As Master Merlin once said, the Empire once had an ambition, or rather, they still have the same ambition, having somehow obtained the power to infuse the creature with THE THING. Whether THE THING itself gave them permission to do so, or they somehow got it, is anyone's guess at this point, but what's important about this ambition of theirs is that they wanted to create an army like no other. An army that will make even the Devil King look pale, at least that's how Nar and Sas describe it today, especially since the one leading the whole thing is none other than Prince Rufus.
"Emperor Justin is currently on his deathbed. I'm no God of Death, but I'd say he has about a year or so left, and the most likely person to replace him is undoubtedly Prince Rufus" [Joseph].
"Father..." [Tiara]
"Are you all right?" [Aeron]
"It's okay... I'm fine. Even if he tries to use me, he's still family... But I am no longer a fool. I know the consequences of what will happen if I go and pay him a visit" [Tiara].
"After all, you are their only way to control the army of monsters. You're their Saintess of Chimera after all" [Merlin].
"I know. I still remember what you once told me before Master Merlin" [Tiara].
"It's terrifying to think what would actually happen if you decided to work with them. I'm glad that's not the case, the world might as well crumble before the Devil King rises" [Joseph].
Even the Wandering Sage shudders at the sound of Teacher Tiara controlling an army of Chimera created by THE THING. One monster influenced by THE THING alone is enough to cause a headache. Imagine an army completely under her command. Although the Empire is slowly but surely finding a way to control these Chimera or monsters without Teacher Tiara, it's just not the same. It's like a normal human using a magic wand made by an elf to control plants. At the end of the day, the wand can go so far, but it wouldn't beat the way an elf can control a forest. That's how important Teacher Tiara is to the Empire.
Anyway, back to the point. They still wanted to control the almighty Dragon King through THE THING. That's why Prince Rufus and his elite troops are in Xianxia. After all, the Dragon King's lair is in the volcanic area of Xianxia. Whether the Dragon King chose that area because of its volcanic activity or the Dragon King's lair caused the strong and increasing volcanic activity in that area is uncertain, but it's a trecious area. Volcano spewing lava left and right. High temperature with poisonous smoke. Only the most resilient will be able to conquer it before even looking at the Dragon King, and that's not counting the countless monsters that make it their home.
"Mr. Ling is able to sniff out this activity, and he and a group of mercenaries are able to intervene, however, despite me not intervening, they're like best friends. Actively talking about politics, economics and various topics. They even share glasses with each other and with me. Truly, they're experienced and knowledgeable" [Joseph].
"Grandpa, you're going off script again" [Teliara].
"My fault. My fault. My point is that even Mr. Ling is interested. He no doubt knows that Prince Rufus wanted to control the Dragon King. He's also curious. He knows very well that Prince Rufus' plan will fail, but he still persists and joins him" [Joseph].
"Mr. Ling is really a happy-go-lucky guy, even more than me" [Diana].
"And you're self-awarw. I'm impressed" [Arthur].
And a telephatic pinch, just like Master Merlin does to that insensitive Arthur! It might not hurt as much, but since I can't bite him while he's on the other side of the table, I might as well!
"Is the Dragon King still so arrogant? He and the Devil King are undoubtedly the most arrogant beings in the world" [Merlin].
"Fortunately and unfortunately, the Dragon King doesn't even care about us when we're there... No... Actually, he interacts with me and the elder giant for a bit" [Joseph].
The Dragon King, the strongest and largest of all dragons. While dragons have many classifications, all scholars agree that the Dragon King is in a league of its own. No other dragon comes close to him in any aspect, be it size, strength, magic, or even intelligence. When the Dragon King takes note of the Wandering Sage and the Elder Giant, I'm reminded of how the Devil King chose to speak only to me and Master Merlin. I guess this means that the Dragon King at least recognizes the power that the Wandering Sage and the Elder Giant have.
"A sage and a giant who have inherited the blood. The Goddess really works in an interesting way. I'm sure it's no coincidence that he said that. With the Devil King's awakening, I'm sure he must have foreseen something. That's the only thing he said before continuing to ignore us" [Joseph].
Blood? What kind of blood? Is it bloodlines? Or is it something to do with Empress Elizabeth piercing the elder giant with her blood art? The question remains.
"The trembling as he awakens. The miasma of fire surrounding the Dragon King. The sound of his breath and heartbeat. A glare from him that paralyzes all he sees. The mercenaries. The elite troop. Instinctively cowering in fear at the sight of the Dragon King. They even forget to breathe, fearing to anger a powerful being. Everything about the Dragon King speaks volumes about why he gets the title of Dragon King. And rightly so. When Prince Rufus saw this, he openly said that without his little sister, he wouldn't be able to control the Dragon King" [Joseph].
"That is... So a war is coming..." [Marianne]
"It's too early to say, although it's not completely impossible. If anything, knowing Prince Rufus, the recapture of Her Highness Princess Tiara could be an excuse to expand his territory even further" [Khamisah].
"I agree with Miss Khamisah. If anything, someone like Prince Rufus will undoubtedly consolidate his position before taking any drastic action. He may be boastful, but he's not a fool to rush into anything" [Eisheth].
A war. It's because of a war that I was about to be sold as a slave, but it's also because of a war that I was blessed by fairies and saved from that horrible village! I'm not saying that I'm grateful that the Empire lost that war, but even I don't want another war. I have so many things I love. My family. My friend. Amlethians! They are all important to me.
"By the way, how did Prince Rufus get back to the Empire safely? Let me guess, Mr. Ling thinks it's a hassle and just lets him go?" [Akela]
"Right you are, although he did so after offering me and the elder giant to side with him. Of course, we both refused. Seeing this, he knows that both sides did not want any unnecessary bloodshed for fear of losing valuable men and talents. Prince Rufus is to leave Xianxia without killing anyone, and no charges will be filed, according to the word of Mr. Ling" [Joseph].
"And let me guess, Prince Rufus is trying to get you two on his side as well" [Nar].
"Of course. Just like Her Highness Queen Amleth, he loves to collect talents from all over the world to aid his ambitions" [Joseph].
That's the end of the story. Next, the two of them stopped by Philip's house to rest after the whole incident. They visited the elder turtle and that's when our group met them. After that, Linda told us our side of the story. About the incident in Philip and the agreement between the kingdom there and the coffin turtle
"This just proves that the Empire is really serious about subduing the Dragon King and making him their pet. To do this, the Empire needs resources, not only to get to the Dragon King, but also to invade Xianxia. Xianxia will definitely resist and put up a great fight, and this will exhaust the resources of both sides. Gastrium and Philip being one of the most recent targets is no coincidence" [Amleth].
"Surround us from all sides before launching a full attack. A simple yet effective strategy" [Ophelia].