Chapter 691: He is cleaning up loose ends.

[K-Kael!]

Elira’s voice came from the Communication Crystal.

[W-We are being attacked!]

Kael’s expression changed.

Lavinia’s eyes sharpened as well. There was still grief on her face, however, she pushed it back and it was replaced with urgency.

"Elira, what happened?"

Kael asked in a solemn tone.

However, the only things he could hear from the other side were screams and explosions. That alone was more than enough for Kael to understand how serious the situation was.

"Elira!!"

He screamed.

[Kael! I-I don’t have time to explain anything!]

Elira’s shaky, panicked voice came from the other end.

[The attack began suddenly without any sort of warning and the one leading them is Grand Marshal Varyon!]

"Grand Marshal Varyon!?"

Kael’s expression changed.

Lavinia’s eyes changed as well.

Grand Marshal Varyon was the strongest warrior in Drakthar, the overseer of the military expansion.

He’s attacking...?

Did that mean the King was already making a move?

[We need urgent reinforcements. Our side is in critical condition, they focused all their firepower on Mother first, so she is hurt, she won’t be able to hold on for long.

Please! I have no one else to call! 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

Please come!]

She practically begged.

And that clenched Kael’s heart. From her hoarse voice, it was clear she was crying while fighting the enemies rushing at her.

The very possibility of something happening to her frightened him, so he—

"We are coming! Hold out for as long as you can! HOLD OUT!"

He ordered.

[Y-Yes! Please hurry!]

Elira sounded a little relieved, though all of it was buried beneath the urgency in her voice. She was terrified, and rightfully so, her home, where she had grown up, was being attacked, and that too by the very people they had protected for centuries.

Kael wanted to keep the connection open, to get real-time updates about what was happening, but obviously, that wasn’t possible.

From the explosions coming from the background, it was clear Elira was in the middle of a battle. She was talking while facing enemies, and the very fact that she was able to contact them at all was surprising.

Kael didn’t waste time either. The moment the connection ended, he and Lavinia stared at each other and nodded.

Kael moved, Lavinia, on the other hand, stared at her brother’s body lying beside her. For a small moment, her eyes trembled, showing the grief she was feeling, but then, that grief was overwritten by strong determination.

Lavinia knelt on the ground and gently touched her brother’s face.

"I am sorry."

She spoke in a soft but heavy voice.

"But I need to leave."

Then she raised her hand, the earth around Edric moved, gently creating a temporary coffin that preserved his body.

On the other side, Kael was already rushing towards Ferrakar and without waiting for even the smallest moment—

"Ferrakar!"

Kael screamed.

The Dragon’s golden eyes opened and fell on Kael.

Kael continued running towards him, then, he jumped into the air and landed directly on Ferrakar’s back, surprising the Steel Dragon.

"Stormhold territory, now!"

He commanded.

If anyone else heard that, they would have frozen.

Sure, Ferrakar did say he would guard Kael from now on, but that didn’t allow Kael to talk to him in that tone.

Kael could not order him around.

Ferrakar, too, remained silent for a moment, inwardly, however, he was pleased. Yes, he wasn’t offended, not even in the slightest.

This was the same Kael he had seen during the battle, the Kael he had chosen.

Not the Kael who shook when he saw the Prince’s body, but the Kael who moved when he needed to move, even if it meant ordering a Guardian Beast around.

"Hold tightly."

The Dragon spoke in his usual, heavy voice.

Kael held on, then, the Dragon moved.

"First, pick her up."

Kael ordered again. Ferrakar landed next to Lavinia, Kael jumped down, picked her up in his arms, and returned to Ferrakar’s back.

Then—

Ferrakar finally moved at his full speed and—

The world around them disappeared.

The force was so sudden that the snow beneath Ferrakar exploded backwards and the ground shook, waking almost everyone.

The impact was so strong that if it wasn’t for Ferrakar protecting Kael and Lavinia, their bodies would have turned into bloodied paste.

Kael, however, did not let this shock him, not right now.

He already knew Ferrakar was fast, terrifyingly fast. This was the reason he came to him in the first place, and surprising as it all was to him, he didn’t let it get to him, not when he needed to be fully conscious of what he was doing.

So he forced himself to calm down and looked around.

In just a single second, all of the Heights became distant. Ferrakar cut through the sky at a speed so terrifying that mountains, forests, rivers, and broken lands passed below them in a blur.

As for Kael himself—

"He is cleaning up loose ends."

He spoke with a solemn look on his face.

Lavinia’s eyes became colder as well.

"The moment Brother escaped, he must have known where he would come, and since he cannot directly attack us, he attacked the only force close to us."

She reasoned it all out.

Kael agreed.

There were several questions in his mind, but the most important one was—

"What would be his justification for this?"

He frowned.

War, no matter what kind, needed justification.

After all, in the public’s eyes, Alden was still the King. The King attacking one of the Founding Houses without any prior warning would never be a wise strategic move.

"I do not know."

Lavinia shook her head.

She had been thinking the same thing.

Kael was already considering several possibilities.

Yes, a King attacking one of the Founding Houses was not a wise strategic move but...

What if the King managed to prove he was not involved?

Though if Elira saw the Grand Marshal, that directly linked the Grand Marshal to the King, unless, of course, the King planned on discarding the Grand Marshal.

Which, again, wouldn’t be a wise move since he was already losing a Demigod after this, he couldn’t afford to lose another one.

Could it be...

Their plan was to annihilate every witness so the world never knew what had happened?

Another stream of Kael’s mind gave that thought some time as well.

Though the more he thought about it, the more unlikely it seemed.

Veylara was a Demigod.

And she was extremely strong.

Sure, Varyon could face her, he could even defeat her, especially since they had managed to focus all their firepower on her and injure her at the beginning but—

That still wouldn’t be enough to annihilate the Stormholds.

At least not fast enough before he reached them.

More of Kael’s mind streams gave time to different theories, none of them, however, seemed plausible.

That annoyed Kael even further.

One thing that could be said for sure, however, was that—

"He prepared this."

Lavinia spoke with a solemn look on her face.

Kael nodded at that.

"Yes, no one attacks a Demigod’s territory without preparation. I just want to know...

How long has he been planning this?"

He spoke with a solemn look on his face.

This was what he hated the most.

Rushing into a War the enemy had prepared for while he had not, and even though Kael had Ferrakar with him—

He did not know what they were going to face the moment they got there.