Chapter 97 — Guests from the Royal Capital

It was not that the Silver Empire had monopolized the technology; rather, apart from the elves, the brains of other races simply could not process elven spell models. Those pointy-eared cheats were born with special perceptive and cognitive abilities; their casting was complex and precise, and the magic humans used looked beside elven sorcery like some cheap, stripped-down knockoff...

Of course, human magic had its advantages too—plenty of it, and filling: low cost, high power, and apart from the occasional oddball like Hedy, who could not hit a target, or Rebecca, who knew only the big fireball, it was quite decent in every respect.

In short, because of the limitations of the Great Wall's fundamental architecture, all the sentinel towers had been monitored by the Silver Empire for seven hundred years, and the drawback Gao Yang mentioned was unavoidable: the elves, at the southern end of the continent, could hardly learn in time what was going wrong with the sentinel towers at the far north.

"Though I have converted to the holy light and no longer concern myself with the kingdom's affairs, the teachings of the Shining Stars bid us hold fast to compassion and benevolence," Viroday suddenly broke the silence. "When I return, I will report the situation here to my royal father and advise him to dispatch envoys at once to contact the elven race."

Then, with some concern, she looked around her: "If the Great Wall truly goes dark, this place will bear the first brunt. How could these frail people possibly survive... Duke Cecil, I do not question your courage, but for the sake of the people here, have you considered moving elsewhere..."

"I thank you for your concern, but for now I have no such intention," Gao Yi said with a smile at Viroday. "I have already verified the condition of the Great Wall; it will not fail again any time soon, and the risk of total collapse is all but nil. Besides—if the Great Wall really did come down... where on this continent would hiding make any difference?"

"I am most curious how you actually held off those monsters," Cohen could not help asking. "From the aura lingering on those skeletons I can sense how powerful they once were—and the military strength of this territory..."

Gao Yang gave a chuckle: "More than half of it was luck—those monsters had the misfortune to meet a landslide, and our people spotted them days before they came anywhere near the camp, so we were ready. As for the rest... you may put it down to the wisdom and strength of old men."

Viroday and Cohen: "..."

Behind Gao Yang, Amber and Rebecca began whispering: "See, didn't I tell you your ancestor could talk a man to death?"

Rebecca, all innocence: "So telling the truth is a crime now?"

Amber: "...This shameless style must be a family tradition of yours."

Rebecca: "You're being rude!"

Gao Yang listened with some embarrassment to the small commotion behind him. The two girls thought they had kept their voices nicely low, but in fact anyone present could hear them. Rebecca being stubbornly blunt and low in social graces, easily provoked, was one thing; but Amber, sharp as a tack, was plainly inviting a beating on purpose—and unfortunately, this hardly seemed the occasion to string her up and thrash her...

Fortunately, Viroday seemed not to mind the two young women muttering at her side. Hearing Gao Yang's decision to remain, she merely wore an expression as though she had expected it, and said quietly: "I respect your decision, but there is one thing I hope you will know as well—if the situation in the south worsens further, the kingdom likely will not have much strength left to offer support."

From the very beginning Gao Yang had known that, under the Ansell Kingdom's present system, he would get little support from the crown—which suited his own wishes perfectly. Yet in Viroday's tone he caught another meaning, and could not help asking: "What has gone wrong?"

"The eastern border," said Cohen, the deputy commander, in a low voice. "Between us and the Typhon Empire... I fear there is no room left for reconciliation."