Pillar of Yita

A king, of course, needs to keep his word. But a man with revenge in his heart does not need such scruples. From the start, he was determined to kill these people, sparing none. After all, once he shed the title of King of Sand, he was not much of a king anymore.

It was a pity that Seniman got away. In the circumstances at that time, he did not have the chance to use the Soul-Capturing Cube.

He no longer looked at the disgraceful state of these people and turned to walk toward Fang Hong and his group:

”These people must have placed some curse on Affia.”

”The only solution now is to take her back to Quistack.”

”Young man, I heard you brought a ship, ” Barbaltan said, looking at Fang Hong, ”Could I ask you for another favor? Is that ship well-repaired?”

Fang Hong thought silently for a moment. This was actually the only solution he could think of. The ship was relatively intact when it landed, just needing some repairs. With the King of Sand’s enormous help, perhaps it could be done. Thinking of this, he nodded.

But he paused for a moment and suddenly spoke: ”Your Majesty, aside from this matter, I’m afraid we have another problem.”

”What?”

Barbaltan looked at him with a bit of surprise.

Fang Hong frowned and glanced in one direction, then turned back: ”Quistack might be in danger.”

”You mean the Sand Thieves?”

”Seniman noticed Your Majesty’s plan early on and almost succeeded. They also have someone planted by the Grand Princess, though that inside man may have already been resolved—”

Fang Hong paused: ”But the Grand Princess had long suspected that there was a connection between the Blind Followers and that King of the Sand Thief, and knowing that Quistack’s defenses are weak, they are unlikely to remain idle.”

”But young man, you said,” Barbaltan pondered for a moment, then retorted: ”The inside man has already been found by you. Without an inside man, Rupert should be able to deal with just a King of the Sand Thief. As the royal capital of Istania, even if it’s depleted of troops, it wouldn’t be taken down by a mere mob.”

”In a frontal attack, naturally not, but how many nobles and Aleph in the Inner City are truly united with the Grand Princess? If even one or two harbor ill intentions, it would make the situation very precarious. More importantly...”

”What is it?”

”What if someone ’transports’ into Quistack?”

”Quistack has an anti-transport Puzzle Lock Barrier—” But Barbaltan suddenly froze.

The king’s face changed dramatically, and he turned back, looking at the bodies of the alchemists on the hill.

Just like before, these bodies hadn’t dissolved into light and vanished; they remained there. As for the Commander, a faint black light emanated from his body but was quickly absorbed and disappeared by the silver cube in the knights’ hands—

Fang Hong’s face didn’t look good either. After all, Hilveld and her group were still in the city, as well as Aleph and the others. He could only hope it was merely a speculation, and maybe the Blind Followers had concentrated all their efforts in this direction, without involving the Fallen Alchemists into that combat.

After all, it was just a group of Sand Thieves, whether they lived or died might not matter to the plans of the Blind God Dika.

But things didn’t go as hoped.

Soon, Luo Hao sent back a message.

This chubby man from the military returned with a gloomy face, holding a Communication Crystal. He glanced at the crowd, stayed silent for a moment, and then said: ”The communication with Quistack seems to have been interrupted again... But it probably isn’t because of the previous dust storm, as our communication here hasn’t been affected at all...”

But why would the communication break off for no reason?

Apparently, the only remaining possibility was this.

...

The firelight on the horizon was reflected in Princess Rupert’s eyes.

The maidservant who brought the message was pale-faced and chattering below:

”It seems the Holy Chosen are attacking the southern gate...”

”...Your Highness, no one expected them to suddenly join the battle. They appeared from behind the Imperial Guard, numbering in the hundreds. Without any defense, the southern gate almost fell immediately...”

”The Sand Thieves took the opportunity to invade as well...”

”Also, also, there’s that King of the Sand Thief...”

At the mention of the King of the Sand Thief, the maidservant’s voice trembled almost uncontrollably.

Silence filled the hall, and many courtiers looked at Elisa and her group. Someone immediately spoke out strongly, demanding to have the Holy Chosen in the hall removed as they were no longer deemed trustworthy.

But Saisheer naturally couldn’t agree, although as the presiding Right Minister, he couldn’t personally take the field to press the opposing party’s opinion. Thus, the parties divided into two factions, arguing in court, while Elisa and Tang Xin’s group merely watched quietly, unwilling to engage.

Finally, the Grand Princess turned back, glancing coldly at the first person who spoke, and said:

”Tie him up and take him away—”

The noble minister who had been speaking emphatically was immediately dumbfounded.

But it proved that the Grand Princess’s words held more sway here than Aleph’s. As soon as she finished speaking, a group of knights stepped forward and, ignoring the latter’s protests, dragged him away from the hall. For a moment, everyone in the main hall exchanged glances in silence, and no one spoke up.

Aleph shook his head with a wry smile and said: ”Alright, Miss Hilveld and her group are our absolute allies, and the outsiders definitely have nothing to do with them.”

Saisheer glanced approvingly at the two and added:

”It’s not yet clear if the attackers are truly the Holy Chosen; they are bound by the ’Stargate Declaration,’ which you should be aware of—”

The ministers only then quieted.

However, someone still asked: ”The Sand Thieves have already entered the outer city, what should we do now?”

”And the Inner City,” the Grand Princess replied softly. She paused for a moment and then added, ”Father and the others should return soon; we just need to hold on until then.”

But can we really hold on until then?

The ministers exchanged glances, unsure of what lay ahead.

...