- Fantasy Lord: Start with Daily Intelligence
- FLDI Chapter 184
“Divine Awakening, Divine Ruins!”
Upon hearing the words of the others, Brian couldn’t help but show a look of shock.
“Yes, it’s the Divine Ruins. Sir Brian, if all goes according to plan, that orc will complete the final step of the Divine Awakening. At that point, someone will try to stop him, and that will trigger the descent of the Divine Ruins.”
“Sir Brian, Lord Thor has suggested you join us. If you’re willing, we can set out together tonight.”
Isabelle nodded, speaking with seriousness.
“Understood!”
“Thank you, Miss Isabelle!”
Brian suppressed the turmoil in his heart, glancing gratefully at Thor before turning back to Isabelle to express his thanks.
Isabelle smiled and nodded.
Thor chuckled lightly but didn’t say anything.
He understood Isabelle’s meaning. After spending some time together, he had witnessed the abilities of this noble scion from all angles. Whether it was strength or her social skills, Isabelle was nearly flawless.
No wonder she was the heir of the Azhubi family.
“Lord Thor, Sir Brian, if there’s nothing else, we should begin preparations. How about we depart in an hour?”
After reaching a consensus, Isabelle looked toward Thor and Brian, asking with a hint of inquiry.
“That works.”
Thor and Brian exchanged a glance and nodded.
Once they agreed, Isabelle gestured for the knights to start moving.
First, they needed to clear the battlefield and take care of the wounded before they could leave.
An hour was a bit rushed, but after several days of intense fighting, everyone had started to adapt to the pace.
Time passed slowly.
The hour flew by in no time.
The battlefield was cleaned, and the wounded were settled. Even the defensive points had been reorganized by Brian.
At this moment, near the city ramparts, groups of knights, taking advantage of this rare opportunity to rest, began to drift into sleep. Only a few knights remained on patrol, keeping watch.
Meanwhile, Isabelle, Thor, and the others gathered together in the west, tired but ready to move.
“Everyone, it will likely take us around four hours to reach the site of the Divine Awakening. We’ll first arrive at a defensive point, and once we do, we’ll stay there temporarily. Do not enter the area hastily,” Isabelle explained softly, addressing the group.
“Understood!”
Brian and Thor responded in unison, indicating their understanding.
With that, the group began to set off, heading toward the site of the Divine Awakening.
This time, the group was significantly smaller. It was just Thor, Steve, Pelos, Rain, and Carter, while Brian was alone on his side. Isabelle’s group consisted of only Isabelle, Joz, and Asha.
Thor had originally planned to bring a few more knights, but seeing that Isabelle was only bringing Joz and Asha, Thor decided to leave the others behind.
Now that he understood the potential dangers of the Divine Ruins, he realized that it wasn’t a place to bring knights who had already sustained significant injuries. If they entered the Divine Ruins in that condition, things could go terribly wrong.
Carter had been somewhat hesitant at first, as this was his younger brother, and he didn’t want anything bad to happen to him.
After much thought, Thor had left the final decision to Carter. In the end, Carter chose to follow along.
Thor didn’t say much after that. Everyone needed to take responsibility for their own choices, and that meant accepting the consequences. If something went wrong, Carter would have to bear it.
In the darkness of night, the group moved forward.
They didn’t use any magic crystals for light, as the orc attacks in various places were still ongoing. Any light could easily lead to misunderstandings among the defenders at the defensive points.
After several days of high-intensity combat, everyone’s nerves were already stretched thin. Any confusion could quickly escalate, and no one could predict what might happen. So, it was better to be cautious.
The sound of the wind rustling in the trees was the only noise they heard.
Surprisingly, despite the intensity of the battle, they encountered no issues during their journey. Not even a single magical beast appeared.
As the first light of dawn began to break, the group finally reached their destination.
Ahead of them, dark clouds hung thick in the sky, and an ominous aura seemed to cover the entire heavens, obscuring any trace of light. Even from a distance, the group could feel a heavy weight settle in their hearts.
Under the oppressive darkness, a city rampart gradually came into view.
At this moment, the area around the ramparts was completely devoid of orcs or any ongoing battles. A number of figures had gathered atop the rampart.
“Let’s go. Looks like we’re not too late after all!” Isabelle said with a smile, leading the group toward the rampart.
As they approached, the figures atop the rampart quickly noticed Thor and the others.
“It’s the Azhubi family! Didn’t expect them to arrive. We thought they might be too late this time!”
Someone spotted Isabelle and couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Hahaha, you really underestimate Isabelle. She’s the heir of the Azhubi family from the Kingdom of the Purple Flowers.”
As the laughter died down, someone else joined in.
“The heir of the Azhubi family, huh? Tsk tsk, if I could marry her, wouldn’t I be the head of the Azhubi family?”
Amid the teasing, someone else couldn’t resist joking further.
“Heh, Jessica, you’d better hope Isabelle doesn’t hear you, or you might find your legs missing by tomorrow.”
In the midst of the banter, the atmosphere became somewhat lively.
It was no surprise. Isabelle was well-known not only in the Kingdom of the Purple Flowers but also in the neighboring kingdoms. At under twenty-eight, she was already a Land Knight, a talent that was truly terrifying, even among the dukes’ families.
Not to mention that Isabelle was not only beautiful but also the future heir of the Azhubi family.
Of course, not everyone in the crowd was focused on Isabelle. Some were paying attention to Thor.
“It’s him?”
“How is that possible?”
A voice of astonishment rang out, and the speaker’s eyes immediately locked onto Thor.
“Baron Secchi, what’s going on?” A noble nearby asked in confusion.
“Wat, look at that person. Isn’t that Thor Dresrosa?”
Secchi Spencer spoke, his finger pointing toward Thor.
“Thor Dresrosa?”
The companion next to him paused, instinctively following his gaze. His eyebrows furrowed slightly.
“It really is him.”
“This guy actually came to the northern defense line. How did the Dresrosa family get such timely information?”
The voice was filled with surprise and a hint of suspicion.
“This guy must have known that the Divine Awakening wouldn’t happen.”
Secchi Spencer’s mind suddenly flashed with a realization as he looked at the laughing Isabelle and Thor below. His expression turned dark as he spoke.
Some things were starting to make sense now.
Thor and Isabelle were clearly very familiar with each other, so it didn’t seem too strange that they had known about the Divine Awakening earlier than others—even earlier than what most people had expected.
After all, the Azhubi family was one of the most powerful families in the Kingdom of the Purple Flowers, much stronger than the three great dukes of the Tulip Kingdom. It was not surprising at all if they had received the news a month or two in advance.
This also explains something—after the news of the Divine Awakening spread, while others were fleeing, the Dresrosa family was actually acquiring supplies from them.
Although the Dresrosa family certainly wouldn’t be able to seize those territories or mines, when the time came, no matter what others tried to do, the Dresrosa family would still be able to take a portion. Given that their territories and resources were nearly being handed to them, the Dresrosa family couldn’t possibly lose.
Thinking of this, Secchi Spencer’s face grew even darker.
Hearing his words, a nearby noble knight furrowed his brow.
“It’s impossible, right?”
He spoke with hesitation, but even he was beginning to doubt himself.
After all, it was just too much of a coincidence.
The Dresrosa family’s series of actions were so out of the ordinary.
Without solid information, how could they possibly act this way?
Of course, at this moment, they didn’t know that the Duke families of the Kingdom of Purple Flowers were indeed stronger than those of the Tulip Kingdom. However, this time the ones in charge were the three Dukes of the Tulip Kingdom, and it wasn’t certain that the Kingdom of Purple Flowers had received the news any sooner than they did.
Because they didn’t know this, at this moment, they couldn’t help but think of this possibility.
“There’s nothing impossible about it.”
“The Dresrosa family has always been opportunistic, and they really are quite clever,” Secchi Spencer sneered, his gaze turning to Thor below, his eyes flashing with hostility.
That was a sum of over a hundred thousand gold coins! When had Secchi Spencer ever suffered such a loss?
“Have they gone mad?”
“With such a small family like the Dresrosa, what gave them the courage to swallow such wealth?”
“Since the Divine Awakening didn’t come, are they preparing for the retaliation from the other powerful noble heirs?”
The figure was still in disbelief, speaking with a tone full of doubt.
“Hmph, who knows?”
“They might really have gone mad.”
Secchi Spencer snorted coldly.
“Well…”
The figure subconsciously spoke, but for a moment, they were at a loss for words.
At that very moment, as Thor was talking to Isabelle while drawing closer to the rampart, he seemed to sense something and instinctively looked up. His eyes met Secchi Spencer’s, immediately noticing the hostility in the other’s gaze.
Thor was slightly startled, surprised.
He didn’t recognize this person from his memory.
But although surprised, Thor made sure to remember this man.
Even with daily intelligence reports, Thor didn’t want any unnecessary trouble. The best approach was to nip any potential issues in the bud.
He had refrained from taking action during his time in the northern provinces, but in this northern defense line, it was different.
Even if the person was a noble heir, it was still possible for them to die.
Of course, it all depended on the situation.
“Miss Isabelle, it seems like this place is where most of the noble heirs have gathered. There sure are a lot of people.”
Thor’s thoughts returned to the present, and he casually remarked.
“Most of these people are heirs from your Tulip Kingdom, while there are not many from the Purple Flowers Kingdom or the Fiery Kingdom.”
Isabelle shook her head with a smile.
“Oh, so there are more from your Tulip Kingdom?”
Brian asked, surprised.
“Yes. This operation is led by your Tulip Kingdom, after all. I must admit, those three noble lords really do have guts. They dare to plot against the gods themselves,” Isabelle said, her tone filled with a hint of awe.
As the heir of the Anubis family, Isabelle undoubtedly understood more about the gods.
Even lower-tier gods were terrifying.
The Divine Ruins had a huge significance.
Over the past millennium, many had entertained the idea of succeeding in summoning the Divine Awakening, but the number of successful attempts was extremely rare.
The reason was simple: it wasn’t just about summoning the Divine Awakening. To do so without causing a divine presence to descend—leading to the Divine Ruins—was no easy task. If things went wrong, an actual god could descend.
A divine presence would be nearly catastrophic for royal families. In most cases, the royals would never agree to such an attempt.
If successful, things might turn out fine. But if they failed, the royal family would be replaced.
Such a risk was something most royal families wouldn’t dare to take.
At this moment, however, the royal family of the Tulip Kingdom had agreed to it—and they had already started.
It was truly unbelievable.
In contrast to Isabelle’s reflective words, Thor wasn’t particularly surprised.
With the daily intelligence reports, even though he might not know every detail about the Divine Awakening, he already had a good grasp of the general situation.
He even knew that the Divine Ruins were definitely going to descend.
Unlike the people around him, who, despite having arrived at this moment, still weren’t absolutely sure whether the Divine Ruins or an actual god would descend.
Thor’s thoughts drifted as the three of them continued their conversation.
They soon reached the rampart.
Once they stepped onto it, Thor couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow in surprise. The number of people at this location was even greater than he had expected, and most of them were barons, with quite a few already holding the rank of viscount.
The one thing they all had in common, however, was their youth.
They all appeared to be under forty, with the youngest not even eighteen, and the oldest around thirty-seven or thirty-eight. This was the golden stage of a knight’s training, the period with the most potential for future growth.
And beneath these youthful faces, their knightly skills were terrifying.
Among them, there were even quite a few Earth Knights.
There were no apprentice knights among them, except for Carter, who had just started.
(End of Chapter)