Chapter 341 - 298: The Fire of Ideals Will Never Be Extinguished

The bloody stench of the Eternal Battlefield had not yet dissipated.

The struggle for power followed like a shadow.

The glory of the Great Expedition was like a dream. Any attempt to address real-world problems only served to burst that bubble, and the conversation turned grim.

Reinhardt raised a hand, signaling for Haven Meis and Fedor’s Personal Guards to leave the study.

He had only just made the request, yet the three Personal Guards of the Red Flame Son’s leader unconsciously tightened their grips on their Dragon-Hunting Spears, bracing as if for a formidable foe.

Fedor’s brows were tightly knitted. After a long silence, he spoke. "All of you, get out."

’He refused to believe that an Empire’s Chosen Knight, blessed by the Emperor himself and the one who led them out of the Eternal Battlefield, would be so despicable as to kill an ally once their purpose was served. That he would kill him, right here.’

A Personal Guard’s anxious voice sounded particularly muffled through his Full Coverage Helmet.

"My Lord!"

"Get out."

Seeing this, Bach also prepared to leave with the Ash Guard, but Reinhardt signaled that he didn’t need to.

Haven Meis realized that these Emperor’s Angels were not as united as he had imagined. After receiving Reinhardt’s permission, he pushed open the door and fled.

Cold sweat soaked through his clothes.

’I’m just a minor Local Lord who wants to live a comfortable life. I don’t even dare call myself a Knight General to outsiders. I want no part in the struggles of these Imperial Knights.’

After the uninvolved parties had left, Reinhardt stood by the window and turned to look at Fedor. With his Full Coverage Helmet removed, the leader of the Red Flame Son was revealed. He had short, flame-colored hair and mysterious, elegant vertical pupils of orange-red. He carried himself with the air of a Holy City noble and possessed an extraordinarily handsome face.

The bright sunlight of a feudal world, free from industrial pollution, passed over Reinhardt’s shoulder, stretching his shadow as it slanted into the study.

Fedor, in turn, stared at the man standing before him. He had black hair and black eyes, a rugged face marked by three long scars. Even standing there silently, the man radiated an aura of immense, heroic power.

"Everyone else is gone. What did you want to say?"

"The Archangel has fallen."

"The Archangel? What are you say—"

Fedor had long been prepared for a lengthy debate with Reinhardt, to argue with him about the necessity of Imperial orthodoxy and Loyalty.

But what he got was not threats and bribes, nor the heavy pressure of power and force to coerce him into submitting to the rule of the Administrative Region.

That single, short sentence struck Fedor like a lightning bolt. He froze on the spot, completely stunned. For a full thirty seconds, he was unable to utter a single word.

"Impossible! Impossible—!"

Snapping back to his senses, Fedor flew into a rage, brutally grabbing Reinhardt by the neck and slamming him against the wall. He roared with uncontrollable fury, "You damn traitor! You despicable heretic! Do you have any idea what you’re saying?!

For the glory of the Empire and the Emperor, I’ll kill you with my own hands today, even if it costs me my life!"

But Reinhardt simply caught Fedor’s right wrist with his bare hand. It was weak and trembling, lacking all the strength an Earth Knight should possess. He said coldly, "I have witnessed your Loyalty with my own eyes, brother.

But I can tell you that Bach and I..."

Seeing Reinhardt about to reveal the Administrative Region’s greatest secret to this Battle Group Leader whose allegiance was uncertain, Bach hurriedly shouted to stop him, "My Lord! You can’t tell him! We still don’t know if he’s..."

Reinhardt raised a hand, cutting Bach off. He stared into Fedor’s eyes and continued, "That top-secret mission Bach told you about... it was actually to break through the Void Storm and venture deep into the Dark Side of the Empire to rescue the Radiant Angels.

The Demons were trying to corrupt and mutate them. They wanted to tear down the banner of the Radiant Angels and shatter the faith system across the Administrative Region’s three hundred worlds. They want to plunge us into the absolute chaos that would follow.

I was dragged into the Eternal Battlefield by Du Ma while covering the evacuating ships.

Too many people in the Administrative Region have already sacrificed themselves for the plan to rescue the Radiant Angels."

Fedor was the leader of a main Battle Group in the Red Flame Legion’s second echelon. Back when he was just a new recruit, he had the honor of seeing the Lord of the Radiant Angel Legion, Archangel Tiberius, on one occasion.

His Holy Wings radiated an aura of purity.

He held the Sword of Justice.

To speak with him, to witness his every word and deed, was like receiving the grace of the Divine Emperor.

He could not imagine that someone as powerful as Lord Tiberius could have fallen in the death spiral of the Great Rebellion.

Or perhaps, after more than twenty years away from the Real Cosmos, he had lost his ability to judge the true extent of the devastation the Great Rebellion had wrought upon the Empire.

Fedor’s right hand gradually loosened its grip on Reinhardt’s neck. He staggered back two steps, only stopping when he bumped into the desk. He realized Reinhardt wasn’t lying.

The reaction of the Ash Guard beside them also indicated that the news of the Radiant Angels’ capture was being kept under tight seal throughout the entire Administrative Region.

As a Battle Group Leader of the Red Flame Son, Fedor knew it was now time for him to make a choice.

He understood why Reinhardt had told him all this. As much as he didn’t want to believe it, the possibility of the Empire being destroyed in the fires of the Great Rebellion was very real.

’Even Lord Tiberius died in battle in the Holy City...’

’Then again, even if I don’t join the Imperial Administrative Region, I’ve already lost contact with the Red Flame Legion. Orders from the Regent Council and the Military Affairs Department can’t penetrate the Void Storm’s blockade anyway.

Stuck here in the Ash Soil Star Zone, fighting alone... in essence, I’m no different from a Knight Warlord.’

Reinhardt looked at Fedor. Dust motes drifted through the air, and the long, narrow shadow cast by the sun enveloped Fedor where he stood before the desk.

"Traitor, Knight Warlord, call me what you will.

The minions of Grand Lord Kles and the High Tower Great Demon are relentlessly trying to infiltrate the Administrative Region.

Knight Warlords have formed an alliance to overthrow our rule.

Rebels and Demons are massing their forces in the Verne Star Realm.

Wizards and Merchant Consortiums are eyeing us greedily.

To me, the Administrative Region is the last flame of hope for the Human World in the Ash Soil Star Zone. The Emperor’s light has not dimmed, because we fight only for the great cause of humanity."

At this, he turned to look out the window. His gaze swept over the vast formations of the 33rd Infantry Corps veterans, over the green hills of the Jade River Region, and toward the distant skyline.

"Here, that flame of hope will never be extinguished, brother."

All this time, in Bach’s mind, this Emperor’s Vengeful Angel had always been a silent, taciturn figure, the very image of immense power.

But at this moment, it wasn’t just Fedor. After hearing these words, even Bach, who had experienced it all firsthand, felt a surge of emotion.

The short sentences had encapsulated all the trials and hardships the Imperial Administrative Region had faced for twenty years. And at this moment, it wasn’t just Bach; the other Ash Guards finally understood why Lord Sedon valued Reinhardt so highly, calling him a Battle Brother.

It wasn’t just about his immense power.

It was a unity of knightly ideals.

Fedor fell silent. He looked at Reinhardt, then at the Ash Guard standing behind this Empire’s Chosen One.

「After a long while.」

He made his decision.

"Regarding the matter of joining the Imperial Administrative Region, I will need the consent of the Red Flame Son’s captains."

Perhaps feeling that this was not a precise enough statement, Fedor took a deep breath. As he turned to leave the study, he left them with one more sentence.

"Before the troop transports arrive, I will give you a definitive answer."