The Herb King

Ramiel could barely hold his mace in exhaustion. He has been fighting with Gustavo for a long time and his world essence was almost depleted. He had already discarded his shield since it was becoming cumbersome for him to hold two heavy weapons.

At this moment, he was supporting himself by putting his weight on his mace. Behind his seemingly impenetrable armor was his bruised body. It wasn't serious, but the more time passes, the more his mobility decreased.

Gustavo saw through Ramiel's weakness, but he wasn't any better. After trying to penetrate the other party's defenses, he used up a lot of his world essence.

Suddenly, he heard a signal horn from their camp.

"A signal to retreat?" Gustavo muttered in confusion. They were slowly overwhelming the enemies with their numbers so why did the Grand General order them to retreat?

"That's a signal for us to retreat! Fall back! Everyone, retreat!" Gustavo shouted at his subordinates. He then gave one last look at Ramiel before leaving with the soldiers.

Ramiel and the others furrowed their eyebrows as they watched the Ford Empire's soldiers retreating in a hurry.

"What's going on?" Aurus frowned.

Ramiel narrowed his eyes as he muttered. "I have no idea. Something must have happened in the capital. Perhaps our guys managed to defeat the Dustin Empire."

Hearing this, the others were shocked.

"But didn't the Dustin Empire just attack Lion City recently?" Aurus was dumbfounded by his words.

"If they had followed Sir Aethelwolf's plan, it should be possible. I'll communicate with the chief later and ask him what's going on. Let's put up another barricade for now. Tell the soldiers to watch out for the Ford Empire's sneak attacks." Ramiel issued a series of commands. He had full trust in Aethelwolf. He believed that Aethelwolf was an omnipotent individual and that nothing could stand in his way.

Soon, the two armies halted their battle and had a momentary ceasefire.

Meanwhile, inside the tent of Lexter Ford.

"Grand General, General Gustavo has arrived." A messenger reported to the man seated on the head seat.

Lexter Ford nodded his head. "Tell him to enter."

Not long later, the messenger brought an exhausted-looking Gustavo inside the tent. He has some minor wounds all over his body, but it was nothing serious to an expert like him. However, when the soldiers inside the tent saw him covered in blood wounds, they all gasped in surprise.

"Grand General, I've retreated with the army after hearing the signal. Pardon my bluntness, but why did you tell us to retreat?" Gustavo asked while looking at Lexter.

Truthfully, he was also thankful that he received the command. His opponent was so hard to deal with that he was uncertain whether he could win against him.

Lexter's face turned serious. He then told the other soldiers to leave the tent.

Gustavo realized that it must be serious since their Grand General refused to let anyone hear the details.

After everyone left, Lexter muttered in a solemn tone. "The Dustin Empire's force attacked Lion City after getting my signal. However, I received a report from our spy that George Dustin suddenly commanded his troops to retreat. That guy isn't the type of person who would give chance to his opponents so I immediately sent our spy to see what was happening on that side. Do you know what he told me?" Lexter stared at Gustavo with a dark look on his face. After pausing for a moment, he then continued. "Our spy bribed a soldier of the Ice Wyvern Battalion and he heard from that soldier that the first prince of the Leone Empire is actually a peak stage Level 4 Esper and he has gained the recognition of their Divine-Rated artifact! At this moment, the Dustin Empire is showing no signs of aggression. I tried to reach out to George Dustin, but he is not answering my calls. This is a very troubling matter..."

After hearing all this, Gustavo was in disbelief. He stayed in the Leone Empire for many years so he knew who the first prince was. The guy was known to everyone as the Lazy Drunkard Prince. He got this moniker because of his indolent lifestyle. 'How is that possible?! That guy is actually a peak stage Level 4 Esper! And he even got the recognition of their Divine-Rated artifact!'

"There is a high chance that the Dustin Empire will betray us. Even George Dustin couldn't handle a Divine-Rated artifact that has its own spirit. Forcing this battle would only be detrimental to us so when I heard about the report, I immediately ordered you guys to retreat. We need to know what's happening out there before we make a move. I'll also report this to His Majesty." Lexter muttered. "Take a rest for now and tell the soldiers on guard duty to be alert." He dismissed Gustavo after telling him the news.

Gustavo bowed to him and left the tent.

Lexter took out his Communication Rune and called the emperor of the Ford Empire, Ludwig Ford.

"Lexter, why did you call me at this hour?" A stern voice could be heard after the call connected.

Lexter cleared his throat and reported everything to the emperor. "... that's what happened."

The other side was silent for a moment. Not long later, Lexter heard a heavy sigh followed by the emperor's voice. "It seems like we had underestimated the Leone Empire. Who would have thought that they actually own such a valuable Divine-Rated artifact? We can't handle this weapon. It would only bring us great disaster even if we manage to get our hands on it. Without a Level 5 Esper to hold down the fort, the big empires would soon make a move against the Leone Empire once they hear this news. After all, the Two Lion Sword is a very tempting item for them."

"What do you want us to do, Your Majesty?" Lexter Ford asked.

"Tell everyone to return and make sure to spread this news to the big empires. Even if we lose this time, we must not let the Leone Empire have an easy time!" Emperor Ludwig replied coldly.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Lexter Ford acknowledged the command.

***

A few days later, an envoy from the Dustin Empire came to visit the first prince for a peace talk. However, Prince Renz was surprised when he saw that it was George Dustin himself who came in person.

"Greetings, Your Highness." George greeted the prince.

Baron who was standing behind the prince glared at George. He knew that this man was the Grand General of the Dustin Empire, an expert at the peak stage of Level 4. He was very dangerous so Baron was prepared to make a move once the peace talk fails.

George gave a fleeting glance at Baron before turning his gaze back to Prince Renz.

The prince smiled at him and said. "Please take a seat first, Sir George. I'm surprised that you came here in person. I thought that you will only send a subordinate to finalize our agreement. Anyway, let's begin the negotiations." He was determined to let the Dustin Empire pay a heavy price for attacking them.

George sat down and nodded at the prince. He then took out a document and handed it to Prince Renz. "We are willing to compensate the families of the Leone Empire's soldiers who died in battle. The specific compensation is listed in that document. Other than that, we will also pay for the..."

George Dustin called the emperor of the Dustin Empire recently to report what had happened. Luckily, the emperor has foresight and he agreed to compensate the Leone Empire to avoid their revenge.

The terms that George provided were decent, but Prince Renz didn't show a positive expression. "I will sign this agreement if you add 500,000,000 gold coins."

Hearing this, George frowned and entered into silence. It wasn't a small amount and he had a feeling that Prince Renz was making things difficult for him. He wanted to reject the other party, but when he recalled the prince's power, he could only sigh as he nodded his head weakly. "Alright. I accept your conditions. We will send everything stated in the agreement within a week."

"Great!" Prince Renz beamed as he extended his right hand.

Seeing his outstretched hand, George shook it reluctantly.

"You can send your people to monitor the delivery of the goods. We will also help you in transferring the items to Lion City." George said.

Prince Renz nodded his head. "That would be helpful."

"I won't stay for long, Your Highness. I have to return to the Dustin Empire to report the details of the agreement to His Majesty. Farewell." George stood up from his seat and left with his subordinates.

Prince Renz stared at their departing figures. The smile on his face slowly vanished and it was soon replaced by a cold look. "Sir Baron, follow me back to the imperial castle. We must inform His Majesty about this." He muttered.