Ch.128Chapter 128: The Subjugation Begins.

The operation was quickly taking shape.

The special task force included the people mentioned earlier, and they would move under invisibility magic, rushing straight to the enemy’s rear in one go.

Since everyone except Arias was close to Master level, moving swiftly wouldn’t be a problem.

As for Arias, Valt could just carry her. Besides, being a forest race, Arias rarely had issues running through forests.

Arias felt a bit offended at being treated like some portable potion, but she happily joined in when she heard Valt would be carrying her.

The main force would be led by Grace’s adjutant, Lindhi, the mercenary captain Ivan, Martina, and the clever Lisa.

The most important thing was to wait for the orcs’ magic to wear off.

The strategy was to focus on defense and hold out until Valt’s group attacked the Orc Lord from behind, then switch to offense and annihilate the regular orcs.

With sufficient mages and mercenaries—all of whom had already experienced orc battles—they wouldn’t let their guard down, and casualties should be minimal.

After quickly completing preparations for departure, Valt’s group gathered to begin their movement.

“Hahaha! I’m going to crack that Orc Lord’s skull wide open!”

Luktan, extremely excited, stroked his beloved Tungaio while his eyes gleamed.

Having him around was incredibly reassuring.

“Liris, conserve your strength as much as possible. Facing 150 mages simultaneously might be harder than you think.”

No matter how excellent Liris’s blood magic control was, dealing with 150 mages at once could be difficult. That’s why Valt instructed her to preserve her strength until then.

Liris, who had been quiet, glanced at Arias preparing to be carried by Valt and said:

“Then please carry me too.”

“Right, you should save your running energy too. That’s a good idea.”

Arias, who thought she’d be carried alone, frowned slightly.

That’s not to say Arias and Liris had a bad relationship. On the contrary, they got along quite well. The two with their unique magical systems—spirit magic and blood magic—had surprisingly good chemistry.

Plus, most of their conversations revolved around Valt.

With similar tastes and interests, there was no reason for them not to get along.

‘At this rate, both Liris and I might end up marrying Valt. Well… it’s not unusual for royalty to have multiple wives.’

She had already made up her mind.

“It’s a shame Lisa isn’t here. The four-way fusion V.L.A.L. has become just VLA.”

Valt and Lisa were dumbfounded by Liris’s joke. It was unusual since Liris rarely joked around.

Perhaps sensing their stares, Liris quickly blushed and buried her face in Valt’s arm.

“P-please don’t stare like that. I’m already regretting saying it.”

Finding her reaction adorable, Arias played along.

“Why VLA? Shouldn’t it be VAL? Valt, Arias, Liris! Hehe!”

With Arias joining in, Liris felt less embarrassed.

“Hmm… that doesn’t sound right. VAL sounds a bit strange, don’t you think?”

“What? After I went along with your joke!”

“Stop the nonsense, both of you. Get in my arms now. We’re leaving.”

Flash!

As Valt wrapped his massive arms around Arias and Liris, both women blushed slightly and fell silent.

Seeing this, Luktan whistled teasingly.

“Whew~ Darling, my brother seems quite popular with the ladies.”

“What? Are you jealous? Do you want to die right now?”

Luktan still found it difficult to adapt to Grace’s rapidly changing personality.

“N-no, that’s not it! I just meant that Gerung-tu seems more popular with women than I expected. Hahaha!”

“If you look elsewhere, I won’t just talk, Luktan. Remember you’re the future consort to the next queen.”

“Y-yes, understood!”

Grace’s adjutant, watching from a distance, thought:

‘Hehehe… they’re all having a good time.’

***

Swoosh—

One Master.

One Great Warrior.

One 5th Circle mage nearly at Great Warrior level, cutting through the forest.

“Darling! How much further?!”

“At this pace, about two more hours.”

They were incredibly fast.

Grace, being a Master herself, couldn’t understand how these two men without aura could move as quickly as she could.

Moreover, Luktan had completely transformed in just two days.

“Luktan, weren’t you unable to maintain this speed before?”

With only close companions around, Grace’s speech was casual. Surprisingly, she was quite friendly.

“Ah! After applying the aura management technique my brother taught me to my legs, it’s easy!”

“What? What kind of race are these Gerung-tu? Mastering aura in two days? Is that even possible?”

After tinkering with his younger brother Valt, Luktan returned in just two days with power so formidable that even Grace couldn’t guarantee victory against him.

Grace had only one complaint about Luktan:

He was slightly weaker than her. While a Gerung-tu Great Warrior was undoubtedly powerful, a Sword Master had no reason to lose to a Great Warrior in a life-or-death battle, barring extreme carelessness.

But now, Grace wasn’t confident she could defeat Luktan. In fact, she felt she might be at a slight disadvantage.

‘Hmph, now he’s finally become a man worthy of being my husband. I should thank Valt for this.’

“Brother, you’re quite fast too, even carrying two ladies!”

“Do these friends even feel heavy? Besides, I know how to strengthen my legs too.”

Arias and Liris were secretly pleased at Valt’s comment about them being light.

Grace accelerated and addressed everyone:

“Let’s move quickly. According to the scouts, these creatures still have no intention of moving.”

A special task force is most effective when launching a surprise attack.

Swoosh—

Under invisibility magic, they all cut through the forest like the wind to any observers.

***

“Whew, we arrived earlier than expected. Thanks to Luktan and Valt being so fast. Truly impressive.”

Grace was increasingly fond of the Gerung-tu race.

Though her royal status prevented her from being as casual as they were, she felt unusually comfortable around them—almost as if she had been a Gerung-tu in a past life.

They were vastly different from the prejudiced rumors about barbarians that circulated in the Central Continent.

They weren’t violent.

Just simple, innocent, and pure.

Wasn’t it because of Luktan’s nature that Grace decided to take him as her consort?

This would create enormous challenges for the Oscar Kingdom going forward, but this orc expedition could help dismiss many objections.

Plus, Luktan’s remarkable progress yesterday.

Valt’s existence was already unbelievable, but Luktan was equally incredible. Normally, someone training in aura would need at least 10 years from childhood to reach the third level.

And that’s only for those with considerable talent.

But Luktan dismissed all that, completing aura beyond the fifth level in just two days.

It defied common sense.

Yet somehow it made sense. The strength from their pure physiques was even harder to explain.

So Grace concluded:

They had aura but were restricted from using it. Luktan had succeeded in removing that restriction.

This wasn’t entirely incorrect.

Indeed, the closer a Gerung-tu was to becoming a Great Warrior, the more powerful and abundant the mana embedded in their cells became.

The Gerung-tu were thought to fight with pure physical strength alone, but they also benefited from mana, the foundation of the world.

‘We must maintain good relations with the Gerung-tu. Starting with Valt and Luktan, they will grow exponentially stronger. And that Kwan is truly…’

When Grace visited the Gerung-tu to meet Luktan, she had the opportunity to meet Kwan.

Her impression was simple:

‘A giant?’

While Kwan was large, he wasn’t giant-sized. Yet Grace felt something immense from his appearance and dignity, similar to what she felt from the Empire’s Emperor.

She was told he had no aura and had recently learned blood magic, yet she felt she could never defeat him. This made her reconsider the potential of the Gerung-tu.

‘With them, success is guaranteed. The question is how to succeed with minimal casualties.’

She was confident. She had already killed an Orc Lord before, in a full-frontal battle.

Grace had received rear support while the Orc Lord had its own backup, but she had emerged victorious in a direct confrontation.

The decisive technique: Meteor Spear.

That technique, which she had realized through her insight with Valt, had pierced the Orc Lord’s crown.

These Gerung-tu who had suddenly entered her life in various ways.

Grace smiled as she looked at them.

***

“Alright, everyone’s in perfect condition, right?”

Nod—

Everyone nodded at Grace’s words.

“As discussed earlier, we’ll leave the preemptive strike to Liris. Neutralizing the mages is our top priority. It would be troublesome if the Orc Lord or Generals received buff spells or gathered strength.”

At that moment, Liris took out Valt’s blood that she had hidden in her bosom and drank it in one gulp.

WHOOSH!!

With an immense amplification of magical power, Liris’s hair turned white. She opened her eyes wide and exclaimed:

“Let’s begin.”