Elden: Ring of Calamity

Chapter 464: Tolerance for the Country
"Karelius's behavior must be severely punished!" An old giant with a beard as long as his chest slammed the table so loudly that anyone could hear the anger in his words.

"That's right - your willful behavior led to a great defeat for our army. The Eastern Regiment was completely wiped out, only one tenth of the Central Regiment's 120,000 elite soldiers survived, and the other four regiments also suffered heavy casualties. The most crucial thing is that two ancestors died! This is no longer a strategic mistake, it is a betrayal of the dynasty and our ancestors!" another giant elder echoed.

"I propose to immediately initiate the review process for Kalerius. Not only should we review all the military and political decisions he has made since he ascended the throne, but we should also review the composition of those who supported his ascension to the throne in the first place - how many of them are loyal to the country, and how many are selfish. I was reluctant to say these words in detail before due to the overall situation, but today is the time to speak out!"

"I agree! The danger of overthrow is imminent, and we must first stabilize the country before fighting against foreign enemies!"

"Seconded!"

"I also agree!"

Similar quarrels have been going on in the Elders' Council of the Holy Land for several days. All present are the noble descendants of the kings and nobles of the previous dynasties, the "heroic bloodline" that the giants of the Holy Land talked about the most.

Although they were wiped out by Gefulei and Marica twenty years ago, and were blocked by Duoris' iron wall strategy five years ago, and could only huddle like earthworms in the depths of the cemetery until the Osarion era, they are still the most noble bloodline of this race.

Those inferior species that evolved from humans, hybrids, subhumans, and orcs were born to sacrifice their lives for them.

Of course, the true heroic bloodline is always philanthropic and generous. In turn, they will allow those inferior races to inherit the name of the giants, bathe in their glory, and welcome the arrival of a new era together - even if the inferior races can never be compared with the nobles, the inferior races who came first will always be a little nobler than those who came later. Such a gap alone is enough to attract those barbaric and rude people to die for them.

These days, the elders gathered around the huge circular table that was moved out from the tomb of an ancestor. It symbolized the flaming cauldron standing on the top of the Falling Star Peak. The blazing fire in the center of the table represented the fire of ashes that burned everything. Everyone had no selfish motives, they were just full of worries about the future of the dynasty.

The third, fourth, seventh, and ninetieth ancestors were seriously injured, the eighth and tenth ancestors died, the whereabouts of the sixth ancestor was unknown, nearly half of the twenty first generations were killed, and nearly one third of the hundreds of thousands of troops were killed or injured.
This series of numbers hit the elders in front of them, and they were facing only 30,000 human Northern Expedition Army. Even if Neo and Pollux who were trapped in the isolated city were included, such a battle result exchange ratio would still make every heroic descendant who was loyal to the country furious!
The giants have no fewer legs than humans. On the contrary, each giant warrior is stronger than those fragile human soldiers. Only those equally ancient dragon warriors can compete with them!
Six hundred thousand against less than one hundred thousand, if there was no problem with the command, how could the battle turn out like this?

However, these questions, which became more frightening the more one thought about them, were not raised on the first day. At first, the elders were still worried about when Lucia Sanx would lead his troops to break through the holy land for the second time, and which troops should be dispatched for emergency defense.

Fortunately, as time went by, everyone gradually realized that they were overly worried about the current situation and ignored the fact that the Northern Expedition Army no longer had the objective conditions for a counterattack in the short term. The elders blamed themselves for a moment for their behavior that almost made them lose their composure, and soon brought the meeting back on track.

That is who should be held accountable and what punishment those responsible should face.

The result was obvious and undisputed. The Council of Elders had expressed strong opposition to the wrong decisions of the Royal Court more than once. From the first time they judged Lucia's route to the north, High Priest Gulag had represented their will and refuted Kaleris's foolish strategy.

After the fall of the Far East, the Council of Elders repeatedly proposed that a large number of troops be deployed outside, and even the Holy Land regiment was transferred to the Frozen Lake battlefield, leaving the rear too empty. However, Calelius was still arrogant and self-willed, thinking that he could block the movement of the Northern Expedition Army by guarding the North Pass, which gave Lucia the opportunity to suddenly go south and raid the Holy Land.

The most recent time, the Council of Elders had fully and completely foreseen the dangers of pursuing the remnants of the southern expedition. Those shallow-rooted humans all understood the principle of not pursuing a desperate enemy. As the noble descendants of the ancient giant dynasty, they should not and would not make such a low-level mistake! But what about their temporary pseudo-king who was not worthy of the position?
He used the power and authority bestowed by the Holy Land to do evil things, forcing the army to move at his own pace. He even ignored the fact that the battlefield of Sol was already in danger after most of the troops were withdrawn. Just for the sake of his insignificant personal achievements and reputation, he continued to underestimate the enemy and advance recklessly, resulting in the loss of more than 200,000 troops in one battle, and almost destroying the foundation of the dynasty!
If the Elders' Council had not planned far ahead and been on guard against these inferior creatures, and had not entrusted all their strength to him, and if the Fifth Ancestor Vikia, who also had heroic blood, had not turned the tide, this battle would probably have ruined the destiny of the New Dynasty.

"What does the high priest mean?" The elders all looked towards the second most honorable seat on the left side of the top of the round table.

The first seat was reserved for the Holy Son, but he has not been present these days. It is said that he has realized the crisis of the overthrow of the dynasty and has been working tirelessly in the harem to pass on the family line. The second-placed elder also hurried back from the outside world last night. According to the news he brought back, the bastard who is unworthy of being king should be back soon.

"Your Majesty, there were some tactical mistakes, but most of them were due to the enemy's strange and unpredictable methods. For example, the remains of the evil god that attacked our main force was beyond human prediction. Moreover, although our army suffered casualties, we were successful in a series of strategic aspects, such as understanding the enemy, blocking the northern border, and severely damaging the enemy."

As soon as Gulag opened his mouth, he made remarks that displeased the elders. Several elders of similar status began to lose face.

"But what you all said is also true. Your Majesty is indeed too focused on personal gains and losses," Gulag carefully chose his words and finally came to a conclusion that made the elders feel comfortable. "If you had listened to the advice of more experienced people who are good at planning for the country, and not pushed Marshal Rexar so hard, and slowed down the pace on the southern battlefield and took it slow, you wouldn't have suffered such a tragic defeat."

"You all don't have to hide the fact that I was the one who most supported Your Majesty's ascension to the throne. At that time, the difference in strength between the enemy and us was too great, and we had to have a king who inherited the power of our ancestors to lead the new dynasty forward. Now, do you think that I, the high priest, have done something wrong and that I should abdicate and let someone more capable take over?"

"I dare not wait."

"Why did the high priest say this?"

"The high priest has made great contributions and we would never think of overstepping our authority."

Gulag raised a hand to stop the elders from talking nonsense. He coughed twice and said, "Now that a powerful enemy is around and the Holy Son is young, it is not appropriate to start a war. His Majesty will return to the Holy Land in three days. I intend to deprive him of his military power first. Let's not discuss the throne for the time being. Let's sit together and talk it out - losing a battle is not the fault of one person, and our dynasty is not unable to afford even a single defeat. We should understand each other more and tolerate each other for the sake of the country. This is the right way."

As soon as these words were spoken, the elders exchanged glances with each other. Although they were dissatisfied, they knew that the high priest's idea was the most reliable, so they all agreed.

However, in this case, the Holy Son’s accession to the throne would probably be delayed for a long time.

I hope that bastard can at least understand some truth, like restoring some of the holy land expenses that were cut earlier, and stop being so arrogant in the future, and restrain his behavior of really thinking of himself as a king. I hope we can just "put up with each other for the sake of the country" for a few days.

Hundreds of elders in the holy land were in a state of confusion, and tens of thousands of nobles under them were also in a panic. Two thousand miles away, a simple and somewhat shabby carriage was moving slowly and steadily towards the holy land.

(End of this chapter)