Chapter 54

- Perspective of the Commander of the 1st Knight Regiment of the Empire of Empress -

Silence filled the king's audience chamber.

I observed the scene, pondering the current report.

The 4th Knight Regiment returned to the castle unusually quickly.

Moreover, everyone's faces were tense, and no one spoke, maintaining a heavy silence.

The commander of the 4th Knight Regiment was led directly to the audience chamber.

The other regiment commanders and deputy commanders were also summoned.

I knew something had happened, but I couldn't have imagined this.

"The slaves escaped, they didn't die, they escaped. Is that correct?"

The king's aide reconfirmed with the commander of the 4th Knight Regiment.

The answer was affirmative.

Silence spread through the room.

Amidst this, reports of strange occurrences in the forest and the behavior of monsters continued to come in.

Surely, no one had even imagined such a thing.

Those who had been worried about the cracks in the magic stones had calmed down, and only a few were considering the fear and the anomalies.

There was even a sense of ridicule towards those few, but the reports continued.

Every face now seemed to recognize the forest as a threat, even if it was belatedly.

Changes had indeed occurred, but they had interpreted them to suit their own purposes.

They had already considered the forest as part of their country.

However, this latest report.

The slaves escaped because the slave marks were nullified.

The monsters we released into the forest had their distorted instincts restored by the magic stones.

The cause of the forest's anomalies remains unknown.

Everything except the forest is related to the magic stones.

A loud thud echoed through the room.

It was the sound of the king standing up, clearly irritated.

His silent departure from the room revealed considerable anger.

The situation had taken an unexpected turn just when the forest was within reach, no wonder he was so angry.

But I felt a bit relieved.

For the commander of the 4th Knight Regiment, who is my friend.

The king does not tolerate failure, and there was a possibility that he could be executed as punishment.

I patted my friend's shoulder and left the audience chamber with him.

"Thank goodness you're safe."

My words made him grimace.

That's unusual; he rarely shows his emotions.

"What's happening in the forest?"

That's what I want to know too.

"It looked the same, but there was a fear I've never felt before..."

His voice trembled slightly, as if recalling the experience.

He must have felt an overwhelming fear.

How will the king judge this?

He won't back down now.

He will likely declare war on the forest.

He will use the magic stones when the time comes.

But the issue with this report is that the magic stones are involved.

Is it the right decision to continue using the magic stones?

To the king, the magic stones are his power itself.

He won't make a decision to stop using them.

"What do you think is a being greater than the king?"

My question surprised my friend.

Why is he surprised?

Could he be thinking that the Forest King is counterattacking?

If that were the case, the counterattack would have come much sooner.

There is a being in the forest, a being with power greater than the Forest King.

What kind of existence could that be?