Beyond the Apocalypse
Chapter 258: Siege on the Azarin Empire’s capital (V)

Chapter 258: Siege on the Azarin Empire’s capital (V)

The siege of Radiance City continued relentlessly through the week. The forces of the Xaos Kingdom kept up their unyielding assault, launching massive explosive boulders, flaming spears, and metallic pillars at the white walls of the Azarin Empire’s capital. Each strike consumed more and more of the city’s energy.

The Xaos forces would bombard the walls throughout the day, rest for only a few hours during the night, and then resume their barrage with renewed vigor.

Inside the city, Richard and the other generals worked tirelessly to find a solution. Though they hadn’t yet discovered a way to stop the barrage, they had made progress in bolstering their forces. With the emperor’s support, Richard convinced Pope Jerom to lend some of the Church of Glory’s warriors to the war effort.

It hadn’t been easy, requiring delicate negotiations and numerous concessions, but finally, five hundred Paladins and one hundred Priests joined the Azarin Empire’s military ranks.

These were not just ordinary soldiers. Everyone was a Champion, equipped with the finest weapons and armor the Church had to offer. Their presence brought an immediate boost to the morale of the Azarin soldiers. The Paladins, with their shining armor, stood like giants among the ranks, their swords gleaming with divine energy. The Priests brought with them powerful healing and protective magic.

Richard allowed himself a moment of relief as he observed the Paladins and Priests integrate into the troops. He knew that relying on the capital’s walls would not be enough. The city’s defenses, though formidable, were draining too quickly under the constant siege. They would eventually need to fight at close range, and the addition of the Church’s soldiers gave him hope that they could gain the upper hand in battle.

Just as the generals began to formulate new strategies, something unexpected happened. The barrage of siege attacks stopped as soon as the sun set, earlier than previous occasions, casting a tense silence all over the city.

Richard’s instincts flared. His pulse quickened, and before he could fully process the situation, a voice rang out from the direction of the Xaos Kingdom’s southern legion.

The voice was powerful, authoritative, and unnervingly calm. It cut through the stillness, reaching every corner of the capital. There was a cold, somber edge to his words, carrying with it the weight of an ultimatum.

"Citizens of Radiance City," Vlad’s voice echoed across the walls. "You have three days. Three days to leave this place through the north gate. The forces of the Xaos Kingdom will march through the south, west, and east gates into your city and kill everything in sight. This is your one and only chance for mercy. Leave, and you will be spared. Stay, and face the full might of our wrath."

The declaration hung in the air like a death sentence.

Richard cursed under his breath. The north gate would indeed provide a route for civilians to escape. However, this was no ordinary fortress. The capital held the Church of Glory, the sacred seat of Goddess Lucia herself.

There was no way they could simply abandon the capital, not with the Goddess’s presence within the holy temple. The church was not only the heart of the Azarin Empire’s religion but also a source of energy and military power. To leave the city would be tantamount to abandoning the divine and losing their power as an empire.

However, while Richard had complete control over the soldiers, normal civilians were something else. They were not part of the war effort, so would it not be better if they left the capital until the war was over?

The capital was home to hundreds of thousands of civilians, and all of them were devout followers of the Church. Vlad’s ultimatum was a twisted move, designed to exploit both the faith of the people and the leadership’s responsibility to protect them.

If they allowed the civilians to leave, it would be seen as a sign of weakness, a show of fear in the face of the enemy. In a theocratic empire like Azarin, where faith was the foundation of power, such a display could shatter the people’s belief in the Church and the Empire.

Richard’s mind raced as he weighed the options. Logically, allowing the civilians to evacuate would save countless lives, but it would also undermine the very structure of their society. If the faith of the masses crumbled, it would weaken the Church, and by extension, the entire empire. After all, it was through Divine Force that they had their armor and weapons, and it was Divine Force that powered the Paladins and Priests.

He clenched his fists, his eyes narrowing as he thought of Vlad’s words. This wasn’t just a physical siege, but a psychological attack aimed at destabilizing the very core of the Azarin Empire.

Richard knew there was no simple solution to this problem. Letting the civilians leave would save lives, but it would cripple faith in Goddess Lucia, weakening the amount of Divine Force she could gather and ultimately destroy the empire.

"Do I really have a choice?" Richard muttered to himself. He knew that even if he wanted to evacuate the civilians, Pope Jerom would never allow it, and this time, the Emperor would not stand by his side.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of footsteps behind him. It was one of the other generals, his expression grim.

"Richard," the general said, his voice low. "What are we going to do? The people will start asking questions soon. We can’t keep this quiet for long."

Richard took a deep breath, his mind working furiously. "We need to stall for time. Find a way to calm the civilians without giving them a reason to panic. We tell them the walls are holding and that the Church of Glory is ready to defend them. But under no circumstances do we let them leave the city. Empty the north of civilians, and make a barricade around it."

The general hesitated, clearly uncomfortable with the decision, but he nodded. "I’ll inform the others."

As the general left, Richard turned his gaze back toward the enemy forces. He could feel the weight of the responsibility on his shoulders growing heavier by the second.

...

After issuing his ultimatum, Vlad sat cross-legged on the ground, his eyes closing as the tension began to settle into his mind. On the surface, it seemed like a simple pause, a moment of calm in the midst of war, but in reality, his mind was working with relentless focus as he waited for a message.

Unbeknownst to anyone within the Azarin Empire, an invisible network of surveillance had been quietly established above the capital. Tiny crystalline eyes, sky-blue and nearly undetectable, floated high above the city. These special crystals were so small that even a High Champion wouldn’t have been able to spot them from such a distance. They fed real-time data back to the A.I. Chip Clone, which was constantly monitoring every movement within the city.

It took about half an hour of patient waiting, but finally, the voice of Overlord echoed in Vlad’s mind. "The forces of the Azarin Empire are evacuating all civilians in the north of the capital. They’ve established a military perimeter, preventing any civilians from approaching."

The moment Vlad heard the report, a wide smile spread across his face. Everything was falling into place perfectly. The evacuation of civilians meant that the enemy had taken the bait, playing right into Vlad’s hands.

Without wasting a moment, Vlad opened his eyes, his hand reaching for the communication gem. His voice was calm, yet solemn, as he gave the command that would set the next phase of his plan into motion. "B Plan is a go."

Across the battlefield, the tension rose as his words were transmitted to his key allies. Vlad’s gaze shifted to Amara, the Royal Guard assassin who had been silently standing by his side. Her expression remained as cold and unreadable as ever, but she gave a single nod in acknowledgment.

In the next instant, Amara’s entire body dissolved into shadows, merging with the darkness around her. She vanished from sight, her form blending seamlessly with the terrain as she moved toward her target.

In the Shadowstrike Legion, Freya received the same message. The Viking princess turned her gaze toward two of the 19 Bloodline Soldiers standing nearby. Golten and Kira were known for their mastery of stealth and infiltration, traits that made them invaluable for this stage of the operation.

Upon seeing Freya’s signal, the two Bloodline Soldiers nodded without a word. Their bodies seemed to melt into the ground, disappearing into the earth like phantoms. They were moving toward their objective, prepared to execute the next stage of Vlad’s meticulous plan.

Meanwhile, within the Golden Wave Legion, Jormungandr wore a solemn expression as he heard the command. His eyes narrowed in concentration as flames engulfed his massive frame, obscuring his form entirely. The small yellow cat vanished, leaving nothing behind but a faint shimmer of heat in the air.

The B Plan was in motion.