The Royal Palace, Dragna Kingdom.
Miko and the others were gathered in the meeting room and were all sitting around a table.
“And just like that, we’re at war.”
Miko said with his feet placed on the table, while playing with a hand console.
“Any questions?”
He asked without looking at anyone.
“I have a question.”
Momo put up her hand and said.
“Shoot.”
Miko gave a simple reply.
“Miko, how many wars have you been in?”
Momo asked.
“Let’s see.”
Miko started counting on his fingers.
“There’s the war I fought Kilo in, there’s the Throne Wars that made me king, there’s the war of the Night District I fought in Grim City, and then the final war I also fought in Grim City. So four that I can remember.”
“And how old are you?”
Momo asked.
“14 soon 15. You should know that.”
Miko replied.
“Which 14 year old has already fought in 4 wars and is about to fight his 5th one?!”
“This one.”
Miko pointed at himself and said.
Momo immediately got pissed by his reply.
“I know what you’re trying to say, Momo. I’ve been fighting in too many wars.”
Miko looked away from the console and said.
“So you do know. This war is a necessity so I’ll let this go, but Miko you’re putting yourself at risk too much too quickly. If you don’t slow down, I’m afraid something will happen to you.”
“Hmmmm……….I’ll think about it after the war.”
Miko got up after saying that.
Momo sighed when she heard that.
“Fine. So what our next move.?”
She asked.
“We Slaughter them!”
Ashur stood and said.
“That’s right.”
Miko immediately agreed.
“This war with the Aloe Kingdom is nothing but a prelude to a greater war.”
“A greater war?”
Rin asked.
“So who’s the real enemy if not the Aloe Kingdom?”
“The entire Silver Continent.”
Miko boldly declared.
“Our kingdom’s advance will surely cause a grand war that will involve the entire continent. Why? Because I’m the leading actor.”
“That’s quite an arrogant statement.”
Said Kouta.
“But it’s the truth. It’s an undeniable fact that the whole world is curious about me and my actions. Why? Well, it’s mostly because of my impressive background. Not only that, I’m a young king that caused the country to evolve to a new level, and made the Dragna clan come together and be reunited. That alone is enough to draw everyone’s attention.”
Miko explained.
“There are people out there who are really cautious of me, and if those people see me make some sudden large scale movements, they’ll get nervous and will most likely move to counteract me with everything they have.”
“So this war is something like a letter of challenge to the entire continent?”
Alshura said.
“Yawn~.”
That’s when Christian who had his head on the table the entire time, sat up with a yawn. Him waking up drew a lot of the group’s attention because he was a mystery to most of them.
He looked at Al-Shura.
“From what I heard Miko just say, this might go beyond the Silver Continent and involve the world as a whole.”
Christian suddenly said.
“You’re a person who grew up in constant war so you should understand. If there’s a mysterious variable on the other side of the world that could potentially be a future threat to you and your goals, how would you respond?”
“I would monitor them.”
Christian nodded.
“Now, if that mysterious variable suddenly enters a conflict with another country what would you do?”
“I’ll still observe them and use this conflict to judge just how dangerous this person was.”
Christian nodded again.
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“Now, let’s say that you've learnt that this person was indeed dangerous and hard to predict, what would you do?”
“Move to destroy them as quickly as possible.”
“And if that person entered another conflict while you were still planning on how to act?”
“I would switch to supporting their enemies, and let them do the dirty work for me.”
Alec was the one who replied this time.
“I see. So there’s a high chance that other countries will sponsor our enemies from behind the shadows, and let them destroy us.”
Cait said with an understanding tone.
Miko nodded.
“Of course, if we struggle against the Aloe Kingdom and achieve a narrow victory, no one would feel threatened and there wouldn’t be such a grand scale war afterwards. That’s because everyone would think that we wouldn't amount to much if we struggled against an unremarkable kingdom. At most, they would only send some lackeys to rob us in our weaken state.”
“You could do that and lay a trap.”
Krul suggested.
If others kept underestimating the kingdom, they could use that to their advantage and pull the rug from under the feet of their naïve enemies.
However-
“That’s too boring.”
Miko rejected that option from a long time ago.
“Wars consisting solely of strategies gets boring real quick because they’re always drawn out or end too quickly.”
He said.
“I prefer wars filled with intense battles where everyone lay out their very soul on the battlefield. Those wars are the most fun.”
He said with a smile.
“It’s kind of sad you know? Despite being a genius strategist and master planner with the ability to control an entire war in the palm of his hand, you always ignore the easy path, and choose the most barbaric path. It’s a waste of talent if you ask me.”
Said Jin.
“Ah, shut it. It’s my talents, I can do whatever I want with it. I’m only here to have fun.”
Miko replied.
“Besides, it’s not like I didn’t set up some insurance for when the intercontinental war begins.”
Miko grinned as he said that.
A few days later, the first signs of war made itself clear. From the direction of the Aloe Kingdom the loud sounds of war drums could be heard from countless miles. It was as if the kingdom was announcing its intention to march on the Dragna Kingdom to the whole world.
As expected the surrounding countries got wind of what was going on.
“The Aloe Kingdom and the Dragna Kingdom are going to war!”
This news spread across the continent like wild fire, and immediately drew everyone’s attention; even those on different continents.
Just like Christian had said, those who were eyeing Miko and the kingdom immediately started observing the situation from a far. A lot of them didn’t care for the Aloe Kingdom and probably never heard of it before, but the fact that they were stupid……brave enough to challenge a kingdom that has a connection to so many powerhouses, they could serve as great canon fodder.
They decided to use this war to determine which stance they should take with Miko and the Dragna Kingdom.
“Well, aren’t they excited?”
Miko said as he sat on the city wall listening to the beating drums in the distance.
“Are you going to let them enter our borders without facing any resistance?”
Alec who stood beside Miko asked.
“Hmm….that depends on how many troops they brought. If they brought their entire army then I’ll let them in since I already moved those in the rural areas, and prepared funds to fix the damages. However, if they underestimate us and bring only a portion, we’ll destroy them before they reach our borders and raid their kingdom.”
Miko replied.
“Shouldn’t it be the opposite?”
Alec asked.
Miko shook his head.
“It would be better for their entire army to enter all at once. That way I can use the toys I secretly placed all over the country.”
Miko said with a wicked smile.
“I see. But what if they sent a small army to test you? They wouldn’t be underestimating you then, but instead acting cautiously.”
“Then the king is smarter than I expected. However, it still wouldn’t change the overall result.”
It was then that a soldier appeared behind Miko.
“Reporting, the armies of the Aloe Kingdom have finally made it to the borders.”
He said.
“Their numbers?”
“Approximately 200,000.”
“200,000?”
Miko pondered on the number. According the report Luka got from Robin that was around 60% of the kingdom’s military force. It was a daring yet cautious number to deploy.
“Are any of the targets inside army?”
He asked.
The soldier nodded.
“Around three of them, sir.”
Miko pondered a little bit longer before giving his order.
“I see. Let them advance two towns in. When they do, contact me.”
“Yes.”
The soldier then quickly left to relay Miko’s orders to everyone else.
“By the way, how would you rank the soldiers of the kingdom?”
Alec asked.
“They’re aren’t perfect, but thanks to the training regime that I developed they can execute any order given to them.”
Miko then paused.
“But, they lack experience. However, that will change after this war.”
Outside the borders of the kingdom.
An army consisting of nearly 200,000 soldiers could be seen approaching in the horizon. These soldiers gave off a suppressing feeling to anyone who look at them. In the center of the army, which travelled using all kinds of vehicles and mounts, was a person sitting on a draconian horse.
This person was dressed in luxurious military clothing and was rather plump.
“General Rico.”
A female soldier who was traveling beside him called out to him.
“We just received word from Generals Timon and Rashad that they faced no resistance when entering the Dragna Kingdom.”
The female soldier reported.
“Hahaha! That brat of a king must be trembling on his throne and is unable to make any calls.”
Rico laughed arrogantly.
“I told the king that he was being too cautious. He should’ve sent the entire army to flatten this backwaters country.”
“Sir, the king was probably cautious of Demon Dragon God Nero and the other members of the Dragna clan. Even if they aren’t interested in the country in the least, we’re still intruding on their territory.”
Said the soldier.
“Hmph. Our intel already determined that no matter what happens to the country, the Dragna clan wouldn’t care. They’re too busy with their power struggle to waste their time on a puppet country.”
Rico said with confidence.
‘I don’t think we should blindly trust that intel considering who’s the source.’
The soldier thought to herself.
“The king may have lost his temper when Minister Rodrick died in front of his eyes, but this is a good move. If we take the country while that brat is in power, then there’s a chance we can prove ourselves to be worthy servants to Nero and the Dragna clan.”
“That’s why the king ordered that Miko must be captured alive?”
The soldier asked.
Rico nodded.
“The brat may be a figurehead, but he’s still Nero’s grandson. We can’t afford to incur Nero’s wrath. If we take the country without touching his grandson, Nero will know that we don’t wish to oppose him. After that we just need to prove ourselves useful, and then we’ll gain the protection of one of the strongest monsters in the world. When that happens, no one can touch us so easily and the country will prosper like never before.”
“But isn’t there a high chance destroying the Dragna Kingdom will anger him too?”
The soldier asked.
Rico laughed in response.
“You don’t get it do you? Nero is a heartless monster with no regards or attachment to anything in this world. I doubt he’ll care about the country being destroyed.”
The way the world perceived Nero was vastly different from how he really was. In the eyes of many, Nero was a heartless monster that shouldn’t be cross in anyway. This perception was further solidified when Nero almost killed his eldest son Nova a couple thousand years ago.
It was when Nova had just debuted on the scene. He was like a mad, wild, and terrifying storm; destroying everything in his way. He was so unruly that he picked fights with literally everyone. He had no allies, everyone was a foe in his eyes.
Of course, he had quickly became a Tyrant. It was shortly after he became a tyrant the incident occurred.
Nero came out of nowhere and brutally crushed him. He beat him so hard that he was only an inch from death. Some witness even claimed that he was better off dead. After that, Nero publicly announced that Nova was his son which only made everyone who recalled the thrashing, shiver.
“To think that a father could treat his son so cruelly.”
This was what everyone thought. But it didn’t end here.
Even though he laid low for a while, Nova once again emerge on the scene; but this time he was more ferocious, chaotic, disturbing, and simply insane than ever before. It was these events that gave him the alias Chaos Emperor and Child of Chaos.
And once again, Nero put Nova in his place by practically killing him.
After destroying his son twice, people came to believe with all their heart that Nero possessed no passion at all.
This was the main reason that Rico could attack the country without fear. However, he wasn’t brave enough to kill Nero’s relative though.
“General Rico. We just got word that the other generals have already began destroying towns. So far, they’ve already destroyed two empty towns and are about to start on their third.”
The female soldier stated.
Rico smiled and pointed in front of him.
“Continue marching until we reach the capital!”