The next morning, all the other girls except Leah were summoned to the Royal Palace.
Even Vina, who wanted to sleep in, was dragged over by force.
Now holding a high position and busy with state affairs, Maken came in person, bringing some rather unpleasant news.
“Overnight, the situation has spiraled out of control. Two of the three northern cities were attacked. They didn’t do anything extra—just took the magicians in the city, some supplies, and transportation. Several towns and villages were also raided. They seized enough resources and have disappeared without a trace.”
Tracking them is possible, but even if you catch up, it’s meaningless.
They’ve obtained so many magicians and scattered, dispersing their forces.
It’s impossible to catch them all.
Celes calmly analyzed the situation.
“They want to go to the Demon Territory, so they must cross the Northern Frontier Line. We can intercept them there.”
Then she saw Maken shake his head.
“The Northern Frontier Line is wide. It’s designed to defend against large-scale invasions, not to prevent smuggling. Ordinary soldiers don’t have the ability to stop them and would just become fuel. More importantly, after our discussions, we concluded that letting them pass is in the Kingdom’s best interest.”
“What?”
Celes couldn’t comprehend this.
Maken pressed his hand to the dark circles under his eyes.
Although he was waiting for news last night, in truth, he’d already gathered people to discuss, and hadn’t slept a wink.
“Since their target is the Dragonheart Furnace, a place deep in the Demon Territory and the lifeline that regulates the demon climate, then let them bring disaster upon the demons.”
In his view, an out-of-control Fire Element was like a super bomb accidentally created by the Human Kingdom.
Since that’s the case, let it fulfill its purpose.
“What if things escalate beyond control afterward?”
Celes asked.
“I consulted experts from the Magic Court on this,” Maken said slowly. “It’s highly unlikely that it will grow to the point of destroying two races in succession. After the demons are destroyed, we might also pay some price, but compared to the benefits, the risk is acceptable.”
This was a chance to directly solve a major threat!
Celes didn’t expect the Kingdom’s thinking to be like this.
Though, thinking it over carefully, it did make sense…
She looked at her companions.
Vina shrugged, as if to say “that’s about right.”
Zero remained calm and had no objections.
As for Ella, she lowered her head, seemingly lost in thought.
She must be thinking. She couldn’t possibly be staring at the campfire.
“That’s it. You may go.”
Maken said to them.
He had specially called the Hero Squad here to say this, hoping they wouldn’t interfere with the Kingdom’s plans.
Now that everything was said, the course of action was decided.
On the way back, Ella remained silent.
Instead, Vina commented a few times, saying things like “Sir Maken is really ruthless,” and “If you’re not ruthless, you can’t stand firm.”
Leah didn’t know what was happening, but after Vina explained in detail, she echoed a few times, then suddenly froze.
“Wait, if they’re going to destroy the demons, what about my Church of Light Branch?”
And what about Lala’s Bright Society?
The demons have a stake in that too.
This statement exploded like a thunderclap in the girls’ hearts.
Celes finally understood why she instinctively opposed it just now, instead of standing on the side of the Human Kingdom like Sir Maken.
Because she had once fought alongside demon warriors and seen how demon civilians lived in the cities.
They were all living, intelligent beings capable of peaceful coexistence.
At this moment, four pairs of eyes landed on Ella.
But the pink-haired thunder girl still said nothing. She returned to the campfire camp, went alone to the second floor, and lay down in her room.
Actually, Lala was feeling conflicted too.
Was the Dragonheart Furnace important? Yes, very important.
But losing it wouldn’t mean the demons couldn’t survive.
If there’s no more heating and the north becomes uninhabitable, then they would just migrate elsewhere.
How did that saying go again?
Wherever there are demons, that’s the Demon Race.
The benefits were clear—it could quickly deal a heavy blow to the forces of Dark Star City.
Within days, even Dark Star City itself would disappear in the wind and snow.
But the resulting casualties…
On both sides of Ella’s head, two little figures appeared.
The little devil said:
“Those who accomplish great things don’t bother with trifles. There’s no sacrifice too great to accept!”
The little angel gave the devil a flying kick to the head.
“Idiot! When a Super Flame Demon is created, are you going to fight it?”
That’s right!
Ella suddenly came to her senses.
She had endured so much not to end up with two devastated races, but to achieve a strong United Empire.
Knock knock knock, knock knock knock, came the sound of someone knocking on the door.
“Come in.”
It was Celes.
“Ella, I’ve thought it over carefully, we…”
“We absolutely cannot stand by and do nothing!”
Without waiting for the girl to speak, Ella slapped her small hand on the bed.
“We must stop this!”
Celes froze for a moment, then warmth surged in her heart.
Great.
She knew it—this girl always understood her, never disappointing.
“What should we do?”
“No rush. I have an idea. Let’s go down and call the others first.”
Ella got up from the bed and walked out. As she passed by the girl, she was gently pulled.
“What is it? Anything else?”
“Well, actually, a few days ago I visited my master, and he said something to me. I…”
Celes took a deep breath.
“I want to talk to you about it later.”
“Sure.”
Ella didn’t think much of it.
The master of the Sword Saint girl was probably also a Sword Saint.
Want to talk about swordsmanship?
Maybe because she saw Ella also used a sword.
Talk all you want—it’s just sword techniques.
It’s not like the conversation would explode.
When the two girls walked downstairs, they found everyone else waiting in the first-floor hall, staring at them expectantly.
“Everyone’s here.”
“Of course. We’re waiting for your decision.”
Vina propped her face on her hands.
“You just captured a city and established the Bright Society. There’s no way you’d watch the future empire be destroyed.”
“No way. I just don’t want to see living beings massacred.”
Ella replied, setting herself up as a good girl according to protocol.
Then she continued.
“It’s impossible for us to do it alone. We’ll have to find a way to drag the main force of the Demon Race into this.”
This wasn’t unexpected.
After all, the Human Kingdom had decided not to get involved, so they had to look for help elsewhere.
The problem was how to drag them in.
You couldn’t just send a letter to Dark Star City saying, “A great disaster is coming. Quickly gather your resources and fight.”
No one would believe a warning from the enemy.
“We’ll return to Bright Cross Star City tomorrow,”
Ella pressed her hands together.
“And let them raise their guard on their own.”