Pale Emblem

Chapter 200 The Mist Rises
Not long after Harvey and Transparent Todlin left, Vice President Berg hurriedly entered the living room.

"Master, Clark's messenger just sent a message!" Berg reported directly to Victor.

Originally, he was a secondary demon descendant developed by Christine, and he would only obey the will of the sect leader. It was Christine who asked him to call Victor "master" and herself "mistress".

Berg reported all the intelligence and information he gathered to Victor immediately.

This was also an order given by Christine.

As for Christine's "servants," they will ignore Victor but will obey the orders of the lesser demons.

Of the 54 messengers around Clark, 13 were bewitched by the vampire and began secretly passing on various intelligence to Berg through the Adventurers' Guild's inn.

These messengers' minds are distorted, and they have become mentally deranged. Their symptoms will rapidly worsen after two or three months. They will either go mad or become mentally unstable, and only a few will be able to recover on their own.

Clark controlled a vast army and relied on his messengers for assistance at all times. Even when he slept or rested, a group of messengers were on duty around him.

Clark had not anticipated that these servants, who served as heralds, would betray him without warning. He generally did not avoid discussing matters with his heralds.

Therefore, Vice President Berg was able to uncover a great deal of classified information. But the most astonishing piece of information was the news that had just been released.

“A few days ago, the noble families and private guards who went out of Echo Town to track down Chimera were almost completely wiped out!”

Victor raised his eyebrows and asked in surprise, "Did the chimeras attack them?"

The private guards who left Echo Town numbered four or five hundred, most of whom were dragoons.

This military force is extremely powerful, but if faced with an attack from a colossal dragon like a Chimera, they would have no ability to retaliate, and their chances of escaping would be slim.

Victor's first thought was that the Chimera had destroyed this elite private army, but then he thought that was unlikely.

The noble families of Fallen Leaf City frequently offer treasures to please the Dragon King, so the Chimera has no reason to attack them. Otherwise, they wouldn't dare to go out and track the Chimera.

Berg shook his head and said, "It's not Chimera... Chimera has already been killed."

"The murderer may be the Wolf Witch Bertina and her servants."

"what?!"

"This evening, a scout from the prestigious Golden Oak family urgently sought help from Clark. He is a Level 6 Shadow Hunter serving Young Master Novis. According to him, the Grand Master Dicott of the prestigious Golden Sunflower family was the first to discover that Chimera had been captured by the Wolf-Shepherd Witch."

"In order to thwart the Wolf-Shepherd Witch's plot, Young Master Novis of the Golden Oak, in cooperation with Grand Master Dicott, gathered the teams of other prestigious and powerful families."

"They amassed a force of over four hundred men, forming an elite battle group. While Dicot and Novus were discussing tactics, one of the Wolf Witch's giant servants launched a surprise attack on the battle group."

"That giant was terrifyingly strong; a single strike could turn the earth upside down and kill hundreds of dragon riders and war beasts at the same time."

Seeing Victor's furrowed brow, Vice President Berg continued to explain, "When the Level 6 Shadow Hunter mentioned the deeds of the Giant Servant, General Clark didn't believe it at the time, thinking he was lying. But the Shadow Hunter said that the truth was even more unbelievable."

"The giant servant is actually only 2.5 meters tall. He is not the kind of 'giant' that everyone imagines, the kind that can fight dragons."

"For a half-elf, he is considered a giant. In fact, he is about the same height as the orc butcher, but his strength is comparable to that of the legendary 'giant'."

Victor shook his head and shrugged at Christine beside him, who returned a charming smile.

He still couldn't believe that someone could kill more than a hundred dragon riders in one strike.

"Grand Master Dicott witnessed the enemy's strength, so he chose to transform into a dragon, becoming a monster even larger than a giant. Then... he and the other dragon riders slaughtered all the noble families around them, including young Master Novis of the Golden Oak family."

"The heir to the Golden Oak is dead?" Christine immediately pressed.

“Yes, the Great Venerable Dicot of the Golden Sunflower killed the eighth in line to the Golden Oak,” Berg replied respectfully, bowing his head.

Christine turned to Victor and said, “The Venerable One of the Golden Sunflower murdered the heir to the Golden Oak. This is a serious accusation with serious consequences… I don’t think the Venerable Scout would dare to lie about this.”

Victor wasn't concerned with the feud between the Pillar Families. He frowned and asked, "I wonder if the Muse of the Golden Claws has been harmed?"

“No… the Scout Venerable didn’t mention young master Gaius from the Golden Sunflower family or Miss Muse from the Golden Claw family,” Berg further explained. “Their status is no less than Novus’s. Since the Scout didn’t mention them, it means they weren’t involved in this matter at all.” Victor nodded. He had a good impression of the young girl Muse, but it was just a superficial acquaintance.

"Dragon riders rebelled and killed the master they served? Do you know what happened?" Victor stared intently at Vice President Berg, hoping he could provide an explanation.

In Victor's view, the Dragoon rebellion was far more serious than the murder of the Golden Oak heir.

Berg lowered his head and thought for a moment before speaking, "I don't know the specific reasons for the dragon riders' rebellion. However, as far as I know, most professionals who follow the Dragon Vein path have intellectual deficiencies and become emotionally detached. If professionals were aware of these problems with the dragon riders, I estimate that no one would be willing to switch to the Dragon Vein path."

Victor turned to the Ranger Sisters behind him and asked, "Do you remember Hullant from the prestigious Golden Oak family? He was annoying, but he didn't seem like an idiot."

“Master, Xiulant is the commander of the dragon riders of the prestigious Golden Oak family. He is one of the few professionals who have overcome the defects of the dragon vein.”

"It is said that the Dragon Blood Elixir is poisonous, and the higher the profession level, the stronger the resistance to the poison. Those who are level four or above and switch to the Dragon Vein will basically not become idiots."

"However, they cannot reproduce, have no offspring, and cannot be promoted in their profession."

“My mentor once said that he would rather die than switch to the Dragon Vein path.”

"The mentor never mentioned the possibility of the dragoons rebelling."

Ruth and Jessica were of one mind, and they took turns speaking, telling Victor what they knew.

"Master, if this intelligence is true, then Clark doesn't have many dragon riders left," Christine reminded him at the right moment.

Victor's eyes lit up. He had Christine spread the news of the Chimera in Echo Town and lured the sons of noble families to go out and investigate the Chimera's whereabouts, all in order to drain Echo Town's most elite private army.

Their intelligence indicated that Clark had also dispatched 70 dragoons to track down the Chimera.

If these 70 dragoons don't return, Clark will have less than a hundred dragoons left, significantly weakening his defenses. Victor might even consider a surprise attack to decapitate Clark.

Just then, Victor heard the sound of birds flapping their wings coming from the rooftop and said, "Dili is back."

The frenzied Dili is currently the only alchemical demon with the ability to fly. Her demonic skin gives her a pair of wings that she can manipulate wind elements for silent flight. The only time she lands is when she flaps her wings, which produces a slight sound.

Because Dili possesses the ability to fly, she is specifically responsible for communicating with the Rock Rift Orcs.

Dili's return at this time must mean she has important news about the orcs.

Not long after, Dili came down from the rooftop. She was wearing a large gray cotton cloak, with bare, white feet. Her reddish-brown hair was wet and stuck to her smooth forehead, slightly messy but not detracting from her beautiful appearance.

"My lord, a thick fog has risen over the mountains... The barbarian woman Ingrid told me that the Great Mother of Riftstone has performed divination and believes the time for attack has come. The Riftstone chieftain has decided that before the dawn breaks tomorrow, the combined forces of orcs and barbarians will use the fog as cover to launch a full-scale attack on Echo Town. She demands that we keep our promise and open the eastern gate to help them capture Echo Town!"

Upon hearing Dilireba's report, Victor immediately stood up. This was the news he had been waiting for, but the moment had come, and he still felt it was too rushed.

The Rock Rift Orcs suddenly decided to attack the city before dawn, leaving Victor with only a few hours.

They should have informed Victor of the specific siege time a day or two in advance. That would have allowed Victor and his followers more time to prepare.

In fact, Victor had been urging the orcs to launch a full-scale attack for the past two days. However, the feedback from the barbarian slave Ingrid was that the orc Great Mother was performing bone-burning divination every day, and Chieftain Quel'ngara was waiting for a good omen before deciding whether to attack, when to attack, and where to attack.

The orcs' major decisions were inseparable from the Great Mother's divination guidance. Victor couldn't understand this and considered it a sign of ignorance.

However, the current situation in Echo Town is indeed suitable for the orcs to launch a night raid.

The dragoons collectively rebelled, killing many scions of noble families. This resulted in Echo Town losing a significant portion of its elite forces. Furthermore, it's possible that Clark's own dragoons were also involved in the rebellion.

Even if there were other hidden reasons behind the Dracos' mass rebellion, Clark would still be feeling extremely troubled and confused.

In addition, there will be heavy fog tonight.

Autumn is windy and the weather is usually clear, so why is there such a thick fog?
"Are you sure there's fog in the forest?" Victor trusted Dilire wouldn't lie to him, but he couldn't help asking again.

"My lord, I flew to a high place and found that there was indeed a thick fog spreading from the northeast," Dili said truthfully.