Chapter 289: Siegfried's Betrayal

"Oh? What value do the current barbarians possess to make it worth my while to offend the powerful Yafiavi for your sake?!"

A drop of cold sweat rolled down Siegfried's forehead. Ancient texts recorded Lilith's origins and her past experiences.

In a race that worshipped martial prowess like the barbarians, women had no status whatsoever. They were merely tools for breeding the next generation.

Born into such a society, one could well imagine what Lilith had endured. But she had been lucky; she met the most important person in her life—the former leader of the Witches' Council.

Lilith was a magical genius. She did not disappoint her teacher's expectations and broke through to the Legendary Rank. To everyone's joy, she took it a step further and advanced to become a High-Tier Legend. From that moment on, the Northland Witches' Council officially became one of the top factions in Nordhill.

Lilith's mind had been scarred by her birth into a society of absolute male supremacy. Once she gained formidable power, she became a radical advocate for female supremacy. From the moment she took power, the Northland Wizards' Council gradually transformed into the Northland Witches' Council, and even the Elance Kingdom became the only matriarchal nation on the continent.

It was safe to say that Lilith harbored absolutely no goodwill toward the Barbarian Tribe. Yet Siegfried had no other choice. Driven into a corner, he could only set aside his dignity and beg this "compatriot" for help.

"Lady Lilith, for the sake of the women of the Barbarian Tribe..."

"Enough! If you're only here to spout nonsense, then please get out."

Thousands of years had passed, and Lilith's disgust for barbarian society had gradually faded. Her relatives and friends from that era had long since died. To her, the current Barbarian Tribe was merely a familiar stranger. Nothing more.

Siegfried squeezed his eyes shut in pain, coming to a difficult decision.

'I am sorry! Archbishop Ogsger! I am sorry! Lord Balinor!'

"I know a secret..."

...

Overseas Archipelago, White Castle hall. The White Dragon Lord was listening to a report from his magistrate, Hobbes.

"Commander Hogger has arrived at the Midolan Fortress, and the three princes of the Kingdom of Rowe have also arrived there with him. The moment the Ogre army arrives, they will launch a full-scale offensive against the barbarians."

The White Dragon Lord nodded slightly to show that he understood.

War was merciless. One of the four princes of the Kingdom of Rowe had actually been severely injured, eliminating him early on. But the withdrawal of a single prince had absolutely no impact on this massive war. Everything was proceeding according to plan.

He believed that in a few days, Sandonar would only exist in historical texts.

The White Dragon Lord pondered the follow-up work in the Northland. With the Dragon Mother dead, his plan for a dragon beast transit station had run aground, but he was going to get it back on track.

'Who should I send?'

'How about Felicia? For her, it's just changing where she sleeps anyway. I doubt the Dragon Sister would refuse such an arrangement. At worst, I'll just build a teleportation Array.'

The White Dragon Lord mused.

Suddenly, a familiar fluctuation of magic rippled through the sky. He lifted his eyelids and shifted to the god's-eye view of the Magic Tower to see who was teleporting over.

A woman's figure appeared in the sky. It was an acquaintance—the second-in-command of the Northland Witches' Council, Denise Clive.

The White Dragon Lord felt slightly puzzled. Denise visiting at this exact moment, right as the White Castle attacked the barbarians, carried an intriguing implication.

The Northland had always been the territory of the Witches' Council. Could it be that the White Castle's actions there had made the council uncomfortable?

He made his guesses, but regardless of what he thought, he would only know the truth after speaking with her.

Blink!

The White Dragon Lord appeared in the sky outside the White Castle.

"Welcome to the White Castle, my dear friend!"

"Good day, Your Majesty Amos. I hope my presumptuous visit hasn't disturbed you."

Both harbored their own hidden motives. After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the White Dragon Lord welcomed Denise into the White Castle.

The human and the dragon took their respective seats as guest and host. After the servants served tea and pastries and withdrew, the two of them began to chat.

First, they discussed the latest jewelry released by the White Castle, then touched upon the current situation on the Nordhill Continent, and even exchanged some gossip regarding the deities...

Denise finally couldn't hold back anymore. The White Dragon Lord was in no rush, but she was. If they kept chatting, Hogger's gnoll army would wipe out the barbarians completely, rendering her visit meaningless. She steered the conversation toward the barbarians.

"Your Excellency Amos, if I may be so bold to ask, what are your views on the Barbarian Tribe?"

"Views? I don't have any. They killed my mother and destroyed the dragon beast transit station I built on the North Wind Ice Plain. Now, I want to wipe them out. Why? Is the Witches' Council interested in the barbarians?"

"You could say that. The barbarian chief, Siegfried, specifically came to the Witches' Council to beg for aid from the Council Speaker."

"Huh?"

The White Dragon Lord raised a brow in confusion. Could the Barbarian Tribe actually have some connection with the Speaker of the Witches' Council, the Extreme Cold Witch, Lilith?

Hadn't this bunch of female supremacists in the Witches' Council always found the barbarians an eyesore?

Harboring these doubts, he simply asked her directly.

"It's not really a secret. Speaker Lilith was originally a barbarian."

Realization dawned on him. He hadn't been a High-Tier Legend for long. Although he had inquired with the Silver Dragon Scholar about the important matters, he hadn't known a piece of gossip like the origins of the Northland Witches' Council's Speaker.

"Then what are Lady Lilith's thoughts on the matter?"

He wasn't worried in the slightest. The current strength of the White Castle was no lesser than that of the Northland Witches' Council. Lilith would absolutely not clash with a faction of the same caliber over some minor ties from thousands of years ago.

"We came up with a solution that satisfies both sides."

The White Dragon Lord gestured for her to continue.

"The one who killed... well, the one who actually killed your respected mother was that sovereign. I am sure Your Majesty Amos is well aware of this. All you truly want is to take revenge on that entity and extinguish His faith in Nordhill."

Seeing no change in the dragon's expression, Denise continued.

"But there is another method to extinguish faith, and that is to have another deity replace that sovereign's position."

"Oh, interesting. I wonder what brilliant plan the Witches' Council has come up with?"

He was genuinely interested in their plan. If he destroyed the Barbarian Tribe himself, Balinor's hatred would be focused entirely on him. Being hated by a deity was never a good thing.

But if he acted as the mastermind behind the scenes and pushed another deity to take Balinor's place, the vast majority of Balinor's hatred would naturally shift to that other deity. Moreover, it would earn him a favor with that new god.

Without a doubt, the latter option was far more beneficial to the White Dragon Lord.

"Aside from the faith of that sovereign, the Barbarian Tribe also holds the presence of another sovereign—the God of War..."

The Frost Spear God of War—Haridon!

This entity was a deity with Faint Divine Power. He boasted widespread faith among the Warriors in the freezing regions, and the Northland was his main stronghold. Because they competed for faith, his relationship with Balinor was terrible.

The White Dragon Lord recalled the information he had on Haridon. He was indeed a suitable meat shield—oh, no, a suitable partner.

"I agree to your proposed plan. However, I promised the Kingdom of Rowe half of the land. The barbarians will need to cede territory and pay reparations, as well as promise to never invade the Kingdom of Rowe. The Northland Witches' Council and the White Castle will jointly act as witnesses to this matter and supervise the barbarians' execution of the agreement."

"This... I cannot make this decision alone. It requires discussion in the council and a proper conversation with the barbarian chief."

The White Dragon Lord nodded.

"That is to be expected. To show my sincerity, the White Castle Army will pause its operations."

"Then I will head back right away to discuss it. Apologies for the intrusion."

The White Dragon Lord saw Denise off.

Afterward, using his Dragon Tooth Contract with Hogger, he issued a few instructions.

Regarding Lilith stepping forward for the barbarians, there was no way he believed it was solely due to a connection from thousands of years ago. He concluded that Siegfried must have offered conditions the Witches' Council couldn't refuse. The barbarians had passed down their heritage for so many years; they might actually have some hidden trump cards.

But even if he knew that, so what? The secret was already in the hands of the Witches' Council. They had obtained it through their own capabilities and had the power to protect it. Furthermore, their proposal was beneficial to him. He had no reason to refuse.

In the distant Northland, following the delivery of the White Dragon Lord's orders, the border between the Kingdom of Rowe and the Great Barbarian Steppe welcomed a temporary peace. When the Kingdom of Rowe questioned the halt, Hogger simply gave a one-sentence explanation: the Elance Kingdom had intervened.

Baines XXIII knew exactly what the Elance Kingdom's intervention meant—it meant the Witches' Council had intervened. The Witches' Council was a massive organization on the same level as the White Castle; both were entities the Kingdom of Rowe could not afford to provoke. Besides, the White Dragon Lord was already fighting for the kingdom's interests, so Rowe naturally had no objections. They even passed a message through Hogger, expressing their gratitude to the white dragon from afar.

After the barbarian chief, Siegfried, returned, he immediately ordered the barbarian army to retreat thirty li.

The war wasn't going to start, but the armies didn't cease their movements. A bunch of gnolls rode their hyenas back and forth along the Kingdom of Rowe's border every single day. This was Hogger following the White Dragon Lord's orders to put pressure on the Barbarian Tribe.

Once the ten-thousand-strong Ogre army arrived, the White Castle Army organized a new activity. A group of absurdly muscular Ogre brutes practiced throwing javelins on the Great Barbarian Steppe every day.

The steel spears hurtling over a thousand meters terrified the investigating barbarian scouts so badly they nearly lost their souls.

Seeing this, the three Rowe princes conferred and decided to offer some gold, several magical items, and a high-quality enchanted spear as prizes. They set up several events and hosted a military competition.

Magical items were rare treasures even for the monsters of the Overseas Archipelago, so they "performed" with even greater vigor. The soldiers of the Kingdom of Rowe naturally clapped and cheered, but the audience on the other side was terrified out of their wits.

Meanwhile, after Denise returned and conferred with the council, she summoned Siegfried to discuss the White Dragon Lord's terms.

Siegfried adamantly refused, as ceding territory would earn him eternal infamy. Given his insistence and the fact that the information he had provided to the Witches' Council was indeed highly valuable, the council found it difficult to push him too hard. Ultimately, the four parties conferred and decided that their leaders would meet for talks on the Great Barbarian Steppe.

On a morning with a gentle spring breeze, the head of the White Castle, the White Dragon Lord; the Extreme Cold Witch, Lilith; the King of Rowe, Baines XXIII; and the barbarian chief, Siegfried, met on the Great Barbarian Steppe.

It was called a four-party talk, but in reality, the White Dragon Lord and Lilith were only there to serve as witnesses. The true negotiating parties were the principals involved: Baines XXIII and Siegfried.

Thus began the first formal meeting between the White Dragon Lord and the Extreme Cold Witch.

They had actually met once before. During the battle to defend Sky City, they had briefly fought side by side, though they had never formally met like this.

The dragon and the witch set up a soundproofing barrier around themselves, leaving the Rowe King and the barbarian chieftain to argue outside. Inside the barrier, the two conversed pleasantly.

Both were apex powerhouses in ice magic, and since both already intended to build a good relationship, the atmosphere of their conversation was exceedingly pleasant.

As an old monster who had lived for thousands of years, the Extreme Cold Witch looked the part. With her deeply wrinkled and sagging skin, sunken eye sockets, and the hooked nose typical of barbarian women, she looked exactly like Gargamel from The Smurfs.

The White Dragon Lord inwardly critiqued her. This Excellency was truly an anomaly among women. For a High-Tier Legend, altering one's appearance was as easy as eating or drinking, yet her looks were so strikingly unconventional.

Perhaps her early experiences had made her stop caring about her looks. A woman adorned herself for her admirers, and she despised men. Combined with the fact that she spent her days cooped up in a Magic Tower researching magic without seeing outsiders, it naturally didn't matter what she looked like.

The White Dragon Lord mused. He let his mind wander while exchanging opinions with the Extreme Cold Witch, and just like that, the day passed.

As the sun was about to set, the King of Rowe and the barbarian chief finally argued out a result acceptable to both sides.

First, the barbarians swore never to invade the borders of the Kingdom of Rowe unless Rowe tore up the agreement first. However, the Kingdom of Rowe could not interfere with the barbarians purchasing grain when they experienced food shortages.

Second, as war reparations for invading the Northern Province, the barbarians would pay one million horses, two million cows, and five million sheep, to be paid in full within ten years. (Mainly because they had been robbed blind by the Dragon Mother and were broke.)

Third, ...

Of course, certain under-the-table agreements couldn't be written into the contract, such as the push to replace their faith.

Under the witness of the White Castle and the Witches' Council, the two parties signed a magical contract, after which the four individuals each returned to their respective homes.

Before leaving, Lilith sent a telepathic message to the White Dragon Lord, stating that she would visit the White Castle in a few days.

He didn't understand her reasoning, but Lilith visiting in person naturally wouldn't be as simple as just dropping by.

After all, the Extreme Cold Witch was a magic fanatic who even handed off her responsibilities as a councilor to Denise.

The White Dragon Lord was highly curious about what could possibly make an entity like her step out of her Magic Tower.