Starting from Ainz Ooal Gown, simultaneously traveling through time

After the oath-taking ceremony, the army is about to set off.

The king has decided to lead the expedition in person.

Leylin asked with some concern, "Father, isn't it too risky for you to personally lead the charge? Wouldn't it be better to send a capable general to command?"

The king laughed heartily and patted his son on the shoulder: "What's so risky about this? This is my royal guard. Others might be unfamiliar with commanding them, but I'm going to lead them myself as the sharpest spearhead to pierce through the orcs' lines in one fell swoop!"

Leylin was still worried: "After all... you're getting on in years, and the battlefield is exhausting. Why don't I go in your place? As the crown prince, I should have the authority to command this army, shouldn't I?"

"Of course you have command authority," the king affirmed. "I could send you before, but not this time. This time, I must go myself. As for your age?"

He suddenly lowered his voice, with a hint of barely suppressed excitement and pride.

"After taking your medicine, I feel better than ever before, and... it even seems like I've touched the threshold of the [Abnormal]! Wouldn't it be a shame not to test this strength myself?"

Leylin was both amused and exasperated: "So you went to the battlefield just to...show off your newly acquired power?"

"certainly!"

The king lowered his voice even further, but his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's.

"Your strength is our hidden trump card, which we cannot use lightly. But I am different. I am old. Even if I show the strength of an [abnormal], the outside world will only think that I broke through in my old age or used some secret technique with a huge cost."

"This will make them wary, but it won't make them feel 'threatened about the future' and thus focus too much attention on us. It's both a deterrent and a form of protection."

Lei Lin muttered to himself, "Isn't this just... a deterrent strategy used by a veteran powerhouse with little lifespan left?"

"Say what you will," the king said with a flourish, "You stay here and await news of my triumphant return!"

Having said that, the king mounted his horse and led his army on a march.

Of course, it couldn't be just those eight hundred Royal Guards; several main legions followed behind.

A royal expedition can boost morale, but to charge into enemy territory with only 800 men is not bravery, it's pure madness.

Lei Lin watched his father's figure disappear into the distance, surrounded by the army, but the vague unease in his heart had not yet dissipated.

He tilted his head slightly and whispered to the empty air beside him, "Number 1, Number 2, you two will secretly accompany the army and make sure my father is safe and sound. There must be no mistakes."

An extremely faint energy fluctuation emanated from the air, imperceptible to ordinary people.

Two completely concealed figures received the order and silently followed the departing group.

With these two special guards, whom he had personally created and whose strength was sufficient to handle most dangers, protecting him in the shadows, Leylin finally felt a little more at ease.

As long as we don't actively provoke those ancient monsters hiding in the corners of the world, my father's safety should be assured.

He was about to turn around and leave to continue his research when someone stopped him.

"Your Highness, please wait." Duke Caios stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

"Duke Caius, is there anything else?" Leylin asked.

"Your Highness, you seem to have forgotten."

Duke Caius reminded him, "During His Majesty's personal campaign, all the kingdom's daily affairs must be handled by you, the Crown Prince, in accordance with the law, until His Majesty returns."

"You... I'm afraid you can no longer 'disappear' at any time to attend to your own affairs as you used to."

Lei Lin was taken aback, then suddenly realized, and his face immediately turned bitter.

Yes, it is only natural that when the emperor goes on a campaign, the crown prince oversees the country.

Doesn't this mean that... the father becomes the Yongle Emperor Zhu Di who went out to fight, while he becomes the Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi who stayed in the capital and worked himself to the point of vomiting blood?

"If I had known, I shouldn't have accepted the position of Crown Prince in the first place..." Leylin couldn't help but complain under his breath.

"Your Highness, please be careful with your words!" Duke Caios quickly advised.

"This is the law of the land, and it is also your responsibility. Your Highness, please move to the government affairs hall. His Majesty has been busy with military reorganization these past few days, and there is a backlog of urgent government affairs that need your decision."

Looking at the meticulous old minister before him, and then at the mountain of official documents, Leylin couldn't help but sigh deeply, uttering a sentiment from another world:

"I work from 8 AM!"

..............................

Meanwhile, in the distant orc kingdom, in its capital...

King Kasor of the Orcs slumped on his throne, which was decorated with the bones of a giant beast, feeling his head and heart go numb.

A month ago, he dispatched the bloodthirsty general Siba with an elite force to the Kingdom of Inberia.

Nominally, it was a negotiation, but in reality, it was an attempt to exert pressure and probe, with the best outcome being to reclaim some food and property to make up for previous losses.

As a result, the army vanished without a trace, as if swallowed by the earth.

He ordered the high shaman to perform divination and tracking, but he couldn't even detect a trace of the soul's echo.

The great shaman finally concluded with a trembling voice: I'm afraid... it was that elusive "world-destroying dragon" again; the entire army had become the dragon's snack.

Casso was furious.

Why? Why did this dragon specifically target his country? When did he ever offend such a terrifying being?

The matter ultimately had to be dropped, and the plan to "borrow" grain from Inberia was also aborted.

At this moment, the royal palace was filled with a strong smell of herbs and animal fat.

The high shaman was performing a strange prayer dance around a pot of eerie green flames, trying to glean more secrets of the heavens.

Kaso interrupted him irritably: "Great Shaman! Has the matter in Koruman Town been investigated? Not a single person in the entire town was left alive. Was it that damned 'World-Destroying Dragon' again?"

The high shaman stopped dancing, panting as he wiped the mixture of sweat and paint from his forehead.

He replied, his face pale, "Your Majesty... Yes, the remaining aura was extremely weak, but... it was indeed 'Dragon's Might,' and..."

He swallowed hard, fear still lingering in his eyes: "The dragon's might I felt this time was... terrifyingly high."

"If it weren't for the faint trace of dragon blood inherited from my ancestors, it would be almost impossible to identify the evil dragon hidden there. I'm afraid... it's not an ordinary dragon, but a being at the level of a Dragon King."

"That is a truly devastating calamity capable of... destroying our entire nation."

He laid out his speculations in their entirety, and every word seemed to lower the temperature in the palace.

"The Dragon King?!"

Kaso abruptly stood up from his throne, veins bulging on his thick arms, his already ferocious face contorted with anger and a hint of barely concealed fear.

"Why would that legendary being deliberately target us?!"

The high shaman's expression was equally grim. He cautiously guessed, "Perhaps... that dragon king has rather peculiar tastes, preferring to eat us orcs?"

"Damn it! Does it really think we're livestock?!" Casso roared, slamming his fist into a nearby stone pillar, sending shards of stone flying.

(The great shaman silently added in his mind: In the eyes of a dragon king, we might really be no different from livestock... Of course, he would never dare to say this out loud.)

"Your Majesty, what should we do now?" The Great Shaman's voice was filled with helplessness.

King Kasor of the Orcs heaved violently, his eyes blazing with fury.

If it were any other human nation that did this, he would have already mustered his troops, marched over, and razed their capital to the ground.

But their opponent was a elusive dragon king, whose power rivaled that of a natural disaster! He could evaporate a town in a single night, leaving them no chance to react.

After a long while, the rage in Casso's eyes subsided slightly, replaced by a ruthless determination.

He sat back on his throne, his voice hoarse: "Great Shaman, issue my order! Gather all the elite troops, warriors, and shamans that can still be mobilized in the kingdom to the capital! I will fight that damned 'World-Destroying Dragon' here to the death!"

The great shaman's heart sank.

He had thought the king had regained some of his senses, but it turned out his mind was still full of "kill, kill, kill".

A "decisive battle" with the Dragon King in the capital? What's the difference between that and gathering all the nation's best resources and letting the other side wipe them out in one fell swoop?

He quickly put his limited wisdom to use and rephrased the statement: "Your Majesty is wise! Concentrating our forces to protect the core is indeed the safest strategy at present."

"I believe that the elite troops from all over the country should be immediately transferred back to the capital to strengthen its defenses. As long as the capital is secure, the foundation of the kingdom will remain."

"As for the other towns... I reckon that apart from that elusive dragon, no other country in the surrounding area would dare to provoke us easily."

"The best strategy is to temporarily abandon the perimeter and defend the core."

These words struck a chord with Casso.

The successive blows left him with an extreme sense of insecurity and an urgent need for a strong army to surround and protect him.

Under the shadow of the "World-Destroying Dragon," he could no longer care about other towns.

As long as the king is there, he will be there, and the orc kingdom will still exist.

As for other cities... he thought the great shaman was right. Apart from that unreasonable evil dragon, who would dare to provoke him?

"Alright! We'll do as the high shaman says!" Kaso nodded emphatically, his eyes flashing with a fierce light.

"Bring back all the capable fighters! The capital must be absolutely secure!"

He leaned against the cold bone throne, his meager self-confidence supporting his judgment:

"Given the Orc Kingdom's past infamy and strength, no human nation would dare to take advantage of this situation."