"Human experimentation?" the thin man murmured.
It had been a long time since that term was discussed, ever since the Seven Shining Generals, led by Mars, exposed the Mage Morris's control over the king and overthrew his rule.
"Peace? How can it be that easy?!" the muscular, bare-chested man took a sip of wine and spoke again: "Can we have peace just because we want it? If we don't invade others, we can only wait for death!"
"You still don't fully understand the war in the North and with the Spade Kingdom, do you? We are losing ground, and the enemy will soon reach the capital. If we don't find a solution, our Diamond Kingdom will probably be destroyed very soon, right?"
"What nonsense are you spouting, Rolef!"
The man called Rolef snorted coldly: "I'm not spouting nonsense. My brother is fighting with the Eight Shining Generals in the Mage army in the North. After several consecutive battles, we haven't even seen the enemy leader, and we've already lost several towns."
"It seems that after a few probing battles, the enemy will soon launch a full-scale attack."
"How can this be? The Spade Kingdom has always advocated peace, and even if there were conflicts, they would quickly subside. Why this time... And how could the Eight Shining Generals lose when they are all so strong?"
Rolef gripped his wine glass tightly: "The current rulers of the Spade Kingdom are no longer the Grinberryall family, but rather a group of individuals called the 'Dark Triads.' They seized power by force and spent a lot of time eliminating the Grinberryall family's influence, effectively taking control of the country."
"As for why the Eight Shining Generals lost..." Rolef took a sip of wine, recalling the news recorded in his brother's letter, and felt a chill of fear. "This time, the enemies are not ordinary Mages, but terrifying individuals like devils!"
"Each of them is incredibly powerful, capable of fighting a hundred. We are no match for them at all."
The curly-haired man patted Rolef's shoulder, "Damn it, don't be so disheartened. Just as you said, these rounds were just probing skirmishes. Our truly powerful Mage warriors are still in the capital. We will win!"
Rolef shook his head: "No, you don't understand their strength. I can feel the despair in my brother's heart when he wrote me that letter. He is a very proud man; if he wasn't facing an enemy strong enough to crush him, he would never have said such a thing."
"Big fish eat small fish, small fish eat krill. If we don't invade the Clover Kingdom, whose national power is currently weak, we will soon have no way to survive."
"Cheer up, don't be so pessimistic. I believe the Eight Shining Generals will definitely find a way."
"Exactly!"
Bai En listened to their conversation, quietly eating the bread on the table. The red bean-like bread filling was very sweet and tasted good, but the drink he chose was also sweet, so it had no flavor when he drank it.
After finishing his bread unhurriedly, Bai En placed money on the table and disappeared from the tavern.
The bartender turned around, and the person who had just been in sight had instantly vanished. "Strange?" He rubbed his eyes, confirmed he hadn't been mistaken, and walked over. "He paid in yul, and it seems he even gave extra."
"What a strange fellow... You know, in the Diamond Kingdom, no one gives extra yul; there are plenty of people who owe money."
"But as long as he paid in yul, it's fine." The bartender happily turned and walked towards the counter.
— — — — — — — — — — — —
The capital of the Diamond Kingdom stood at the highest point of the mountain gorge, with towering walls like the capital of the Clover Kingdom, and equally magnificent, stately buildings.
Currently, in the capital's conference room, three individuals dressed in strange white attire were gathered around a map, their brows furrowed with worry as they discussed some matters.
They were three of the current Eight Shining Generals, the actual power holders of the Diamond Kingdom—Mars, Ladoros, and Philemona.
"Master and Mariella have already gone to support, but I didn't expect Lotus and the other Eight Shining Generals to lose so quickly. Now, we've only heard the name of the enemy leader, the Dark Triads, which is not good news." Mars sighed, looking at the areas marked with red 'X's on the map.
Ladoros stroked his chin, lost in thought.
As for Philemona, after a few seconds of silence, she spoke: "Why don't I go too? With you and Ladoros in the capital, there shouldn't be any problems... Farna can also help."
At this stage... Philemona, the contractor of the Earth Spirit, was already the strongest existence among the Eight Shining Generals.
Mars did not reply. If Philemona left, the probability of the enemy raiding the capital would greatly increase. The defense of the capital could not do without its strongest person. So, even if he left for the front lines, Philemona should remain in the capital.
"What are you thinking, Ladoros?" Mars asked, looking at Ladoros, who had remained silent.
Ladoros's voice was low: "Although I really don't want to break this bad news, it's better to tell you. Just a short while ago, I received news that that guy's figure appeared in the front-line battle."
"That guy? Morris?"
"Exactly. I've advised you to kill that guy before, but... you chose to exile him. Now that he has joined the current Spade Kingdom, it's not good news for us."
Mars fell silent.
"Looking at this situation, your Diamond Kingdom seems to be in a lot of trouble."
A frivolous voice rang out, instantly putting the three people in the room on high alert, because it belonged to none of them. When they looked for the source of the voice, they saw a person who had appeared in front of the map, examining it.
No magic, no movement.
He appeared out of thin air, like a ghost.
"Who?!" Several clusters of thunderous magic bullets floated beside Ladoros. He looked gravely at the suddenly appearing person. Diamonds and earth were also continuously emerging, condensing into huge weapons.
The atmosphere in the room was tense, with swords drawn.
Bai En turned around, a look of innocence on his face, even raising his hands in a playful manner: "Hey, hey, hey, everyone, we meet again. I'm not here to fight, but to find someone~"
"Don't make a move, I'm very afraid that something might happen to you."
"It's you?"
"You are from the Clover Kingdom. Why are you here?"
Ladoros and Philemona had met Bai En in the Dwarf Treasury. Although they hadn't fully fought, they knew he was from the Magic Knights.
"Gentlemen, don't misunderstand, I'm here for Mars."
The two looked at Mars. When Mars stopped his magic, he signaled them to relax. His first words were not to ask Bai En why he was looking for him, but... "How did you find this place?"
Bai En sighed: "How else could I have found it? Of course, by searching room by room."
"Your royal capital is quite large, and it took quite some time."
Ladoros frowned: "What are you talking about? If that were the case, the royal capital's guards would have discovered you long ago. How could you have snuck in here without anyone knowing?"
"The reason is very simple: they are too weak, so they couldn't discover me at all. You are slightly stronger than them, but..." Bai En said calmly: "Compared to me, you are not strong."
"Don't worry, I'm not here to cause trouble. I just have an agreement with Mars. On the contrary, I might be able to help you solve your problems, for example: intelligence on the Dark Triads. You must need it, right?"
...