Chapter 255: The Beginning of War

Chapter 255

The Beginning of War

"Alright, let’s go then. It’s time," Mirin’s brow twitched slightly. She didn’t reveal her thoughts, afraid it might just be her overthinking. However, Nara did something unexpected.

“You all go ahead. I feel like I still have a lot to improve on. Since the institute gave us time to train, I want to gain as much experience as possible. Besides...this camp is very safe, with skilled hunters to help during training. I think staying here and working with them will help me improve my skills significantly,” Nara abruptly changed her mind.

Initially, she had been eager to go to Emma’s mansion, excited about the luxurious room Emma would let someone prepared for her, and the invitation to a small tea party. Nara had been the first to agree to cancel the training. But after hearing that Hunter Luke had the chance to become a high-ranking hunter and earn a fortune, she changed her mind and decided to stay at the camp.

“What do you mean? Didn’t we agree to go back together?”

Emma was very confused, sensing something she couldn’t quite grasp. However, Mirin and Lucy were different, they had felt Nara’s strange behavior from the beginning. If Emma hadn’t been pleased with Nara’s attempts to help her get Senior Luke’s attention, she might have noticed these oddities too.

This happened because love was considered the number one priority, so Emma chose to abandon all her pride and trust Nara instead, never expecting that Nara would betray her outright like this.

“Why stay here? You’ll only be a burden to the hunters. This isn’t a normal situation; it’s wartime. Staying here won’t help with missions or the kingdom. Returning to safety is the best way to help,” Mirin explained earnestly, with Lucy nodding in agreement.

“Exactly. Let’s go back and do what we can. If you really want to train, you can do so in Emma’s family estate. They have training areas where nobles can teach you.”

“But lessons from nobles can’t compare to real combat experience. Plus, I can get pointers from senior. With his background in beast training, my skills will surely improve significantly,” Nara smiled, getting Senior Luke involved.

Ellie glanced at Nara and couldn’t help but snicker. Having been around Nara for a while and seen her true nature, Ellie knew exactly what she wanted. There was no reason for Ellie to hold back now.

“Huh, do you think this place is your playground? You want me to teach you things? While the kingdom is in chaos like this? Instead of being able to do my job properly, I have to take time to teach you how to train beasts? Ah...If it weren’t for you coming from the Ares Institute, I might have thought you were a spy for the Rhea Kingdom already!”

“Since the beasts have attacked you many times, the Hunter’s Association has had a hard time. This is the 2nd time I think you’re a problem.

“It’s good that the institute canceled your missions during this time. I’m afraid if they were any slower...all the hunters might be in danger. Of course, I’m not blaming anyone individually, but I’m saying that you should be where you belong. If you know you can’t do something, don’t push yourself. Don’t be selfish thinking everyone has to support you.

“Hunters don’t have such responsibilities. Right now...even if you get injured and die, the hunters don’t even need to care. Our mission is to repel the Rhea Kingdom’s invasion. Now...if you still want to stay here after hearing all this, be prepared to die,”

Luke said in one breath, not letting anyone interrupt. The association leader didn’t expect the young man to be so harsh. In fact, it had been his own thought from the beginning since he had to help the 10 kids. Having 10 more people meant dividing resources further, but those kids didn’t have to do missions for them. It was like they were losing out.

Even if it was said not to be petty for the kingdom’s future, not all hunters thought like him. If left unchecked, they might not think much at first when they were not tired or in danger. But what about when they were exhausted? Or when they had lost someone? Would they still say, “It’s fine”?

Fortunately, the association leader didn’t have to say it himself. Fortunately, Luke knew where the decision came from, so he took the lead in this matter, which was the right thing to do.

“Senior is right. We apologize for causing problems for everyone.” Mirin understood her senior’s point. Although Emma was a bit sad to be criticized like that, she also understood the reasoning.

“We’ll go back to our families and ask our parents to send some resources to the Hunter’s Association as compensation,” Emma said. Luke nodded, making the young girl smile a bit.

"Then...I won’t trouble you hunters. I’ll help support in other ways, such as cooking, cleaning the camp, or maybe..."

"That’s not necessary," the association leader interjected. This girl was truly persistent.

"Leave the small tasks to the hunters. At least it reduces the number of people at risk. While I appreciate your willingness to help, it’s better if you apply to be a hunter with the association and take on more missions in the future. For now, focus on your studies," he said, showing concern. As a senior and the association leader, he couldn’t reprimand too harsh as it could harm the association’s reputation.

"In that case, we’ll take our leave. Let’s go...Nara." Emma grabbed her friend’s arm. Emma was still confused, unsure if Nara was doing this for her benefit. What was Nara thinking? Yet Emma still believed that Nara had no interest in her Senior Luke. Nara, weighing her options, smiled at Emma again.

"Alright, let’s go back then, Emma."

Realizing that persistence would be futile and that the association likely didn’t want her around, Nara changed her expression and flattered Emma instead of being stubborn and causing Emma to be suspicious. She hoped to avoid returning to her small, insignificant village where her father held no position, and they lived in a cramped house. If she returned, it would be with hundreds of gold coins in her pocket!

Once the 4 students were dismissed, the association leader turned to Luke again. This young man had a bright future and was understandably popular among the ladies. He hoped that once Luke gained wealth, power, and attention to some extent, he wouldn’t change his character.

Having been with the association for a long time, the leader had seen it all. Many talented individuals who once excelled in missions and were highly praised eventually accepted lucrative offers from noble families.

However, those families treated them as secret cards and didn’t intend to use them often; they even gave them money and luxury, afraid that they would leave and go live with another family. Without regular training, they grew complacent, indulging in pleasures and women. When they finally returned to missions, they failed disastrously just by starting. Many ended up as useless dogs at home, their fame and fortune vanished.

The association leader believed Luke would be recruited by a noble family someday. However, he hoped this enthusiastic young man wouldn’t end up like others he had known. At the very least, he expected Luke to have a promising and stronger future.

"Do you have any other orders for me, sir?"

"No, I just need you to handle the beasts. Since you left, the hunters had to take on more tasks, causing the surrounding beasts to lack food and return to our camp, creating more problems."

"Understood. I’ll take care of it now," Luke nodded. This was why he came here. After feeding the little Apple from the increasing pile of corpses, he jumped into the forest, hunting beasts based on the locations marked by the spores.

The days of war grew increasingly intense, and after 2 weeks, the Rhea Kingdom made a significant move! Yes! This was the beginning of the real battle.

In the 2nd-floor city, it was known that the noble family responsible for its defense primarily used riding beasts. Additionally, this noble family incorporated magic power into their strategy, specializing in speed and strength-enhancing spells. This indicated that the upcoming battle would primarily take place on the ground.

Other cities in different floors also declared war. It was understood that the Rhea Kingdom had instructed the lords of nearby cities to engage in war with the Ares Kingdom, utilizing the power of the nobles directly. However, in the camps managed by Rhea itself, key figures like princes or commanders would be involved.

This was a major war declaration from Rhea, meaning that battles were certain to erupt across all floors of cities. Within the kingdom’s own territory, they sent a challenge letter with a clear date and time for the fight. The battle was set to take place in Laus City, a large city in the Ares Kingdom, separated by a vast forest. In fact, this forest connected 3 kingdoms, which included Hestia and Rhea Kingdoms.

In response, the Emperor called for the mobilization of forces, assigning nobles to various regions, with the great commander of the kingdom below. Both princes were responsible for different cities. This was an opportunity for them to showcase their abilities. A strong performance would increase their popularity, but a defeat...the status of the next emperor could only be a dream.

The Setter family was called upon to send a force of about 1,000 men to oversee a city. This may be because the Rhea Kingdom did not declare war directly against the Setter family. They didn’t wage war in areas under the Setter family’s control. It was unclear whether this was due to fear of their prowess or another reason.

Once Rhea learned that the Setter family was assigned to a particular city, they would reduce their forces from 10 parts to just 1, conceding defeat easily.

Of course, that was a matter for the future. Currently, no one anticipated that Rhea would fear the Setter family to such an extent. Thus, assigning a city to the Setter family, in addition to the many other cities they had to watch over, was quite a heavy burden.

The Hunter’s Association continued to oversee the 2nd floor, but now they had to allocate some forces to join the kingdom’s army in defending the city. They sent 1,000 hunters to help, leaving about 4,000 to 5,000 hunters to handle missions on the 2nd floor. This was a tough task, but it had to be done. The Hunter’s Association was as significant as any major noble family, and others would not accept them taking on fewer responsibilities.

Ellie was still in charge of the 2nd floor, as she was the key player in the operations. She managed more than half of the beasts, even while juggling missions, leisure activities, and potion concocting. The little Apple had been rampaging freely until the Rhea army drew closer, at which point the missions to handle the surrounding beasts were canceled.

"Your mission is to create as much chaos among the enemy’s beasts as possible. I’ll grant you the freedom to work independently, is that good? But you must be cautious of attacks both from within our association and from the enemy. The longest attack range of the magicians is 50 meters, so you’ll need to disrupt them from a greater distance. Do whatever it takes to slow their formation."

"I remember your beast can stretch and shrink its body, so sneaking in shouldn’t be difficult. This time, we’ll face over 4,000 enemies and more than 8,000 beasts. It’s a heavy burden for us."

"Since the war began yesterday, it’s disappointing, but...the Ryuger family, ordered to work with the Recres family, has been defeated. The Tates family, merchants Ellied with 4 other merchant families, has also been defeated. Only the Jarlon family, the Setter family, and the Fernal family have won. Losing 2 out of 5 battles is a terrible performance for our Ares Kingdom. We cannot afford another loss. No matter how difficult it is, we must win today...Do you understand?"