Wizard: Scamming a Demon God

Chapter 192: Chapter 152: The Bizarre Itra Kingdom (Part 2)

And while Itra was a Kingdom, its total area was only two or three times larger than the current Solomon, so its army shouldn’t have been particularly large.

However, in response to Isaac’s speculation, Philo simply shook her head and stated a number that left both him and Smith stunned.

Philo’s lips parted as she said softly, ”The combined main combat forces of the Itra Kingdom and the Rebel Army total one million!”

”???” Isaac was completely baffled. ”How... how many?”

Anjel, standing to the side, hadn’t reacted to the number at first. But seeing how astonished Isaac was, a hint of surprise appeared on her face as well. ’Is that a lot?’

”Lord Smith, is an army of one million really that outrageous for a country?” Anjel wasn’t the only one confused. Lorna, standing behind Isaac, was just as puzzled and couldn’t help but quietly ask the equally astonished Smith next to her.

”Yes, extremely outrageous...” Smith glanced at Lorna’s bewildered face, momentarily troubled by how to explain it to her. After all, Lorna was a standard illiterate. After a moment’s thought, Smith said, ”A main combat army of one million soldiers costs at least one million Gold Coins per day!”

”That’s insane!” Lorna was dumbstruck.

Isaac’s brow furrowed. He looked at Philo, confused. ”Why so many? It doesn’t make sense. Given the Itra Kingdom’s size, it’s impossible to support such a massive army. It’s doubtful they even have the population for it. What’s going on?”

Beyond those two points, there was the issue Smith had raised to help Lorna understand: for a main combat force of one million, burning through a million Gold Coins a day would be a conservative estimate.

An Ordinary Soldier might not cost one Gold Coin a day, but this army was also filled with a large number of Tier One and Tier Two Transcendent. According to standard military structure, every ten-thousand-strong unit required at least one High-level Knight.

One hundred High-level Knights...

The Itra Kingdom definitely didn’t have that many, but the corresponding positions would need to be filled by Tier Two Transcendent at a minimum. The cost of rations for these Transcendent alone would be substantial, to say nothing of equipping them with weapons and armor.

This army of a million couldn’t be entirely composed of infantry; there would definitely be other unit types. Factoring in all the miscellaneous expenses, you would have to be frugal even with a million Gold Coins a day. With that kind of money, what couldn’t you do?

In a world where power is concentrated in the individual, an army of a million, without the leadership of corresponding High-level Knights, could be steamrolled by just ten High-level Knights given a bit of time!

The return on investment was abysmal.

”You’re right. By any normal logic, the Itra Kingdom couldn’t afford an army this large, and even if they could, they wouldn’t raise one.” Philo nodded in agreement with Isaac. Then, her tone shifted. ”However, the Itra Kingdom possesses a treasure called the Tree of Life. This treasure can create humanoid life-forms that require no food or drink and never tire. The Itra Kingdom’s army is composed of these beings.”

”Something like that exists?” Isaac was surprised, but his surprise quickly gave way to contemplation. ’If that’s the case, then they really can afford such a large army... so that’s your real target, isn’t it?’

Isaac asked suddenly.

”I knew I couldn’t hide it from you. Yes, that’s my target. But unlike other treasures, this item won’t be offered up for redemption. That’s why I need to seize the entire Itra Kingdom,” Philo stated bluntly.

Isaac gave Philo a long, hard look. He knew she was holding a lot back. ’For instance, if the treasure is so precious, why is the Itra Kingdom using it so openly? Aren’t they afraid of people like Philo coming to steal it?’

He was curious, but Isaac didn’t press the issue, knowing Philo wouldn’t answer. Instead, he asked a different question. ”So the Itra Kingdom is preparing this massive army for the coming rebellion, right? What kind of sacrificial rituals have been set up?”

”Well... there are quite a few,” Philo said, shrugging helplessly. It wasn’t that she was refusing to say, but that it would take far too long to explain, and besides, she didn’t know all the details herself.

But for Isaac, that admission was enough.

’So it seems the rebellion in the Itra Kingdom is just as I suspected—a stage for other Wizards to perform their rituals. The only difference is that the Itra Kingdom isn’t just about to become a ritual site; it already is one!’

’And a high-end one at that! The kind you wouldn’t even be qualified to know about without the proper status!’

’That makes sense. The rituals here are likely blood sacrifices, the kind explicitly forbidden by the Truth Council and the major Great Empires. Of course they couldn’t be widely publicized.’

”So, what’s our plan of action? Or, to put it another way, who are we fighting against?” Isaac asked after a moment of contemplation, getting to the heart of the matter.

A glint flashed in Anjel’s eyes. She hesitated for a moment but remained silent. Although she had seen glimpses of the future in the Original Scripture and had a general idea of the type of war it would be, her knowledge was vague. She certainly didn’t know as many details as Philo.

”It’s simple. The Kingdom Army and the Rebel Army are facing off, each with a standing army of five hundred thousand. To reinforce or expand your forces, you’ll need to gather resources to recruit more. Both the Kingdom Army and the Rebel Army have fifty slots for external participants. The Itra Mountain Range will serve as the north-south dividing line for open warfare. The ultimate victory condition is to capture the enemy’s headquarters.”

”So it’s a war-game scenario?” Isaac mused, nodding. ’In that case, I have a bit of an advantage. After all, I have two thousand Tier Two Great Sword Ghosts, and on a battlefield, those things are practically invincible!’

However...

Isaac asked curiously, ”The Rebel Army also has fifty slots for external participants. Is their resource treasury the same as ours?”

”Some parts are the same, some are not,” Anjel, not Philo, answered this time. ”The treasury is divided into two sections. The first is the basic treasury, which contains more common resources. For example, the Witch’s Certificate you want to redeem is in there. Both the Kingdom Army and the Rebel Army have access to a portion of it. The other is the core treasury. Only the ultimate victor can redeem items from it. The Time Page I want and the Kaleidoscope Eye you want are both in there.”

After speaking, Anjel looked toward Philo. ”As for the Secret Treasure she wants... it’s not in either of those treasuries. It can only be obtained by sacrificing the entire Itra royal bloodline.”

”The entire bloodline?” Isaac hadn’t even reacted, but Philo’s brow was the first to furrow.

”You didn’t know?” Isaac smirked at Philo’s surprised expression.

”Hmph!” Philo snorted, annoyed at Isaac’s gloating tone, then looked to Anjel for confirmation.

”Your future self does indeed sacrifice every member of the Itra royal family to finally obtain that treasure,” Anjel confirmed.

”So, we win in the end?” Isaac asked, surprised. ”Does that mean no High-level Combat Power joins the war?”

Isaac was confident, but he wasn’t entirely certain of victory. Based on his intelligence, there were no rules preventing High-level Combat Power from participating. Moreover, many items in the treasury—like his target, the Kaleidoscope Eye, and Anjel’s target, the Time Page—were tempting even to those at the highest tiers.

”No Tier Three Transcendent,” Philo interjected with a disdainful expression. ”Because the strongest person in Itra is a Tier Four Miracle Knight, one who is already nearing the end of his life. He was worried that attracting too many Tier Three powerhouses would be like letting the wolf into his house, so he made an agreement with the various factions to only allow Tier Two Transcendent to participate.”

”I see.” Isaac nodded, an arrogant expression spreading across his face. ”In that case, won’t the three of us be able to run completely rampant?”

”That’s about right.” For once, Philo was in complete agreement with Isaac, and an equally arrogant smile graced her lips.

After all, this was the fundamental reason she wanted to cooperate with Isaac in the first place.