Eternal Winter, King's City.
“Lord... Lord Maven...” Someone nudged his arm.
Maven opened his eyes with impatience. It took a while for his blurry vision to overlap and for the familiar face of the old butler to appear in his pupils.
"Hic… What is it now?" He struggled to sit up, accidentally knocking over several wine bottles on the low table. One of them fell to the ground with a crisp "clang."
The sound brought him back to his senses considerably.
Followed by a splitting headache from the hangover.
That's right, last night he had forced several girls to drink with him. The commotion lasted until four or five in the morning. He finally passed out on the soft couch. Maven squinted at the soft couch beside him, which was covered in various wines and other liquids. It emitted a nasty sour smell after being baked by the fireplace all night. The girls were long gone, clearly lacking the skill to serve people properly.
Damn it, how did I fall asleep on this thing yesterday?
"Burn it." Maven wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth and shifted to a more comfortable sitting position to relieve his headache. "So, my dear butler, what bad news do you have for me today? Did another knight run away, or have the Graycastle people entered Eternal Winter?"
"I wouldn't dare, Lord." The butler quickly bent his waist lower. The idea of proactively seeking trouble with a Graycastle squad was his own. He certainly didn't want the master to turn on him at this time. "The Graycastle people are still fighting demons in the Wolvesheart area. They certainly won't reach Eternal Winter anytime soon. Please rest assured—"
"Heh, but isn't that a matter of time?" Maven interrupted. Even he found the smell of alcohol in his mouth offensive. "The demons' forces haven't increased for a long time, and even that Lord of the Sky has disappeared. Any clear-headed person can see the changes in the overall situation. What's the point of comforting me?"
"No, Lord—"
"Listen to me!" Maven growled. "I know what you want to say, cheer up, don't give up—but you saw it that day too. They were clearly holding the same weapons, but our people were still beaten to a pulp by Graycastle. What does that say? The difference isn't in the nobles, but in the subordinates and commoners at the bottom! They dare to face firearms head-on, what about our people? They only know how to run away with their heads in their hands!"
"How many people are left in Eternal Winter's King's City now? Take Viscount Nuos, for example? No, his territory now is practically the size of an earl's. Duke Remy? Most of his family property is in Eternal Winter. He can't leave even if he wants to. And this family, that family… Indeed, the great families are still here, but is it because they don't want to leave! No!"
His tone suddenly became high-pitched.
"They can't leave! They don't want to burn the family property accumulated over generations and start from scratch! If there's any other way, they won't sit and wait for death! The knights I recruited don't have that kind of worry. A land deed has no binding force at all. This group of people can take the land deed and leave, and come back after the war is over. So I can only close my doors and use banquets to keep them!"
"This isn't giving up, let alone escaping, do you understand?" Maven picked up a bottle of wine and took a big gulp. "Once I fulfill my promise, they will all leave immediately! Since my subordinates and commoners can't compare to Graycastle, the only thing I can rely on is the demons. As long as they can defeat Roland Wimbledon, these people will settle down again. When the time comes, I'll reissue the land deeds, and these knights will become my greatest help!"
"Lord… I know all of this, but I must inform you, the Lord of the S—"
"Shut up, you don't know!" There was a hint of tremor in Maven's voice. "You think I'm weak, incompetent, and only know how to drink all day, but that's not true. My strategy isn't wrong, the mistake is that the demons lost! Even they can't beat the Graycastle people, what's the point of me cheering up alone? It's okay for others to leave, even Fruller, who I valued so much, left. What's the point of me becoming the King of Eternal Winter? I might as well drink more good wine… After all, I won't be able to drink it in the future."
"So from today on, you don't need to tell me any more bad news, just keep it to yourself. Prepare some good wine for me tonight, I remember there's still a lot stored in the underground warehouse of the King's City, right? Now… get out."
After saying that, Maven covered his face with his hand and lay back on the soft couch.
"Lord, what I wanted to say is that Lord of the Sky is waiting in the castle's reception room at this moment. He says he has a new decree to give to you." The butler finally found a chance to speak and quickly said it in one breath.
"You—what did you say?" Maven sat up abruptly. "Lord of the Sky is here? Why didn't you tell me earlier? Quickly prepare a basin of hot water, I'll wash my face and go over!"
"No need." Suddenly, a deep voice came from the door. The two couldn't help but be stunned and turned their heads to look—only to see a tall, blue-skinned figure push open the door and stride in.
It was Hekezord.
He glanced at the messy furnishings and empty wine bottles everywhere in the room, and revealed an undisguised contempt in his expression. "I thought you were caught up in some important matter. It seems I wronged you. What, do you think the outcome of this war has already been decided?"
Damn it, he heard my complaints! Maven quickly knelt on one knee, even wanting to slap himself. "No, Your Excellency, I was just—"
"Considering your level of understanding, I can forgive you for this slip of the tongue, but don't let it happen again, otherwise I will definitely pull out your tongue." Hekezord said coldly. "The enemy's performance in the early stages was indeed beyond our expectations, but that's only in the early stages. In fact, their good days are coming to an end. Not only Wolvesheart, but also Dawn and Graycastle will soon be swallowed by war. This is the inevitable fate of the resistance."
"Lord of the Sky, is this… is this true?" Maven said with some skepticism. He originally thought Eternal Winter was a dead end and wanted to ask the Demon Lord for a place to settle down, but according to the other party, the situation didn't seem too bad, at least not to the point of being unrecoverable. Given that they previously thought Graycastle was vulnerable, it was questionable how much credibility this statement had.
Hekezord sneered, "It's understandable that you doubt it, but once you witness our clan's "power" with your own eyes, I believe you will understand the weight of my words." After saying that, he raised his hand and opened a "door" that emitted a strange purple light. "Come with me."
Maven swallowed his saliva and braced himself to enter the door.
The other side of the door was still a hall. He was surprised to see many familiar faces inside, such as Nuos and Remy.
Obviously, Lord of the Sky had gathered most of the nobles of Eternal Winter.
Before he could ask for clarification, the Demon Lord opened another portal.
The other party's intention was self-evident.
The crowd looked at each other and finally walked into the door in a long line.
This trip lasted nearly a day.
Maven didn't remember how many portals he had passed through. The scenery around him was sometimes caves, sometimes mountains. The further down he went, the more uneasy he became. Although he knew that the demon didn't need to put in so much effort to kill him, this kind of forced transfer without a clear purpose always caused fear.
When night fell, the nobles finally arrived at their destination.
As the last door slowly disappeared behind them, Maven Pike's eyes widened!
"This is—"
He saw a miracle!
That's right, even if he exhausted all his words, he couldn't more accurately describe what he was witnessing. Apart from miracles, he couldn't think of any other description!
The other nobles were no better off, each one speechless, unable to say a complete sentence.
"Now, you have seen it." Hekezord said expressionlessly.