Citywide Alert

An empire had devised a plot against the City of Death, and Mo Fei hesitated for a moment—not because he distrusted Kane and the others, but because he wished to participate himself.

Approaching the captain of the cargo convoy, Mo Fei said, “Captain, we’ve decided to return to the City of Death first. We won’t travel with you this time. Next time, when you bring goods to the Dragonwing Empire, we’ll go together.”

“That’s fine. I need to enter the city first and report this incident to our leader before proceeding.” With such a significant event, it was only natural to inform his commander.

“Master Mage, we…” The leader of the Berserker squad wondered whether he should escort the city lord back.

“We’ll return on our own. Captain, please spread the word—there may be more than one squad; warn the others to stay vigilant.”

“I understand. We’ll return to the city and relay the message. Safe travels…” After watching Mo Fei and his companions depart, the squad leader barked, “Return to the city immediately! Issue an enemy attack alert to all brothers.”

He didn’t need to worry about the City of Death itself; few dared to provoke it. But those stationed outside needed to be warned. An incident within their territory would tarnish the City of Death’s reputation. This damned empire—once the culprit was found, it would pay dearly.

Mo Fei and his companions traveled through the night, and at dawn, finally arrived back at the City of Death. Jumping from the carriage, Mo Fei addressed the guards at the gate: “Immediately issue an enemy attack alarm to all brothers within the territory—make haste!”

The guard, seeing the city lord’s grave expression, hurried up to the city tower and struck the massive bronze bell. In an instant, the clear peal of the bell reverberated across the City of Death’s sky. At the first sound, all sentries atop the walls snapped to battle readiness. Everyone outside the city retreated within its walls. As the bell tolled, dozens of cavalry squads thundered out of the gates in all directions—these were the elite scout teams for wartime operations. Normally, the fixed scouts remained scattered and stationary, but these were mobile scouts, tasked with weaving a tight web of reconnaissance in coordination with their covert counterparts.

The bell’s echo reached the nearest city, where an alarm sounded overhead, spreading from one city to the next. Soon, the City of Death’s territory was fully prepared for war.

Within the Death Forest, the Elven Royal City heard the alarm as well. As the whole city entered a state of alert, Her Majesty dispatched a force of thirty thousand crossbowmen to support the City of Death.

When Mo Fei returned to his council hall, the elven force had already arrived before the city walls. Their leader presented the queen’s command, and the gates swung open. Thirty thousand elven crossbowmen rushed to the ramparts, joining the ranks of the berserkers and dwarven archers in defense.

An enemy attack on the City of Death’s territory? When this news reached the capital of the Dragonrock Empire, Emperor Tyron was stunned. Who could be so audacious?

Meanwhile, upon hearing of the incident, the Goldenstone Empire immediately dispatched an envoy to the City of Death. In these times, they could not afford to give the City of Death any excuse. The imperial capital seemed poised for a storm, and with their own lands bordering the City of Death, it was best to clarify matters. That damned Dragonrock Empire…

Mo Fei had not wished for such a grand mobilization, but the involvement of a major empire forced him to respond cautiously. The squad he encountered was only one mercenary unit; such a small group could not create much chaos. Mo Fei was certain the enemy had deployed many such squads. Though the City of Death was powerful, it was not invincible. In open battle, they feared no one, but with enemies lurking in the shadows, vigilance was needed.

No sooner had he sat down than Kane, Elder Off, Elder Warden, and Kane’s father rushed in. Whenever trouble arose, they gathered in Mo Fei’s council hall to confer—but they were surprised to see Mo Fei himself present.

“City Lord, weren’t you…” Elder Off’s mouth hung open.

“I’m back, aren’t I? There’s work to be done,” Mo Fei replied with a smile.

“That enemy attack alarm…” Kane began to understand.

“The elven army is stationed ahead, the warehouse supplies were depleted and only recently replenished. If a battle breaks out, we must prepare further,” Elder Warden remarked, sensing Mo Fei’s next move.

“Report…”

Before they could begin deliberations, a guard rushed in with news.

“Speak!” Elder Off commanded.

“Our scout teams, during reconnaissance, discovered dozens of masked mercenary squads of twenty-five men each, concealed along the highway and in groves. Scouts have returned with word, asking if they should eliminate them.”

“Are they all under control?” Kane inquired.

“All are being monitored covertly, under the scouts’ watch.”

“Is it them, young master?” Kane asked.

“Yes, it’s them. Issue the order—any such squads found are to be wiped out.”

“Understood!”

The city guard went out to relay the command to the scouts.

“Who are these people, young master?” Kane asked.

“I don’t know either, but perhaps Elder Off does,” Mo Fei replied with a smile.

“How should I know? I still don’t understand what's happening, let alone who they are,” Elder Off responded, puzzled.

Mo Fei then recounted the events and his suspicions, and the others finally understood the situation.

“If the City Lord says so, I believe they are from the Nas Empire bordering Goldenstone. Only they can contend with Goldenstone in that region. Their empire is sizable, but resource-poor, requiring imports from other nations.”

“Is it only this larger empire?” Mo Fei asked.

“Long ago, when their military was at its peak, they attacked Goldenstone. At that time, Goldenstone wasn’t as large, and had Dragonrock not tried to seize Goldenstone in the chaos, they might have succeeded. Their ambition for Goldenstone is longstanding, but compared to their former glory, their army is much diminished, and Goldenstone is no longer a small empire…”

“So now, to weaken Goldenstone, they must rely on other forces—perhaps incite chaos and then plunder in the confusion. And the force they seek to use is the City of Death?” Kane surmised.

“Exactly,” Mo Fei and Elder Off answered together.

“Report…” The same guard rushed in again.

“Frontline scouts report: twenty-six enemy squads eliminated, and subsequent net-like searches found no evidence of larger enemy forces gathering.”

“It seems there were only twenty-six squads. Issue orders to lift the enemy attack alert, recall the scouts, and notify all cities within the territory to scrutinize strangers and guard against sabotage.”

“Yes, City Lord!”

“Now, let’s carefully consider our next steps,” Mo Fei said, turning after issuing his orders. “I originally wanted to seek out this empire, but the elder says they’re poor, so…”

“They are poor because they don’t know how to exploit their resources—they focus their energy on annexing other empires. Yet the nation holds abundant iron and copper mines. I surmise that, since they border Goldenstone, and Goldenstone’s gold mines are near that border, they must also possess gold mines, perhaps fewer, but linked by the same vein—just as our iron mines in the Death Forest extend into their territory.”

“Are you saying their lands border ours as well?” Mo Fei was taken aback.

“You’re a peculiar city lord!” Elder Off laughed. “Don’t even know your neighbors? Our territory borders three empires: Goldenstone, Nas, and a smaller one called Doma. Doma has already submitted a request to join the City of Death.”

“How did I not know of this?” Mo Fei wondered aloud.

“Perhaps they have also sensed Nas’s ambitions. Of these empires, only theirs is coastal—a garden-like country. If Nas succeeds, they will undoubtedly be the next target.”

“Oh, right. Their petition arrived yesterday afternoon, after you had been out for some time,” Elder Off continued. “Their ruler only asks to remain in his castle and not be harmed. If so, we can dispatch our forces to directly annex their lands.”

“What sort of ruler is he?” Mo Fei asked.

“He is a good ruler, beloved by his people, and a genius at governance,” Elder Off praised.