The elegant and powerful General Kyle of Eru had come with the army from Hadia to help in the war. He had arrived a few days ago from Eru, just in time to join up with the army and participate in the war. Eru was showing its full support for Hadia in the war against Jai. Their reason for siding with Hadia was quite simple: the late Queen, wife of King Ken, was the sister to a very powerful noble house in Omi.
The marriage itself was meant to cement relations between the two nations, and since Eru didn't have an official royal family, they decided to wed one of the most prominent families' daughters to the King of Wize instead. The Lady Lilia Otos was chosen, sister to the Lord of House Otos, Adrien. House Otos was one of the three oldest and most powerful houses in Omi, along with the Wildes and Ardenia houses.
It was also the house that had adopted several talents into their ranks, including the God Sword of Eru, Hazel, and Cage, the spy in Thia's group. They had used their influence and power to ensure that the Queen's death would not go unpunished. Given her closeness to the head of the house, it wasn't difficult to convince Eru to side with Hadia.
But the Queen didn't want the conquest for Wize to be just about the vengeance of House Otos, so she decided to take control herself. She sent Meliesse to meet with the Sulten and act as her liaison instead of someone from House Otos. With a Pillar present, they were able to strike a deal with the Sulten of Hadia and offer their help in fighting Jai.
They couldn't send Hazel. His situation in Wize was quite complicated—more so than for any other God Sword traveling to other nations. Their presence wasn't appreciated outside their country, but there was a special kind of hatred carried by the citizens of Wize for Hazel. One so strong that they agreed to attack him on sight if he were ever seen in Wize.
Since they couldn't send him, and Dante had a way of causing too much trouble for them, while Mystos and Dylan were not always available, they decided to send General Kyle instead. Apart from the fact that he was the most logical choice, there was also the issue of the prince being alive to sort out. The prince was as much from Eru as he was from Wize, so it was safe to say they needed him alive.
On his way to Hadia, General Kyle had secretly brought along two people who would be responsible for searching for the lost prince. The General had his doubts about Thia, but he trusted the Queen more than anything in the world. He would leave that part to Thia and focus on accomplishing his mission.
He stared at one of the generals of Wize, General Khan, the man who commanded the Fifth Sands, and the beautiful Sulten Nadia of Lyokis. They were discussing how best to deal with Jai, someone whose strength was superior to theirs—maybe even combined. It was hard to say how they would fare if they teamed up against one of the God Swords.
General Kyle himself had always made sure to steer clear of them unless necessary. He had no reason to try his luck against any of them in battle.
General Khan was speaking about defeating Jai by any means necessary. Of course, Kyle supported this. Only fools thought bravery and righteousness were the keys to winning battles. Off the top of his head, Kyle could think of ten ways to win: stabbing someone in the back, setting traps, poisoning, bribing their men, striking when they were vulnerable—the list could go on and on.
Not that they were resorting to all of this. They were simply going to team up and deal with Jai. Nothing too serious.
If honor could win battles, General Kyle thought, he would definitely be dead by now.
General Kyle was a noble, but he had no honor. He didn't care for it either.
Sulten Nadia looked at him and asked, "Do you share General Khan's view?"
Kyle sipped the delicious tea offered to him earlier and replied, "Only fools think they can be anything but a coward when facing a stronger opponent. Bravery doesn't win wars. Winning does."
"See?" General Khan said loudly. "I knew you would agree with me. You and I are going to get along just fine."
General Khan turned to Sulten Nadia. "I'm sure you are a brave person, Sulten. You did follow us here, even though we might lose. But we didn't come here with bravery and honor hung around our necks like chains. We came here to defeat the enemy. The ways we do that will be nothing short of callous and inhuman. That's how we win."
"Oh..." Sulten Nadia said. "Well, then I'll be praying for your victory. May Kokuo see to your success."
General Khan laughed and stood up. "I'm going to check on the men. Are you coming, General Kyle?"
"I'll meet you in a moment," General Kyle said.
After General Khan left the tent, Sulten Nadia spoke. "Do you have something to say to me, General?"
"Yes, Lady Nadia. I believe you will respond truthfully, as you know our two nations profit more from mutual trust."
"Of course, I will. What is it you want to know, General?"
"When I arrived, I received word from Meliesse. She informed me of something. Something she suspected turned out to be true. But I want to know how much everyone else knows of this truth. That's why I wanted to ask: are you also aware that the prince is alive?"
Lady Nadia looked at the General for a few seconds. She hadn't expected him to ask about the prince at this moment. Like every other Sulten, she had also received a letter from the organization known as Sum. She had sent her men to investigate, and while they didn't find the prince, they came back with proof that hinted at some truth to the claim.
Although it wasn't definitive, she had decided to proceed as if the information were true. Now it seemed the news was spreading far and wide. This could end up being either the biggest lie or the most daunting truth.
She took a sip of her tea and replied, "Yes, I'm aware that the prince is alive and well. But what exactly does that change?"
"Everything," General Kyle said. "Omi would back the prince more than the Sulten. He is not only the heir to the throne, but he is also Lord Otos' nephew."
"Are you going to betray Sulten Burak?" she asked.
"Will Sulten Burak feel betrayed for supporting the rightful heir to the throne?" General Kyle countered.
Sulten Nadia bit her lip. It seemed she had said too much.
General Kyle smiled at her reaction. "You don't have to worry about anything. Just make sure, when the time comes and the prince decides to make his appearance, you're on the right side of things.
"When he shows himself and decides to claim his father's throne, make sure you give him the expected reply," General Kyle said and left the tent.
A few seconds later, Sulten Nadia smiled to herself. She brought her hand close to her chest and reached within her body. Her hand passed through, and from within, she drew out a book.
The book resembled a diary with a golden cover. She opened it, flipping through pages filled with blurred notes and words until she reached the last entry. Unlike the previous ones, these glowed with a radiant golden light.
Sulten Nadia read the contents.
One line read: Couldn't find the prince.
Another read: Found a lead on the notes. Will chase it down.
The third read: The prince is at the Temple of Fate.