“Yes!” Sol Stuart nodded solemnly before turning to Stephanie.


    “Ma’am, ording to the intelligence feedback, Frigid Fortress and Pr Trading Guild have made their move ahead of schedule!”


    “Damn, they really dare toe!” Judge eximed from the side.


    Stephanie furrowed her brows tightly and asked, “Sol, what is the current situation?”


    “As far as we know, half an hour ago, two waves of troops set out from the Pr City towards here.” Sol Stuart responded.


    “How many people?” Stephanie frowned.


    “Altogether, the two waves of troops amount to about twenty thousand elite soldiers!” Sol Stuart continued, “They have been carefully selected.”


    “Do you know who is leading the teams?” Edie asked with a furrowed brow.


    “Frigid Fortress is led by their vice master Cleary, and Pr Trading Guild is personally led by their President, Roch,” Sol Stuart replied.


    Upon hearing these two names, Stephanie’s pupils constricted again, and a look of seriousness crossed her face.


    As the acting Lord of Skydragon City, she knew these two individuals were not to be underestimated. Especially Roch, the President of Pr Trading Guild, was a legitimateter-stage Saint powerhouse.


    “This is infuriating!” Edie eximed, and then turned to Stephanie, “Given their pace, they should arrive here by tomorrow morning. How should we arrange things?”


    “Sol, immediately notify all those outside the city to return, and have Elder Suthend lead ten thousand men to guard each of the four city gates!” Stephanie thought for a moment before giving her instructions.


    “Understood!” Sol Stuart nodded in response.


    “Edie, arrange for all in the City Lord’s Manor to gather together, prepared to evacuate through the tunnels at any moment!” Stephanie then turned to Edie.


    “Got it!” Edie nodded vigorously, then continued, “Stephanie, it is certain that Frigid Fortress and Pr Trading Guild have colluded with certain families in the city. Shouldn’t we take action first?”


    “At this moment, we are not certain which families are colluding with them. It would be risky to act without knowing the full picture.” Stephanie shook her head slightly before looking at Sol Stuart again.


    “Sol, have someone keep an eye on the Moyer and Vaughan families. If anything unusual happens, report it immediately.”


    “Understood!” Sol Stuart replied solemnly.


    At the same time, Harleen had already dialed Billy’s number on her phone and described the situation on their end.


    “Ma’am, Elder Wood and I can lend a hand, you can send us a group of people, and we can guard one of the city gates…” Grand Ravenwood suggested.


    “You don’t need to go!” Stephanie interrupted him.


    “You and Harleen stay in the city. If there are indeed issues within the city, you can assist then!”


    “Alright!” Grand Ravenwood nodded in acknowledgment.


    After a brief chat, Stephanie and the others bid their farewells and left.


    This night was destined to be sleepless, with everyone on edge.


    Time passed quickly, and before they knew it, the night was gone.


    The next morning, a message spread through Skydragon City like a virus.


    The message imed that ten thousand troops from Frigid Fortress and Pr Trading Guild were converging on Skydragon City, only a hundred kilometers away, and he city was about to face an unprecedented catastrophe.


    This message was clearly created to instigate panic, and it certainly seeded. Upon hearing this news, the entire Skydragon City was in a state of fear.


    Merchants in the city, except for those from vale and a few friendly nations, all packed up their belongings and fled the city.


    Stephanie did not me them, as they were not obligated to help the City Lord’s Manor against a formidable enemy.


    Those merchants who stayed, as well as the warriors, gathered in the central square of Skydragon City, pledging to live and die with the city.


    Meanwhile, the members of the eight major families in the city gathered at the City Lord’s Manor.


    “Lady Stuart, with such a heavy military presence in the city, what are the ns of the City Lord’s Manor?” Norman Moyer, the head of the Moyer family, asked Stephanie.


    “What ns do we need? We’ll fight them to the end!” Before Stephanie could respond, Gerald Hoover, the head of the Hoover family, retorted loudly.


    “I refuse to believe that we cannot handle a band of thieves and a trading guild in Skydragon City!”


    “Mr Hoover, you are underestimating Frigid Fortress and Pr Trading Guild.” Milton Vaughan, the head of the Vaughan family, interjected.


    “Have you forgotten what happened a year ago? Skydragon City suffered significant losses!”


    “Last year, they caught us off guard. This time, we are prepared. What are we afraid of?” Floyd Sparks, the head of the Sparks family, responded.


    “I heard that this time it is personally led by Roch from Pr Trading Guild!” Norman Moyer continued.


    “From what I understand, he is close to reaching the rank of a Saint! With Madam’s injuries, I ask, who among us is his match?”


    “What can an Eighth-rankter-stage Saint do? We can always find a few more people to fight him!” Gerald Hoover replied.


    “Mr Hoover, you are too optimistic!” Norman Moyer smiled faintly. “The gap between two levels in the realm of Saint is like a chasm. With his strength, he could wipe out all of us with a wave of his hand!”


    “Are you trying to boost his morale while diminishing ours, Mr Moyer?” Floyd Sparks spoke again.


    “Gather the old patriarchs of our families and Elder Sol Stuart, and we might still have a fighting chance!”


    “Mr Sparks, your loyalty to the City Lord’s Manor is trulymendable!” Norman Moyer sneered.


    “Setting aside the fact that the elders of our families are in seclusion, even if theye out, can you guarantee that they will definitely defeat Roch? If they fail, who will bear the consequences?”


    “And don’t forget, Cleary from Frigid Fortress is not easy to deal with either, and she is just one step away from reaching Eighth-rank Saint!”


    “So, what do you suggest, Mr Moyer?” Stephanie asked calmly.


    “It seems that they are determined to take Skydragon City. If we directly confront them, we have no chance of winning,” Norman Moyer replied.


    “In my opinion, we can negotiate with them. They have raised their swords against us, but they are not solely here to destroy the city. They must have their own agenda.”


    “If their conditions are eptable, we can negotiate with them.”


    “Have you already known their conditions?” Stephanie narrowed her eyes slightly and asked again.


    “Lady Stuart, you jest. How could I possibly know?” Norman Moyer faltered for a moment before responding, “I’m just specting.”


    “Resolving the crisis without a single casualty is a solution worth considering!” Milton Vaughan added.


    With that said, he turned to the other four family heads who had not spoken.Têxt ? N?velDrama.Org.


    “I wonder what the thoughts of the other family heads are?”