[Vol. 8] Chapter 51: A Fate That Cannot Be Escaped
It was obvious now that the Dragon God's arrival was closely connected to Her Divineness the Goddess. This action confirmed what Frederica had suspected earlier about the relationship between the two divine beings, and about the coming Holy War.
It seemed… they really needed to start preparing as soon as possible.
And the first step was, of course, to safely lead the delegation out of the Austre Empire and back to the Holy Capital.
"Yes... gods truly are beings of such power. Before them, mortals are nothing but ants... heh..."
By the way, the one standing beside Her Holiness and speaking those words was none other than Tairnak, the chieftain of the Behemoth Tribe and the current commander of the allied tribes from the buffer zone.
To be honest, Frederica had been surprised to see him. Just last night, she had gone to great lengths sneaking into the fortress to find him, but never caught even a glimpse. Yet today, just as the situation was turning tense and they were preparing to break through the border head-on, the great chieftain suddenly appeared without invitation.
Tairnak’s arrival quickly calmed what had been a very tense standoff that could have easily turned into a battle. Although he and Frederica weren’t exactly close, they at least knew each other.
The Judgement Saintess hoped to pass through Iron Ridge peacefully without fighting, and the great chieftain had even more reason to avoid provoking the Holy Empire, possibly the only ally they could count on if everything went wrong.
The two leaders immediately reached an agreement, and their subordinates naturally had no objections, and didn’t dare to either. Whatever tension had been left from the earlier scuffle at the eastern gate disappeared instantly.
After learning that the Holy Empire’s delegation only wanted to pass through the fortress and return home quickly, Tairnak gladly offered his support. He even had his warriors escort them along the way through the fortress, all the way to the western gate.
Along the way, Frederica took the chance to ask the great chieftain about some things that had been bothering her. Even though she already knew that the ancient evil god named [Wild] was behind the war and the movements of the buffer zone alliance, many of the details were still very unclear.
How exactly had the evil god appeared? Had some of the sixteen tribes summoned it on purpose, or had it come on its own? What was its goal? What was the true strategy behind the war started by the tribal alliance?
In the end, while the army of over 100,000 buffer zone warriors looked vast and unstoppable, having even taken the Austre Empire’s border Iron Ridge fortress in just one day and wiped out over ten thousand defenders, both she and Tairnak knew the truth.
Once the real main force of the Austre Empire arrived on the battlefield, even a single army group like the Lion’s Fang, with roughly the same number of troops, would easily crush this loose, hastily gathered alliance.
And according to Raymond, the third fortress commander of Iron Ridge, who had already left the group to rejoin the main army heading east, the elite imperial force was already marching full speed toward the border. Even before the surprise attack on Iron Ridge began, they had only been a few days away.
By now, they were probably already within 100 kilometers. It looked calm now, but in truth, this was just the quiet before the storm.
However, whenever Frederica brought up these issues, Tairnak would always avoid giving a direct answer. At key moments, he would awkwardly change the subject or give vague replies. After a few tries, Frederica, who was just as skilled in reading people, understood. The chieftain was hiding something he couldn’t speak about. Or rather...
Some “eyes” were watching him from the shadows, making him too afraid to speak.
Frederica could understand that.
In just half a day, the powers of both the evil god and the dragon god had shown themselves before her eyes. Not long ago, that overwhelming will and shout, “Come fight!!!”, had rolled across the skies above the fortress like crashing waves, startling everyone who heard it.
And at that moment, the Saintess, who was nearly unbeatable in the world under the title of “Judgement,” truly felt, for the first time, the huge difference between herself and the being hidden behind the allied army, the real force behind everything.
Even with the help of the holy sword, there was no way she could defeat an ancient evil god with such terrifying power. She didn’t fully understand why the dragon god had gone east after appearing here, while the evil god’s voice came from deep within the buffer zone to the west. But since Miss Violet had already said she would take care of it, all Frederica could do was trust her, and focus on doing her own part.
It was a pity, but it seemed this was as far as she could go.
Miss Violet was right. Right now, Frederica didn’t have the strength or the freedom to get involved in battles that were beyond her ability. Forcing herself into something like that would only bring harm to herself and others.
When they reached the western gate, Frederica stood with Tairnak beneath the towering, broken remains of Iron Ridge. This gate was much stronger and taller than the east one, but now it had been completely destroyed by the brute force of a Behemoth beast. Tairnak, standing beside her, gave a respectful bow with a complicated look on his face.
“Saintess, this is as far as I can escort you. The situation near the border is a mess right now. Because of the war, the buffer zone is full of bandits and dark creatures. Please, everyone in your group must be very careful. No matter what happens, I truly hope that the Wild Tribes, at least my Behemoth people, can have lasting peace and friendship with your country…”
“Please, be very, very careful.”
Seeing the tired look in the great chieftain’s eyes, Frederica gave a small nod and returned the gesture with a respectful bow.
In a formal setting like this, she couldn’t speak on behalf of the Holy Empire to make any promises. She chose her words carefully.
“This might sound a little cold, but I hope you’ll take care of yourself as well, Chieftain Tairnak. I hope we’ll meet again in the future. For now, this is goodbye.”
“...Farewell.”
Under the watchful eyes of the buffer zone soldiers and a few tribal priests, Frederica waved her hand. The envoy caravan, which had been waiting for some time, began to move. Passing through the badly damaged Iron Ridge, they slowly headed west.
“...Sigh.”
Watching the Saintess and her group disappear into the distance, the great chieftain of the Behemoth people finally let out a quiet sigh. He shook his head at his second-in-command, who had been looking at him with questioning eyes.
Regardless, the delegation led by the Saintess of the Holy Empire absolutely cannot encounter problems within the fortress under their temporary control. If something happened here, the Behemoth tribe would face enemies on all sides, and their last hope for the future would be completely destroyed. So even if it meant going against the divine orders passed down by the god’s envoy, he had to make sure the group safely left Austre Empire territory.
Other tribal leaders who could see the bigger picture were thinking the same.
Unfortunately, fate seemed to be playing a cruel joke on the great chieftain, who had worked so hard for the good of his people.
The Holy Empire envoy had barely left the fortress when, moments later, several shouts and screams of pain burst out from ahead!