Chapter 118: The Weight of a Choice and the Shadow of War

The room fell dead silent, the air so thick it felt as though it could be sliced with a knife. Neither Dion, Sheila, nor Dhorga uttered a single word. Dion kept his eyes locked on Dhorga, who appeared to be calculating and weighing the offer on the table. Sheila, meanwhile, looked furious yet remained tightly sealed-lipped, until she finally reached her breaking point.

Blam!

Sheila slammed her hands down onto the table and stood up. Dion turned his head to look at her, while Dhorga didn’t even flinch or glance up from his thoughts.

"Give us your answer already, General... If it were up to me, your head would already be rolling across the floor," Sheila growled, her voice laced with rage.

Dhorga finally cast a sideways glance at Sheila, noting her flushed face and Dion, who was staring right back at him with a hand resting firmly on Sheila’s arm. Dhorga then focused his gaze on Dion.

"What is your true objective here?" Dhorga asked, his voice calm and deep.

"Hmm... I don’t need to explain my objectives to you. I’ve made an offer, and now I’m waiting for your answer," Dion replied smoothly.

Dhorga remained silent, still lost in thought. Dion gently nudged Sheila back into her seat beside him.

"You realize that accepting your offer means I would be betraying my own kingdom? Even if the one asking is Princess Sheila, who intends to reclaim the throne," Dhorga pointed out.

"That’s precisely why I’m offering it. So, what’s your answer, General? Return to your kingdom and become our enemy? Die right here? Or take the third option: work with us to retake the kingdom that rightfully belongs to Sheila?" Dion countered.

Dion intentionally pressed him one more time because he understood the core of Dhorga’s dilemma. The hesitation wasn’t about whether he would betray his kingdom; it was about the fact that cooperating with Dion meant betraying his own son and his ex-wife. Dhorga’s expression remained composed, though his mind was clearly racing. Sensing that the man sitting across from him possessed an emotional maturity on par with his own, Dion offered a faint smile.

"I’ll give you one day. If I don’t have an answer from you by tomorrow, Sheila and I will make the decision for you. Use this next day to weigh everything carefully," Dion stated.

Dhorga didn’t offer a verbal reply. He simply stared at Dion with a solemn, unsmiling expression, his eyes narrowed. Dion then gestured for the still-fuming Sheila to leave, walking out and leaving the general alone. As they stepped outside, they met Haruto, who immediately signaled two Shadow Hand agents to guard the door. Haruto accompanied Dion and Sheila as they walked out into the open air.

"So, how did it go, Lord Dion?" Haruto asked.

"He’s essentially just a father trying to protect his son. He launched that all-out assault against us because he wanted to settle things as fast as possible, but he severely miscalculated our strength. That’s all," Dion explained.

"Why on earth did you offer him a partnership? He should be executed, and we should mail his head straight to the Northgard palace so that bastard Gred panics and surrenders to us!" Sheila argued hotly.

"And then what? We march on Northgard and trigger an all-out war? Stop thinking so narrowly. War causes devastation on both sides. If we get him to cooperate, we can infiltrate Northgard without shedding blood and strike right at the root of the problem. Don’t forget, you’ve been away from your kingdom for over a year, and Gred has sat on that throne for just as long. We can’t take the risk that the citizens might side with Gred over you," Dion reasoned, gently resting a hand on Sheila’s shoulder to calm her down.

Hearing Dion’s logical breakdown, Sheila fell silent. She knew deep down that everything he said was true; she had been gone far too long to waltz back in without complications. Looking over at Dion, she finally grasped the underlying wisdom of recruiting Dhorga.

"I see your point. You’re right... There’s a much bigger crisis waiting for us than just taking back Northgard. We can’t afford to let a civil war break out right now," Sheila conceded.

"Good. I’m glad you understand," Dion said with a lighthearted pat on her shoulder.

As they walked, a young female Shadow Hand operative suddenly materialized right in front of them, scaring Dion and Sheila half to death. Judging by her youthful face and frame, the agent was barely a teenager.

"Papa... I brought a report," the girl announced.

"Huh... Papa?" Dion and Sheila echoed in unison, turning to look at Haruto walking beside them.

"Ah, right. Allow me to introduce Harumi, Mei’s younger sister and my second daughter," Haruto introduced.

"Hi, Big Brother Dion, Big Brother, I mean, Big Sister Sheila! I’m Harumi, Mei’s little sister. It’s great to finally meet you guys," Harumi greeted cheerfully.

"Oh... You’re... the youngest sister Yugo was obsessing over back then, the one that drove Mei to finally kill him?" Dion asked, pointing at Harumi.

"Pretty much. Prince Yugo did mention to me back then that he wanted to take my hand in marriage, but I wanted nothing to do with it, and King Kenzo didn’t pursue it either. He knew perfectly well his son had a few screws loose," Haruto replied, shaking his head.

"Oh, right. Mei once mentioned that Yugo had a sick obsession with kids... A total pedophile. Disgusting," Sheila muttered.

"Hey! Big Sister Sheila, I am not a kid. I’m eighteen years old!" Harumi protested.

"Hahaha... To me, you’re just a kid," Sheila teased, reaching out to pat Harumi’s head, only for the girl to angrily swat her hand away.

"Anyway, back on topic, why did you come find me, Harumi?" Haruto interrupted.

"Big Sister Mei and the others are already inside the palace. They’re investigating the inner chambers... And oh, Papa, here is the latest intelligence report from Minatheras," Harumi said, handing a folded document to Haruto.

Haruto took the parchment and scanned it. His eyes darted rapidly from left to right, growing wider and darker as he read further down the page. His grip tightened instinctively, slightly crumpling the paper. Noticing the abrupt shift in Haruto’s demeanor, Dion and Sheila exchanged worried glances before looking back at him.

"What is it, Lord Sion?" Sheila asked urgently.

"The undead knight corps and the wyvern riders have amassed right across the border crater separating us from the Kingdom of Lutherias. King Alexis has mobilized his entire army to fortify the border and set up barricades... A massive war is about to erupt," Haruto answered grimly, handing the letter over to Dion.

Dion and Sheila read the dispatch. Everything Haruto said was true; the letter detailed the alarming scale of the enemy forces, nearly ten thousand undead infantrymen accompanied by roughly two hundred skeletal wyvern riders. Dion swallowed hard. He turned around and stared blankly at the heavily guarded door of Dhorga’s cell.

"Oh, right, one more thing. Princess Evelyn of Thetor just paid her respects to Lady Olga and headed back to her kingdom temporarily. It sounds like Thetor is dispatching their knight legions to reinforce Lutherias, though Princess Evelyn mentioned she’ll be coming back here afterward," Harumi added.

"Right... Thank you, Harumi. Why don’t you stay here with Papa for a moment?" Haruto suggested.

"Can I go keep Big Sister Mei company instead? I’m curious to see what the inside of the palace looks like," Harumi asked.

"What do you think, Lord Dion?" Haruto asked, glancing toward Dion.

Dion stood frozen, entirely lost in his own thoughts, missing the question entirely. Sheila nudged him sharply in the ribs, snapping him back to reality. After Sheila quickly repeated Haruto’s question, Dion blinked.

"Oh... Sure, go ahead. I don’t mind at all," Dion replied vaguely.

"Awesome! Thanks, future brother-in-law!" Harumi cheered.

Before Haruto, Dion, or Sheila could react, Harumi vanished into thin air. Haruto sighed, shaking his head before looking back at Dion.

"Apologies, Lord Dion. She’s young and still loves to play around, so she tends to lack seriousness during times like this."

"It’s fine... Lord Sion, I understand," Dion forced a polite smile.

Deep down, however, his mind was racing in sheer panic. He re-read the report. What sent a chaotic storm of emotions swirling through his chest was a small detail noted at the bottom of the page: the commander leading the vanguard undead forces was described as a pale-skinned man clad entirely in black armor, possessing white hair, sharp fangs, and glowing red eyes. The sketch drawn at the bottom of the missive bore an uncanny, undeniable resemblance to Rene.

Dion wasn’t the only one struck dumb; beside him, Sheila stood completely frozen, falling utterly silent aside from the nudge she had given him moments prior.

"Rene... He actually joined forces with the undead... He betrayed us all... I don’t even know what I’m supposed to feel right now. Part of me regrets not finishing him off when I had the chance... But on the other hand... he was my friend... This is a total mess," Dion thought to himself, his mind spinning out of control.