The witch thought I am a Demon God
Chapter 979 - 502

Chapter 979: Chapter 502

Ivita hastily commanded the Hearthstone Witch to return to the network of fortresses in the eastern border of Alsace, Roy County, ordering the troops to prepare for defense.

Meanwhile, he still lingered near Oyo III’s military camp, waiting for unrest to occur there.

In fact, not only could he not confront Oyo III’s troops head-on, but he also couldn’t afford to delay, as Oyo III had more resources than his own, and with the troops gathered, they were constantly consuming resources.

That was why Oyo III stationed his troops in the Lorin Duchy but hesitated to attack.

He knew that the Alsace Kingdom couldn’t afford to deplete its resources against him.

He knew that if things were dragged out for a few months, either Ivita would have to directly command his own troops to act, losing the moral high ground, and turn it into Alsace initiating an invasion into the Lorin Duchy, with the Emperor mobilizing troops to protect Lorin.

Or he would have to disband most of the military force in Roy County, and then Oyo III’s troops would invade Alsace.

But Oyo III had not anticipated that Ivita would dare to come close to his military camp with a witch and employ tactics that caused divisions within his camp.

At this moment, Oyo III’s face looked extremely grim inside the military tent, as he found himself in a moral dilemma; knowing that a substantial part of his soldiers shared his own beliefs, thinking that sacred objects, saints, and even the so-called Holy Mother were nothing but idol worship, with the Holy Mother being just a pitiful mortal and saints merely pioneers who died for their faith.

These people indeed deserved respect, but that was not a reason for them to blur the true faith.

However, many in the army had grown accustomed to the worship of sacred objects and saints.

Oyo III’s actions would determine the future direction of this army.

He summoned his two generals and inquired, "Some so-called sacred object has mysteriously appeared in the camp, what do you think should be done?"

The two generals looked at each other, then both said to Oyo III, "Your Majesty, we support your decision. Your choice is our choice."

Having just experienced Oyo III audaciously killing a noble general, they clearly understood how seriously Oyo III viewed this decisive battle.

In order to win this war, he had even been prepared to offend the nobles.

Naturally, they did not want to give any handle against themselves at this time.

So, they reserved their opinions, playing the mute, and would simply follow Oyo III’s decision.

Oyo III scanned them coldly, but he knew that the three generals in his army were all loyal to the Emperor, belonging to the three great noble factions; he could afford to kill one general before since there was just cause, and these generals were merely representatives of the families pushed forward by those nobles. As the Emperor, if there was a sufficient reason, killing them was just that, killing them.

The Emperor and the great nobles had a cooperative relationship.

Whether it was the nobles of Frank or those of Alsace, their powers had long been suppressed by the sovereignty of the kings.

The real nobles were the great nobles within the Holy Empire.

The most powerful nobles had already established independent feudal kingdoms, and the true heads of the families from the three great nobles who cooperated with the Emperor directly didn’t bother joining Oyo III’s court, or they just held some insignificant advisory titles.

These great nobles were the truly powerful ones.

For Oyo III to appoint talented people, he could only choose from among those families and the families intermarried with them.

This was the true feudal nobility system.

The selection of talents was not based on observing their abilities, but on picking barely usable people from among the nobility.

Oyo III said, "Understood."

"Then..."

Suddenly, a commotion arose from outside the camp; soldiers hurriedly came to report to Oyo III. It turned out that Duke Gugel, Oyo III’s brother, had arrived.

Gugel was the powerful Duchy in the central part of the Empire and had become the strongest state in recent years, aside from the three great kingdoms within the Empire’s territory. Oyo III had seized this ducal title for his brother.

And now, it was time for Oyo III to reap the benefits.

Seeing Duke Gugel’s arrival, Oyo III breathed a sigh of relief. He laughed heartily, stepped out of the tent, and went to greet Duke Gugel who was approaching on horseback.

"My dear brother, you’ve finally arrived."

Duke Gugel had his horse boy keep his distance, then he himself dismounted and embraced Oyo III. "I heard that the kid from that family has made a comeback, and upon receiving your summons, how could I not come?"

"Why didn’t you issue a command to all the lords within the Empire’s territory, ordering these states to provide military service?"

"Even if those powerful kingdoms are unwilling, you could use the Universal Law to compel them to do so, for their own laws still fall under your Universal Law."

Oyo III snorted coldly, "These fair-weather friends, they’re waiting to see how the wind blows. I don’t want to use that last card until absolutely necessary."

"After all, acting that way would greatly damage the Universal Law."

"I don’t want the situation in the Empire to get worse. If I have a choice, I’d rather solve this matter with the forces of my own imperial domain and my allies."

Duke Gugel was a burly man, even bigger in stature than Oyo III, and he had already ignited the Divine Fire, bearing the Demi-god Body.

He waved his hand grandly, "No worries, big brother. On my way here, I had another gain. Take a look, these are the three harpies I encountered en route, said to possess the gift of prophecy. With their foresight for you, they’re bound to increase your chances of victory."