Yuven responded with a faint smile and remained silent, keeping his attention fixed on the airship in the sky.
The airship gradually approached the heights of Imperial Beast City, and Jared finally spotted the vigilant soldiers standing guard on the city walls.
“Mr. Chance, what’s going on here? Look at all the bodies on the ground! Has there been a battle?” Cloud exclaimed as he took in the gruesome sight.
The goriest sight he had ever encountered was a clash between two sects resulting in around a hundred casualties. However, what lay before him now was a staggering mound of corpses-tens of thousands of lifeless bodies.
It was a scene of unfathomable bloodshed and sheer horror. Upon seeing that, Quinley felt a surge of nausea, and she began to vomit. Jared’s brow furrowed, a grave expression washing over his face.
He recognized that there was only one plausible explanation for this grim scene- Norwal City had initiated a conflict with Imperial Beast City. This was the aftermath of a clash between two cities.
“Cloud, bring the airship down immediately!” Jared shouted. Cloud nodded and promptly directed the airship to descend toward Imperial Beast City’s central square.
Many residents of Imperial Beast City had never seen an airship before, so they swarmed around it in curiosity. At the sight of that, Yuven hurried down from the city walls with Ivasha, too.
When Jared emerged from the airship, Yuven joyfully exclaimed, “Mr. Chance, it’s really you! You’ve returned! This is great!”
At that moment, Jared felt like a stranger to Ivasha, as his aura appeared to have undergone a profound change.
“What happened?” Jared asked Yuven.
“Mr. Chance, why don’t we talk about this in the palace instead?” Yuven suggested. He then instructed Ivasha to get someone to keep an eye on the airship.
After they entered the palace, Viola, Aislin, Ghaylen, and the others who had learned of Jared’s return hurried over to greet him.
A short while of exchanging pleasantries later, Yuven turned to Jared and said, “Mr. Chance, Norwal City has initiated an assault on our city. Although King Lucian appears to be testing our defenses, we have still incurred significant losses. Leifr and his comrades have all perished in the battle…”
A pained expression washed over Yuven’s face. When Jared learned of Leifr’s demise, his brows furrowed in anger, and a fiery resolve burned in his eyes.
“Given Imperial Beast City’s resources, can we withstand Norwal City’s assault?” he inquired.
Yuven shook his head sadly. “During Tigerus’ time as king, he caused the death of many citizens of Imperial Beast City. Some fled as well, diminishing our city’s strength. It’s extremely challenging for us to fend off Norwal City’s attack now, unless we have help.”
“The real question is, who within the Ethereal Realm would come to our aid? Nevertheless, I’ve already asked Ms. Feenix to send word to the other cities. If they’re willing to mobilize their forces, King Lucian will undoubtedly withdraw,” he added, explaining his strategy to Jared.
While the plan seemed reasonable, Jared immediately recognized its inherent risks. If the forces from the other cities arrived but decided to unite against both Yuven and Lucian’s factions, it could result in a dire situation.
All the kings and archons had chosen to maintain the status quo and dared not infiltrate Imperial Beast City and Norwal City because they were too far away. Plus, the two cities were in a collaborative relationship, so they would certainly support one another in times of invasion. This was precisely why the other cities had reservations about attempting to conquer both cities simultaneously.
However, with Imperial Beast City and Norwal City now at odds, the other cities could seize the opportunity to join forces and launch a joint invasion.
There was another possibility: the other cities might ally with Norwal City instead, with the intention of capturing Imperial Beast City before dividing the spoils amongst themselves.
This was another potential scenario that they needed to consider and prepare for. While Yuven understood the pros and cons of the plan, he had no other choice and no one else to turn to for help.
