New War
“Sorry, General, but Her Majesty has orders to refuse any visits at night, for it would have adverse effects on her health, so please leave,” stated the lady-in-waiting, who stopped the general who tried to run into the rear palace.
The perspiring general took in a big breath and then aggressively tugged his cape: “The matter is far too serious. I must report it to Her Majesty tonight. I must! Lives are at stake!”
“Please tell me what it is first. We will judge if it is serious enough to disturb Her Majesty,” answered the lady-in-waiting, feeling put in a dilemma.
Under normal circumstances, he could head in to report to her without aggravating Queen Sisi. These days, though, she was extremely prone to getting mad. She recently sacked over a dozen ladies-in-waiting. That was why all of them quivered and feared for themselves.
“It’s war… You heard that right. It’s war. The demons we had defeated have all been revived for some reason. They’re circling around the elves’ forest from the North to invade our borders. Additionally, it’s clear that the demons attacking this time are much more intelligent. They aren’t attacking and plundering at random. They haven’t attacked small villages or towns. Instead, they’re rampaging at our key traffic hub. The military in the North is completely outnumbered, while the elves have chosen to sit this one out. Our military in the North is doomed to fall without reinforcements. Once the North falls, the demons will pour down from the North!”
The lady-in-waiting’s shock rendered her face pale stammered: “Ar-are you positive? U-Umm… I-Is the Demon King not dead?”
“I’ll have to say, ‘unfortunately not’. We didn’t completely eradicate them, which is why a new Demon King has risen and has brought with him new demons. To make matters worse, we can’t reach Lord Veirya. Apparently, Lord Veirya went to the Demon King’s castle and has yet to return. We might need a new warrior this time.”
That most certainly was classified as an emergency. Queen Sisi would have to come forth to deal with the matter even if she wanted to focus on taking care of her child.
This time, humanity was wealthier and more united than before. Nevertheless, the reality was that humanity was frailer than last time. After the last rebellion, lots of units were broken up, thereby removing many branches. Lots of experienced veterans left the military to raise a family. To top it off, a number of soldiers had been sent to the colony in the South. Humanity’s military was in tatters. Defending just the North took every ounce of strength they had. The generals required the Queen to call for all combatants the nation had to offer as they did in the past. The generals were fearful of this war because, unfortunately, they didn’t take part in the last war.
Most of the generals who fought in the previous had been killed if not exiled after the last insurgence. The noble families’ in the North’s militaries were drastically weakened as a consequence.
The demons weren’t after annihilation this time. They were after conquest. They wanted to occupy and rule.
***
“Your Majesty, the demons have returned. However, they have not attacked out forest this time. Instead, they have rushed to humanity’s lands. Do we need to prepare ourselves? Having said that, the demons are different to the last time. They do not intend to obliterate everything or steal. To the contrary, they are attacking with purpose and proceeding methodically. They have already almost driven humanity out of the North. There are only a few cities and towns still sitting. Up until this moment, they have not shown us any hostility. Our elves outside of the forest have not been attacked when the demons encountered them, either. Do we need to join this war? The soldiers are ready.”
Lucilia touched her face and asked, “Is Travor’s town all right?”
“The demons have not destroyed any towns or villages this time. They merely passed by. They did not even attack travelling businessmen for that matter. They have only attacked cities.”
“That’s uncharacteristic of demons. The demons were never an organised army. That was one of the reasons humans and we were confident we could win. The demons never had specific targets with rationale behind them. They just charged head first into anything they came across. Using even the simplest of strategies was plenty to kill demons. Castles and fortresses in valleys or other places were impossible for demons to advance on. Humanity’s cities lack the defensive capabilities to withstand them. As a result, they have no other choice but to fight the hard way. Following that reasoning, it could be concluded that the cities’ downfalls are only a matter of time.
“Fighting demons isn’t our job; our only duty is to protect our forest. I don’t have plans to ever become the world police or enforcers of justice. The only reason we allied with humans last time was due to us sharing a common enemy. After their uninvited invasion, we have only disliked them humanity more. I have no reason to waste elven lives for humans. In saying that…”
In the scenario that the demons wanted to occupy and rule, not destroy, the demons wouldn’t spare the elves. If the elves sat back, once humanity pulled out of the North, the elves would be in peril. There was no room to dispute the elves’ competence in battle. The question was, how long would they be able to last when totally besieged? That was the situation Lucilia was in.
The options were to fight alongside her allies or bet her hopes on the demons leaving them alone. Lucilia did some silent thinking while the elves below discussed among themselves. The demons came on aggressively this time; there was no question that the demons weren’t coming over to shake hands and be friends. In fact, she might not be facing the same type of demons she faced last time. The war might not be so easy to win this time.
***
Leah coiled her tentacles around her throne, keeping her father pinned to the throne she sat on. Every kiss from Leah would shake the demons’ forest, where new soldiers would rise. Needless to say, those soldiers were the demon race’s soldiers.
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