Isn’t the wannabe Villain too cute?

There are two kinds of war that occur under different circumstances.

First, Total Dominance.

This war is partaken to take the complete authority of a specific kingdom by going for an all-out war. This kind of war generally makes either country dry up with their resources and manpower as the war only follows the principle of do-or-die.

The war of complete dominance majorly happens within a continent which is not adequately organized or has such a policy that supports brutality.

The war of acquiring a whole empire never happened in the past, as an Empire meant an entire piece of land among the seven, which was nothing to scoff about casually.

To acquire a whole empire, a colossal level of war has to be undertaken with countless lives and millions of small battles exhausting in the process and sacrificing unimaginably.

The second type of war is for Asset Dominance. 

This war happens on a smaller scale where a battle happens to acquire something forcibly or snatch back something which initially belonged to them.

These kinds of wars have happened before between Kingdoms, and the end results weren't something that could be written in history books, given the inhumanity those emperors stepped on to acquire something so small that the war seemed nothing but foolishness to partake in.

But for what Gram was about to wage war was nothing less than their whole treasury and other impactful assets. 

The Hero of Humanity, who was destined to become the light of Hope and would extinguish the possible threat of the Monarch of Darkness in the future, who forcefully or not was currently captured in a foreign continent.

There was nothing left to ponder about. Since the Aurorean nation hasn't replied to anything at all in the last 20 hours, the central council has already announced the preparation of war which would be taking place in the upcoming three days.

Currently, in a thinly lighted closed room sat two dozen people wearing their armor that included the Emperor of the nation along with his second son Mikhail who was one of the greatest warriors of the country.

Along with these two nobles, the Knight Commander Charles and Court Magician Alex were also present inside the room, along with some other high-ranking officials.

"The mages from the Tower would take almost two days to teleport the army to the Northern Empire. Alex, keep a close watch on this side for any disturbance."

Since reaching the Northern Empire via physical route would take more than a month, mass teleportation was the best means to reach the destination without wasting many resources on the expedition.

"It's as you say, My lord."

Alex bowed his head slightly with a sly smirk on his face as William continued to the following command.

"Since the Northern Kingdom doesn't have any allied empire as a backer, we won't be facing any surprises, but even so, Captain Charles, I want you to be on the watch all the time. Please don't get engrossed in the battle more than necessary."

This time apart from Charles, various nodded, and the one who got directed by such pleas just grumbled and stiffly forced his head to go up and down.

"I want this battle to end as soon as possible to show the Northern Empire and the other enemies out there, what it means to go against us. We will snatch what belongs to us and help Hero Kyouki-kun to gain the freedom he deserves."

The flames of determination ignited among many, present inside the conference hall as they heard the bold and courageous statement of their liege.

Amidst the wave of determination and sheer resolution to achieve their certain goal, a heavy voice reached up to everyone as the Knight Commander began to speak.

"Ahm...has anyone thought about Austin?"

The sudden mention of the name, whom they hadn't paid much heed to since the hero's disappearance was everything they could care about, made many baffled as they looked at Charles with a complicated face.

"Austin...what about him?"

The one who spoke with sparkly eyes, even though his voice seemed to be doubtful, was the youngest person in the room, Mikhail.

He was the most interested in the topic, and thanks to Charles, he could now bring it up without hesitation.

"From what I have seen, Austin isn't a person who can get caught by any of the measles of the North. Either Austin is willingly staying there, or the Northern Empire has something in store which we aren't aware of."

Hearing such a thorough evaluation of the matter from the muscle head Charles, many of the council members' mouths parted in astonishment.

However, William had a different reaction to the matter which Charles presented. William, with his eyebrows frowning, fell into deep contemplation as what the Knight Commanded said confirmed that Austin and Kyouki's inactivity seemed too suspicious.

Both youngsters were able to send at least some signal to notify the kingdom about their condition. But none of them were showing any sign, where they were or what, in actuality, happened after they jumped through the portal.

What made William more stressed was what would happen if, even after the war, the two assets of the Gram didn't agree to come back. Worst case scenario, what would be their stance, if the two stood against Gram in the war?

William became highly stressed to even think about such a possibility.

But before he could come to any conclusion, someone hurriedly stepped inside the conference hall, attaining the attention of everyone present inside.

"My lord! An envoy from the Northern Continent has arrived."

The atmosphere became heavier as William, followed by others, stood at an instant as they heard the guard about something they weren't expecting at all.

"So Norsvolk hasn't gone senile after all."

William's face lighted up slightly as he walked toward the entrance with Mikhail by his side. But before they could have exited the room to greet the envoy, the messenger again spoke up.

"Umm...your majesty. The envoy isn't from the Royal Palace."

William, in an instant, halted in his steps, making the messenger shudder in fear.

"Then who is it from?"

With his voice reaching up to a certain chillness, William asked the messenger only to get shocked in the end.

"I-Its from a different faction from the North, my lord."

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"Okay, Kyouki-kun. It's time to change your temporary residence."

Entering inside the cell where Kyouki was sitting by the wall, Austin broke the chain restraining Kyouki's feet before he asked him to get up.

Austin was ready to face Kyouki if he was to struggle when he was migrating Kyouki to somewhere else. But strangely, Kyouki was listening to every word of Austin like he was just a puppet.

The reason how Austin was able to infiltrate the central prison as per he desired was the spell he used in the Eden Academy's Teleportation center.

Taking the still disfigured Kyouki out of the cell, Austin couldn't help but ask in curiosity.

"Why are you letting things go so easily? I mean, is there any motive you aren't resisting anything, even knowing I am using you for some evil purposes."

Austin had little idea why Kyouki was so silent since the time he was captured, and hearing it from the person himself, Austin's doubt cleared in an instant.

"If cooperating with your plans would make Luna happy, as you said before, then I am ready to be used for any means."

Sighing, Austin didn't speak further, just walked with Kyouki behind him toward the exit.

On the way out, a thought emerged in Austin's mind that he found necessary to occur for Kyouki's own good.

'I think I have to make Kyouki face reality, or this hero would be of no use in the future....'

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A/N:- Short chapter since I was out of words. I will skip this war scenario since it feels a little stretchy?

Anyway, I hope my story hasn't become boring, so please let me know how you feel about it~

Editor : Zenon #4120