Chapter 227.

PART 1.

Munshi uses a modified fire spell to burn the souls. During the time of war, the necromancers have to deal with rogue souls, since they increase in the number due to all the battles.

Nearby, Kalicharan is powering the ward which is keeping these souls contained and is not letting them scatter like flies. Due to his time in prison, Kalicharan is no longer able to fight directly as he used to be in his prime. Though he has been free for almost six years by this point, the long isolation has left its mark, which is unlikely to heal in his remaining lifespan.

In their own way, they are also morning Zeko. Though after their argument, Kalicharan and Zeko made up, they did not speak to each other much because Zeko was busy with his own responsibilities. Now that he is dead, they feel even more lonelier.

“To think we are the only survivors of our little group.” Said Kalicharan.

“It is truly a sad fact.” Agreed Munshi, now done exterminating those souls.

“How is the brat doing?” asked Kalicharan.

“He is busy. He would have been quite useful. he would have taken out these bunch by himself, no ward needed.” Said Munshi in a proud tone.

“Given his knowledge of runes and combat, there is no question about it,” said Kalicharan, getting up from his crouched position with a crack in his knees. He then stretched his arms and cracked his spine.

As they leave, they hope that Hatori will be fine. He is serving the same purpose as his master: being the muscle for the throne. They hope that he will not suffer the same end as Zeko as well.

PART 2.

Avinash attends the meeting of the monarchs. Much like other kings and emperors, he thought this would be their usual affair. But the news given by Henry shatters any such illusions they might have held.

“Albus has been replaced,” said Henry, “The new king, by the name of Gordon, is aggressively attacking the surrounding area, especially Gallia.”

“Who the hell is Gordon?” asked Meng Hao, who also started to attend these meetings.

“He is a complete unknown. Albus was quietly shuffled off, and he took the throne without much fanfare.” Said Henry.

“What about the people?” asked Batya. “I doubt they would accept someone completely unknown just like that.”

“Their voices are likely suppressed ruthlessly.” Said Meng Hao. “Am I right?”

“Unfortunately.” Confirms Henry.

“How goes the operation strategic losses?” asked Avinash.

“I hate that name.” grumbled the pharaoh. “There have been no activities on my end, so I have nothing to report.”

“We have conceded some navel battles, where we abandoned our positions and ran.” Said Henry.

“I believe most of the action is still focused around Europa, so none of us have to report much,” said Batya.

“Correct.” Said Avinash. “However, the process of making a list of the traitors is going well on my end.”

“I’ve already started to clear them up.” said the pharaoh. “My grandfather was old; therefore, they were able to sneak under his watch. But not on mine.”

“What about the Kaiser? Why isn’t he showing up today?” asked Avinash.

“He is sick.” Said Henry. “Given his age, it doesn’t surprise me.”

“Could he be the weak link?” asked Meng Hao.

“Don’t worry. That man is very smart. Already he has started to prepare his successor.” Assures Henry.

Meng Hao wanted to say some more things about this topic, but for now, he decided to back down. “I think we should meet once again when we have cleared our courts of the traitors.” Said Meng Hao instead.

“Agreed.” They all agreed, and the meeting came to an end.

PART 3.

Now that he has some free time, Shin is busy tracking the rumors about himself. He has heard many times from others that he looks familiar, so he has asked some people about this.

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Unfortunately, their answers are not revealing anything, apart from leading him on the goose chases across the country. At this rate, he might have to abandon his search.

Still, he wants to know what are his roots. Where does he come from? Who is Shin, really?

PART 4.

Hatori is working on the runes, while a battle is going on around him. This is the final pocket of resistance, now cornered in the mountains near the Pashtun territories.

Both sides are using rituals, where multiple mages are working together to cast massive spells on each other. The mountains shake from the explosion, and some of the mages are buried under the falling rocks.

Now done with his runes, Hatori throws the paper on which he drew the symbols at the spells of the opposing side. Once the paper made contact, the spell fizzled out. The survivors tried to put up some physical resistance against the forces of the throne but failed due to their exhaustion and the superior strength of the military soldiers.

As the survivors are rounded up, Hatori gets a mirror call from the king. “Yeah?” he said, gathering his supplies which he used to write those runes.

“Are you done?” at Hatori’s nod, Avinash continues. “Let someone else handle the remaining tasks, I need you here.”

“Oy, Ramfal!” said Hatori, calling out to the leading officer. “There’s a call from the king. Listen to his orders.”

“Wait, I am coming!” said Ramfal.

PART 5.

Karan sighed. Another day is gone. He has taken an early retirement, being unable to tolerate the bullshit of the politics and the cases which came his way as a result.

The reason for his depressive funk is that Hatori has not spoken to them for years. He is worried about him. The world he has disappeared to is a dangerous one. Who knows what kind of problems he might get into while being there?

Strangely enough, not even Zeko has spoken to them for a while. Usually, he is willing to speak with them so openly about them, and shares the achievements of their child with clear pride, even though they are unable to comprehend those achievements.

PART 6.

Arriving in the throne room, Hatori hears why Avinash has called him. Apparently, Albion has a new king, and this guy is strutting around like some hot stuff. Meanwhile, Avinash is done with the list of the traitors who might be working with this mysterious group who is manipulating things from the shadows, their latest act replacing the king of Albion.

Suresh, Raven, and Josh are also here to see the list. “For now, it is suspected that this group will reveal itself soon. Therefore, we will need to prepare a strong force of mages. Hatori, I give you the responsibility to prepare this force. Tom will hunt these traitors. Any questions?” he asked.

“No. though I think I should keep things prime and ready once they reveal themselves.” Said Raven. “You will need military support for fighting them, given they have the resources of a nation by their side.”

“That is true. Make whatever preparations you need. Give your responsibilities to Suresh in the meantime.” Said Avinash.

“Okay, but what about me?” asked Josh.

“You will be the ambassador from our side.” Said Avinash.

“Cool.” Said Josh. “Of course, I will speak like one when the moment arrives. Don’t worry.”

“It wasn’t a worry in the first place.” Said Suresh in a bland tone, and they all chuckled.

PART 7.

Justice, Victoria, and Alan meet once again. Unlike their previous meeting, this time they are meeting in the palace of the king. Unlike their recent meetings, they have smiles on their faces.

“Looks like things are going our way,” said Victoria.

“Indeed. I think it is time to reveal ourselves. What do you think?” asked Justice.

“Agreed. However, we have to be cautious. This is the most sensitive stage for us.” said Alan.

“How wise of you,” said Justice, agreeing with Alan.

“Let’s use that puppet of ours to prepare our grand opening.” Suggested Victoria and the other two agreed.