Strongest Kingdom: My Op Kingdom Got Transported Along With Me

Chapter 439: Chapter 438: Kingdom of Valoria

"We identify who’s really in control of this kingdom."

"And then..."

"We leave without anyone realizing we were ever here."

The woman took a deep breath before tightening her grip on the twin daggers at her waist.

Despite the fear lingering in her heart, she trusted her leader’s judgment.

The crossbowman quietly adjusted the hood covering his face.

The three assassins exchanged one final glance.

Then, like ghosts disappearing into the darkness of the forest, they silently began moving toward the monster-controlled border of the Alnera Kingdom.

None of them noticed... They weren’t alone.

Several hundred meters behind them, where the forest grew particularly dense, a group of shadowy figures moved through the trees.

They were so quiet that even the slightest rustle of leaves was avoided.

Their bodies were covered in dark cloaks, and their movements were synchronized with remarkable precision.

One figure would move, then another.

They never approached too closely.

They never attacked. They simply followed.

Whenever the three assassins stopped, the shadowy figures stopped as well.

Whenever the assassins moved forward, the shadows followed.

It was obvious that they were experienced spies.

However, they had made one serious mistake.

They believed they were the hunters.

They didn’t realize they had already become the ones being observed.

-----

Alix quietly stood before a large map.

Several markers had been placed across the surrounding kingdoms.

Reports were continuously being delivered to him.

The moment the three assassins crossed into the kingdom’s territory, Alix had already received the information.

His perception had detected them long before they reached the border.

He had even noticed the second group following them.

Alix’s finger slowly moved across the map.

"Three infiltrators from one kingdom..."

"And another group following them from a different direction."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"They really are interested."

He wasn’t surprised.

The fall of Alnera Kingdom had been far too significant to remain unnoticed.

The surrounding kingdoms would want to know what kind of monsters had taken control of the territory.

More importantly, they would want to know how strong those monsters were.

Alix understood that perfectly.

He also understood something else.

His current manpower wasn’t enough to launch a proper campaign against multiple forces simultaneously.

Although his personal strength was overwhelming, a kingdom wasn’t defeated simply by killing its strongest expert.

There were armies.

Cities.

Resources.

Territories.

Thousands upon thousands of soldiers. Managing all of them required manpower. And currently, that was something Alix lacked.

He could conquer another forces. But doing so would stretch his forces thin.

That wasn’t what he wanted.

He didn’t want to spend years slowly expanding while constantly worrying about his borders.

Instead, he wanted them to come to him.

Alix looked at the markers representing the surrounding kingdoms.

His smile widened.

"If they want to investigate..."

"Let them."

He had no intention of stopping the spies.

In fact, he deliberately ordered his subordinates not to interfere.

The border patrols had received a simple command.

Do not obstruct suspicious individuals unless they attack first.

As a result, the threse spies were able to cross the border far more easily than they expected.

They passed through the first checkpoint without encountering any resistance.

A group of orcs was busy inspecting a caravan while several beastmen handled the paperwork.

The assassins quietly blended into the flow of travelers.

The female assassin looked around cautiously.

"This is..."

She had expected something completely different.

She had imagined bloodstained streets.

Burned villages.

Monster armies slaughtering civilians.

Instead, she saw human merchants walked alongside beastmen while carrying crates of goods.

A goblin merchant argued with a human shopkeeper over the price of grain.

A group of lizardmen guards helped an elderly human woman move a heavy cart.

Nobody seemed particularly afraid.

The female assassin’s expression became increasingly confused.

"Boss..."

"What?"

"Something feels wrong."

The leader glanced at her.

"Yeah"

She lowered her voice.

"Where are all the prisoners?"

He frowned.

She gestured toward the street.

"There are humans everywhere."

The leader’s expression became slightly more serious.

"That’s exactly what our intelligence said."

"But seeing it personally..."

He paused.

"...is different."

They continued walking.

The deeper they went into the kingdom, the stranger everything became.

The monster rulers weren’t simply occupying the territory.

They were governing it.

Taxes were being collected.

Markets were operating.

Guards patrolled the streets.

Caravans traveled freely between cities.

The entire kingdom had adapted to its new rulers.

And that raised an even more important question.

Who was actually controlling all of this?

The three assassins exchanged glances.

They had come expecting to gather information about a savage monster army.

Instead, They had entered a functioning kingdom.

Meanwhile, far away...

Alix stood atop the highest tower in the capital.

His gaze seemed to penetrate the countless buildings between himself and the distant infiltrators.

He could sense them.

Every one of them.

He could even eliminate them without leaving this location.

But he didn’t.

There was no reason to.

A smile slowly appeared on his face.

"Come."

His voice was barely more than a whisper.

"Send more."

Alix wasn’t afraid of a few spies.

He wasn’t even particularly concerned about entire armies.

As long as the surrounding kingdoms didn’t possess multiple Tier 8 existences...

He could deal with them.

One Tier 7.

Ten Tier 7.

Even if several kingdoms gathered their strongest experts and sent them against him simultaneously, Alix was confident that he could survive and eventually crush them.

He wasn’t being arrogant.

He simply knew exactly where his strength stood.

There was another reason he allowed the spies to enter.

He wanted to see what they would do.

Would they report the truth?

Would they exaggerate?

Would they attempt to assassinate him?

Would they return and convince their kingdoms to attack?

Any of those outcomes would benefit him.

The more opportunities they would create for him to eliminate their strongest forces.

Alix turned away from the tower’s edge.

"Let’s see..."

"How many forces will take the bait."

Behind him, the monster capital continued operating peacefully.

----

Several days passed.

The information gathered by the spies eventually reached the hands of the three greatest powers surrounding the Alnera Kingdom.

Unlike the smaller factions scattered throughout the region, these three forces possessed enough strength to influence the fate of entire cities and territories.

One was a kingdom.

One was a cultivation sect.

And the last was an ancient clan.

Beneath each of them were numerous smaller organizations, including mercenary groups, noble families, merchant associations, independent sects, and countless third-rate forces that relied upon their protection.

For years, the three great powers had maintained an uneasy balance.

None of them possessed enough strength to completely dominate the others.

If one moved too aggressively, the other two would immediately unite against it.

This balance had prevented any large-scale war from breaking out.

But today, that balance was about to be shaken.

And the cause was written within a single report.

A report that would inevitably bring chaos to the entire region.

----

Kingdom of Valoria

The royal palace of Valoria stood at the center of a massive fortified city.

Its walls stretched for dozens of kilometers, while countless towers rose behind them like spears piercing the heavens.

Inside the palace, golden pillars supported a vast throne hall decorated with the emblems of the royal family.

At the far end of the hall sat the current ruler of Valoria.

King Veyron.