Ch. 51
Chapter 51. The War, and the Shrewdness of Kroll II
Kroll II paced back and forth in the imperial study for a long time before finally making a decision.
He ordered the Royal Second Monster Legion to reinforce Dante Fortress and dispatched three Legendary Combatants to accompany them, with strict instructions to drive the Kadiya forces out of the Northern Frontier first.
Once the order was issued, the Second Monster Legion stationed in the outskirts of the Royal Capital quickly assembled.
The clash of armor mixed with the roars of magical beasts. Three legendary knights clad in purple-gold battle robes reined in their mounts at the front of the formation, leading the vast army as it marched toward Dante Fortress.
However, the stalemate of the war far exceeded expectations. Over the next month, the Kadiya legions not only failed to retreat but instead relied on the cover of the Barbarian tribes to hold their ground against the defenders.
The Barbarians outside Despair Fortress seemed endless, surging toward the defensive lines without pause and firmly tying down the forces of Duke Lane and Duke Carden around Dante Fortress.
The six Legendary Combatants sent from the Royal Capital were also entangled by the enemy’s legendary powerhouses. The two sides clashed several times across the open wilderness, yet neither gained the upper hand, let alone expanded their achievements.
When the news reached the garrison at the Secret Realm Entrance, Kroll II merely gave a calm instruction to the messenger.
“Tell them to hold the defensive line. There is no need to force progress.”
Seated in his chair, his gaze was deep and contemplative. The stalemate in the Northern Frontier was troublesome, but it also allowed him to clearly see the true strength of the Kadiya Kingdom and the Barbarian tribes. Acting too hastily would only expose weaknesses.
During this period, William’s life became extremely regular.
Most of the time, he either secluded himself in his room to cultivate. With Meditation Potions complementing his cultivation technique, the mana within his body steadily grew more abundant.
Otherwise, he would visit the manor to inspect the slaves’ training.
The monthly duels had already begun to show results. The threat of death lashed at those slaves like a whip, and the number of those breaking through to Black Iron Knights quietly increased. The air was filled with an oppressive yet fanatical atmosphere.
Occasionally, he checked the letters sent from the estate outside the Royal Capital. Most of them reported on resource reserves and the progress of slave training.
During this time, a letter from his mother, Vivian, also arrived, every line filled with concern.
William picked up a pen and wrote a reply, briefly describing his recent situation. He simply told her that everything was fine and that she should not worry.
After receiving the reply, Vivian sat by the window, her fingers brushing across the familiar handwriting on the letter. The tension she had held for so long finally eased.
The sunlight outside the window was warm and bright. Looking at the roses blooming in the courtyard, she let out a gentle breath.
As long as William was safe, that was enough.
Life in the Royal Capital appeared calm on the surface, but undercurrents flowed beneath it. William closed his mother’s letter and looked out the window.
He knew that what he needed to do now was to seize every moment to accumulate strength.
Whether it was his own cultivation or the slaves in the manor who were undergoing transformation, both would become the foundation for facing the storms of the future.
Days slowly passed in the interweaving of calm and anxiety.
Inside the Secret Realm, the transformation of the ten legions was visible to the naked eye. After successive bloody battles, the soldiers’ gazes became increasingly resolute, and their coordination steadily improved.
By the second month, the Crawlers that had once rampaged throughout the Secret Realm had been mostly cleared out, and the situation gradually stabilized.
William reported to Kroll II his plan to send the manor’s slaves into the Secret Realm for training, and he received the emperor’s approval.
Several days later, those slaves in the manor who had broken through to Black Iron and even Bronze Rank were organized into teams and entered the Secret Realm under Tos’s leadership.
William did not equip them with excessive supplies. He left them with only one order:
“Only those who return alive are considered qualified.”
True growth had always required facing life and death.
Almost at the same time, the Third Princess, Jessy, somehow gathered a slave force of her own and marched into the Secret Realm in great numbers, clearly sensing the benefits within.
Once the news spread, other nobles quickly followed suit.
After hearing about it, Kroll II directly set up a checkpoint at the entrance of the Secret Realm, charging five gold coins for every person entering.
Even so, the Secret Realm Entrance remained crowded with people coming and going. Many families brought their own soldiers or knights into the realm, using the remaining magical beasts inside to temper their forces.
The atmosphere within the Secret Realm quietly changed.
What had once been a battlefield of annihilation gradually became a training ground where various factions trained their younger generations and tempered their private troops.
Different teams occasionally encountered one another. Some ignored each other entirely, while others had minor conflicts over resources, but overall everyone remained restrained.
After all, no one wanted to waste their strength at a time like this.
William occasionally learned about the situation through the informants he had left within the Secret Realm.
When he discovered that the slave force he had sent had suffered nearly thirty percent casualties, yet more people had broken through at the edge of life and death—and some had even touched the threshold of Silver Rank—a hint of satisfaction flashed through his eyes.
The Third Princess’s force, however, had taken a different approach. Jessy seemed better at motivating morale through heavy rewards. Her slave force progressed quickly, but their impatience also resulted in significant losses.
The nobles of the Royal Capital watched the news coming from the Secret Realm with mixed thoughts.
Some envied the foresight of William and Jessy, while others secretly remained wary.
These slaves who had crawled out of blood and fire might one day become a new force capable of influencing the balance of power.
William, however, did not care about such thoughts.
Every day he continued immersing himself in cultivation and selecting slaves. Occasionally, he would visit the Secret Realm Entrance to chat with Prince Kande of the Ninth Legion and Marquis Peter, casually gathering information.