Chapter 397 Nothing More Than A Hooligan
Archer grinned as he spoke. ''You should never lose focus human.''
He quickly cast Soul Eater on the commander and ate his soul which caused his lifeless body to drop to the ground with a thud.
When the soldiers saw this they started to panic before the Chull Warriors tore them apart causing blood to run like a river throughout the courtyard.
Archer smiled at this and ordered the insects to return to the domain before he summoned his loot goblins.
He instructed them to loot the fort which took them half an hour. After he was done with that he took off and flew north toward Frosthaven, the capital of the Kingdom.
While Archer was flying over the snowy land he saw a large forest at the base of a mountain in the distance.
After flying for an hour, he saw a castle which he started hovering above it before descending.
Once he was closer to the ground he descended into the courtyard unnoticed before he opened a portal to the domain
Archer summoned the Nightmare Jungle Tigers and ordered them to kill all the soldiers inside the fortress.
He found a barrel to sit on and waited for them to finish their hunt but soon his Aura Detector picked up a group of pings heading straight for him.
Before they arrived Archer cast Crown Of Stars so they couldn't get close and when the soldiers turned the corner the violet motes shot toward them.
The projectiles pierced through the shocked warriors but Archer wasn't finished as he cast Earthquake.
Upon the spell's activation, the ground trembled beneath his might, giving birth to an earthquake whose epicenter originated from his very location.
As the very foundations of the castle began to tremble, screams of terror and panic echoed through the stone walls.
The terrified cries of the inhabitants mingled with the deep roars of the Netherbeasts as the castle started collapsing in on itself.
Stone pillars splintered, walls crumbled, and the once-solid ground fractured. Soldiers and defenders stumbled and fell.
Their attempts to maintain their footing proved futile as the world around them disintegrated and they fell into a deep hole that opened up.
The quake's sheer force was all-encompassing, sparing no corner of the castle from its unremitting devastation.
In the midst of this chaos, the power of his magic was undeniable, a force to be reckoned with.
That's when the Nightmare Tigers continued their assault and took down the remaining soldiers.
The beasts dragged the bodies over to a courtyard and dumped them in a pile as the castle fell in on itself. Archer summoned the Stone Men and told them to loot the rubble.
He waited for a little while until they brought treasure chests and hearts which he stored away before dismissing the Stone Men.
Archer sent the Netherbeasts back to the domain before taking off and flying toward the Frostfallen capital.
[The Avalon Empire - Albert Silverthrone - Southern Border]
[In the not-so-distant future]
The emperor asked Albert to return to the South and see what state it was in and by the time he made it to the South Archer was already in the North causing trouble.
As they embarked on their journey toward the enemy kingdoms and finally crossed the border, the sight that greeted them left everyone in shock.
They came upon a trail of large, charred marks scarring the once familiar road. Albert noticed that the ground was littered with the remnants of burnt weapons and shattered armor.
It was as if a tempest of fire and fury had swept through the region. The procession of Avalonian soldiers, which had been marching came to an abrupt halt.
The eerie silence hung in the air as they surveyed the grim tableau before them. Albert's second-in-command approached him with a mix of awe and disbelief in his eyes.
He spoke with a joyful voice, an undercurrent of disbelief threading through his words. "Is this your Grandson's doing, Commander?"
Albert, resembling Santa Claus with his snowy white beard and weathered face, nodded solemnly.
"Yes," he replied, his voice tinged with a mixture of pride and sorrow.
"Reports claim the boy had single-handedly wiped out the four southern kingdoms, but the Emperor insisted on having another pair of eyes to witness this. So here we are, bearing witness to the extent of the boy's power."
He continued leading the soldiers and embarked on a journey through the war-ravaged lands of the southern territories.
Their path led them through a haunting landscape where the lingering echoes of destruction and despair were noticeable.
As they advanced, the remnants of once-imposing castles emerged on the horizon. These fortresses, once symbols of strength and security, now lay in ruins.
Their stone walls bore the charred scars of dragon fire or the haunting imprints of some unknown, sinister spell.
Around these castles, the landscape bore witness to the final, desperate stands of valiant defenders.
The battlefields were strewn with the broken remnants of their last efforts. Splintered shields, shattered weapons, and the haunting echoes of their last moments were etched into the very soil.
They marched through this desolate terrain, and couldn't help but notice the eerie presence of massive, unidentifiable beast remains.
The creatures, unknown to them, were scattered across the battlefields like grotesque monuments to an otherworldly conflict.
Albert led his troops as he couldn't help but contemplate the extraordinary and destructive forces that had wreaked havoc upon these lands.
He finally realized how special the boy was and wondered if it was a good idea to let him roam free but Albert knew that the empire couldn't contain him.
From all the rumors he's heard about his Grandson, Albert learned that Archer was a free spirit and didn't act like a nobleman, he was more like a rogue.
[Duke Leonard Ashguard - Suncrest City - Goldenvale Kingdom]
In the grand chamber, the Duke stood at one end, and before him, the Goldenvale king Xander Goldenvale offered a deep bow.
The man's gesture of humbleness creates a ripple of confusion among those present.
Leonard's younger brother Rein Ashguard turned to the Duke and spoke. ''What is going on here big brother?''
Before any of the Avalonians could speak Xander spoke. ''Some time ago a boy visited the city and said if we submit to the empire then he will let us live after looting the bank and treasury.''
When Leonard heard this he was shocked and realized that Archer had already been there and ruined his chances.
He was frustrated but knew he couldn't do anything but accept the situation and take over the Goldenvale Kingdom.
Leonard looked at Rein and spoke. ''Bring supplies to the city. We need to secure the kingdom with temporary castles before moving on to the Aetheria Kingdom.''
Rein, spurred into action, nodded his understanding and hastily left the palace to address the pressing matters at hand.
Meanwhile, Duke Leonard, his expression a mixture of concern and determination, turned his attention back to King Xander.
"We shall remain in the city for a few weeks," he declared, his voice resolute, "to stabilize the kingdom and address the Aetherians."
With a weary sigh, the Duke settled into his seat, his gaze fixed on the Goldenvale King. "Now, please, tell me more about this boy who visited your city."
Xander, who had taken a seat as well, regarded the Duke with a measure of seriousness. He began to recount the unsettling tale.
"The boy is nothing more than a hooligan," Xander explained, his voice tinged with frustration.
He continued, "Greedy and audacious. He pilfered everything from the Goldenvale Bank and emptied most of my treasury."
As the King spoke, his gaze met Leonard's, and his eyes revealed a mixture of exasperation and disbelief.
"What's more," he added, his voice heavy with the weight of the revelation, "he claimed that the empire would provide assistance in these endeavors."
The implications of this statement left the Duke shocked as he thought to himself. 'This child is a sneaky little shit. He steals most of the wealth from the Goldenvale Kingdom and expects us to deal with the aftermath.'
As they continued their conversation, Xander shared everything he knew about Archer, oblivious to the challenges Leonard would soon face as a result of the boy's actions in the West.
Leonard came away from the conversation with a headache and only now realized what type of person his neglect created.
When he was walking out of the palace his communication artifact lit up and Leonard heard the emperor's voice. ''Duke Ashguard. You're to secure the western region and make sure it joins the empire without any issues. You are to report to me once you're done.''
Leonard sighed before telling the emperor what Archer did which caused the man to laugh before he spoke.
''There's not much we can do about him, Leonard. If we provoke him he will turn on us. Just do your job and hope the boy doesn't want revenge for the way you treated him.''
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