our enemies were faulty.”
The Plain of Darkness hadn’t been fighting a war.
One was either defending an established structure or one was attacking.
Which one was more difficult?
Of course, it was more difficult to defend than attack.
The Plain of Darkness didn’t possess the power to wage an all out war against the world, so they always attacked from the darkness.
“Until now, the Guardian Shadows had been the barrier protecting the world. It was st.u.r.dy, but in the end, it was only a barrier.”
However, their roles had been flipped now.
Until now, the Plain of Darkness didn’t even reveal their castle wall, which could be attacked. The Plain of Darkness was a fortress blessed with natural barriers for defense. Even if they lost a head-on battle with humanity, they could come back to the Plain of Darkness. It would be difficult to wipe out the Dragon Demon king worshippers.
This was why they were able to survive through the Dragon Demon war. In the first place, it was impossible to lead a large force into the Plain of Darkness without using the Road of Emptiness.
“However, our castle wall is exposed now. If we lose our castle wall, we lose the power to fight against the world.”
Niberis felt a chill run up her spine when she heard Kieren’s insight. She finally understood the problem he was pointing out.
The Dragon Demon king’s army had always been conquerors and invaders. After coming to the Plain of Darkness, they had never been in the defensive position.
Now they were required to take on that role.
However, the two of them still didn’t realize something. Azell’s party had something more critically damaging than what the two of them had observed.
5
Dragon Demon princess Arrieta and Dragon Demon prince Seigar had stopped the 2nd Grand Alliance of Darkness. After resolving the situation in the Balan forest, they were given an extended vacation.
However, their vacation didn’t last long. It had become a bit less heated, but there was a war going on with the Liros kingdom. Arrieta and Seigar was expecting an order to enter into the battle occurring along the eastern border..
The two of them expected a call from their mother, the Dragon Demon Queen Lier.
However….
“You are?”
Seigar became surprised when he ran into this person at Lier’s palace. He went into his battle stance, and at the same time, he realized he had made a mistake.
‘I should have brought my long sword!’
He hade been called into the palace by his mother, so he hadn’t armed himself. Moreover, Seigar’s weapon was a large and heavy weapon. This was why he didn’t carry it around outside of battles.
At that moment, Seigar regretted that fact.
His opponent possessed blond hair, and amethyst-like eyes. She was a Dragon Demon girl with curved horns that looked to be crafted out of amethyst. She was beautiful like a doll. From Seigar’s perspective, he could never forget this expressionless girl.
“Laura Ausaurus……!”
She was the Dragon Demon magician that handed him an appalling defeat in the Dukedom of Tarantos.
“Everyone run away!”
Seigar stepped in front of his servants as he shouted.
“Noonim! I’ll hold her off here. Please go to mother!”
He had a heroic expression on his face as he unfolded his Dragon Demon magic.
He wasn’t armed, but he was skilled enough to rip apart several dozen regular soldiers with his bare hands. Unlike before, he had learned the forgotten techniques, so he’ll be able to buy some time against her.
“Wait a moment, Seigar.”
However, Arrieta held him back. She stepped in front of Seigar, who was letting out an imposing presence. She noticed that something was off with Laura’s att.i.tude.
“I don’t know who she is, but she isn’t showing any signs of hostility.”
“Mmm……!”
Seigar also felt this. Like Arrieta, he had received the forgotten techniques from Azell, which included the Gaze Detection technique.
Laura spoke.
“It is as he said.”
“Who are you talking about?”
“He said the Dragon Demon prince will blindly try to fight me, and the Dragon Demon princess will calmly a.s.sess the situation. I don’t like admitting this, but it seems he is a teacher that knows his students quite well…….”
“You are talking about my teacher?”
“That’s right.”
At that moment, Kairen appeared from behind Laura. When they saw him, Arrieta and Seigar became confused.
“Teacher? What is going on?”
Seigar remained tense as he spoke. His revered teacher was in front of him, but he couldn"t comprehend the situation.
‘Is he perhaps an enemy disguised as my teacher?’
It caused him to question such a scenario.
Kairen smirked.
“I commend you for being wary, but I really am your teacher Kairen Tarantos.”
“You are quite silly. You roped me into doing this boring prank.”
Laura grumbled as she turned away. She completely ignored the situation as she walked towards the inner palace;
Arrieta and Seigar still had no idea what was going on. Kairen spoke to the confused two people.
“I came here, because I need both your help. The king have already given me permission. Follow me.”