《Evil Overlord?》 Prologue ¡°Is the task completed Hero?¡± Asks the King while sitting on his high throne with the cardinal standing at his left side and the high minister on the other all the while looking down on the kneeling hero and his party. ¡°Yes my liege. I made sure he drank from the cup which I poisoned with my own hands and if the poison is as fatal to him as the cardinal says we shall soon be hearing from our spies confirming his death.¡± The hero replies with respect in his voice. ¡°There is no doubt about the poison. The pope himself handed it to me and I you.¡± The cardinal adds with pride and aloofness in his voice. The king nods at the cardinal¡¯s statement and look back at the kneeling hero and his party. ¡°Rise you brave heroes for you have done what was considered impossible. And for that I thank you for your marvelous job.¡± The King says. The hero and his party rises with joy and pride clear on their faces. ¡°Tell me how did you accomplish such a task. I am sure all of us here are brimming with curiosity to know the details.¡± The King says while gesturing towards other nobles present in the throne room. Upon hearing the question the hero and his party chuckles while looking at each other. Everyone in the throne room was taken aback by this reaction but do not say anything for they all wait for the hero to speak. ¡°Well, Your majesty. As you already know we all tried very hard for many years to defeat the demon king and his army but did not succeed.¡± The hero spoke and every one murmured acceptance. ¡°So killing the demon king on the battlefield was very difficult. So we look into simpler ways and apparently we found many. The simplest of which was to disguise ourselves in one of his soldiers outfit to enter the country, then we had plenty help from taverns, jesters even from the demon kings own close family who were eager to replace him. So finally we made it into his throne room where I added poison in his drink.¡± Hearing the explanations everyone was shocked.This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°Was it really that simple?¡± Asks the king in a surprised voice. ¡°But how were you not recognized?¡± Asks the cardinal in a similar fashion. The hero and his party chuckles again before the hero replies smugly, ¡°Well sir the dress of the demon king¡¯s henchman is unimpressive and makes everyone look totally the same. And not to forget the mask which completely covers the face. So we caused a distraction and I slipped into his throne room and the demon king was unable to differentiate me from his other servants and asked me to serve him wine which I happily did after adding poison in it.¡± Hearing his explanation everyone in the throne room started laughing and praising the hero and his party. ¡°You all have done a marvelous task. Don¡¯t you think so cardinal?¡± The king says and looks at the cardinal. ¡°Indeed your majesty. However I believe that the vile demon king has had it coming. The hero and his party acted as the lords weapon to slay that unholy creature.¡± The cardinal replies and everyone in the room mutters their acceptance. All except the hero and his party who felt offended that the cardinal undermined their work and is taking the credit for the church. ¡°And with the fall of this powerful and resourceful demon king, we will finally be able to rid this world of the vile and unholy creatures. That is if¡­..¡± The cardinal says and gives a pause to gather the attention. He continues, ¡°That is if his majesty would lend his troops to the church as I am sure all the other kingdoms would be willing to do for this holy task.¡± The king ponders a while before replying, ¡°We will see of what to do when my daughter returns from the front lines.¡± A person enters the throne room looking weary and dirty. ¡°Your majesty. I have report about the demon king.¡± Says the man. ¡°Speak man and tell us the good news.¡± The King speaks cheerily. The man hesitates at first then speaks, ¡°You majesty. I am afraid that the news is rather ailing.¡± The atmosphere in the room changed suddenly. No longer could any form of smile could be observed on anyone¡¯s face. ¡°Speak man. What news do you have for me?¡± Orders the king in a loud voice. ¡°Well¡­. Your majesty. The demon king is still alive. It was said that he fell sick for a day or two but he is fine and healthy now. ¡°It is all your fault. You must not have given him the poison.¡± Screams the cardinal while pointing at the hero. ¡°How can this be possible? I gave him the poison with my own hands.¡± Shouts back the hero while looking confused. The throne room is sent into chaos as everyone started discussing the possibilities and the parties to lay blame to. ¡°Silence.¡± The king orders loudly. Everyone becomes silent. ¡°Never before have we been able to come so close to kill him. We should have taken into account that someone like the demon king could be immune to poison.¡± Says the king with a grim face. Chapter 1 – What’s Happening? ¡°Argh¡± I groan. Why is my stomach churning? And why am I feeling nausea. ¡°Nope. Not nausea.¡± I mutter and vomit on the floor. When I am done vomiting to my stomach¡¯s content, I sit back down while holding my stomach. What the hell did I eat to deserve this gut wrenching vomit? While my hands are on my stomach I notice something which wasn¡¯t there before. Abs. And not just any abs. Hardcore abs. Wow! If this gut wrenching vomit gives me hardcore abs then, honestly, I don¡¯t mind it. Infact I welcome it and ask it to send me a few more so I can be completely ripped. I put my hand on my bicep to imagine how it would feel to be ripped but I notice that I do not need to imagine because they are already steel hard and adequately sized. What the hell is happening? I must be dreaming. I check out my chest, my butt, my legs. Every part of me is ripped. Something is wrong. I feel my head aching so I put my hands on my only to find something that something else is on my head. A pair of horns. Oh Shit! It is only then that it hits me to ask another important question. Where the hell am I? This is not my room nor any other place I know. And this chair is very large and comfortable. I take a look around the room to find myself sitting on a throne in a very large room. I call it a throne because it is definitely not a chair. It is big and decorated lavishly with gems and gold, moreover it is very comfortable. And the room looks like a throne room which I have seen in movies and TV shows.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. The large door of the throne room swings open and in comes another horned person with unkempt hair and beard. ¡°The fire on the edge of the castle has been taken care of demon king. How would you like to punish the staff for their failure to prevent fire?¡± The horned person says while bowing before me. The demon king? I look around to confirm that he really is talking to me. There is no one around so he must be talking to me. Hmm! So I am the demon king. That¡¯s good. Atleast it is a position of high power. ¡°What do you suggest?¡± I ask him. He looks surprised. ¡°Do you want me to tell your esteemed self?¡± He asks looking doubtful and worried. Was I not suppose to ask him that? ¡°Do you see anyone else here?¡± I say to him haughtily. ¡°Well¡­ my liege¡­ It would be better to have them killed for their negligence.¡± The man replies hesitantly. I open my mouth to accept his suggestion but stop after realizing that I am sentencing someone to death. Moreover I feel nothing on giving out a death sentence. Better not make any drastic moves before understanding the situation completely. But some punishment must be dealt out. ¡°Just give them 5 lashes. That should suffice.¡± I say to him casually as if it is not a big deal while waving him away like I am annoyed by his presence. I did not meant to do it. It just happens. I hope it isn¡¯t out of the norms. ¡°Yes my liege.¡± He replies like before which means I am doing it right. ¡°And send some servants here.¡± I add. He shows no surprise so that tells me that I am an overbearing boss who does as he pleases. A few minutes later a few servants enter the throne room and kneel before me. I kept quiet and waited for them to speak but they didn¡¯t. They all looked the same to me. Same dress and face hidden by mask. This is so frustrating. Are they the servants or not? ¡°Clean this.¡± I order as a test and they leapt at my command to clean my vomit. Ok. So they are servants. Even if they weren¡¯t would they have rejected me? ¡°Guide me to my room.¡± I order again and 2 servants leapt to obey. They guided me to my room and stayed there waiting for further commands. ¡°I will like to be alone. Make sure no one disturbs me. I will come out when I want to.¡± I say to them and they leave. Ok. So this is my room and I am the demon king. Good. Good. These are the things I know. Now I just have to figure out what the hell is going on. Chapter 002 – No! This cannot be! Ok. First thing first. Why am I in this body? It might be because I might have died. So¡­.when did I die? More importantly. Why did I die? Last I remember I was completely hale and healthy. So it can¡¯t be because of some disease or illness or any other health problem. I wasn¡¯t even near any sort of vehicle that could have killed me. From what I remember I lead a peaceful life. Well¡­.a somewhat peaceful life. And I didn¡¯t had any enemies who would go out of their way to kill me. Then what could it possibly be. What is the last thing I remember? I was munching on my favourite snacks, chicken wings, which my girlfriend brought me. But why would I die eating chicken wings. I remember that I was eating it while watching a movie. My girlfriend wasn¡¯t eating with me despite my insistence. I also remember being happy that there were more for me because she was not eating. However she was constantly checking me weirdly while I was eating as if she was expecting something. I paid no attention to her behavior. After all she was of a very suspicious nature. Could it be that she poisoned my chicken wings. Damn it! It is true she did poison me. My friends were right to tell me that she will be the end of me some day. She had a crazy and obsessive personality. But that personality drove me towards her. She was my type. Huh! The irony. Killed by what you loved the most. Death by chicken wings. Not a bad way to go I suppose. . . . Atleast it was better than this poor guy. He was killed by poison. Now to see what I am dealing with here. I searched the whole room for mirror but did not find any. I really wanted to see what type of face I have on this rugged body. What should I do? What am I thinking? I am a king. ¡°SERVANT.¡± I bellow and to my surprise a strong, vibrant and manly voice came out of me and echoed throughout the castle. I could literally hear whole of the castle going silent after my shout.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Not a moment later an army of servants file into my room with a quick step which make them almost seem like they were gliding instead of walking. They neatly line themselves and kneel before me. Seeing them once again, I am troubled by not being able to distinguish them. I will have to do something about that. But first a mirror. ¡°¡­¡± I open my mouth to order them to get me a mirror but stop after realizing something. Do they even have mirrors in this world? ¡°Get me something to see myself in. I want to make myself presentable.¡± I order them. As I was ordering them a horned person¡­ no¡­ a horned barbarian walks in. ¡°Why do you wanna make yourself presentable my king? You look good as you are.¡± The horned barbarian says to while bowing before me. From his tone I can tell that he is amused by this. I search my memory of him which causes me a severe headache. But I do manage to find him. He is one of my trusted lieutenant. A friend I can say. Azure Swiftblade is his name. Someone who has been through the thick and thin with me. And he always comes out laughing. ¡°Because I feel like something good is about to happen.¡± I reply him. ¡°Oh! Like what?¡± He asks and I wreck my brain for an answer. Honestly I didn¡¯t expect to be asked that many questions. I just thought that I¡¯d say and he¡¯d believe. Luckily I am saved by the servants who are bringing in a large mirror. It is good that there are mirrors here. ¡°Azure. I want you to do something for me.¡± I say to him calmly trying to hide my relief of not answering his question. ¡°Yes my king.¡± He replies. His voice no longer had that hint of amusement. ¡°I want you to make sure that no servant wears a mask as a part of their dress.¡± I order him. He looks taken aback by my order but still he replies, ¡°Yes my king but dare I ask that are you sure you want to change the law laid down by your ancestor just at the start of your reign.¡± Start of my reign? Man, I really gotta find out more about me. Even a name would do but that can be done later for who would ask a king for his name. ¡°A servant poisoned me today. Luckily I survived by vomiting out in time. So I wanted to make sure nothing like this¡­..¡± I say but was cutoff by Azure¡¯s reaction. ¡°A SERVANT POISONED YOU. I WILL KILL ALL OF THEM FOR YOU. THEY WILL¡­.¡± Azure screams. It turns out his voice has nearly the same power as mine. The castle once again goes silent and I could see the all the servants in the room visibly shaking for terror and fear. ¡°Calm down Azure. I understand how you feel. But killing the servants is not the answer. I am sure that the poisoner was someone of the enemy. Besides what would I do if you kill all my servants.¡± I say to azure to calm his rising anger for I was afraid that he might do what he said he would do and I would find no way to stop him without going out of my character. ¡°You are right my king. I now understand why you gave the order to remove the masks of servants.¡± Azure says while taking in deep breaths and calming himself down. ¡°Good! Now go and do it. Make sure it is done by tomorrow morning.¡± I say to him. ¡°Yes my king.¡± Azure replies and leaves. However he is stopped just outside my door by an incoming person, a soldier, I presume. They whisper something to each other and Azure turns back to me. ¡°It is good news my king just as you foresaw.¡± Azure says cheerily. I just smile and nod at him. ¡°It seems that we have successfully captured the enemy¡¯s high ranking commander who is sitting in our dungeon as we speak waiting to be questioned.¡± Azure says with a glint in his eyes. ¡°That¡¯s good. Now go and do your tasks while I make myself presentable.¡± I say to Azure who bows and leaves. With him gone I now proceed towards the mirror to see my reflection. But eventhough I am heading towards it I do not see my reflection whereas I can see everything else reflected. Am I a Dracula? No. I don¡¯t think so. Someone¡¯s reflection is indeed where I am suppose to appear in the mirror. Could it be? ¡°NO. THIS CANNOT BE.¡± I scream with a shock. Chapter 003 – Did He Just Say…? I don¡¯t know how long I spent infront of the mirror just staring at my reflection with shock. I mean, what the hell? I look like a total barbarian. And not just any barbarian. I look like the King of barbarian. Why did no one ever ask me to groom myself? Somebody could have atleast asked me to comb my hair atleast once in my lifetime. To think I called that good looking Azure fellow a barbarian. He looks more civilized than me. No wonder people fear me. If my old self saw my current self, I would have screamed demon and ran like my life depended on it. Imagine looking in the mirror and finding yourself having a face covered by a long, bushy and entangled beard. Not only that, the hair are the same as well. Somewhere along the back my hair somehow must have gotten swung from the shoulder and decided to join the entanglement party my beard was having. From all this frame of hair two reddish golden eyes could be seen with a little bit of face. Most important are the two horns black horns, with a tint of red, which are protruding from all this hair on the top of my head. Memories of why my hair is like this came to me. Apparently in order for me and my comrades to look fierce we had to go to grow our hair out. We were allowed to wash it, clean it but never comb it. Fear would drive into our enemies¡¯ heart just by looking at us, the horned barbaric demonic figures. Not everybody needed to do this. Only the strongest and best would be required to do this. On the bright side, with hair so thick and strong atleast I don¡¯t have to worry about going bald due to hair loss. That¡¯s good. I can work with that I better groom myself. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me my king. Have you been staring at yourself since I left?¡± I hear a voice asking me incredulously. I turn around to find azure standing. ¡°I was just thinking something.¡± I say to him while making up an excuse. ¡°What would that be my king?¡± Azure asks me.If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. I look back into the mirror to see my appearance and reply, ¡°I no longer want to look like this.¡± ¡°Why my king? You look good as you are.¡± Azure says and I can hear the surprise in his voice. ¡°No. I think it is better if I shave.¡± I reply while I look at him. To be honest he could use a shave as well. ¡°If you say so my king. But I cannot let you walk down this path alone. I will join you as well.¡± Azure says in a grave voice which is making it sound like he is preparing a last charge into the enemy lines with me and there is no retreat. I smile and nod at him to show him my appreciation. I don¡¯t even know if my smile is being conveyed to him from all this hair. ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear? Our king wants to shave and I will accompany him. Prepare for us.¡± Azure says to the servant as if he is asking them to prepare his grave. The servants move quickly to fulfill the command. While the servants were busying themselves, I ask Azure, ¡°Did you do what I asked¡± ¡°Ofcourse my king. I passed on your orders to the head servant, the ministers, the army and all the other relevant parties. I also told all of them the reason. Surely no one will object to it now.¡± Azure replies amusingly. ¡°Oh! And why would they object?¡± I ask. ¡°You are right my king. They shouldn¡¯t object. If I hear even a whisper of objection from amongst any of them, I will take a part of my battalion and personally rid them of their objection forever. Great thinking my king. No objector means no objection.¡± Azure replies while smiling beamingly. I smile in return and realize that he is a blood thirsty fellow as well. Why did I say ¡®as well¡¯? ¡°No need to do that¡­¡± I said to the bloodthirsty Azure but seeing that he became visibly disappointed, I add, ¡°¡­yet. After all we need them. For now.¡± Azure chuckles and I chuckle with him. By now the servants had almost completed their preparation to shave us. ¡°I want you to do another thing as well.¡± I say to Azure. ¡°Just say the word my king.¡± Azure replies being all serious. ¡°I want you to investigate how an enemy snuck into the castle and got close enough to poison me.¡± I tell him. ¡°I already ordered my man to investigate it. Moreover I have also created a team of¡­ umm! You could say creative individuals whose task it will be to come up with every possible way that could happen in the future.¡± Azure replies amusingly. ¡°Nice¡­I mean good work.¡± I compliment him. The word ¡®nice¡¯ just slipped out of me. The servants had already completed their order by preparing the arrangements to shave us and were just waiting for us. Seeing this, Azure started chuckling. I look at him strangely. ¡°What makes you laugh?¡± I ask him curiously. ¡°Nothing much my king. I was just think that it is too bad that this manly appearance of yours will not be witnessed by your new bride.¡± Azure says and laughs. ¡°Too bad indeed.¡± I say and laugh as well at the fact that he thinks this barbaric look is manly. Wait¡­.Did he just say bride? Chapter 004 - Isabella Asturias I am Isabella Asturias, princess of the Divine Kingdom and I am destined for greatness because I am chosen by the highest power, God. When I say I am destined for greatness I do not mean stuff like mingling with nobles or royalties, throwing tea parties, enjoy wearing a new dress every day or having someone drawn and quartered at will. No. That stuff is trivial for someone like me. What I actually mean when I say greatness is that I am chosen to set a new path. Since I was child I saw my grandfather fight demons, then I saw my father fight demons and now my brother fights demons. So instead of learning how to throw tea parties or learn how to make connections with other royals throughout the continent, I wanted to make a real difference. Moreover I always find that stuff useless and a waste of time. So I learned how to fight. Seeing me taking an interest in fighting, the ministers and the cardinal objected but my father ignored them and let me be. When I showed talent and showed my thirst for more, my father got the best people to train me. And being blessed by the God, all the hindrances in my path shattered one after the other. Finally I showed my desire to fight in the army. So my father arranged for me to be under my brother supervision. I fought many battles under my brother¡¯s supervision and I won all of them. Finally, with the grace of God, the day came when I convinced my father and brother to let me fight on my own. They place me on the east side of the kingdom which has a well-fortified fort. So the enemy ignores it because it will require too great a cost if they want to capture it. All in all, I do not like this. If nothing were to happen here how will I ever be able to make my name shine brighter. Just when I was racking my mind of what to do I hear a knock. ¡°Come in.¡± I give permission. A soldier steps in and stands at attention before me. ¡°Report.¡± I say to him. ¡°Scouts repot that nearly a 100 demon soldiers are heading this way.¡± The soldier reports. Hearing the report I become happy. Once again a hindrance in my path shatters. Once again I am provided the chance to let the people of the world know that I, Isabella Asturias, princess of the Divine kingdom am chosen by the God.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°Good. Let us go and greet them.¡± * * * * * ¡°Release the arrows.¡± The order is given and one volley of arrow after another is released on these vile demons. I watch as the approaching demons fall one after the other. I also watch the commander of the demon army survive one volley of arrow after another. How he does that fascinates me. These demons get better with every attack. However they are idiots. Why would a commander enter the front lines unless he was sure of his victory? What would happen to your army if you fall? Not that I mind their idiocy. These demons all look the same to me as all of their faces are always covered, normally only the demon commander is in a better attire so he can stand out. However something was different about this demon commander. His face was not covered, instead it was fully exposed showing his large horns as a gesture of strength no doubt. The hair on his face were excessive as if it had not been cut or comb for a very long time which was making him look fierce and, for the lack of a better word, barbaric. It did not take me long to recognize this barbaric looking demon commander as one of the famous blade generals and not later my lieutenant sends a messenger to me from his position confirming it. The only problem was which famous blade general was he. But who cares. As I said, God is on my side. He brought on my door steps one of the famous blade generals and that is enough for me. ¡°Fend them off my soldiers. Do you want vile creatures like them to be on our borders?¡± I shout to my soldiers to boost their morale. ¡°No Princess.¡± Came the unanimous reply from the soldiers on the wall as they kept shooting the volley of arrows. ¡°Look soldiers. The demon continent sent us one of their famous blade general just so they can have a fighting chance against us. So tell me soldiers. Do you think these demons have any chance against us?¡± I shout the question to my soldiers. ¡°No princess.¡± The soldiers shout their reply unanimously. ¡°Then let us show these demons what we, the people of Divine Kingdom are made of.¡± I shout out loud which is accompanied by a rousing yell of all the soldiers. The archers shoot another volley of arrows and I watch as one demon falls after the other. They did not even had the chance to reach the wall when their infamous demon general sounds for retreat. ¡°Stop. Let them retreat.¡± I stop my soldiers form firing more arrows not because it shows compassion instead because it would be a waste of my arrows. Their army is still strong and who knows how long the siege will last. As the demons were retreating their infamous demon general tripped his foot and fell. However what was more intriguing was how he was not getting back up again. Could it be that God has provided me chance to clear another of my hurdle? Ofcourse that is what it could be. I look back at the infamous demon general who was not moving. He probably might have hit his barbaric head and fallen unconscious. ¡°Quick. Send in some cavalry and capture their commander.¡± I order quickly and my soldiers move to obey. ¡°Archers provide support and do not let the demon army take back their commander.¡± I shout another order. I see unrest spread between the demon army as they begin to notice their commander missing. Idiots. They should have made sure that their commander escaped first. It was not later until they realized that their commander is not with them, when they finally take note of the reason of my cavalry leaving the fort. They make a desperate attempt to retrieve their commander before my cavalry but fail miserably as my archers shoots down anyone who even tries to enter their line of fire. Fear of my archers must have settle in their heart as no longer did any of them dare to rescue their infamous blade general. They could only watch as my cavalry swoops in and take away their unconscious commander from right under their noses. God is truly favorable towards me. Chapter 005 – Crimson StrongBlade This is the first time I go to war. And eventhough I was trained to fight, nobody ever told me that the journey to battle would be one of the most tiring and boring part of it. Finally the time came when we were ordered to make camp. After doing my part I went to huddle around the fire. The fire crackles as we sit and stand around it all ready and equipped. We huddle not because we want to stay warm but because we do not want to be alone. Especially just before the time when we are about to attack and don¡¯t know if we might make it back alive. So all we want to do is huddle around this fire and forget about our impending death. But, apparently, some people do not understand this very well. ¡°We are walking towards our death.¡± Says Mermar while gazing into the crackling fire and we just look at him. Ofcourse what he is saying is not false and it can be judged by the look on the faces here. It is just that we do not want to hear it, especially from someone like Mermar who is a veteran soldier of many wars and made it to old age in one piece. ¡°You are right. No one has ever been able to conquer that fort.¡± Pitches in another soldier also looking into the fire but his eyes look more vacant then Mesmar. Now that Mermar has started this, it will not end until either someone suffers or a gloomy depression hangs over all of us about our fates to come. I prefer the first one because the second one will just kill me before the battle. Who would want to go into the battle knowing that there is no chance to survive? ¡°So what¡­ we might be able to do it this time.¡± I add trying to sound hopeful in this all this gloom. ¡°Is this your first siege kid? Don¡¯t you know how long sieges last?¡± Mermar says to me while with pity. ¡°Yeah. If we are not lucky to die while attacking the fort, we will either die of starvation or thirst and if we are really unlucky the weather will kill us.¡± Says Kron, another veteran like Mermar. ¡°But I believe we will be able to do it this time.¡± I say to them refusing to lose hope in this hopeless situation while looking around to see if someone would back my statement. ¡°It seems you indeed are new to the siege kid. If beliefs were able to help, we demons would have won the war by now. I was here the last time we laid siege to this fort. And let me tell you¡­¡± Kron pauses at the most critical point of his statement only to take in a big gulp from his bottle, he plugs it and then continues, ¡°¡­Not a single person managed to get in the castle.¡± ¡°¡­¡± I open my mouth to retort but stopped because Mermar pitches in, ¡°Forget getting in. I don¡¯t think I remember that someone even managed to scale the wall successfully.¡± Infront of these old timers I am finding it difficult to argue for I have no facts and not to mention that I do not even have the experience to back my words. ¡°If what you say is true that why are we even bothering to attack.¡± I argue with them. ¡°That is exactly what we are saying kid. Why are we even bothering this time?¡± Mermar says to me. ¡°Because¡­ Don¡¯t you know that this time our commander is one of the infamous demon general?¡± I say to him while hoping to turn this conversation in my direction. The Demon generals are powerful but none are so notoriously famous as much as the Blade Generals. ¡°Ah! Yes. One of the blade generals. I heard they are not demons but devils.¡±Korn agrees with me as well as all the others here. Our conversation seems to attract other¡¯s attention. ¡°Yes I know which is why I have been saying that we will win this time.¡± I further add. ¡°Bah! You are naive kiddo. The army we have this time is lesser than when we laid siege last time. What can one demon do what others cannot. In the end he is but one demon.¡± Mesmar says. He really must be convinced that it is hopeless.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°If he were not that capable why do you think the demon king would have send him?¡± I argue back. ¡°Which demon king are you talking about kid? The one lying sick on the bed or his sons who proclaim themselves king while their father is on death bed.¡± Kron asks me with a chuckle. ¡°The one on the bed¡­ I think.¡± I reply without the chuckling. I don¡¯t want to be caught while badmouthing Demon King. The sons of demon king are dangerous. They have been focusing their efforts in securing the throne and fighting each other while not giving any mind to defend the borders. If not for the efforts of the demon generals the enemies would have used this against us. ¡°Ha! These princes are truly blood thirsty. I won¡¯t be surprised if I go home to find one sitting on the throne.¡± Mesmar says and all I hear is that he is sure that he will survive this. I wonder why he is this sure. ¡°Shh! Don¡¯t let the captains hear you.¡± I try to quiet Mesmar. Although I would not mind if one of the princes replaces the Demon King. Atleast they will once again have the focus on our borders rather than infighting. ¡°So what¡­ let them. We are already walking towards our death. If he hears us I will just die sooner rather than later.¡± Mesmar says to me while waving his hands in annoyance at me. Another one adds in a heavy and powerful voice, ¡°The only difference would be the manner of death. Trust me when I tell you that you might die quicker on the field. Can¡¯t say anything if you are caught badmouthing the demon king.¡± Atleast he is on my side. He look really weird with his hair all messed up and knotted together. I cannot imagine how he really looks because of all this hair on him. The funny thing is that nobody retorts anything. They seem to be all frozen. I could literally feel the air frozen. But why such a reaction when he says it. Did I not just say the same thing a while ago? It must be due to the heavy voice. Mine is not that heavy so that must be why they do not take me seriously. The new person bursts out laughing. And due to his voice being so loud and powerful, the attention of everybody in my line of sight had made us the center of their attention. If this guy doesn¡¯t stop we really might get in trouble. ¡°Ease up old timer. You might be right. But I will not have you killed. I need every man I can get. If you have really grown so fearless. Why don¡¯t you show this fearlessness on the battlefield later.¡± The new man says and still nobody replies him. They just stand and watch him. I notice that this man is followed by our captain and other captains. ¡°And the reason I was sent here was because¡­¡± He says but pauses to think. ¡°Umm¡­¡± he tries to think but shrugs his shoulder and says ¡°¡­ Who cares? I am here now so it¡¯s better if we win this fast. I have other places that deserves more attention. And you might be right old timer. We might have a new king when I go back.¡± Only now do I realize why everyone has their eyes on us and are frozen with fear. It is because it is one thing to talk behind backs but another thing to get caught while doing it. And we were caught while doing it which means we are doomed. Meymar must also have realized this for he gave up on all hope and fearlessly asks the blade general, ¡°How can we win? You know that we do not have enough resources let alone an army to lay siege to this fort.¡± ¡°Who says that we need to lay siege.¡± Blade general replies. He then steps forward and addresses everybody in a louder voice, ¡°All of you must be worrying after seeing the size of my army. All I can tell you all is that you are worrying for nothing.¡± He pauses and looks over his army. He then continues, ¡°You should all know that I only brought enough army with me which I think is necessary to take and hold this fort. Not to break it open. By tomorrow you will all see this and all you need to do is follow you¡¯re your captains¡¯ orders no matter the consequences.¡± The man says loudly while grinning. ¡°Do you all understand?¡± He asks loudly and powerfully and I felt like his voice was demanding obedience and respect which everybody here was giving without resistance. ¡°YES SIR.¡± Came a booming reply. ¡°Good. Now do your part. We have a tiresome task ahead.¡± The blade general orders and step towards the Meymar, ¡°Some punishment must be dealt for talking bad about the Demon King and fortunately for you we need every soldier we have. So your punishment is that you will ride with me in the front lines.¡± He says and leaves. That was not a punishment for us because we were already in the front lines. Maybe the demon generals are not as cruel as everybody suggests. When the demon general left and everybody was sure that he was not coming back. Korn says in a low voice, ¡°You are lucky to be alive right now Meymar. Do you have any idea which of the blade generals he is?¡± ¡°I know who he is. I recognized him the moment I laid my eyes on him. He is the said to be the strongest Blade General.¡± Meymar replies still looking shocked. ¡°And the craziest.¡± Korn adds in a low voice while the others murmur their agreement. I involuntarily say the name of the blade general after hearing just these two details. ¡°Crimson StrongBlade.¡± If he is with us there is no telling how the siege might go. We just might have a chance. Chapter 006– Unthinkable? Crimson Stronghold I would not have left the capital even if the king himself had ordered me because the life of my friend was in danger. But that idiot, himself, insisted that I had to get away from there and for him I would do anything. Similar to me, he had sent all the other blade generals away form capital. The idiot does not want us to get into trouble if his plan fails. Seriously if he has to take such big risks why send us away. Haven¡¯t we all seen and faced the worst together. Individually each of us are powerful and together we are a force to reckon with. If he had not send us away, we would have atleast made sure that we all get out of the capital alive. I just hope his plan works and he is successful in apprehending both of his elder brothers, the princes. The King was a fool to not claim his bastard son as his heir. Even if he was not born of the queen he still had the King¡¯s blood. Atleast I can take comfort knowing that Azure and Violet will be able to finish their task quickly and head out to help him faster than the rest of us. So I should also focus on doing this quick as well. However to take the impenetrable fort is no easy task not to mention time consuming. Nobody has been able to capture it since it has been built and the last siege lasted nearly a year. Disastrous. That¡¯s what it was. But I have no other choice than to quickly conquer this impenetrable fortress if I want to go back soon. And to do that I would have to gamble with my life. More so than usual. In order to do the impossible I have to do the unthinkable. And I am prepared to do it. It is a good thing that I have a habit of walking amongst camps before and after every battle to know the thoughts of my soldiers and to give them hope. Otherwise I might have missed the low morale that I encountered in my front line troops. And if that were not corrected my plan might have failed today. Therefore I immediately corrected this error on the spot and scolded my captains for their irresponsibility. How could they have made such a grave error as to not check on their troops¡¯ morale before the attack?If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. However the sad thing is that no matter how much morale is boosted, most of the frontline will perish if my plan is to work. But that is the cost I have to pay. They need to be sacrificed if the majority needs to live. All this is to be done while giving them hope just so they can make my plan work better. To show my soldiers my confidence in victory, I ride with them in the front lines. Little do they know that this is part of my plan? ¡°CHARGE WITH ME MY SOLDIERS.¡± I shout at the top of my voice and ride. We run towards the wall no formation and no arrangement, just running to them and screaming at the top of our lungs. As soon as we enter in the range of the archers, a rain of arrows is released on us. Soldiers to my left and right fall one after the other. I slow my advance and focus on survival. While doing that, I dodge and deflect in the showiest way I can so that the commander of the wall notices me. Volley after volley of arrows are shot at us yet my soldiers press on but to no avail. All I can hear is the screams of my soldiers dying. A necessary sacrifice for the greater good. When my captain gives me the signal that more the half of the front line has been sacrificed, I order retreat. ¡°RETREAT.¡± I shout and the horn for retreat is sounded. The soldiers immediately pull back to preserve their lives, not wanting to stay another moment under this rain of arrows. I retreat slowly while still dodging and deflecting until finally the rain of arrow stopped, probably not wanting to waste arrows on us. After making sure that no more arrows are coming I turn around and run as well. However I am not suppose to make it back safely so I trip and hit my head. I lay there pretending to be unconscious hoping the commander of the wall notices me and is quick enough to act. My captains do a great job to not let anyone notice that I am not amongst them. Finally the commander of the wall notice my condition and send in a party to retreat me. And as planned, my captains start a little unrest amongst the army. It is important if this need to work. My captains make a fake desperate attempt to rescue me back but to no avail as the archers on the wall do their best to keep them away. Finally a party of horse riders came, put me on an empty horse and took me back while I pretend to remain unconscious preparing myself for what is to come next. Because it is time to do the unthinkable. Chapter 007– Prisoner? Crimson Strongblade Riding is one of the few things that I enjoy in life. The thrill of the speed and the air on my face are just one of the few perks of riding. It is relaxing. I like riding. Infact I might even love it. But no longer. The humans have ruined it for me. They ruin everything. When they put my body on the horse back I was relieved that my plan is working. But soon the time for regret came. When the horse started moving. At first the horse was at a running pace. I bounced up and down on my stomach. It felt painful being constantly hit on the same spot but it was tolerable. It¡¯s not like I can switch sides or correct my posture. What other choice did I have than to tolerate it? But then the horse took a galloping pace. And then, I don¡¯t think that I need to explain how every gallop of the horse made me bounce higher and smashed me on the same spot again and again. Oh! The pain. Seriously, beating are much more enjoyable than this. But pain was not the only thing that bothered me. I was pretending to be unconscious and I had to let all my muscles loose. Therefore every time I bounced up and down, the horse¡¯s hairs made its way inside my nose and mouth. And in order to not ruin my plan I could not close my mouth. Being in the army nearly all my life, I have eaten and drank the best and worst of things but a horse¡¯s sweat and hair is not something anyone would enjoy. It was surprising that I did not fall of the horse given how much I bounced. Must be because I am heavy. That must also be the reason why the horse was sweating extra. It would have been better if they had dragged me back to the fort. Atleast something I loved would not have been ruined for me then. All the while I told myself that it is a necessary sacrifice I make to do the impossible. Finally the time came when I am taken inside the fort. I hear the fort¡¯s gate shut behind me but we still keep riding. I hear the shuffling of weapons. The officers barking orders. I take in as much information I can so that I can assess the formation and defenses for I need everything I can get my hands on if I want to succeed. We finally come to a stop. A man dismounts and orders, ¡°Officer. Take him to prison. Commander will be there soon. Take 5 archers with you and keep their bow drawn and arrows pointed at him in case he awakens. Mark it soldier. Keep him alive. It is not every day we capture a blade general.¡± ¡°Yes sir.¡± The officer replies and I hear the man¡¯s step leaving in the opposite direction. ¡°You there. Carry this vile creature to the prison and you 5. You heard what the commander said. Come.¡± The officer orders. Since I know that I will be watched with vigilance. I need to take precautionary measures now. They would definitely need to keep me dosed since they would prepare for the some retaliation which they would consider imminent by my army for taking me hostage so I had already prepared for an anti-sleeping pill and just in case an anti-poison pill. When the soldier took me off the horse I used it as an opportunity to get the pill from between my cheek and gum and put in under my tongue so that I can swallow it on a moment¡¯s notice.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. My actions go unnoticed and I am being carried inside the prison. ¡°Do you thing he will wake.¡± Says the first archer ¡°He¡­¡± The second replies but is cut off. ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear a word from any of you. You are to keep your mouth shut, eyes peeled, arrows pointed at the prisoner and stay alert.¡± The officer scolds the soldier. Normally I like his kind of people. Sharp and alert. But I am not liking them much right now. I lay there in the position I was put, not moving a muscle. I kept lying there until finally I hear 5 pair of footsteps approach my prison cell. The door to my prison cell opens and 3 pair of footstep enter. 2 of them sounds lighter than they are suppose to. ¡°Here is your prize commander.¡± The man who went to fetch the commander spoke. Which means that one of the two light weighted man is the commander. ¡°Do your work Ranar.¡± Orders a woman. She is one of the two light weighted people that entered my cell and if she is the one ordering than that means she is the commander. How is this possible? This fort belongs to the heavenly kingdom, right? Could it be that the fort change hands? Throughout all my life in the military I have never seen heavenly kingdom let a woman serve in the military. Let alone a position of commander of such an important fort. ¡°Yes princess.¡± Says Ranar. Princess? That explains a lot. It would be impossible for an average female of heavenly Kingdom to reach such position but with influence and backing like the princess here had, it is possible. Hard but possible. I prepare myself for whatever is to come? This Ranar fellow comes and places his hands over my head. I feel him trying to enter my mind subtly but I do not let him. I was taught to shield my mind from all intrusions no matter the circumstances whether it be sleeping or in the midst of battle. And right now I have nothing to do except shield myself from him. So there is no way this human will be successful. He keeps trying to pass my mental barrier and break into my mind but he is just tiring himself. Seeing that his efforts are being wasted. He becomes aggressive. He lashes out at me and burst of energy one after the other but I keep reinforcing my mental barrier. Until finally it all stopped. ¡°I am sorry princess but I would need time to break into him. His mental defense is the most tough which I have faced until now.¡± Says Ranar in an exhausted voice. ¡°But can you do it?¡± The princess asks in a slightly worried voice. ¡°Ofcourse princess. It will take some time but I will succeed.¡± Replies Ranar tiringly. ¡°Very well Ranar. Go rest for now. It is late in the night. God has given us their blade general. These demons are bound to retaliate. Preserve your energy for them.¡± The princess says to Ranar. ¡°If you do not mind princess I would like to work on him. I am sure I will be successful soon.¡± Ranar requests humbly. Really? He thinks he will be successful. Laughable. He can never do it. Not with that weak will of his. The princess does not seem to reply. She must be contemplating her choices. ¡°Very well. You may stay and work on him. However keep these guards in cell with you incase he wakes up.¡± The princess orders. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind princess. I would like to be alone when I work on him.¡± Ranar requests ¡°No the guards will stay. He could wake up.¡± The princess replies sternly. But Ranar doesn¡¯t back down and humbly says, ¡°I will give him a strong sleeping potion. I have it on me.¡± Again the princess stays silent while thinking of her options. ¡°Fine. But a few guards will remain outside the cell. Give him the potion infront of me for the sake of my mind.¡± Replies the princess. Cautious one. Isn¡¯t she. ¡°Thank you for this great opportunity princess. You will not regret this.¡± Ranar replies excitedly. I take the pill out from underneath my tongue. Ranar part my lips and puts the bottle to my mouth. The liquid pours in. When the bottle empties, he removes it from my lips and replaces it with his hand to force me to drink. I drink the sleeping potion and anti-sleeping pill and cough a little as it should have been expected from an unconscious person. ¡°Come Lieutenant. To my office. We must discuss our defenses and hope the God grants us yet another quick victory like this one.¡± The princess addresses the man who brought her here and I hear them leave the cell. Chapter 008– Impossible Vs Unthinkable part 1 Meymar I could not believe my eyes when I saw for myself the blade general lying there. I thought him dead. It felt to me as if my heart was gripped tight and somebody knocked the air out of me. He had inspired in me the hope to victory. Not even one of the strongest demon general has last a day against this fort. With him gone, what will we do now? It was not only me but all the others as well who had heard the demon general¡¯s speech yesterday and had gotten hope of victory. But now that hope lay dead infront of us. ¡°Look he is breathing.¡± Screams out someone and we all focus to see whether his statement held any truth to it. The view from where I stand was not clear but I focused hard on the body of the blade general. I noticed his body moving a little, most probably due to breathing. ¡°I SEE IT. HE IS BREATHING.¡± I scream excitedly, as do a few others. My hope was once again revived. Others must have felt the same. Those that have seen the predicament the blade general is in move towards him to rescue him. As did I. Eventhough we are going against the orders of retreating, I think the captain and blade general would understand. I hade merely taken a few steps to reduce the distance between the unconscious blade general and I, when an arrow pierces itself where my next step is suppose to be. I take a look at the wall and they were shooting at any who came near the blade general. A party of horse riders were also approaching the location of the blade general. Seeing this I ignore the incoming arrows and proceed. The arrows screech past me but I step forward towards rescuing him. I hear screams and see soldiers fall and turn but that did not falter my determination. I have been to this fort when it last lay siege and returned defeated and broken. But not again. The blade general gives us a chance to succeed and as long as he has breath in his body I believe he will do his best. So I have to rescue him.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. The party of horse riders was still far away but they were reducing the distance fast. I am but a few feet away from my goal. I could hear the encouragement offered to me from soldiers behind while my captain screams order at me to return. But I proceed. I dodge and blocked all arrows that I could but because other soldiers had given up on rescue I became the sole target of the archers on the wall. Despite my best efforts an arrow pierces my shoulder. It pained but I grit my teethe and move forward with hindered movements. Soon more arrows hit me and I fall just a few feet away from the blade general. I guess this was inevitable. But atleast I tried. It seems I have failed once again. As I fall I notice that the blade generals eyes were open and he looks at me fall. I could tell that he was conscious so why has he not retreated. Could it be that he has given up? Or was he waiting for something else. I had no energy to think on it any more as I close my eyes to rest. For the last time. * * * * * Keynar I watch as Meymar moved towards the blade general. I do too. Hoping to rescue him but then the arrows came and I am shamed to admit that I care for my life more than some blade general I barely know. There is always someone important who is in trouble and I am not risking my life any more than necessary than it is required to get him out of trouble. I see Meymar dodging the arrows to his best. His steps seemed like a determined man moving towards his destination but like many other he also fell. Pity. He was someone with whom I could relate. A survivor of many battles, like me. But not anymore. I watch as the party of horse riders from the wall came and took blade general with them. Looks like the siege is over. That is what I thought but I was wrong. The captain told us not to be worried and that the blade general had told them what to do if such circumstances came to pass. I did not believe them. They are probably trying to keep us calm and collected or they would have to see their army reduce due to soldiers deserting. Maybe I will desert too at the first chance. It seems impossible to live through this siege. But time to get this chance never came. The captains collected and organized us. They did not even give us time to treat the wounded. They started giving us weird command like to shuffle and run as they ordered. It slowly became difficult with all the dust that was raised. They told us to spread out while they took majority of the army somewhere. Not later when majority of army had gone elsewhere and we had raised enough dust to block our view. Our captains told us that we are to attack the fort again. But this time they put us in formation rather than running straight at the fort. Were they using us as sacrifice to let the majority of the army get away? With this question and lost hope I once again proceed towards the wall.