Monarch of Evernight - Chapter 993

Chapter 993

Chapter 993: Reunion

The area outside of Tidehark was shrouded in silence .

The imperial army had retreated—only the traces of that giant army camp and the ruined city stood proof of the battle that had taken place several days ago .

The city was lifeless even during the daytime . Every house had shut their doors, and the few people on the streets moved in a hurried pace . Only a handful of people were working, hauling corpses outside the city for burial . No one accompanied them, nor did anyone cry for these unidentified fallen men .

The passersby and the people from the windows gazed at the corpse truck with cold expressions . Some of them revealed expressions of sorrow, but most of them were fairly indifferent .

The city guard had long since been destroyed, and the survivors were now hiding in their homes, not daring to reveal themselves . The spirit of the entire city had collapsed . The god they looked up to, Luo Bingfeng, had fallen, and there were rumors claiming Zhang Buzhou had a part in it . The people felt their spiritual support collapse… just like the holy mountain .

The imperial army’s withdrawal was too sudden—they pulled out entirely in less than half a day and destroyed all the equipment they couldn’t pack . There was no one holding power in Tidehark these days, yet there was neither chaos, robbery, nor rape .

That was because the city guard weren’t the only ones fighting during the battle . Many brave, hot-blooded citizens also took up arms to join the defense .

However, the defensive structures they believed impenetrable were useless before the overwhelming imperial firepower, especially the torrential cannon-fire from the warships . Song Zining had equipped those ragtag mercenaries to the teeth and sent them against the defensive line in a clumsy yet firm formation . The defense was gradually suppressed and ultimately routed in its entirety .

Song Zining had used an unheard of strategy that combined airship and heavy cannon support . The short but extreme training, as well as the perfect command and coordination, served as a lesson to the major powers of the neutral lands . They finally came to understand what standard imperial warfare looked like .

After occupying Tidehark, Song Zining assumed order inside the city with an iron fist . All dissenters and opportunists were killed without hesitation . There weren’t many people left at this point as they had either died during the battle or were killed after the occupation .

The survivors were deeply apprehensive of Song Zining’s cruel methods . Although the imperial forces had retreated, no one knew whether they would return or what they would do if they did . Hence, two days passed by without anyone keeping order or recruiting for a new city guard . The biggest human city of the past was now in a defenseless state .

Such a city appeared before the Eternal Flame when the Evernight alliance appeared .

At this point, the demonkin had joined forces with their earlier arrivals . Their strength had increased sharply and was now on par with the vampire and arachne . The Eternal Flame observed the passage over the holy mountain and said, “The passage will open the day after tomorrow, it will last one day . ”

The Eternal Flame couldn’t be wrong . The entire Evernight alliance broke into action, quickly setting up camp and sending in the army to take over Tidehark’s defenses .

The transfer of authority was oddly smooth and quiet—there was no resistance, nor were there any sneak attacks . Even the duke assuming control of the city felt confused and wondered whether this was an Evernight territory instead .

After taking over the city, the three races had no intention of engaging in in-depth administration . All they did was impose a curfew before letting things run on their own . After all, there was only one more day before the passage opened, and they were in no mood to bully the citizens .

The experts had a lot of things to do . For instance, scouting out the enemy situation, scrying future dangers, and monitoring the passage condition . The most important issue was to decide how many people they would send in, and the order of it .

The Evernight side discovered the opening of this passage later than the empire . The demonkin who had arrived first, in addition to Linken’s fleet, were the squads located closest to the neutral lands . In the end, Linken was defeated by Qianye and the first batch of demonkin had been firmly pinned down by Song Zining’s military power . No one had expected Song Zining to be that decisive, concentrating all military power toward taking Tidehark and securing the passage first .

The Evernight forces were now facing a difficult problem . Those entering first might encounter surprise attacks from the empire while they were in their weakest state after emerging from the tunnel . If they went late, however, the passage would become unstable and they would die during the traversal .

Additionally, the Evernight races didn’t have enough time to negotiate a plan that was acceptable for all parties . They simply hammered out a rough quota for each race before rushing toward the neutral lands . The vampires and arachne hadn’t expected the Eternal Flame to suddenly show up here . Now, there were new variables in the predetermined plans .

The Eternal Flame was strong, but the vampires and arachne weren’t so weak, either . With regards to Grand Magnums, they each had one as well . Hence, they might be willing to make some minor adjustments, but one could forget about getting them to make big concessions . Although Medanzo and Noxus weren’t in the neutral lands, it made little difference in the present discussions .

It was truly difficult to finish so many things in just one day .

Outside of Tidehark, the mountain ranges were already covered in ice . The black rocks and the white snow layered together to form a natural ink and wash painting .

There was a frail figure on one of the rocks, a young girl . Her messy hair was flying in the wind, her small face was pale from the cold, and the tip of her nose was somewhat pink . Every breath she exhaled would turn into white mist, and there was frost starting to form on her brows .

She was covered in a tattered sackcloth cloak, which she would pull tighter whenever the frosty wind blew past . Despite that, she was shivering as the sackcloth was naturally porous, and its ability to maintain warmth was less than desirable .

There was an oblong square protrusion behind her . No one knew what it was since it was hidden under the cloth .

She gazed at the distant Tidehark from atop the rocks . From this position, she could even see the warships hovering above . The sky above Tidehark was filled with dark clouds, swirling around the city like a giant whirlpool—a scene that would stifle all onlookers .

Experts with sharper senses could feel a surging power emanating from the vortex, a force as majestic as the mountains and seas . Even a duke would tremble before this terrifying force . That was the Eternal Flame probing and stabilizing the Great Maelstrom passage with his own power . That terrifying cloud whirlpool in the sky was just the heaven and earth responding to his strength .

The girl gazed at the swirling clouds momentarily, but then she suddenly turned around and looked down the mountain . There, a young man was in the process of scaling the cliffs . His movements were nimble and practiced, but he looked no different from an ordinary human . However, he was fairly relaxed even while climbing the snowing hillside, and arrived before the girl in a matter of moments .

“We meet again,” he greeted the girl with a smile, one as pure and penetrating as the rays of the sun . Even the cold and darkness around them were somewhat dispelled .

The girl looked at him with a thoughtful expression .

The young man said, “I’m Anwen, have you forgotten me?”

The girl shook her head . “No, it’s just that… my thoughts are a bit slow at the moment . ”

Anwen pointed at the giant vortex in the sky . “That’s normal . Everyone in His Majesty’s range will be affected . Come, wear this and you’ll be fine . ”

With that, Anwen produced a necklace and handed it to the girl . The chain was fairly simple and was decorated with a pendant made of black crystal, shaped like a water drop . The young girl donned the necklace without a second thought and felt noticeably more relieved .

A gust of cold wind blew past them . Anwen rubbed his hands as though he was feeling cold . “I never thought you’d come, but then again, you’ve always been quite bold, so I guess it’s not a surprise . ” He sized the girl up from head to toe . She was still barefoot, and her skin was as white as the snow she was standing on .

“Are you cold?” he asked .

The girl nodded, and then shook her head .

Anwent sighed as he rubbed one of his rings . In the blink of an eye, the temperature rose and it became as warm as spring .

The temperature had just risen when several black shadows flew out from Tidehark and soon surrounded the duo . The three demonkin leaders who had just arrived were surprised to see Anwen . They bowed in greeting, but Anwen waved at them, saying, “I’m fine, can’t you see I’m meeting a friend? Leave and don’t disturb me again!”

“Yes, Young Lord . ” The three demonkin left after seeing Anwen’s displeasure .

After they had left, Anwen smiled wryly . “You saw it, right? Even giving you some warmth brings me that much trouble . Why won’t you wear more clothes? This area is under His Majesty’s power, the cold here is real . Don’t you feel it?”

“It is cold . ”

Anwen shook his head . “Let it be . How about this? I’ll give you clothes and shoes, I’ll have someone prepare them right away . ”

“No . ”

“Why? Are you worried about the quality? They might not be top-notch but should be pretty good by any standard . You’ll know after using them . ” Anwen scratched his head . “After things settle down around here, I’ll get a set of top-grade clothes custom made for you . I still have some quotas left, they should be enough to pay for it . ”

“I refuse . ” The young girl shook her head .

“Why?” Anwen was vexed .

The girl finally spoke a full sentence, “The body is the greatest way to see . Too much gear will make it hard for me to sense my prey’s movements . ”