< 87. Assessing the Situation and Formulating Strategy >
*
“The signal fire incident in Mosat, hmm… So, it happened right after you fell into a coma.”
At Fernandez’s request to summarize the events of the past month, the masked man, Shaksisi, began to speak. Fernandez listened calmly, arms crossed. The events he recounted were well within his expectations.
“The Grand Magic Department on the home front responded almost immediately to Leviathan’s magical attack. It was an attack they hadn’t prepared for.”
As he spoke, Shaksisi glanced at Fernandez. The grand magic that was supposed to rain down on Mosat City was Leviathan’s infamous city-destroying spell.
If this man hadn’t stopped it… No one knows how he did it, but the intelligence teams stationed in Mosat at the time all described it as ‘feeling like they were being judged before a god.’
The Kirzat Grand Magic Department simply attributed the remnants of the massive magic in Mosat to the Conclave’s doing…
But no, Shaksisi knew. According to the report written by Sadia, who witnessed it firsthand, this man single-handedly defeated the Conclave. Therefore, he had to assume that this man was at least a mage capable of standing in for the Grand Magic Department.
‘Does that mean this young man is on the level of Eali Sahir (the Royal Court Grand Magician)…?’
He couldn’t be sure yet, but if that were the case, even if it were one in a thousand or ten thousand, it would mean this young man was an Inquisition Officer of the Temple of the Gods, a Knight of the Round Table of the Dane Kingdom, and a tactical weapon-level grand magician.
‘That’s practically like saying he’s the earthly proxy of the God of War.’
It’s absurd. Shakeshi chuckled inwardly and continued.
“After the bombing spell on Mosat City failed, Leviathan’s magical forces were deemed temporarily incapacitated. A sound judgment.”
Of the spells cast by Kirzat’s magical forces on the frontlines, 15% were countered during casting, and only 10% were countered afterward. Simple arithmetic shows that over 76% of the total magical forces struck the frontlines.
The 50-year war between Leviathan and Kirzat. At that time, the end of the war seemed within sight. The long frontlines, five battlefields, and nearly fifteen thousand troops were on the verge of being wiped out in an instant.
“Leviathan’s frontlines were almost reduced to the edge of the wasteland. Even the homeland couldn’t hide its dismay. The Sultan was preparing to host a victory celebration in the capital.”
“Too hasty, wasn’t it?”
“Indeed.”
Fernandez smirked coldly as he looked at the tangled lines on the operational map. If a banquet had been held, it should have been to honor the souls of the soldiers lost in the multi-front war, not to celebrate victory or the end of the war.
“…Three days after the Mosat City incident, identical signal fires rose from three occupied territories.”
“The Conclave’s revival?”
“Headquarters called it the ‘Signal Fire of the Three Dynasties.’”
“A fancy name, isn’t it?”
“No, it’s quite literal. The Conclave suddenly started proclaiming dynasties, as if they’d eaten something wrong before they went to sleep.”
“…What?”
“Literally, dynasties. Ancient dynasties from the time of Ashit.”
Shaksisi pointed to the three directions on the frontlines: the far west, the far south, and the far east. Each direction on the map bore a different emblem.
It was strange. If it were a large-scale mobilization by the Necropolis, they could have been marked as the same faction.
“Lavirata, Apotazar, Tutankhamun Gartep. All names you’d expect to hear from old papyrus or stone tablets. The representative pharaohs of each dynasty.”
“And they’re the Conclave.”
“Exactly. Clearly, they’re the leaders of the Necropolis… but they’re hostile to each other.”
Fernandez swallowed hard and stared blankly at the map.
-…Did I hear that wrong?
‘That means I heard it wrong too…?’
-No, why? Why would they suddenly decide they don’t want to be puppets anymore?
‘Did their past lives and history change? Was the seal broken too early? Was the timing not right?’
-…Hmm.
The man, noticing Fernandez’s expression, cleared his throat and cautiously continued.
“The homeland immediately withdrew its troops. The three dynasties’ revival caused the area to be overrun with wraiths. According to them, only they are the legitimate dynasty of Ashit. All three pharaohs, simultaneously.”
Shaksisi looked at the battlefield with a troubled expression. Just as the long war was about to end, unexpected ancient guests had arrived.
The ancient wraiths that appeared from three directions quickly organized their legions and began advancing toward the wasteland. Their declared goal was the unification of the western Great Wilderness. They promised to ‘spare’ those who submitted to their royal family.
“The homeland, which held the largest territory, couldn’t withstand the multi-front war and retreated. Leviathan requested support from the Eastern Kingdom Alliance. A large expeditionary force. Dane and Phaeirn immediately dispatched their knight orders.”
Fernandez nodded at that. It made sense. Phaeirn needed an external enemy to prevent internal strife, and since they couldn’t attack the Dane Kingdom, they had to project their power elsewhere.
Meanwhile, the Dane Kingdom, to prove the legitimacy of the suddenly transferred throne and to gain recognition from the Empire for this rapid succession, would have organized a large expedition.
Thus, the Eastern Kingdom Alliance appeared on the eastern front.
“Shortly after, the Temple of the Gods’ Doctrine Defense Corps dispatched paladins to stop the Necropolis’s uprising.”
The Order of the Cross Crusaders of Vaitas. Fanatics of the God of War Vaitas and one of the most powerful religious military groups of the time.
If the Inquisition Officers were the torch illuminating humanity’s darkness, the Order of the Cross Crusaders were the shield and spear defending humanity’s frontlines.
Their dispatch meant that not only Vaitas’s Papacy but also the Temple of the Gods itself was taking this matter seriously.
“So, this is the mess we’re in now. The Doctrine Defense Corps, the Eastern Kingdom Alliance, Leviathan, Kirzat, and the three dynasties of the Necropolis. This many military groups gathered in the Great Wilderness. Historically, this has never happened.”
Thus, the frontlines were now tangled like a spider’s web, and as chaotic as a shattered pottery. Countless military groups, each moving for their own interests, were pointing their swords at each other.
Fernandez stared at the operational map in silence for a while. At this moment, he was engaged in a heated debate with Phaeirn.
-My assumption is this, Fernandez. The Necropolis’s internal strife is Mumto’s strategy.
‘What’s the gain?’
-To incite as many wars as possible simultaneously and harvest more death.
‘If that’s the case, it’d be better for the three pharaohs to join hands and attack together. Look at that.’
He pointed to a corner of the frontline, the border between the Apotazar Dynasty and the Leviathan Empire.
Fernandez thought for a moment.
‘They’re so close that even if I were to decide between the two right now, it wouldn’t be enough. The fourth outpost of those guys and the Apotazar dynasty. The fact that the frontline is still holding means that those two have somehow managed to stamp a truce agreement.’
– Did the Conclave join hands with human civilization? Is that even possible?
‘For that to be possible, there’s only one assumption left. Faijashi. This is what I think.’
Fernandez gazed at the vast empty field in the middle of the Great Wilderness, lost in thought. No, he was thinking of the great pyramid of the Necropolis, sealed deep underground beneath it.
‘That Mumto has lost more power than expected. So much so that he can no longer exert control over his subordinates.’
– Isn’t that an overly optimistic judgment?
‘If it’s true, this is an opportunity. A chance to reduce the number of Great Demons from five to four.’
Originally, Fernandez hadn’t even considered the idea of annihilating the Great Demons. Destroying the five Great Demons, who possess divinity, was more of a delusion than a strategy.
But what if Mumto has weakened so much that he can’t even control his own subordinates?
Then it would be a perfectly reasonable assumption. As Fernandez silently stared at the map, Shaksisi slammed the table.
“Well then, Your Excellency, how do you plan to break through this situation?”
“We need to set them on fire.”
“What?”
Ignoring the bewildered Shaksisi, Fernandez looked at Kirhas. Kirhas had been silently watching Fernandez the entire time.
When their eyes met, Kirhas blushed and slightly turned her head.
“Kirhas.”
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
“Do you remember the last hideout of the Kalani Clan?”
At those words, Kirhas’s face turned cold. A complex mix of fear, terror, and anger spread across her expression.
The day her tribe burned? She could never forget it. The place where her tribe burned, either. Kirhas stood silently for a moment, then cautiously nodded.
-Thud.
Fernandez placed his hand on Kirhas’s head and slowly stroked it. Kirhas trembled for a moment and tightly closed her eyes.
“Don’t be angry yet. I’ll soon find you a target for your anger.”
“…Yes, Your Excellency.”
A year ago, on the day she submitted to Fernandez. His words in front of the underground waterway of Gloridaine suddenly came to mind.
‘You want revenge. I want you to have your revenge.’
Yes, revenge. It was a word that had now cooled and become like an old scar. Though it was no longer the purpose of her life…
Her lord still had her revenge in mind. Kirhas trembled for a moment, not because her revenge was imminent, but because she couldn’t help but feel joy at Fernandez’s consideration.
*
-Tap, tap.
Hot sweat dripped onto the cold stone floor, spreading into dark stains. Abel stood on her hands, balancing silently with one finger touching the ground.
Her beautiful golden hair, shining like a wheat field bathed in the sunset, cascaded onto the floor. She kept her eyes closed, breathing slowly.
How much time had passed? Abel tried to count the days in her vague sense of time. A month since Fernandez fell. Three weeks since her last meal. Ten days of solitary penance.
This was a kind of self-imposed punishment.
‘I swore I would never leave you alone again.’
The language of dragons contains magic. Her oath inherently carried more meaning than mere words. Yet, in the end, she had left Fernandez alone on the battlefield.
She couldn’t face Fernandez. She couldn’t bear to look at the face of the old and sick Fernandez. Though he was slowly recovering, seeing his hair turn white was too cruel for her.
So she made a new oath. If Fernandez didn’t wake up, she would never forgive herself.
-Knock, knock.
Someone knocked on her door. Without changing her position, Abel quietly spoke.
“Has he woken up? If not, I told you not to call me.”
“That’s correct.”
“…!!”
-Thud!
Abel momentarily lost her balance and nearly fell face-first onto the floor. Her incredible reflexes saved her at the last moment, using her elbow to stop herself just before her face hit the ground.
She quickly shifted her position, sitting on the floor, and hastily kicked the door open.
-Bang!
“Huh…?”
Outside, Fernandez’s bewildered voice could be heard. Abel looked down at her legs in confusion.
‘I, I blocked the door…?!’
She couldn’t let Fernandez see her in such a state after a month, having done nothing but exercise for ten days!
“W-wait, don’t come in yet!”
“…Understood.”
“Just a moment, just a moment! Don’t go anywhere!”
“Understood. Take your time.”
Abel hurriedly fixed her hair. Though it was neatly arranged, to her eyes, it looked as tangled as a bird’s nest. The ends seemed a bit damaged too.
Sweat, she had sweated too much. Though her divine body meant her sweat carried no foul odor, Abel couldn’t help but feel self-conscious about her scent.
*
Standing outside with his arms crossed, Fernandez pondered the commotion coming from inside.
Just as he was about to knock again, the door opened.
-Bang!
At the same time, a white hand grabbed his collar. Before he could react, Fernandez instinctively leaned back, but—
-Swish!
“-Ugh?!”
Before his strength could counter, the hand gripping his collar used his own momentum to lift him into the air!
For a moment, the centrifugal force made him dizzy—
And the next thing he knew, he was lying on the floor.
-Bang!
The sound of the door slamming shut echoed. As Fernandez’s vision slowly returned, the first thing he saw was the beautiful golden hair spread out like a wheat field.
“Uh, Abel?”
“Shh.”
A pale, delicate finger pressed against his lips. It was cold. As Fernandez’s eyes widened in surprise, his vision was soon filled with blue eyes.
Abel was looking down at him from an almost touching distance. For a moment, time seemed to stop. Fernandez felt his heart begin to race wildly.
‘Damn it, King Dane. Please, maintain some dignity!!’
The king’s memories flowed through his veins, singing a song of joy! As Fernandez clenched his teeth, trying to steady himself in the torrent of emotions, Abel’s blue eyes softened.
“It’s really you. Not a dream, but really you.”
Abel smiled warmly and removed her finger from Fernandez’s lips. Then, her cold hand slowly caressed his cheek.
“Thank you, Fernandez.”
“Sorry for worrying you.”
“Let’s make sure there’s no reason to be sorry from now on.”
Author’s Note
***
Eali Sahir (Eali sahir), Arabic for Grand Magician.
Macto, Classical Church Latin for ‘praise.’
Macto Superlauda, Classical Church Latin for ‘praise exceedingly.’
If you find unfamiliar foreign words troublesome, feel free to ignore them. In fact, all the vocabulary I use are words that have never been used in the same era.
For example, words like Task Force Team.
They’re just words used to more accurately express the atmosphere. Think of them as MSG.
***
![[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return](https://i3.wp.com/novelhitam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/TS-Obsessed-Gamer-The-Ultimate-Return2.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return")
