The air in the grand hall of the Dark Empire's palace was cold enough to crack stone, but the silence from the core ministers was even more chilling. As Webster's furious declaration of revenge echoed off the obsidian walls, not a single voice rose in support.
The reality was too grim to ignore. Two hundred thousand True Gods of the empire, the very backbone of their divine standing, had been wiped out in the territory of the Light Empire.
The remaining mortal troops were currently being hunted down like vermin. To the ministers, the math was simple: the Great Aetherium possessed too many Supreme Gods to continue this enmity. It was not just risky, it was a death sentence.
What they didn't know was that the situation was far more dire. Had they known that Haru's true strength included fourteen Supreme Gods and a Pseudo God Queen, even Webster's burning hatred would have been extinguished by pure, unadulterated terror.
But Haru was a master of the hidden hand. He was keeping his ultimate trump cards, the ones meant for the Demon Emperor and the Demon Monarchs, shrouded in mystery. To him, the Dark Empire was a minor player, unworthy of seeing his full deck.
Webster, sensing the cowardice of his subordinates, let out a low, dangerous hiss,
"Do not worry." He spat, his eyes gleaming with a localized malice, "I have no intention of throwing what remains of our empire into a reckless frontal assault. I am well aware that we cannot compete with the Great Aetherium's current momentum."
A collective breath of relief swept through the hall. The ministers weren't interested in being the sacrifices for Webster's wounded pride. Their own descendants had been slaughtered by the disguised Light Empire's forces. If they hated anyone, it was the Light Empire who had led them into this trap.
"But that does not mean we admit defeat." Webster gritted out, his voice trembling with a focused venom, "We will wait. The Abyss already views the Great Aetherium and its Angels as a thorn to be removed. The Burning Legion will not let them stand. We shall wait for disaster to befall them. When the Great Aetherium is crippled and broken by the Abyss, we will emerge to send them to their graves."
"Your Majesty is wise!" The ministers chanted, their fear replaced by a hollow, desperate hope. They comforted themselves with the history of the Ancient Era, believing that no single force, not even an alliance of the Great Aetherium, the Beast God Pantheon and the Nature Pantheon, could withstand the true might of the Abyss.
…
Meanwhile, millions of kilometers away, the "wait" that Webster spoke of was being fueled by a sea of blood.
"Kill! The traitors must pay!"
The roar of the Castle Lords and their elite troops shook the very foundations of the battlefield. Over a trillion troops, most at the Saint or Demigod Tier, were systematically dismantling the remnants of the Dark Empire's mortal army. The six trillion troops Webster had sent were being harvested with a mechanical, terrifying efficiency.
High above the clouds, neutral Gods of Faith and Truth watched the massacre with growing numbness. It wasn't just the scale of the violence that terrified them; it was the speed.
"Look at that Castle Lord." One God of Faith whispered, pointing toward a figure commanding a legion from the rear, "In the span of a few hours, his aura has surged from an intermediate-stage Demigod to the very peak. He will most likely ascend to Godhood before the sun sets."
"It's a cheat." Another God muttered, his voice thick with envy and dread, "They don't even need to fight personally. They just command, and their strength rises with every life their minions take. If they survive this war, the Abyss won't be an invasion, it will be a feast for them."
The observers began to speculate about the Great Aetherium's allies, their eyes falling on Christine. They assumed she had abandoned the Beast God Pantheon to join Haru as a lone defector.
"The entire Beast God Pantheon would never join a Castle force." A God of Truth argued, "There are millions of them. If they were involved, the whole Endless Continent would be shaking."
They were half-right, just wrong about the part that the Endless Continent was not shaking, not yet.
------------------
Become A Member At My Patreon For Access To Bonus Chapters Or Even Multiple Chapters A Day!
» Patreon.com/LordArchduke