The Pontiff remained silent for a moment. Although he wasn't on the front lines himself, he was well aware of the battle's progress.
He didn't need the King's report to know that the man who had suddenly appeared had disrupted what was supposed to be a crushing Ohts victory.
He couldn't quite figure out the newcomer's motives. One moment he was attacking Ohts soldiers, the next he was mercilessly cutting down Sariella troops.
It couldn't be just a simple desire to kill. There was a strong sense of purpose behind his actions!
If he was just slaughtering humans for massive EXP gains, then with his strength, why wasn't he right in the thick of the main battlefield?
And the Pontiff was particularly bothered by one thing: the man consistently used rock-based abilities.
This characteristic was very distinct. Looking across this world, only one race possessed such mastery over Geo magic.
"An Earth Dragon?" the Pontiff mused.
Could he be one of Güliedistodiez's kin? As a major power in this world, he naturally knew of the Administrators, and was even an old acquaintance of Gülie.
Administrator Gülie's true form was a black dragon, and he was the ruler of all dragon races in this world.
If that man earlier was indeed an Earth Dragon in human form, then he should be one of Gülie's subordinates.
But... As an Administrator, Gülie generally didn't meddle in human affairs. Even if all humans went extinct, it wouldn't be a major concern for Gülie.
So why would he send someone to interfere?
This made the Pontiff feel a sense of unease. Could it be that Sariella possessed something the Administrator wanted?
But with Gülie's ability to appear and disappear at will, if he wanted something, he could just go get it himself. Why send such a powerful subordinate to barge in so blatantly? It was too conspicuous.
The Pontiff couldn't make sense of it.
Seeing the Pontiff remain silent for a long time, the King of Ohts couldn't help but speak up. "My Lord, perhaps we should dispatch a few priests to defeat him, to prevent any further complications in the battle."
To this, the Pontiff quickly replied, "No need. Let him be." Whatever Gülie was planning, it wasn't his place to question it.
This man, though powerful, had his own agenda. While he killed Ohts soldiers, he also inflicted heavy losses on the Sariella troops.
He wasn't strong enough to change the entire course of the war by himself. For now, it was more important to deal with the Goddess Religion.
Eliminating the Goddess Religion in this country was already a set goal.
Although Gülie's intentions were unsettling, the Pontiff didn't need to overcomplicate things by meddling in these details and risk upsetting Gülie.
The Pontiff had correctly identified Elliot's race, but he mistakenly believed Elliot was Gülie's subordinate.
This was a natural assumption. In this world, all dragon races were supposed to obey Güliedistodiez. But Elliot was the sole exception!
The King of Ohts received his orders and departed. Then, a priest in white robes knelt before the Pontiff on one knee.
"Although the thieves have all been eliminated, elven figures can still be seen within the Lord's territory. They seem to be furtively doing something. Do they need to be eliminated?"
Hmm? Elves snooping around in Sariella territory? What are they after? The elven subordinates had been spying on Lord Garen and his family.
Their target seemed to be Lord Garen himself. But the Pontiff couldn't understand Potimas's motives at all.
There should be no connection between the Lord and Potimas.
Considering that the person Gülie sent also seemed to be heading towards the Lord's territory, Pontiff Dustin's curiosity grew even stronger.
Could it be that Lord Garen of Flamebright City really possesses something extraordinary?
After some thought, the Pontiff finally spoke, his voice calm. "No need. But do not neglect surveillance."
"Intelligence activities in Lord Garen's territory must be carried out even more meticulously. Not a single clue can be missed. Report any new information to me immediately."
"As you command!" His subordinate left to carry out the orders.
Now, only the Pontiff remained. He gazed into the distance, silent for a long time. Administrators, Potimas... all appearing on a human battlefield.
If Demon Lord Ariel also showed up, then the four major powers of this world would be gathered.
Such a small human conflict, yet it had attracted so many powerful figures. It made Dustin feel almost overwhelmed.
However, Dustin's goal had always been clear. For him, this battle would be a success if the Goddess Religion was eliminated!
As for everything else, Dustin would keep a close watch but wouldn't interfere rashly. He wanted to see what Gülie and Potimas were truly up to.
….
Elliot finally broke through the encirclement of Sariella soldiers. With his Jade Shield active, he was like a human-shaped Tiger tank, crashing through everything in his path.
He finally bypassed the crowds, moving at high speed, and entered Flamebright City.
He was no longer the clumsy Earth Dragon of before; his speed was now easily comparable to Kumoko's with her LV 10 Godspeed.
On the battlefield, Elliot's broken base stats combined with his powerful skills were a dimensional-level stomp against humans.
It was like an industrial civilization slaughtering an agricultural one simple and direct.
[Butcher] maxed out, evolving into [Scourge of Humanity]. This was an overpowered title one could only obtain by killing ten thousand humans.
But he knew he hadn't actually killed that many.
The moment he started his slaughter, the world's System seemed to bug out, judging all humans who died in that area as being killed by him.
Elliot had a guess as to why the bug occurred: because he was a god. A god killing humans, in a System created by an Evil God it was bound to cause confusion in the System's judgment.
Nice bug! Elliot could only praise it.
As for the rest of the battle, Elliot no longer wanted to witness it. Although he had killed more Ohts soldiers than Sariella soldiers, the Ohts soldiers were superior in both combat power and organization, completely overwhelming Sariella.
When the fighting started, the Ohts soldiers fought like mindless, extremely fanatical zombies.
Even with equal numbers, victory would have belonged to Ohts. The Human Pontiff was quite skilled in the art of brainwashing.
Entering the dilapidated Flamebright City, the destruction caused by the Queen Spider earlier had still not been repaired.
Ruined walls and rubble were everywhere.
Soon, he arrived within Lord Garen's territory.
Yes, the Lord of Flamebright City's surname was Garen, and Vampy's name was Sophia.
Garen... same name as one of the "Three Brothers of the Bush" from League of Legends. Entering Flamebright City, Elliot half-expected someone to shout "Demacia!" and jump out of a bush to hit him with a giant Garen ult. Just thinking about it is scary!
As he entered the territory, he sensed the presence of elves. It seems... Potimas has already made his move!
Within the estate, Mera anxiously awaited news from the front. As a servant of the Garen family, his life existed for his Lord, his Lady, and the young miss.
He had a kind master and a wonderful lady; because of this, Mera was willing to lay down his life for them.
"Mera Zofi, what's the situation?"
"Regrettably, My Lady, the situation does not look optimistic."
"Is that so..." The Lady's expression held a trace of resolve. She knew this city was about to fall.
The Ohts soldiers were about to invade the town her husband loved so dearly. And those soldiers would commit despicable acts against innocent civilians.
Her husband would likely fight to the very last moment, until death. He was a man with a strong sense of responsibility.
Her Lord would never allow himself to flee alone.
She also planned to stay with her Lord, to be by her beloved's side until the very end.
The Lord and Lady were a deeply loving couple. It was precisely because of this that Mera kept his faint love for the Lady hidden deep in his heart.
As a servant, he also had to follow his master's footsteps. But the Lady stopped Mera's resolve.
She wanted Mera to escape and entrusted their one-or-two-year-old daughter, Sophia, to him.
Tears blurred his vision. Looking at the Lady's beautiful, sorrowful face, Mera felt a suffocating pain in his chest.
But the Lady sat upright in her chair, smiling at him, waving goodbye. Mera fought back his heartbreak, hastily wiping his tears with his sleeve, and then took the young miss from the Lady's arms.
At that very moment, someone shattered a window and burst into the room.
….
If you want to read 20+ chapters ahead and unpublished fanfics you can check out my patreon or just take a visit.
[P].[A].[T].[R].[E].[O].[N]
http://patreon.com/Kazuma_trash
&
you can join my discord server: https://discord.gg/5Y7uZ2kN2Y
Or in short just click in join via invite link in your discord and enter this code: 5Y7uZ2kN2Y