Chapter 575: 575:The Alliance Of Five Empires
Rina stayed silent for a moment before lifting her gaze and looking directly at Ethan with a serious expression.
"You pushed yourself too far," she said.
Ethan did not deny it, and he simply nodded slightly.
"It was necessary," he replied.
Sophia clicked her tongue and shook her head, although her voice no longer carried its usual sharpness.
"Necessary my ass," she said quietly.
Lia stepped forward slowly and lightly held onto his sleeve, and her voice was soft and careful.
"Will you go back?" she asked.
Ethan shook his head gently.
"Of course not," he said.
That answer clearly did not convince anyone, and none of their expressions eased.
For a while, they continued asking him questions. One after another, they asked what had happened, where he had gone, who he had fought, and how he had survived everything.
The questions did not stop, and although Ethan did not explain everything, he answered enough to slowly calm their fears. He kept his tone steady while avoiding the parts that would worry them even more.
Time passed slowly, and the first day was chaotic because emotions kept rising again and again. Still, Ethan stayed with them and did not leave even once. He sat with them, talked with them, and sometimes simply listened quietly while they spoke.
By the second day, the tension inside the mansion had eased slightly, and the heavy atmosphere from before slowly began to disappear. The constant worry on their faces started fading bit by bit.
Sophia slowly returned to her usual self and started arguing with him again, although her eyes still checked on him from time to time when she thought he was not noticing.
Rina remained calm as always, but she continued keeping a close watch on his condition and made sure he rested properly and did not strain himself.
Lia and Diana stayed close to him almost the entire time, and they quietly followed him around as if they were still afraid he might disappear again without warning.
Amber handled things quietly in the background, and she made sure no unnecessary matters reached Ethan so he could recover peacefully without being disturbed.
By the third day, things had finally settled down. Although the fear had not disappeared completely, it no longer controlled them, and the atmosphere inside the mansion became calm and stable again.
That evening, Ethan sat in the main hall while the others gathered around him, and the warm light from the lamps spread softly across the room. The quiet atmosphere felt much calmer than before, and for the first time in days, everyone finally looked at ease.
No one was crying anymore, and no one was panicking.They were finally composed.
Sophia leaned back slightly and crossed her arms while staring at him.
"...Next time, don’t jump into war," she said.
Ethan gave a faint weary smile.
"It’s not in my hands ," he replied.
Rina lightly shook her head while looking at him seriously.
For a moment, silence settled across the room once again, but this time it did not feel heavy or painful.
It felt peaceful.
And after everything that had happened, that peace was more than enough.
During this time, Ethan slowly learned more about what had been happening outside while he was away, and the information made his thoughts heavier.
He found out that Julia, Amber, and Rathlos were stationed at Frostvale, and they were defending the region against the Beastmen while the pressure there remained high.
Amber returned because he needed to take potions from Mareti and wanted to make sure the security of Blanks hadn’t become lax.
On top of that, his brother-in-law had personally taken charge of guarding Frostvale, and he was leading from the front while holding the line against constant attacks.
Ethan stood still for a moment after hearing this, and his expression turned serious while his eyes lowered slightly.
"So he stepped in himself," he muttered quietly.
A faint change passed through his face.
There was respect and elief.
And there was also a sense of burden.
In such a situation, Ethan could not help but feel indebted to Lancelot, and he knew very well that holding Frostvale was not something easy, especially with the Beastmen pushing hard from their side.
"I owe them for this," he said under his breath.
He let out a slow breath and leaned back slightly, and for a brief moment, he felt like things had stabilized enough for him to finally relax a little.
The mansion was calm.
His family was safe.
And Frostvale was still standing.
But that small sense of ease did not last long.
A new report arrived.
The moment Ethan received it, he opened it without much thought, but as his eyes moved across the contents, his expression changed instantly.
His body stiffened and his brows pulled together tightly.
And then.
"HOLY SHIT!" he shouted loudly, and his voice echoed through the room.
The paper in his hand trembled slightly as he stared at it, and disbelief filled his eyes.
"Are they planning to turn it into a bloody world war?" he added, and his tone was filled with shock.
The sudden shout drew attention immediately, and footsteps were heard as others rushed into the room.
Sophia pushed the door open and stepped inside first, and her eyes went straight to Ethan.
"What happened?" she asked.
Rina followed behind her, and her gaze shifted to the paper in Ethan’s hand.
"What is it?" she asked, and her voice was calm but carried tension.
Ethan did not answer right away, and he simply handed the report to Rina.
"Read it," he said.
Rina took the paper and began reading it carefully, and as she went through the lines, her expression slowly changed while a serious look settled on her face.
Sophia leaned closer and read along, and after a few moments, her brows furrowed deeply.
"This is bad," she muttered.
The others gathered around, and the room that had just been calm turned tense again.
The message was clear.
The Empires had officially declared that they would join the front, and they were moving to fight against the combined alliance of Demons, Beastmen, and Orcs.
This was no longer just a single war.
It was expanding.
Ethan ran his hand through his hair and took a step back, and his thoughts started moving quickly.
"This is insane," he said.
"They are dragging everyone into this."
His voice was not loud now, but it carried weight.
Rina lowered the paper slowly and looked at him.
"This was bound to happen," she said.
"But not this fast," Ethan replied immediately.
His jaw tightened slightly.
"This changes everything," he added.
Sophia crossed her arms and let out a small breath.
"So what now?" she asked.
Ethan did not answer right away, and he looked ahead while his eyes turned serious again.
