(Northern Region, military zone, Darkin Nation.)
The murmurs of soldiers preparing for war echoed throughout the land.
People who once lived in the area had been advised to evacuate.
Even though the snake soldiers had decided to guard the outer walls of the nation, there was still a chance the enemy would break in.
Of course, not a single soldier wanted that to happen.
Outside the walls, to the left, were multiple camps.
This was where the soldiers had been sleeping for the past few days, readying themselves for the coming war.
Gbam!
One of the snake-men placed a box of bronze arrows on the ground.
His partner was doing the same.
"Is that the last one?" he asked.
"I think so; we haven't heard from the commander yet," the other replied.
Being snake people, it was fairly easy to tell them apart.
The snake people consisted mainly of three species.
The Greens are known to be physically more capable with green scales, and the Browns are known for sharp senses and speed, with brown scales.
And finally, the Reagans, who usually look more human but are far more powerful.
Shisha was a Reagan.
With a sigh, the soldier sat down on the ground.
They were both Greens, easy to tell from the green scales on their skin.
"Are we seriously going to war, dude? Weren't we the ones who did the fighting last time as well?" he uttered.
His partner, still standing, placed one hand on his waist.
"I was thinking the same thing. Why the hell do the demi-humans and vampires do nothing? If anything, they are more fit for war than we snake people."
"I think I heard Lady Shisha wanted to handle this by herself, so she asked them not to get involved."
The man opened his mouth in shock.
"What?! That can't be true."
"Nah, it is. The commander mentioned it one time. Lady Shisha wanted to please the Demon Lord by handling it all by herself."
A sigh left the man's mouth.
"Dude, who even cares about the Demon Lord these days? I thought he was already irrelevant. He doesn't care about us, so why is Lady Shisha so fixated on him?"
His partner was about to reply, but then, fear crept onto his face.
"I mean, if you think about it, she is really pretty, with a stunning figure; any man would want her. The Demon Lord is a bum anyway; he can't even—"
"Is that so?"
A woman's voice echoed from nearby.
Immediately, the man froze in fear.
The voice spoke again, "So you think my king is a bum, yes?"
Hastily, the man turned around.
Standing there was Shisha and her two commanders, Rio and Elizabeth.
Shisha had long black hair with a green undertone. She wore a deep green dress, designed for combat, with a high slit along her left thigh.
Close up, one could see the metal harness strapped around her thigh.
However, at that moment, neither of the two soldiers was focused on her attire.
"Lady Shi-shisha!"
The two soldiers fell to their knees.
"You speak of the Demon Lord with disrespect, do you not? What was it you called him again? A bum, was it?"
The soldier who had spoken panicked.
His body shook with fear, and his eyes widened.
"Please pardon me; it was my foolishness. I spoke too much."
Shisha's deadly eyes remained on the man, her gaze a mixture of pity and rage.
"A soldier of mine, caught disrespecting Father. Death is your only punishment, and I will deliver it as I should."
She stretched her hand to the side.
A long green whip grew from her arm, pulsing with a green aura.
The soldier in question closed his eyes. There was nothing he could do but accept his fate.
But then…
"News from the castle! We have news from the Demon Lord Vani the Great!"
A soldier screamed at the top of his voice, racing towards Shisha's location.
Upon hearing Vani's name, Shisha's expression immediately softened.
"Father~" she blurted out as she turned her gaze towards the approaching soldier.
The messenger, who had yelled earlier, stopped in front of the group, breathing heavily.
"I have news from Lord Vani," he announced once again.
Hearing it a second time, her expression lit up.
"What did he say?!" she asked excitedly, her hands clasped in front of her and her face beet red with joy.
The messenger was confused until one of the commanders decided to chime in.
"Here, hand the tablet over."
Rio stretched her hand towards the man. Her black bangs covered one of her eyes.
"Y-yes, ma'am."
The messenger quickly handed it to her.
Like a robot, Shisha switched her excited gaze to Rio, who was now holding the tablet.
Rio's eyes began to scan the message.
After a moment, Rio blurted out, "Unbelievable."
"What is it? What does the message say?"
Her sudden shock caused Elizabeth to join her. Now, both of them had their jaws dropped.
Shisha remained there, waiting for them to relay the message to her.
"Well, go on…" she said, her growing impatience evident in her tone.
"It says here…" Rio began, her voice sounding reluctant, "Lord Vani has decided to join the war. And he also wants us to do a couple of things before he arrives."
Shisha frowned.
"What?"
She snatched the tablet from their grasp, her eyes fixed on it.
The two women were right.
Vani had written on the tablet that he was going to be present during the war.
But it wasn't just that.
He also told them that rather than waiting for the lizardmen to arrive at the border gates, they would meet them on the battlefield.
Before then, Shisha was to send a couple of soldiers out into the field to dig multiple huge pits, each concealed with a deceptive covering.
In addition, he also wanted her to send a few soldiers out to the hills and have them remain there until further notice.
What caught her eye was the last instruction.
Vani wanted her to give the new iron weapons to a few worthy soldiers and have them learn a new fighting strategy.
It was a strategy she had never heard of before.
The more Shisha read, the more confused she got.
'Why has Father chosen to include himself in this? That is not like him. And to dig pits… the war is in two days; surely he knows that.'
She bit her lower lip.
'I can't tell if he is doing this on purpose or not, but if he truly wants this, then I have no choice but to follow through with it. Father can't be wrong.'
Shisha raised her gaze to her soldiers.
"Gather the troops. Tell them we are taking a new approach immediately," she ordered.