Revive Rome: Wait! Why not make the empress fall in love with me first?
Chapter 94 - 2: The Outsider

Chapter 94: Chapter 2: The Outsider

"Your encampment will be set here for now. In four hours, we will go clean up the nearby area infested with Undead Mutants."

Hasimodo found an empty space outside the cluster of tents for everyone and spoke.

"Thank you," Aske said unemotionally. "By the way, can we trade with the Night Watch organization?"

"Generally, we do not open trade to external mercenaries," Hasimodo declined.

"Since you said ’generally,’ does that mean there are exceptions?" Aske asked with a smile.

Night Watch Knight Hasimodo sighed deeply, then suddenly grasped Aske’s shoulder firmly, saying fiercely,

"Listen, I know you mercenaries all too well. You’re like flies that swarm at the scent of blood, constantly buzzing around the edges of the battlefield, never letting anyone rest."

"When you encounter weak Extraordinary Creatures, you swarm them like bees; when you face powerful and evil Undead, you run faster than anyone else, showing none of the honor or decency expected of a warrior!"

"We allowed you in not because we want to accept you, but because we are worried about you causing trouble behind us, as you create more problems than you solve, understand?!"

"If you are honest enough and follow behind us Night Watchmen obediently, I won’t mind letting you pick up some scraps of war spoils, but that doesn’t mean I will tolerate your reckless behavior."

"My patience has its limits. And you definitely don’t want to see me when I lose my patience."

With a threatening note, he pushed Aske forward forcefully and then turned and left.

Aske took half a step back to stabilize himself, then reached out his right arm to stop Peggy, who had already drawn her sword and was about to charge forward.

"Let go, let me kill him!" Peggy turned around, revealing her sharp little fangs.

"Calm down, Peggy," Aske said slowly.

"Aren’t you angry, Aske?" Mia asked indignantly next to him. Not only her, but the other girls also looked deeply offended and all were staring at Aske, waiting for his response.

"Not angry," Aske replied calmly. "Getting angry now because of someone’s disdain, and later, when people admire you, would you be proud?"

"We’re all adults now, we should learn to focus on our own matters and not be shaken by others’ opinions, understand?"

"Understood," Mia said, suddenly realizing. "So, you adults must remain undisturbed by honor or disgrace, only a young and vengeful girl like me can seek revenge, right? I’ll sneak into his tent right now and steal all his money and clothes!"

She was about to move forward when Aske grabbed her head and forcibly turned her around.

"I didn’t tell you to cause trouble just because you’re young," Aske said, struggling to keep a straight face, sternly addressing everyone, "Have you all finished your practice exercises for today? Do you still have time to be upset with others?"

"Ah!!!" The girls elongated their voices, all expressing dissatisfaction.

Back at Fire Island.

"It’s truly astonishing," Thira stood alone at the edge of the mountain, looking at the sprawling forests, rivers, and sea below, and couldn’t help but marvel.

No matter how many times she came here, she was always amazed by the existence of this Half-plane, which housed an island in the ocean that was indistinguishable from the real world but existed in an independent Plane Fragment.

Why had such a precious spatial treasure fallen into the hands of The Azure Longsword Mercenary Corps?

She sighed slowly, considering again.

Being a mercenary had no future, as seen from the attitude of the Night Watchmen towards them that day; mercenaries had a shameful image of unscrupulously making money across the continent.

Even if her true identity were revealed one day, having been a mercenary would definitely tarnish her background.

However, she had no other choice, because during her time in Constantinople, she was already in a state of house arrest, not supported by the Orthodox Church, and her subordinates had been almost completely purged by Zoe.

If she hadn’t agreed to join The Azure Longsword, she would probably have been abandoned in Constantinople right away, discovered by the authorities, and lost her freedom again, becoming a so-called "former Empress."

Considering that Constantinople had now fallen, she probably should add another title: a fallen nation.

What value would the identity of a fallen former Empress hold? The only way out was probably to make good use of this noble body with Solomon’s Royal Bloodline, seeking power through political marriages or other means.

Even so, the task of reviving her nation was still as difficult as reaching the heavens.

Aske’s suggestion that day did provide another possibility: using the upcoming Magic Tide to rapidly enhance her own strength.

If she could reach Level 20 or above, becoming a Demigod, the possibility of reviving her nation would greatly increase.

With the support of the Magic Tide, a Demigod could almost rival a whole elite army.

By then, if she returned to the Sirius Province and regained power with her own strength, wouldn’t plotting her nation’s revival become much simpler?

"After all, you have nothing left to lose now, Theodora. You’ve already lost everything," she mused, staring at the distant horizon where the sea met the sky.

"Just let me drown in this illusory dream..."

"Thira!" A clear, pleasant voice called from the distance, "Swordsmanship training is starting! Aske is calling you to come quickly!"

"Okay!" Thira responded loudly, pulling out a mask from her sleeve and slowly placing it on her face.

That was the mask symbolizing the hero Odysseus from the ancient Sirius dramas.

In the real plane, inside the Night Watchman’s command tent, a remote video conference was in progress.

"The mutant range is centered around Palamos Village, covering about 40 square kilometers."

"From the footage captured by Mercury’s Eye, there is darkness with zero visibility in the center of the village; it is confirmed to be an Undead Sky caused by the descent of the Netherworld."

"We’ve spotted numerous Corpse Ghosts active around the perimeter of the anomaly, with traces of soil on them, evidently having recently emerged from the graveyard on the outskirts of the village."

"At the moment, no higher-level Undead Creatures have been detected, but it’s hard to say if we delve deeper. Further reconnaissance information awaits front-line scouts."

On the other side of the screen, stationed in Florence, the headquarters of the Night Watchman was listening. After receiving the report from Commander Blaise, headquarters promptly replied:

"Understood, Lord Blaise."

"Please continue with cautious perimeter investigations and do not venture deeply without due consideration."

"We have requested access to the historical database set up by the Church Court in Milan and have found another potential lead."

"In the First Epoch, Palamos Village in Sirius Province was an ancient high elf seaport city called ’Dalarso-Casadoss,’ which means ’Place of Resurrection from the Other Shore’ in Elven."

"There was an elf Extraordinary Organization known as the ’Other Shore Cult’, dedicated to studying the Extraordinary Power of the Undead, hoping to bridge the Netherworld and the Main Plane."

"Due to the extinction event of the elves at the end of the First Epoch, we cannot uncover more truths from the sealed history. Currently, it’s known that in the Second Epoch, this area was under the domination of the human Kingdom of Macedonia."

"Emperor Alexander, during his suppression of the Sirius rebellion, had also encountered an Undead mutational event here, which was personally quelled by Alexander."

"At that time, Emperor Alexander was at the peak of the Law Rank, a level 20 Destruction Mage. According to records, he faced attacks from banshees, Resentful Spirits, and Black Knights during the suppression of the mutation."

"Therefore, please make adequate preparations on your part, especially against high-level Undead."

Blaise silenced for a moment, nodding and saying, "I will ensure the Night Watchman are careful."

"Keep in touch at all times, Lord Commander. Wishing you a safe return." The person on the opposite side of the screen said this last sentence and then cut off the communication.

Standing in front of the command table, Commander Blaise crossed his arms, falling silently into contemplation.

The current level of the Magic Tide would suppress all undead creatures below level 5. With the current strength of the Night Watchman’s Eastern Legion, they were originally estimated to be manageable.

However, according to the bad news from headquarters, there might be high-level Undead like banshees, Resentful Spirits, and Black Knights.

Even at level 5, the banshee’s Spirit Scream and Resentful Spirit’s possession pose a great restraint to Power Armor Knights.

Not to mention the Black Knights. As Undead skilled in Martial Arts, even if physical strength is similar, a single Black Knight could kill a hundred or more same-level Corpse Ghosts.

This was definitely going to be a tough battle.

Thus the original strategic plan was inevitably in need of revision.

"Raise the emergency level to S3," Blaise finally ordered, instructing the communicator.

The news of the upgraded emergency level swiftly spread throughout the tent cluster like the wind, with many knights and priests showing astonished expressions.

Emergency level S3 meant that only official Night Watch Knights could participate in the suppression of the anomaly, all Knight Followers were outrightly excluded.

It also implied that the danger level of the Undead anomaly was beyond imagination, already reaching a point where it could cause substantial casualties among the Knight Followers.

It is known that the experienced Knight Followers of the Night Watchman almost all have a background of over three years in military training, and just one armed assault squad could take down bandits on a hill.

If even Knight Followers were not allowed to participate in suppression, how dangerous could this Undead mutation be?

When the news reached Morning Star Team 3, Knight Captain Hasimodo immediately called an emergency meeting of his subordinates.

The Night Watch Knights were divided into Holy Sun, Silver Moon, and Morning Star, with strength decreasing in that order, and fewer official knights in each subsequent division.

Taking Morning Star Team 3 as an example, the total number was 20, yet excluding the Knight Followers, there were only 7 official Night Watch Knights left.

"Without the support of Followers, our knights’ firepower is too thin!" Knight Larent protested, "What about my rotary machine gun? Am I supposed to carry the ammo box myself? Without sufficient ammunition support, the machine gun is just a pile of scrap metal!"

"And the shield blockade line? Who will install and tweak it? We’re wearing Power Armor, and our fingers can’t flexibly operate the equipment! Are we supposed to exit the armor on the battlefield to establish shields?" Another knight, Langri also complained.

"This is the commander’s order," Knight Captain Hasimodo said helplessly. "If we suffer too many casualties in battle, even if we suppress this Undead anomaly, our Night Watch Eastern Legion will be severely weakened."

"The problem now is, if we don’t bring Followers, the casualties will be among us knights!" Larent said angrily, "How are a seven-person squad supposed to protect themselves in this level of anomaly? Are the commander and the staff all idiots?"

"Not just 7 people," Hasimodo fell silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "There is a team of external mercenaries, 9 people, who will join us this time."

"External mercenaries?!" This news took all the Night Watch Knights by surprise.