Chapter 44: The Victor?
Black Dragon Midis flew high in the sky, below him, a force of Ram Cavalry was retreating into the territory of Peru.
Watching the Ram Cavalry below, Su Xiao controlled Black Dragon Midis to stop flying. Continuing the pursuit was pointless; the dragon's flame breath was exhausted.
After the Ram Cavalry retreated far away, his own Beast Cavalry caught up. Upon finding Black Dragon Midis blocking the way ahead, all Beast Cavalry halted their pursuit.
Su Xiao ordered all Beast Cavalry to retreat to the battlefield and clean it up. He needed to first consolidate his troops before launching a full-scale invasion into Peru.
Riding the black dragon back to Segona City, an hour later, Su Xiao received a battle report. His side still had 250,000 Beast Cavalry. After cleaning the battlefield, they gathered over 10,000 war beasts whose riders had died. Combined with the 40,000 soldiers previously left to guard the city, the Beast Cavalry could reach a maximum of 260,000.
Spring Iron Sheep had retreated together with the Ram Cavalry Corps. Su Xiao wasn't worried about him regrouping dwarf soldiers. Without his 100,000 Ram Cavalry, he was no longer difficult to deal with.
The breach into Peru's territory was already open. What came after was much simpler: consolidate forces as quickly as possible and invade Peru.
A few days ago, the Sand Emperor had promised to send 30,000 war beasts from Sand Capital. Several days had passed, and the time for their arrival was near.
Su Xiao decided to wait one more night. If the war beasts hadn't arrived by then, he wouldn't wait any longer.
The battlefield cleanup was completed at 7 PM. Bubu Wang and Baha were exhausted from running around searching for treasure chests. They found a total of 49 War-Type Epic Chests, a very good haul.
Inside the stone building, Su Xiao released a Night Crow. Although the situation in Sand Capital seemed unstable, it probably wasn't a big problem. The fact that these war beasts were borrowed rather than conscripted said a lot.
The Sand Emperor didn't disappoint Su Xiao. The promised war beasts finally arrived at 1 AM. This brought the Beast Cavalry up to 290,000.
Was it a coincidence that these war beasts arrived tonight? Su Xiao didn't think so. The person secretly orchestrating all this was likely lying low for now. When that person made their next move, Su Xiao would be able to connect all the dots. He wasn't in Sand Capital, so he had too little intelligence.
With the Beast Cavalry successfully replenished to 290,000, while the soldiers rested, Su Xiao sent high-ranking officers like Oss and 10,000 Beast Cavalry to handle supplies. They went to a nearby friendly fortress city to sell the captured armor, shields, and other loot, and stock up on large quantities of marching supplies.
When the soldiers finished their rest and had a good night's sleep, Su Xiao knew the time had come.
Before dawn, Su Xiao assembled 290,000 Beast Cavalry. After carrying easily transportable food and fresh water, they marched into the Kingdom of Peru.
Su Xiao sat on the dragon's back. After getting beaten up this morning, the black dragon flew much more steadily, no longer frequently trying to shake Su Xiao off and make a run for it.
Below, the Beast Cavalry galloped across the plains. Cavalry already had fast marching speed, and with the War Lord's 45% marching speed boost, their mobility was almost absurdly high.
Meanwhile, in Sand Capital, at the Rose Palace.
The Sand Emperor yawned. Several maids were attending to his washing, while Red Sand still stood in the shadows.
"Red Sand, what do you think about Kukulin's situation? The Kingdom's Shield, Spring Iron Sheep, is no pushover. If Kukulin loses, Uno will take back all military command from him."
The Sand Emperor's complexion was noticeably better. The queen behind him was helping comb his short hair.
"Your subordinate does not know."
"How many times have I told you, when it's just the three of us, you don't need to call yourself 'your subordinate'," the Sand Emperor said, leaning back into the queen's embrace. "Right?"
"Mm."
The queen gently straightened the Sand Emperor's head and continued combing his short hair.
Caw, caw, caw~
A Night Crow flew into the bedchamber. The Sand Emperor's eyes lit up. He walked quickly forward barefoot. As the Night Crow spat out its gizzard, the Sand Emperor clenched his fist.
"He's already invaded Peru. As expected, lending 300,000 war beasts to Kukulin was the right choice."
The Sand Emperor slowly exhaled, calming his joy, then sat back on the bed.
"Camilla, you've worked hard."
The Sand Emperor grabbed the queen Camilla's hand. The queen lowered her head, her body trembling slightly.
"Go. Go help me... kill your sister, Minister of Governance, Carros."
"My King~"
The queen raised her head, her eyes full of tears. "I will make my sister no longer resist you. Please, please forgive her. She is my only family. I don't want, I don't want to..."
The queen choked out her plea, clutching the Sand Emperor's robe.
"Don't be sad. This is the ugliness of power. Have you forgotten? Besides that sister who has already abandoned you, you still have me as family. Who sent you to my side? Who peeled off your face and gave you a beautiful new one? What's truly beautiful is your heart."
The Sand Emperor's fingertip touched the queen's brow.
"!"
The queen was as if struck by lightning. Her body stiffened, then she wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve.
"Please allow me to let my sister leave peacefully."
"You can choose for yourself."
The Sand Emperor picked up a small ball from the bed. With a gentle press of his thumb, a transparent crystal slid out from inside the ball.
"Take it. Go. I'll wait for you to return. If you don't come back, during my reign over Sand Flame, there will be no second queen. So you must come back. First, go contact your sister. If Kukulin's attack on the Kingdom of Peru goes smoothly, then act. If it doesn't, pretend nothing ever happened."
"Mm."
The queen took the transparent crystal, looking back several times as she left the bedchamber.
A few minutes later, the smile vanished from the Sand Emperor's face.
"Red Sand, after the queen kills Carros, kill her. It should be within the next few days. Keep an eye on both of them."
"Understood."
Red Sand knelt on one knee. Just as he was about to withdraw, the Sand Emperor spoke again:
"Let the queen... leave peacefully. Don't let her suffer too much."
"Understood."
Red Sand disappeared into the darkness. The Sand Emperor leaned against the headboard, bringing his hand to his nose. The lingering fragrance of the queen was still on his hand. This scent that had accompanied him for so long would never be smelled again.
"My King, isn't this a bit too cruel?"
A figure emerged from a hidden door. It was the High Priest, Uno.
"Uno, you did this beautifully. Kukulin must already suspect that Sand Capital will fall into chaos. When that time comes, what will he do? I have always supported him. Besides you, he is the one I trust the most."
The Sand Emperor tossed the small ball in his hand. The 300,000 war beasts on the front lines were borrowed by him, through Uno's hand.
"My King, are you going to hand over military command to him? I've always found this person's origins strange. But if it is your command, I can take over finance and replace Carros as your chain."
Uno was no longer smiling. A fierce dog might bite randomly, but it wouldn't bite its master. More importantly, his address for the Sand Emperor had changed. Not "Your Majesty," but directly "My King."
"We'll see later. Carros has worked hard. After all these years of acting, since my father's death, she has been active until now. Could it be that I am not as good as my father?"
"Of course not, My King. You are the best."
"Stop flattering me. Compared to my father, I still have a long way to go. My father defeated the clan that devoured gods, the Penir family."
The Sand Emperor and Uno locked eyes. Soon, both of them smiled.
...
Within the Kingdom of Peru, Divine Light City.
Black smoke rose within Divine Light City. Standing on the dragon's back, Su Xiao looked puzzled. This city was too fragile. He hadn't even gone all out, and it had already surrendered. Last time he came, he had to attack for quite a while.
The gates of Divine Light City opened. The first to come out were many dwarf women and children. This was a show of weakness, begging Su Xiao not to kill the civilians. In truth, Su Xiao hadn't planned to do so. However, his aura, combined with the bloodshot eyes of the soldiers near him, terrified the dwarves inside the city.
"Kukulin... no, no, no. Great Commander Bai Ye from the Kingdom of Sand Flame, I am the city lord of Divine Light City. I beg you, spare these civilians. As thanks for sparing them, I am willing to offer everything in the city."
An elderly dwarf in ornate clothing bowed. His hands trembled. Although he had held power for many years, this was the first time he had seen such a ferocious great commander and Sand Flame army.
"I have no interest in what's in the city. Have all dwarf civilians return to the city."
Su Xiao said this, and the dwarf city lord before him was filled with despair.
"Go tell the King of Peru to hand over the God of Abundant Life."
"Wh-what?"
The dwarf city lord was momentarily stunned. By the time he realized what was happening, Su Xiao had already led his army around Divine Light City, continuing deeper into Peru, paying no attention to the civilians inside.
If the King of Peru was willing to hand over the God of Abundant Life, then everything could be discussed. If not, he would fight until the king complied.